The Yellow Breeches Watershed Association is gathering public comments on it Assessment and River Conservation Plan. A public meeting is to be held at the Lower Allen Twp. Barn at 4075 Lisburn Road on May 10, starting at 7 P.M. Copies of the report are available on the web. Comments can be emailed also. Due date is May 23.
Concerning the new game lands purchase, by hunters, of 254 acres of land along Muddy Creek between Bruce and Bridgeton. This is a huge victory! It assures access by hunters, fishermen, and paddlers to this section of stream! It was very close to being closed and that includes paddlers. If a landowner owns enough land on both sides of the stream it can be effectively closed to paddlers and fishermen.
It is time for the club to encourage the membership to register boats with the PF&BC! I never did understand the resistance. The Fish and Boat Commission also buys land and access points and does own land along Muddy Creek at Southside (below Woodbine). A little hassle with registering a boat is much better than a big hassle with a landowner! We are talking $5 a year here by the way. Paddlers need to get involved!!!! The PF&BC will ignore our interests as long as we resist their efforts.
PA state agencies have made some real watershed progress, much more than I can ever recall. But when it comes time to get involved... well... we're whining about releases, or registrations, or off to some other river. We have some great watersheds in our backyard. Our concerns won't be heard if no one speaks up.
Maybe it is an extreme sport, everyone just out looking for a thrill. But where did we start? Muddy? The Codorus? The river? Access has a price, and it begins with responsibility. Common courtesy is to ask if we can use the access, offer what we can do to protect the stream and the landowners wishes. Sounds like a good place to start, and I'm not sure we have done that.
Submitted by Regan Strausbaugh
The Commonwealth's complaint alleges that since early 2000,
Donald Beaver, one of the defendants in case, has been operating
various exclusive fly fishing services on the Little Juniata River
at and below its confluence with Spruce Creek in Huntingdon County,
and that Beaver and his employees have excluded the public from
the river, posting no trespassing signs and erecting cables across
the waterway at both the upper and lower ends of the stretch.
According to the complaint, Beaver has a contractual arrangement
with Connie Espy to use property she owns adjacent the river on
the eastern side. Espy also is named as a defendant.
The agencies' complaint asks the court to enjoin Beaver and his
employees and other defendants from interfering with the public's
right to use the 1.3-mile section of the Little Juniata River
and confirm the long-standing position of the agencies that the
Little Juniata is a navigable water of the Commonwealth, held
in trust by the state for the benefit of the public. The public
is being denied an opportunity to enjoy one of the countless natural
resources that this state is obligated to protect on behalf of
its 13 million residents.
There is no legal basis for any individual to be excluded from
the lawful use of this stretch of the Little Juniata River, DEP
Secretary
Kathleen A. McGinty said. This case is about protecting the rights
of the public to use and enjoy what rightfully belongs to them.
DCNR Secretary Michael DiBerardinis noted outdoor recreation brings
billions of dollars to Pennsylvania?s economy each year. A survey
based on 1997 travel indicated nearly one-fifth of Pennsylvania's
tourists are traveling primarily for outdoor recreation activities
such as sightseeing, camping or hiking. Direct expenditures for
that travel were $4.03 billion, or 33 percent of the state's leisure
travel spending.
Our rivers, streams, forests and parks offer prized outdoor recreation
opportunities for both travelers and local residents,? Secretary
DiBerardinis said. The Commonwealth has a constitutional responsibility
to ensure the public resources stay available to the public. Limiting
lawful access to a river is no different than someone blocking
access to one of our state parks or forests. DCNR's Rothrock State
Forest, which straddles the Little Juniata River below the Espy
property, provides several miles of public access to the Little
Juniata River for fishing and boating.
I have fished the Little Juniata many times, so I can tell you
first hand what a tremendous trout water it is. I always considered
the Little Juniata to be public water, so I am glad to see the
state take action that makes it clear that Pennsylvania's anglers
and boaters still have the right to enjoy one of the state's true
natural treasures, said Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commissioner
Rozell Stidd of Huntingdon. Stidd represents the Commission's
Fourth District.
