From Planning to Action: Advancing Sustainable Water Resources Management in the Potomac Basin Archives

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From Planning to Action: Advancing Sustainable Water Resources Management in the Potomac Basin

February 24, 2026

The Potomac River basin, a critical source of drinking water and home to the U.S. capital, provides a case study in sustainable water resources management. This paper traces the history of planning in the basin, examines the opportunities and challenges of water resources management in a complex, multi-jurisdictional setting, and analyzes the integrated, adaptive process used to develop and implement the Potomac Basin Comprehensive Water Resources Plan. Using a review of planning documents and stakeholder engagement outcomes, the analysis identifies key mechanisms through which adaptive, collaborative planning is operationalized across four analytic dimensions: stakeholder engagement, facilitation, plan components, and planning process. The Potomac case demonstrates how integrative principles can be implemented pragmatically through voluntary, science-based, and locally grounded collaboration—rather than applying Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) as a formal or prescriptive framework. The findings highlight how institutional capacity, iterative learning, and cross-jurisdictional coordination enable basin-scale planning to evolve over time. Unlike previous Potomac scientific and planning reports, this paper offers a systematic, reflective analysis of the long-term planning process in the Potomac basin, providing empirically grounded insights and a conceptual framework for others pursuing integrated, sustainable water resources management.

This article was published in the Journal of the American Water Resources Association on February 18, 2026 (Volume 62, Issue 1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1752-1688.70097

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Little Pipe Creek Watershed Assessment: Upper Little Pipe Creek Sub-Watershed

February 24, 2026

This watershed assessment was conducted as part of the National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI) of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to serve as Planning (or Readiness) Phase effort in the Little Pipe Creek watershed of Frederick and Carroll counties, Maryland. The purpose of the assessment is to assist Maryland with reducing downstream Enterococci levels, improving macroinvertebrate scores, and reducing nutrient (i.e., nitrogen and phosphorus) levels through implementation of agricultural practices. The ultimate goal is to de-list the Little Pipe Creek watershed from the impaired waters list for its phosphorus, sediment, and bacterial impairments.

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Little Pipe Creek Watershed Assessment: Middle Little Pipe Creek Sub-Watershed

February 24, 2026

This watershed assessment was conducted as part of the National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI) of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to serve as Planning (or Readiness) Phase effort in the Little Pipe Creek watershed of Frederick and Carroll counties, Maryland. The purpose of the assessment is to assist Maryland with reducing downstream Enterococci levels, improving macroinvertebrate scores, and reducing nutrient (i.e., nitrogen and phosphorus) levels through implementation of agricultural practices. The ultimate goal is to de-list the Little Pipe Creek watershed from the impaired waters list for its phosphorus, sediment, and bacterial impairments.

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Little Pipe Creek Watershed Assessment: Lower Little Pipe Creek Sub-Watershed

February 23, 2026

This watershed assessment was conducted as part of the National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI) of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to serve as Planning (or Readiness) Phase effort in the Little Pipe Creek watershed of Frederick and Carroll counties, Maryland. The purpose of the assessment is to assist Maryland with reducing downstream Enterococci levels, improving macroinvertebrate scores, and reducing nutrient (i.e., nitrogen and phosphorus) levels through implementation of agricultural practices. The ultimate goal is to de-list the Little Pipe Creek watershed from the impaired waters list for its phosphorus, sediment, and bacterial impairments.

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An Inventory of Potomac Basin Entities with a Role in Sustainable Water Resources Management

May 20, 2025

The Potomac Basin Comprehensive Water Resources Plan (2018) outlines a shared vision of sustainable water resource management in the basin. Responding to a Plan recommendation, the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB) created an inventory of organizations with a role in sustainable water resources management in the basin in 2022. The inventory was the product of an iterative process initiated by ICPRB staff with input from the plan’s Advisory Committee.

