What is a Watershed? A watershed is an area of land that drains downhill to a body of water, such as a stream, lake, river or wetland.  A watershed includes both the waterway and the land that drains to it.  Each watershed is separated topographically by a ridge or hill.  A watershed is like a funnel - collecting all the water within the drainage area and channeling it into a waterway. Watersheds are natural bodies that don’t recognize political boundaries.

Point Source Pollutants As the groundwater or surface water travels, pollutants and sediments attach to the water molecules. These pollutants also travel to the next closest body of water. Pollutants originating from a single source, such as a pipe, that you can ‘point your finger’ toward are referred to as point source pollution. Point source pollution is regulated by federal, state and local laws.

Non Point Source Pollutants Nonpoint source pollution refers to pollutants that come from a multitude of sources. Nationwide, nonpoint source pollution is the major contributor to water quality problems. Nonpoint Source Pollution comes from a variety of human activities, including agricultural runoff, applications of fertilizers and pesticides, metals and oils from cars, household chemicals, erosion from construction sites and other land clearing activities, stormwater runoff from urban areas and sewage system overflow. We all contribute to nonpoint source pollution.

Often we don’t understand how our activities affect local waterways Often we don’t understand how our activities affect local waterways. How we use and dispose of household or yard chemicals can make a difference. Although we may be small contributors individually, the cumulative impact from all residents in a watershed has a big effect. Everyone counts. And sometimes accidents happen. For example, one gallon of spilled motor oil can pollute up to two million gallons of water.

Connecticut River Watershed The 410 mile-long Connecticut River is New England's longest river. Its headwaters are Fourth Connecticut Lake at the Canadian border, and it empties into Long Island Sound at Old Saybrook, CT. The watershed encompasses an area of over 11,000 square-miles and includes parts of four states -- Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. The River is the boundary between Vermont and New Hampshire (but is wholly in NH). The watershed is 80% forested, 12% agricultural, 3% developed, and 5% wetlands and water. There are 390 towns, villages and cities, which are home to 2.3 million people.

Connecticut River Headwater Lakes

Connecticut River Brattleboro, Vermont

Connecticut River French King Gorge

Connecticut River Hadley Meadows

Connecticut River down river of Middletown, CT