Monocacy and Catoctin Watershed Alliance

mcwa

The Monocacy & Catoctin Watershed Alliance (MCWA) is coordinated by the Division of Energy and Environment (DEE) and is a mutual, collaborative, non-advocacy effort among individuals and organizations desiring to work together to improve the health of the Monocacy and Catoctin watersheds.  Growing out of more than two years of action planning for the Monocacy Watershed Restoration Action Strategy (WRAS), a Frederick-County-coordinated and State-assisted local planning process, participants decided to continue their affiliation and cooperation at its conclusion in order to help foster the WRAS plan implementation.

Mission Statement  

The Monocacy & Catoctin Watershed Alliance coordinates the efforts of a diverse group of stakeholders dedicated to the protection and restoration of the natural resources in the Monocacy & Catoctin Watersheds.

Vision Statement

We envision broadening and deepening stewardship ethic among an informed citizenry, which will help protect the County’s agricultural heritage and rural character, maintain and improve the quality of life, protect and treasure our natural resources, and manage future growth more wisely.  We envision healthy streams and rivers with forested buffers supplying clean drinking water and supporting healthy communities of aquatic and terrestrial life, as well as diverse and popular recreational uses.  We envision a healthy and vibrant agricultural community built on links with citizens who support local agricultural and renewable forest products. We envision increasingly concentrated residential development using conservation design principles with access to collective transportation modes and a web of well-maintained trails.  We envision watershed conservation folks from all sectors and communities collaborating to implement effective conservation and restoration practices and foster a creative stewardship consciousness. 

MCWA News

The Monocacy and Catoctin Watershed Alliance had its quarterly meeting on September 14, 2023. The meeting was hosted by Lindsey Donaldson, Chief of Resource Management, Catoctin Mountain Park.  Lindsey took us on a short hike to a site along Manahan Road to learn about the deer management program that has been underway for 14 years and their annual invasive plant management efforts. The site was previously covered in non-native, impenetrable shrubs such as Japanese barberry and multiflora rose and lost its canopy of ash due to emerald ash borer.  Shrubs were mowed in 2022 with herbicide treatments in 2023 using a 6-person youth crew.  Trees are scheduled to be planted in 2024 at the site along with 3-4 years of maintenance to control non-natives and ensure tree survival.  Tree species will be selected based on their climate adaptability and site characteristics.

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Join us on Facebook! 

The new Monocacy and Catoctin Watershed Alliance Facebook group provides a way of cultivating an ongoing community conversation, inviting new people to participate, and keeping us connected between meetings. Please use this platform to show us your work, share interesting news articles, make event announcements, ask questions, or request assistance. The group is open to the community, so please join and invite others to contribute to the conversation as well.

For more information about the Monocacy and Catoctin Watershed Alliance, please contact SCliber@FrederickCountyMD.gov.