Watershed Conservation Plan - Destination Erie

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Cranesville area, and the lower reaches of the main tributaries of the West Branch of Conneaut Creek within an area known as "Jumbo Woods," which is situated in and near Pennsylvania Game Land 101. It is significant that several of the largest uninterrupted tracts of forest (with mixed forest "core") in the western part of the study area are directly associated with large palustrine forested wetlands in the West Branch of Conneaut Creek and in the lake plain portion of Crooked Creek immediately west of Erie Bluffs State Park. These "combination" habitats would be expected to provide optimum resources for many species of herptiles and other wildlife. The wetland-rich Raccoon and Turkey Creeks subwatersheds also present tandem elements of aquatic and forested habitats including mixed (coniferous) elements. The importance of such areas for aquatic-dependent wildlife is well demonstrated in the Turkey Creek subwatershed near West Springfield, where Gray and Lethaby (2006) have documented a remarkably diverse herptile community (see Figure 6.8). The largest continuous tract (ca. 15–20 mi 2 [39–52 km 2 ]) of mainly deciduous forest (indicated by dark green shading) in the study area is the above-mentioned Jumbo Woods area of the Conneaut Creek subwatershed (Figure 6.18; see Figure 6.17). This forest apparently includes significant tracts of palustrine forested wetlands (see Figure 6.14) and areas of mixed forest within a core forest that is one of most distinctive natural features of the northwestern corner of the state, shared between Erie and Crawford Counties and extending into eastern Ohio. The fact that Pennsylvania Game Land 101 is already a prominent part of this forest (see Chapter 7) suggests that bringing additional adjoining properties into the realm of "public protection" is a worthwhile goal that should be advanced by this plan. Other large areas of deciduous forest in the western part of the watershed are found in the Elk Creek subwatershed between Interstate 79 and Little Elk Creek, surrounding significant tracts of mixed forest (described above). There are also large areas of mainly deciduous forest in the Elk Creek subwatershed east of Interstate 79 and McKean Borough between the tributaries flowing into Dunn Valley from the easternmost part of the watershed, and the large branch of Elk Creek that flows along Pennsylvania Route 99 from the vicinity of Edinboro. A noteworthy large tract of deciduous forest was found in the Thomas Run area of the Walnut Creek subwatershed (see Figure 6.16), but large portions of this forest have been recently been converted to housing developments. The general outer perimeter of the main urban area of Erie, which extends south to the edge of the study area, presents many large tracts of mostly deciduous forest interspersed with farmland (keyed dark brown in Figures 6.16 and 6.17) and transitional vegetation (keyed red), likely including residential developments. Many of these forested areas have probably been converted to transitional vegetation in the newer subdivisions of Harborcreek, Green, Millcreek, Summit, and McKean Townships since 2005, when this data layer was created. In the eastern part of the watershed, the upper slopes of the ridge south of the lake plain, from the Sixmile Creek subwatershed east to the New York line, present numerous large tracts of deciduous forest interspersed with farmland. 6.3.3 Distribution of Disturbed Vegetation Areas Transitional vegetation includes areas with scattered trees mixed with predominantly lower-growing plants, and may indicate abandoned farmland in early stages of succession, agricultural operations in which young trees are being grown in open fields, low-density residential areas near towns, or other disturbed areas such as railroad rights-of-way. In Figures 6.16 and 6.17, this vegetation type (keyed red) is most noticeable in association with human population centers surrounding black-shaded barren/hard surface areas (keyed black). Transitional vegetation occupies a zone of varying width around the City of Erie and all of the boroughs of the study area, where it indicates residential/suburban landscapes. In the many locations throughout the study area where small or irregular patches of transitional vegetation are found interspersed with larger areas of deciduous forest, transitional vegetation most likely indicates of sites where forests have been recently logged or where former farmland is reverting to a forested condition. Perennial herbaceous vegetation (keyed yellow in Figure s 6.16 and 6.17) includes vineyards and other open agricultural sites that are not cultivated, such as pastures and hay fields. The greatest concentration of perennial herbaceous vegetation is found in the lake plain between the City of Erie and the New York State line, indicative of grape vineyards. There are also many large areas of this vegetation 134
Figure 6.18. Detail of the largest continuous tract of mainly deciduous forest (indicated by dark green shading) in the study area, known as the Jumbo Woods area of the Conneaut Creek subwatershed. type in the valley of Elk Creek (main stem) south of Interstate 90 and south of Jumbo Woods in the Conneaut Creek subwatershed, presumably indicating locations of pastures and hayfields. Annual herbaceous vegetation (keyed brown shading in Figures 6.16 and 6.17) includes cultivated field crops such as corn, soybean, and various vegetables. Patches of this vegetation are found throughout the study area outside of the urban/suburban perimeter, broadly interspersed with forest and perennial herbaceous vegetation. Large-scale crop-growing operations appear to be concentrated in the lake plain between Trout Run and Crooked Creek, in the southern part of the Elk Creek subwatershed west of Interstate 90, and in the broad valley containing Marsh Run (Conneaut Creek) and Ashtabula Creek north of Jumbo Woods. 135
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Pennsylvania Rivers Conservation Pr
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land to development. Strong communi
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Human resources available to facili
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other communities, organizations, a
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TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures .
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8.3 Sustainable Development and Gov
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Figure 5.14. Average summer phospho
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Figure 10.3. Management Areas propo
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS AND PLAN AUTHORSHIP
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working with interested teacher and
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Figure 1.3. Perceived importance of
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1.3 Watershed Plan Focus The primar
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Figure 2.2. Detail of the south-cen
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Figure 2.4. Physiographic provinces
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westward. Although the paucity of f
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via the Erigan River, a major river
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Warren and Whittlesey can be found
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evised paleoenvironmental picture,
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characteristic ground stone tools,
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phase represent the most common Lat
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including flexed and extended inhum
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with the appearance of European tra
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The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania wa
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of $800 for the purchase of The Tri
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In addition to these townships, the
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Pittsburgh Railroad had reached New
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Figure 3.3. Density of registered a
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the Whittlesey and Warren III stran
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Table 3.3. Properties in the Study
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Table 3.3—continued Name Address
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Table 3.3—continued Name Address
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"Little Ice Age"), and the validity
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"massasaugies" (Eastern Massasauga
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eport (Col. John Fleeharty) lamente
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flowing streams. The starting point
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elow the park." Apparently the pump
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A submerged arching sand feature is
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of the lake plain and upland areas
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characteristics, and are important
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Lake section (see Figure 2.4). Nota
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Figure 5.2. Flow time series for Tw
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Figure 5.4. Flow time series for Co
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Figure 5.8. Flow per square mile pe
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area that have thicker glacial depo
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Table 5.4. Protected Water Uses for
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Stream Zone County 3—East Branch
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5.10.2 Permitted Discharges The two
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Figure 5.14. Average summer phospho
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Figure 5.15. Graphical analyses of
Page 103 and 104: Figure 5.17. Average summer nitrate
Page 105 and 106: Figure 5.19. Mercury concentrations
Page 107 and 108: Figure 5.20. Map showing locations
Page 109 and 110: Figure 5.22. Number of stream miles
Page 111 and 112: 91 Figure 5.24. Results of Campbell
Page 113 and 114: Table 5.6. Range in Number of E. co
Page 115 and 116: Figure 5.26. Maximum E. coli counts
Page 117 and 118: The recent investigation completed
Page 119 and 120: Figure 5.30. Sources of known nondo
Page 121 and 122: 6 NATURAL RESOURCES 6.1 Animal Life
Page 123 and 124: Rank Status Taxon Common Name Globa
Page 125 and 126: Table 6.2. Pennsylvania Vertebrate
Page 127 and 128: Table 6.3. Noted Occurrence of Spaw
Page 129 and 130: Figure 6.4. Water quality designati
Page 131 and 132: Figure 6.6. Fishing hours spent on
Page 133 and 134: Figure 6.7. Comparative analysis of
Page 135 and 136: Figure 6.9. Percentage breakdown of
Page 137 and 138: A small number of the birds listed
Page 139 and 140: phytoplankton by Dreissena allows l
Page 141 and 142: populations increase. Corbicula flu
Page 143 and 144: Rank Status Taxon Common name Globa
Page 145 and 146: Rank Status Taxon Common name Globa
Page 147 and 148: Two other forest wetland plant comm
Page 149 and 150: 6.2.4 Emergent Wetlands Over half o
Page 151 and 152: alleghaniensis), sugar maple, red m
Page 153: Table 6.6.Percentage Composition of
Page 157 and 158: Figure 7.1. Responses made by study
Page 159 and 160: Figure 7.3. Spatial distribution of
Page 161 and 162: Presque Isle State Park is connecte
Page 163 and 164: Table 7.2. Number of Recreational O
Page 165 and 166: lakefront recreational properties,
Page 167 and 168: Map Id Subwatershed Comment 51 41.5
Page 169 and 170: Bayfront Center for Maritime Studie
Page 171 and 172: Other watershed associations or wat
Page 173 and 174: Figure 8.1. Child poverty rates in
Page 175 and 176: comprehensive vision or plan, have
Page 177 and 178: and municipalities should be encour
Page 179 and 180: 5. In order to sustain maximum biod
Page 181 and 182: 10 PRIORITIES AND STRATEGIES FOR AC
Page 183 and 184: easements for riparian areas, and p
Page 185 and 186: Table 10.2 Management Areas Defined
Page 187 and 188: Figure 10.2. Example of how GIS can
Page 189 and 190: Figure 10.4. Example of how GIS can
Page 191 and 192: Watershed Portion MAs Main Subwater
Page 193 and 194: Restoration actions Management Area
Page 195 and 196: 11 REFERENCES CITED Abrams, M. D. 2
Page 197 and 198: Broyles, B. J. 1971 Second Prelimin
Page 199 and 200: Cooper, N. L., J. R. Bidwell, and D
Page 201 and 202: Dzurko, Robert 1972 Conneaut Creek
Page 203 and 204: Goodyear, A. C. 1999 The Early Holo
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Jasim, S. Y., A. Irabelli, L. Schwe
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Leighton, R. 2006 Pennsylvania Fish
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Michaels, A. 2005 Pennsylvania Has
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2007d Waterways, Wetlands, and Eros
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Richardson, J. B., and J. B. Peters
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Soon, W. and S. Baliunas 2003 Proxy
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Tomikel and Shepps 1967 Trasande, L
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Whitley, D. S., and R. I. Dorn 1993
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Preparing For Watershed Conservatio
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Introduction (cont’d) In March of
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Executive Summary Overall, responde
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Executive Summary (cont’d) Cont
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Summary Of Key Groups (cont’d) Ur
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Please Indicate Whether You Agree,
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In Your Opinion, Is The Need For Im
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If You Had To Choose Between Proper
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Favorite Locations For Recreation I
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Favorite Motor Boating Locations To
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Favorite Hiking Locations Location
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Favorite Swimming Locations Total R
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Knowledge Of Historic And Prehistor
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Support For Stream Protection Measu
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LERC Rivers Conservation Plan Publi
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• Mason: As far as education, get
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• Kloss: Educate people about Act
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Great Lakes Commission http://www.g
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Center for Economic and Environment
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The Erie County portion of the Penn
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Feature Parameters Parameter Variab
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Feature Parameters Parameter Variab
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