ECWA
Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association
  • Our Watershed
    • What is a Watershed?
    • History of the Ellerbe Creek Watershed
    • Plants & Animals
    • Stories from the Watershed
    • Ellerbe & Me
  • Our Preserves
    • Overview
    • 17-Acre Wood
    • The Rocks
    • Pearl Mill
    • Glennstone
    • Beaver Marsh
  • Our Work
    • Overview
    • Protect
    • Restore
    • Engage
    • Advocate
  • About Us
    • Our People
    • Careers
    • Our Supporters
    • History of ECWA
    • Guiding Documents
  • Get Involved
    • Volunteer
    • Stewardship
    • Visit a Preserve
    • Make Your Property Creek Smart
    • Attend An Event
  • Donate

Restore

ECWA restores watershed function.
In the natural water cycle, precipitation either evaporates or soaks into the ground, filtering through rocks, soil, and roots. The urban water cycle is different. Impervious surfaces like roofs, streets, and parking lots—common in the densely populated Ellerbe Creek Watershed—cannot filter water into the ground. The result is “run-off,” rainwater mixed with surface pollutants that end up in the creek, contaminating the clean water. During storms, rainwater moves faster across impervious surfaces, dumping even more water into the creek in a shorter span of time, which causes floods and destroys wildlife habitat. ​
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Stormwater runoff can mean flooded playgrounds, damaged trails, and muddy fields
Ellerbe Creek receives almost half of all the stormwater runoff from Durham, which in the last year included 58.9 inches of rainwater. This causes major issues for humans and wildlife within the watershed. 
So, how do we address the problem of stormwater pollution? 
​
Green Infrastructure
Our primary restoration efforts focus on ways to minimize and filter stormwater runoff within the watershed. The Ellerbe Creek Watershed Partnership identifies and advocates for a set of nature-based practices aimed at absorbing and filtering polluted stormwater and slowly releasing clean water into the creek. We advocate for green infrastructure within our watershed, including rain gardens, green roofs, and permeable pavement. We encourage CreekSmart practices in homes, schools, parks, and businesses and teach hands-on workshops to help property owners enact these sustainable practices on their own.

Creek Restoration
Another way to address the problem of stormwater pollution is to restore the natural flow and filtering functions of the creek. For example, in 2012, ECWA worked with the City of Durham to restore the natural flow of the creek through Hillandale Golf Course and 17-Acre Wood Preserve. Today, we are working with the City of Durham to restore the banks of the Strayhorn Springs branch, a tributary of the Pearl Mill branch of Ellerbe Creek.
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North Street neighbors install a rain garden.
ECWA’s Pearl Mill Preserve is a part of downtown Durham’s future nature park. The heart of the nature park is the South Ellerbe Creek Wetland Project, a nine-acre wetland that the City of Durham will build on the former Duke Diet and Fitness Center property. The idea of removing the building and creating a wetland originated with Jessie Allen, a graduate of Duke’s Nicholas School for the Environment and a former ECWA board member. 
Learn more about South Ellerbe WETLAND






​Get Involved

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Be Creek Smart »
​
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Learn more about our Watershed Partnership Plan
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Support the South Ellerbe Creek Wetland Project

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ECWA​
Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association

Mail: PO Box 2679
Durham, NC 27715
Office: 2600 W. Carver St., Suite C 
Durham, NC 27705
919.698.9729
info@ellerbecreek.org
​
​OUR WATERSHED

What Is a Watershed?
History of the Watershed
Plants & Animals
Stories from the Watershed
Ellerbe & Me




​OUR PRESERVES

Overview
Glennstone
Beaver Marsh
Pearl Mill
The Rocks
17-Acre Wood
Non-Public Preserves
​
​OUR WORK

Overview
Protect
Restore

Engage
Advocate


​
​ABOUT US

Our People

Our Supporters
History of ECWA
Guiding Documents
​
​GET INVOLVED

Donate
Volunteer
Visit a Preserve
Creek Smart
Attend an Event
Copyright © 2019 ECWA   |   Terms   |   Privacy
  • Our Watershed
    • What is a Watershed?
    • History of the Ellerbe Creek Watershed
    • Plants & Animals
    • Stories from the Watershed
    • Ellerbe & Me
  • Our Preserves
    • Overview
    • 17-Acre Wood
    • The Rocks
    • Pearl Mill
    • Glennstone
    • Beaver Marsh
  • Our Work
    • Overview
    • Protect
    • Restore
    • Engage
    • Advocate
  • About Us
    • Our People
    • Careers
    • Our Supporters
    • History of ECWA
    • Guiding Documents
  • Get Involved
    • Volunteer
    • Stewardship
    • Visit a Preserve
    • Make Your Property Creek Smart
    • Attend An Event
  • Donate