FACT ANNOUNCES COMPLETION OF THE ACTION PLAN!
After three years of talking with community members, collecting information, and writing, the Lower Alum Creek Watershed Action Plan has been completed! Please click here to view the plan and executive summary.
FACT is also pleased to announce that the action plan has been fully endorsed by the state agencies that funded its creation. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Ohio Department of Natural Resources (DNR) have funded the creation of many watershed action plans across the state. The two agencies conduct thorough plan reviews and grant official endorsement to those meeting stringent standards.
In April 2004, FACT received partial endorsement of the action plan, which meant that portions of the plan met standards, but further work was needed. FACT staff, volunteers, and planning stakeholders continued to revise throughout 2004, resubmitted the plan in January 2005, and received official full endorsement in February 2005. Less than ten watershed action plans across the state have achieved this milestone. Full plan endorsement also means that FACT will be eligible for many state sources of funding to implement the plan.
Please contact FACT at (614) 409-0511 to request a hard copy or CD of the action plan and/or the executive summary. Supplies are limited.
For further background information on what an action plan is and how the Alum Creek plan was developed, please see the section below.
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ACTION PLANNING
Table of Contents:
An action plan is a collection of strategies developed to address a specific issue - in this case the lower Alum Creek watershed. It includes details such as a time line for implementation, responsible parties, funding strategies, and evaluation. These strategies are also accompanied by background information that was gathered to help stakeholders make informed decisions. This information was compiled into a “watershed inventory” that comprises Section III of the action plan.
The lower Alum Creek watershed includes 27 miles of Alum Creek and many tributary streams. Water quality studies have shown that parts of it are not meeting standards for a healthy river. Results of 2003 study conducted by the Ohio EPA are shown in the figure below. Sections of the creek shown in green are in good condition, in yellow are in marginal condition, and in red are in poor condition; blue indicates stream sections that were not evaluated.
An action plan was developed to allow community members to assess what’s affecting the creek and develop strategies to address the causes and sources of degradation. The plan will also help protect areas of the creek that are currently in good condition.
The lower Alum Creek watershed begins as Alum Creek exits the Alum Creek Lake Reservoir in southern Delaware County, and extends south to where Alum Creek “ends” as it joins the Big Walnut Creek in southeastern Franklin County. This occurs within Three Creeks Metro Park near Obetz.
The plan will not only affect the immediate corridor of the creek, but the creek’s entire watershed. A watershed is an area of land that drains to a specific water body. The lower Alum Creek watershed includes parts of Genoa and Orange Townships in Delaware County, Westerville, Minerva Park, Bexley, and parts of Columbus. If you live or work in the watershed, rainfall in your area will eventually run off the land and into Alum Creek. On its way it can pick up a number of pollutants, such as excessive fertilizer from yards or car fluids from roads. Even if you don’t live right next to the creek, your activities can affect the creek’s health.
While the Friends of Alum Creek & Tributaries (FACT) were the primary facilitators of this plan, many members of the community were invited to help create and implement the plan, which is crucial to its success. Participants included municipal officials, agency representatives, local residents, universities, civic associations, and local businesses.
FACT would like to thank the following organizations and governments for their involvement and support!
Acorn Farms Franklin Park Conservatory
City of Bexley Friends of Freedom Society
Capital University Genoa Township (Delaware County)
Centex Homes North Central Area Commission (Columbus)
Central Ohio Sierra Club Northeast Area Commission (Columbus)
City of Columbus Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Columbus Audubon Ohio Environmental Council
Columbus Outdoor Pursuits Ohio Environmental Protection Agency
Delaware County Commissioners Orange Township (Delaware County)
Delaware County Friends of the Trail OSU Extension
Delaware Health District Otterbein College
Delaware Soil & Water Conservation District St. Mary of the Springs
Franklin County Board of Health U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Franklin County Greenways City of Westerville
Franklin County Metro Parks Westerville Greenheads
Franklin Park Area Association
The planning process was designed with two components to accommodate as diverse a group of stakeholders as possible. Throughout 2003, a group of “technical” stakeholders convened to discuss the scientific issues facing the creek that are preventing it from meeting the Ohio EPA’s clean water standards. Participants included scientists, municipal officials, business owners, etc., although attendance was open to everyone. In March 2003, another group of local residents convened to discuss creek issues relating more directly to the community.
We get busy putting it to work! With a completed plan outlining strategies for improving the health of the creek, FACT will work with planning stakeholders and watershed communities to implement action strategies. FACT will continue to host a quarterly action plan meeting to convene stakeholders and discuss progress, challenges, and opportunities for collaboration. The last section of the action plan also describes how the plan will be updated and evaluated over time, including annual reviews and more in-depth revisions every five years.
Funding to implement the plan will come from a variety of sources, including local governments as they integrate action planning strategies. FACT has also applied for a action plan implementation (or “319”) grant from the Ohio EPA, which is anticipated to arrive in late 2005.
Given the broad scope of issues addressed in the action plan it was necessary to prioritize strategies that are most likely to be affective. The following list will provide guidance as the plan is implemented. For more information, please see the action plan executive summary.
- Actions where local partners and opportunities for collaboration have been identified.
- Actions that will target for sediment and habitat impairments.
- Actions to preserve riparian corridor, which will help prevent and mitigate impacts from continuing land use change.
- Actions to selectively remove lowhead dams, which have a large potential to dramatically improve water quality.
- Actions for nonpoint source (or urban runoff) pollution education in selected areas.
All FACT activities are open to the public. Please contact FACT at (614) 409-0511 or doherty@friendsofalumcreek.org if you would like to get involved with action plan implementation and evaluation and to receive notices of quarterly action plan meetings.
