The Habitat Restoration Program plans, funds, and oversees activities that will protect and restore river, stream and wetland habitats in the District of Columbia.  The intent of these activities is to improve water quality in the District’s waterways and improve the ecological diversity found within the District’s borders.  Completed wetland projects that have been funded by the Habitat Restoration Program include the River Fringe wetland project, the Kingman Lake Wetland project, and the Heritage wetland project.  Currently, there are three stream restoration projects (Watts Branch, Pope Branch and Broad Branch) that are in the design phase. 

 

COMPLETED PROJECTS:

 

 

This project was completed in 2000 in partnership with the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).  The goal of this project was to restore over 40 acres of freshwater tidal wetlands in the Kingman Lake area in order to increase plant and animal diversity and improve the filtering capacity of the Anacostia. Monitoring was conducted by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) for five years and was analyzed in the context of other wetlands that have been restored in Kenilworth Park. Funding for this project was cost shared by the USACE and DDOE.

 

 

 

 

This picture of the river fringe project was taken from the Benning Road Bridge in September of 2006. The yellow flower is the prolific Bidens laevis.

 

  
This picture of the River Fringe wetlands was taken in the fall of 2003 shortly after planting.  The River Terrace park is seen on the left. (photo courtesy of Claire O’Neil)  Turtles and wading birds are already using the wetlands for habitat.

 

The goal of this project was to restore 17 acres of freshwater tidal wetlands along the shores of the Anacostia River adjacent to Kingman Island.  As with the Kingman Lake wetlands, these wetlands will increase the number of beneficial plants and fish in the river and will improve water quality of the Anacostia River. Construction was completed in the fall of 2003. Monitoring is being conducted by DDOE and USGS and will continue for a total of five years.  The funding for this project was cost shared by the USACE and DDOE.

 

 

The goal of this project was to create six acres of high to mid freshwater marsh in Kingman Lake.  The species of plants planted included a high percentage of shrubs such as Button Bush (Cephalanthus occidentalis), Swamp rose (Rosa palustris), Marsh mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos) and other mid marsh species that are generally non palatable to the high number of exotic, non-native resident Canada geese that reside in the area.  An additional goal of this project was to create tidal guts adjacent to the wetland cells for fish and non-motorized water craft passage.  This project was completed in 2006 and funding was shared by DDOE and USACE.  Monitoring is being conducted by DDOE and USGS.

 

Newly planted shubs in the summer of 2006.     

 

 

 

 

In 2007, DDOE worked closely with National Capitol Parks East to fund, design, and construct several Low Impact Development retrofits to treat stormwater runoff from parking lots in  Ft. Dupont Park.  The bioretention cells are located at the Ft. Dupont Activities Center and the Ice Skating Rink parking lot.   Ft. Dupont is a small tributary to the Anacostia River that has been severly impacted by uncontrolled stormwater runoff.  These LID retrofits will help control the stormwater and in turn help improve water quality in the stream.

 

 

 

 

 

The goal of this project is to restore the in-stream habitat and improve the water quality of Watts Branch, a tributary to the Anacostia running through Northeast DC. Restoration will be achieved by reconstructing stream sections that will better accommodate storm water flows and constructing Low Impact Development retrofits that will clean polluted stormwater runoff.   DDOE is partnering with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Chesapeake Bay Field Office for design assistance and the National Resource Conservation Service for construction management.  The stream restoration is an integral component of other important efforts to revitalize the District owned park adjacent to the stream and plans to repair aging sanitary sewer infrastructure.   DDOE plans to initiate construction in late 2009 on this important project.   Partners include:  WASA, DC Parks and Recreation, Washington Parks and People, DDOT, and Deputy Mayor’s Office for Planning and Economic Development.

 

 

The goal of this project is to daylight a 1,600 foot portion of Broad Branch, a tributary to Rock Creek in Northwest DC.  Daylighting a stream is the act of restoring to the open air some or all of the flow of a previously covered creek, or stormwater drainage.  Daylighting this section of the Rock Creek watershed will improve water quality at the location and downstream water quality by exposing water to sunlight, air, soil, and vegetation, all of which help process and remove pollutants.  Furthermore its restoration will reduce nutrient and sediment pollution from erosion caused by fast flowing stormwater by creating meanders and floodplain wetlands which will have wider cross-section and a greater channel depth than the pipe it will replace.  Additional surface flow from adjacent streets and rooftops may be able to be directed to the area by creating curb cuts and redirecting storm sewers to area further slowing, cooling, and filtering stormwater in the subwatershed.

 

There are four governmental agencies involved in this project, the Department of the Environment (DDOE), the Department of Transportation (DDOT), the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC WASA), and the National Park Service (NPS). 

 

 
The old channel can be still be seen even though the source of the stream was diverted approximately 35 years ago.  The bricked up culvert is where the stream is first diverted.

 

 

Located in southeast Washington, DC, Pope Branch is a 1.6-mile first-order tributary of the Anacostia River.  The entire stream lies within DC city boundaries.  The primary land uses of the 250-acre watershed are parkland and residential lands.  Pope Branch is listed on the 303-D List for bacteria, organics, and metals. The primary sources of pollutants are stormwater runoff from yards, streets, and parking lots as well as an aging sanitary sewer that runs along the stream.

 

This project has multiple components, all of which will work towards improving the water quality of Pope Branch.  DDOE is working closely with WASA and DC Department of Parks and Recreation to replace an aging sanitary sewer line and restore a section of the stream from Texas Avenue to Minnesota Avenue.   Additionally, DDOE has funded the construction of several LID storm water retrofits to begin addressing the issue of untreated storm water runoff in this subwatershed.   DDOE has worked with a small citizens group, the Pope Branch Alliance to help organize of neighborhood activities such as trash clean ups.  DDOE expects to complete the designs for this project in 2009 and begin construction in 2010.   Partners include:  WASA, DCPR, and the Pope Branch Alliance. 

 

 

A complimentary project to treat stormwater runoff is the RiverSmart Homes project.  DDOE is piloting this project in the Pope Branch watershed with the expectation that 75 homes will take advantage of the program’s subsidies and will do their part in helping to clean up Pope Branch.