Antietam Creek Watershed’s First Report Card

On June 12, 2025, the Antietam-Conococheague Watershed Alliance (ACWA) released the first-ever Antietam Creek Watershed Report Card during a public reception and stewardship drop-in event. The report card offers a comprehensive look at the health of the Antietam Creek Watershed, which received an overall score of 48% (C grade). The grade highlights a mix of encouraging signs and areas that need improvement.

ACWA, the Beaver Creek Watershed Association (BCWA), and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES) collaborated to develop this local report card. Watershed report cards serve as powerful communication tools around the world. They track ecosystem health, raise public awareness, and inform policy and management decisions.

The Antietam Creek Report Card evaluates nine indicators across three key categories: water quality, biota (aquatic life), and landscape health. The specific indicators include: tree canopy, impervious surface, benthic macroinvertebrate community, trout populations, turbidity, phosphorus, nitrogen, forested riparian buffer, and conductivity.

Among the most pressing concerns the report card revealed are low tree canopy coverage, declining trout populations, and elevated conductivity levels.

This report card marks a significant step in better understanding and communicating the condition of the watershed. To review the full report card and learn more about ACWA’s and BCWA’s monitoring work visit: acwamaryland.org/watershed-report-card