In March 2002, DEP informed Beaver in writing of the state's
claim of ownership of the Little Juniata River bed, and invited
him to provide information supporting his claim of private ownership.
Beaver instead appealed the notification to the Environmental
Hearing Board (EHB), which dismissed his appeal in September 2002
for lack of jurisdiction. Beaver has not taken further legal action
to formally clarify the legal status of the Little Juniata River,
nor has he provided the Commonwealth with any information or documentation
supporting his claims of private ownership. The dispute remains
unresolved, and DEP, DCNR and PFBC continue to receive complaints
from the public about efforts to exclude them from this section
of the river.
The state and the taxpayers of Pennsylvania restored this water
to what it is today. It should be public, it belongs to the public
and they have a right to it, said local businessman Allan Bright,
owner of Spruce Creek Outfitters. According to Pennsylvania Federation
of Sportsmens Clubs Executive Director Melody Zullinger: The Federation
led the court fight to protect public fishing rights on the Lehigh
River, and we strongly support the state's action to settle, once
and for all, the rights of the public to fish and boat in the
Little Juniata River. Pennsylvania sportsmen applaud the Commonwealth's
efforts to make it clear that the Little Juniata River should
be open to free public fishing and boating.?
State ownership is based upon the historical navigability of the
Little Juniata River. The Commonwealth agencies believe there
is ample evidence of the use of the Little Juniata to transport
goods downriver in the late 1700s and early 1800s. Additionally,
there are three statutory public highway designations for the
Little Juniata dating back to 1794, 1808 and1822.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) (formerly the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources) designates the uses of all streams, lakes and rivers and sets water quality criteria to protect the designated uses. Between 1966 and 1973 PADEP classified the many thousands of miles of lakes, streams and rivers in the state. The East Branch of the Codorus Creek from Pennsylvania Route 214 to where it joins with the South Branch of the Codorus Creek was designated Cold Water Fishery (CWF). Lakes Redman and Williams, which serve as York Water Company’s water supply reservoirs, are within this watershed area.
Lake Williams was constructed in 1912 and Lake Redman was constructed in 1967. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) (formerly the Pennsylvania Fish Commission) has been stocking the Lakes with species of fish that live in warm water since 1968. The Lakes are listed as a warm water fishery on the PFBC’s 1970 map of fishing spots in York County. The PFBC has conducted several aquatic studies of the Lakes in the period 1983-1992. The species collected and identified in those studies are all warm water fishes. The Company understands that some of these warm water species could not survive in cold water habitats.
As part of its efforts to assure that a safe and reliable water supply is available in the future, the Company is proposing to construct a pipeline from the Susquehanna River, which is designated as Warm Water Fishes(WWF), to Lake Redman. There is no significant difference between the temperature of the Susquehanna River and the temperature of Lake Redman at the point where the pipeline would enter Lake Redman. The Company must obtain an NPDES permit to discharge the water from the Susquehanna River into Lake Redman. That permit cannot be issued under the current water quality regulations unless the temperature of the water from the Susquehanna River is lowered to meet the temperature criteria for CWF. This requirement must be met, even though the Lakes have never supported cold water fish and to do so may adversely impact the warm water fishery in the Lakes.
The Company wants to assure an economical, reliable and adequate source of water supply for its customers, as well as preserve the recreational fishing uses in the Lakes for the citizens of York County. So, it is preparing a petition to theEnvironmental Quality Board to designate the use of the Lakes and the East Branch of the Codorus Creek from the Lake Williams spillway to where the East Branch joins the South Branch of the Codorus Creek as WWF.
They seek to force the C.O.E. to store more water in the wet periods to provide more flow in the dry times. The storing of water in wet periods would mitigate the damage they believe large flows cause nesting birds and spawning fish.
The reason for the change is the start of construction of the power generating facility at the base of the dam. Construction started in February 1999 and is scheduled to be finished in December 2000. Work is to proceed without interference to the normal working of the river. The turbines would have the capability of generating 217 million kilowatts of electricity per year.
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There are rumors of the return of beavers to the Codorus. This photo, taken below the island by an anonymous photographer, show clear signs. Caution is advised because any beaver that can survive in the Codorus must be a mean son of a gun. |
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