At first glance, a plan involving plain hemlock boxes and small piles of rock is not likely to rouse much excitement among a large portion of the local citizenry.
But experts expect fish to react more favorably, and that’s good news for anyone who has ever cast a line into three large reservoirs in Cambria and Somerset counties.
The 300 boxes and 60 tons of rock are an integral part of a $90,000 plan to dramatically boost lake habitat at the Quemahoning, Hinckston Run and Wilmore reservoirs.
The bottom line: “You’ll see more fish,” promised Ben Page of the state Fish and Boat Commission at a public meeting Tuesday night.
When Bethlehem Steel Corp. built the Que and Hinckston Run dams, the steelmaking giant cleared all debris, including trees and stumps, before allowing water to fill the reservoirs.
That suited Bethlehem’s water-supply needs. But “it was about the worst thing you could do for a fishery” because it erased most habitat, said Jim Greco, Cambria Somerset Authority board chairman.
After the authority was formed to take over the Bethlehem reservoirs about a decade ago, officials promised to satisfy the public’s demands for fishing and hunting at the formerly closed sites.
Boat launches have been installed.
Now, officials are trying to revive the fish population at all three bodies of water by providing man-made “habitat.”
Phase two of that project will include placement of 100 boxes at each reservoir, along with rock “rubble humps.”
Also, crews will fell some shoreline trees.
The activity, to take place in May, June and July, mirrors a smaller first phase completed last year.
The idea, said Fish Commission official Dave Houser, is to create a “microhabitat” not only for fish but also for aquatic insects, crustaceans and plankton.
Houser could not hazard a guess as to how much the structures will increase fish population. But he knows from decades of experience that the habitat measures work.
“If you build it, they will come,” he said.
The project is a cooperative effort of the Fish Commission, Cambria Somerset Authority and the conservation districts in Cambria and Somerset counties.
This year’s work is funded by the state and through grants from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and ESPN Bassmasters.
Another, even larger, phase is expected to come to fruition in the winter of 2010-11.
“We’re looking at over $200,000 being spent to improve fish habitat in our reservoirs,” Greco said, adding that, “other than manpower, it’s all grant money.”
Officials are looking for volunteer help to install the vertical-plank habitat structures in June. For more information, call the authority at 532-8851.
“We do need some folks to help us do this,” said Len Lichvar, Somerset County Conservation District manager. “It doesn’t happen by accident.”
Local News
Project to lure more fish to 3 dams
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$27.1B budget proposed
Gov. Tom Corbett on Tuesday proposed a budget of $27.1 billion, with no tax increases, deep cuts to higher education assistance and a range of cost-cutting in services for the poor, elderly and disabled.
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Highlights of Gov. Corbett's state spending plan
Read on to see a bulleted list of Gov. Tom Corbett’s $27.1 billion state spending plan for the year that starts July 1.
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Universities face steep cuts
State universities still trying to recover from deep cuts last year would have their public funding slashed even further under a budget plan unveiled Tuesday, leading some institutions to warn of a choice between maintaining buildings and offering academic programs students need to graduate.
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Plan hurts middle class, local Democrats contend
While members of his own party praised Gov. Tom Corbett’s fiscal restraint, some local Democratic lawmakers said the Republican’s proposed budget panders to corporate interests while inflicting pain on the middle class.
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Senate approves proposed fee on shale drilling
The state Senate voted today to impose a fee on natural-gas drilling in Pennsylvania and expand regulations for the booming industry, a milestone in a debate that has raged in the Capitol for several years.
Senators voted 31-19 to approve the 174-page bill that would fund road work and environmental clean-ups and give local governments the power to decide if the fee would be imposed on their local wells.
“Could we have done better? Supposedly, but it has taken three years to get this far,” said supporter Sen. John Wozniak, D-Johnstown, among a handful who crossed party lines. “It is time to turn the page.” -
Blogging with heart
I've got so much stuff for this Sunday's American Heart Month package, that some of the stories will spill over onto Monday. But I don't know what to leave out, or hold for the next week, so it looks like a double hit this week.
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Pa. gas drilling fee bill debate ends without vote
Pennsylvania, the only major gas-producing state that does not tax the taking of natural gas from its soil, moved closer Tuesday to imposing a fee on the drilling in the vast Marcellus Shale reserves that have transformed the state in recent years.
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Detour hurting some Portage businesses
Craig Mazzarese’s business depends heavily on drive-by customers, but since last week fewer drive-bys have been stopping
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Local airport funding intact
Airport leaders here are breathing sighs of relief after Congress approved funding to support local commercial air service through 2015.
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With state revenue tight, Westmont seeks school budget input
The Westmont Hilltop school board on Tuesday night held a public forum at the middle school to explain why the district, already one of the most efficient in the state, must raise taxes each year.
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