West Atlanta Watershed and EPA Team Up for Proctor Creek Urban Waters Announcement

Good news came into Cascade Patch late last week.  According to the United States EPA, "the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, in partnership with the White House Council on Environmental Quality, the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Transportation and Urban Development, the Army Corp of Engineers and the Centers for Disease Control, along with other federal partners, announced that the Urban Waters Federal Partnership is expanding to Proctor Creek in Atlanta, Ga."

This is huge news because Proctor Creek is one of only 11 communities nationwide to be newly selected for the partnership.

The EPA Acting Assistant Administrator for Water Nancy Stoner was joined by EPA Deputy Regional Administrator Stan Meiburg and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed in announcing the Proctor Creek partnership during a press conference at Maddox Park. The announcement marked the first stop of a Proctor Creek tour planned as part of the National Brownfields Conference also taking place last week in Atlanta.

"The revitalization of Proctor Creek will transform neighborhoods throughout northwest Atlanta,” said Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed. “With the help of federal and community partners, this effort will spur economic development, connect communities with new recreation opportunities and green space, and integrate critical investments in storm and wastewater management. This public-private partnership demonstrates Atlanta’s commitment to becoming a top-tier sustainable city.”

“Communities in and around the Proctor Creek Watershed have long suffered from pollution caused by Atlanta’s aging sewer infrastructure, disinvestment in the urban core, illegal dumping and other environmental and public health hazards,” said Na’Taki Osborne Jelks, Chair of the West Atlanta Watershed Alliance. “The strength of the Partnership will be realized through collaboration with residents who have assets, local knowledge and a history of action focused on restoring the watershed.”

According to WAWA, "the Proctor Creek watershed, part of the larger Chattahoochee River watershed, is 16 square miles with a population of 127,418 people living in over 25 different neighborhoods. Decades of neglect have resulted in numerous environmental challenges—from tire dumping and brownfields to impaired water quality and pervasive flooding. Many of these environmental problems pose additional health risks to people residing in the surrounding communities."

About Proctor Creek

Proctor Creek rises from small tributaries at the Atlanta University center, flowing through the English Avenue, Vine City, Mozley Park, West Highlands and Bankhead neighborhoods. Tributaries (branches) and the main stem of Proctor Creek flow through Maddox Park, Grove Park, Center Hill Park and Carey Park. A major tributary of Proctor Creek rises south of Joseph E. Boone Boulevard near Lincoln Cemetery and crosses Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway at Center Hill Park, meeting the main stem of Proctor Creek just downstream of the closed Hollywood Landfill. Proctor Creek flows northwest and meets the Chattahoochee River south of the Interstate 285 Bridge, near Whittier Mill Village.

More information about Proctor Creek: http://www.atlantawatershed.org/bureaus/storm/proctor-creek-watershed/index.htm