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National Wild and Watershed
Management Committee
Report 2002-2004 |
The
Watershed Management Committee is charged with promoting the long-term protection of the
Open Space Preservation
·
Developed
a series of conservation priority maps for the watershed and identified
priority parcels in PA
·
Implemented
an ongoing landowner outreach program, which includes seeking funds for
easements and fee simple acquisitions
·
Played
a critical role in adding over 90 acres of key land, valued at $1.2 million,
to the White Clay Bi-state Preserve
·
Conducted
an Open Space Municipal Workshop for ten municipalities in
Outreach
MUNICIPAL
· Developed and conducted
presentations to 2 municipalities to promote mutually beneficial projects
· Offered small grants to assist with
planning and ordinance development to achieve mutual objectives
CITIZEN
· Provided annual educational
exhibits at two key events within the watershed in both PA and DE
· Conducted and assessed a pilot
homeowner watershed stewardship project, SMARTYARDS, partially funded by a $4250 grant,
for nine residences in
·
Developed
text and completed investigative work for the design and production of
interpretive signs in the bi-state preserve and signage throughout the
watershed
SCHOOLS
· Developed and conducted classroom
watershed programs and stream field trips to
· Partnered with
· Awarded first of a planned series
of $1000 mini-grants to one educator in each state
GENERAL
· Upon request provided forum for
discussion of nearly 20 water resource issues in the watershed
· Expanded Management Committee
website to inform the community about the watershed
· Planning a spring 2005 White Clay
Creek Watershed Conference to increase awareness and support for the
watershed’s numerous resources
Trails and Recreation
·
Gathered
the necessary watershed data in Geographic Information System (GIS) format to
create an interpretive brochure and regional trail map; a Request for Proposal for lay-out and design
is being issued
Flora and Fauna
·
Contributed
to funding the
·
Contracted
for a flora survey of five selected properties to fill in data gaps and provide
assistance in obtaining funding for land conservation; fauna surveys are also
planned
Historic Resources
·
Contracted
for the preparation of a National Register Rural Historic District Nomination
for the London Tract
Organization
·
Hired a part-time
River Administrator to handle the day-to-day administration of the program,
assist the Management Committee in the implementation of the Management Plan,
and serve as the program spokesperson
“…certain
selected rivers of the Nation …shall be preserved in
free-flowing condition, and that they and their immediate environments
shall be protected for the benefit and enjoyment of
present and future generations.”
National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (P.L.90-542)
This document is the White Clay
Creek Watershed Management Committee’s first biennial report. The information presented in this document is
intended to provide the watershed partners, legislators and community with
background information on the White Clay Creek National Wild and
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Management plan
goals To improve, conserve, and protect: · water quality and quantity · open space & natural features · native flora and fauna, · recreational opportunities To increase: · environmental education · watershed awareness. |
WATERSHED MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
The White Clay Creek
Watershed Management Committee, established in September 2001, seeks to promote
the long-term protection of the
The White Clay Creek Watershed Management
Committee includes members representing state, county and local government; citizens;
citizen groups; non-profit organizations; and private interests from
The
Each year since 2002 the Management Committee has
received federal funding through the National Park Service National Wild and
Scenic River Program appropriations. The White Clay’s funding has increased
from $60,000 in the first year of operation to $100,000 for fiscal year
2004. Through the leveraging of the
Watershed Management Committee member organizations, the federal monies have
been multiplied several-fold.
Early on the Management
Committee recognized that in order to be effective in implementing the
Watershed Management Plan they would need additional support beyond that which
the National Park Service might provide.
The Management Committee decided that it needed a local part-time staff
person to handle the day-to-day program administration. A contract was established with Linda
Stapleford to become the first River Administrator. In this role, Linda acts as spokesperson for
the Watershed Management Committee and oversees implementation of a variety of
special projects. She works to help educate the general public in understanding
and appreciating the special qualities of the
Linda
worked at the Delaware Nature Society for many years and served as the
Executive Director for the video production Protecting Our Water: Who’s Got
the Power?, an educational video that explains basic watershed ecosystem
principles and encourages citizens to take an active role in solving the
problems causing stream degradation.
Linda has also served on the board of the White Clay Watershed
Association and is a former secondary school science teacher.
