Watershed report shows progress on runoff reduction in SBY
SALISBURY, Md. – The city of Salisbury submitting an updated plan to the Maryland Department of Environment. The aim is to fix impervious surfaces and reduce pollutants that end up in the Chesapeake Bay.
After years of research, members of the Creek Watchers Association are actually starting to see a reduction of runoff pollutants that make their way into the Wicomico River, and ultimately lead into the Bay.
Jennifer Nyland with the creek watchers say, “we are seeing that those levels are being significantly reduced when you have various interventions taking place.”
For the last twenty years, the Wicomico Creek Watchers Association has been monitoring the health of the watershed, specifically the Wicomico River.
“Creek watchers monitor twenty-six different sites along the river,” Nyland said. “We have citizen scientists and volunteers who every other week, from March to November, go out and gather water samples for us.”
Nyland says the pollution interventions that environmental groups and the city of Salisbury have done, like the wastewater treatment plant, have made all the difference. This includes planting native plant species and raising nutrient runoff awareness.
All of those things are helping to reduce nutrients going into the river, or at least improve the health of the watershed.
Things that raise the bacteria and nutrient levels includes “your dog’s poop that you did not pick up, or geese that are doing similar things or other discarded things that wash into the river and will cause an increase in bacteria levels.”
Susan Parker, Coordinator for the Wicomico Environmental Trust, says another big issue was micro plastics winding up in bay.
“Reusable plastic bags are just a disaster. They are everywhere. The wind catches them and they go all over the place. They stay forever they choke wildlife and they kill fish when they get in the water.”
Parker said the number of plastic bags in use had to go down, so the Wicomico Environmental Trust took personal measures to reduce this pollutant.
“Wicomico environmental trust actually raised enough money to purchase about twelve-hundred of those reusable grocery bags for distribution in low income neighborhoods.”
The City of Salisbury submitted a statement saying they are working to contribute to Chesapeake Bay restoration initiatives, which includes the runoff resulting from impervious pavement.
An example is the storm water inlets on streets like Waverly, known as Filterra units, which filter the water before it empties into the Bay, which have helped runoff reduction.
