The Upper Neuse River Basin Association (UNRBA) was formed in 1996 to provide an ongoing forum for cooperation on water quality protection and water resource planning and management within the 770-square-mile watershed. Seven (of the 8) municipalities, 6 counties, and local Soil and Water Conservation Districts in the watershed voluntarily formed the Association.

Mission

The Mission of the UNRBA is to preserve the water quality of the Upper Neuse River Basin through innovative and cost-effective pollution reduction strategies, and to constitute a forum to cooperate on water supply issues within the Upper Neuse River Basin by:

1. Forming a coalition of units of local government, public and private agencies, and other interested and affected communities, organizations, businesses and individuals to secure and pool financial resources and expertise;
2. Collecting and analyzing information and data and developing, evaluating and implementing strategies to reduce, control and manage pollutant discharge; and
3. Providing accurate technical, management, regulatory and legal recommendations regarding the implementation of strategies and appropriate effluent limitations on discharges into the Upper Neuse River Basin.

Local Governments in the Watershed

The jurisdictions within the watershed are:

Board of Directors

Each of the thirteen member jurisdictions in the watershed, the six county Soil and Water Conservation Districts collectively, and South Granville Water and Sewer Authority elect one Director and one Alternate Director to the UNRBA Board of Directors. The Directors and Alternates are listed below:

Also see the Board of Directors meeting schedule and materials.

Staff

Forrest Westall was named Upper Neuse River Basin Association Executive Director in January 2012. Forrest's professional career spans more than 35 years and has been devoted to the wise stewardship of the water resources of North Carolina. Forrest has extensive experience in water quality management and has helped develop and administered most every aspect of NC's Water Quality Program. He has directly contributed to the development of laws, regulations and procedures that influence how the State manages surface water across the entire state.

In December 2004, Forrest retired from State government after over 28 years of service. For his significant contributions to his native State, Forrest was awarded The Order of the Long Leaf Pine in 2005. He joined McGill Associates, a respected Asheville firm, and is a Principal with the company. Forrest was appointed to the NC Environmental Management Commission in 2006 and the NC Mining Commission in 2007.

Forrest's unique experience and perspective has served him well in both the private and public sectors. In addition to advising and assisting many local governments and private clients he has served as an advisor to many non-profit, local government, and advocacy groups on environmental and natural resource issues. In 2011, Forrest was presented with a Land-of-Sky Regional Council Friend of the River Award for his careen contribution to water quality in North Carolina.

Forrest's background includes efforts to address many water quality issues in North Carolina including the Chowan River, the Neuse River, and the Cape Fear River Basins, and he helped establish many critical agency water quality management approaches such as water quality modeling, biological monitoring, the effluent toxicity program, the pretreatment program, and basinwide management planning. Forrest has been deeply involved with the development of eutrophication management in NC's inland and coastal waters since starting his career with the State. His intimate familiarity with the difficult public policy issues related to managing the development of watersheds while working to balance the need for growth with maintaining good water quality provides a solid foundation for guiding the work of the Upper Neuse River Basin Association.

EDUCATION:

Master of Civil Engineering Degree - North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina

Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering - North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina

Bylaws

The UNRBA has adopted formal bylaws to guide the organization.