Some Good News: West Branch Susquehanna Keeps Getting Better

[Fishidiot]

I posted this here in General since it deals with the recovery of a watershed through a coalition of TU, the PFBC, and a host of other parties.
We hear so much about threats, pollution, poor fishing, privatization, gas drilling, crowds and bad behavior, etc.....Perhaps once in awhile, it's worth remembering that all isn't bad news. Many of our state's waters are better than ever and many are rapidly improving. Topping the list of rapid improvements would probably be the West Branch Susky. AMD mitigation is working and a beautiful river is being re-born.
It's just wonderful to watch this story unfold.

http://www.fish.state.pa.us/newsreleases/2011press/tu-wbsusq.htm

 

[gulfgreyhound]

Compared to when I was a kid the state has much better water quality . From what I read a lot of streams now have been cleaned up and have fish in them. Mine waste was the major pollution problem. I think that improving water quality and stream stability could be major job creators.( not tryiong to hijack this thread) just an observation. GG

 

[Shock]

I grew up a few hundred yards from the Red Moshannon Creek that is a big contributor to the polution in the West Branch of the Susquehanna and has been since the turn of the century when Coal Mining started in that area.

As a kid, I fished in Trout streams that were on State Game Lands or Forest Lands in Centre County. All of them emptied into the Red Moshannon and "died".

I always wonered what that stream would have been like before it was poluted and whether it could have rivaled any of the better know streams in the state.

It is nice to think that the Red Moshannon may at least be carrying less polution into the West Branch after all of these years.

Shock

 

[csoult]

Shock,
It is still the #1 contributor of AMD pollution on the river. I agree though that if it hadn't been ruined it would be a beautiful trout stream.