Forum Focuses On Piscataway Creek Watershed Protection

Piscataway Hills residents are participating in a major initiative by the Prince George’s County Department of Environmental Resources to protect and improve the Piscataway Creek watershed.

Citizens from throughout the watershed area, which at 43,000 acres is the third-largest in the county, provided their ideas at a public forum at the Accokeek Library July 18. The session followed up a May public forum, where PHCA Vice President Dave Lishin had described dumping along Old Fort Road that was polluting the watershed. The situation was investigatedby county officials, who then displayed pictures of the trash at the July meeting.

County officials said the water quality of Piscataway Creek is considered “impaired” and that major goals of the watershed improvement project are to remove pollutants that exceed allowed levels, to restore the stream to its natural state, and to reduce stormwater runoff. Excessive pollutants in the free-flowing section of the creek are fecal coliform and other biological contaminants. The tidal portion, which includes the section near Piscataway Hills, is polluted by suspended sediments, nitrogen, and phosphorus, according to the DER presentation.

Officials at the July meeting estimated that about a third of the fecal coliform in Piscataway Creek comes from wildlife, such as deer, and another third comes from domestic animals, including farm animals and pets. The remaining third is from human waste, either from sewage or septic systems. Suspended sediments come from soil erosion caused by excessive runoff, while nitrogen and phosphorus often come from fertilizers.

Potential solutions discussed at the meeting include improvements to existing stormwater management systems to reduce runoff, streambed repair, reforestation, wetlands restoration and creation, new controls on pollution sources, public education, and better enforcement against illegal dumping. Another meeting is planned for the fall but has not been scheduled yet.

Groundbreaking For New Police Station Set For Sept. 25

Groundbreaking for the long-promised Fort Washington police station is scheduled for September 25. Located at the corner of Fort Washington Road and Livingston Road, the station will serve the new Police District VII, comprising Fort Washington and other parts of southern Prince George’s County. Fort Washington is now included in District VI, based in Oxon Hill. PHCA has supported the new station for many years, through appearances by association leaders at budget forums and other community meetings. Representatives of PHCA will be attending the groundbreaking ceremony.

Prince George’s County Residents Can Dispose Of Storm-Related Debris

Prince George’s County residents may dispose of storm-related debris free of charge through Friday, July 6, 2012 at the Brown Station Road Sanitary Landfill and the Prince George’s County Yard Waste Composting Facility. Both the Landfill and the Composting Facility will be closed on Wednesday, July 4, 2012 in observance of Independence Day.

Residents may dispose of brush, tree limbs and other storm-related debris such as roofing materials, siding and damaged household items at the Brown Station Road Sanitary Landfill, located at 11611 White House Road in Upper Marlboro, between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.

The Prince George’s County Yard Waste Composting Facility, located at 6601 E. Crain Highway in Upper Marlboro (from Crain Highway, proceed on Maude Savoy Brown Road and follow signs to the facility), will be open for residents to dispose of brush and tree limbs only from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Verification of County residency will be required upon entering the Brown Station Road Sanitary Landfill and the Prince George’s County Yard Waste Composting Facility. Commercial vehicles will be charged according to the normal disposal rates.

For more information on the disposal of storm-related debris, call the Department of Environmental Resources’ Waste Management Division at (301) 952-7622.

Pepco Replaces Power Lines And Poles In Piscataway Hills

Years of complaints from area residents about frequent power outages— seemingly during almost every storm—may have finally brought results.