Quehanna Wild Area
Quehanna Wild Area | |
---|---|
Location | Pennsylvania, United States |
Coordinates | 41°16′27″N 78°15′24″W / 41.27417°N 78.25667°W |
Area | 50,000 acres (200 km2)[1] |
Elevation | 1,896 ft (578 m)[2] |
Established | 1965 |
Named for | West Branch Susquehanna River |
Governing body | Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources |
Website | Quehanna Wild Area |
Quehanna Wild Area (
The land that became Quehanna Wild Area was home to
Curtiss-Wright left in 1960, after which a succession of tenants further contaminated the nuclear reactor facility and its hot cells with radioactive isotopes, including strontium-90 and cobalt-60. The manufacture of radiation-treated hardwood flooring continued until 2002. Pennsylvania reacquired the land in 1963 and 1967, and in 1965 established Quehanna as a wild area, albeit one with a nuclear facility and industrial complex. The cleanup of the reactor and hot cells took over eight years and cost $30 million; the facility was demolished and its nuclear license terminated in 2009. Since 1992 the industrial complex has been home to Quehanna Motivational Boot Camp, a minimum-security prison. Quehanna Wild Area has many sites where radioactive and toxic waste was buried, some of which have been cleaned up while others were dug up by black bears and white-tailed deer.
In 1970 the name was officially changed to Quehanna Wild Area, and later that decade a portion of the 73.2-mile (117.8 km)
History
Native Americans
The
The
The French and Indian War (1754–1763) and the subsequent colonial expansion encouraged the migration of many Native Americans westward to the Ohio River basin. In October 1784, the United States acquired a large tract of land, including what is now Quehanna Wild Area, from the Iroquois in the Second Treaty of Fort Stanwix; this acquisition is known as the Last Purchase, as it completed the series of purchases from the resident Native American tribes of lands within the boundaries of Pennsylvania, initiated by William Penn and continued by his heirs.[3]
Although most of the Native Americans left this area of Pennsylvania, the state's Native American heritage can be found in many of its place names. The Susquehannocks were also known as the Susquehanna, from which the
Lumber era
Prior to the arrival of
The southern part of Quehanna Wild Area is now in parts of
The first European American settlers arrived in Chingleclamouche Township in about 1793, and the first sawmill in Clearfield County began operating in 1805. Settlers initially occupied land along the river and creeks, as these provided a means of transportation. Some settlers would harvest timber and float it downstream once a year to make money for items they could not produce themselves, but by 1820 the first full-time lumbering operations began in the region. The white pine was the most sought after tree, yielding spars for ships and timber for buildings. Hardwoods were also harvested, and eventually hemlocks were cut for their wood and their bark, which contained tannins used in tanning leather.[19]
As lumber became an industry in Pennsylvania, the rivers and creeks were declared public highways by the Pennsylvania General Assembly. This permitted their use to float logs to sawmills and markets. Log booms were placed on the West Branch Susquehanna River to catch the floating timber; Lock Haven built a boom in 1849, and Williamsport's Susquehanna Boom opened in 1851.[19][21] Businesses purchased vast tracts of land and built splash dams on the creeks; these dams controlled water in small streams that would otherwise be unable to carry logs and rafts. For example, in 1871 a single splash dam on the Bennett Branch of Sinnemahoning Creek could release enough water to produce a wave 2 feet (0.6 m) high on the main stem for two hours. Mosquito Creek, which drains much of the southern part of Quehanna Wild Area, had at least nine splash dams in its watershed.[22] This was the predominant lumber transport system in the Quehanna region from 1865 to 1885 and after 1850, five different kinds of lumber rafts could be found on its streams and river.[19]
Much of the timber was too remote to be transported via the streams, and
There were only two major roads on the Quehanna plateau in the 19th and early 20th centuries, both originally turnpikes. The Caledonia Pike ran east–west from Bellefonte to Smethport, and passed south of what became the wild area, while the Driftwood Pike ran from near Karthaus north to Driftwood on the Sinnemahoning, and passed through the wild area.[24] Wagon trains and railroads brought supplies to the lumber camps in the woods; some wood hicks set up small farms on cleared land that also provided food.[23] There were at least eight farms in Quehanna, though they were not very productive because of "poorly drained acid soil and a short growing season".[23]
The lumber era in Quehanna did not last; the old-growth and second-growth forests were clearcut by the early 20th century. Fire had always been a hazard; the sparks from logging steam engines started many wildfires, and more wood may have been lost to fires than to logging in some areas. On the clearcut land nothing remained except the discarded, dried-out tree tops, which were very flammable; much of the land burned and was left barren. The soil was depleted of nutrients, fires baked the ground hard, and jungles of blueberries, blackberries, and mountain laurel covered the clearcut land, which became known as the "Pennsylvania Desert".[11][23][25]
State forests
As the timber was exhausted and the land burned, many companies abandoned their holdings.[25] Conservationists such as Joseph Rothrock became concerned that the forests would not regrow without proper management. They called for a change in the philosophy of forest management and for the state to purchase land from the lumber companies. In 1895, Rothrock was appointed the first forestry commissioner in what became the Pennsylvania Department of Forests and Waters, the forerunner of today's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR). In 1897, the Pennsylvania General Assembly passed legislation that authorized the purchase of "unseated lands for forest reservations", and the first of the Pennsylvania state forest lands were acquired the following year.[26][27]
The state first bought land that became the Moshannon State Forest in 1898; the second purchase, and first in the Quehanna region, was 3,263 acres (1,320 ha) in the Three Runs area, acquired for $1 an acre ($2.47 a hectare) in 1900. Three smaller state forests (Karthaus, Sinnemahoning, and Moshannon) were merged to form the present Moshannon State Forest; in 1997, the forest covered 131,622 acres (53,266 ha). The first purchase for the Elk State Forest was made in 1900, and by 1997 it encompassed 197,729 acres (80,018 ha). Forty-six percent, or 22,179 acres (8,976 ha), of the total 48,186 acres (19,500 ha) of Quehanna Wild Area lies in the Elk State Forest. The remainder lies in the Moshannon State Forest.[1][28]
The state established a tree nursery in the Moshannon State Forest in 1911, which became the largest in Pennsylvania before it closed in 1980.
