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River Basin Booklet
River Basin Booklet
North Carolina’s
River
Basins
North Carolina is a diverse land with
ENVIRONMENTAL natural beauty that appeals to residents
EDUCATION and visitors alike.
It is also a land experiencing competition for its natural resources that are
already under stress and that could be lost to us in the absence of a widespread
awareness of their existence, their significance and their value.
Natural resources are not isolated from each other or the people who use them.
Each resource is an integral part of the ecosystem. When one part of the system is
affected, other parts feel the impact. It is environmental education that provides
the knowledge, understanding and awareness of this interconnectedness of all
things and gives us the ability to make informed environmental decisions.
The more we understand and respect our own community, the more capable we
are of being good stewards of the environment. If you have ever visited one of
North Carolina’s many Environmental Education Centers—nature centers, parks,
aquariums, museums, the zoo, public gardens, etc.—then you have already
started appreciating natural systems and had fun while learning about them.
North Carolina’s this knowledge, individuals can make more informed deci-
sions regarding their environment.
River Basins
KEN TAYLOR, WILDLIFE IMAGES
W H AT I S A R I V E R B A S I N ?
A river basin is the land that
water flows across or under on its
way to a river. As a bathtub catches all the water that falls within its sides, a
estuary: a semi-
enclosed area
where fresh water
from a river meets
river basin sends all the water falling on the surrounding land into a central salty water from
the sea
river and out to an estuary or the sea.
river basin: drainage area of a river
A river basin drains all the land around a major GRAPHIC BY ERIN HANCOCK, NCWRC
er
Jefferson STOK E S
S U R RY
iv
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Dobson R iv e
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Roan Mtn. R dki
6285 ' Ya
W. Ker r Sc ott YA D K I N
Newland
Grandfather Mtn.
R es er v oir FOR SYTH
5964' Wilkesboro ns Yadkinville
ai Kernersville
M ITC H ELL nt
ou Winston-Salem
N AV E RY M
or
th Bakersville
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Fr Burnsville T o e B ru
C A LDWELL High
en
c h M A D ISO N
R iv
er U A LE XA N D E R DAVI E Point
YA N C E Y Lenoir
Taylorsville Mocksville
Mt . Mitchel l L IR E D ELL Thomasville
Marshall 6684' Lak e H i ckor y
Mt. Sterling
B Lak e Lexington
Mt . Hardison 5835'
awba R ho dhis s Statesville
6134' Cat Loo kout DAVID SO N
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M c D OWELL er
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6643'
H AYWOOD BU N C OM B E Marion ROWA N H i gh
oun South Uwhar ri e
ky M k Asheville C ATAWBA R
G reat S m o al P ar
Waterrock R oc k
Salisbur y
N a tio n
Knob Lak e
6292'
Waynesville Cold Mtn.
L ittle Fonta na
La ke
SWA I N 6030' Mountains
Mooresville
Mountain
Mt . Pisgah Tu cke r t ow n
Richland Lak e
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5721' R es er v oi r Bad in
LIN C OLN
al
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Bryson Sylva 6540'
GR A H A M Lur e
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R iv e r
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ee
hal
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iw N an tahal a r TR A N SYLVA N I A R iv Gastonia
a M ou nt a in s
Lak e 5499'
Chatuge
Hayesville
Lak e Matthews
R iv
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Monroe Wadesboro
U N ION ANSON
PASQUOTANK
TA
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CA
FRENCH R-
PA
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US CO
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TENNESSEE E
EE
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HIWASSEE
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E
FE
AR
SAVANNAH
WHITE OAK
LUMBER
2
River Basins
C
Dismal U
Eden Ma yo John H. Kerr Roanoke Rapids R Currituck
Lake Swamp R
Reservoir Reser voir GATE S C I
Lake A
RO C K IN GH A M M
TU
Hyco Gaston Roanoke
Yanceyville GR A N VILLE N ORTH A MPTON Ch PA
Rapids
C u rr
owa
C
er Lake Gatesville
Roxboro S
D
n
K
Q
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Reidsville Warrenton Winton R
U
it u c
N
Wentworth C A SWELL Henderson Halifax Jackson
i
Elizabeth
ve
k
WA R R E N H ERTFOR D City
O
PER SON Camden
TA
Oxford
N
VA N C E
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HA LI FA X
Townsend Lake PER QU IMA N S
Pa
Lake Bur lington Quaker R
oa Hertford
sq
Creek C H OWA N
uo
