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Upcoming Events

5/20, cleanup at Burnt Mills, auspices of Anacostia Riverkeeper

8:30 AM Registration

9:00 AM Welcome and safety talk

9:30 AM – 12:00PM Cleanup, rain or shine

 All supplies will be provided. Please wear closed-toe shoes and clothes that you don’t mind getting dirty and that protect you from the brush. Please join NNWB and the Anacostia Riverkeeper to keep Burnt Mills litter free! Sign up with ARK at the button below. .

Register for 5/20 cleanup

Recent Events

From Lamberton Trib to Burnt Mills on the NWB trail, 3/11/23

Continuing our exploration of the entire NWB Trail and stream valley, we started at the Lamberton Tributary where we turned back on Feb. 19 and hiked to Burnt Mills and back.  From left, Peter, Bob, Jennifer, Yuri, and George.  Photo by A. Ambler 3/11/23


    From Kemp Mill Rd. to Lamberton Trib on the NWB Trail, 2/19/23

    We started the hike at Brookside Nature Center in order not to overload the parking area at the trailhead on Kemp Mill Rd. Our group included Sylvia Tognetti, staff to Councilmember Natali Fani-Gonzales, who represents the new Montgomery County District 6. The NWB divides District 6 from District 5 at this point.  Photo by A. Ambler, 2/19/23.

      From Pebblestone Dr. to Poplar Run on the NWB Trail, 12/10/22

      Our merry band of 9, including one who rode the whole way, set out from beside the old Bonifant Family Cemetery on Pebblestone Drive, down through the meadow to the NWB trail.

        Story of Streams Presentation 12/6/22

        Eliza Cava, Conservation Director of Nature Forward (formerly Audubon Naturalist Society) reported results from the grant-funded study she led  to rate three tributary streams: the Northwest Branch, Oxon Run (in Prince George's County) and Holmes Run (in VA).  She described the methodology and the ratings: the NWB rated just FAIR.  All this and much much more has been put into an interactive website, the Story of Streams.  And for those who enjoy the NWB,  I enthusiastically draw your attention to the section on the NWB within the chapter on STREAMS.  Scroll down to the NWB and then to the embedded story map by Krista Schlyer. Ms. Schlyer takes the NWB from source to confluence with pictures and history, including the Underground Railroad and Rachel Carson.


        The website is a vast world of information, wherever you look--historical, geographic, and current.  The statements of those who now enjoy these streams, despite their flaws, prove how important they are to the well-being of our communities.  We so need them to be healthier!  And the next chapter of the story of our streams remains to be written. YOU can help to make it better than the recent past chapters.  Link to the overall Story of Streams website.

        Video about State of Stream report

        Stream cleanups: Hyattsville 9/18 and Burnt Mills East 10/22/22

        At the University Hills Duck Pond and Lane Manor Park cleanup in Hyattsville, cleanup leader Ben Simasek has two valuable loads 9/18/22.

          Listening Session, 9/6/22

          You spoke; we listened

          And what we heard was much enthusiasm for restoring the Northwest Branch to a waterway safe for recreation, enjoying the trails, and advocating for both stream and trails maintenance.


          What participants would like to know more about--in their own words:


          -Water quality. [See latest monitoring results on the NNWB Homepage.]

          -Anacostia watershed, pollution.

          -The entire Anacostia, native plants/Invasives.

          -Would love to know more about how the ICC impacted the watershed.

          -I really can't narrow it down…

          -Helping with pollution and becoming a weed warrior.

          -I'd like to know more about the long-term history of the stream, human impact on it, and preservation/conservation attempts. I know the current state, but it'd be nice to have a wider historical picture of things.

          -Can the Burnt Mills Dam and reservoir be used for sediment control by digging out what has been deposited over the decades.

          -I'd like to learn more about the ideal/healthiest state for the plant and animal ecosystem - what would it look like, what species would we want to see in abundance and which ones would we hope not to see?

          -We need to engage more directly with MoCo and PG governments,

          -Stormwater runoff, peoples solutions are to put in hard surfaces and extend their pipes to send their stormwater [to] downhill neighbors, erosion, streams. 


          Serious issues have been raised here.  Much for us to consider! 


          Meanwhile, a poll of participants showed everyone hikes the trails--and would welcome some NNWB hikes.  So look for fall hikes along with our stream cleanups!  Thanks so much, everyone, for your input!  If you would like to add your own comments, please click here to access the Comments page.