During the
Other Depression-era public works projects shaped the area. The
In 1946 the Mosquito Creek Sportsmen's Association was founded to promote conservation in the region. One of the association's initial concerns was the acidification of streams, which they originally attributed to tannic acid from the trees used by the beavers to construct their dams. With the assistance of Pennsylvania's Department of Forests and Waters, Game Commission, and Fish and Boat Commission, they dynamited 79 dams. Afterward, they discovered the water was acidic upstream of the dams too, and eventually realized that the problem was caused by acid rain, not the beavers. The association has operated several stations to reduce the acidity of Mosquito Creek and its tributaries, with technical assistance from the Pennsylvania State University (Penn State).[35][36]
Atoms for Peace
In a December 8, 1953 speech to the
The state constructed $1.6 million of roads to the area; the Quehanna Highway was built on parts of an old CCC road, which followed an earlier logging railroad grade. Pennsylvania also canceled 212 camp site leases to help ensure security for the installation. Curtiss-Wright built three facilities on its land. The first was a nuclear research center with a
In 1956 Curtiss-Wright began isotope work at the facility,
By 1960 the Air Force had decided not to pursue nuclear-powered aircraft, and the federal government canceled $70 million in "high-altitude testing contracts" with Curtiss-Wright.[8][40] By June 1960, the reactor was on standby and only 750 employees remained, 400 of whom were in the Curon foam division; many engineers and scientists had already left.[40] On August 20, 1960, Curtiss-Wright announced that it was donating the reactor facility to Penn State and selling its Curon foam division; the remaining 235 employees lost their jobs.[46] Penn State, located about an hour south of Quehanna, had its own nuclear reactor, but intended to use the Quehanna facility for research and training.[38]
The Curtis-Wright reactor was dismantled and its fuel returned to the AEC. Martin Company, which soon became Martin Marietta, leased the hot cells, intending to use them in the manufacture of small radioisotope thermoelectric generators. Curtiss-Wright warned Penn State "that the radiation involved in Martin's operations would be 'extremely high' and of a type that posed a particular risk to human health",[8] but Curtiss-Wright itself had left both solid and liquid radioactive waste in the facility. Some of the Curtiss-Wright waste was contaminated with toxic beryllium oxide. Penn State had acquired the reactor license, and with it came legal responsibility for the nuclear waste on the site; its plan with the AEC called for the release of 90 percent of the liquid radioactive waste into the environment and the burial of most radioactive solids on site. Items coated with beryllium oxide dust "were covered in plastic and buried out in the woods", where some were unearthed by black bears and white-tailed deer.[8][38][47] Once jet engine testing stopped, the bunkers at the test cells were used "to store hazardous and explosive material".[48]
In 1962 Martin Marietta began to manufacture
Although Martin Marietta completed its AEC contract and its lease expired on December 21, 1966, it had to stay at the reactor site "until radiation contamination was brought to acceptable levels".
