Watershed expert talks stream restoration issues in region
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University gives a presentation on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa. during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Local fishermen and outdoorsmen find their seats before a presentation by Benjamin R. Hayes of Bucknell University during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night. Hayes' presentation was on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Local fishermen and outdoorsmen find their seats before a presentation by Benjamin R. Hayes of Bucknell University during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night. Hayes' presentation was on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University gives a presentation on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa. during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University gives a presentation on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa. during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University shows a slide of the Loyalsock Creek north of the Rt. 973 bridge showing damage from the 2011 flood during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night. Hayes' presentation was on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University gives a presentation during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night. Hayes' presentation was on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University gives a presentation on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa. during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Local fishermen and outdoorsmen find their seats before a presentation by Benjamin R. Hayes of Bucknell University during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night. Hayes' presentation was on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Local fishermen and outdoorsmen find their seats before a presentation by Benjamin R. Hayes of Bucknell University during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night. Hayes' presentation was on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University gives a presentation on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa. during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University gives a presentation on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa. during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University shows a slide of the Loyalsock Creek north of the Rt. 973 bridge showing damage from the 2011 flood during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night. Hayes' presentation was on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Benjamin R. Hayes, director of Watershed Sciences and Engineering at Bucknell University gives a presentation during the Trout Unlimited meeting at Covenant Central Presbyterian Church Wednesday night. Hayes' presentation was on the Logging Legacy and Stream Response to Catastrophic Floods in North-Central Pa.
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Industrialization and natural catastrophes such as flooding have over time changed the very character of streams. The big challenge lies in restoring impacted creeks and rivers in ways that do not further harm them.
But restoration efforts need to be done in ways streams can respond naturally, said Dr. Benjamin Hayes, director of the Watershed Sciences and Engineering Program, Bucknell University.
"Nature bats last," he said.
Hayes, speaking to the Susquehanna Chapter of Trout Unlimited, noted that local streams such as Loyalsock, Muncy, and Lycoming creeks have been adversely impacted by high-water events and other issues.
Flooding can be devastating to streams, causing them to divert from their natural course, form new channels, and widen, he noted. In addition, local streams felt the negative impacts of the great lumbering era of the region more than a century ago.
Hayes noted the effect Tropical Storm Lee in September 2011 had on Loyalsock Creek resulting in new stream channels, erosion of gravel from channel margins, and landslides.Over time, streams are experiencing a "phase of disequilibrium" in response to major shifts in sediment delivery from their watersheds.
These changes were caused in part by past logging practices but perhaps more greatly by a series of floods over the past 100 years.
"We know climate change is changing things," Hayes said.
Streamside property owners, Hayes noted, often see first-hand the impacts from flooding and demand solutions. This poses the problem of correcting a site-specific issue that can result in adversely impacting more of the waterway.
Dredging a stream and removing gravel can lead to downstream flooding, bank erosion, and destroy aquatic life.
Some of the adverse impacts of the lumber era included the use of splash dams along waterways such as White Deer Creek. At least one splash dam remains there, according to Hayes.
The dams led to flooding, prevented fish migrations, washed away gravel, disrupted normal stream flows, and led to higher water temperatures negatively impacting aquatic life.
Hayes conceded that stream restoration poses complex questions and no easy solutions.
It shouldn't be a controversial issue, he said, since everyone loves streams.
"We need to have conversations in meaningful ways," he said. "We need to listen to people with different perspectives."
He called for making local lawmakers better aware of the issue as well as informing and educating the public about stream management. Hayes, a self-described avid fly-fisherman, said stream restoration leads to improved habitat for trout and mayfly populations.