Mill Creek Watershed Coldwater Conservation Plan
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Mill Creek Watershed Coldwater Conservation Plan Prepared by the Delaware Riverkeeper Network December 2007 Prepared by The Delaware Riverkeeper Network December 2007 This Coldwater Conservation Plan was funded in part by grants from: the Cold Water Heritage Partnership and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Growing Greener Stewardship Fund. The Delaware Riverkeeper Network (DRN) The Delaware Riverkeeper Network (DRN) is the only advocacy organization working throughout the entire Delaware River Watershed. The Delaware Riverkeeper is an individual who is the voice of the River, championing the rights of the River and its streams as members of our community. The Delaware Riverkeeper is assisted by seasoned professionals and a network of members, volunteers and supporters. Together they form DRN, and together they stand as vigilant protectors and defenders of the River, its tributaries and watershed. DRN is committed to restoring the watershed's natural balance where it has been lost and ensuring its preservation where it still exists. Cover photo: James Hartman/Barry Pounder Foreword The goal of a coldwater conservation plan is ultimately to improve the health of the coldwater ecosystem for which the plan is prepared. Although the Mill Creek watershed is currently designated a Trout Stocking Fishery, anecdotal information had suggested that Mill Creek might qualify as a Cold Water Fishery, thereby gaining a greater degree of protection under Pennsylvania regulations. Under this plan, the Delaware Riverkeeper Network set as objectives: • Gathering and reviewing existing Mill Creek watershed data, • Conducting an Integrated Assessment of the Mill Creek watershed, • Determining the appropriateness of pursuing a stream upgrade for the Mill Creek watershed. Existing data has been reviewed and the Integrated Assessment completed, but the suitability of the Mill Creek watershed for an upgraded designation remains unclear. This effort does illustrate the important role that streamside vegetative buffers play in protecting water quality. The Stroud Water Research Center recently conducted an analysis of stream categories and conditions drawing on its 11-year study of the Schuylkill River basin. In this analysis, the primary factor governing macroinvertebrate quality, an important factor in determining stream designation in Pennsylvania, was found to be forest cover. The Mill Creek’s forest coverage is projected to be less than 33%. The Stroud Center found that a reduction in forest cover, relative to Cold Water Fisheries, was an important factor distinguishing Trout Stocking Fisheries. The Mill Creek watershed’s reduced forest may then be a factor in the overall health of this system. Conversely, an increase in forest cover could result in improvements in water quality and ecosystem health. Establishment of streamside vegetative buffers in the Mill Creek watershed is an important recommendation of this plan. It is critical for the health of our streams and rivers that we provide and protect forested buffers that are a minimum of 100 feet wide, and greater where we have more sensitive streams such as in the headwaters of the Mill Creek. Buffers of a minimum 100-foot width are essential to protect our communities from flooding, drought and pollution, if we are to provide our communities with high quality drinking water, recreation, and growing businesses. We must also increase awareness of the importance of riparian buffers. A 2004 Berks County Planning Commission survey of county residents’ preferences for recreation, parks, heritage, and ecological issues found that water quality and streams/other water bodies were deemed the top two ecological/natural resources deserving preservation or conservation, but “riparian buffers” ranked near the bottom of the list. Streamside buffers help protect water quality by absorbing nutrients and pollutants, slowing rainwater runoff and filtering out sediments, but Berks County residents don’t appear to be making the connection between healthy buffers and healthy streams. This Mill Creek watershed coldwater conservation plan is offered as a guidebook for landowners, municipalities, conservation groups, and citizens interested in taking concrete steps to enhance the long-term health of the Mill Creek watershed and identify priorities for protection and restoration of streamside lands. Maya K. van Rossum, the Delaware Riverkeeper i This page intentionally left blank. ii Contents Foreword.................................................................................................................................i General Recommendations ....................................................................................................1 The Benefits of Protecting and Restoring Headwater Streams..............................................3 The Mill Creek Watershed.....................................................................................................4 Study Area...........................................................................................................................4 Hydrology............................................................................................................................4 Geology and Topography....................................................................................................4 Soils .....................................................................................................................................5 Weather................................................................................................................................5 Land Use..............................................................................................................................5 Planning...............................................................................................................................9 Stream Health ......................................................................................................................12 Integrated Assessment ...........................................................................................................14 Mill Creek Restoration Projects.............................................................................................16 Maps and Tables Map 1: Contiguous Forest in the Mill Creek Watershed....................................................6 Map 2: Core Forest in the Mill Creek Watershed ..............................................................6 Map 3: The Mill Creek Watershed Digital Ortho Quadrangle...........................................7 Map 4: Future Land Use Plan, Northern Berks Joint Comprehensive Plan ......................11 Map 5: Mill Creek Habitat Observation Information.........................................................15 Table A: Mill Creek Townships-Municipal Population Density in 2000 ..........................7 Table B: Mill Creek Townships-Municipal Housing Units ...............................................7 Table C: Mill Creek Townships-Municipal Population Projections ..................................8 Table D: Mill Creek Townships-Berks Vision 2020 Designated Land Use ......................8 References..............................................................................................................................19 Appendix A DRN’s Wolfe Run Macroinvertebrate Sampling .................................................................22 Appendix B DRN Integrated Assessment ................................................................................................23 Appendix C Integrated Assessment Photographs....................................................................................27 Appendix D Mill Creek Assessment Scores.............................................................................................32 Appendix E Mill Creek Assessment: Points ............................................................................................36 Appendix F Mill Creek Assessment: Lines..............................................................................................37 Appendix G Mill Creek Assessment: Highest Scoring Fish Habitat Sites...............................................38 Appendix H Mill Creek Assessment: Lowest Scoring Fish Habitat Sites................................................39 iii This page intentionally left blank. iv General Recommendations • Formally organize a Mill Creek Watershed Association. Citizen groups have formed across Berks County to provide vehicles through which projects to protect and restore local streams can be implemented. An organized effort to protect the Mill Creek watershed could help to improve the health of this waterway. Potential Mill Creek Watershed Stakeholders Watershed residents Albright College Watershed businesses Consulting firms/Environmental professionals Landowners (public, private, and corporate) Penn State Cooperative Extension Hamburg Area School District Pennsylvania Department of Conservation & Natural Berks County Conservation District Resources (PA DCNR) Rivers Conservation Program Farmers and farm organizations PA DCNR Bureau of Forestry Scouting, 4-H and other youth groups Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Service organizations (e.g., Rotary, Lions Clubs) (PA DEP) Bureau of Watershed Conservation Conservation and sporting groups (e.g., Blue PA DEP’s Reading District Office Mountain Wildlife and Federated Sportsmen’s PA DEP’s Southcentral Regional Office