In January 2019, LFWA was awarded a $20,000 grant from the Montgomery County Department of Environment Protection to tackle the stormwater run-off problem at Sumner Village, a condominium community in Bethesda. The green areas by tennis court two had little or no vegetation and turned to a sea of mud when it rained. In addition, the creek adjacent to the area were experiencing considerable erosion due to rain water run-off. The fence has been moved several times in the past years because the bank has collapsed.
Stormwater Management for Little Falls Parkway
UPDATE, July 2020: The project is complete!
Project Complete! The concrete has been removed and replaced with a vegetated infiltration swale planted with native grasses and wildflowers.
Before: The concrete storm ditch collected water from uphill properties and directed it to the Willett Branch, causing flooding and erosion of downstream creeks.
April, 2020: The concrete ditch along Little Falls Parkway at Dorset Avenue is getting a stormwater management upgrade. The concrete is being removed and replaced with a vegetated swale. This will allow the stormwater run-off to soak into the ground instead of filling the channel and flowing directly to the Willett and Little Falls creeks. The swale will be planted with native wild flowers and grasses which will bring much needed native plants to the area.
The project is being undertaken by Montgomery Parks. The start date was April 2020 and completion is expected by June 2020. Please contact Erin McArdle, PE with any questions regarding the project. Erin.McArdle@MontgomeryParks.org
LFWA & Corona Virus Pandemic: a Personal Message from Our President
When I joined the board of Little Falls Watershed Alliance (LFWA) and later became president, I never envisioned writing a letter like this on a subject like this. I envisioned communicating about the organization’s many great accomplishments, its dynamic leadership, its tremendous volunteers, its myriad activities and our improving environment. I’ve enjoyed and am certain I will continue to enjoy opportunities to broadcast such things. Needless to say, the Coronavirus pandemic has, at least temporarily, disrupted our lives, plans and short-term aspirations.
Among LFWA’s greatest strengths is its vibrant volunteer base and the plethora of effective volunteer activities. Unfortunately, at our last board meeting, we made the difficult but responsible decision to suspend all sponsored volunteer activities for the foreseeable future, until they’re safe to resume. We hope and pray that our community can move past this and that we can resume our volunteer programs as quickly as possible. We want you to know that even during this pause, we continue to work hard on behalf of our watershed. We recently collaborated with our Maryland legislative representatives and provided testimony to help secure funding for the future Willett’s Branch Park and are currently preparing for virtual meetings on the proposed Westbard II site plan and senior center, among other things.
I encourage you all to continue to safely enjoy our watershed, including the Little Falls Stream Valley Park and Capital Crescent Trail. Nature can provide great comfort and solace in these trying times. I was out walking along the Little Falls Branch with my family on Sunday and signs of spring were everywhere. The loud whoosh of a huge Great Blue Heron taking off from the stream just above Massachusetts Ave. startled us. We also noticed several pairs and families of mallard ducks lazily swimming and feeding on the water. Finally, we observed fish, small and large, returning to the stream, as they do every spring. Our parks, always heavily used, are even more so now. Please be careful about social distancing, wear masks when advisable and do everything you can to stay safe. And, as always, if you venture out, feel free to bring a bag and pick up any trash you see to keep our environment clean.
On behalf of the entire LFWA Board, we wish you the best during this difficult time. Stay well!
Jack Sobel
LFWA President
Winter is for Removing English Ivy
Winter is here and there is one important thing that every homeowner can do to save their trees - remove any English Ivy that is growing up the trunks. Ivy can strangle trees, accelerate rot, attract mosquitoes and cause mature trees to fall down during storms. With the threat of snow, it's important that you pay attention to the last warning - the weight of snow added to the weight of the ivy can cause mature trees to fall down during storms.
Stormwater Management for Sumner Village
In January 2019, LFWA was awarded a $20,000 grant from the Montgomery County Department of Environment Protection to tackle the stormwater run-off problem at Sumner Village, a condominium community in Bethesda. The green areas by tennis court two had little or no vegetation and turned to a sea of mud when it rained. In addition, the creek adjacent to the area were experiencing considerable erosion due to rain water run-off. The fence has been moved several times in the past years because the bank has collapsed.
Westbard Plan Approved
What is ESD to the MEP and Why Do We Care About It?
UPDATE March 14, 2019. The Planning Board Approves Regency Center's application. Rejects our request for NO waiver.
Where Does Rain Water Go and Stormwater Management
When it rains, the water hits the ground, the pavement, the roof tops, driveways, parking lots, etc. Some of it soaks into the ground (infiltrates) and some of runs off the impervious surfaces into the storm drain system - down gutters, into storm drain pipes, finally ending up in our waterways through outfall pipes. Too much stormwater run-off in our rivers and creeks causes flooding, erosion, increased pollution, loss of habitat and degradation of the waterway banks.
LFWA to Track Impact of Road Salt on Creek
Too much on the road by Amerian University in Washington DC. The white stripes are salt that is four or five inches deep in some places.
All over the snowy regions, scientists are finding that road salt runoff poses an increasing threat to aquatic ecosystems. Although, the salt keeps the roads safer by lowering the melting temperature, there is an environmental cost. When it rains, the salt washes into creeks and rivers and raises the salinity of the water. Fish and other stream life cannot live in the salty water.
The Izaak Walton League has a program for citizen scientists to track the impact of road salts on local streams. We would love to have a tester in the watershed. Please contact Little Falls Watershed Alliance at stormwater@LFWA.org if you are interested.