          Exploring the northernmost section of the continuous NWB trail 8/29/22

          As we crossed the NWB on a remnant of the old Bonifant Rd., all eyes were on the tree canopy. Pileated woodpecker?

            Exploring part of the NWB Trail in Hyattsville, 8/13/22.

            Claudia uses the occasion to cleanup some of the many discarded bottles.

              ANS launches the Story of Streams, 8/10/22: Northwest Branch, Oxon Run, and Holmes Run.

              The Story of Streams was officially launched at the 1796 Adelphi Mill, coincidentally the birthplace of NNWB 2 decades ago. 

                Presentations

                4/5/22: New President and CEO of AWS, Chris Williams

                3/1/22: Rachel Carson: A local visionary with lessons for today

                3/1/22: Rachel Carson: A local visionary with lessons for today

                Chris shared with us the origins of the Anacostia Watershed Society, with emphasis on "watershed."  The AWS focus has been on the river itself because of its dire state.  But now that the goal of fishable and swimmable by 2025 is within reach, AWS is creating a plan that includes more of the upper watershed and source waters. He asked for our suggestions, since we are protectors of the major source.  The discussion included the AWS position on the beltway-I-270 expansion for toll lanes, synthetic turf as a water pollutant, and the value and risks of stream restorations.


                3/1/22: Rachel Carson: A local visionary with lessons for today

                3/1/22: Rachel Carson: A local visionary with lessons for today

                3/1/22: Rachel Carson: A local visionary with lessons for today

                Board  member Rebecca Henson, who is leading the effort to create a local  museum featuring Rachel Carson, discussed her life and legacy at the March 1 Membership Meeting.  Ms. Carson lived in both the NWB and Sligo Creek watersheds during her nearly three decades of residence in Montgomery County. Rebecca explored how Carson understood and wrote about the natural world, primarily with messages of wonder and caution.  Your can find more information about Rachel Carson on the Friends of Sligo Creek website at https://www.friendsofsligocreek.org/home/how-we-work/sligo-story-archive/rachel-carson-lived-here/

                Click here for YouTube link to presentation

                Hike to Rachel Carson House 11/13/21

                From what a sign proclaims is a really good photo spot at Burnt Mills Special Park West, the group sets out, led by organizer and Rachel Carson enthusiast Rebecca Henson. Photo by A. Ambler, 11/13/21.

                  NWB Cleanup from the end of the NWB trail on Alderton Rd. 11/6/21

                  From the looks of the contents of that clear bag, someone had a beer party in the Northwest Branch woods. 11/6/21

                    11/2/21 Restoring Aquatic Life in the Anacostia River System

                    Dr. Saravanapavan identified where the blockages are that will be removed. Green dot indicates current limit of fish migration; line indicates historic limit.  (Screen shot)

                      Thambirajah Saravanapavan, Ph.D., P.E., Army Corps of Engineers, Project Manager, spoke to a group of nearly 30 interested NWB watershed residents. (Dr. Saravanapavan helpfully encouraged us to address him as Tham.)  In response to his question, "What did we do to get here?"  he said that suburban sprawl with its impervious surfaces brought us to this point, although he also mentioned the earlier goals of the Corps to control flooding, which resulted in straightening the NWB and confining it (my term) between high berms. 


                      His second question, " How do we attempt to reverse our blunders?" is what the Corps is planning.  The projects are not yet designed, and there is room for public input.  His third question, how to sustain what we have managed to restore, again involves the public engagement. 

                       

                      Some notes of interest from the discussion:

                      - minute 49 etc, he mentions a public forum at which people could comment on the design. A participant urges reconnecting the NWB to the floodplain.

                      - min.51, he mentions relocation of some segments of the NWB.

                      - min. 53:45, he restates that the Army's Corps' objective is to bring back the "natural stream functions," i.e., "reverse engineering," but attention to water quality is handled elsewhere.  Discussion of importance of water quality to successful fish populations.


                      You might also want to check the Army Corps' website for the projects.  Note particularly the appendices at the right of the page, including Public Involvement.


                      Entire presentation and Q&A now available

                      The video recording of the presentation and Q&A is now posted, with thanks to Ed Murtagh for the conversion.  Although 29 people were in attendance, including the presenter, for some reason Zoom did not capture them in the video.

                      Link to YouTube video of presentation

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