PA Growing Greener » Growing Greener Success Stories

Citizens Compelled To Cleanup Aultman Watershed In Indiana County

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:47:19 +0000

The Aultman Watershed Association for Restoring the Environment (AWARE) was started in February 2000 by concerned citizens from Indiana and southwestern Indiana County who felt compelled to clean up the Aultmans Run Watershed.

Nearly 30 square miles in extent, this area empties into the Conemaugh River behind the Army Corps of Engineers dam, and it has abundant potential as a habitat and recreation corridor. This potential has been threatened by pollution, hazards, and eyesores typical of historic mining activities, and by illegal dumping.

Many of these issues remain as we look back on our ten-year anniversary, however, we have made great strides forward through the dedication of our members and partners, and the support of state and county institutions and representatives.

With the aid of our grantors (League of Women Voters, WPCAMR, DEP) we rapidly built and promoted our organization. Displays were set up at the Indiana County May Mart Festival and other local venues.

In 2002, watershed signs were erected along roadsides, marking the boundary for all to see. From the outset, the watershed has been used by Indiana University of Pennsylvania students for field activities, and the data they have collected has highlighted both viable and struggling aquatic habitats. Other students developed educational materials about the watershed for student teaching activities.

And from 2001 to the present, students and members of the community have participated in our annual spring roadside cleanup. These volunteers, supported by township employees, local businesses, PA Cleanways, and Penn DOT, have removed many tons of trash, appliances, and other refuse from riparian zones in the watershed.

A 2001 Growing Greener grant enabled us to complete a watershed assessment. Fourteen AMD sites were monitored, and within three years of our founding, we had a solid basis for subsequent remediation projects.

Our first is a passive wetland treatment system constructed in 2003 to remove iron from a discharge passing beneath State Route 286, south of Aultman. This Growing Greener-funded success typically lowers iron concentrations from around 12-14 mg/l to 2-4 mg/l where the treated water enters Aultmans Run.

The S.R. 286 wetland project was also the first major collaboration with Stream Restoration Incorporated, a partnership that continues to bear fruit. Awards for design and construction from Growing Greener (2004, 2008, 2010) and the County Environmental Initiative (2006) ensure that severe sources of AMD pollution will one day be healed on the tributaries of Reeds Run and Neal Run.

In the near future we would also like to develop a trail near Jacksonville, capitalizing on a recreational assessment completed by IUP graduate students in Geography & Regional Planning, and with an awareness of our position within a county-level greenway network plan.

Ten years ago, we did not fully comprehend the scope of the challenges that lay ahead in meeting our objectives. Nor did we ever imagine how successful we would be in receiving support to achieve those ends, with nearly $530,000 in grants thus far.

Ten years is a significant milestone for a volunteer group with a worthy cause: the betterment of all life along Aultmans Run.

Dr. Brian Okey is President of the Aultman Watershed Association for Restoring the Environment and can be contacted by sending email to: Brian.Okey@iup.edu.

Link: The Geography of Restoring Aultman's Run In Indiana County

Written By: Dr. Brian Okey – Aultman Watershed Association for Restoring the Environment

Montour Run Watershed Association Completes Fifth Abandoned Mine Drainage Project

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:42:54 +0000

The Montour Run Watershed Association protects and remediates the 37-square-mile Montour Run Watershed in western Allegheny County. Working with citizens' groups, businesses, local governmental agencies, elected officials, and the general public, we strive to bring about improvements in water quality.

Over the nine years of our existence, the MRWA has successfully conducted watershed assessment projects, public outreach and education projects, and stream improvement projects involving coordination and partnering with private and governmental landowners.

The MRWA has achieved these goals partly through the design and construction of four abandoned mine drainage (AMD) treatment systems. Over $1 million in grant funding has been secured for these projects, much of which has been provided under the Growing Greener program.

Thus far these projects have resulted in the improved health of nearly 10 miles of stream through the removal of about 40 tons/year of acidity and 10 tons/per year of metals.