Many in the conservation movement urged the state to buy back the land, especially after the Curtiss-Wright lease was canceled. In April 1967 Penn State vacated the site and gave the reactor complex to the state. Martin Marietta departed in June 1967, and early in that same year, Pennsylvania bought the remaining land back from Curtiss-Wright for $992,500, about $811,000 more than they had sold it for in 1955. Various usage plans for the area were proposed, including: a vacation resort with a large artificial lake, motels,
Protected area and reclamation
Reactor facility
In 1967, Pennsylvania leased the reactor complex to the
A group of NUMEC employees discovered that irradiating hardwood treated with plastics produced very durable flooring. In 1978 they formed PermaGrain Products, Inc. as a separate company from ARCO, and purchased the rights to the process as well as "the main irradiator, a smaller shielded irradiator and related equipment".[38] PermaGrain sold the flooring for use in basketball courts and gymnasiums, and was the longest occupant of the Quehanna facility, operating there from 1978 to December 2002. PermaGrain also let Neutron Products, Inc., a Maryland company, do cobalt-60 work in its hot cells, which required an amendment of their license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the successor to the AEC).[8][38][52]
In 1993, strontium-90 contamination in the reactor facility led the NRC to require PermaGrain to begin decontamination work, and the Pennsylvania DEP commissioned a "site characterization study".[38] In 1998, a firm named NES began the cleanup work; they changed their name to Scientech in 1999 and to EnergySolutions in 2006. The cleanup was originally estimated to take six months; by 2006 it had taken 8 years and cost $30 million. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) Bureau of Radiation Protection: "Inadequate characterization of the site and the presence of ongoing industrial operations resulted in many project delays and increased costs."[38] The hot cells proved to have more radioactive sources than originally thought. In October 1998 a Scientech worker doing decontamination cut a tube in hot cell number 4, which accidentally released strontium-90 into PermaGrain's work area. As a result, a robot had to be constructed to remove 3,000 curies of cobalt-60 in two of the hot cells, dismantle cell 4, and decontaminate the rest remotely.[38]
After the accidental release, another radiological survey was performed, and the state government concluded that PermaGrain needed to be relocated. The DCNR made the policy decision that Quehanna Wild Area would be closed to industrial uses. After looking at multiple sites with Clearfield County development authorities, a new site for PermaGrain Products was purchased, and the company submitted its plans for a new building and license to the NRC in October 2001. In order to approve the move to the new site, the NRC required PermaGrain to provide an inventory of all their cobalt-60 sources, dispose of a damaged source, and dispose of any other sources not mechanically certified. However in late December 2002, PermaGrain filed for bankruptcy under Chapter Seven.[38] PermaGrain had employed 135 people in 1988 and 80 in 1995.[42]
When PermaGrain went bankrupt, about 100,000 curies of cobalt-60 were abandoned at the reactor facility, which was now under the control of Pennsylvania's government. The DEP assumed responsibility for the NRC license and legacy contamination. The
The cleanup was thought finished, so a final survey was done in December 2004, and a Final Status Survey Report was filed in February 2005. However, when the NRC and scientists from the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education surveyed the facility in May 2005, they found many areas of contamination above the legal limits. According to the NRC's Quehanna Site Status Summary, strontium-90 had contaminated the "buildings as well as ... surface and subsurface soil" but was not in groundwater.[53] More cleanup work was done in the summer of 2005, but the site still did not meet NRC regulations. DEP concluded that "some type of migration of radioactive material [was] taking place in the concrete at the facility",[53] and changed its disposal plan. The new plan called for demolition of the building without completing decontamination, and disposal of the above ground material in a regular landfill. This plan was approved by the NRC in October 2006, and a December 2006 survey showed "that the above grade structure met the release limits" of the disposal plan.[38][53][54] The former reactor structure was demolished, and on May 13, 2009 the NRC released the state from its license for the site. As of 2011, a small octagonal "restricted area" around the reactor site is still shown on official DCNR maps.[55]
Contamination and cleanup
On September 20, 1967, two Bureau of Forestry employees attempted to remove a metal ladder from a 20,000-US-gallon (76,000 L; 17,000 imp gal) metal
In 1986, former Curtiss-Wright and Martin Marietta employees testified about hazards and waste disposal practices before a hearing of the
In 1964, drilling revealed that the Quehanna Wild Area's geology and hydrology made it unsuitable for burying waste. However, according to Seeley's Great Buffaloe Swamp, a history of the Quehanna region, there are 180 contamination sites in the wild area.[42] Waste has been found at the former air field, within the M.K. Goddard/Wykoff Run Natural Area, near the industrial complex, at the former Lincoln Farm, and at the copper wire-burning site on the highway. These last three waste sites were cleaned in 1991 at a cost of $187,698. At the wire-burning site 150 short tons (140 t) of contaminated soil were removed from 3 acres (1.2 ha), with clean earth and grass seed placed on top of the area. The waste was also removed from the farm site, but at the industrial complex the waste was covered with 2,500 cubic yards (1,900 m3) of soil on 4 acres (1.6 ha) and fenced off.[42][59]
