Meetings and Activities:
ISLAND PARK HAS A NEW INFORMATION KIOSK
The TCCCC applied for and received a “Community Grant” from Seneca Resources, LLC and Highland Field Services, LLC to construct a 3-sided information kiosk at Island Park, Blossburg, PA. Seneca Resources Company, LLC is the exploration and production segment of National Fuel Gas Company. Their headquarters is in Houston, TX. Seneca explores for, develops, and produces natural gas in the Appalachian Region. Highland Field Services, LLC, is a subsidiary of Seneca Resources. They manage produced fluids from oil and gas and are located in McKean County, PA. Highland Field Services provides water resource and recycling solutions to upstream and midstream operators and manages the operational and economic needs of the energy sector, advancing recycling and reuse rather than disposal.
The kiosk is located near the corn hole and horseshoe pits. The Island Park panel provides an aerial view of The Island, identifying all of the facilities available at the park. The other two panels provide information about Tioga River restoration efforts. The Tioga River panel depicts the Tioga River watershed and the tributaries impacted by Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) pollution. It highlights how that pollution impacts the Tioga River all the way to the Tioga Hammond Dam. The location of the existing Fall Brook AMD Passive Treatment Plant and the proposed location for the Tioga River AMD Treatment Plant scheduled to start in late 2027 highlight the restoration efforts currently underway. The third panel describes the types of aquatic life that will return to the river when the treatment plant is up and running.
The TCCCC, Hillside Rod & Gun Club, and our partners in watershed restoration efforts worked with the Blossburg Recreation Board and Blossburg Borough Council on this project as well as the Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy. The Susquehanna River Basin Commission provided mapping and technical support.
REPRESENTATIVES FROM SENATOR JOHN FETTERMAN’S OFFICE VISIT THE WATERSHED
Tioga County Commissioner Shane Nickerson and NPC Executive Director Renee Carey coordinated a visit for Senator John Fetterman’s Washington DC Office Staff Members to tour the Tioga River AMD Treatment Plant project sites as well as other areas of Tioga County impacted by recent flooding. Partners involved in the Tioga River AMD Treatment Plant Project were invited to participate with Andrew King – SRBC and Tom Clark – Kleinfelder presenting information about the treatment plant project. Renee Carey provided an overview of the fish habitat/bank stabilization project that was under construction at Island Park followed by a visit to the Coal Creek discharge and the Coal Creek property purchased by NPC to help facilitate the design and construction for capturing the Coal Creek discharge.
TCCCC Updates Members of the TCWOA
On July 21, 2024, representatives from the TCCCC provided an update on the Tioga River AMD Treatment Plant Project as well as information about the proposed Island Park, Blossburg bank stabilization/fish habitat project to members of the Tioga County Woodland Owners Association (TCWOA). Following their meeting, Roy Siefert provided a tour to Babb’s Creek to show interested members existing bank stabilization and fish habitat projects. For more information about the TCWOA, visit their website at tcwoa.org.
UPPER TIOGA RIVER WATERSHED WELCOME CENTER SIGN RECEIVES AN UPDATE:
In 2007, the TCCCC and their partners in Upper Tioga River Watershed reclamation efforts, the Hillside Rod & Gun Club, Trout Unlimited (TU), Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC), and others, unveiled an information sign at the Route 15 Welcome Center in northern Tioga County. The sign provided a brief history of coal mining in the Upper Tioga River Watershed as well as information about the resulting Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) pollution that has plagued the River since the late 1970’s. The pollution is so severe that the River can no longer support aquatic life from Blossburg north to Tioga Lake at the Tioga Hammond Dam.
Pictured from left to right: Larry Smith – TCCCC, Jim Lamonski – Hillside Rod & Gun Club, Al Boyer – TCCCC, Jeremy Campbell – SRBC, Roy Siefert – TCCCC & Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy, Jack Reilly – TCCCC, Jere White – TU, Joyce Andrews – TCCCC , Charlie Andrews – TCCCC, Andrew King – SRBC, and Mike Bogaczyk – TCCCC.
In late 2023, the TCCCC/Hillside Watershed Committee and their partners began the process of updating the sign to reflect existing and proposed improvements in the Watershed. Updated information includes improvements in water quality as a result of the Fall Brook AMD Treatment Systems and information about the proposed Tioga River AMD Treatment Plant. SRBC’s Stacey Hanrahan and Andrew King assisted with the update and Pannier Graphics of Gibsonia, PA was contracted to prepare the sign panel. The sign is located on the southside of the Route 15 Welcome Center.
COMMUNITY MEETING ON THE PROPOSED TIOGA RIVER AMD TREATMENT PLANT
Approximately 100 property owners and interested individuals attended the two sessions held at 2:00 PM and 7:00 PM on February 22, 2024 at the Blossburg Firehall. Representatives from the following organizations were on hand to present information and answer questions regarding the proposed route for the underground pipe network, the construction of the treatment plant, and anticipated timeframes for the construction:
DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation (BAMR)
Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC)
Kleinfelder
Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy (NPC)
Tioga County Conservation District (TCCD)
Tioga Count Concerned Citizens Committee (TCCCC).
Andrew King – SRBC
Tom Clark – Abandoned Mine Program – Project Development Manager – Kleinfelder
COUPLE HONORED WITH SRBC AWARD:
At their Quarterly Business Meeting held December 14, 2023 in Corning, NY, the SRBC Commissioners Honored Charlie and Joyce Andrews for their long-term commitment to restoring the Upper Tioga River Watershed which has been polluted with Acid Mine Drainage. The couple was presented with the William Jeanes Sr. Award . William Jeanes Sr. was a Pennsylvania native who as a Maryland resident was a strong advocate of water quality protection and restoration of the Chesapeake Bay.
From left to right: Amy Guise, Chief, Planning Division Baltimore District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Lauren Townley, Chief, Watershed Section A, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; Andrew Dehoff, Executive Director, Susquehanna River Basin Commission; Joyce Andrews and Charlie Andrews, TCCCC; Bevin Buchheister, Acting Deputy Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection; Matthew Rowe, Assistant Director, Water and Science Administration, Maryland Department of the Environment.
AMERICAN PETROLEUM INSTITUTE REPRESENTATIVES VISIT TIOGA RIVER WATERSHED
At the request of Southwestern Energy (SWN), the TCCCC provided a high-level overview of the FallBrook AMD Treatment Project and brief description of the proposed Tioga River AMD Treatment Plant to representatives of the American Petroleum Institute (API). API is the largest US trade association for the oil and natural gas industry. SWN funded the design, construction, and O&M of the Fall Brook AMD Treatment Project that went on line in 2015 as part of their Fresh Water Neutral program. TCCCC President Charlie Andrews, Secretary Joyce Andrews, and Blossburg Mayor Shane Nickerson shared thoughts on what the Fall Brook AMD Treatment Plant has meant to the community and how they felt it was instrumental in DCNR moving forward with the proposed Tioga River AMD Treatment Plant schedule to be on line in 2026. SWN continues to advocate for the oil and gas industry to get involved in environmental projects in the areas in which they operate.