Allegheny River Headwaters Watershed Conservation Plan

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Allegheny River Headwaters Conservation Plan Chapter 2. Land Resources Development Development occurs, and is needed to some extent, to enhance the quality of life within the watershed. The key is effectively managing development activities as identified in county, municipal, and multi-municipal planning documents. As discussed in the Project Area Characteristics chapter, land-use plans and regulation ordinances protect communities from unwanted development and land uses. Existing development is located around the population centers, such as Bradford and Coudersport. However, the majority of existing development—77 percent—is rural residential development, also termed open-space development. Low intensity development consists of small towns and villages, such as Turtlepoint and Oswayo; they make up 16 percent of the project area’s development. Medium intensity development would be a mid-sized borough, such as Port Allegany and Smethport. These mid-sized, medium-intensity development areas account for six percent of the developed area of the watershed, leaving one percent of high-intensity residential population centers. Mining Mining is the extraction of minerals, such as coal, limestone, sand, and gravel from underground. These materials are then brought to the surface. There are two methods of recovering the minerals— surface mining and subsurface mining. Strip mining, quarrying, open-pit mining, and mountain top removal are examples of surface mining techniques used to reach mineral resources underground. In these methods, the land surface and bedrock above the minerals is stripped off to provide access to the minerals. Subsurface or underground mining requires the digging of tunnels or shafts into the earth’s surface to remove minerals. Longwall mining, room and pillar, drift mining, slope mining, and shaft mining are examples of underground mining techniques. Within the Allegheny headwaters, mining is not a major land use. In fact, mineral extraction and barren areas account for less than one-half percent of land use within the project area. The removal of minerals is classified into two categories for management and oversight—coal and non-coal mining. Non-Coal Mining Non-coal mining is the extraction of non-fuel or industrial minerals, such as aggregate, shale, and crushed stone. It is estimated that industrial mineral production generates $1.25 billion annually and provides jobs, taxes to local municipalities, and supports local business. Pennsylvania is among the top 10 states for producing aggregate and crushed stone (DEP 6 ). Home and roadway construction, agriculture, landscaping, and industrial processes utilize a variety of mineral resources. Concrete—made from aggregates, such as sand, gravel, or limestone—is used for constructing building foundations and bridges. Lime is added to agricultural fields to raise the pH of acidic soils. Crushed stones and minerals, such as bluestone, flagstone, and shale, are used in landscaping. Non-fuel minerals are used as abrasives, binders, or additives in industrial processes or in the treatment of air or water as a part of the manufacturing process. There are 57 active industrial mining permits within the municipalities that comprise the Allegheny headwaters watershed. See Appendix E for a listing of these quarries. Coal Mining Coal is found in flat layers between veins of non-fuel minerals, such as sandstone, shale, and limestone, which are referred to as overburden in the coal mining process. Within Pennsylvania there are 40 layers of coal, varying in thickness from inches to over eight feet. The majority of it is located within the Pittsburgh, Upper Freeport, Lower Freeport, Upper Kittanning, and Lower Kittanning coal seams (DEP, 2005; DEP 7 ). 2-10
Allegheny River Headwaters Conservation Plan Chapter 2. Land Resources There are currently no active coal mining operations within the project area. However, the southwestern portion of the watershed in McKean County has seen mining activities in the past, as evident by the old strip mine located at the headwaters of Hamlin, Railroad, and Scaffold Lick runs. Oil and Gas Exploration For over a century, oil and gas exploration has been a common fixture. Pennsylvania’s history of oil and gas exploration dates back to 1859, when the world’s first intentional and successful oil well was drilled in Venango County, near Titusville. Until oil fields were discovered in Texas during the 1900s, western Pennsylvania generated over half of the world’s petroleum supply. Pennsylvania’s annual contribution to the national petroleum supply since 2000 is less than one percent, but still notable due to the distinguishing lubrication properties of Pennsylvania crude oil (Shultz, 1999). One of many active gas wells located within the project area As the demand for oil and natural gas grows around the world, exploration for these resources expands as well. Due to increased demand, and therefore increased prices, oil and gas exploration in Pennsylvania has been expanding since the 1970s, and even more so in recent years. In 2007, DEP issued 1,151 oil and gas well drilling permits, which represents a 21.8 percent increase in permits issued from 2006 (DEP, 2009a). Table 2-4. Oil and Gas Well Permits by County County & Year Gas Oil Combined Other Total 2009 55 291 2 1 unknown 348 2008 62 959 54 1 test well 1,076 2007 108 952 91 ---- 1,151 2006 71 766 108 ---- 945 2005 72 743 140 ---- 955 2009 19 3 0 ---- 22 2008 83 73 15 1 storage well 172 2007 58 44 5 2 storage wells 109 2006 54 35 31 ---- 120 2005 40 8 13 1 injection well 62 Note: All sites in each county may not be located within the project area; however all sites are located within one of the watershed’s municipalities. (Source: DEP 1 ; DEP 2 ; DEP 3 ; DEP, 2008; DEP, 2009a; DEP, 2010a) McKean County Potter County The Allegheny River headwaters watershed is located within a region of Pennsylvania that is already producing, or is likely to produce natural gas. For example, areas within the McKean County portion and northwestern corner of Potter County have already been drilled, while the majority of the area in Potter County has not yet been explored. However, with increased interest in the Marcellus Shale formation, the entire region is likely to see increased natural gas drilling. Within the project area, 265 wells were drilled in 2008, 128 of which were located in Foster Township. In 2009, within the municipalities included in the Allegheny Headwaters watershed 137 wells were drilled, of which 12 were Marcellus shale Gas wells. Erosion and sedimentation, forest fragmentation, and water pollution from abandoned wells are impacts associated with oil and gas drilling. The construction of wells and access roads can increase erosion and sedimentation. Forest fragmentation occurs as additional wells are developed, dissecting 2-11
Page 2 and 3:
Allegheny Regional Office 159 Main
Page 4 and 5: Allegheny River Headwaters Conserva
Page 104 and 105:
Allegheny River Headwaters Conserva
Page 106 and 107:
Page 108 and 109:
Page 110 and 111:
Page 112 and 113:
Page 114 and 115:
Page 116 and 117:
Page 118 and 119:
Page 120 and 121:
Page 122 and 123:
Page 124 and 125:
Page 126 and 127:
Page 128 and 129:
Page 130 and 131:
Page 132 and 133:
Page 134 and 135:
Page 136 and 137:
Page 138 and 139:
Page 140 and 141:
Page 142 and 143:
Page 144 and 145:
Page 146 and 147:
Page 148 and 149:
Page 150 and 151:
Page 152 and 153:
Page 154 and 155:
Page 156 and 157:
Page 158 and 159:
Page 160 and 161:
Page 162 and 163:
Page 164 and 165:
Page 166 and 167:
Page 168 and 169:
Page 170 and 171:
Page 172 and 173:
Page 174 and 175:
Page 176 and 177:
Page 178 and 179:
Page 180 and 181:
Page 182 and 183:
Page 184 and 185:
Page 186 and 187:
Page 188 and 189:
Page 190 and 191:
Page 192 and 193:
Page 194 and 195:
Page 196 and 197:
Page 198 and 199:
Page 200 and 201:
Page 202 and 203:
Page 204 and 205:
Page 206 and 207:
Page 208 and 209:
Page 210 and 211:
Page 212 and 213:
Page 214 and 215:
Page 216 and 217:
Page 218 and 219:
Page 220 and 221:
Page 222 and 223:
Page 224 and 225:
Page 226 and 227:
show all

Allegheny River Headwaters Watershed Conservation Plan

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?