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Pilot Projects

With EPA support, the Trust for Public Land (TPL), University of Massachusetts-Amherst (UMass), and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) designed the Source Water Stewardship Project to foster sustained local and regional efforts to conserve forests and open space, mitigate pollution, and improve water quality. The project team designed and implemented source protection projects in four watersheds in the Eastern U.S., with the goal of demonstrating the use of forest conservation and watershed management as drinking water protection strategies.

Four competitively-selected watersheds developed and implemented watershed management strategies for drinking water protection. At each site, TPL worked with local leaders to form a steering committee (5-7 members) made up of civic leadership, elected officials, landowners, and other land and water stakeholders interested in protecting water quality. This steering committee then formed a broader committee (25-40 members) to ensure the involvement of key stakeholders from jurisdictions throughout the watershed. Together, the project team and local steering committee facilitated a three-phase process over the next 18 months, that incorporated the following components:

1. Watershed Assessment - an analysis of demographic, land use, biophysical, and financial data;
   
   
2. Stewardship Exchange - a strategy to move communities from analysis to implementation by involving a team of invited experts to identify threats and recommend strategies for implementation;
   
   
3. Implementation - when TPL and its partners work with the local steering committee to secure funding, purchase land or easements, and control pollution.
   
   

For each demonstration site, the project partners worked with a steering committee, as well as local and state agencies, to identify the tools and services that added the greatest value to existing efforts. These communities are featured in case studies by EPA and TPL that model the success of management practices for drinking water protection.

Nashua River Watershed
The Squannacook and Nissitissit Rivers, which are located on the border between Massachusetts and New Hampshire, are important tributaries to the Nashua River. This region faces the challenge of protecting relatively pristine surface and ground water sources and planning for growth. More about the Nashua River Watershed Pilot Project

Upper Little Tallapoosa Watershed
Located one hour west of Atlanta, the Upper Little Tallapoosa watershed in Carroll County, Georgia provides drinking water to the cities of Carrollton, Temple, and Villa Rica. Currently experiencing rapid growth and intensive agricultural land use, Carroll County's goal is to create a "greenprint" for the county's future that enables them to strategically approach land and water resource protection as a smart growth strategy. More about the Upper Little Tallapoosa Watershed Pilot Project

Metedeconk Watershed
The Metedeconk River, which flows from the forested wetlands of its headwaters through a densely populated area, provides drinking water to about 100,000 homes in Ocean and Monmouth Counties, New Jersey. Led by the Brick Municipal Utility Authority, the local committee, consisting of representatives from both counties, are searching for solutions to address their stormwater management and land protection challenges. More about the Metedeconk Watershed Pilot Project

Prettyboy Watershed
The Prettyboy watershed, an 80 square-mile watershed whose headwaters originate in York County, Pennsylvania, flows through Carroll County, Maryland and feeds the Prettyboy Reservoir located in Baltimore County, Maryland. The Prettyboy Reservoir is one of three reservoirs in the Baltimore Metropolitan System that collectively provides water to 1.8 million consumers in Baltimore City and surrounding areas and is threatened by nonpoint source pollution from heavy agriculture and rapid growth in its headwaters. More about the Prettyboy Watershed Pilot Project