Tributaries

The Watershed Protection Program Newsletter | September 2022

Hello and welcome to the first ever edition of Tributaries, Willistown Conservation Trust’s Watershed Protection Program quarterly update! 

The title Tributaries was selected to honor the variety of research and restoration work taking place throughout the watersheds. A tributary is a freshwater stream that feeds into a larger stream or river. It takes many contributions, often from diverse landscapes, to build a river system and likewise, it takes many people coming together to improve the health of the ecosystem surrounding a shared water source. Being located within the headwaters of the Ridley, Crum and Darby Creek Watersheds means that Willistown Conservation Trust is a guardian of three major tributaries to the Delaware River Watershed, and the impact of the land use in this region plays a large role in the health of the lower watershed, and the communities that live there. Every contribution, no matter how large or small, makes a difference in this sensitive ecosystem. 

The power of moving water is in its ability to transform the environment both slowly over geologic time yet also in an instant during large storm events. Our work reflects this spectrum of changes - monitoring the health of the waterways can take years to tell the story of a stream while the EnviroDIY Sensor stations allow us to see the immediate shifts in water chemistry that occur with every passing shower by uploading data every five minutes. Analyzing a water sample gives an instant insight into the moment in time within a stream, yet studying stream insects tells the story of what happened over the course of an insect's life that allowed it to thrive or to vanish from the system. Planting trees along a waterway immediately changes the look of a stream bank and creates habitat, but it takes years to grow a canopy that will shade a creek and an extensive root system to secure the banks.  

The sections within this publication are named within this theme starting with Meander, the winding of a stream channel. From a landscape perspective, stream meanders shift and transform over time. Similarly, the section Meander is an overview of seasonal influence on the headwaters as well as the relevant work conducted within the Watershed Program. Learn more about our partnerships in Confluence, our amazing community in Riffle, our programmatic updates in Run and upcoming volunteer and education opportunities in Alluvium. 

We are so excited to share regular updates on the ongoing work that is taking place in the headwaters of Ridley, Crum and Darby Creek watersheds. We are deeply grateful for your interest and support and we hope you enjoy this offering!

We hope to see you in the water!

Lauren + Anna

Partner Updates

This section is a highlight of our partnership work within the watersheds. Transformation in a waterway can occur as two tributaries join at a confluence, and the work that we do with our friends and partners is no different. It takes many people working together to make change, and we hope to celebrate these amazing contributions here.

Darby Creek Community Science Volunteers Andy and Pam

The Darby Creek Community Science Monitoring Program is a collaborative project between Willistown Conservation Trust, Darby Creek Valley Watershed Association and Stroud Water Research Center. The study began in March 2021 with just two volunteers and has been growing steadily since — there are currently 21 active volunteers and 16 sites (Map 1)! The Darby Creek Community Science Volunteers visit their assigned sites within the Darby Creek watershed every four weeks and collect important data about the health of the stream. Volunteer community scientists have been trained on how to collect high quality data, and have been doing an incredible job expanding the understanding of the watershed. It is important to note that the data presented in this update is preliminary, and more monitoring is required to see how seasonal changes can vary from year to year and it is very common for perceptions to change as data sets expand. These graphs are provided for educational purposes only. 

Volunteers have been collecting data on water temperature, pH, conductivity, and chloride levels, as well as taking detailed photographs of each site. Water temperature is the primary parameter by which the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection designates protected water uses for streams. Water temperatures alter the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water, with warmer water holding less dissolved oxygen. Dissolved oxygen is required at high levels for sensitive species to thrive, so when water temperatures warm, sensitive species may begin to struggle. The three protected uses that have temperature criteria are Cold Water Fisheries (CWF), Warm Water Fisheries (WWF) and Trout Stocked Fisheries (TSF). So far, preliminary data shows that temperatures are elevated in early spring and summer months throughout the watershed but do not appear to become dangerously warm in the late summer (Figure 1). Water temperatures will continue to be monitored monthly to better understand what is happening in the Darby Creek Watershed. As monitoring efforts continue to expand through the lower watershed, we will see in more detail how the watershed is impacted and where some of these influences are coming from! 

One of my favorite things about each of these figures is seeing every site added to the graph over time. Every data point represents a dedicated volunteer’s time and care in collecting this data. Are you interested in joining the Darby Creek Community Science Monitoring Program? Email Lauren McGrath at LBM@wctrust.org!

Map 1. Darby Creek Community Science Monitoring Program sites. Each site is visited every four weeks. 

Figure 1. Water Temperatures throughout Darby Creek Watershed March 2021 through July 2022. Cold Water Fishery (CWF) temperature criteria are designated with a solid line, Trout Stocked Fishery (TSF) temperature criteria by the dotted line, and Warm Water Fishery (WWF) temperature criteria by the hashed line. 

Staff & Volunteer Highlights

Riffles are where the magic happens! Oxygen rich and full of energy, this section is an emphasis on the incredible staff and volunteers who make everything happen. 

The work of the Watershed Protection Program would not be possible without the amazing energy and effort contributed by Drexel University Co-op students! The Watershed Program depends on these students from March through September every year. These students support the ongoing work of the Watershed Program while also creating an independent project that is tailored to their interests. The 2022 Class of Watershed Program Co-op students included Catherine Quinn, Sarah Busby and Vincent Liu. 

