Watershed Conservation Plan - Destination Erie

Other watershed associations or watershed representatives associated with PLEWA:
Baker Creek Watershed Association (Diana Hatfield); Crooked Creek (Victor Wheeler); Elk Creek (Tom
Fuhrman); Walnut Creek (Julie Blackman); Presque Isle Bay (J. Michael Campbell); Cascade Creek (SONS
[Ed Kissell and Tom Maggio]); Mill Creek (Cathy Pedler); McDannel Run (Marty Visnosky); Fourmile
Creek (Dave Skellie); Sixmile Creek (Ed Masteller); Sevenmile Creek (Pat Lupo and Sarah Galloway);
Twelvemile Creek (Wesleyville Conservation Club); Peck Run (Ron Dombrowiak); Twentymile Creek (Chris
Orton); Great Lakes Basin (Annette Marshall)
Pennsylvania Sea Grant (http://seagrant.psu.edu)
Pennsylvania Sea Grant promotes the ecological and economic sustainability of Pennsylvania's coastal
resources through research and outreach. Its activities include science-based extension, education, applied
research, and communication focusing on the Lake Erie and Delaware River drainages of Pennsylvania. Its
goals are to enhance coastal tourism and sustainable land-use practices; improve the knowledge and
understanding of Pennsylvania's coastlines among teachers and students of all ages; support applied research
on issues critical to coastal resources and management; and disseminate information about services available
through NOAA and other partner organizations.
Presque Isle Audubon Society (http://www.presqueisle.org/audubon)
The Presque Isle Audubon Society is a chapter of the National Audubon Society and a member of
Audubon Pennsylvania serving northwestern Pennsylvania including Erie and Crawford counties. It is named
after Presque Isle, a peninsula on the shores of Lake Erie near the city of Erie. Its mission is to promote the
conservation and protection of wildlife, plants, soil, and water in relation to human activity; to initiate and
carry out plans and activities which would contribute to the conservation and protection of these natural
resources; and to provide opportunities to become more aware and appreciative of the physical and biological
environment.
S.O.N.S. (Save Our Native Species [http://www.great-lakes.org/pa/s.o.n.s.lakeerie.html])
The SONS organization is dedicated to the improvement of fishing on Lake Erie and its Pennsylvania
tributaries. The organization has acted as a lobbyist for regulations supporting the growth of the Lake Erie
fishery and is a member of the Cooperative Nursery Branch of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.
SONS has established a fish hatchery that annually produces and stocks approximately 1 million walleye and
2 million yellow perch, as well as steelhead and brown trout, into Presque Isle Bay. SONS is active in the
clean up and stocking of Cascade creek, a previously polluted stream which was a receptor of industrial
outfall.
Sierra Club, Lake Erie Group (http://pennsylvania.sierraclub.org)
The purpose of the Sierra Club is to explore, enjoy and protect the wild places of the Earth; to practice
and promote the responsible use of the Earth's ecosystems and resources; to educate and enlist humanity to
protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environment; and to use all lawful means to carry out
these objectives.
Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (http://www.paconserve.org/)
Since 1932, the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC) has protected 910 km² (225,000 acres). Most
of that land is now publicly owned and makes up some of Pennsylvania's premier parks, forests, game lands,
and natural areas—visited by millions of residents and tourists. WPC's work enables protection of important
natural resources and creates economic benefits, from tourism in the Laurel Highlands, recreation in the
Clarion River and Loyalhanna Gorge, to forestry in the Allegheny National Forest and Forbes State Forest
in Westmoreland County. WPC plants more than 150 community gardens each spring in 19 western
Pennsylvania counties. WPC acquired the land for the creation of Erie Bluffs State Park in 2004.
8 LAND USE AND LOCAL/REGIONAL PLANNING
8.1 Population Shifts and Urban Sprawl
The 508 mi 2 area that encompasses the Pennsylvania Lake Erie watershed study area is home to over
200,000 people. This area includes the northern portion of Erie County and the northwestern corner of
151