The specific projects that have brought about these improvements include the following:

- "The Abandoned Mine Drainage Cleanup Plan for the Montour Run Watershed" identified and prioritized treatment options for 12 AMD discharges in the watershed. (Biomost, Inc., September 2003). This plan was based on the data obtained from twelve months of sampling at each of the discharge sites. Included in the plan, in addition to the sample analyses, were preliminary designs for treatment systems for all sites, plus preliminary estimates of the costs to design and construct them.

- The Boggs Road Mine Drainage Remediation System is a 5-bay passive treatment system that is removing 3.5 tons per year of iron and is directly improving 2.5 miles of tributary stream as a result. The Boggs system is sited on private property in Findlay Township.

- The Clinton Road Acid Mine Drainage Remediation System includes two passive treatment ponds that improve about 3 miles of Enlow Run, a tributary stream, and over 10 miles of the main stem of Montour Run by removing 20 tons per year of acid and 2.5 tons per year of aluminum. The Clinton Road and North Fork Montour projects are sited on property of the Pittsburgh International Airport.

- The North Fork Montour Run Restoration Project, constructed in 2008, is improving about 2 miles of the North Fork of Montour Run by removing 9.5 tons / year of acidity and 3 tons/year of metals. This project utilized two water treatment ponds that had been built by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission for construction of the Findlay Connector, a new four-lane expressway.

- The McCaslin Road Abandoned Mine Remediation Project, dedicated in November of 2009, will improve the health of nearly two miles of the West Fork of Enlow Run, a tributary to Montour Run

An estimated 7 tons of acid and 1 ton of aluminum will be prevented from entering the streams each year from this site alone. MRWA partnered with the Findlay Township Public Works to situate the buried treatment system within the maintenance yard and still allow use of the property for municipal needs.

The MRWA is indebted to PADEP and the Growing Greener program, which has enabled us to make these improvements. More information may be obtained by visiting our website or by contacting Mark Fedosick, President, MRWA, PO Box 15509, Pittsburgh, PA 15244-0509.

Written By: Stan Sattinger – Vice President – Montour Run Watershed Association

Blackleggs Creek: When An AMD Treatment System Becomes A Park

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:40:12 +0000

In August 2009, nestled into the rolling hills of southern Indiana County, a Memorial Park was dedicated to all the past volunteers and members of the Blackleggs Creek Watershed.

The events leading up to this dedication began decades ago and are filled with trial and error, as well as success for the Blackleggs Creek Watershed, and here is the story as told by one of the dedicated volunteers.

Between the years of 1910 thru 1930 the area around Indiana County was largely made up of coal mines and populated by coal miners. These folks were not environmentalists, only simple men making a living.

Their legacy is in our culture and unfortunately in our streams. Blackleggs Creek, a relatively small watershed of roughly 45 square miles, has an astonishing 52 Abandoned Mine Drainage discharges. Sadly, nothing was done for years to address this AMD.

In 1971, the DER (predecessor to the DEP) began a Scar Lift Study in Blackleggs Creek Watershed to determine what could be done to repair it. Additionally, there was a concerned group of people who were interested in restoring Blackleggs Creek.

Of this core group, many of their names are lost, however they became the first known environmental volunteers for Blackleggs Creek. These men measured water flows, tested chemistry and located all the mining related impacts on the watershed.

In 1974, when the study was completed the DER estimated that it would take $1,160,000 to restore Blackleggs to its natural condition. That same year, the DER directed $27,000 towards Blackleggs restoration efforts, sadly the core group could not raise additional funds to meet the restoration needs of the watershed, so they had to put their goal on hold for another decade.

In 1984, ironic as it may seem, a group of coal miners decided that they wanted to fish the creek that their forefathers had unknowingly destroyed. For two years they bought and stocked fish and raised interest in fishing Blackleggs again.

In 1986, Blackleggs became an approved trout stream with the help of the Fish and Boat Commission and their president at that time, Ross Huhn, a former resident of Saltsburg.

As fishing interest grew, volunteers built a trout nursery, started a Co-Op, held an annual Kids Day and had a lot of fishing enjoyment for the next decade.

In 1998, Lou Kopczyk, at the time working at the Indiana County Conservation District, came to the new Blackleggs Creek Trout Nursery and told them about a new source of funding for watershed groups to clean their streams.

