Aqua Pennsylvania recently launched a large-scale project to improve aquatic habitat in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Our team is restoring conditions to the stream corridors of the Main Branch and West Branch of Perkiomen Creek, a tributary of the Schuylkill River. Perkiomen Creek is a popular fishing destination known for its abundant trout population, which includes Pennsylvania’s native brook trout.
To improve the condition of the creeks and preserve their beloved fish habitat, we have completed the necessary removal of two concrete weir dams from the stream channels. The decommissioning created space for free-flowing streams, which will improve biodiversity and water quality, as well as visitors’ recreational experience.
Perhaps most importantly, when trout season begins this April, the fish at these locations will be able to easily swim upstream for the first time in more than 70 years.
A Brief History
The Perkiomen Creek’s weir dams were initially installed in the 1950s to measure stream flow entering the area that later became Green Lane Reservoir. While the United States Geological Survey (USGS) still performs measurements at adjacent gaging stations, they no longer use weirs to perform their calculations, which rendered these structures obsolete.
With no purpose left to serve, the dams were unnecessarily harming the local ecosystem by preventing fish passage, degrading water quality, and accumulating sediment that destroys aquatic habitat — where fish spawn, breed, feed and grow to maturity.
A Bright Future
Fortunately, Aqua’s dam removal project is enabling the creek to recover naturally. It will now transport sediment to re-create a gravel bottom and shrink the channel down to its natural width. Water quality will improve over time as the free-flowing stream maintains oxygen levels and the plants on the stream bank grow to provide shade. While the process is not a short one, we have partnered with the Perkiomen Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited to ensure the ecosystem’s timely and successful improvement.
Aqua strives daily to improve the areas we serve by providing life’s most essential resource, and river restoration is a critical aspect of our work. To learn more about the importance of dam removal and improvement — for biodiversity, aquatic health and community safety— we encourage you to visit https://www.americanrivers.org/.
Check back for updates on the Perkiomen Creek’s recovery, in addition to before and after drone videos highlighting the creek restoration project.