Recognizing the impacts of land use on stream
health, plants, wildlife, and recreational opportunities, a key goal of the
Watershed Management Plan is to preserve open space. In these first few years the Open Space
Subcommittee developed a series of conservation priority maps in
Since there is much less privately held open space
remaining in the
Another important avenue for open space protection
is offering services to municipal officials.
In October 2004 the Management Committee and the National Park Service
hosted a Watershed Open Space Workshop for officials and their open space
consultants from ten municipalities. The
purpose was to elicit a shared vision for inter-municipal open space and trail
linkages and to discuss planning, implementation, and funding tools. Municipalities shared their current open
space plans, successes, challenges, and ‘lessons learned’ and received
information about programs and funding opportunities to assist in open space
planning and preservation.
Future work will continue
along the same lines: helping municipalities identify and protect priority
lands and individual parcel-by-parcel land preservation.
In 2004 the River
Administrator began contacting municipalities to offer presentations regarding
the watershed’s resources, land-use and landscaping impacts on the watershed,
and Management Committee activities. This
also offers the opportunity to improve communication and explore projects of
mutual benefit. London Grove and
One of the key components
of the Watershed Management Plan is the Local Land-Use Management Progam. This program articulates and explains a
series of resource protection objectives designed to improve water quality, and
fish and wildlife habitat. As a means of
implementing this program the Open Space Subcommittee set aside funds in 2004
to assist
municipalities with planning and ordinance development to achieve these mutual
objectives.
For the past two years there have been Wild and
In 2003 the Management Committee was successful in
receiving a $4250 grant from the E. Kneale Dockstader Foundation to conduct and
assess a pilot homeowner watershed stewardship project in
SMARTyards use flowers, ground-covers,
shrubs, and trees that are easy to grow and maintain. They create a landscape
feature that is eye-catching and attracts birds and butterflies and reduces the
expense of mowing, fertilizing, and applying pesticides. They also reduce stormwater runoff. Less
runoff is a key factor in restoring stream health.
The project proved successful in motivating and training homeowners to become better watershed
stewards. Participants attended a
workshop to learn how landscapes affect watershed health and were provided
plants, materials, and tools to create a landscape with positive watershed
benefits. In return they posted signs in
their yards promoting this type of landscaping.
Participating homeowners report they have had inquiries from neighbors
and have been able to share their increased knowledge of the value of native
flowers, ground-covers, shrubs, and tree to watershed health. More details of
this project are available on our website, www.whiteclay.org.
The Education Subcommittee has been working on
developing signage to increase awareness of the
Through a joint effort of the Fish & Wildlife
and the Education Subcommittees an educational outreach program was developed
and conducted for middle schools in both states. Nine 7th grade classes totaling
approximately 450 students participated in a hands-on classroom watershed
program. This was followed by stream
field study at
Integrated with this effort was a partnership with
both participating schools to create SMARTyards. Funding for
the program at
The Education Subcommittee
also awarded first of
a planned series of $1000 mini-grants to Martha Straus, Straus Associates
Landscape Architecture, and Patricia Berry, principal of the Purple
Schoolhouse, Avon Grove Intermediate School, to expand Nature Walks offered to
3rd grade students. The walk experience was linked with the newly
adopted Environmental Education Standards for the students’ science unit. Although concerns for the fall hunting season
and a very wet spring interfered with scheduling and trail accessibility, the
students were enthralled by wildlife signs they observed. As noted by Ms. Strauss, the opportunity for
“children to experience the seasonal changes within the nature area is a
powerful teaching tool.” The Education
Subcommittee intends to continue to offer grants to teachers within the
watershed for innovative and quality hands-on learning opportunities regarding
watershed functions.
Upon request from citizens, organizations, or
municipalities, the Watershed Management Committee uses its regular meetings as
a forum for discussion of water resource issues in the watershed. In these first years, 20 different projects
or concerns have been addressed involving potential impacts to water quality,
stream health, water supply, the Cockeysville aquifer, habitat, stream
baseflow, aquifer draw-down, bank erosion, stormwater management, riparian
buffers, and open space preservation.
Below is a list
of projects that have been considered by the Management Committee.
