Conowingo WIP Steering Committee

Upcoming Meetings

‍View Past Meetings View Group Calendar‍

Scope and Purpose

The Principals' Staff Committee (PSC) created a Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP) Steering Committee with the following roles and responsibilities:

  1. Consists of a representative from each Bay watershed jurisdiction and the Chesapeake Bay Commission. Members may also solicit comments on the Conowingo WIP framework from key stakeholders. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will not participate due to its oversight role as part of the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) accountability framework;
  2. Develops the Conowingo WIP with EPA staff and contractor support;
  3. Guides the development of a financing strategy with contractor support; and,
  4. Oversees implementation of the Conowingo WIP with contractor support.

Projects and Resources

What's New?

On October 23rd, 2023, the Susquehanna River Basin Commission held a webinar on the upcoming RFP for verified nutrient reductions and the pay for success program.

On September 6th, 2023, PA DEP held a webinar focused on the Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP). The presentation provided a brief overview of the CWIP, an update on the progress made toward the implementation milestones since the approval of the CWIP by the Principals Staff Committee in September 2021, and an overview of state-wide pay-for-performance financing efforts from MD and PA and other innovative initiatives. The recording and presentation slides are linked below:

The PENNVEST Clean Water Procurement Program, funded by the 2022-2023 Clean Streams Fund, is now closed as of September 1, 2023. The program will improve water quality in the Commonwealth through the purchase of verified nutrient (nitrogen/phosphorus) or sediment reduction resulting from the installation of Best Management Practices determined to be effective and practical to manage nutrient and sediment to protect surface water and groundwater.

In 2023, the SRBC Chesapeake Bay Watershed Region Freshwater Mussel Partnership, a voluntary affiliation of stakeholders drawn by our interest in freshwater mussels, was created to:

  • Advance and promote Conservation & Restoration; and,
  • Evaluate Water Quality best management practices (BMPs) to lessen excess nutrients and sediment in tributaries to the Bay.

The CWIP Steering Committee developed 2022/2023 milestones for CWIP implementation in January 2022. In January 2023, the Steering Committee submitted a Progress Report to EPA highlighting 2022 activities.

In December 2022, the Steering Committee issued a Phase 1 Implementation Framework which shows the parties responsible for implementation of both the smaller-scale watershed implementation and the broader-scale state-wide implementation.

For more information about upcoming CWIP implementation funding opportunities, see the following handouts:

NOTE: All previous meeting materials, documents, and historical records can be accessed on the archived projects and resources page and the archived meetings page.

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Related Links

Members
Matthew Rowe (Chair), Maryland Department of the Environment
Address:
1800 Washington Boulevard
Baltimore, Maryland 21230

Email:  matthew.rowe@maryland.gov
Phone:  (410) 537-3578
Jill Whitcomb (Chair), Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
Address:
400 Market Street
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17101

Email:  jiwhitcomb@pa.gov
Jackie Pickford (Staffer), Water Quality Goal Implementation Team Staffer, Chesapeake Research Consortium
Address:
1750 Forest Drive Suite 130
Annapolis, Maryland 21401

Email:  pickford.jacqueline@epa.gov
Mark Hoffman, Chesapeake Bay Commission
Address:
60 West Street
Suite 406
Annapolis, Maryland 21401

Email:  mhoffman@chesbay.us
Phone:  (410) 263-3420
John Maleri, District of Columbia Department of Energy & Environment (DOEE)
Address:
1200 First Street NE
Washington, DC, District of Columbia 20002

Email:  john.maleri@dc.gov
Marcia Fox, Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control
Address:
Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control
Dover, Delaware 19904

Email:  marcia.fox@state.de.us
Phone:  (302) 739-9939
Dave Goshorn, Maryland Department of Natural Resources
Address:
580 Taylor Avenue
C-4
Annapolis, Maryland 21401

Email:  david.goshorn@maryland.gov
Phone:  (410) 260-8110
Lauren Townley, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Address:
625 Broadway
Albany, New York 12233

Email:  lauren.townley@dec.ny.gov
Phone:  (518) 402-8283
Julia Wakeling, District of Columbia Department of Energy & Environment (DOEE)
Address:
1200 First St NE
Washington D.C., District of Columbia 20002

Email:  julia.wakeling@dc.gov
Gregory Busch, Maryland Department of the Environment
Address:


Email:  gregory.busch@maryland.gov
Jutta Schneider, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
Address:
Patrick Henry Building 1111 E. Broad Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219

Email:  jutta.schneider@deq.virginia.gov
Kevin McLean, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
Address:


Email:  kevin.mclean@deq.virginia.gov
Liz McKercher, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
Address:


Email:  elizabeth.mckercher@deq.virginia.gov
Scott Settle, West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
Address:
601 57th St SE
Charleston, West Virginia 25304

Email:  dallas.s.settle@wv.gov