Chatham County Watershed Protection Department

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Chatham County Watershed Protection Department

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10/16/2026

Stormy Leaves
This Autumn, care for the storm drains in your neighborhood. With rain coming this weekend, make sure your local storm drains are clear!
Many people this time of year like to rake their fallen leaves into the road so the city can come by and retrieve them or just to get them off the grass. Good for the grass, but not so good for several stormwater reasons….
Here at the Chatham County Watershed Protection Department, we recommend not moving your leaves to the street because they may end up in the storm drains. Leaves in the street migrate downslope to the nearest storm drain and will either find a way to get into the local waterways, or clog the storm drain and cause more runoff and flooding downhill. Excess leaves in the storm drains flow into the wastewater treatment plants (oh no!) or directly into the nearest stream. Natural leaf fall into a creek decomposes slowly all year providing food for many aquatic creatures. But, if there is a large pulse of leaves from the storm drains, it might result in a nutrient overload causing algal blooms and low dissolved oxygen.
So, leave your leaves in the woods, shrub beds or compost pile or if you must rake them to the roadside, just don’t put them on the street storm gutter. And burning leaves!? That’s a whole can of worms that doesn’t need to be opened.
For more information on leaving your leaves or leaf removal, check out these websites:
https://therivermanagementblog.wordpress.com/2014/10/17/autumn-leaves-blocked-drains-and-flooding/
https://www.pittsboronc.gov/594/Yard-Waste-and-Loose-Leaf-Collection
https://www.silercity.gov/1194/Leaf-Collection-Schedule
https://www.chathamcountync.gov/government/departments-programs-i-z/solid-waste-recycling/main-facility-office/yard-waste-mulch
https://raleighnc.gov/stormwater/services/spot-report-and-stop-water-pollution/preventing-yard-waste-entering-storm

10/13/2026

It’s Leaf Season!
October is the month where the leaves really begin to “Fall”!
Many lawn owners are very happy to remove the leaves from their yards, often raking them to the curb, burning them, or even just raking them into piles to jump into.
The Xerces Society and the New Hope Audubon group are promoting the “Leave Your Leaves” campaign which focuses on the health and diversity of local insect and bird populations.
Here at the Watershed Protection Department, we support leaving your leaves! Why? We do like insects and birds, but we also like the soil to stay in place. Leaves are a good way to prevent soil erosion. Also, when leaves decompose, they add nutrients to the soil which improves plant growth and the increased infiltration of water. Less runoff, less erosion, healthier streams!
This program doesn't mean you can't move leaves, just don't get rid of them. If you don't want leaves on your grass, rake them to the woods, around shrub beds or compost them in your garden.
Check out some the websites below to learn more about Leaving your Leaves, visit these sites:
https://www.newhopeaudubon.org/conservation/bird-friendly-certification/leave-the-leaves/
https://www.nwf.org/Magazines/National-Wildlife/2015/OctNov/Gardening/Leave-the-Leaves
https://keepdurhambeautiful.org/leaveyourleaves
https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2022/10/17/fall-leave-leaves
https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/earthkind/landscape/leaf-management-plan/
https://www.nycgovparks.org/learn/trees-and-plants/leave-the-leaves-why-our-parks-gardeners-may-leave-fallen-autumn-leaves-on-the-ground

10/01/2026

Happy Riparian Buffer Month!
Fall is here and October is the month to celebrate Riparian Buffers!
Riparian Buffers are vegetated strips of land alongside streams, rivers, and ponds. These strips of land “buffer” or separate the water from the upland development in order to protect the water from pollutants, improving the water quality.
Note the forested buffer along the Deep River here in Chatham County (photo below). The shade cast by trees cools the waters, the understory plants and leaf litter filter out sediments and nutrients, and the roots along the banks stabilize the land.
If you would like to know more about Riparian Buffers, check out the sites below:
https://www.chathamcountync.gov/government/departments-programs-i-z/watershed-protection/riparian-buffers
https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/agricultural-riparian-buffers
https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2021-11/bmp-riparian-forested-buffer.pdf
https://www.fs.usda.gov/nac/practices/riparian-forest-buffers.php
https://www.deq.nc.gov/water-resources/buffer-rules-brochure-4-19/download

09/22/2026

Celebrate National Stormwater Awareness Week!
"Slow it down, spread it out and soak it in". This saying is a common mantra of stormwater managers in order to manage stormwater on a property.
Rain Gardens are one way to slow stormwater, another is to install a rain barrel to slow the water down and store it for watering your gardens. Stabilizing your property with grass, trees and other natural ground covers also allow stormwater to slow down, spread out and soak in on your property. It could be as simple as to have downspout dissipaters/splash blocks or leaving the leaves in your garden beds and natural areas to slow water flow.
Remember, "Your choices flow downstream, Keep Stormwater Clean!"
For more about stormwater management, visit:
https://www.epa.gov/soakuptherain/what-you-can-do-soak-rain
https://www.carolinacountry.com/story/wrestling-water-in-your-landscape-and-winning
https://ncseagrant.ncsu.edu/coastwatch-the-guide-to-coastal-living-stormwater/
https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2024-07/Home_Drainage_Guide.v25.pdf

