Section 3. Managing Watershed Stresses
ASSESSMENT
OF WATER QUALITY CONDITIONS
The PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has established protected
use standards for all of Pennsylvania’s streams and rivers. They include:
warm water fishes (WWF), trout stocking (TSF), cold water fishes (CWF) and
migratory fishes (MF). Additionally, streams with excellent water quality
may be designated as high quality waters (HQ) or exceptional value waters
(EV). The water quality of HQ streams can be lowered under certain circumstances,
whereas it cannot be degraded for EV waters. The map of Manatawny watershed
illustrates how such standards are applied (Fig. 27).
Approximately 24 percent of the watershed is designated as high quality or exceptional waters, whereas 48 percent is designated for cold water fisheries and 28 percent for warm water fisheries. Under the federal Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. EPA, Pennsylvania and other states are required to assess the water quality conditions of their surface waters and submit reports biannually. PA DEP’s 1999 assessment program examined 53 percent of the Schuylkill watershed (compared to 42 percent statewide). DEP will be completing its assessment of all remaining unassessed waters. Approximately 74 percent of those assessed waters were found to be unimpaired, i.e., they met water quality standards established to support viable communities of aquatic life (compared to 76 percent statewide). Put another way, approximately 25 percent of the watershed’s assessed streams were found to be impaired based on their designated use.
Figure 28.
Percentages of Assessed
and Impaired Streams
Site Design: Tevlin & Clarke