Piper complex and boot camp
The industrial complex covers about 100 acres (40 ha) on both sides of Quehanna Highway at the southeast edge of the Quehanna Wild Area. Although the industrial complex lies within the historic 16-sided polygon, it is no longer part of the wild area.[55] After Curtiss-Wright's lease ended and it donated six of the eight buildings in the complex to the state in 1963, Pennsylvania formed the Commonwealth Industrial Research Corporation to administer and lease the Quehanna facilities, which it did until 1967.[49] Over the years a series of tenants have occupied parts of the industrial complex. One company manufactured logging trailers there from 1967 to 1971, and another processed frozen meat from 1968 to 1970. In 1968 Piper Aircraft established a plant to make metal and plastic parts for airplanes. The complex was renamed from Quehanna to Piper, a name it retains. Piper employed up to 1,000 people, but moved its operations from Pennsylvania to Florida in 1984.[28][42][60]
The Young Adult Conservation Corps was also based at Piper from 1977 to 1982. This federally funded program employed up to 45 young people for local conservation projects in the state parks and forests and on state game lands. In addition,
In 1992 the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections opened the Quehanna Motivational Boot Camp at Piper as the state's "first military-style motivational boot camp".[61] The minimum security program for non-violent, first-time offenders has accepted both male and female inmates from the start. Originally designed to house 200, the Department of Corrections expanded the facility in the late 1990s to a capacity of 500 on about 50 acres (20 ha). The inmates spend six months in a military-style program that offers opportunities for education and builds positive life skills; they also are offered drug and alcohol therapy. Those who successfully complete the boot camp program, which is considered an alternative to prison, are released on parole.[28][49][61] The boot camp began to receive men and women from the "general population of state prison inmates" in 2005 and 2006, respectively.[62] At the end of June 2009, the facility had 494 inmates, 61 percent of whom were in the boot camp program, and cost just over $17 million a year to operate.[62]
Wild area
In December 1970 the state forest commission officially changed the designation from Quehanna Wilderness Area to Quehanna Wild Area, making it the first state forest wild area in Pennsylvania.[63][64] Elk and Moshannon state forests jointly administer Quehanna's 48,186 acres (75.3 sq mi; 195.0 km2); for comparison, this is over three times larger than the 23-square-mile (60 km2) area of Manhattan,[65] making Quehanna the largest of the 16 wild areas in the state. According to the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry, "a wild area is an extensive area, which the general public will be permitted to see, use and enjoy for such activities as hiking, hunting, and fishing. No development of a permanent nature will be permitted in order to retain the undeveloped character of the area. These areas will be administered according to the principals of forest protection...".[63]
Consequently, within a wild area, no new permanent camp leases, mines, wells, roads, or
The state forest system also has natural areas, with more restricted usage. According to the Bureau of Forestry, "A natural area is an area of unique scenic, historic, geologic or ecological value that will be maintained in a natural condition by allowing physical and biological processes to operate, usually without direct human intervention."[63] Quehanna Wild Area contains two state forest natural areas: the 1,215-acre (492 ha) M.K. Goddard/Wykoff Run Natural Area in the center,[66] and the 917-acre (371 ha) Marion Brooks Natural Area on the northwest edge.[67] Marion Brooks Natural Area, known for its 22-acre (8.9 ha) stand of white birch, was formerly known as Paige Run Natural Area; in 1975 it was renamed for Marion E. Brooks, a pioneering environmentalist from Elk County.[7][28][68] Quehanna Wild Area also has two wildlife viewing areas with blinds for observing elk and other animals: Beaver Run Dam's pond and wetlands and Hoover Farm's fields and feeding plots.[67]
The Quehanna plateau is home to the
Despite efforts to restrict use, some environmentalists criticize Quehanna's administration. Christopher Klyza, author of Wilderness Comes Home: Rewilding the Northeast, notes that the Pennsylvania wild areas are not true wilderness areas. He is especially critical of the continued use of roads through the wild areas and limited logging allowed "for forest health and wildlife habitat improvements".[75]
Geology and climate
Quehanna Wild Area lies at an elevation of 1,896 feet (578 m) on the Allegheny Plateau.[2] The area falls into portions of two distinct geological physiographic provinces, with all but the northernmost part in the Pittsburgh Low Plateau, known for its coal and mineral deposits, and characterized by steep-cut stream beds. The northernmost part of the wild area, including Marion Brooks Natural Area, is in the Deep Valleys section, home to some of the most remote and wild areas of the state; streams here have cut deep valleys with steep-sided slopes.[78][79][80] In the southern part of Quehanna Wild Area, the Mosquito Creek gorge is up to 500 feet (150 m) deep, and the Red Run gorge in the north is almost 900 feet (270 m) deep.[81]
