Walt Finch, president of the Wiconisco Creek Restoration Association, takes visitors on a tour one of the six Rattling Creek limestone sand dosing sites that helps mitigate the damage to the stream from acid rain. The Wiconisco Creek Watershed is approximately 42 miles long and the watershed covers 116 square miles in Dauphin and Schuylkill counties. The ongoing effects of abandoned coal mines, impacts from acid rain and poor agricultural practices in many instances have created a number of severe problems affecting water quality in this watershed. A number of restoration efforts have already been undertaken, including: limestone dosing of Rattling Creek to reduce acidity, treatment of the Porter Tunnel discharge to reduce acidity and iron precipitation, and a project currently underway to eliminate iron precipitation from Bear Creek near Lykens. Another project to improve fish habitat in Wiconisco Creek adjacent to the Ned Smith Center has been designed and will be completed during the summer of 2007 with the help of the Doc Fritchey Chapter of Trout Unlimited. A Rivers Conservation Plan was developed by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources which will aid in directing future restoration work on the Wiconisco and its tributaries. It was based on earlier work done by the Susquehanna River Basin Commission. Helping to guide the efforts is the Wiconisco Creek Task Force currently comprised of representatives from the Ned Smith Center, Doc Fritchey Chapter of Trout Unlimited, Fish and Boat Commission, Wiconisco Creek Restoration Association, Dauphin County Conservation District and the Millersburg Borough Authority. The Department of Environmental Protection and the Eastern and Western Coalitions for Abandoned Mine Reclamation have also been key partners in restoration efforts. Anyone who appreciates what the Wiconisco watershed once was and can visualize what it can represent for future generations in terms of improved water quality and recreational benefits should contact WCRA President Walt Finch at 717-647-4043 or send email to: walterfinch@comcast.net to offer support for the group’s future restoration efforts. (Article Contributed by Bob Pennell, Doc Fritchey Chapter Trout Unlimited) Just wanted to add that the gentleman with Walt feeding the fish is my Dad - Russell Hess - who went along to see the project. -- David Hess, editor PA Environment Digest. December 30, 2006

Paul Zeph, Coordinator for the Mid-Atlantic Highlands Action Program with the Department of Environmental Program, provides an introduction to the program. The Highlands Action Program is a Federal/State/NGO partnership for collaborative monitoring, research, management and restoration activities in the Mid-Atlantic Appalachian region, which includes the states of Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia and Virginia. This program focuses on the Appalachian forest as an ecosystem, with particular emphasis on restoring and protecting the forested headwaters of the region. The program aims to improve water quality, living resources, and habitat in the region; and to foster stewardship of resources through an outreach program for public information and education. Contact Mr. Zeph by sending email to: pzeph@state.pa.us For more information, visit the Mid-Atlantic Highlands Action Program webpage.

Decorating the State Capitol in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania ranks first in the nation in the number of Christmas tree farms and ranks fourth in the nation in the number of Christmas trees cut each year and the acres of production. Pennsylvania has 2,164 farms covering 44,905 acres that produce 1.7 million cut trees each year. These farms have more than $13.9 million in sales annually. The Pennsylvania Christmas Tree Growers’ Association donated the 22-foot tall Douglas Fir. The tree is decorated with 7,000 white mini lights and includes nearly 500 ornaments supplied by 64 senior centers across Pennsylvania.

The Boggs Road Mine Drainage Treatment Project was the first project undertaken by the Montour Run Watershed Association in Allegheny County. The project reduces the iron content of the mine discharge from over 80 parts per million down to just 1 or 2 ppm. Stan Sattinger, past president of the Montour Run Watershed Association, and John Davidson, a former DEP mine inspector and now a volunteer, talk about how the project was developed and how it functions. Adam Kropf, the son of the landowner, tells how the project has improved their quality of life and the local fishing. Montour Run Watershed Association Biomost, Inc.- Project Designer

JB#2 Mine Drainage Treatment Project

Sometimes mine drainage treatment projects do not work like the designers thought. And that’s what happened in the case of the JB#2 Project in the Raccoon Creek Watershed, Washington County. Originally designed to filter water through spent mushroom compost, it was discovered the lower pH of the mine water made the iron cling to the compost and clog up the system. Now, with the help of the federal Office of Surface Mining, the Raccoon Creek Watershed Association and Independence Marsh Foundation are renovating the project to restore its treatment capacity. John Davidson, a former DEP mine inspector and now a local volunteer, talks about the challenges of renovating the treatment system. Raccoon Creek Watershed Association