Eight years ago, a group of volunteers gathered to take samples in the Black Creek near Weatherly.

The work done by those volunteers laid the groundwork for a multimillion dollar project to clean up the creek and someday restore native trout populations.

The Black Creek’s watershed includes one of the largest sources of abandoned mine drainage in the region, and it impacts the entire Lehigh River.

Experts say that without intervention, it would continue to be a source of pollution for decades to come.

Thanks to the work of local volunteers, as well as the state stepping in with a $3 million grant, just the latest in several large grants that have been devoted to cleaning up the watershed, that may change. The money will go toward building a treatment facility as well as a bike trail running along the creek, connecting Weatherly to Lehigh Gorge State Park.

“It’s a beautiful area. I think there are a lot of positives. It won’t be long after the treatment center is in operation that the results will be measurable,” said Chuck Cravotta of USGS.

It’s the latest in an effort that has brought together state and federal agencies as well as Trout Unlimited and the Wildlands Conservancy.

“All of these nonprofit agencies have had their eyes on cleaning this watershed up. Because there’s a local municipal body that’s interested, with volunteers, it provides a focus for all the other agencies,” Weatherly resident James Wetzel said.

Deceptive pollution

Walking along the Black Creek, there are none of the normal indications of mine drainage. The water is clear, there is plenty of vegetation and no sign of mining.

But underneath the surface, where there should be millions of tiny bugs providing a food source for fish, there’s nothing. The pH levels in the creek are heavily acidic, and no fish can live in them.

The source of the pollution is an abandoned mine tunnel dug more than 100 years ago to prevent flooding in an underground mine near Beaver Meadows. But in the process it also put highly acidic water into the Black Creek. The water is so acidic that it dissolves aluminum out of the rock and into the creek, Cravotta said.

Officials say it’s the single worst source of pollution in the Lehigh watershed. The Quakake Tunnel produces as much water as a small stream, and when it rains, the flow is even greater.

If the acidity of the water was reduced, the stream could once again support fish. Upstream from the tunnel, that is already the case.

To improve the water quality, DEP is planning construct a treatment system near where the tunnel discharges. The treatment facility would raise the pH of the water by using something alkaline, like limestone. That would cause the aluminum to drop out of the water and become a sediment. The treatment facility would also have to collect that sediment.

Similar treatment facilities are already in place on the Buck Mountain Creek and Lausanne Creek, which are also located in the Lehigh Watershed.

Project benefits

The benefits from the project should be seen in the Weatherly area, and throughout the watershed, although to a lesser extent.

Experts predict the project could generate $17 million in economic value for the region by creating new, tourist-attracting fisheries.

“You’re definitely going to see a big improvement in the Lehigh as well because that eventually flows into the Lehigh,” said Kristie Fach of the Wildlands Conservancy.

How do they come up with that number? It’s based on the number of stream miles that would be improved by the project. The section of creek affected is about 19 miles long. The restored fishery will bring people to the area, and hopefully help hotels and businesses.

“People will spend money and time in the area, they’ll go to restaurants, they’ll stay at hotels and there’s this added potential benefit,” Cravotta said.