Hooffs Run (Alexandria, VA) Watershed

Hooffs Run Watershed - Flooding Flooding is a topical issue for many residents living in the Hooffs Run watershed, particularly those in Del Ray neighborhood. The most recent Rain Event on September 10, 2020, resulted in 315 requests for service from local residents. While a USGS monitoring station within the Hooffs Run watershed could not be located, USGS 01653000 monitors the nearby Cameron Run, which displays a significant increase (discharge, cubic feet per second) on September 10, 2020. The map below highlights a residential area that is reportedly subject to frequent flooding, which is also highlighted in the City of Alexandria ‘heat map’ of service calls from September 10, 2020. Source: City of Alexandria Presumably the highlighted area is at, or near, sea level, and during rain events a significant amount of water flows down from the hilly area west of Russell Road overwhelming the storm water system. The flow of surface, and subsurface water, may follow the direction of th

    Hooffs Run Watershed - Characteristics and Features. Storm water and Sewers:   As outlined on the  City of Alexandria website , the city operates two types of storm sewer systems: A separate sewer system and a combined sewer system (CSS). The separate system consists of two pipes (one each for sewer and storm water), where as the CSS combines sewer and storm water in a single pipe. During moderate to heavy rain, the pipe can become overloaded with storm water and raw sewage may overflow in to local streams (including the Hooffs Run Stream/Tributary).  The Hooffs Run watershed encompasses both systems, although the majority of the watershed surface area is serviced by the separate system. The Hooffs Run stream, seen in the map below, holds significance as it is the site of two CSS Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Stations (red dots 003 and 004). A detailed GIS Sewer Viewer maintained by the City of Alexandria displays how storm water and sewage are collected in old town, then

Dendrology: Hooffs Run Watershed, Alexandria VA.  Visitors to the Hooffs Run Watershed are likely to encounter the following trees:     Northern Catalpa   Bignoniaceae   Catalpa  speciosa   Source: Virginia Tech Dendrology       Silver Maple   Aceraceae   Acer  saccharinum   Source: Virginia Tech Dendrology         flowering dogwood   Cornaceae   Cornus  florida   Source: Virginia Tech Dendrology     Unfortunately within the Hooffs Run watershed it is rare to encounter snags or logs from Northern Catalpa, Silver Maple, or Flowering Dogwood trees. According to the National Wildlife Federation, "Dead trees provide vital habitat for more than 1,000 species of wildlife nationwide...by some estimates, the removal of dead material from forests can mean a loss of habitat for up to one-fifth of the animals in the ecosystem."  While the Hooffs Run watershed is not a forest, and is a mixed r

Introduction This blog is dedicated to the study  of the Hooffs Run Watershed in Alexandria, VA, as part of the Virginia Tech Graduate Course Watershed Stewardship (NR 5264). The City of Alexandria has identified and  mapped 10 watersheds  within the city limits, which  all flow in to the Potomac River, then onward to the Chesapeake Bay.   Hooffs Run Watershed. Source: City of Alexandria Key geographic features of the Hooffs Run Watershed include the southwest quadrant of Old Town, George Washington Masonic Temple, Braddock Road metro station, and approximately half of the suburb of Del  Ray.  Study of the Hooffs Run Watershed could help to better understand the underlying causes of localized flooding in the Del Ray area, as reported in local media in July and September 2020, of which anecdotally has been reported by residents as "getting worse."