Earlier this year, the Center for Watershed Protection, with assistance from the Pennsylvania Environmental Council, organized and facilitated a workshop with representatives from Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and members of various watershed organizations from the Delaware River Watershed. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss possibilities for collaboration between PennDOT and organizations working on restoration within the Delaware River Watershed Initiative (or DRWI). As the leading organization on stormwater management in the region, the Center recognized the need for dialogue on this topic, and how synthesizing efforts could drastically increase the efficiency of restoration efforts in the Delaware River Watershed.

The DRWI is a unique enterprise funded by the William Penn Foundation, and includes more than fifty different organizations working with municipalities, farmers, and property owners to improve water quality and provide for “swimmable, fishable, drinkable water for years to come.” Urban runoff is one of the major issues affecting water quality in the watershed, which encompasses over 13,000 square miles in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Delaware.  PennDOT is working to implement strategies towards their municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) Pollution Reduction Plan goals, which includes restoration projects to address the impacts of highway runoff. The workshop provided a forum for these groups to discuss how to work together to accomplish mutual goals.

Highlights from the workshop include:

  • Identification of a contact person at the Southeastern PA PennDOT District 6 office that watershed partners can contact to discuss future collaborative work
  • Proposed mechanisms and roles for successful collaboration, presented by PennDOT—topics included shared street sweeping schedules, offsite mitigation, innovative maintenance roles and project identification through the Transportation Improvement Program
  • Specific projects presented by DRWI organizations that could benefit both PennDOT and water quality in the Delaware River Basin, fueling discussion on future collaboration

Workshop attendees included representatives from PennDOT’s Central Office and the Design and Maintenance Units from District 6, with ten different non-profits and organizations working within the Upstream Suburban Philadelphia, Brandywine-Christina and Schuylkill Highlands regions of the DRWI.  This workshop was the first step in establishing a framework for collaborating on restoration projects in the Delaware River Watershed and across the State of Pennsylvania.  This framework can provide a model for other states where transportation agencies and other stakeholders share common goals and can work together to address their water quality issues.

The Center for Watershed Protection wishes to sincerely thank the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the William Penn Foundation for their generous support and funding to make this meeting possible. For more information about this project, contact Mike Hickman at jmh@cwp.org.