Conowingo WIP Steering Committee
The Conowingo WIP Steering Committee works collaboratively across jurisdictions and partnerships to effectively reduce increased nutrient levels in the Chesapeake Bay, resulting from the Conowingo Dam infill, through the successful implementation of the Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP) and two-year milestones.
Upcoming Meetings
CANCELED: Conowingo WIP Steering Committee Meeting - June 2025
Monday, June 2, 2025 from 1:00pm - 3:00pmScope and Purpose
The Principals' Staff Committee (PSC) created a Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP) Steering Committee with the following roles and responsibilities:
- 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;
- Develops the Conowingo WIP with EPA staff and contractor support;
- Guides the development of a financing strategy with contractor support; and,
- Oversees implementation of the Conowingo WIP with contractor support.
NOTE: Previous meeting materials, documents and historical records be accessed on the steering committee's Projects and Resources page and meetings archive.
Projects and Resources
What's New?
The following resources include the most recent issue of the CWIP progress newsletter, additional updates, and a comprehensive list of actions, decisions and meetings of the CWIP Steering Committee.
Conowingo WIP BMP Opportunity Analysis Web Viewer
The Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) Best Management Practice (BMP) Opportunity Analysis web viewer depicts areas found to be suitable for the implementation of at least one of the six BMPs modeled and mapped for the Conowingo WIP. The web viewer was created to help local practitioners plan for restoration activities and collect information that can inform their proposals for the restoration implementation funding that is available through the Susquehanna River Basin Commission.
Conowingo Sediment Characterization and Innovative and Beneficial Reuse Pilot
Following the infill of the Conowingo Dam and more recent interest in utilizing dredging as a mechanism for restoration, the Conowingo Sediment Characterization and Innovative and Beneficial Reuse Pilot project was developed to better understand what dredging might look like in the Conowingo Reservoir. Separate reports were created on sediment Characterization (SC) and Innovative Reuse and Beneficial Use (IRBU), offering key findings that can be used to inform dredging projects.
CWIP Webinar Wednesday
This CWIP Webinar Wednesday presentation, hosted in September of 2023, provided an update on progress toward the implementation milestones since the approval of the CWIP by the Principals' Staff Committee in September of 2021. The presentation also included an overview of funding opportunities from Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Tracking CWIP Progress
Publications
Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP)
The Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP) offers a plan for best management practice (BMP) implementation across jurisdictions to reduce pollution loads. Also outlined in the CWIP are engagement and communication goals, methods to address impacts of climate change and relevant financing strategies.
View detailsConowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP) Phase 1 Implementation Framework
The Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP) Phase 1 Implementation Framework divides efforts into smaller-scale targeting efforts and broader, state-wide implementation efforts in most effective basins (MEBs). The document also provides milestone action items and funding sources.
View detailsRelated Links
Members
Matthew Rowe (Chair), Maryland Department of the Environment
1800 Washington Boulevard
Baltimore, Maryland 21230
Email: matthew.rowe@maryland.gov
Phone: (410) 537-3578
Jill Whitcomb (Chair), Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
Caroline Kleis (Staffer), Water Quality Goal Implementation Team Staffer, Chesapeake Research Consortium
Marel King, Chesapeake Bay Commission
c/o Senate of Pennsylvania
G-05 North Office Building
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17120
Email: mking@chesbay.us
Phone: (717) 772-3651
Holly Walker, Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control
Julia Wakeling, District of Columbia Department of Energy & Environment (DOEE)
Gregory Busch, Maryland Department of the Environment
Dave Goshorn, Maryland Department of Natural Resources
580 Taylor Avenue
C-4
Annapolis, Maryland 21401
Email: david.goshorn@maryland.gov
Phone: (410) 260-8110
Cassie Davis, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
625 Broadway, 4th Floor
Albany, New York 12233-3507
Email: Cassandra.davis@dec.ny.gov
Phone: (518) 402-8283