Clarion River makes River of the Year
It’s another River of the Year WIN for northwest Pennsylvania and the Allegheny WINS Coalition.
The Clarion River has been named the 2019 Pennsylvania River of the Year by the Pennsylvania Organization for Watersheds and Rivers (POWR) and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR).
The nominating agency for the Clarion was the Allegheny WINS — Watershed Improvement Needs — Coalition.
In 2015, Conewango Creek was named River of the Year and the WINS Coalition was involved. In 2017, WINS was involved in the Allegheny River’s successful bid.
The Clarion had not been river of the year since 1996.
With the 50th anniversary of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act — under which the Clarion is designated — in the recent past, it was time for a Clarion nomination.
The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and the Elk County Conservation District are WINS partner organizations.
“After years of conservation challenges in the past, the Clarion has rebounded from a century of degradation,” Kylie Maland, WINS representative from the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, said. “It is continuing to recover thanks in part to our collective efforts to improve resources, industry modernization along the corridor.”
“We thought this was an ideal time to celebrate the entire river,” Maland said. “We’re trying to promote the ecological value of the river as well as the recreational and scenic value, and the economic value of the river. That’s what River of the Year is all about.”
“The Clarion has come a long way ecologically,” Stephanie Stoughton, WINS representative from the Elk County Conservation District, said. “The Clarion used to be a major highway for the logging and timber industry.”
Felled trees scoured the banks and bed of the river for years. Dams were built to ensure there was enough water to float the timber to downstream locations.
“It homogenizes the river,” Stoughton said. “You need a variety of habitat to support a variety of species. If you’re sending logs down the river, you’re kind of dredging it, making everything uniform.”
There were also tanning chemicals leaching into the river from the treatment of animal hides.
“The Clarion definitely suffered,” she said. “Over the years, a lot of entities have really worked hard to clean up the Clarion.”
She points to recovering populations of indicator species as strong indicators of the river’s gains in health. “It really says something that we have had success with the mussel and hellbender populations.”
Warren County is not in the river’s path, but our neighbors to the east and south are, as is the Allegheny National Forest.
The coalition will be joined by any other interested partner organizations in coming up with recreation, education, and clean-up events to celebrate the River of the Year designation, Maland said. The first meeting will be held in February.
“I grew up in butler County, recreating on the Clarion River,” Stoughton said. “This is my way of giving back to a river that gave me so many memories as a child.”
“I think it’s awesome that my life has come full circle,” she said. “I’m really happy to be part of the effort.”