Support Restoration Efforts

Editor's Note: Outdoor columnist Jim Zoschg has departed to perform missionary work in Nicaragua. Before he left, Jim delivered a letter to Gov. Ed Rendell in the wake of the June 30 Norfolk Southern train crash. It's excerpted here.)

A chemical spill of this size in such a pristine watershed is unprecedented. To see the death in any trout stream is to see beauty and perfection destroyed, but this loss was especially painful.

Recent DEP news releases state that the chemical still "devastated aquatic life and fish from the accident site near Gardeau to a point 7.5 miles downstream in Cameron County. Such statements are misleading.

Fish populations were devastated on the entire Portage Creek and on the Driftwood Branch. Fortunately, fish kills on the Sinnemahoning Creek below

Driftwood, although significant, weren't quite as severe.

The loss of our fishery will have long lasting impacts on the economy of Cameron County. When you consider all of the minnows, game fish fry and adult game fish killed on the Driftwood Branch alone, the toll must be in the millions.

The long-term regional biological effects of such devastation on fish and aquatic insect populations over so many stream miles will be very long lasting.

Because we can't really treat this pollution, since it has already been flushed out of affected streams, I propose that a portion of the money collected from fines be used for several measures to improve wild trout habitat within the Driftwood Branch watershed.

First, the Fish & Boat Commission has an excellent habitat program headed by Dave Keller. A portion of the

money should be earmarked toward these projects on the Exceptional Value/Class A Wild Trout portion of Sinnemahoning Portage Creek. Installing the Fish Commission's log habitat structures and planting riparian forest buffers would help improve the wild trout habitat when fish populations do rehabitate this stream.

Second, fine money could go toward the cleanup of acid mine drainage in the Sterling Run subwatershed of the Driftwood Branch. The three affected tributaries -- Finley Run, Portable Run and May Hollow Run -- all have wild trout populations in their headwaters. However, in their middle reaches acid mine drainage wipes out these fisheries. With a little work, Sterling Run could become as good of a wild trout fishery as nearby Hunts Run.

Nothing can be done by humans to heal the damage

caused by the spill. Only time will heal these wounds. However, these measures would help the affected communities and somewhat offset the regional damage suffered from the chemical spill.

I have no doubt that a corporation as large as Norfolk Southern will exert political pressure. When the going gets tough politically, we need you to back the efforts by your Dept. of Environmental Protection and the Fish & Boat Commission to collect the maximum fines.

Cameron County is at the heart of your Pennsylvania Wilds initiative. It's the least populated county in the state, has the highest percentage of forest cover, and is arguably the most scenic.

It's terrible that the disaster had to happen here. With your help, we can speed the recovery of what is perhaps the most pristine watershed of its size in Pennsylvania.