The Allegheny Plateau formed in the
At least five major rock formations from the
The Allegheny Plateau has a
Climate data for Karthaus, Pennsylvania (nearest village to Quehanna Wild Area) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 34 (1) |
38 (3) |
47 (8) |
61 (16) |
71 (22) |
79 (26) |
83 (28) |
82 (28) |
74 (23) |
63 (17) |
51 (11) |
38 (3) |
60 (16) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 17 (−8) |
18 (−8) |
24 (−4) |
34 (1) |
44 (7) |
54 (12) |
59 (15) |
58 (14) |
51 (11) |
39 (4) |
31 (−1) |
23 (−5) |
38 (3) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 2.55 (65) |
2.39 (61) |
3.34 (85) |
3.46 (88) |
3.74 (95) |
4.32 (110) |
4.19 (106) |
3.95 (100) |
4.00 (102) |
3.33 (85) |
3.69 (94) |
2.98 (76) |
41.94 (1,067) |
Source: The Weather Channel[90] |
1985 tornado
On May 31, 1985, an outbreak of 43 tornadoes struck northeastern Ohio, western and central Pennsylvania, New York, and southern Ontario, killing 88 people. The Storm Data Center of the National Weather Service rated the outbreak "the 12th most 'significant' tornado event of all time".[91] Pennsylvania was struck by 17 tornadoes that Memorial Day, including the only F5 tornado on the Fujita scale in the state's history. The tornadoes caused 65 deaths in Pennsylvania and were not dissipated by the state's mountainous landscape, "forever putting to rest the myth that such terrain can deter them".[91]
An F4 tornado passed through Quehanna Wild Area; its path of destruction crossed the Quehanna Highway at the Clearfield–Cameron county line.[41][92] It traveled over 69 miles (111 km) of mainly dense forest and wilderness in central Pennsylvania, and damaged or destroyed buildings early in its life, including a CCC-built lodge at Parker Dam State Park. The damage path from this storm was estimated to be at least 2.2 miles (3.5 km) wide.[92][93] Its winds—200 to 260 miles per hour (320 to 420 km/h)—ripped up small and medium-sized trees and shrubs, tore leaves and limbs from some of the big trees, and snapped others like matchsticks. As it headed west through Moshannon State Forest in Clearfield and Centre counties, Gregory S. Forbes, then a meteorology professor at Penn State, said the debris from the tornado was visible on his WSR-57 radar scanners.[91][92] The reactor building was just north of the tornado's path and suffered $200,000 in damage, but no radiation leaks occurred.[93]
The tornado outbreak injured more than 1,000 people and caused $450 million in total damages and destruction. Moshannon State Forest lost an estimated $8 million in lumber to the tornado that hit Quehanna; after the storm, $2 million in timber was salvaged in the state forest.[94] In the ensuing years, the affected forest at Quehanna, though younger and smaller than the surrounding woods, has partly recovered. The official map for the Quehanna Trail is labeled "tornado zone" where the twister passed through the wild area.[41][95]
Ecology
Flora
The
The clearcutting and repeated fires changed all of this. New growth was often composed of different plants and trees than had originally been there. Near Beaver Run in Quehanna there are wetlands that were originally hemlock forest. Hemlocks transpire large amounts of water and once they were gone the soil was too wet to support most trees; the bracken and ferns that replaced the hemlocks altered the soil qualities to discourage trees as well.[97] Within the Quehanna Wild Area 650 acres (260 ha) are wetlands.[98] Fires and erosion removed nutrients from the soil, and in some areas the soil was so poor in nutrients that only white birch, a pioneer species, would grow there. Marion Brooks Natural Area has the largest stand of white birch in Pennsylvania and the eastern United States. These trees are now 80 to 90 years old and reaching the end of their lifespans.[67]
Besides forest fires and tornado damage, there have been other threats to Quehanna's forests in the 20th century. Many trees were lost when
Fauna
Some animals, previously present in abundance, have disappeared, or the populations declined, through habitat loss. By 1912, after the forests had been clearcut, Quehanna was covered by "vast expanses of brush, created when the root systems of cut-off trees sprouted up through the discarded tops and limbs of the logged forest".
Other animals became locally extinct through overhunting. The last elk in Pennsylvania was killed in Elk County in 1867. The Pennsylvania Game Commission brought 177 animals from the Rocky Mountains to the state from 1913 to 1926; today the elk herd of over 600 animals can often be seen in Quehanna Wild Area.[67] Between 1906 and 1925, Pennsylvania became so concerned about declining numbers of white-tailed deer that it imported nearly 1,200 animals from Michigan to re-establish the species, and made it the official state animal in 1959.[101] In the early 21st century, over-grazing by deer threatens plant diversity.[72] By the early 20th century, the fisher, a small mammal similar to the European polecat or American marten, was hunted to extinction in Pennsylvania. Between 1994 and 1998, 190 animals were released in five sites in the northern part of the state, including 23 animals along Quehanna's Wykoff Run in 1995. Breeding populations of fisher appear to have been reestablished.[102]
Still other animals seem to thrive regardless of the maturity of the forest or the presence of the understory. Common animals found in Quehanna include
As an International Bird Area, Quehanna's forests are recognized as a "large, unfragmented tract with exceptional diversity of woodland species" and are home to 102 species of birds.