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2023 CO-OP Drought Operations

November 22, 2024

The Washington, DC, metropolitan area experienced unusually dry conditions in the summer and fall of 2023, and flows in the Potomac River fell to levels requiring the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB) Section for Cooperative Water Supply Operations on the Potomac (CO-OP) to conduct drought response activities in support of the major regional water suppliers: Fairfax Water, Loudoun Water, WSSC Water, and the Washington Aqueduct, a Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This report provides a brief summary of these activities and of related issues and discussions that arose. It also documents the take-aways of a Post-Drought Operations Review meeting that took place on November 3, 2023, and a subsequent meeting of the CO-OP Operations Committee on November 17.

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Evaluation of reported and unreported water uses in various sectors of the Potomac basin for the year 2017

July 30, 2024

Water resource planners and managers in the Mid-Atlantic United States typically determine the sufficiency of water supplies to meet demand by comparing (1) water use as reported to the state by individual water users to (2) metrics of water availability calculated from observed water monitoring networks. This paper focuses on determining whether this means of measuring water use is sufficient for proactive and sustainable management of water resources. The Potomac basin study area illustrates the point that, while state-reported water use databases typically cover the largest individual water users, unreported water uses can cumulatively comprise a substantial portion of the overall water use. If left unaccounted for, the system is vulnerable to human demand exceeding supplies, with attendant detrimental effects to aquatic habitats and organisms, especially given the exacerbating effects of climate change on the variability of water supplies. Planners and managers are therefore encouraged to consider the full spectrum of water uses, regardless of state reporting requirements.

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2022 Washington Metropolitan Area Drought Exercise

May 24, 2023

The Washington, D.C., metropolitan area (WMA) relies on the Potomac River for over three-quarters of its water supply. The area’s three major water suppliers (“CO-OP suppliers”), Fairfax County Water Authority (Fairfax Water), Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC Water), and Washington Aqueduct (a Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) participate in a cooperative system of water supply planning and management. This participation includes joint funding of water supply storage in reservoirs located upstream of the suppliers’ Potomac River intakes and coordinated operations during droughts.

During times of drought, the Section for Cooperative Water Supply Operations on the Potomac (CO-OP) of the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB) plays a crucial role in coordinating water supply operations. By coordinating withdrawals from the Potomac River, Patuxent, and Occoquan reservoirs, the CO-OP staff help ensure that water resources are being utilized efficiently and effectively for the benefit of the system. When the forecasted flow in the river is not sufficient to meet expected demands, the CO-OP staff make requests for releases from upstream reservoirs. These demands include the water supply needs of the WMA and an environmental flow-by of 100 million gallons per day (MGD), or 155 cubic feet per second (cfs), on the Potomac River below the Little Falls Dam near Washington, D.C.

The ICPRB CO-OP section conducts an annual drought exercise to maintain readiness for drought conditions. These exercises serve as a platform for CO-OP staff to evaluate and discuss water management strategies with relevant stakeholders, prior to a real drought scenario. The activities aid in training CO-OP staff on regional agreements, tools, and decision-making processes. Moreover, they offer participants the chance to refine their communication processes and enhance organizational efficiency.

This report describes activities conducted during the 2022 Drought Exercise. The virtual training took place on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, November 15-17, from 7:30 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. Communications during the exercise were via telephone, email, and Microsoft Teams, and all operations were “simulated.” Stakeholders received twice-daily email reports on “actual” precipitation, river flow, water withdrawals, and “simulated” operations and reservoir storages. This year’s exercise included the following elements:

  • A regional Drought Coordination Technical Committee (DCTC) conference call to discuss potential water use restrictions associated with the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (MWCOG) “Warning” stage,
  • Communication with Washington Aqueduct on the Low Flow Allocation Agreement (LFAA) thresholds, and
  • Data collection and operational forecasts through CO-OP’s Data Portal and daily flow forecast tool to determine the need for “simulated” releases from Little Seneca and North Branch reservoirs (Jennings Randolph and Savage).
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