Projects/Issues Considered
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Lamborn Run bridge replacement |
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RT 41 Bypass and Expansion Project |
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Taybro Corp. Zoning Variance Application |
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Artesian Water Co. new well |
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Trout Run mushroom farm impact |
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Gouge Subdivision |
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London Grove Trail system |
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Proposed auto repair shop ( |
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Proposed Bread and |
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Wedgewood Rd. Trail |
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Groundwater Protection Zone expansion |
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41 Valley Assoc. Proposed Mushroom Facility |
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Proposed Miller Property sewage discharge ( |
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Pike Creek Restoration Project |
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Avondale Stream Restoration Project |
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Delaware Park NPDES permit |
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I-95 widening project impacts |
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Tweed’s |
WATERSHED MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE WEBSITE
A key area in which the Committee has made
significant progress is public awareness. The Management Committee website has
been expanded and plans are to continue that expansion to include descriptions
of various Committee activities as well as helpful resources to all
stakeholders. It will serve as an
excellent venue to help disseminate materials such as this biennial report.
The Watershed Management
Committee, the National Park Service, and White Clay Watershed Association are
hosting a White Clay Creek Watershed Conference, Water and our Changing
Landscape: Perspectives from the Wild and Scenic White Clay Creek Watershed,
April 14, 2005 at Clayton Hall,
The
conference will explore the nature of the
impacts of land management on
our streams and drinking water supplies, and offer tools to minimize the
negative impacts within the
The Trails and Recreation
Subcommittee has focused its energy on plans for a user-friendly regional trail
map/interpretive brochure. The brochure
will be a one-page fold-out publication with a trail map on one side and a
visitor information guide on the other.
Visitors to the White Clay Creek Region will be able to use this map to
guide them through the hiking, biking and multi-use trails systems. The brochure will
include information on river access sites; camping facilities; significant natural,
cultural and recreational resources; trail use guidelines; and safety hazards.
The area of focus is the city of
All the necessary watershed data elements have been
gathered in a Geographic Information System (GIS) format. A Request for Proposal is currently being sent
out to potential vendors; further information on the RFP can be obtained by
calling the River Administrator at 302-731-1756. The brochure should be
available by early fall 2005. Updates on the brochure’s availability will be
posted on our website, www.whiteclay.org.
For the past two years the
Committee, in partnership with the White Clay Watershed Association, has
provided funding to the
The watershed’s Stream Watch program was
designed by Stroud staff to scientifically monitor the water quality of the
The Fish & Wildlife and Open Space Subcommittees
recognized the need for flora and fauna data in the upper watershed, beyond the
preserve’s boundaries. They have been
working together this past year to contract flora surveys of five selected
properties. The information will fill in
existing data gaps and be useful in seeking funding for land conservation. Fauna surveys are also planned for the future.
HISTORIC and CULTURAL RESOURCES
Although historic features were one of the
outstanding attributes noted in the White Clay Wild and Scenic designation
study, little attention was given to this area in the first few years. This year at the suggestion of one of the local property owners, the
Committee investigated the preparation of a National Register Rural Historic
District Nomination for the London Tract.
The district had already been determined to be eligible by the Pennsylvania
Historical and Museum Commission as a result of a PennDOT project to replace a
bridge within the district. After receiving positive feedback
at a public meeting in June, Wise Preservation Planning was contracted to
prepare the nomination. The nomination
process will take about one year.
The London Tract includes the
valley around the Headquarters of the White Clay Preserve in
In recognition of the value of
these resources, a Historic and Cultural Resources Subcommittee was formed this
fall to work with Wise Preservation and address future issues.
WHITE
CLAY CREEK
NATIONAL WILD
& SCENIC RIVER
The
It
is because of these natural and historic resources that the watershed is
treasured locally and regionally. Sixty
tree and shrub species, more than twenty ferns and more than two hundred
wildflowers, including nine native orchids comprise its rich flora. The
abundance of birds, including neotropical migrant birds such as the Cerulean
Warbler, make it a popular birding area.
Numerous small mammal, reptile, and amphibian species, among them the
federally listed endangered Muhlenberg’s (Bog) Turtle, inhabit the watershed.
Some twenty-one species of fish swim in the Creek and it is
In
order to prevent the degradation of this natural treasure, concerned citizens
living within the watershed joined together with organizations and officials of
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National Wild
and
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