Watts Branch | |
---|---|
Location | |
States | Maryland |
County | Prince George's County, Maryland |
City | Washington, D.C. |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | |
• coordinates | 38°52′14″N76°54′16″W / 38.8706432°N 76.9045399°W |
Mouth | |
• location | Anacostia River |
• coordinates | 38°54′21″N76°57′26″W / 38.905706°N 76.957115°W |
Length | 4.9 miles (7.9 km) |
Basin size | 11,500 acres (47 km2) |
Basin features | |
River system | Potomac River |
Watts Branch is a tributary stream of the Anacostia River in Prince George's County, Maryland, and Washington, D.C.
The headwaters of the stream originate in the Capitol Heights area of Prince George's County, and the branch flows roughly northwest for 4.9 miles (7.9 km) to the Anacostia, which drains to the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay. The watershed area of Watts Branch is about 6,000 acres (24 km2) in Prince George's County and 5,500 acres (22 km2) in Washington. [1]
Watts Branch is in a highly urbanized area, and its water quality has been rated as poor by government agencies. The stream has been polluted by urban runoff (stormwater), dumped trash and leaking sewer pipes. Much of the stream is in concrete channels or culverts. [2] A variety of stream cleanup and restoration projects have been initiated by D.C. government, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other federal agencies, in cooperation with community organizations such as the Anacostia Riverkeeper, the Anacostia Watershed Society, Groundwork Anacostia, and the Watts Branch Community Alliance. [3]
The Potomac River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States that flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. It is 405 miles (652 km) long, with a drainage area of 14,700 square miles (38,000 km2), and is the fourth-largest river along the East Coast of the United States. More than 6 million people live within its watershed.
The Patuxent River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay in the state of Maryland. There are three main river drainages for central Maryland: the Potomac River to the west passing through Washington, D.C., the Patapsco River to the northeast passing through Baltimore, and the Patuxent River between the two. The 908-square-mile (2,352 km2) Patuxent watershed had a rapidly growing population of 590,769 in 2000. It is the largest and longest river entirely within Maryland, and its watershed is the largest completely within the state.
The Anacostia River is a river in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States. It flows from Prince George's County in Maryland into Washington, D.C., where it joins with the Washington Channel and ultimately empties into the Potomac River at Buzzard Point. It is about 8.7 miles (14.0 km) long. The name "Anacostia" derives from the area's early history as Nacotchtank, a settlement of Necostan or Anacostan Native Americans on the banks of the Anacostia River.
Sligo Creek is a free-flowing tributary of the Northwest Branch of the Anacostia River in Maryland. The creek is approximately 9.1 miles (14.6 km) long, with a drainage area of about 11.6 square miles (30 km2).
The Potomac Heritage Trail, also known as the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail or the PHT, is a designated National Scenic Trail corridor spanning parts of the mid-Atlantic region of the United States that will connect various trails and historic sites in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia. The trail network includes 710 miles (1,140 km) of existing and planned sections, tracing the natural, historical, and cultural features of the Potomac River corridor, the upper Ohio River watershed in Pennsylvania and western Maryland, and a portion of the Rappahannock River watershed in Virginia. The trail is managed by the National Park Service and is one of three National Trails that are official NPS units.
Rock Creek is a tributary of the Potomac River, in the United States, that empties into the Atlantic Ocean via the Chesapeake Bay. The 32.6-mile (52.5 km) creek drains about 76.5 square miles (198 km2). Its final quarter-mile is affected by tides.
The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority(DC Water) provides drinking water, sewage collection, and sewage treatment for Washington, D.C. The utility also provides wholesale wastewater treatment services to several adjoining municipalities in Maryland and Virginia, and maintains more than 9,000 public fire hydrants in Washington, D.C.
Mattawoman Creek is a 30.0-mile-long (48.3 km) coastal-plain tributary to the tidal Potomac River with a mouth at Indian Head, Maryland, 20 miles (32 km) downstream of Washington, D.C. It comprises a 23-mile (37 km) river flowing through Prince George's and Charles counties and a 7-mile (11 km) tidal-freshwater estuary in Charles County. About three-fourths of its 94-square-mile (240 km2) watershed lies in Charles County, with the remainder in Prince George's County immediately to the north.
The Chesapeake Bay Program is the regional partnership that directs and conducts the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay in the United States. As a partnership, the Chesapeake Bay Program brings together members of various state, federal, academic and local watershed organizations to build and adopt policies that support Chesapeake Bay restoration. By combining the resources and unique strengths of each individual organization, the Chesapeake Bay Program is able to follow a unified plan for restoration. The program office is located in Annapolis, Maryland.
Little Falls Branch, a 3.8-mile-long (6.1 km) tributary stream of the Potomac River, is located in Montgomery County, Maryland. In the 19th century, the stream was also called Powder Mill Branch. It drains portions of Bethesda, Somerset, Friendship Heights, and Washington, D.C., flows under the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (C&O), and empties into the Potomac at Little Falls rapids, which marks the upper end of the tidal Potomac.
Paint Branch is a 17.0-mile-long (27.4 km) tributary stream of the Anacostia River that flows Southeastwards through Montgomery County and Prince George's County, Maryland. Specifically, its primary tributary is of the Northeast Branch, which flows to the Anacostia River, Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay. The beginning elevation of the stream is 480 feet above sea level and it subsequently drops to 30 feet when its flows meet the Indian Creek in College Park, Maryland.
Watts Branch is a tributary stream of the Potomac River in Montgomery County, Maryland.
Hickey Run is a tributary stream of the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C.
Muddy Branch is a tributary stream of the Potomac River in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, located about 14 miles (23 km) northwest of Washington, D.C.
Northwest Branch Anacostia River is a 21.5-mile-long (34.6 km) free-flowing stream in Montgomery County and Prince George's County, Maryland. It is a tributary of the Anacostia River, which flows to the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay.
The Anacostia Tributary Trail System (ATTS) is a unified and signed system of stream valley trails joining trails along the Anacostia tributaries of Northwest Branch, Northeast Branch, Indian Creek and Paint Branch with a trail along the Anacostia River, set aside and maintained by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC) in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C.
Northeast Branch Anacostia River is a 3.2-mile-long (5.1 km) free-flowing stream in Prince George's County, Maryland. It is a tributary of the Anacostia River, which flows to the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay.
Pope Branch is a tributary stream of the Anacostia River in Washington, DC, United States. The headwaters of the stream originate near Fort Davis Drive, and the branch flows roughly northwest for about 1 mile (1.6 km) to the Anacostia, which drains to the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay. The watershed area of Pope Branch is about 0.4 square miles (1.0 km2).
The Green Branch of the Patuxent River in Prince George's County, Maryland is part of the Upper Patuxent Watershed. The stream passes centrally through the Governor Bridge Natural Area / Patuxent River Park and joins the Patuxent, just south of Governor's Bridge.
Oxon Run is a tributary stream of Oxon Creek and the Potomac River in Prince George's County, Maryland, and Washington, D.C.