Maryland Registry

Background

Maryland pioneered the concept of a Watershed Resources Registry in 2006, when a team of federal and state agencies began evaluating impacts related to a large-scale transportation project in southern Maryland. The potential cumulative impacts from this project made obvious the need for a tool that would allow agencies to cooperatively evaluate projects and to employ consistent spatial datasets. With the publication of the 2008 Compensatory Mitigation Rule, the need to select mitigation sites based on watershed needs became more pressing. Staff from US Environmental Protection Agency Region 3, Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA), and the Army Corps of Engineers – Baltimore District decided to start a WRR project. Other participating agencies include Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources, Department of the Environment, and Department of Planning, and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

Maryland's eight analyses were made available in an easy-to-use interactive map in 2011. Two years later Maryland updated the spatial analyses with new spatial data and adjustments to the system. Maryland's WRR has been continuously operating since 2011.

Additional Resources

User Feedback Survey

For any problems, requests, or suggestions to improve the WRRs, please fill out our user survey.