Reser voir no
ta n
ke
FR A N K LI N
S ou nd
GU ILFOR D
k
R iv
Bu r l i n g to n O R A N GE B E RT IE Sound
Greensboro Louisburg Edenton
er
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A LA MA N C E DURHAM N A SH ema
Ta
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Rocky Windsor
r
Gra h a m
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Mount
R iv e
Carrboro Durham Nashville
Ri
Wake ve
Falls Lake Forest
r Columbia Manteo
Cr
Ha
oa
Williamston WA SH IN GTON
ta n
w
A l li g a t o r
ED GEC OMB E Plymouth
Phelps TYR R ELL
WA K E
S ou
B. Everett
MA RT IN Lake Hollow DA R E
Jordan Raleigh Ground
nd
R
p
Wilson
er
Pungo Lake
Ri
Asheboro Pittsboro
ve
Harr is N New y
C H ATH A M WILSO N PITT Lake wa
r
Garner eu er
R A N D OLPH Reser vo ir at
W
se
er Greenville
ns
R iv Washington co a st
al
In tr a Lake
J OH N STON B EAU FO RT Mattamuskeet
Sanford GR EEN E Swan
Smithfield Quarter
Snow Hill H YD E
LE E WAYN E Pam
Lillington lic o d
R iv e r un
Carthage Goldsboro
Troy So
H A R N ETT
OME RY
MOOR E Kinston o
Gum Swamp lic
m
C R AVE N
S
L
LEN OIR
I New Bern Bayboro s
k
H n
N o rthe a st
D r a
Trenton PA M LIC O ve
Bl ewett F all s N H OK E Fayetteville SA MPSO N Ri B
Lake
A J ON E S e
R IC H MON D Raeford us
S C U MB ER LA N D Ne
Clinton Kenansville
S
Catfish Long
ou
Lake
D U PLI N Lake Havelock
th
Rockingham Little
W
Great
Wolf Swamp Lake
hi
Lake
SC OTLA N D
te
d
O N SLOW T
CART ERE
un
Cap
So
k
B LA D E N
e
Laurinburg Ca Jacksonville
Ri
r
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Co
Lu Bay Tree
e
mb Fe
r
Lake nd
Sou
t
er a r White
e
Lake B ogu
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Lumber ton O
Elizabethtown Singletar y
ROB ESO N PEN D E R
R
Lake
iv
R Bl
ac Burgaw Holly
iv
er k Shelter
Swamp
R
iv
er
Whiteville
Areas
Lake
Waccamaw N EW
COLUMBU S Wilmington
Green Swamp
of North Carolina’s River Basins
Wa cc a
Bolivia
H A N OVE R
I N S Q U A R E M I L E S
m aw
B RU N SWIC K
Yadkin-PeeDee 7,221
Cape F ear
Tar-Pamlico 6,148
Neuse 6,062
Roanoke 3,493
Pasquotank 3,366
Lumber 3,329
Catawba 3,285
French Broad 2,829
Little Tennessee 1,797
Broad 1,514
White Oak 1,382
Chowan 1,298
New 754
This map is provided in poster format by the Office of Environmental Education and Public Affairs in the N.C. Hiwassee 644
Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
Watauga 205
Map by Lee Ratcliffe, from the Nov. 1999 special issue of Wildlife in North Carolina Magazine, “Rivers of North
Carolina,” published by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. Base map copyright John Fels, 1997.
Savannah 171
Sources: NCDENR Division of Water Resources; NCDENR Office of Environmental Education and Public Affairs; Only indicates square mileage within North Carolina’s borders
N.C. Department of Transportation; N.C. State University School of Design.
3
is it headed? To answer these questions, you
must know what river basin you live in—part
of your ecological address.
mid-1950s, a connection became apparent In the late 1980s, North Carolina established a
between decline in water quality and the manage-
RIVER BASIN water quality management program focused on
ment of wastewater. By the early 1970s, the gov- PLANNING each of the state’s 17 river basins. The N.C. Depart-
ernment became involved in the construction of ment of Environment and Natural Resources’ (DENR) Division of Water Quality
facilities to treat wastewater and safeguard human updates the management plan for each river basin every five years based on
health and aquatic ecosystems downstream. extensive data from water quality sampling. Public input is gathered before
drafting the basinwide plan. Later, a public review period is held to obtain
A wide variety of pollutants— comments on the draft plan. The plans contain available information on char-
including sediment, nutrients acteristics of the basin, current water quality and management strategies for
and chemicals—enters our rivers protecting or improving water quality. For more information about river basins and
from various sources. The federal nonpoint source pollution in North Carolina, explore the website of the Basin Plan-
Clean Water Act of 1972 established ning Program: http://portal.ncdenr.org/web/wq/ps/bpu. For each river basin, you’ll
a goal of making all the nation’s waters fish- find a basinwide plan, river statistics, notices of upcoming events, links to contacts
able and swimmable. To meet that directive, North for watershed groups and other helpful information.
Carolina surveyed and evaluated its streams and
rivers and labeled most bodies of water with a
use that each has traditionally supported, such
as fishing, swimming and drinking.
