Annual Project Highlights

2025 TMDL Project Highlights

NCTCOG and entities in the watershed continued to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan (I-Plan). Highlights from 2025 include:
  • Drafted and distributed the annual TMDL Questionnaire to stakeholders regarding I-Plan efforts.
  • Completed and distributed the Greater Trinity River Region TMDL Annual Program Summary.
  • Hosted and facilitated the Green Asset Management Webinar, which had 35 attendees. A copy of the presentation is available online here. A recording of the presentation is available here.
  • Coordinated 2 Upper Trinity River Basin Coordinating Committee meetings to provide a forum for watershed coordinators to communicate regarding current activities and ongoing efforts in the NCTCOG region. 
  • Facilitated the TMDL Coordination Committee meeting to give program updates and share information regarding future plans for the TMDL initiative. 
  • Facilitated 7 meetings with individual I-Plan strategy task forces to evaluate, revise, and update I-Plan strategies based on stakeholder feedback. 
  • Facilitated a TMDL I-Plan Updates and Next Steps meeting to provide a recap of the 7 I-Plan strategy meetings and request specific feedback on the Planning and Development strategy and Monitoring Coordination strategy. 
  • Initiated a major update to the I-Plan strategies, tables, and figures.

 

2024 TMDL Project Highlights

NCTCOG and entities in the watershed continued to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan (I-Plan). Highlights from 2024 include:

2023 TMDL Project Highlights

NCTCOG and entities in the watershed continued to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan (I-Plan). Highlights from 2023 include:


2022 TMDL Project Highlights

NCTCOG and entities in the watershed continued to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan (I-Plan). Highlights from 2022 include the following.

Facilitated the TMDL Coordination Committee meeting to give program updates, discuss upcoming projects, and to share information about an upcoming TMDL addition for North Fork Cottonwood Creek.

2021 TMDL Project Highlights

NCTCOG and entities in the watershed continued to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan (I-Plan). Highlights from 2021 include:

 

2020 TMDL Project Highlights

NCTCOG and entities in the watershed continued to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan (I-Plan). Highlights from 2020 include:

  • Drafted and distributed the annual TMDL Questionnaire to TMDL stakeholders regarding I-Plan efforts.
  • Incorporated North Fork Fish Creek as a bacteria-impaired waterway into the TMDL I-Plan and developed the updated I-Plan to be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The updated I-Plan is available online for review here.
  • Hosted and facilitated the Discouraging Avian Feeding webinar, which had 33 attendees. The Discouraging Avian Feeding webinar recording is available online here, and a copy of the presentations slides are linked in the Workshops header above. 
  • Completed the Greater Trinity River Regional TMDL Annual Program Summary, which includes information on current projects and activities completed during the 2020 fiscal year. 
  • Coordinated two Upper Trinity River Basin Coordinating Committee meetings to provide a forum for watershed coordinators to communicate regarding current activities and ongoing efforts in the NCTCOG region.
  • Facilitated meetings with the TMDL Stormwater, Wastewater, and Monitoring Technical Subcommittees to plan and coordinate bacteria reducing projects.
  • Facilitated the TMDL Coordination Committee meeting to give program updates, discuss upcoming projects, and obtain approval for the updated TMDL I-Plan which incorporated North Fork Fish Creek as a bacteria-impaired waterway.
  • Member highlights include: Trinity River Authority completed an  E. coli study for White Rock Creek and the North Texas Municipal Water District received a grant for Low Impact Development (LID) features as part of the Lavon Lake Watershed Protection Plan.

 

2019 TMDL Project Highlights

Cities in the watershed continued to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan. Highlights from 2019 include:

  • Drafted and distributed the annual TMDL Questionnaire to TMDL stakeholders regarding I-Plan efforts.
  • Facilitated and coordinated a workshop on Septic System Basic Maintenance for Homeowners on July 25, 2019. A total of 7 attendees participated in the workshop.
  • Facilitated and coordinated the Feral Hog Forum on August 13, 2019 with presentations from Texas Parks & Wildlife and Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute. A total of 23 attendees participated in the workshop.
  • Facilitated and coordinated the Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEP) webinar on November 12, 2019 with a presentation from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. A total of 33 attendees participated in the webinar.
  • Completed the Great Trinity River Region TMDL Annual Program Summary. This summary included major activities completed and information on current projects.
  • Facilitated and coordinated two Upper Trinity River Basin Coordinating Committee meetings with the goal of facilitating communication on current activities and efforts of watershed coordinators in the NCTCOG region.
  • Created the Avian Feeding Educational Materials, including signage, brochures, fact sheets, and a social media toolkit.
  • Supported the Doo the Right Thing Campaign by creating a social media toolkit to encourage residents to take the pledge to eliminate pet waste from yards and other areas, helping to reduce bacteria levels in stormwater runoff. In 2019, 187 individuals took the Doo the Right Thing pledge.
  • Created a brochure for homeowners for “Taking Care of Your On-Site Sewage Facility.”
  • Completed the update to the Total Maximum Daily Load Implementation Plan to include Sycamore Creek.
  • Facilitated meetings with the TMDL Stormwater, Wastewater, and Monitoring Technical Subcommittees to plan and coordinate bacteria reducing projects.
  • Facilitated the TMDL Coordination Committee meeting to give program updates, discuss upcoming projects, and gain approval for the updated TMDL I-Plan to incorporate Sycamore Creek.
  • Support ed the Egret Rookery Workshop held on October 23, 2019 and included presentations from the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, USDA Wildlife Services, City of The Colony, and City of Allen. 
  • Estelle Creek, Rush Creek and Village Creek all met water quality standards in the draft 2018 Texas Integrated Report!