The Izaak Walton League of America will send you free chloride test strips to take to your stream: one for a baseline reading, one for a reading after salt has been applied, and a couple more for readings after warm weather or storm runoff has washed the salt into the stream. You then upload your results through the Water Reporter app to a map. More information is HERE.
HERE'S an article from the Washington Post that does a good job of describing the issues.
For a lot of good information on what northern states are doing to minimize the effect of road salt, visit the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services HERE.
And here's some information about how Minnesota DOT is cutting back on salt use.
Who is the Izaac Walton League?
From their website (http://www.iwla.org)
The Izaak Walton League was founded in 1922 to conserve outdoor America for future generations. The League's 54 founders, who were avid anglers, named the organization after Izaak Walton, the 17th century author of The Compleat Angler, a classic book about the art and spirit of fishing. We are one of the earliest conservation organizations to set an aggressive course to defend wild America by changing public policy. Almost every major, successful conservation program that America has in place today can be traced directly to a League activity or initiative.
There are over 240 chapters in local communities nationwide include three in the Montgomery County, MD area.
Salt from Roads is Contaminating Little Falls Creek
Not snow, but too much road salt.
Run-off from spills like this go directly to the creek and then to the Potomac River. A recent study shows that US rivers, including the Potomac, are becoming increasingly salter affecting the drinking water supply.
Urban streams like Little Falls Branch have it tough in the winter. As usual, the culprit is us. Because it's safer to have clear streets free of ice and snow, the people that plow the snow also put down salt – in huge quantities. As soon as things melt, much of that salt ends up in in the creek.
To document the impact of road salt run-off, LFWA volunteers are taking water samples to see how high salt levels are in the creek and how they are affected by snow storms. Stream team leader Frank Sanford is heading it up, working with the Izaak Walton League’s Winter Saltwatch. We are sampling at three locations: (1) in Somerset, just downstream of the bridge near the swimming pool, (2) in the Green Acres neighborhood, where the creek runs through a concrete channel and (3) below Massachusetts Avenue.
In general, levels during the summer and fall were safe enough for living things in the creek at both locations. However, after the snowfall on January 12 and 13 there was a dramatic increase. At the Somerset location, the concentration shot up from below 29 ppm in December to 299 ppm on January 15 and 548 ppm on the 18th. At the Massachusetts Ave. location, the concentration was literally off the chart – probably 800 ppm or more. That level is considered toxic for animal life; chronic exposures are unhealthy at as low as 230 ppm.
LFWA is working to make the municipalities who arrange for snow removal more aware of the problem, but with little effect so far. We hope that with continued sampling to demonstrate the very real impact of road salting, we may be able to make more progress.
Home owners can help reduce the impact of salt:
By limiting how much salt they use on their sidewalks and driveways. More is not better when it comes to salting.
By switching to magnesium chloride road salt. It continues to melt snow and ice until the temperature reaches -13 F. The salt releases 40% less chloride into the environment that either rock salt or calcium chloride.
By using a salt alternative – like kitty litter, sand or even a towel to cover slippery spots.
By reporting salt spills to 311. The County or DC Government will send someone out to clean them up. If they don’t, let your elected officials know.
Figure from From Izaak Walton League, Winter Salt Watch
Email the Planning Board Now
A New Life for the Willett Branch; A New Park for the Westbard Sector
New development is coming to the Westbard sector and it will increase the density of the area three-fold. New residential and mixed use building will be where small shops once operated. With this change, we MUST have green space. The Draft Master Plan proposes a new Stream Valley Park and a naturalized Willett Branch creek which would run through the sector like "a green ribbon" providing residents with walking trails, seating and a way to enjoy the outdoors.
Email the Planning Board HERE to tell them that you support this vision for the sector and that no changes should be made or exceptions granted in the new master plan. If the email doesn't work for you, you can download a sample letter HERE.
Email NOW! The Planning Board meets on December 3 to discuss the environment elements of the Proposed plan. More information about the Westbard Sector Plan rewrite is HERE.
WE WANT THIS,
Willett Branch as it could be.
NOT THIS,
Sample Letter Supporting the Naturalization of the Willett Branch in the Westbard Sector.
Download a copy HERE.
Dear______________________
I support a Westbard Sector Plan that includes a naturalized Willett Branch. The environmental planners have come up with an innovated design that makes the creek an amenity for the area – a place where people can walk, enjoy nature and congregate. The current state of this creek is shameful. The walls are covered in graffiti and the banks are lined with trash. It winds behind the building where it is out of sight and out of mind. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Instead of turning their backs to the creek, new development would embrace the creek as part of their open space making the Westbard Sector a show place for the County.
Moving forward, we need open space for the new residents of the Westbard sector to stretch their legs and enjoy the beautiful natural area that the Little Falls watershed has to offer. Please vote to support a Master Plan with strong environmental component and a naturalized Willett Branch with no exemptions or waiver for any development or developer.
Sincerely,
______________________________
Contact Information
Planning Board
Casey Anderson, Chair
M-NCPPC
8787 Georgia Ave.
Silver Spring, MD 20910
MCP-Chair@mncppc-mc.org
County Council
Council Office Building
100 Maryland Avenue, 5th Floor
Rockville, MD 20850
county.council@montgomerycountymd.gov
County Executive Ike Leggett
Office of County Executive
Executive Office Building, 2nd floor
101 Monroe St., Rockville, MD 20850
ike.leggett@montgomerycountymd.gov
ocemail@montgomerycountymd.gov