 t
wasn't until 1990, after several unsuccessful
attempts to stop mining in the area, and a lawsuit
against the Atrim Mining Company, that the fate
of Babb Creek began to turn around. What resulted
from the lawsuit was a trust fund set up to restore
the watershed. The then newly formed watershed
association was put in charge of the trust fund
and has been monitoring and improving the waters
of this area ever since. They're involved in dozens
of AMD projects including the development of three
limestone diversion wells, five vertical flow
wetlands, the operation of one treatment plant,
and recently received a Growing Greener grant
to construct six new treatment ponds and wetlands
which, when finished, will be the largest passive
treatment system in Pennsylvania.
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 ur
tour included three of these projects, the first of which
is a rather newly constructed passive treatment system at
the Arnot #2 discharge. Construction of the system began in
May 2001, with the operation beginning in December 2001. It
consists of 4 cells - the first 2 are Vertical Flow Wetland
cells containing limestone and mushroom compost to raise the
water's pH - the third is an Oxidation/Precipitation cell
for precipitating metals - the fourth is a Manganese Oxidation
Bed to remove manganese. These cells treat 200 gallons of
water per minute, and were designed by Gannett Fleming Inc.
ur
next stop took us to the Atrim #1 discharge and the adjoining
treatment plant. This system was constructed by Atrim Mining
to treat two discharges that flow directly from the hillside
and into the Lower Babb Creek. When the mining company went
out of business in 1997, the maintenance of the facility was
turned over to DEP with a trust fund to continue the maintenance
of the facility. The watershed association is now in charge
of its operation. The system treats 800 gallons per minute
and is capable of handling 2,000 - 4,000 gallons per minute
during high flow events, and is a key element to the improvement
seen in the Lower Babb Creek and to restoring Pine Creek,
including removal from the 303(d) list of impaired streams.
 he
final stop is the project I referred to earlier, being designed
by Hedin Environmental. The watershed association received
a 2 million dollar Growing Greener grant to construct a treatment
system at the Anna S Mine Complex, which when constructed
this summer will be the final step to restoring the watershed.
This is by far the largest of the projects, encompassing over
eight acres when finished. Construction on the project will
begin in Summer 2002. Hedin Environmental is designing the
system and you can hear Bob Hedin's comments on the project
by viewing his video interview.
hanks
to these efforts and the continued persistence
of volunteers, the watershed association, and
now to the Growing Greener grant funds, this area
is making an amazing comeback. The group plans
to see a full restoration of the watershed by
late summer 2002, which is five to six years sooner
than they expected, thanks to the help of the
Growing Greener funding. Jim Barrs adds, "We
knew that we were eventually going to get the
work done, but Growing Greener has really escalated
the time frame for us."
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 ou can read
even more detail about the history of the Babb Creek watershed
Association by linking to "The History of Babb Creek,"prepared
by Jim Barrs, along with Jim's recent update and project listing.
You may also want to read what others have to say about the
Babb Creek watershed by clicking on the 'quotes' link.
t's truly
amazing what people can accomplish when they've put their
minds together and have dedicated themselves to making it
happen. The Babb Creek Watershed Association is a 12-year
testament to the importance of taking a stand and accepting
responsibility for making your community a better place for
all. Bob McCullough has promised to teach me how to fly fish,
so I'm hoping to make my way back to this beautiful area in
the spring to take him up on that. I'll be sure to share my
future Tioga County adventures with you again. Thanks for
tuning in to Watershed Weekly, and thank you to the folks
of Babb Creek for being such an inspiration.
Additional Resources: The following are PDF files.
Babb Creek
History
Project Listing
Babb Creek Quotes
Don't have Adobe Acrobat?
Bob Hedin is also featured in Watershed Minutes,
click
here to check it out!
If you missed it, be sure to check out Watershed Weekly's
feature on Babb Creek Watershed volunteer,
Phil Stillerman - http://www.greenworks.tv/watershed_weekly/heroes/stillerman.htm
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journey began with an early start, driving along the banks of
the Susquehanna River. My destination? The Babb Creek watershed
in Tioga County. As you can see by my wildlife list, it was
a good morning for a journey taking me to the 'Pennsylvania
Grand Canyon' country. And as much as I hate to admit this,
it was my first adventure into Tioga County, so I was even more
excited to reach my destination.
abb
Creek is a tributary of Pine Creek and drains an area of 130
square miles. Much of this watershed is situated on State Forest
Lands, and is considered one of the state's premiere recreational
areas for hunting, fishing, canoeing, camping and just about
any outdoor activity you might enjoy. Pine Creek itself is well
known for its wild and scenic river designation, and if you
follow Pine Creek downstream, it will lead you to the west branch
of the Susquehanna River. 
riving
through this unique glacial mountain area, it's hard to
believe that the waters and valleys which make it such
a scenic Pennsylvania trademark are affected by abandoned
mine drainage (AMD), but it's true. For the past 100 years
the Babb Creek watershed has been plagued with acidic
seeps finding their way to the surface, dangerous mine
shafts left wide-open, and pristine trout streams unable
to support their native species. Bituminous coal abounds
in this area, and back in the 1850's mining was so extensive
that there were often four levels of mine tunnels running
throughout the mountainside - one on top of another. As
technology improved, so did mining techniques, and in
the 1970's the watershed found itself being strip mined
as well as deep mined. The resulting mine drainage is
attributed for polluting the nearby streams, killing the
fish, and for making the mayfly colonies die out as well.