Recreation
According to the DCNR, Quehanna Wild Area is for the public "to see, use and enjoy for such activities as hiking, hunting, and fishing".[63] The main hiking trail on the Quehanna plateau is the Quehanna Trail, a 73.2-mile (117.8 km) loop trail that passes through the wild area and Moshannon and Elk State Forests. The main trailhead for most hikers is at Parker Dam State Park to the west of the wild area. From there the trail, which is blazed in orange, heads east to the southern part of Quehanna Wild Area, skirts Piper and the Boot Camp there, then turns north, crosses Wykoff Run and turns west again. After passing through Marion Brooks Natural Area, the trail leaves the wild area and completes the loop back at Parker Dam. The Quehanna Trail is considered a strenuous hike not just because of its length, but for its 9,700 feet (2,957 m) of changes in elevation. Two yellow-blazed connector trails add 30 miles (48 km) to the system, and there are many side trails and small trails off the Quehanna Highway. Most trails are open to cross-country skiing in the winter. According to the DCNR, the Quehanna Trail "passes through some of the most wild and beautiful country Pennsylvania has to offer".[106][107][108][109]
Susan Stranahan's Susquehanna: River of Dreams reports that before Curtiss-Wright took over the area in 1955, Quehanna was considered "some of the best hunting land in the state".[8] No hunting or fishing were initially allowed on the leased land, but by July 1959 fishing on Mosquito Creek was allowed again, as was limited hunting to help control the deer. In October 1963 hunting resumed throughout the wild area, four years before the state purchased the land back from Curtiss-Wright.[110] As of 2010, the Pennsylvania Game Commission allowed hunting of the following species found in Quehanna Wild Area: American crow, beaver, black bear, black squirrel, bobcat, bobwhite quail, cottontail rabbit, coyote, elk, house sparrow, raccoon, red fox, ring-necked pheasant, ruffed grouse, white-tailed deer, wild turkey, and woodcock.[111] The Mosquito Creek Sportsmen's Association has sponsored an annual coyote hunt each winter hunt since 1992. The club has also provided food plots for deer and elk, fed game animals in winter, planted and pruned fruit trees, stocked fish, and treated streams for acid rain. Fishing is primarily for trout.[112]
The Quehanna Wild Area is also seen, used, and enjoyed by bird watchers attracted by its status as an Important Bird Area. Audubon Pennsylvania and the DCNR have prepared the Susquehanna River Birding and Wildlife Trail guide which lists three sites in Quehanna: Wykoff Run, Beaver Run Wildlife Viewing Area, and the whole wild area.[100] The DCNR has published a guide to Elk Scenic Drive which lists 23 attractions, four in Quehanna: Marion Brooks and M.K. Goddard/Wykoff Run Natural Areas, and Beaver Run and Hoover Farm Wildlife Viewing Areas.[67]
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- ^ Sayers, pp. 37–41, 105–113.
- ^ a b c d Glazer, Mike (September 13, 1998). "Quehanna Served as Atomic Energy Testing Area". Williamsport Sun-Gazette. Williamsport, Pennsylvania. p. B5.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Pennsylvania Decommissioning Site Summaries: PermaGrain Products, Inc, Quehanna Wild Area, Karthaus, PA NRC License 37-17860-02, NRC Docket 030-29288". Decommissioning & Environmental Surveillance Division, Bureau of Radiation Protection, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. 2010. Archived from the original on May 28, 2008. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
- ^ Stranahan, p. 188.
- ^ a b c d e "Future of Quehanna a Much-Discussed Topic". Williamsport Sun-Gazette. Williamsport, Pennsylvania. June 15, 1960. p. 8.
- ^ a b c d Hermann, Michael (October 23, 1998). "Quehanna area offers wild array of autumn colors". Lizard Tracks, Centre Daily Times. Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g Seeley, pp. 12–13.
- ^ "New Nuclear Laboratory". The New York Times. May 29, 1956. p. 34.
- ^ "Curtiss Plans Atomic Center". The New York Times. May 30, 1956. p. 27.
- ^ "One-Megawatt 'Swimming Pool' Reactor Completed". The New York Times. November 2, 1957. p. 24.
- ^ "Research Plan Set by Curtiss-Wright". The New York Times. August 22, 1960. p. 35.
- ^ Sayers, p. 72.
- ^ a b Young, p. 127.
- ^ a b c d e f Sayers, pp. 53–59.
- ^ Sayers, p. 61.
- ^ "Human Health Fact Sheet: Strontium" (PDF). Argonne National Laboratory, EVS. November 2006. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^ Sayers, p. 64.
- ^ a b c d "Quehanna (Commonwealth of Pennsylvania)". United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission. March 31, 2008. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- OSTI 937050. ORISE 1726-SR-01-0, TRN: US0806214. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ a b c "Moshannon State Forest" (PDF). and "Elk State Forest" (PDF). Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry. Maps, 1 inch = approximately 2 miles. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
- ^ Sayers, p. 49.
- ^ Seeley, p. 29.
- ^ Sayers, p. 75.
- ^ Sayers, pp. 85–86.
- ^ a b Sayers, pp. 64–65.
- ^ a b "Quehanna Boot Camp". Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. Retrieved March 14, 2010.
- ^ a b "Performance Audit: Quehanna Motivational Boot Camp: July 1, 2006 to December 7, 2009" (PDF). Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. September 3, 2010. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
- ^ a b c d e "State Forest Resource Management Plan: Ecological Considerations: Natural Areas and Wild Areas". Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry. 2003. Archived from the original on June 23, 2003. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ Sayers, p. 62.
- ^ "Manhattan (borough), New York". United States Census Bureau. February 23, 2010. Archived from the original on February 16, 2010. Retrieved March 20, 2010.
- ^ "Quehanna Wild Area, Wykoff Run Natural Area". Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on February 13, 2015. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ OCLC 144635159. Note: this includes four chapters on sites within the Quehanna Wild Area, Marion Brooks Natural Area (3), Beaver Run Dam Wildlife Viewing Area (4), Hoover Farm Wildlife Viewing Area (5), and M.K. Goddard/Wykoff Run Natural Area (6).
- ^ McGeehan, p. 113.
