Broad Creek Park

Watershed: South River, Broad Creek

Restoration Approach: Stream Restoration

Status: Completed Spring 2023

Maryland Department of Natural Resources

Broad Creek Park, located in the headwaters of Broad Creek, has been a long-time strategic focus of the Arundel Rivers Federation for habitat enhancements, water quality improvements, and erosion/sediment reduction. The 2008 South River Watershed Assessment ranked Broad Creek as the second highest contributor of sediment and nutrient loads to the South River. The County’s Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) lists restoration of incised streams, such as this project, as their “Core Tier 1” strategy for meeting goals. In partnership with Anne Arundel County’s Bureau of Watershed Protection and Restoration and with funding from the Chesapeake Bay Trust and Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Arundel Rivers lead three major restoration efforts within the park.

Before

This is the first major project in a long-term partnership between the park and Arundel Rivers to restore degraded streams, increase resiliency of the park’s shorelines, and improve habitat throughout the park. The stream is near one of the most frequented areas of the park which includes the ice rink, pond, pagoda and a hiking/biking trail that crosses directly over this stream. The erosion was actively threatening the structural stability of a pedestrian bridge that is part of the park’s trail system. Bank erosion and head cuts caused loss of bank material which threatened the trails and sent pollution down stream. The channel was disconnected from its floodplain throughout the project area, which meant a loss of habitat value and that the land was unable to soak up water as nature intends. With the completion of this project, the stream has been stabilized and the floodplain reconnected, providing invaluable wetland habitat as well as stormwater treatment prior to the water entering Harness Creek.

After