He convinced them to begin monitoring the stream well in advance so that they would be ready to apply for a Growing Greener grant and begin work for the DEP.

To verify the data the Trout Nursery collected, they found the old Scar Lift report and gave it to the DEP. The information within that report has been invaluable towards restoration efforts in improving Blackleggs Creek Watershed.

Over the next several months, data was collected paperwork was completed and thankfully funding was granted. The first AMD treatment system that was installed along Blackleggs Creek, completed in 2001, is known as the Kolb treatment system.

The system was a simple two cell passive treatment system designed to treat the approximate 1,000 gallon per minute net alkaline discharge. The water is aerated by the force of the flow dropping over an aeration basket, which allows a majority of the iron to precipitates and collect in a large holding pond, and the remaining to settle out through a polishing wetland.

Funding for the system came from a variety of sources including $65,500 from the Growing Greener program.

To date, the system has received regular maintenance and several repairs to pipes leading to the system, and thanks to the care of volunteers and new funding sources, is still in relatively good working order, and continues to help improve the water quality of Blackleggs Creek.

In-fact, Kolb and the land around the system has been transitioned into to a Memorial Park in memory of all the Kolb AMD treatment system aeration fountain and ponds past members who had the dream of cleaning up their watershed.

Visitors to the park can fish along Blackleggs Creek or enjoy a picnic in the nearby pavilion, all the while being serenaded by the water flowing through Kolb’s aeration fountain. There is a short trail winding through the park leading up to Kolb, where visitors can see the system at work.

A future goal of Blackleggs Creek Watershed Association is to post interactive signage around the system explaining how Kolb is improving the watershed.

The Kolb AMD treatment system was just the starting point for the restoration work that has taken place throughout the watershed.

Roughly $1.5 million dollars has currently been spent improving Blackleggs Creek Watershed with the installation of four AMD treatment systems, a fifth under construction, and a six in the system for funding assistance, and there is an estimated $1.5 million left to go before all the major AMD discharges have been addressed.

Without funding assistance from programs like Growing Greener, Blackleggs Creek would still be in terrible shape, and BCWA would like to thank all the funders and volunteers who have contributed to improving Blackleggs Creek Watershed and invite them out to the stream during spring trout stocking season to enjoy some of the fruits of their labor.

Photo: Kolb AMD treatment system aeration fountain and ponds.

The Blackleggs Creek Watershed Association in Indiana and Armstrong counties submitted this story about how Growing Greener has funded installation of an acid mine drainage treatment system that became a community park. The Association is now becomes eligible for a $250 Growing Greener Anniversary Grant.

County Watershed Specialists Help Develop Watershed Protection Capacity

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:35:54 +0000

County Conservation District Watershed Specialists have been a vital force in Pennsylvania’s watershed movement for nearly 10 years, providing much needed environmental services in their counties and saving the state millions of dollars in project costs, in part by locating matching funding and in-kind contributions for environmental projects.

Whether it’s fighting Abandoned Mine Drainage, restoring streamside vegetation, or reducing water pollution caused by agricultural or urban runoff, our Watershed Specialists have been instrumental in many of Pennsylvania’s environmental successes.

As part of a campaign to increase awareness of our county Watershed Specialists, WPCAMR Video Diaries pays a visit to the Westmoreland Conservation District to talk to Watershed Specialist, Rob Cronauer about his work and the future of the Watershed Specialist positions.

The county watershed specialist program is funded by the Growing Greener Program that is due to end in 2010. Without a new source of funding, the good work done by these dedicated people could also end. Contact your House and Senate member to urge them to reauthorize the program.

Neshaminy Creek Stormwater Best Management Practices Demonstration Project

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:33:51 +0000

In 2005, Montgomery County Conservation District was awarded Growing Greener funding to implement a stormwater best management practices demonstration site on the headwaters to the Little Neshaminy Creek in Montgomery Township.

Montgomery Township is a suburban landscape in Montgomery County with high impervious cover.

In 2000, the Township was mapped with approximately 40 percent impervious, up from only 4 percent in 1970.

