Arundel Rivers Receives Five Anne Arundel County Watershed Restoration Grant Program

Community Outreach Assistant, Lily Hariton measures the stream erosion at Waterworks Park.

We're thrilled to share that Arundel Rivers has been awarded five grants through the Anne Arundel County Watershed Restoration Grant Program. These grants will support a mix of design, permitting, and construction work across the five unique projects below. Th Anne Arundel County Watershed Restoration Grant Program is a partnership between Chesapeake Bay Trust, Anne Arundel County Bureau of Watershed Protection and Restoration, and the City of Annapolis. The award program aims to improve water quality in the County's local streams and waterways as called for in the County’s Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) Permit and County and City of Annapolis’ Stormwater Management Inventory and Watershed Improvement Plan, which require reductions in storm flow volume and pollutants entering the County’s waterways.

Long Point:

We received the final funding needed to build a coastal resilience shoreline stabilization project along approximately 1,600 feet long wrapping around the Long Point peninsula of South River Farm Park in Edgewater. The primary goas of this project are to stabilize the eroding peninsula, enhance the coastal resiliency of Selby Bay and adjacent communities, and reduce pollutant loads entering the South River. We'll also incorporate oyster habitat structures to further protect the shoreline and create new tidal habitat in partnership with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF). Additionally, the design will allow us to add more improvements in the future and help the area adjust as sea levels continue to rise.

Annapolis Waterworks Park:

This grant award will cover the design and permitting of a 1,400 linear foot stream restoration within Annapolis Waterworks Park located in the South River Watershed. This stream flows into Broad Creek, one of Anne Arundel County's most impaired subwatersheds. Because of its impairment, Broad Creek has been a major priority of Arundel Rivers for years. We have completed seven large scale stream restorations within Broad Creek and its tributaries. In 2023 alone Arundel Rivers restored over a mile of stream within the subwatershed. This project will continue the holistic watershed approach by reducing sediment, nutrients, and storm flows far up in the Broad Creek watershed.

Sunny Shores:

The Sunny Shores Community and Arundel Rivers are partnering to stabilize and restore approximately 1,900 feet of stream flowing into the South River. The site of this project lies at the bottom of a stream valley that collects polluted rainwater from the surrounding communities of Sunny Shores and Bon Haven, located at the upper edges of the valley. Stormwater transports sediment from the rapidly eroding stream, often discharging a significant sediment plume into the South River. Additionally, the volume and speed of the stormwater runoff entering the community property have begun to compromise the only access road into the Sunny Shores property. The slopes supporting the road are rapidly eroding and becoming an additional source of sediment pollution. Although the community has attempted stabilization efforts, an engineered solution is necessary to address the complex issues.

Edgewater Beach Shoreline Construction:

Arundel Rivers is working with the Edgewater Beach Shaded Section community to build a living shorelines in three locations throughout the neighborhood. This grant will fund the construction for one of those three sites. These natural shoreline projects will help protect an existing marsh within the community, a rare and vital resource, enhance the site's readiness for marsh migration, and shore up the community's resilience in the face of climate impacts.

Harness Creek Overlook:

Arundel Rivers, in partnership with the Harness Creek Overlook community have received construction funds for a stormwater pond retrofit and step pool stormwater conveyance system (SPSC). This project will restore a stormwater retention pond no longer effective from years of deposited sediment. The step pools will create habitat and help slow and filter polluted rainwater before it makes its way to Harness Creek in the South River Watershed. This site is located within the Critical Area and the ultimate goal of this project is to improve water quality, create new habitat, and slow erosion.