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West Virginia Water Research Institute
West Virginia University

WV Potomac Water Quality Bank and Trade Program

Background Return to top

The WV Water Research Institute, the World Resources Institute, and the Natural Resource Conservation Service are teaming up with local, state, and regional stakeholders from the public and private sectors to initiate the WV Potomac Water Quality Bank and Trade Program. The Program is designed to help reduce nutrient and sediment loadings in the Eastern Panhandle and the Chesapeake Bay in a manner that supports local economic development and promotes sustainable and rural land resource management.

In order to restore the water quality and aquatic habitat of the Chesapeake Bay, all political jurisdictions within the watershed have agreed to achieve voluntary load reductions in nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment by the year 2010. West Virginia (WV) is required to achieve load reductions of 33% for nitrogen, 35% for phosphorus and 6% for sediment in the Potomac River drainage. If the total load reductions to the Bay are not achieved, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will develop a total maximum daily load reduction (TMDL) for the Bay that will further restrict point-source loadings throughout the Bay watershed, resulting in unnecessary harm to growing watershed economies.

The project partners intend to develop and implement a transparent, credible, and successful water quality trading program in the WV portion of the Potomac that will increase investment in BMPs thereby reducing non-point source loadings. We anticipate that the framework will be transferable to other watersheds in the Bay drainage and elsewhere providing for future growth. The World Resources Institute (WRI), a key partner in this project, has developed a web-based electronic trading platform for the Potomac, NutrientNet (www.NutrientNet.org) that is being modified to establish a standardized credit estimation method for developing real, surplus, and quantifiable trading credits. The application of NutrientNet will reduce overall project cost, trade transaction costs and provide program transparency, and increase the transferability of our model to other sub-watersheds in the Bay.

Although WV has not yet developed and implemented a trading program, there is public support within this watershed and at the state level for a market-based program that would provide additional funding to meet the Bay CLAs and avoid the EPA TMDL. Given this, we are integrating the trading program into the existing funding, procedures, staffing, and infrastructure of the state BMP cost-share program and related complementary programs.

Program Objectives

The primary goal and purpose of this project is to develop and implement an incentive-based program to more cost-effectively achieve the Bay CLAs for nutrients and sediment. The secondary goals are to provide for sustainable economic development in the watershed and provide a trading framework that will be transferable to other watersheds. Our objective is to develop a stakeholder driven water quality trading credit market that will provide funds from point sources to offset the cost of additional BMP installation and maintenance.

Duration of the Project

The NRCS CIG grant period is three years (2006-2009) with a one year no cost extension to August 2010. Staff has initiated efforts to sustain funding for related projects into the indefinite future. Project outputs and outcomes, however, will be designed to carry the program forward without public funding.

WV Nutrient Trading Guidance

The documents here include final guidance documents for developing nutrient trading programs in WV, a specific guidance for a Potomac-based nutrient trading program, and an explanation of the elements within the Potomac trading guidance. The Potomac trading guidance document will likely be modified to reflect requirements of the Chesapeake Bay TMDL.

General WV Resource Documents & Presentations Return to top

Biannual Progress Reports Return to top

Articles of Interest Return to top

Maps Return to top

counties and conservation districts of WV Potomac Basis Figure 1. Counties and Conservation Districts in West Virginia'a Potomac watershed.
figure 3: Major Watersheds: Potomac Basin, West Virginia Figure 3. Major Watersheds: Potomac Basin, West Virginia
Figure 7. Compares delivered loads of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment in 1985 and 2002 for each of the seven major land use categories in WV's Potomac watershed only, as estimated by the CBWM. Figure 7. Compares delivered loads of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment in 1985 and 2002 for each of the seven major land use categories in WV's Potomac watershed only, as estimated by the CBWM.

Events, Agendas, & Meeting Minutes Return to top

Point Source Sector Briefing, Potomac, WV Nutrient Trading Program, May 14, 2008. Martinsburg, WV PSSD.

Steering Committee Meeting – April 8, 2008 [.doc 36kb]

Steering Committee Meeting – September 28, 2007 [.doc 25kb]

Steering Committee Meeting – July 11, 2007 [.doc 41kb]

Core Team/WVDEP Meeting - June 29, 2007 [.doc 29kb]

Steering Committee Meeting – May 1, 2007 [.doc 36kb]

Steering Committee Meeting – March 7, 2007 [.doc 36kb]

Development and Implementation of a Water Quality Bank and Trade Program in the Potomac River Watershed, WV [.ppt 527kb]

Contacts Return to top

Richard Herd, Project Director
304 293 2867 x5442
Richard.Herd@mail.wvu.edu

WV Water Research Institute
PO Box 6064
Mortantown, WV 26506

Steering Committee Return to top

WV Water Research Institute - Richard Herd
West Virginia University
PO Box 6064
Morgantown, WV 26506
Phone: (304) 293-2867
Fax: (304) 293-7822
Richard.herd@mail.wvu.edu

World Resources Institute - Mindy Selman
People and Ecosystems
10 G Street, NE Suite 800
Washington, DC 20002
Phone: (202) 729-7600
Fax: (202) 729-7610
mselman@wri.org
www.wri.org

USDA, National Resources Conservation Service, Pat Bowen
75 High St., Room 301
Morgantown, WV 26505
Phone: (304) 457-4516 ext 105
Fax: (304) 284-4839
Patrick.Bowen@wv.usda.gov
www.wv.nrcs.usda.gov

WV Department of Environmental Protection - Bill Brannon, Jennifer Pauer, Randy Sovic, Mike Warwick
Division of Water and Waste Management
601 - 57th St.
Charleston, WV 25304
Phone: (304) 926-0495
Fax: (304) 926-0463
bbrannon@wvdep.org
www.dep.state.wv.us

Conservation Fund’s Freshwater Institute – Joseph Hankins
FWI Program Director, CF Vice President
1098 Turner Road
Shepherdstown, WV 25443
Phone: (304) 876-2815
Fax: (304) 870-2208
j.hankins@freshwaterinstitute.org
www.freshwaterinstitute.org

EPA Region 3 – Patricia Gleason
US EPA Region 3, Chief Watershed Restoration Branch
1650 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-2029
Phone: (215) 566-5740
Gleason.Patricia@epamail.epa.gov
www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/trading.htm

WVU/WVCA – Tom Brand
Phone: (304) 276-1858
tbrandjr@yahoo.com

WV Conservation Agency – Carla Hardy
Watershed Program Specialist
Moorefield Field Office
60 C Industrial Park Road
Moorefield , WV 26836
Phone: (304) 538-7581
Fax: (304) 538-7676
chardy@wvca.us
www.wvca.us
www.wv.nrcs.usda.gov/chesapeake_bay/wv_bay.html

 

Trout Unlimited – Bryan Moore
P.O. Box 2323
Clarksburg, West Virginia 26302
Phone: (304) 641-2658
bmoore@tu.org
www.tu.org/site/pp.asp?c=7dJEKTNuFmG&b=1149005

Grants Return to top

PWQBTP Sections