09/21/2026

Celebrate National Stormwater Awareness Week!
National Stormwater Awareness Week, September 20th - 25th, is an opportunity to raise awareness about how stormwater affects our environment, and how each of us plays a role in keeping our waterways clean.
What is stormwater? Stormwater is essentially any water that falls in the form of precipitation on the ground and other surfaces on Earth.
How we manage stormwater plays a huge role in the health of our streams, rivers and lakes. Better stormwater management = better water quality and increased flood control.
If you are not managing stormwater for a town or neighborhood, what can you do? Start at your home with a few easy steps. Keeping leaves out of the road, installing a rain garden or a rain barrel are some steps you can take to manage your own stormwater!
For more information about Stormwater Awareness Week, visit these sites:
https://www.chathamcountync.gov/government/departments-programs-i-z/watershed-protection/education-resources
https://www.stormwaterawareness.org/
https://nc-cleanwater.com/

09/16/2026

The Chatham County Fair!
The 76th Annual Chatham County Fair is taking place this week, September 17-20, 2026.
Come join in the fun and entertainment that is taking place this weekend in Pittsboro!
Today is the last day to enter an exhibit in the fair, so bring your canned goods, veggies etc. to be judged as best in show!
This year, the famous “Liquid Pleasure” band from Chapel Hill is performing on Sunday evening to close out the Fair!
So bring in Autumn with a visit to our County Fair!
https://chathamcountyfairnc.com/
https://www.ecetouring.com/artists/liquidpleasure/

09/14/2026

Celebrate Septic Smart Week!
Do you have a septic system at your house?
Do you want to know more about it if you do?
If you answered yes to either of these questions, Septic Smart Week is for you!
Learn more about the care and feeding of your septic system by visiting these sites:
https://www.chathamcountync.gov/government/departments-programs-i-z/watershed-protection/education-resources/-fsiteid-1 #!/
https://www.epa.gov/septic/septic-system-care-and-maintenance
https://www.chathamcountync.gov/government/departments-programs-a-h/environmental-health/wastewater-and-septic-permits-monitoring

08/26/2026

National Water Quality Month - Benthic Macroinvertebrates!
Benthic Macroinvertebrates are the small aquatic creatures that live on the bottom of our local rivers and streams. These animals may be the larvae of insects (dragonflies, mayflies, and many others) or the worms, snails, crayfish, mussels, beetles and leeches. They are “benthic” because they live on the stream bottom, “macro” because they are larger than 1mm and “invertebrates” because they have no backbone!
Macroinvertebrates are an integral part of the aquatic food web. They are the grazers, scavengers or filter feeders that provide for larger organisms like fish, crayfish and birds. “Macros” have been known for years by fishermen who either use them for bait or “tie” artificial flies to resemble what is commonly found hatching in the river. Biologists study the diversity and number of macros making them “bioindicators” of water quality. Greater macro number and diversity means a healthier river with cleaner water!
Go look under a river rock today to see what macros live in our local waters!
For more information about macroinvertebrates, visit these websites:
https://www.epa.gov/national-aquatic-resource-surveys/indicators-benthic-macroinvertebrates
https://extension.psu.edu/what-is-a-macro
https://www.macroinvertebrates.org/
https://stroudcenter.org/macros/
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZnCsW_NQV8Ez1-_7-1KX7H433LrPhrFD/view
https://ncdenr.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=7d4f2137e9154742bae16916e35a87a0
https://www.montanawatershed.org/aquatic-macroinvertebrates
https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/monitoring-macroinvertebrates

08/20/2026

Water Quality Month – We’re here to pump you up!
Freshwater Mussels provide a number of important benefits to stream health. Most notably, mussels filter feed on organic matter suspended in the water column and remove material from the water, including potentially harmful algae, bacteria, and chemical compounds. They also provide food for aquatic insects, fish and mammals.
Threats to freshwater mussels include degraded water quality and sedimentation. Mussels are also sensitive to the loss of host fish species required to complete their lifecycles.
With names like Rayed Pink Fatmucket, Green Lampmussel and Purple Wartyback, these freshwater versions of their coastal cousins live hidden in the bottom of our streams, rivers and lakes and are a big part of the water quality in our County.
Keep an eye out for these interesting bivalves in a stream near you!
For more information about freshwater mussels, visit:
https://www.xerces.org/blog/merit-of-mussels
https://www.americanrivers.org/freshwatermussels/
https://therevelator.org/freshwater-mussel-ecosystem-services/
https://dukeforest.duke.edu/2025/07/22/restoring-the-rainbow-a-mussel-reintroduction-story/
https://www.ncwildlife.gov/life-cycle-freshwater-mussel/download?attachment
https://www.ncwildlife.gov/wildlife-habitat/species/general-life-history-mussels
https://molluskconservation.org/MUSSELS/Lifecycle.html

08/13/2026

National Water Quality Month – Silt Fence Outlets
Earlier this week we talked of silt fences and how they trap sediments to prevent polluting waters in our County. They will hold the sediments and the water from running off site, however, what happens when there is more rain than the fence can hold? The fence fails and the sediment laden water runs downhill. To prevent the failure of the silt fence, a silt fence outlet can be placed in the lowest point along the fence to alleviate water pressure and hold the sediment on the construction site. Silt fence outlets look like piles of #57 stone held in place with metal fencing at a gap in the silt fence, which is pretty much what they are. The stone holds the larger sediments (sand, gravels and some silt and clay) but allows the turbid water to flow through the stone. Turbid water is not regulated by State laws, but the majority of sediment is retained on the construction site.
For more about Silt Fence Outlets visit:
https://www.chathamcountync.gov/government/departments-programs-i-z/watershed-protection/erosion-control/standard-details
https://www.chathamcountync.gov/government/departments-programs-i-z/watershed-protection/education-resources

Address

80 East Street
Pittsboro, NC
27312

Website

https://www.chathamcountync.gov/government/departments-programs-i-z/watershed-protection

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