Darby Creek Watershed–Local Level:A Water Plan Management Proposal

By: Jenna Hart, Jill Meltzer, Madison Herling, Ben Miller

Darby Creek Watershed: LocallyUnder Sproul RoadFollows along Darby RoadIthan Creek Bridge: before Blue Route along

Darby Road1

Economic SignificanceReal-estate and gardening soilWaterExcluding roads, would provide a good barrier

against flashfloodsTrees that grow there are source of food and

windbreaks

Watershed Land Use2

Background of Local Region’s Public Water Source

2008 consumer report from Aqua water company shows that the water tested in this division of Pennsylvania did not contain amounts of contaminants that would violate the standards of the EPA3

Places on WatershedHaverford State Hospital site in Haverford

Township, northeastern Delaware County4

Clearview Area LandfillRiver Road in Gladwyne, PA in Lower Merion

Township

A Septic System5

The ProblemEstuary is contaminated with pollutants from

tributaries of Darby Creek and from runoffMany pollution sourcesMinimum amount of vacant landUrbanization has damaged Watershed’s

environmental status6

The SolutionAccording to the Darby Creek Valley Association (DCVA):

Part 1To foster development of locally initiated river conservation plans7

Part 2To provide financial and technical assistance for local river conservation planning activities7

Part 3To establish a Pennsylvania Rivers Conservation Registry, that recognizes rivers or river segments that have an approved river conservation plan7

Part 4To encourage state and local organizations to take actions that are consistent with local river conservation plans7

Non-Point Pollution SourcesStormwaterAir-borne pollution8

Point Pollution SourcesSewer overflow Inflow and Infiltration Problems8

Our PlanEducate the publicAnnual clean up dayLimit urbanization and construction

Our Proposed Legislation—“Site Permission Law”

Create “Site Permission Law”Municipality should consider Watershed’s

best interestsMunicipality owned land versus private landSite’s layout MUST consider important

Watershed features

Our Proposed Legislation—“Park Law”

Create “Park Law”Should follow confines of Darby Creek

WatershedDistrict FundingWould also include Haverford State Hospital

landRadnor Township would modify their zoning

laws to protect buffers along creek

Existing Legislation– Municipalities and Sewage

Pennsylvania’s Act 5379

Make municipalities take responsibility of their sewage facilities

All municipalities participate

Existing Plans—Radnor Township’s Storm Water Management Plan

Mandatory since late1970‘s May 2005-comprehensive storm water

management law was passedCreated this in response to Pennsylvania's Act

167 for the Darby & Cobbs Creek watershedsRadnor Township requires all areas to follow

itTwo storm water management systems to

help with runoff issues10

Existing Plans—Darby Creek Clean Up Day

Annual Darby Creek Clean UpSaturday, April 24, 2010 starting about 10

AMPreserves/beautifies Darby Creek

Watershed11

Supporting DataDarby Creek Valley Watershed Conservation

Plan

Bibliography III. Earth Resources. Darby Creek Watershed Conservation Plan. Darby Creek Valley Association. Web.

<http://dcva.org/wcp/Earth%20Resources.pdf>. V. Biological Resources. Darby Creek Watershed Conservation Plan. Darby Creek Valley Association.

Web.  http://www.dcva.org/wcp/Biological%20Resources.pdf>. VII. Goals and Recommended Actions Darby Creek Watershed Conservation Plan. Darby Creek Valley

Association. Web. http://www.dcva.org/wcp/Goals%20and%20Recommended%20Action.pdf Aqua Water Quality Report. Aqua. Web.

<https://www.aquaamerica.com/WaterQualityReports/2008/PA1460073.pdf>. Ecological Assessment. Former Haverford State Hospital. Web. <http://www.dcva.org/hsh/HSH%202008-

12-16%20handout.pdf>. Executive Summary. Darby Creek Watershed Conservation Plan. Darby Creek Valley Association. Web. http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/brc/rivers/riversconservation/registry/DarbyCreek.pdf >. Pennsylvania Department of Health, Division of Environmental Health Epidemiology, The U.S. Department

of Health and Human Services, and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. Health Consultation. ATSDR. Web. <http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HAC/pha/LowerDarbyCreekArea/Lower_Darby_Creek_Area%20HC%209-30-2008.pdf>.

Septic Tank, 2010. http://biology.uco.edu/bidlack/family/familypics/septic/Septic%20%2831%29.jpg "Stormwater Management." Radnor Township Pennsylvania. Web.

<http://www.radnor.com/department/division.asp?fDD=6-116>.

Endnotes 1-http://dcva.org/wcp/Earth%20Resources.pdf 2-Goals and Recommended Actions Darby Creek Watershed Conservation

Plan. Darby Creek Valley Association. Web. http://www.dcva.org/wcp/Goals%20and%20Recommended%20Action.pdf

3-https://www.aquaamerica.com/WaterQualityReports/2008/PA1460073.pdf 4-http://dcva.org/wcp/Earth%20Resources.pdf 5-http://biology.uco.edu/bidlack/family/familypics/septic/Septic

%20%2831%29.jpg 6-http://www.dcva.org/hsh/HSH%202008-12-16%20handout.pdf 7-http://www.dcva.org/wcp/Goals%20and%20Recommended%20Action.pdf 8-http://www.dcva.org/wcp/Water%20Resources.pdf 9-http://www.dcva.org/wcp/Goals%20and%20Recommended%20Action.pdf 10-http://www.radnor.com/department/division.asp?fDD=6-116 11-http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/brc/rivers/riversconservation/registry/

DarbyCreek.pdf