Stroud Scientists at WorkUnderstanding Stream Conditions Throughout PennsylvaniaJust what do the myriad of state labels mean in terms of biodiversity, management, and protection of Pennsylvania’s streams and rivers? Scientists from the Stroud™ Water Research Center set out to answer that question in a 12-year study that examined water quality in relation to the management and regulatory labels applied to the 86,000 miles of streams and rivers throughout Pennsylvania. The project was designed help the public understand the water quality of the local streams and to establish a baseline for evaluating future restoration and protection efforts in the watersheds.

The study focused on the Schuylkill River Basin as a proxy for other streams and rivers throughout Pennsylvania because of (1) the variety of land uses in its watershed and (2) integral role it plays in the communal and economic life of southeastern Pennsylvania.

VALIDATING THE STATE’S LABELING SYSTEM

Stroud scientists focused their efforts on the 3 labels the state uses to describe stream conditions (Aquatic Life Use, Special Protection and Current Status) and then sought answers to the following questions: Do these labels actually represent different types of streams and conditions? Do they accurately reflect the assessments of our 12-year study? Are the specially protected streams truly the best streams in Pennsylvania? Is the quality of their water getting better, staying the same or getting worse? Finally, what factors contribute to the differences among these streams and what practices can we employ to improve them or prevent their further degradation?

In addition to evaluating the accuracy of the labeling system, the scientists also set out to answer a seemingly simple – but surprisingly complex – question: Is the study stream degraded – and if so, how far has it traveled from its natural and pristine state? They learned a lot.

THE STATE OF THE SCHUYLKILL RIVER BASIN

We asked senior scientist, John Jackson, what exactly is the state of the Schuylkill River Basin? “That’s a complex question because the two label system used for regulatory purposes fails to convey important information needed to really understand, manage and protect our streams,“ said Jackson.

Environmental conditions in the Schuylkill River Basin range from Good (23%) to Poor (32%) and the differences are significant. For example, the average Poor stream site in the study had lost more than 70% of the pollution-sensitive families found at the average Good site; the worst site had lost 99% — or virtually all of its sensitive macroinvertebrates. “Imagine if you woke up one day to find that 70% of your neighbors were gone,” said Jackson. “You would probably be pretty alarmed and your conclusion would rightly be that something was wrong. The primary causes of this loss of biodiversity are human activities in the watershed and we know how to address these problems — provided we have the will to do it.”

This study was funded by the William Penn Foundation.

Want To Know More? You can learn more about Schuylkill River project at http://www.stroudcenter.org/schuylkill/index.htm.

Want to protect our waterways? Check out the 4 prescriptive measures our research suggests.

Learn more about John Jackson at: http://www.stroudcenter.org/about/johnjackson.htm

“Aquatic bugs are the dominant animal group in most streams and rivers worldwide and they’re also an important part of the food chain and stream ecosystem,” said Jackson. “Together, these macroinvertebrate species provide a very sensitive measure of environmental change and stress. Their abundance and diversity also make them great subjects for statistical analyses, which is why scientists worldwide continue to rely on them as a standard measurement tool.”




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