The NC Wetlands Restoration Program
The NC Wetlands Restoration Program (NCWRP) is an innovative, nonregulatory program housed within the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, intended to help restore wetlands, streams and riparian buffer areas throughout the state utilizing a watershed planning approach.

The NCWRP works with landowners, federal, state and local governments, as well as other organizations and programs to identify feasible and effective restoration opportunities through planning activities. The program does its own planning, design, implementation, monitoring and maintenance of the projects it implements.

The Pasquotank River Local Watershed Planning Initiative
The NC Wetlands Restoration Program (NCWRP) in cooperation with several local entities, has embarked on a new watershed restoration strategy called Local Watershed Planning within the Pasquotank River drainage. The portion of the Pasquotank River drainage which is the focus of these efforts is located within Camden, Gates and Pasquotank Counties and includes Areneuse Creek, Big and Little Flatty Creeks, Mill Dam Creek, Newbegun Creek, Charles Creek, Knobbs Creek, Sawyers Creek, Halls Creek, Joyce Creek, and other small streams feeding into the Pasquotank River. Local Watershed Plans are developed for small watersheds to identify all factors contributing to water quality degradation within the watershed and provide voluntary strategies to address nonpoint sources of pollution.

This process was initiated in December 2001 for the Pasquotank River drainage and will continue through the end of 2003. The process is driven by a local stakeholders team which includes local governments and farming, forestry, habitat, water quality, fishing, recreational boating and development interests. Local resource professionals such as the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Marine Fisheries, Division of Coastal Management, Wildlife Resources Commission, NC Cooperative Extension Service, and Natural Resources Conservation Service, serve as technical advisors for the stakeholders team.

The Local Watershed Planning process for the Pasquotank River drainage provides an important opportunity for local stakeholders to play a role in shaping the future of their watershed. Through this process, the stakeholder team will work cooperatively to identify issues, set priorities, develop strategies, secure funding, and implement protection and restoration projects within their communities. By encouraging stakeholders to participate in identifying solutions to address water quality, habitat, flooding, and recreational needs, the Local Watershed Plans become blueprints for strategically implementing local projects through partnerships between local governments, citizens, non-profit organizations, and state and federal agencies.

Technical Assessment
To help support this process, and provide a technical framework for stakeholder input, the NCWRP has contracted with a private consulting firm, Decision Support Professionals, to develop a technical watershed assessment for the Pasquotank River drainage watershed. Based on data and information collected through this assessment, specific project opportunities including stormwater and agricultural Best Management Practices, wetland, stream and buffer restoration projects along with policy recommendations are likely to be identified. These projects will then be ranked according to their impact on improving water quality, wildlife habitat and flooding within the watershed.

For More Information
The Pasquotank River Local Watershed Planning Stakeholder Team meets every other month and all meetings are open for public observation. For more information about these meetings or the Local Watershed Planning Process, please contact Bonnie Mullen Duncan at (919) 733-5315 or via e-mail at Bonnie.Duncan@ncmail.net. The NC Wetlands Restoration Program’s website is : http://h2o.enr.state.nc.us/wrp/index.htm.