11/18/24 - 107 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA: http://tinyurl.com/3zb7jppr
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Happy Birthday! Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition Celebrates 15 Years Of Accomplishment
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The Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition recently celebrated its 15th birthday in the latest issue of The Catalyst newsletter. We're all feeling rather old here at the Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition, as we shake our heads in amazement that 15 years (Wow!) have past since the inception of the SRWC. December 16, 1994 marked the first SRWC meeting, which took place in the multi-purpose room of the Student Union at Slippery Rock University.
The SRWC was formed to combat what the Commonwealth's Operation Scarlift program declared to be "the most severe condition of coal mine drainage." "Indeed, very little drainage from this region is produced exclusive of contract with, or issuance from mine workings."
Many long time residents of the area have referred to Slippery Rock Creek as "Sulfur Creek" due to the extensive and quite obvious affects of mine drainage upon the watershed.
In its 15 years, the SRWC has partnered with many landowners, government agencies, private foundations, the mining industry, volunteers, students, youth organizations, church groups, environmental professionals, etc. to install about 18 environmentally-friendly passive treatment systems in the Slippery Rock Creek Watershed.
Those 18 systems are treating approximately 750 million gallons of abandoned mine drainage peer year from nearly 30 discharges. That is enough water to fill 9 million typical 5-foot long bathtubs or provide a small town of about 17,000 people with their annual water supply.
We are also prevention about 200 tons of iron, 8 tons of aluminum and 335 tons of acidity annually from entering the headwaters of Slippery Rock Creek.
In addition, about 200 acres of abandoned mine lands have been reclaimed to productive farms or wildlife habitat, while over 10 acres of wetlands have been created. These efforts have resulted in an amazing improvement in 11 miles of streams and the observation of fish in six miles of streams, probably for the first time in about a century.
A little-know fact that may surprise many people is that the SRWC is not a typical organization. There are no committees. There are only people. People who have come from diverse social, economic, political and educational backgrounds with different skills, knowledge and experiences, but have set aside any differences to come together in a concerted team effort to restore the watershed to an ecologically-healthy and viable state. That is what we are all about!
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2/19/2010 |
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