August 2002

Are you a friend of Sligo Creek

Remember, the health of Sligo Creek is a reflection of the health of the Patuxent River and, in turn, the entire Chesapeake Bay watershed. Photo: Julie Wiatt

One of the nicest amenities our community has to offer is easy access to a beautiful park like Sligo Creek. Hopefully, residents appreciate all that Sligo has to offer, including natural, open space, interesting wildlife (kingfisher, turtles, four species of heron, and foxes), and abundant recreation opportunities.

Hopefully, residents also appreciate how difficult it is managing an urban watershed like Sligo Creek, one of the most urbanized in the area. Pressures on Sligo Creek include pollutants, habitat loss, exotic species, trash, and storm water run-off.

Despite all of these problems, the health of Sligo Creek is improving, thanks to the efforts of community volunteers and the State of Maryland. They have been working for years to protect and improve the Sligo Creek Watershed.

A watershed is an area of land which drains to a common point. This may be a stream, pond, river, lake or estuary. Watersheds generally provide three functions for an ecosystem. A watershed captures moisture from the atmosphere, stores and filters the water through the soil, and slowly releases the water into a body of waterin our case, a creek. It's important to remember that while we live in the Sligo Creek watershed, we also live in the Anacostia River watershed, into which Sligo feeds, and we also live in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, into which the Anacostia feeds.

The Sligo Creek watershed is generally bound by Arcola Avenue and University Boulevard to the north and east, Queen's Chapel Road to the southeast, and the District of Columbia and Georgia Avenue to the west. The difficulty in trying to keep Sligo Creek healthy is that certain activities and practices (pesticide use, for example, or petroleum and chemical leaks from automobiles) anywhere in the watershed can end up polluting the creek.

Seventy-five percent of the watershed is in Montgomery County, with 20 percent in Prince George's County and 5 percent in the District of Columbia. While residential and commercial use account for 83 percent of the land in the watershed, only 10 percent is in forest cover.

Because of this land-use pattern, Sligo Creek watershed is 35 percent impervious, mostly in the form of roads and parking lots. This means over a third of the watershed receives little or no filtration before entering Sligo Creeksignificantly increasing the amount of pollutants that will actually reach the creek.

The Maryland Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has been working on restoration projects for Sligo Creek since 1989. Approximately $2 million has been spent on construction projects to control storm water quantity and quality, restore both tributary and mainstream habitat, create wetlands and reforest, and reintroduce native fish and amphibian species. A number of "holding ponds" have been constructed along Sligo Creek to help filter and regulate storm water. We were lucky that Sligo Creek had the space to build these ponds and incorporate them in the stormwater management plan, and now this work is being looked at as a model for other communities.

The result of all of these efforts has been the improvement in the condition of Sligo Creek from poor to faira significant improvement, considering all of the pressures on the watershed and the diffuse nature of most of the problems. Still, many of the physical problems still exist for the watershed: the imperviousness of the watershed, poor storm water management throughout the watershed, and the piping of many of the fingers (tributaries), which equals no filtration and faster run-off. Due to such factors, the creek had become a kind of a single-velocity stream, with few riffles or pools.

It is estimated that in 1800, Sligo Creek held 50 species of fish. Only two have survived: the Black Nose Dace and the Creek Chub. Not coincidentally, the Black Nose Dace prefers riffles, the Creek Chub prefers slower-moving water and pools, and both are extremely pollution-tolerant.

As the health of the watershed has improved, there has been an opportunity to reintroduce species whose traditional range included Sligo Creek. DEP attempted to introduce 17 species, 13 of which have successfully reproduced and seem to have taken hold in the creek. Work was also done to diversify the aquatic habitat by pinching the stream to create riffles and adding boulders to help create pools.

Along with the physical improvements to the stream, volunteers and community activists have been working to address many of the other pressures on Sligo Creek. Leading this effort has been the Friends of Sligo Creek, a nonprofit whose mission is to restore the water quality, aesthetic beauty and overall health of the Sligo Creek watershed. On a practical level, this means spending a great deal of time assessing the stream conditions, developing strategies to address problems in the watershed, advocating better management practices, and working in and around the creek to clean up and improve stream conditions.

One of the major issues FOSC is dealing with right now is trash. Trash and illegal dumping take away from the natural beauty of the park, but they also pose a threat to the flora, fauna and human populations in and around Sligo Creek. It is estimated that close to 20,000 tons of trash and debris end up in the Anacostia River every year, much of it entering from tributaries. Most of the tributary trash comes from the regular activities of area residents, but illegal dumpingthe disposal of solid waste in areas not approved for dumpingis also a problem. Montgomery County and the State of Maryland both have laws to fine and prosecute violators, but limitations on enforcement reduce the effectiveness of such laws.

This is where our community can play an essential part in addressing this problem. Both Montgomery and Prince George's Counties have hotlines to report illegal dumping. In Montgomery County, call 240-777-DUMP and in P.G. County, call 301-833-6100.

A great way to get involved with the Friends of Sligo Creek is to join their effort "Sweep-the-Creek" on Saturday, Sept. 14 from 9 a.m. to noon. FOSC and volunteers will be working to clean up all of Sligo Creek Park in one day. This is an opportunity to do something good for your community, to learn about Sligo Creek and to spend some time in the woods and in the water. For more information, you can check out the FOSC web site at www.fosc.org/watershed_info.htm or send an email to fosc_president@fosc.org and ask for details on the "Sweep-the-Creek" event.

A second problem that FOSC is addressing is exotic or invasive species, also known as biological pollution. These species can wreak havoc on an ecosystem. In Sligo Creek there are a number of invasive species, including Porcelainberry, Lesser Celandine, and Kudzu, which spread rapidly and choke out much of the native vegetation.

Volunteers are needed to help FOSC and other local groups control the spread of invasive species. Anyone interested in helping out with removal should contact the FOSC for more information.

Just as important as volunteering to remove invasives is choosing not to plant them in your yard. FOSC has a list of invasive species in Sligo Creek and many of these plants, such as English Ivy and Japanese Honeysuckle, are spread to the park from our yards and gardens. Even if you don't live right next to the park, plants from your yard can create problems in Sligo and other public spaces.

Another way our community can help improve Sligo Creek is to help regulate stormwater run-off. There are a number of ways to improve storm water run-off around the house. The first goal should be to retain as much stormwater as possible, so it can be regulated and filtered in a natural process. Planting your yard to increase water retention and removing impervious surfaces are two of the best ways to do this, but using rain barrels and reducing the wash-off of soil, mulch and other debris are also important. Residents should also keep their cars tuned up to prevent leaks of any chemical or gas, and should minimize the use of pesticides and detergents in and around the home.

The work done to improve our watershed has a big impact on our local environment, but it also improves our lives and the lives of our children, our pets, and so many of the migratory species that come through our area.

There is plenty to do, but don't make it all work and no play. Next time you have a chance, go down to Sligo, enjoy its beauty, and meet some of your new neighbors. The Tessellated Darter and Northern Hogsucker are back. and dusk is a good time to see a little green heron. They may not thank you for what you are doing, but they sure do appreciate it.

Join the local nonprofit Friends of Sligo Creek for "Sweep-the-Creek" on Saturday, Sept. 14 from 9 a.m. to 12. Volunteers will be working to clean up all of Sligo Creek Park in one day. Grab the kids and come out to help your community while enjoying a splash in the creek. For information, visit www.fosc.org.