 

2018 TMDL Program Highlights

Cities in the watershed continue to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan. Highlights from 2018 include:

  • Drafted and distributed the annual TMDL Questionnaire to TMDL stakeholders regarding I-Plan efforts.
  • Facilitated and coordinated a workshop on the Texas Stream Team Citizen Scientist program on March 6, 2018. A total of 26 attendees participated in the workshop.
  • Facilitated and coordinated the Texas Stream Team: Train-the-Trainer workshop featuring core water quality sampling methods on July 25, 2018. A total of 21 attendees participated in the workshop.
  • Completed the Greater Trinity River Region TMDL Implementation Plan Status Report. Incorporated new data, information, maps, and administrative updates.
  • Coordinated and facilitated two Upper Trinity River Basin Coordination Committee meetings with the goal of facilitating communication between the watershed coordinators in the NCTCOG region.
  • Created a summary of financial resources available for water quality improvement projects in the NCTCOG region.
  • Supported the Doo the Right Thing Campaign with 1147 individuals taking a pledge to eliminate pet waste from yards, helping to reduce bacteria levels in stormwater runoff.
  • Drafted a letter of support and passed a resolution to support the inclusion of the Sycamore Creek tributary segment and addendum to the I-Plan.
  • Facilitated meetings with the TMDL Stormwater, Wastewater, and Monitoring Technical Subcommittees to plan and coordinate bacteria reducing projects.
  • Facilitated the TMDL Coordination Committee to give program updates, discuss upcoming projects, gain approval from committee members to support the inclusion of the Sycamore Creek TMDL.

Member Highlights

  • City of Irving
    • The North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) Public Works Council designated the City of Irving’s status as a Certified Silver Integrated Stormwater Management (iSWM) Community on June 27, 2018.
    • Actively promoted the Fats, Rags, Oil and Grease (FROG) Program to educate the public on proper FROG disposal to reduce Sanitary Sewer Overflows (SSOs).

 

2017 TMDL Program Highlights

Cities in the watershed continue to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan. Highlights from 2017 include:

  • Developed and distributed a TMDL Information Request. Collected information from TMDL area stakeholders about TMDL I-Plan efforts.
  • Attended public meetings in preparation for the inclusion of the Sycamore Creek watershed to the Greater Trinity I-Plan.
  • Completed the Greater Trinity River Region TMDL Implementation Plan Status Report. Incorporated data and information from the Four Total Maximum Daily Loads for Indicator Bacteria in the Cottonwood Creek, Fish Creek, Kirby Creek, and Crockett Branch Watershed Upstream of Mountain Creek into the current I-Plan.
  • Coordinated and facilitated the North Texas Urban Feral Hog Forum in May 2017, which engaged nearly 50 interested stakeholders.
  • Helped plan and promote the North Texas Feral Hog Conference in November 2017, led by our partner agency, Trinity River Authority, which created further progress on Strategy 4.0: Feral hog management.
  • Created a Texas Stream Team web page on the NCTCOG website including an overview of the program, contacts, and equipment information.
  • Coordinated and facilitated the Sanitary Sewer Overflow Initiative (SSOI) Benefits webinar on August 21, 2017. The webinar had 31 participants, with speakers including Mary Gugliuzza from the Fort Worth Department and Scott Hoelzle from the North Texas Municipal Water District.

 

2016 TMDL Program Highlights

Cities in the watershed continue to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan. Highlights from 2016 include:

  • Hosted two workshops aimed at educating municipal and community representatives on challenges related to bacteria impairment in the Greater Trinity Region. Both the Sanitary Sewer Overflow workshop and the Green Infrastructure and Low Impact Development workshop had over 60 attendees.
  • Developed a spatial database and map of sanitary sewer overflow density by zip code in the TMDL area since 2011.
  • Supported the Doo the Right Thing campaign, with over 150 individuals taking a pet waste pledge to help reduce bacteria-laden runoff reaching local waterways.
  • Completed administrative and technical edits to the Implementation Plan (I-Plan) that were reviewed and approved by the subcommittees and Coordination Committee.
  • Continued partnership with AgriLife Stephenville, engaging regional stakeholders to implement strategies to reduce bacteria in impaired segments of the Upper Trinity River Basin.
  • Engaged subcommittees to define priority levels and status updates for each strategy and corresponding sub-strategy in the 2016 I-Plan Strategies Matrix. This tool will be used by the subcommittees to determine progress for the I-Plan strategies in 2017.

 

2015 TMDL Program Highlights

Cities in the watersheds continue to address bacteria levels in the impaired waterways covered by the Implementation Plan. Highlights from 2015 include:

  • Created the Water Quality BMP Library as a resource for regional stakeholders. The Library contains over 100 resources and will continued to be updated with new resources.
  • The Bacteria TMDL Coordination Committee voted to add 4 impaired segments to the Implementation Plan. If approved by the TCEQ, the total segments covered by the Implementation Plan will total 21 segments.
  • Supported Doo the Right Thing Pet Calendar with over 100 individuals take a pet waste pledge to help reduce bacteria laden runoff reaching local waterways.
  • Partnered with AgriLife Stephenville to address bacterial impairments in basin 0805 and those impaired sub-segments of the Trinity River. The first year of this effort increased education and outreach to raise stakeholders' water quality awareness.
  • Developed an Implementation Plan strategies matrix for prioritizing strategies for FY2016.

 

2014 TMDL Program Highlights

Although the I-Plan was not formally adopted until December 2013, cities in the impaired watersheds had already begun to make progress on addressing bacteria levels in the impaired waterways.