The Growing Greener funding was awarded to retrofit a stormwater basin at the Mary Mother of Redeemer Church and School. The 30 acre facility has many existing natural features including; wetlands, a pond, and 500’ of a headwater stream tributary to the Little Neshaminy Creek.

The stormwater retrofit included removing a concrete low flow channel, modifying the outlet structure to provide extended detention, installing a sediment forebay to filter stormwater runoff, and naturalizing the basin.

Upon removal of the low flow channel, a water quality berm was installed to maximize the flow path in the basin. The elevated berm directed stormwater through the basin, allowing it to meander within the basin before reaching the outlet structure.

The sediment forebay is a holding area where the stormwater enters the basin. It is a depressed area lined with larger rock which filters sediment and particulates from the stormwater as it enters the basin.

At the outlet structure, the existing orifice was covered with a steel plate, and a new smaller orifice was installed one foot higher. This provides extended detention and enabled the basin to support wetland vegetation.

Following completion of the basin modifications, students and parishioners of the Church and School planted native vegetation in the basin.

In addition to retrofitting the stormwater basin, the Growing Greener grant project helped to leverage additional funding for the project.

A TreeVitalize Watershed grant was awarded to plant 203 trees, and 342 shrubs to increase canopy cover, create wildlife habitat, and buffer the headwaters stream. The grant also funded 150 live stakes to enhance biodiversity in the wetlands.

A donation was made by a local company, Rohm and Haas, to purchase monitoring equipment for the students to study water quality in the stream and wetlands, and also to monitor the quality of the runoff at the inflow and outflow of the stormwater basin.

We applied to Stroud Water Research Center through a Consortium for Scientific Assistance to Watersheds (C-SAW) grant to assist with establishing lesson plans, and instructing the teachers on how to use the monitoring equipment.

As part of our educational outreach efforts we held two workshops. An initial workshop was held in February 2006 as a kick-off event at the beginning of the project. There was a check presentation from DEP representatives and Sen. Greenleaf (R-Montgomery).

Presenters at the workshop introduced topics such as the benefits of riparian buffer, stormwater retrofits, and the goals of the grant project. The workshop was attended by parishioners, students and parents, and interested local residents.

A second workshop was held in March 2008. At the second workshop we presented information on the completed project. We illustrated the before and after of the best management practices, the benefits of the project, and also presented information on long term operation and maintenance of basin retrofits, and riparian buffer.

Now, almost two years after the project was completed, the students and parishioners still continue to embrace the project and it’s environmental benefits. The Church’s Ecology Council maintains the best management practices, and the riparian buffer plantings.

There is a walking path through the buffer that allows users to enjoy the solitude of this newly created habitat.

The project was recently awarded the 2009 Pennsylvania Horticultural Society’s Community Greening award which will be presented at an award reception in November, 2009.

Susan Harris, Watershed Specialist, Montgomery County Conservation District, can be contacted by sending email to: sharris@montgomeryconservation.org.

Ahead of the Curve – An Example of Foresight During the Early Years of Growing Greener

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:30:51 +0000

Three years before Governor Rendell signed Executive Order 2004-1, creating the Pennsylvania Invasive Species Council, the Department of Environmental Protection recognized the devastating impacts of invasive plants in riparian areas.

In 2001, the DEP awarded Natural Biodiversity, then termed the Invasive Species Control Program, a $62,800 Growing Greener grant to inspect invasive plants within the Conemaugh Watershed and restore riparian areas to a diversity of species.

With matching funds from PA Foundation for Watersheds, then termed The Western PA Watershed Program, partners joined forces to implement nine visible demonstration riparian forest buffer restoration projects, create a restoration handbook, and form Natural Biodiversity, the program that exists today.

With significant state funding in place, Natural Biodiversity was able to secure its first National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant to form a cooperative effort in managing invasive plants within the 1887 square-mile Kiski-Conemaugh River Basin.

Most impressive are the interpersonal relationships formed by these early collaborations. As soon as the Growing Greener grant was awarded to Natural Biodiversity, I received a call from the Harrisburg DEP office. It was Patricia Pingel, the former DEP Chief of Watershed Conservation, who later went on to serve DCNR’s Office of Conservation Science, before recently retiring.

