St. Dixon Farm Restoration

Before Project

• This operating sod farm was suffering from a drainage problem on the fields, which allowed sediment-laden stormwater to flow directly into two creeks which feed Ridout Creek and then flow into Whitehall Bay, the Severn River, and the Chesapeake Bay.

• The runoff was significantly worse when the sod was stripped and the earth was bare.

After Project

• Water travels through an RSC (Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance) system, which consists of a series of sand-bedded wetlands, pools, and riffles that provide water quality treatment upstream which slows stormwater flows, allows for filtration of pollutants, recharges groundwater, creates habitat, and improves overall water quality. 

• Managing all of a farm’s runoff to create stream/wetland complexes using this single tool of RSC is an innovative, pioneering way to think about the intersection of functioning farms and environmental stewardship.

• This project provides an example of how RSC can be used on ag land to manage stormwater in a nature-based way that benefits the farmer, the water, and the wildlife. 

Stats

700 linear feet of RSC treating stormwater from ag fields

26 lbs of nitrogen, 3 lbs of phosphorus, and 911 lbs of sediment removed annually

1 acre of cropland converted to wetland