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Chapter 4

What are the threats and opportunities for our watershed?

WHAT IS THREATENING OUR WATERSHED?

Our research showed the following:

THREATS TO NATURAL CORRIDORS

	Urban and suburban sprawl
	Decline of small urban centers: instead of towns connected by highways, we’re developing long strip developments along the highways connecting villages filled with empty stores and leaving people without a sense of community and neighborhood
	Loss of agricultural land
	Possibility of passenger service connecting our region to NYC
	Natural disasters – floods, tornadoes, wind damage to mature forests

THREATS TO MANMADE CORRIDORS

	Fragmentation of abandoned rail corridors as more land is developed
	Road widening and re-alignment projects leave little space for pedestrian traffic
	Bridge replacement projects
	Deteriorating infrastructure
	Natural disasters

THREATS TO NATURAL RESOURCES

	Stream bank erosion
	Degradation of water quality
	Non-point source water pollution
	Natural disasters

WHAT THE PUBLIC SAYS IS THREATENING THE FUTURE OF OUR WATERSHED

At four public meetings held throughout the watershed in 1998, we asked, “what do you think threatens the future of our watershed?” It was interesting to note that while county planners were concerned about sprawl, residents were more concerned about environmental damage. In order of frequency, the public expressed concern about:

Environmental damage to the streams

	Erosion and sedimentation from storm water runoff
	Flooding
	Nutrient pollution from farms and poor agricultural practices
	Destructive road maintenance policies, such as highway maintenance by the State – including road salt -- that is detrimental to the streams.
	Non point-source pollution like sedimentation, phosphorus and septic are not easily regulated
	Clear cutting rather than selective harvesting in our timberlands
	Invasion of exotic non-natives along creek beds, and landscaping with non-native plants and trees
	Decline in hemlocks due to fungus and insects
	Irresponsible excavation at quarries
	Garbage dumped into streams and along roadsides and the burial or abandonment of old farm equipment Sound pollution and soil erosion due to the use of all-terrain vehicles along creeks. ATVs scare wildlife and destroy seedlings and plants wherever their tires tear up the earth.

Unplanned growth and lack of zoning and enforcement of existing laws and regulations

	While all of the Lackawanna Townships in the Watershed have zoning ordinances, few in the rural counties have done much to regulate development.
	Understaffed government agencies and part time government officials do not enforce regulations or investigate properly because they lack time and resources

Urban and suburban sprawl

	Commercial development along the Route 6 corridor between Clarks Summit and Tunkhannock, and to a lesser extent on Route 29 North between Dimock and Montrose, has led to a number of small “strip mall” and individual stores which breakup the rural landscape.
	We’re developing townless roads rather than roads leading to towns
	The exits of Interstate 81, too, are experiencing development pressure as gas stations, restaurants and hotels are being constructed to handle travelers passing through the region.
	As new residential development has spread north from Scranton, commuters find it increasingly easy to reach workplaces in New York and Philadelphia from the Abingtons, Montrose, Tunkhannock and Milford. If commuter rail service from Binghamton to New York becomes a reality, it is logical to expect the rail lines to follow the old rail lines through the historic towns along Route ll – Nicholson, Harford etc.

Loss of farmland and the farming tradition

	As old farms are being bought up, these vistas are no longer protected.
	As our farming communities are lost and towns become more like bedroom communities, traditional maintenance on old cemeteries and community parks is no longer done.
	The suburbanization of small farms leads to a changed landscape.

Limited public access to the creek and land for recreation

	Despite our watershed’s hundreds of miles of creeks and dozens of lakes, there are few publicly accessible swimming areas.
	There are only two state parks – Lackawanna and Salt Springs State Park – in the Watershed.
	Most fishing areas require parking along a highway or road, thus creating a safety issue, or involve crossing private land.

Our young people are moving out of the region

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