Despite her prominent leadership position at DEP, she expressed interest in co-advising the project alongside southwestern regional advisor Annette Paluh. The two advisors and I visited a number of trails, and I leaned on them for their expertise in flora and watersheds.

As we walked along the Conemaugh River, we felt dismay, as wide expanses of Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) were all that we could see. If only someone would have seen this plant’s destructive tendencies when there were only a few plants; what a marvelous riparian area would exist here! But only the knotweed prevails.

Now, it was our task to educate the public on the issue of invasive plants so that in the future, prevention rules and success is possible.

The most important event that was derived directly from the Growing Greener grant was the demonstration site open house that occurred in July 2002, involving about 25 attendees, most of whom became Natural Biodiversity steering committee members, volunteers and ambassadors.

With this grant, we drew the spotlight onto the floral composition of riparian areas by taking a closer look at invasive plants’ impacts, specifically those of Japanese knotweed. We also demonstrated how restoration is possible in the face of entrenched invasive plant problems.

But one of the most important outcomes of the project was the realization that early detection and rapid response to invasive species is key to protecting landscapes, ecosystems, people and economies from the impacts of invasive species.

As a result of working with Pat and Annette, along with other dedicated professionals and volunteers, Natural Biodiversity learned early on that true working relationships are the key to restoration success.

With the 2001 Growing Greener grant, Natural Biodiversity was created and launched its three-pronged approach, which still exists today: Assessment, Conservation and Engagement.

A comprehensive approach is a difficult one, continually pulling resources down diverse pathways, from on-the-ground projects to education and outreach. But, it’s the right approach for Natural Biodiversity, one that works from all possible in-roads toward success.

We’ve since implemented aerial hyperspectral invasive plant survey, developed an innovative invasive plant predictive model, educated countless thousands on the issue, and engaged over a thousand citizens in land restoration service.

We’re currently participating in many exciting projects, from a DCNR Wild Resource Conservation Program-supported invasive species curriculum for Pennsylvania educators to an NFWF-funded Juniata Cooperative Weed Management Area. We are prioritizing invasive plants based on their ecological impacts and are developing landscape-scale early detection and rapid response.

We have participated in vital statewide and national invasive species efforts, yet we still restore locally, recently completing a native plant restoration and education project with Shade Creek Watershed Association on their Reitz #1 AMD treatment site in Central City.

We are even changing local plant industry markets, as seen by a rise in requests for native plant material at local nurseries since the inception of our outreach efforts.

These are exciting times for Natural Biodiversity, largely due to strong partners who invested in our early efforts, before many knew what invasive plants are or realized the devastating impacts they have. Our second grant ever, Natural Biodiversity’s first Growing Greener experience led to large impacts with many more to come.

This article tells only one of many Growing Greener stories. I reflect on our chapter of the Growing Greener story and occasionally think, “What if Natural Biodiversity had not received its DEP’s Growing Greener grant?”

I only wish today’s lawmakers could have a similar “George Bailey”-type experience when they are making decisions about conservation funding for Pennsylvania’s future. If only they could see a Pennsylvania devoid of any kind of Growing Greener investment or matching funds over the last decade – Maybe conservation funding would be a higher priority than it is today.

Visit our website to see what Natural Biodiversity is doing now, as opportunities for new partnerships abound.

Written By: Kristin Sewak – Director – Natural Biodiversity

Miller Run – from Impaired Waterway to Wild Trout Stream

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:27:24 +0000

The Shoup’s Run Watershed Association has created a true success story from the Growing Greener Program. When the group started in 1998, both Shoup’s Run and its major tributary, Miller Run, were a mess.

Both streams had been listed on the state’s list of impaired waters and had problems with flooding and erosion, pollution from acid mine drainage and metals, and contained very little to no aquatic life.

But, hidden within this impacted watershed was an ecological gem. The headwaters of Miller Run contained a surviving population of native brook trout.

The Shoup’s Run Watershed Association used the Growing Greener program to install multiple treatment systems for the acid mine drainage, including (2) two limestone passive treatment beds, in-stream limestone sand dosing, and an experimental FeAlMn passive treatment system.