- ^ Seeley, pp. 3, 8, 12.
- ^ Thwaites, pp. 209–216.
- ^ Seeley, pp. 60–61.
- ^ a b c Martin, Robert. "Pennsylvania Important Bird Areas: Site Name Quehanna Wild Area" (PDF). Pennsylvania Audubon Society. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 18, 2011. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
- ^ "Audubon names 73 important bird areas in state". Resource: Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. 1997-01-07. Archived from the original on 2012-11-14. Retrieved 2012-01-05.
- ^ Proposed Quehanna Wild Area Expansion (Map). Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. 2003. Archived from the original on March 28, 2006. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
- ^ Klyza, p. 86.
- ^ a b Berg, T. M. (1981). "Atlas of Preliminary Geologic Quadrangle Maps of Pennsylvania: Driftwood" (PDF). Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 24, 2003. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
- ^ Shaw, p. 151.
- ^ Map 13 Physiographic Provinces of Pennsylvania (PDF) (Map) (Fourth ed.). Cartography by W. D. Sevon. Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. 2000. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 28, 2006. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Low Plateau Section, Appalachian Plateaus Province". Pennsylvania Geologic Survey, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on March 8, 2004. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
- ^ "Deep Valleys Section, Appalachian Plateaus". Pennsylvania Geologic Survey, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on March 8, 2004. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
- ^ Mitchell, pp. 169–171.
- ^ Van Diver, pp. 31–35, 113–115
- ^ Shultz, pp. 372–374, 391, 399, 818
- ^ Berg, T. M. (1981). "Atlas of Preliminary Geologic Quadrangle Maps of Pennsylvania: Dents Run" (PDF). Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 24, 2003. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
- ^ Berg, T. M. (1981). "Atlas of Preliminary Geologic Quadrangle Maps of Pennsylvania: The Knobs" (PDF). Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 20, 2004. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
- ^ Berg, T. M. (1981). "Atlas of Preliminary Geologic Quadrangle Maps of Pennsylvania: Devils Elbow" (PDF). Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 24, 2003. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
- ^ "Geologic units in Cameron County, Pennsylvania". United States Geological Survey. February 11, 2010. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
- ^ "Climate of Pennsylvania" (PDF). Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania State Climatologist. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 25, 2009. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
- ^ Shaw, pp. 143, 151
- ^ a b "Monthly Averages for Karthaus, Pennsylvania". The Weather Channel Interactive, Inc. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
- ^ a b c Carpenter, Mackenzie (May 29, 2005). "The day the twisters came". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
- ^ a b c Grazulis, p. 203.
- ^ a b Sayers, pp. 89–90.
- ^ Seeley, p. 14.
- ^ "Quehanna Trail, Eastern Section" (PDF). Map. Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 9, 2011. Retrieved March 23, 2010.
- ^ Dillon, pp. 23–24, 46.
- ^ Seeley, pp. 21–22.
- ^ a b c d "Site #31-Quehanna Wild Area". Spreadsheet. Pennsylvania Audubon Society. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved March 20, 2010.
- ^ Sayers, pp. 100–101.
- ^ a b c d Audubon Pennsylvania, pp. 19–20.
- ^ "Abbreviated History of Pennsylvania's White-Tailed Deer Management". Pennsylvania Game Commission. Retrieved March 19, 2010.
- ^ Hardisky, Thomas S. (ed.). "Pennsylvania Fisher Reintroduction Project". Pennsylvania Game Commission, Bureau of Wildlife Management. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 25, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2010.
- ^ Seeley, p. 8.
- ^ Sayers, pp. 34–39, 113–115.
- ^ "Shedding Light on the Eastern Coyote". Pennsylvania Game Commission. Retrieved March 19, 2010.
- ^ McDonald, p. 158.
- ^ "Quehanna Trail". Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on August 7, 2011. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
- ^ Seeley's book is a very detailed guide to the Quehanna Trail, two connectors, and side trails.
- ^ Thornbloom, Gary (February 2002). "Cross Country Skiing in the Quehanna Wild Area". Pennsylvania Chapter of the Sierra Club. Archived from the original on July 20, 2011. Retrieved March 19, 2010.
- ^ Sayers, pp. 50–51, 55.
- ^ "Adopted 2009–10 Hunting Seasons and Bag Limits". Pennsylvania Game Commission. Retrieved March 19, 2010.
- ^ Sayers, pp. 101–116, 137–145.
- ^ Thornbloom, Gary (August 2008). "Twelve Mile Run and Kunes Camp Trail — Splendid Solitude!". Pennsylvania Chapter of the Sierra Club. Archived from the original on July 20, 2011. Retrieved March 19, 2010.
Sources
- OCLC 56944102. Archived from the originalon 2009-04-18.
- Dillon, Chuck (2006). "Human Issues Affecting the Stream". Pennsylvania's Grand Canyon: A Natural & Human History (2nd ed.). Wellsboro, Pennsylvania: Pine Creek Press. OCLC 25236134.
