Portlanders all live in an urban watershed.

A watershed is an area of land where all rainfall drains into the same waterway. Portland is part of the Willamette River and Columbia River watersheds.

All Portlanders also live in the watershed of a smaller local stream or waterway. When rain falls onto our yards, rooftops, parking lots and streets, it runs into gutters, storm drains and pipes, and drains into streams, sloughs and the rivers.

Our urban watersheds provide many benefits, but face many challenges.