November 18, 1999
Herald-Standard
Redstone Creek watershed problems detailed
By Christine Haines
Herald-Standard Staff Writer
The Redstone Creek watershed is polluted with drainage from abandoned mines and fecal coliform from raw sewage and farm run-off according to samples taken from the watershed in late summer, but those problems are not insurmountable.
A group of citizens is in the process of forming a watershed association dedicated to cleaning up Redstone Creek and its tributaries. Six people volunteersd Wednesday to serve on the steering committee for the new watershed association. They will be working with Stacy Cromer of the Canaan Valley Institute, and organization which provides support services for non-profit groups.
People interested in the quality of the water in the watershed first met during the summer and a one-day water sampling program was set up for late August to provide a "snapshot" of the water quality.
"There's lots of mine drainage impact, which we expected, and lots of fecal coliform," said Rita Coleman of the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) who has so far coordinated the meetings. "Nothing was a big surprise because with (the water) being alkaline, you can see the orange in the stream."
The orange color is iron which comes from mine run-off and settles out of the water. Coleman said Redstone Creek's alkalinity is actually a good thing when it comes to clean-up efforts, because it is easier to treat alkaline streams than it is to treat acidic streams.
"When a stream is alkaline, the pH is ideal for the iron to settle out," Coleman said.
With enough land to build wetland ponds, the water becomes self-cleaning, Coleman said. Air mixes with the water in the wetland ponds and the iron settles to the bottom.
A slide presentation detailed a project involving the clean up of Monastery Run on the St. Vincent's College property in the Loyalhanna watershed. Coleman said the water there was treated through wetland ponds and the problem was corrected.
Some of the worst mine drainage in the Redstone Creek watershed is found near the Phillips mine off of Route 51. Iron levels of 37.8 milligrams per liter were found downstream of the Phillips mine discharge, while samples upstream from the discharge had iron levels of 7.54 milligrams per liter. The target iron levels for good water quality is 1.5 milligrams of iron per liter.
Coleman said water flows in that area indicate water from the stream may be seeping underground, gathering pollutants from the mine, then coming back out through the mine drains which empty into the stream, making the problem worse.
Because the Phillips problem is so extensive, Coleman said it may not be a good first project for the watershed group.
The Rankin Run tributary also has high iron levels, with iron levels of 50.6 milligrams per liter at the mouth where it empties into Redstone Creek. Coleman said the discharges in that area may be more treatable than the Phillips area. Other possible project areas are Little Redstone Creek and Downers Run. All will receive further study.
Coleman said the issue of fecal coliform in the creek is something that can be addressed community by community. Some areas in the watershed are about to get public sewage treatment systems for the first time, which should have a significant impact on the water quality. In other areas where sewage is treated with on-lot treatment systems such as septic tanks, Coleman said the watershed group can help increase public awareness of the impact of improperly operating systems on water quality.
"There is grant money available to upgrade on-lot treatment systems which often goes unused because people don't know about it," Coleman said.
Coleman said the Redstone Watershed is in a good position to get grant money, because the public and private funds available is geared toward groups at a local level which show interest in improving water quality.
Uniontown area farmer John Piwowar was the first to ask about the next steps to be taken. Piwowar said he has a farm along Redstone Creek and he's tired of the pollution. He has installed a storage facility for the manure on his farm to reduce the fecal coliform entering the stream at his location, and he'd like to see more done to clean up the creek.
Piwowar will serve on the steering committee along with Rich Kania of Uniontown, Kevin Mouyard of Dunlevy, Dave Leone of Uniontown, John Evans of Pennsylvania Career Link, and George Bozek of Franklin Township.
