All across Kentucky, there are many streams that flow into larger bodies of water, a central feature in Kentucky’s landscape. In fact, these streams and the surrounding land represent some of Kentucky's most valuable natural, cultural, and historical resources. Kentucky’s water resources provide recreational opportunities, such swimming, boating, and fishing to more than 4 million people.

When it rains, all the water falling to the land contributes to stream flows and some ultimately seeps into the ground, replenishing our groundwater. This surrounding land is called a watershed. No matter where we live in Kentucky, we live in a watershed..

Think about it! Every time it rains, the water runs off the land toward a stream. Anything on the ground—like pesticides, garbage, and trash—runs off the land with the water and eventually ends up in our streams. According to the Kentucky Division of Water, many of Kentucky’s assessed streams and rivers are polluted to the point where they can no longer support swimming and fishing. Polluted water is usually caused by our activities on the land.

There are 11 major river basins (or large watersheds) in Kentucky – 7 of which are wholly within the state. The Corbin Reservoir Watershed is located in the Upper Cumberland River Basin. The Upper Cumberland watershed includes all rivers, lakes and streams upstream of where the Cumberland River enters Tennessee in Monroe County, Kentucky. The entire Cumberland River watershed has its headwaters in eastern Kentucky, then flows through Tennessee, and back into western Kentucky. This illustrates the interconnectedness we have with our neighbors and the importance of taking care of this common resource.

The primary land uses in the Corbin Reservoir watershed are typical for the region and include agriculture (35%), natural hardwood forest (35%), and housing and development (30%). The watershed is located in Laurel County, and includes the city of London, Kentucky. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Laurel County is one of the most rapidly growing counties in the state of Kentucky. The county population growth from Apr. 1, 2000 to Jul. 1, 2004 was 6.2%, while the state’s population growth was only 2.6%. In 2004, the population of Laurel County was nearly 56,000 people. As this area continues to grow and population density increases, pressures on the streams and reservoir will intensify.

The watershed can be divided into 3 main subwatersheds, the Laurel River, Little Laurel, and Robinson Creek subwatersheds. The Laurel River and Robinson Creek subwatersheds are dominated by rolling pastureland with scattered rural residences. Though evidence of past strip mining was prevalent throughout the entire watershed, the Laurel River and Robinson Creek subwatersheds contain the most abundant areas of past strip mining. Alternatively, the Little Laurel River subwatershed has a variety of both point and nonpoint source pollution contributors. The Little Laurel River receives polluted runoff from the city of London, populated residential areas, sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs), and several concentrated cattle operations. Additionally, the Little Laurel River receives point source pollution from several industries, a landfill, and the London wastewater treatment plant (WWTP).

It is important to start now to increase awareness of the link between landuse and water quality, change individual behaviors, and implement projects to restore and protect the quality of our water resources.” This change was made because the original sentence implies that growth and development are the problem. It is a major contributor, but it’s important to discuss all the problems in the watershed.