Better Site Design Archives - Center for Watershed Protection

Building Capacity for Low Impact Development in Washington, DC

Stormwater runoff is problematic throughout the District of Columbia. Since most land within the District has already been developed, improvements to stormwater management rely, for the most part, on voluntary installation of “low impact development” or LID practices as retrofits. These practices aim to retain runoff and reduce the amount of pollution entering District waterways. In 2018, CWP received a grant from the District of Columbia Department of Energy and Environment to build capacity among the city’s nonprofit business districts for the installation and maitnenanceof LID projects. These entities provide education and outreach to businesses and residents in their [...]

admin2023-11-28T13:00:55-05:00September 26th, 2023|

Project Update: Using a Novel Research Framework to Assess Water Quality Impacts of Urban Trees

Urban trees impact the hydrologic cycle by capturing runoff in the canopy, drawing water from the soil, and adding organic matter to the soil to increase infiltration. These processes collectively contribute to the ability of urban trees to reduce the amount of rainfall that contributes to stormwater runoff. Increasingly municipal stormwater programs allow site developers to earn stormwater management “credit” for preserving or planting trees on development sites. Modeling tools such as i-Tree Hydro and the Center’s urban tree credit calculators have helped to improve how we quantify the effects of urban trees on stormwater runoff. The Center was awarded [...]

admin2022-12-01T08:11:20-05:00September 21st, 2022|

Building Tree-Friendly Policies in the City of Charlotte

The City of Charlotte, North Carolina has adopted a “50% in 2050” city-wide tree canopy goal in recognition that trees and other green and open spaces are central elements to connect urban places and create access to the natural environment in Charlotte; and that the urban forest generates resiliency, sustainability, and supports a livable and healthy Charlotte. In 2020, the City’s Department of Planning, Design & Development led a study to better define policies that preserve, restore and enhance tree canopy in the context of the City’s anticipated growth. The City contracted with the Center for Watershed Protection (CWP) and [...]

admin2021-03-26T16:06:49-04:00March 25th, 2021|

Experts Release First-Ever Plan to Clean Up Pollution from Conowingo Dam, Restore Chesapeake Bay

October 14, 2020, Ellicott City, MD – After months of collaboration, a coalition of nonprofits, including the Center for Watershed Protection, have drafted a comprehensive and cost-effective approach to reduce nutrient pollution flowing past the Conowingo Dam into the Chesapeake Bay. This work began in September 2019 when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provided nearly $600,000 for three projects to further the Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP), including support for the Center for overseeing the WIP’s development and implementation. The coalition, which also includes the Chesapeake Bay Trust and the Chesapeake Conservancy, partnered with the EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Program [...]

admin2020-10-20T14:03:55-04:00October 20th, 2020|

North Branch Bennett Creek Stream Restoration Complete

The Center for Watershed Protection is happy to announce the completion of a $1.3 million, three-year project to restore over 2/3 of a mile of stream at the Bar-T Mountainside property in Urbana, Maryland. The Center managed the overall project with design and construction support from Ecotone, and the work was funded by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Frederick County and Baltimore Gas and Electric. The North Branch of Little Bennett Creek flows through the 115-acre Bar-T Mountainside property, owned by Joe Richardson and operated as an outdoors summer camp and afterschool program. This project restored a 1,744-foot segment [...]

admin2020-05-26T14:44:00-04:00May 26th, 2020|

New Guide for Retrofitting Stormwater Ponds on Private Lands

Throughout the U.S., thousands of waters are listed for water quality impairments from stormwater sources. Total maximum daily loads (TMDLs) developed to address these impairments are enforced in part through municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) permits, and compliance with these TMDL requires retrofitting developed lands by installing new or upgrading existing stormwater best management practices (BMPs). However, the supply of public lands on which to install retrofits is limited since the majority of land in most communities is privately-owned. As a result, MS4 entities must figure out how to also harness private lands for retrofit installation. The Center for [...]

admin2020-01-24T10:02:48-05:00January 21st, 2020|

Project Update: Helping the City of Raleigh Advance Tree Conservation to Improve Air and Water Quality

The City of Raleigh is one of the fastest growing urban areas in North Carolina with goals to develop with environmental protections to improve and protect air and water quality. The City recognized the importance of the urban forest as an integral part to achieve these goals. In 2019, the City secured the services of the Center for Watershed Protection to determine and recommend how the conservation and/or expansion of forest and tree canopy during development can help to improve water and air quality. This work is intended to address the following goal identified in the Growth and Natural Resources [...]

admin2019-09-27T11:12:11-04:00September 26th, 2019|

New Case Studies on Conservation Design and Smart Growth

The case studies listed below describe and illustrate residential, commercial, and mixed-use developments that are notable for their innovative features, such as compact design enabling more land to be conserved for infiltration and recharge. They are similar to the 76 case studies included in the 2015 update of Rural by Design (subtitled Planning for Town and Country), which contains a long chapter on “low-impact development” approaches to manage stormwater more effectively. To paraphrase from the introduction to that book, “my goal has always been to provide the kind of resource that I wish had been available when I was a [...]

admin2022-09-08T12:47:24-04:00February 2nd, 2018|

An Updated Code and Ordinance Worksheet for Improving Local Development Regulations

Published in 1998, the Center for Watershed Protection’s Better Site Design Handbook outlines 22 model development principles for site design that act to reduce impervious cover, conserve open space, prevent stormwater pollution, and reduce the overall cost of development. The model development principles were created through a national Site Planning Roundtable, a consensus-based process initiated to create more environmentally sensitive, economically viable and locally appropriate development. The roundtable consisted of over 30 influential individuals from various organizations around the nation, including environmental groups, transportation officials, planners, realtors, homebuilders, land trusts, fire officials, county mangers and more. The Better Site Design [...]

admin2017-12-19T13:55:51-05:00December 19th, 2017|