The FeAlMn system is also known as Minersville, in homage to the small coal-mining town that once resided there. The Minersville project included removal of an old highwall, disposal of discarded appliances and junk cars, construction of the treatment system and also a settling pond to keep metals out of the stream.

To further improve water quality, the Shoup’s Run Watershed Association applied to Growing Greener again in order to repair the road alongside Miller Run. This access road for State Game lands No. 67 was previously constructed with mine spoil, contributing to the acidic conditions of the stream.

Growing Greener funded this experimental project to reconstruct the road with high-calcium-carbonate limestone as another way to passively add alkalinity to the stream. The roadside ditches are no longer stained with iron after rain events.

Together, these systems have improved the water quality of Miller Run from an acidic stream to near-neutral conditions.

These improvements have allowed the brook trout, once-isolated in the headwaters of the stream, to now inhabit the entire 4.5 miles of Miller Run. Biologists from the PA Fish and Boat Commission have begun the process of upgrading the status of the stream, potentially to a Class B Wild Trout Stream.

These brook trout are believed to be some of the last populations remaining in the entire Broad Top area. The Shoup’s Run Watershed Association is continuing their work on the main branch of Shoup’s Run with another round of Growing Greener funding to begin work on the Green Garden Road passive treatment system.

With continued improvements to the main branch of Shoup’s Run, it is possible that one day these brook trout will spread throughout the area.

Written By: Celina Seftas – Watershed Specialist

Growing Greener In Northcentral Pennsylvania

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:25:15 +0000

The following Growing Greener Watershed Program success story was submitted by Frank Weeks, President of the Upper Allegheny Watershed Association, Potter and McKean counties, describing how the Association and the watershed has improved as a result of Growing Greener.

There is nothing like the satisfaction one receives from doing volunteer work to help the environment.

Volunteers of the Upper Allegheny Watershed Association have placed ‘Watershed Welcome’ signs at 7 locations in our area and plan to place another in 2010.

Some of the funding for the signs has been donated by environmental groups like Trout Unlimited and we are grateful for the partnership. Putting up the signs is a lot of fun and since they are so nice looking we feel good all over again every time we go by!

The UAWA has been participating in a PennDOT adopt-a-highway cleanup program for 6 years on a section of U.S. Route 6 near Roulette. Every time we do it we come away with a good feeling. Once a person starts doing volunteer work of this kind it becomes habit-forming!

No paycheck can deliver the kind of satisfaction that we receive from putting a little sweat and effort into helping reverse the detrimental effects of human activities on our streams and by-ways.

As a group we have partnered with local landowners and other watershed groups on a number of erosion control / fish habitat enhancement stream projects. These projects require hard labor. The individuals who contribute this labor are among the most dedicated and determined volunteers I have ever seen. The only reward these individuals receive is the thanks of the landowners and the personal satisfaction of having made a tangible improvement to a stream.

Our UAWA display has been exhibited at County Fairs and other venues to place our message before the public. In 2008 we participated in the Kinzua Outdoor and Travel Show in Bradford. Trying to reach everyone with our Growing Greener message can be lots of fun.

Supporting local organizations is one of the fun things we have been able to do at the UAWA. With a minimal amount of resources we partnered with the Roulette Fish and Game Club to sponsor a Kid’s Fishing Derby at which catch-and-release fishing was emphasized.

Along the way, we have received terrific support from the Potter and McKean County Conservation Districts. Thanks to assistance from PCCD we publish an annual newsletter which is mailed to our members and friends along with a custom-made watershed calendar at the end of each year.

Also deserving of many thanks are Dominion Resources and the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, The Pennsylvania Fish Commission, Trout Unlimited and the Department of Environmental Protection. These fine organizations’ valuable help at every turn have been a huge benefit UAWA and our mission

None of this fine stuff would be happening if it weren’t for a Growing Greener Grant awarded to the UAWA in 2003. The grant provided the basic funding needed to get our organization off the drawing board and into the streams. Because of Growing Greener, the UAWA has been able to begin the job improving the water quality and environment in our area. This financial help has enabled us to grow from a few concerned individuals to over 50 members and raise the awareness of the public.

