Watershed

On a recent morning at the Pennypack Preserve - a land trust containing 720 acres of protected watershed in Montgomery County - a weathered, old snapping turtle with a stegosaurus tail sunned itself on the pavement. This reminder of the prehistoric past seemed a fitting illustration of what officials at the preserve say is a major push to restore the preserve to its primordial roots. Little by little, they say, subtle changes being made in the natural landscape will bring this confluence of stream, wetland, and gently sloping forest to its healthiest possible state.

Hidden behind the Country Woods housing subdivision in Franklin Township is Scotland Run, a clear, slow-moving stream cloaked by trees, brambles and the sounds of birds chirping. There are no people. This part of Scotland Run, New Jersey's version of a rain forest, would be nearly impossible to reach if not for Grant Avenue, which cuts through the wilderness. The muddy banks, visible from an old bridge, are completely covered with vines, tall grasses and bushes. Minnows and bugs skitter across the water, from a lily pad cluster to a fallen tree bisecting the stream.

Ruling in favor of residents of the Darby Creek watershed who sued over flooding problems, Commonwealth Court has ordered Delaware County to produce a storm-water-management plan that was due 10 years ago. In a unanimous ruling with potential statewide implications, a three-judge panel declared Friday that "inadequate storm-water management is a threat to the health and safety of the public" and ordered the county to begin a preliminary study...

Sometimes it takes a long time for dreams to become reality. Such was the case this year in Chester County, where projects that had lingered in the background for years leaped into the spotlight. It was a year marked by an infusion of state and federal funds to preserve a historic battlefield; the demolition of a hated housing project; and the acceptance of an entire watershed into the national Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Workers in Chester County government for the first time turned to organized labor for help in getting better pay and benefits.

The green expanses of woodland and lush salt marsh that line the western edge of Barnegat Bay are known among environmentalists as the bay's "emerald necklace. " And the verdant pockets truly are jewels. The Trust for Public Land over the past decade has set about systematically purchasing these buffers, which straddle housing developments, strip malls and other assorted development. In doing so, it has preserved about 6,500 acres for limited public use and environmental conservation.

The school board got a glimpse Tuesday night of the district's watershed program - a nontraditional curriculum relying on the outdoors rather than on textbooks - and members liked what they saw. Superintendent John A. DeFlaminis said a review of the watershed program was included on the monthly agenda in response to a recent community survey asking residents to appraise the district's curriculum. Some critics opposing rising taxes have urged the district to concentrate on traditional subjects and to scrap courses with small class enrollments or those considered nontraditional.

On the banks of the Cooper River, Gov. Whitman signed a contract yesterday to provide funding for a committee that will draft a watershed preservation and improvement plan for 391 square miles of the lower Delaware River region. Under the agreement, the state has hired the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission to form a committee with members from a variety of areas, including state and local government, the business community, and environmental groups. "This is going to improve the water quality from Burlington to Salem County," said Bob Shinn, commissioner of the state Department of Environmental Protection.

The sign: A tiny sow bug creeping along researcher Andy Duddleston's muddy fingertip. The meaning: Suburban sprawl and the runoff from fertilizers are affecting South Jersey's watersheds and water supply. Finding a sow bug in a Burlington County stream last week at Laurel Acres Park in Mount Laurel revealed that the water has a lot of room for improvement, Duddleston's colleague Chris Trainor said. With water levels dropping because of drought, many environmental groups are seizing the opportunity to inform residents about protecting what remains of the resource.

Legislation that would declare the White Clay Creek watershed in southern Chester County part of the national Wild and Scenic Rivers system was introduced this week into the House of Representatives by members Joseph R. Pitts (R., Chester) and Mike Castle (R., Delaware). Similar legislation was introduced into the Senate last month by Sen. Joe Biden (R., Del.). Passage of the measures would mark the first time in the nation that an entire watershed - a stream's main stem, its branches, its headwaters and all tributaries - has been designated a wild and scenic river.

Peco Energy Co. was unaware that it was in an environmentally protected area when it plowed down trees and plants along its transmission line in the Valley Creek watershed, company officials said yesterday. The watershed area has been designated for years as being of exceptional value - the highest protection by the state Department of Environmental Protection, agency officials said. Peco officials say they didn't know. "We were not aware this area was designated as exceptional value," Michael Wood, a spokesman, said.