7
point source pollu-
tion: discharge
entering a stream
at a specific, detect-
able point such as NC AQUARIUMS
a pipe or outfall
The state monitors and collects information on lots as well as chemicals or particles in the air
streams to determine if they are fulfilling their that eventually “rain down” on land. Water
labeled use. If not, the waters are considered running over and off land is a natural phenom-
impaired. The government has a legal obligation enon; the problem lies in the pollutants that get
to protect these uses and to create and implement picked up and moved
algal bloom:
strategies to reduce pollution in impaired waters. along the way. Non- rapid, dense
The goal is that water quality in every river will point source pollution growth of
be good enough to support its designated use. is harmful to rivers for algae that robs
nonpoint source the water of
What is the quality of water in your river basin? many reasons. Large
pollution: diffuse oxygen as it
runoff from large You can find out more information about your amounts of sediment
dies and
areas of land river basin by referring to the individual river can smother stream decomposes
basin inserts available from the Office of animals and block
Environmental Education and Public Affairs. sunlight to aquatic plants. Excess nutrients may
cause harmful algal blooms that deplete oxygen
To curb water pollution, we must know its source. needed by fish. Toxins have acute and chronic
Pollution entering rivers is classified as one of two effects, killing organisms immediately or by
types, depending on its origin. Point source accumulating in the food chain.
pollution comes from a central point or location,
such as a pipe. Nonpoint source pollution comes The kind and amount of pollution in point source
from land use activities within a river basin; it discharges are monitored and regulated by state
results from rainwater washing pollutants off and federal governments, but nonpoint source
the land and into streams. This type of pollution pollution, which accumulates from individuals
includes pesticides and fertilizer from yards and over large areas of land, is more difficult to pin-
fields, human and animal waste, eroded sedi- point and regulate.
ments, oil and chemicals on streets and parking
8
To fully appreciate nonpoint source pollution WHAT CAN I DO?
where you live, examine how the land around Citizen involvement helps determine government
you is used. How much land is developed in your policy. Legislators listen to citizens, then respond
river basin? How much area is paved or covered by setting policies that state government must
with hard (impervious) surfaces? This will influ- adopt. In this manner, government plays a role in
ence the amount of protecting and often repairing riparian ecosystems.
stormwater: surplus For example, the state now requires vegetative
stormwater and how
water from rain
and melted snow fast it runs off. Is land buffers along many streams and rivers
in your neighborhood • to protect their banks from erosion,
covered with natural vegetation or is it mostly • to reduce the impact of nonpoint source
lawns? Are there parks and greenways? What pollution by trapping, filtering and con-
types of pollution sources are immediately verting pollutants, and
affecting you? • to supply food, shelter and shade to fish
and other aquatic wildlife.
THE EFFECT OF PLANTS AND TREES Other government programs promote “best
GRAPHIC BY ERIN HANCOCK, NCWRC
management practices”—more environmen-
VEGETATIVE BUFFER tally friendly methods of agriculture, forestry
and development.
natural filtration
Laws alone cannot completely protect river basins.
Our rivers will be only as pure as our commitment
clear water to preserving them. What we do in river basins
ultimately affects striped bass, freshwater mussels,
oceangoing fish and shellfish and even us.
NO VEGETATIVE BUFFER Damage done to aquatic ecosystems can
be irreversible or cost millions of dollars to
sediment runoff
fix—it is easier, safer and more economical
to consider future consequences as we develop
our river basins. Protection is much cheaper than
siltation
erosion restoration. Staying actively involved in the deci-
sions affecting your community and state is the
key to ensuring a healthy future for river basins.
AIRLIE GARDENS
9
Here are just a few ways
citizens are making a
DIFFERENCE
in their communities:
● STREAM WATCH
Clean waterways are as important as safe
neighborhoods. The Stream Watch program is
based on the philosophy that those in the best NCDENR DIVISION OF WATER QUALITY
10
RIVERWORKS AT STURGEON CITY
NC AQUARIUMS
11
What’s Different?
You may have noticed some minor changes to the map and some
of the river basin boundaries. Good eye! About half of the basins
experienced small changes to their borders. These changes help
make the basins more accurate. They now reflect the flow of the
water instead of political lines such as county and city borders. The
changes are very minor, but the most obvious change came to the
White Oak and Cape Fear basins. The White Oak River Basin now
extends south to near Wilmington. This change better demonstrates
how the water flows.
The map above illustrates the changes to the basins. The black
lines represent the former boundaries. The different colors represent
the new boundaries.
12
Every decision we make changes North Carolina—for better
or worse. Often we blame agriculture, industries and munic-
ipalities as the source of environmental problems, but we all
play a role. It isn’t always obvious how our daily actions affect
the environment, but our personal choices have conse-
quences. Responsibility for the care of North Carolina’s natural
systems rests in our hands. It is essential to stay informed and
make decisions about the environment—whether it’s by
changing daily habits or participating in government. Start by
looking at the small commitments you can make, then con-
tinue to learn more about your connections to the natural
systems that sustain us.
The Office of Environmental Education and Public Affairs is part of the N.C. Department
of Environment and Natural Resources. The office helps coordinate many environmental
education programs and resources offered by the department and throughout North
Carolina, and offers several related publications and services.
Front cover photos, clockwise from center: Melissa McGaw; Melissa McGaw;
N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission; Ken Taylor; Derrick Hamrick; background photo:
N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. Back cover photo: Harry Ellis.
8,000 copies of this document were printed at a cost of $4,779.11 or $0.597 per copy.
This publication was funded through a Walmart Stormwater Compliance Grant.