The Growing Greener Watershed Grant, coupled with the principle of working through partnerships, has given the UAWA the power and the opportunity to make a difference in the Upper Allegheny Watershed by supporting public education, clean-ups and stream enhancement projects. This is a true case of a little bit going a long way. Working through partnerships, we have been able to multiply the result of our efforts.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is to be heartily congratulated for having the foresight and commitment to support the Growing Greener initiative. This is a true a case of a government program directly benefiting the people and the environment. Thanks for everything!

Click here for more photos from UAWA.

For more information contact Frank Weeks, President, UAWA, Upper Allegheny Watershed Association, PO Box 146, Coudersport, PA 16915.

We Haven’t Looked Back – Five Years Of Restoring The Genesee Watershed

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:22:07 +0000

The Genesee Headwaters Watershed Association was started with Growing Greener Funds five years ago and hasn't looked back. We applied for and received a GG Grant to do an assessment of our 86 square. mile headwaters of the Genesee River.

In the findings were the top ten worst problem reaches in the river. Since then we have each year applied for and received GG Grants and others to do work on eight of the sites.

We have done dozens of bank stabilizations, with volunteers and contractors. We have stream bank fenced more than 4 miles on two sides with buffers in highly eroded farm pastures. We have done numerous cattle watering lanes and farm crossings.

We have also joined with Dominion Gas Co. to create a new wetland including 10 acres of Hemlock wetland. We have also done two dike repairs to stabilize the banks to protect our town of Genesee, Pa.

We have teamed with townships to do many miles of Dirt and Gravel road projects.

Our members take monthly water and macro invertebrate samples and track rain amounts. We hold stream clean ups yearly, with volunteers young and old. We recently completed four more habitat improvement/bank stabilizations and are now ready to begin four more next summer.

We like to think that we can leave our Genesee to our kids, better than when we got it.

We have about 40 members from locals, camp owners, TU members from NY state. I have given a presentation at the Great Lakes Annual conference in NY, and reminded them that we send them some of the highest quality water in PA.

We even are on the web with the Democratic Chronicle Rochester, NY paper, July, 2009 after a series of articles their investigative reporters did. "Where does the Genesee Start?"

The Genesee had a couple of tribs that were listed threatened with agricultural runoff by the Department of Environmental Protection, but we have been working on them and they all sustain great macro's and Brook Trout. Wellsville, NY is the first town across the border and they drink Genesee River water.

This is a rural small town Association but the Genesee Headwaters Watershed Association is alive and well.

Written By: Jack Fleckenstein

Kiski-Conemaugh Stream Team Growing Greener Anniversary Story

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 03:19:07 +0000

The Kiski-Conemaugh Stream Team was formed in 1998 to address concerns brought to light in the Kiski-Conemaugh River Basin Conservation Plan.

This plan identified a need for a water monitoring program to collect baseline data on over 100 abandoned mine discharges in the Kiski-Conemaugh River Basin, which encompasses portions of Armstrong, Cambria, Indiana, Somerset, and Westmoreland Counties.

The plan also identified a need for an increased environmental awareness since, in the late 1990s, environment and ecology were not mandatory academic standards taught in Pennsylvania schools.

The Stream Team has a developed, efficient, and effective monitoring program and maintains a strong partnership with the PA DEP. Because the Stream Team director trains citizen volunteers how to collect water samples according to Pennsylvania protocols, the PA DEP uses data generated by the Stream Team for its own use.

In turn, the PA DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation permits Stream Team water samples to be analyzed through the PA DEP Bureau of Laboratories free-of-charge. These data are then shared with those who request it. Over 20 federal, state, and local agencies use these data to:

• apply for Growing Greener and other funds to remediate AMD,

• prioritize restoration projects,

• design AMD treatment systems,

• evaluate the effectiveness of treatment systems,

• improve treatment technologies,

• perform case studies for educational purposes, and/or

• gauge the overall health of area waterways.

Currently, the Stream Team is monitoring 150 sites throughout the Kiski-Conemaugh River Basin. Many of these sites are at the 26 AMD treatment systems the Stream Team monitors on a monthly or quarterly basis, while 18 are discharges that should soon be treated.

