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Water Quality
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The Effects of Special Protection Designation (PA Campaign for Clean
Water) - To
provide sufficient protection for
Pennsylvania
waters, two special
protection aquatic
life designated uses have been established:
High
Quality (HQ) and
Exceptional
Value (EV).
Waters with HQ or EV designated uses are among the cleanest and most
outstanding waters in all of
Pennsylvania
, and support excellent diversity and populations of aquatic life.
Such a waterway is an asset to your community, and there are special
protections in place to ensure that its water quality is protected
and maintained.
So what does a HQ or EV designation mean for your community? It
requires that new or expanded activities do not degrade existing
water quality. It does not mean development will stop, or that
permits for most projects cannot be obtained. It does mean that
projects like building a new commercial or residential development,
a new or expanded concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO), a
new or expanded sewage treatment plant, or a new road will undergo
more rigorous permit review by the Pennsylvania Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) and, in some cases, must meet more
stringent requirements to protect water quality.
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Pennsylvania's
Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment Report, 2004 (DEP) -
contains summaries of various water quality management programs
including water quality standards, point source control and non-point
source control. It also includes descriptions of programs to protect
lakes, wetlands and groundwater quality.
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Pennsylvania's
Water Quality Antidegradation Implementation Guidance (DEP) - The
basic concept of antidegradation is to promote the maintenance and
protection of existing water quality for High Quality (HQ) and
Exceptional Value (EV) waters, and protection of existing uses for
all surface waters because it recognizes that existing water quality
and uses have inherent value worthy of protection and preservation.
As a required element of a state’s water quality standards, the
Antidegradation Program introduces levels of protection for
deserving water bodies above the basic standards. |
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Penn Future's Stream Designation Handbook
- Citizens can play a critical role in improving the protections
placed on their stream. A process exists in Pennsylvania whereby
citizens may petition for redesignation of a stream or stream
segment to HQ or EV status. It is a lengthy, complex process, often
taking years before a redesignation request comes to fruition.
However, the special protections afforded your stream by HQ or EV
status are well worth the effort. This Handbook will help you
through the process, by providing valuable information and detailed
step-by-step guidance on how to petition for HQ or EV redesignation.
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Wild Trout Information
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PA
Fish and Boat Commission's Class A List - List of streams that support a
population of naturally produced trout of sufficient size and abundance to support a
long-term and rewarding sport fishery. Managed for natural reproduction with no
stocking.
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PA
Fish and Boat Commission's Naturally Reproducing Trout List - List of stream
sections that contain some form of natural reproduction.
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Conservation
Planning
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Watershed
Benchmarking Tool from the Center for Watershed Protection -
Using lessons learned from around the country, this self-assessment
tool helps local program managers make better decisions on watershed
restoration priorities to maximize the performance of staff and
financial resources. Local watershed groups can also use this tool
by determining how their community compares to others and work with
their local governments to encourage adoption of practices that
would improve scores.
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The
Tools of Watershed Protection - This article is from the
Center for Watershed Protection - The Practice of Watershed
Protection in .pdf format provides a good overview of the eight
different tools watershed managers can use to protect water
resources.
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EPA
Watershed Planning Tools - Committed watershed organizations and state and local
governments need adequate resources to achieve the goals of the Clean Water Act and
improve our nation's water quality. To support these efforts, the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) has created this Web site to provide tools, databases, and
information about sources of funding to practitioners and funders that serve to protect
watersheds. http://www.epa.gov/owow/funding.html
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Where
Rivers are Born: The Scientific Imperative for Defending Small Streams and
Wetlands. Our nation’s network
of rivers, lakes and streams originates from a myriad of small streams and wetlands,
many so small they do not appear on any map. Yet these headwater streams and wetlands
exert critical influences on the character and quality of downstream waters. This
paper summarizes the scientific basis for understanding that the health and productivity
of rivers and lakes depends upon intact small streams and wetlands. Paper
sponsored by American Rivers and the Sierra Club.
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Funding
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Updated
Catalog of Federal Funding for Watershed Protection - This web
site provides information on
Federal funding sources that may be available to help fund various
watershed-related projects. To view the Web site, visit http://www.epa.gov/watershedfunding.
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For
More Information
Resources