The Interconnections of Water and Life Cycles in the Laurel Highlands

“For many of us, water simply flows from a faucet, and we think little about it beyond this point of contact. We have lost a sense of respect for the wild river, for the complex workings of a wetland, for the intricate web of life that water supports.”
           --- Sandra Postel - Last Oasis - Facing Water Scarcity

Some of the most pristine, Exceptional Value waterways are found in the Laurel Highlands. The Conservancy has a long history of facing the inherent challenges to these life-sustaining streams; challenges derived from agriculture, industry, abandoned mine drainage, urban planning and sanitary systems. WPC has taken its most significant steps toward addressing these challenges in the last five years through its Freshwater Conservation Program.

In 2002, the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy partnered with the Loyalhanna
Watershed Association to prepare a comprehensive watershed assessment and
restoration plan. To date, more than 10 miles of streams in the Laurel Highlands have been restored from agricultural impact. WPC has been working with the Forbes Trail Chapter of Trout Unlimited, implementing stream bank restoration projects for those riparian areas that have been damaged by urban development, reducing sediment and increasing vegetative growth for bank stability.

WPC is also working with the Pa. Department of Conservation and Natural
Resources (DCNR) and Forbes Trail Trout Unlimited at Linn Run State Park in the
headwaters of the Loyalhanna to mitigate the effects of acid deposition through
limestone dosing (adding fine particles of limestone directly into the stream) in Rock Run. With these collective efforts, the pH levels have risen from 3.0 to 5.7 in the last two years, resulting in a recolonization of macroinvertibrates and brook trout.

WPC is starting an assessment of Tubmill Creek, a waterway that drains off
Laurel Ridge and flows into the Conemaugh River north of the Loyalhanna watershed. The headwaters of Tubmill are designated as an Exceptional Value stream. It becomes degraded downstream by a combination of the impact of poorly designed dirt and gravel roads, agricultural runoff and some Abandoned Mine Drainage (AMD).

WPC has begun working with the Conemaugh Valley Conservancy to address
the AMD issues as well as to identify future restoration projects.

“We are working with the Westmoreland County Conservation District and various
township supervisors to redesign and fix roads to stop the sediment source,” noted Ben Wright, WPC’s watershed manager and assistant director of watershed programs. “We’ve started conducting outreach to the agricultural community and already have landowners who’ve expressed an interest in installing agricultural best management practices.”

Waterways in the Laurel Highlands

Tubmill Creek: Joining the Conemaugh River in Bolivar, Pa., Tubmill Creek has been identified by WPC as a priority watershed due to its richness in aquatic life. The PA Department of Environmental Protection has designated its upper reaches, originating in the forests of Laurel Ridge, as Exceptional Value. This trout-stocked fishery encompasses 54 square miles of rural landscape, flowing through farms and forests on its way to the Conemaugh River. Threats include sedimentation from dirt roads and agriculture, forest fragmentation, and riparian zone (the land adjacent to the stream) degradation.

Upper Loyalhanna Creek: The headwaters of Loyalhanna Creek are located in
the Laurel Highlands. At 107 square miles, the Upper Loyalhanna encompasses most of the Ligonier Valley. It contains several streams that have been classified as High Quality Coldwater Fisheries by the PA Department of Environmental Protection, and drains the heavily forested slopes of Chestnut and Laurel Ridges. Yet water quality in the Upper Loyalhanna is threatened by riparian zone degradation and erosion.

Dunbar Creek: This tributary to the Youghiogheny River drains 37 square miles of
rugged mountainside in Fayette County. Home to wild brook trout, a rich diversity of aquatic life, and an expansive wetland ecosystem in its headwaters, the upper reaches of this watershed have been classified as a High Quality Coldwater Fishery. Major threats to this important watershed include acid rain and abandoned mine drainage.

Bear Run: Also a tributary to the Youghiogheny River, Bear Run is located in
Somerset and Fayette counties. Encompassing Fallingwater and WPC’s 5,000-acre Bear Run Nature Reserve, this watershed is classified as Exceptional Value and harbors three species of rare plants. The forthcoming Bear Run Nature Reserve Management Plan will be implemented to guide WPC’s stewardship activities within this valuable public asset.

All above photos by Paul g. Wiegman.