Stream Team data have helped garner and sustain over $10 million of federal, state, and local dollars invested in AMD remediation! Of this, at least $3.5 million have been Growing Greener funds.

This monitoring will become even more important as the state determines determine how monies are spent from the Abandoned Mine Lands (AML) fund. Thousands of dollars will be invested, particularly in watersheds that have a defined Hydrologic Unit Plan (HUP) or are a Qualified Hydrologic Unit (QHU).

Watersheds with updated water quality data will be among the first to benefit from the AML fund. With the PA DEP’s support, the Stream Team can provide these data much more quickly and inexpensively than a consultant can.

Furthermore, with the disbandment of the PA DEP’s Citizen Volunteer Monitoring Program, the potential for data gaps grows. Together, these points add even greater value to Stream Team data.

At its inception, the Stream Team was housed under the Loyalhanna Watershed Association. Through LWA, the Stream Team received a $5,675.00 Growing Greener grant in 2001 to support its mission of educating and engaging citizen stewards in maintaining, enhancing, and restoring the natural resources of the Kiski-Conemaugh River Basin.

Growing Greener funds provided HACH testing kits and thermometers and supplemented staff time and mileage. Several years ago, the Conemaugh Valley Conservancy, Inc. acquired responsibility for the Stream Team and, understanding its value, leveraged hundreds of thousands of dollars in support of the Stream Team over the years.

Through its environmental stewardship program, the Stream Team directly engages over 6,400 people, particularly youth, in “hands-on” learning every year. Recognizing that children are spending less and less time outdoors exploring Nature, investigating their curiosity, and discovering the many wonders of our Earth, the Stream Team has initiated six Trout in the Classroom (TIC) projects in Cambria and Somerset County schools.

TIC provides the basic equipment necessary to operate a large classroom aquarium and raise trout fingerlings from eggs. Throughout the school year, students maintain the aquarium system, care for and study the fish, and learn the importance of coldwater ecosystems and conservation.

Most importantly, they experience a real, tangible connection to Nature that lays the foundation for good conservation practices and a lifelong commitment to stewardship. Plus, community support and involvement is fantastic!

In 2010, the Stream Team and its partners will again organize Outdoor Heritage Month, which is designed to celebrate and promote the Alleghenies’ rich cultural and natural heritage and engage citizens and youth in eco-friendly activities.

Acknowledged by Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell and officially announced by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, Outdoor Heritage Month (April) localizes numerous global and national environmental awareness events, such as Earth Day, National Environmental Education Week, and Arbor Day, while endorsing local celebrations like Westmoreland Earth Day and the Stonycreek Rendezvous.

Its purposes are to have people recognize that small steps taken in their homes, communities, and schools can have significant impacts on the environment and to have citizens implement changes in their lifestyles to conserve and enjoy natural resources.

Outdoor Heritage Month culminates with Outdoor Adventures, a two-day education event for 1,100 public, private, and home-school students. Schools from the Allegheny region are invited to attend Outdoor Adventures, which is held at the scenic Quemahoning Reservoir in northern Somerset County. Children participate in over three dozen interactive exhibits.

For example, they see and identify live stream bugs, test out a solar cooker, take a nature walk, witness the power of solar panels and windmills, go fishing, and much, much more! The Pennsylvania Association for Environmental Educators endorses Outdoor Adventures, and teachers, parents, and exhibitors praise the event, now in its fourth year.

Demand for it has grown so much that, in 2009, organizers actually had to turn schools away to maintain the event’s quality and schools are already signing up for Outdoor Adventures 2010!

The Kiski-Conemaugh Stream Team and its partners are making a considerable contribution to enhancing the region’s quality of life. Cleaner waterways:

• Support a diversity of aquatic life;

• Attract recreation opportunities and new businesses;

• Encourage local residents and visitors to use the resources;

• Stem the migration of young, educated people;

• Increase local and state tax revenue and community investment; and

• Enhance opportunities for environmental stewardship.

The Stream Team is honored to be part of efforts to restore Pennsylvania’s resources.

The Stream Team is a partner of the iConservePA program. Learn more at www.iconservepa.org.

Written By: Melissa Reckner