SRBC: A Proven Guardian of the Susquehanna for Five Decades
HARRISBURG, Pa., Jan. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On January 23, 1971, the Susquehanna River Basin Compact went into effect, launching a partnership between the federal government and the states of New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland to wisely manage the water resources of the Susquehanna basin. Nearly fifty years later, it is important that we do not lose sight of why the partners took this action establishing the Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC). Up to the 1970s, unchecked urban and agricultural runoff, along with insufficiently treated wastewater from industry and coal mines, had severely degraded the river and heightened concerns for drought impacts to water supplies. As the three states and agencies of the federal government independently considered solutions to these issues, they recognized there was little coordinated management in place. SRBC was formed as a coordinating agency to guide development and protect the water resources of the Susquehanna basin.
Then and now, efficient coordination and cooperation serve as the underpinning of nearly everything that SRBC does.
In 1972, devastating, record-setting flooding from Tropical Storm Agnes set SRBC's course and agenda for many years to come. SRBC launched work on detailed mapping of flood plains and predicted depths of flood waters. In the mid-1980s, SRBC spearheaded an interagency committee that resulted in the establishment of a state-of-the-art flood forecast and warning system for the basin – one that has delivered an impressive 20 dollar benefit for every federal dollar invested in it.
The Susquehanna Flood Forecast and Warning System exemplifies good government by avoiding duplication of effort. Likewise, SRBC leaves water quality regulations largely to the states and serves to complement jurisdictional efforts with supporting monitoring and research. But no other agency has ever focused on the sustainable management of water supplies from an overall river basin, or watershed, perspective.
A critical part of SRBC's mission is to achieve a balance among human, economic and environmental needs when managing the basin's water resources. SRBC does so, in part, by regulating surface and ground water withdrawals and the consumptive use of water — water removed from available supplies and not returned to a stream, river, or treatment plant.
Regulations and water use planning help SRBC ensure that water use doesn't exceed available supplies while also avoiding conflicts among users and adverse impact to the environment. Without a check on the quantity and rate of water withdrawals, we would see the permanent loss of groundwater supplies, degraded water quality and habitat, and severely reduced stream flows.
SRBC also coordinates the management of interstate water resources and resolves issues and conflicts within the basin. It conducts a variety of studies (pollution assessments, aquatic life studies, and water budget analyses) and runs a number of stream and river monitoring networks, all of which provide scientific data from which to make sound management and policy decisions.
Beginning in 1984, SRBC now tracks nutrient and sediment loadings to the Chesapeake Bay at 26 sampling sites. Water quality and aquatic habitat surveys in each of the basin's six subbasins also provide important baseline and trend information. Long-term monitoring is critical to distinguish natural, short-term fluctuations from long-term changes to the health of our rivers and streams.
SRBC conducts public outreach to report on the status of basin resources and helps municipalities advance public drinking water protection. We participate in cooperative management plans to address issues such as stream restoration, abandoned mine drainage remediation, invasive aquatic species and drought preparedness.
Because our focus is defined by the natural boundaries of the river basin rather than the political boundaries of the member states, SRBC is uniquely qualified to carry out this work.
Today, the river's resources are the source of drinking water for approximately 6 million people and is an economic engine for industry, tourism, and recreation. Despite SRBC's contributions to the preservation, protection and wise development of the Susquehanna's resources, the federal government has failed to meet its funding obligation under the Compact for the past twenty years, and funding from the signatory states is eroding. Such reductions are hampering efforts to meet longstanding and increased challenges in areas such as providing water use planning for local watersheds, assisting municipalities with drinking water and stormwater management, establishing better flood and drought preparedness for communities faced with the impacts of climate change, and identifying and addressing water quality impairments.
SRBC delivers cost-effective programs that support water supply availability, water quality protection, community flood and drought preparedness, and natural habitat preservation. It serves as a model for interstate watershed management and deserves the support of the federal and state signatory parties that created it.
SOURCE Susquehanna River Basin Commission
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