- Donehoo, Dr. George P. (1999) [1928]. A History of the Indian Villages and Place Names in Pennsylvania (PDF) (Second Reprint ed.). ISBN 1-889037-11-7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-03-04. Note: ISBN refers to a 1999 reprint edition, URL is for the Susquehanna River Basin Commission's web page of Native American Place names, quoting and citing the book.
- Fergus, Charles (2002). "Chapter 32. Marion Brooks Natural Area, Chapter 56. Wycoff Run (sic)". Natural Pennsylvania: Exploring the State Forest Natural Areas (1st ed.). Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: ISBN 0-8117-2038-1.
- Grazulis, Thomas P. (2001). The tornado : nature's ultimate windstorm. Norman, Oklahoma: ISBN 0-8061-3258-2.
- Klyza, Christopher McGrory (2001). Wilderness Comes Home: Rewilding the Northeast. Hanover, New Hampshire: Middlebury College Press / ISBN 1-58465-101-6.
- MacDonald, Sam A. (2005). The agony of an American wilderness: loggers, environmentalists, and the struggle for control of a forgotten forest. Lanham [u.a.]: ISBN 0-7425-4157-6.
- McGeehan, Dennis (2007). Elk County. Images of America. Charleston, South Carolina: ISBN 978-0-7385-5479-2.
- Meginness, John Franklin (1892). "Chapter XIII. Lycoming County Organized.". History of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania: including its aboriginal history; the colonial and revolutionary periods; early settlement and subsequent growth; organization and civil administration; the legal and medical professions; internal improvement; past and present history of Williamsport; manufacturing and lumber interests; religious, educational, and social development; geology and agriculture; military record; sketches of boroughs, townships, and villages; portraits and biographies of pioneers and representative citizens, etc. etc (1st ed.). Chicago, Illinois: Brown, Runk & Co. OCRtypos.
- Mitchell, Jeff (2005). Backpacking Pennsylvania: 37 Great Hikes. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books. ISBN 0-8117-3180-4.
- Owlett, Steven E. (1993). "The Death of a Forest". Seasons Along the Tiadaghton: An Environmental History of the Pine Creek Gorge (1st ed.). Petaluma, California: Interprint. pp. 53–62. ISBN 0-9635905-0-2.
- Paige, John C. (1985). "Chapter One: A Brief History of the Civilian Conservation Corps". The Civilian Conservation Corps and the National Park Service, 1933–1942: An Administrative History. Washington, D.C.: U.S. National Park Service, Department of the Interior. OCLC 12072830. Retrieved February 11, 2009.
- Sayers, John A. (1996). Mosquito Creek Sportsmen's Association and Quehanna Wild Area (Complements in History). Frenchville, Pennsylvania: Mosquito Creek Sportsmen's Association. OCLC 38264268.
- Shultz, Charles H., ed. (1999). The Geology of Pennsylvania. Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Geological Society and Pittsburgh Geological Society. ISBN 0-8182-0227-0.
- Seeley, Ralph (1997). Great Buffaloe Swamp: A Trail Guide and Historical Record for the Quehanna Plateau and the Moshannon State Forest (Second ed.). Karthaus, Pennsylvania: Quehanna Area Trails Club. OCLC 60335051. Note: OCLC refrs to the third edition.
- Shaw, Lewis C. (June 1984). Pennsylvania Gazetteer of Streams Part II (Water Resources Bulletin No. 16). Prepared in Cooperation with the United States Department of the Interior Geological Survey (1st ed.). Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Environmental Resources. OCLC 17150333.
- Speakman, Joseph M. (2006). At Work in Penn's Woods: The Civilian Conservation Corps in Pennsylvania. University Park, Pennsylvania: ISBN 978-0-271-02876-7.
- Stranahan, Susan Q. (1993). Susquehanna, River of Dreams. Baltimore: ISBN 0-8018-4602-1.
- Taber III, Thomas T (1995). "Chapter Two: The Boom — Making It All Possible". Williamsport Lumber Capital (1st ed.). OCLC 35920715.
- Thorpe, R.R. (1997). The Crown Jewel of Pennsylvania: The State Forest System. Pennsylvania Forestry Association, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the U.S. Forest Service. OCLC 37033507.
- Thwaites, Tom (1992). Fifty Hikes in Central Pennsylvania (Fourth updated printing ed.). ISBN 0-942440-24-2.
- Van Diver, Bradford B. (1990). Roadside Geology of Pennsylvania. Missoula, Montana: ISBN 0-87842-227-7.
- Wallace, Paul A. W. (2000) [1961]. Indians in Pennsylvania. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. ISBN 978-0-89271-017-1.
- Wallace, Paul A. W. (1987). Indian Paths of Pennsylvania (Fourth Printing ed.). ISBN 0-89271-090-X. Note: ISBN refers to 1998 impression.
- Young, John L. (2008). Hiking Pennsylvania: 55 of the State's Greatest Hiking Adventures. Falcon Guide: Where to Hike. Guilford, Connecticut: Morris Book Publishing / Globe Pequot Books. ISBN 978-0-7627-4450-3.
External links
- Official Quehanna Trail Map, Eastern Section (shows all of Quehanna Wild Area) Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.