Catherine Quinn

Sarah Busby

Vincent Liu

This summer was Catherine’s second year with the Trust after working with us in a part-time capacity in 2021. Catherine returned to the program with energy and enthusiasm and focused her work on the Darby Creek Community Science Monitoring Program, creating a handbook for volunteers to reference while in the field. Catherine is a Senior at Drexel.  

Sarah joined the team this year with a zest for macroinvertebrate research! Sarah was essential in her efforts to sort through and identify stream insects from samples that the team collected in April and May of 2022. Her contributions to analysis of these samples were deeply appreciated as she created a user friendly protocol for the statistics software used for quantifying what these insects mean for stream health. Sarah is a Senior at Drexel and is currently studying abroad in Sydney, Australia. 

Vincent joined the team as a part time staff person while also working in Drexel University's Academy of Natural Sciences Nutrient Lab!  Vincent joined the Trust for field work and helped with all of the water chemistry analysis that took place at the Academy. Vincent is a Senior at Drexel.

Now that their Co-op experience has ended with WCT, Catherine, Sarah, and Vincent have joined the ranks of previous WCT Co-ops including Gloria Avila (2021), Zack Smith (2020 + 2021), Jules Smith (2020), Maddy Sabo (2019), Kacy Reitenauer (2019), and Prem Trivedi (2018). We are so incredibly grateful for the work of all of these students! 

Program News

As runs are the current that carries us forward with slow and steady progress, this is the section focused on Watershed Program news — the lessons we have learned through studying local streams and the exciting developments in our understanding of Ridley, Crum and Darby Creek Watersheds. 

Did you know that every drop of water that falls in the Willistown area will end up in either Ridley Creek, Crum Creek, or Darby Creek? And that anything you put on the land ends up in the nearest stream? Have you ever wondered what land protection has to do with water quality? Or why those who like to fish have to stock trout if they want to catch any?

For answers to all these questions, and more, check out the Watershed Protection Program’s recently published State of Our Streams report. The report summarizes the results of our monthly water quality monitoring program in Ridley, Crum, and Darby Creeks from 2018 through 2021. In that time, we have made 41 monitoring visits to ten sample sites and collected over 7,500 measurements. Using this plethora of data, we explore how the health of our local waterways is deeply connected to all the work done at the Trust. Click the button to read the report!

Upcoming Events & Activities

In Alluvium, you will find the deposition of seasonal updates - upcoming volunteer and educational programming, blog posts related to watershed health, links to real time data, and opportunities to learn from our friends throughout the Delaware River Watershed. These are the miscellaneous pieces left behind after a flood which may not fit into the previous sections. Be sure to sort through this deposition, because you never know what treasures a waterway may leave on the banks! 

WCT Fall Tree Planting

Thursday, Sept. 29 | 9 am - 12 pm, 1 - 4pm

Friday Sept. 30 | 9 am - 12 pm, 1 - 4 pm

Saturday Oct. 1 |  9 am - 12 pm, 1 - 4 pm

Sunday Oct. 2 | 9 am - 12 pm

Ashbridge Preserve

From September 29 through October 2, 2022, the Watershed Protection Program is planting trees at Ashbridge Preserve located at 1691 E. Strasburg Rd., West Chester PA! These plants will help stabilize the stream bank, reduce the impact of flooding and erosion, and improve the overall health of Ridley Creek. Please wear shoes that can get wet – the planting requires crossing Ridley Creek. Bring water, snacks, gloves and enthusiasm! This event is appropriate for all ages.

Newlin Grist Mill Watershed Volunteer Opportunity

Friday, October 14 | 10am - 3pm

Friday, October 21  | 10am - 3pm

Saturday, October 22 | 10am - 3pm

In October, Newlin Grist Mill in Chester Creek Watershed will be planting trees in an area along Station Road which was clear cut during the construction. The clearcutting allowed silt to enter the creek and silt in our ponds and millrace, but it also caused water temperatures to increase. This increase is bad for our cold-water loving trout and freshwater mussels, so we need to plant trees to get the temperatures back down. While we do have a lot of trees to plant (roughly 80 individual trees this fall), many hands make light work! This event is for ages 16+ and pre-registration via email is required.

To learn more about why we are planting trees in this area, check out these blog posts by Watershed and Stewardship Program Staff: 

Macroinvertebrate Thanksgiving Feast

Flooding 101

Flooding 102

Power of Trees in a Watershed

From Tops of Trees to base of the food chain

Riparian Buffer Importance 

To see how you can create and manage your own tree planting, see below: 

Mapping Ashbridge Tree Planting

Riparian Buffer Planting Series: 

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Curious about what is happening nearby in Ridley and Crum Creeks right now? Check out the EnviroDIY Sensor station data: 

SL155 - Ridley Creek Upstream of the Ashbridge Preserve Lake Tree Planting

SL156 - Ridley Creek Downstream of the Ashbridge Preserve Lake Tree Planting

SL248 - Ridley Creek by Garrett Mill Road

SL247 - Crum Creek

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WILLISTOWN CONSERVATION TRUST'S WATERSHED PROTECTION PROGRAM ensures the long-term health of over 190 stream miles in Willistown Conservation Trust’s focus area — including the headwaters of Ridley, Crum and Darby Creeks — through monitoring, restoration, and best management practices.