A Watershed Protection Plan (WPP) is a coordinated framework for implementing prioritized and integrated water quality protection and restoration strategies driven by environmental objectives. Through the WPP process, the state of Texas encourages stakeholders to holistically address all the sources and causes of impairments and threats to both surface water and groundwater resources within a watershed. Developed and implemented through diverse, well integrated partnerships, the WPP assures the long-term health of the watershed with strategies for protecting unimpaired waters and restoring impaired waters. (Definition courtesy of the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board)
The WPP will:
- Identify and quantify existing pollutant loadings that need to be controlled.
- Determine pollutant load reductions needed to meet water quality standards.
- Identify management practices to achieve water quality standards.
- Estimate technical and financial assistance needed to implement the plan.
- Describe information and education components needed to implement the plan.
- Develop an implementation schedule.
- Describe interim measurable milestones for management measure implementation.
- Describe water quality evaluation criteria.
- Describe the monitoring program to assess water quality conditions.
