Key Steps

Familiarize Yourself with Your Watershed

Comprehensive watershed plans should first identify the characteristics of the watershed and inventory the watershed’s natural resources. It is important to establish a baseline of the overall nature and quality of the watershed in order to plan properly for the improvement of the resources in the watershed and to actually measure those improvements.

The first steps in watershed management planning are to:

Delineate and map the watershed’s boundaries and the smaller drainage basins within the watershed;
Inventory and map the resources in the watershed;
Inventory and map the natural and manmade drainage systems in the watershed;
Inventory and map land use and land cover;
Inventory and map soils;
Identify areas of erosion, including stream banks and construction sites;
Identify the quality of water resources in the watershed as a baseline;
Inventory and map pollution sources, both point sources (such as industrial discharge pipes) and non-point sources (such as municipal stormwater systems, failing septic systems, illicit discharges)

Much of this information may already be compiled and available through the DEP, the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and municipal offices such as planning and zoning, inland wetlands, and public works. Additional information specific to the watershed can be gathered during volunteer stream walks which allow for on the ground study of the general conditions of the receiving waters and the adjacent watershed areas.

Build Local Partnerships

Watershed planning should also identify and include the partners, or "stakeholders," in the watershed. Development of local partnerships can also lead to greater awareness and support from the general public. Once individuals become aware of and interested in their watershed, they often become more involved in decision-making as well as hands-on protection and restoration efforts. Through such involvement, watershed management builds a sense of community, helps reduce conflicts, increases commitment to the actions necessary to meet environmental goals, and ultimately, improves the likelihood of success for the watershed management plan.

Local partnerships can include:

Residents;
Landowners;
Federal, state, and municipal government officials;
Watershed associations and other environmental and civic groups;
Local business and industry leaders;
Agricultural users;
Developers;
Teachers;
Recreational users.

Determine Priorities for Action

Watershed management planning should also determine what the opportunities are to reduce pollution or address other pressing environmental issues, prioritize those opportunities, and identify a time frame for accomplishing pollution reduction and resource and habitat improvements. Those issues that pose the greatest risk to human health or particular resources, or to desired uses of resources (i.e., swimming beaches), might be given highest priority for control and reduction. Watershed plans should establish clear goals, visions, and actions to be taken.

Examples of opportunities to reduce pollution and address other wide-ranging environmental issues include:

Infrastructure improvements. More frequent maintenance of stormwater management systems or improving or replacing inadequate stormwater treatment systems, identifying and eliminating illicit (i.e., non-stormwater) connections to stormwater systems;
Reducing paved areas and other impervious cover, especially adjacent to waterbodies and wetlands. Zoning and subdivision regulations can be revised to address issues such as reducing lot coverage/impervious cover, reducing roadway widths, encouraging cluster and low impact development, limiting land disturbance such as grading and clearing, and increasing development setbacks from resources;
Identifying appropriate areas for open space acquisition, greenways planning, and the establishment of vegetated buffers along waterbodies and wetland areas;
Establishing sewer avoidance areas to limit development;
Increasing inspections and maintenance of existing septic system and encouraging repairs to failing systems;
Identifying other appropriate housekeeping practices for homeowners and landowners (encouraging the use of vegetated buffers adjacent to waterbodies and wetlands, reducing lawn areas and the amount of fertilizers and chemicals applied to them, recommending washing cars over lawns instead of driveways so rinse water can drain into the lawn and not run-off into storm drains, etc.);
Identifying resource and wildlife habitat restoration priorities;
Increasing and promoting public access and greenways and identifying areas where it is appropriate to do so;
Identifying and evaluating opportunities for nonstructural flood protection efforts;
Improving waste management, pollution prevention, and recycling efforts at municipal facilities and businesses within the watershed.

Conduct Educational Programs

The degree of public education and participation in the planning process can greatly influence the success of watershed management. There are many ways to involve and educate the public in watershed management. The formation of citizen review groups and advisory committees can gain public support from the watershed and are an essential component to a successful, community-based, and locally led effort. These community-based groups and committees can also provide the means to keep the project going once the plan has been finalized to make sure that recommended actions are taken. It might also be helpful to identify a watershed coordinator to help in this effort.

Outreach and education efforts can include:

Periodic informational meetings;
Stream and shoreline walk assessments;
Organized storm drain stenciling projects;
Watershed clean-up days and riparian planting/habitat restoration days;
Coordination with school systems within the watershed;
Information kiosks and websites;
Videos;
Newsletters and other printed materials to provide status and progress reports.

Ensure Implementation and Follow-up

It is important to establish a schedule with milestones and some sort of committee to ensure that projects proceed in a timely manner. A monitoring program should also be established to measure success through data gathering. It is also important to identify ways in which landowners can be assisted with undertaking necessary improvements, such as low interest loans or technical outreach information. Finally, it is important to ensure that the recommendations contained in the watershed plan, especially design standards, are integrated into land use regulations (zoning, subdivision, wetlands).