Western Branch Patuxent River TMDL

Final TMDLs Approved by EPA

Western Branch is a tributary of the Patuxent River, located in Prince George’s County, Maryland. The mainstem of the river is approximately 20 miles long.

The Western Branch (02131103) was first identified on the 1996 303(d) list submitted to EPA by the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE). It was listed as being impaired by nutrients and suspended sediment. The impairment consisted of low dissolved oxygen concentrations found near the confluence of the Western Branch and the Patuxent River. The document available below demonstrates that the impairment is principally due to biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) in the stream, instead of nutrients, and establishes a TMDL for BOD in the Western Branch. The suspended sediment impairment will be addressed separately.

TMDL of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) for the Western Branch of the Patuxent River, Prince George’s County, MD (Approved on June 6, 2000)
EPA's Decision Letter	EPA's Decision Letter (2719KB)
Portable Document Format
Main Report	wb_tmdl_fin2.pdf (247KB)
Appendix A	wb_appxa_fin.pdf (132KB)
Technical Memorandum	wb_techmem.pdf (14KB)
Comment Response Document	wb_crd.pdf (28KB)

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