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About
UCWA
The UPPER
CULLASAJA WATERSHED ASSOCIATION (UCWA) is a grassroots, citizens-based
group focused on protection of water quality and water resources
on the Highlands Plateau in Macon County, NC. The Cullasaja
River is a part of the Little Tennessee River system and is
one of the streams that flow north to reach the Gulf of Mexico.
Beginning
at Whiteside Mountain in Eastern Macon County and ending with
the dam forming |
| Lake
Sequoyah in Highlands, NC, the upper Cullasaja River watershed
is 14.4 square miles in area and is the smallest protected watershed
in the nation, according to inquiries made by UCWA of the TVA
and a RiverLink
nation-wide email search. The small area and well-defined geography
of the watershed makes it an ideal study site for many types
of projects.
The watershed
has four primary streams: the Cullasaja River, Big Creek,
Mill Creek, and Monger Creek. The drainage areas to these
primary streams subdivide the watershed into four smaller,
sub-watersheds. The Cullasaja River begins in the watershed
on Whiteside Mountain and terminates approximately 20 miles
away when the Cullasaja joins the Little Tennessee River in
Franklin, NC. During its journey, the river drops some 1,500
feet in elevation and includes several scenic waterfalls including
Dry Falls and the lower Cullasaja River Falls on US 64.
Elevations
in the watershed vary from 3,600 ft at Lake Sequoyah to 5,000
ft at Whiteside and Shortoff Mountains. The watershed area
is classified ecologically as a mountain, or high elevation,
rain forest with an average annual rainfall of 88.5 inches.
With only
four primary streams, the watershed receives a great deal
of attention from the state and the EPA
because two of the primary streams are on the EPA's 303(d)
list of impaired streams. The NC
DENR Division of Water Quality classifies the Cullasaja
River and Mill Creek as "biologically impaired" based on sampling
of macroinvertebrate colonies and comparison to "excellent
water quality" streams like Big Creek in the same watershed.
A specific cause of the biological impairment has not been
identified; however, the state identifies the cumulative effects
of rapid growth, construction, damming of streams to form
local lakes, and stormwater runoff as the probable causes.
Sedimentation is a major problem in the lakes and streams.
In 2002,
the Upper Cullasaja Watershed Association of Highlands was
named the winner of Nonprofit Watershed Leadership Award presented
by the Southeast Watershed Forum and the Watershed Leadership
Group comprised of the regional managers of ten U.S. government
agencies (EPA,
TVA, USDA,
USGS, etc.)
This prestigious award is given to one watershed organization
in the 9-state southeast region each year.
Meet the
Board of Directors. |
