Watershed Management

Lake Galena & North Branch Neshaminy Watershed Implementation Plan

The primary goal of this project, funded by U.S. EPA and PA DEP, was to update the watershed management plan that was developed as part of the 1995 Phase I Diagnostic-Feasibility Study for Lake Galena and to provide a list of recommended best management practices, that if all are implemented, will reduce pollutant loading from the watershed to below the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for Lake Galena.

Since the mid-1990’s, substantial population growth and vast amounts of land development have occurred in Central Bucks County, necessitating an updated assessment of water quality impacts in this watershed. The updated assessment in this project report identifies an extensive list of practices aimed at reducing the transport of nutrients and sediments from a variety of sources in the watershed to the North Branch Neshaminy Creek, and ultimately, Lake Galena.

Cooks Run Watershed Assessments

The Cooks Run watershed is approximately 3.3 square miles in size and is located in central Bucks County. Cooks Run flows in a southwesterly direction and discharges into the Neshaminy Creek, which in turn flows into the Delaware River. Currently, both the Neshaminy Creek and Cooks Run are listed on the State’s 303(d) List of Impaired Waters. The Cooks Run Assessment reports, prepared for the Bucks County Conservation District by Aqua Link, Inc., describe the findings of the Cooks Run watershed assessment including recommendation for improved stormwater management and streambank restoration. Phase I covers the watershed area north of Route 611, and Phase II covers the portion of the watershed south of Route 611.

Cooks Run Restoration Project

After completing Phase I of the Cooks Run Watershed Assessment, the Bucks County Conservation District applied for and received funding to implement priority projects in this assessment. Funding for the project was provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) through the Coastal Zone Management Program and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection through the Growing Greener program. This funding was used to host a municipal stormwater inlet filtration device seminar at Heritage Conservancy, to design a naturalized stormwater basin at the Mercer Square shopping center in Doylestown and for a 250 foot riparian buffer planting along a heavily traveled street in Doylestown Borough.

Core Creek Watershed Implementation Plan

The purpose of this study was to update the Restoration and Management Plan for Lake Luxembourg and Core Creek. The original Restoration and Management Plan, which was conducted as part of the Phase I Clean Lake Diagnostic/Feasibility Study, was developed in the early 1990's. Since that time substantial changes in land use occurred through the Core Creek watershed. In addition, two Implementation programs have been completed to improve the water quality conditions of both the lake and creek. Finally, a phosphorus TMDL (total maximum daily load) was developed for Lake Luxembourg in the late 1990's by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. With all of the changes and projects that have occurred in the Core Creek Watershed over the last decade, an update of the original Restoration and Management Plan was required. This plan was funded by the PA 319 program, and completed for the Bucks County Conservation District by Princeton Hydro.

Core Creek / Lake Luxembourg Implementation Projects

Bradford Lake & Little Neshaminy Creek Watershed Assessment

Bradford Lake, also known as Warrington Lake and Floodwater Retarding Dam PA-611, is a 22-acre impoundment located off of County Line Road in Warrington Township. Bradford Lake was primarily built to alleviate flooding along the Little Neshaminy and the Neshaminy Creeks. In addition to fishing, visitors use the surrounding 280-acre parkland for walking, hiking and nature watching. From the lake, the Little Neshaminy Creek travels easterly and eventually discharges into the Neshaminy Creek near Rushland and Wrightstown.The majority of the Bradford Lake watershed lies within Warrington Township in Bucks County and Horsham and Montgomery Townships in Montgomery County.

This report describes the findings of a comprehensive assessment of the Bradford Lake
watershed, which includes Bradford Lake and its major tributaries, the Little Neshaminy Creek and two unnamed tributaries. The assessment was funded through the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection's Growing Greener grant program. Aqua Link, Inc. was the lead consultant on this project and prepared this report for the Bucks County Conservation District.

Mill Creek (Otter Creek) Watershed Assessment

Mill Creek is located in Lower Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and is a tributary to the Delaware River. This report describes the findings of a comprehensive lake and watershed assessment prepared by Aqua-Link, Inc. for the Bucks County Conservation District. Funding for the project was provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP) through Section 319 (Nonpoint Source Program) of the Clean Water Act. As part of this assessment, a comprehensive lake and watershed management plan was developed to improve and further protect the water quality of streams and County-owned lakes within the Mill (Otter) Creek watershed.