Anacostia Watershed Society
Stream Corridor Assessment
Bel Pre Creek Headwaters

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Anacostia Watershed Society

The following information was provided by Masaya Maeda of the Anacostia Watershed Society.

AWS has decided to conduct a SCA (Stream Corridor Assessment) survey on the Northwest Branch and has already conducted it on a small portion of the stream. We would like to identify environmental problems such as eroding stream banks, inadequate stream buffers, exposed pipes, altered stream channels, fish migration barriers, pipe outfalls, in-stream construction sites and trash dumping locations along the branch. The major findings will be reported appropriately. The data will be also used to raise people's awareness of stream problems and eventually it will be incorporated into WRAS project by State Government.

Survey Date: 6/23/2005

232101 Comment

This stretch looked very healthy even though upstream portion from here is developed.
There are a lot of fish to the extent that I thought I could scoop them out.
Water striders were also everywhere. I might have killed some of them with my steps.
The picture shown below is the riverbed. As a reference, I show a picture of a riverbed in the main stream
of the NW branch which picture was taken at a site 2 miles upstream from Colesville Rd. The difference is clear.

River bed at 232101 site in Bel Pre Creek
River bed of the main stream of the NW Branch,
2 miles upstream from Colesville Rd,
5 miles downstream from 232101 site

232105 Fish Barrier

This chunk of concrete is a fish barrier. This picture is taken from inside of an ugly pipe arch.
The corrugated metal outlining this picture is the part of pipe arch.
Above the arch a road is crossing this stream. The significance of the fish barrier is not serious
because this stretch is the first order stream, which means there is not a long stretch upstream from here.
However, my question is why this barrier is needed and if it is needed why we could not install it
more environmentally and esthetically friendly.

232107 Comment

See the difference of riverbeds between upstream and downstream of a check dam.
The check dam, which is also a fish barrier, encourages sedimentation upstream.
You can see the natural streambed downstream. These pictures were taken just upstream and downstream
from the check dam for the exactly same stream.

Upstream of the check dam
Downstream of the check dam