The BCWA is a group of citizens in Cary, NC who work together to improve water quality, wildlife habitat, and recreation in Black Creek, a small urban watershed in the Neuse River Basin. Buoyed by the popularity of the Black Creek Greenway, the BCWA works with community members and organizations to protect and improve the creek through education and installing green infrastructure (sustainable storm control measures) including bioretention, wetlands, and rainwater harvesting. Their work is coordinated by WRRI in partnership with the Town of Cary, NCSU Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, and citizens of the watershed, and is funded by grants and partner cost sharing. Black Creek is listed by the state as impaired due to excessive stormwater runoff and associated pollutants. Their work to engage partners to install these watershed improvement projects, and to monitor improvements in the watershed is ongoing.
News & Opportunities
- Can Kingswood Elementary provide a model for engaging a school community in green stormwater infrastructure? Read about it here.
- BCWA met in August 2018. You can view the BCWA update here.
- A large rain garden and rainwater harvesting cistern were installed at Kingswood Elementary School in 2018. See photos on our Facebook page!
- Four residential rain gardens were installed in the Beechtree neighborhood in May 2017
- BCWA Receives new EPA grant for innovative school effort
- Spring 2015 Newsletter
Maps & Reports
- ArcGIS online map with Black Creek projects highlighted
- Adobe PDF watershed map with Black Creek projects highlighted (2013)
- Black Creek Watershed Map (Dec 2010)
- Black Creek Watershed Google Earth KMZ files (requires Google Earth)
- CWMTF Report with Residential Choice Survey Results (2012)
- Less Rain Down the Drain – EPA 319 Final Report (2013)
- GIS Subwatershed Prioritization (2011)
- Black Creek Watershed Plan and Assessment (2009)
Thanks to BCWA members and GIS wizards Elena Horvath and Amin Davis who keep us up to date with the latest maps and GIS layers!
Partners
Current and former BCWA partners include:
- Town of Cary
- NC Cooperative Extension Wake County Center
- NC Division of Water Resources
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Natural Learning Initiative, NCSU College of Design
- Center for Human and Earth Restoration
- Kingswood Elementary School
- Daly 7
- Accreditation Commission for Health Care
- Beechtree HOA
- Clemson University
- Northwoods Elementary School
- Lake Crabtree County Park
- Silverton HOA
- Windchase at Beechtree HOA
- Harvest Church
- NCSU Department of Horticulture
- Cary Rotary
- Wessex HOA
- Buckhurst West neighborhood
- Young Marines of Raleigh
- West Cary Middle School
- NCSU College of Natural Resources