The purpose of this workgroup is to promote urban and industrial environmental stewardship in the Potomac River basin in order to protect downstream sources of drinking water. The goal of the workgroup is to enhance communication of drinking water needs and related Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act water quality programs to urban and industrial stakeholders involved in the implementation of point and non-point source discharges. This workgroup will focus on upstream discharges and pollutant sources. The workgroup’s activities include ongoing efforts to evaluate the impact of road deicers and salts on the Potomac, National (or State) Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) regulated sites, and other sources of urban and industrial contamination. The workgroup will periodically review information on urban land use trends and current urban and industrial management practices throughout the basin.

Some workgroup focus areas are: state stormwater standards, national and state water quality standards, NPDES permits and renewals, and road salts and winter-weather impacts.

Workgroup Objectives

• Improve communications between appropriate urban and industrial stakeholders to both educate Partnership members on urban and industrial source water protection issues in the Potomac River basin and on drinking water concerns.
• Advocate for implementation of environmental stewardship practices that will better protect drinking water in the Potomac River basin.
• Support relevant agencies or groups in obtaining funding to implement source water protection projects, where possible or applicable.

Previous Partnership Activities

• Workgroup members are involved with the development of Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality’s Salt Management Strategy.
• The continued development and utilization of WaterSuite, a GIS tool for source water protection.
• May 2015, Information Session: River Chloride Trends in Snow-Affected Urban Watersheds: Increasing Concentrations Outpace Urban Growth Rate and Are Common Among All Seasons, Steve Corsi, USGS Wisconsin Water Science Center
• February 2014, Information Session: Montgomery County Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Permit (MS4), Pam Parker, Senior Planner, Watershed Management Division, Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection
• Potomac River DWSP Partnership – Our Interest in MS4s, Greg Prelewicz, Fairfax Water
• September 2012, Webinar: Minimizing the Impact of Highway Snow and Ice Control on our Water Supply: the Potomac River
• April 2011, Information Session: Identifying Source Water Protection Opportunities in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Implementation Plans
• July 2010, Information Session: Leveraging Water Quality Standards for Source Water Protection in the Potomac River Basin
• “A Little Less Salt, Please” – April 12, 2009, Washington Post op-ed