Franklin County Conservation District Watershed Protection

What is a watershed? A watershed is the area of land that drains into a stream, river, ocean, pond, or lake. The northeastern portion of Franklin County lies within the Susquehanna River basin, while the remainder of the county is encompassed by the Potomac River basin. The three major watersheds in Franklin County are the Conodoguinet Creek, the Conococheague Creek, and the Antietam Creek. Additionally, several tributary streams drain to these creeks and they are each located within their own sub-watersheds. Since everyone lives in a watershed, we all have a “watershed address” based on our geographic location. A watershed address includes the drainage pathway of a local stream as it enters the larger watersheds of rivers, bays, and oceans.

The District’s Watershed Program is administered by the Watershed Specialist. The primary function of the Watershed Specialist is to implement projects that improve water quality. Assistance is given to local watershed groups, private citizens, and municipalities in order to accomplish a variety of tasks. Educational workshops, field days, and scout activities are conducted in order to emphasize the importance of our water resources. A key component to carrying out watershed projects is to maintain partnerships with other groups and agencies. The Watershed Specialist also utilizes Growing Greener grants to cost-share agricultural best management practices (BMP’s) such as stream bank fencing, forested riparian buffers, and cattle lanes. The Dennis Creek (click on Dennis Creek Link) project is a good example of succesuccessful BMP implementation via participation by the local community and several environmental agencies. Several kinds of fish habitat structures have also been installed in Franklin County as a multifunctional solution to stream bank erosion problems. Educational mini-grants received from The Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts have allowed the District to conduct non-point source pollution outreach via the internet and tabletop exhibits.

Franklin County Watershed Association

Antietam Watershed Association

Conococheague Watershed Alliance

Middle Spring Watershed Association

Mercersburg Area Watershed Association