Flood Conference

Two staff members traveled to State College earlier this month for a biennial workshop dedicated to flood protection. The workshop was held at the Atherton Hotel, where numerous guests were invited to speak to the audience that mostly consisted of Pennsylvania borough officials and decision makers. District employee, Mark Stockley, was lucky enough to be able to participate in presenting some of his stream restoration work to the audience.

Mark talked about the work completed throughout a few of the local flood control projects. Being one of the first of their type, many of the restoration projects amazed locals. Years of dedication to efforts of cleaning our local waterways have resulted in much success. What started nearly 20 years ago in Patton, has now expanded to include very similar projects in Nanty Glo, Northern Cambria, and Cherry Tree.

The stream restoration was conducted within the flood control projects of each of the four towns previously listed. These projects featured the instillation of various devices such as mud sills, log cross vanes, and random boulders. Each of these devices serves as fish habitat or as a way to center the flow and create a greater meander throughout the stream.  The devices are placed strategically throughout the stream to create the intended outcome.

The presentation Mark delivered showed aerial photography as well as still photos showing before and after the devices were placed. The presentation was formed using software that allowed for a dynamic view of the stream. The audience was able to see a more complete and inclusive representation of exactly what the projects accomplished. Some of the audience members included several of the local officials from the towns featured, who testified to the cleaner water and abundance of fish now seen within these flood control projects.

For more information on the Nanty Glo and Northern Cambria projects, please visit our ‘Projects’ page.