Muddy Run is a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of Spruce Run in

Union County, Pennsylvania Union County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 42,681. Its county seat is Lewisburg. The county was created on March 22, 1813, from part of Northumberland County. Its name is an allusio ...

, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through West Buffalo Township and Buffalo Township. The watershed of the stream has an area of . Part of the stream is designated as an impaired waterbody due to sedimentation and siltation from grazing-related agriculture. The majority of the watershed is forested, but there is also a considerable amount of agricultural land. A bridge has been constructed over the stream in the community of Mazeppa.

Course

Muddy Run begins near the base of Buffalo Mountain in West Buffalo Township. It flows east-southeast for several tenths of a mile before turning east-northeast and then east-southeast. Several tenths of a mile further downstream, the stream turns south-southeast for a few tenths of a mile before entering Buffalo Township and turning east for a few miles. It then turns southeast for several tenths of a mile before turning northeast. Several hundred feet further downstream, it reaches its confluence with Spruce Run. Muddy Run joins Spruce Run upstream of its mouth.

Hydrology

A total of of streams in the watershed of Muddy Run are designated as impaired waterbodies. The cause of the impairment is

sedimentation Sedimentation is the deposition of sediments. It takes place when particles in suspension settle out of the fluid in which they are entrained and come to rest against a barrier. This is due to their motion through the fluid in response to the ...

siltation Siltation, is water pollution caused by particulate terrestrial clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay. It refers both to the increased concentration of suspended sediments and to the increased accumulation (temporary or ...

and the source of the impairment is grazing-related agriculture. The

total maximum daily load A total maximum daily load (TMDL) is a regulatory term in the U.S. Clean Water Act, describing a plan for restoring impaired waters that identifies the maximum amount of a pollutant that a body of water can receive while still meeting water quali ...

date is 2015. In addition to sediment, Muddy Run is also affected by ''

E. coli ''Escherichia coli'' (),Wells, J. C. (2000) Longman Pronunciation Dictionary. Harlow ngland Pearson Education Ltd. also known as ''E. coli'' (), is a Gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped, coliform bacterium of the genus ''Escher ...

'',

nutrient pollution Nutrient pollution, a form of water pollution, refers to contamination by excessive inputs of nutrients. It is a primary cause of eutrophication of surface waters (lakes, rivers and coastal waters), in which excess nutrients, usually nitrogen or ...

, and thermal radiation. In 2000, the load of

sediment Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles. For example, sand an ...

in Muddy Run was , while in 2008 it was . This equates to somewhere between . In the future, the load could be reduced by 50.30 percent to per year. In 2000, the

nitrogen Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at se ...

load in the stream was and in 2008, it was . This equates to somewhere between . In the future, the nitrogen load could be reduced by 20.26 percent to per year. In 2000 and 2008, the

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ear ...

load was , respectively. This equates to more than . In the future, the phosphorus load could be reduced by 37.53 percent to per year. Of the of sediment in Muddy Run in 2000, came from

row crop A row crop is a crop that can be planted in rows wide enough to allow it to be tilled or otherwise cultivated by agricultural machinery, machinery tailored for the seasonal activities of row crops. Such crops are sown by drilling or transplanti ...

s and came from

streambank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography, as follows. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrai ...

erosion. Another came from hay and pastures, while came from

unpaved road Unpaved roads may refer to: * Dirt roads * Gravel roads A gravel road is a type of unpaved road surfaced with gravel that has been brought to the site from a quarry or stream bed. They are common in less-developed nations, and also in the ru ...

s. A total of came from low-density urban development, while came from other sources. In 2000, the total load of nitrogen in Muddy Run from

groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidate ...

was . The load from row crops was and the load from hay and pastures was . The nitrogen load from low-density urban development was , the load from unpaved roads was , and the load from

septic system Onsite sewage facilities (OSSF), also called septic systems, are wastewater systems designed to treat and dispose of effluent on the same property that produces the wastewater, in areas not served by public sewage infrastructure. A septic tank a ...

s was . A total of came from streambank erosion and came from other sources. In 2000, the total load of

in Muddy Run from row crops was and the load from groundwater was . The load from hay and pastures was , the load from low-density urban land was , came from unpaved roads, and came from septic systems. Other sources contributed .

Geography and geology

The elevation near the

mouth In animal anatomy, the mouth, also known as the oral cavity, or in Latin cavum oris, is the opening through which many animals take in food and issue vocal sounds. It is also the cavity lying at the upper end of the alimentary canal, bounded on ...

of Muddy Run is above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...

. The elevation of the stream's

source Source may refer to: Research * Historical document * Historical source * Source (intelligence) or sub source, typically a confidential provider of non open-source intelligence * Source (journalism), a person, publication, publishing institute o ...

is between above sea level. A total of of streams in the watershed of Muddy Run are flanked by

fence A fence is a structure that encloses an area, typically outdoors, and is usually constructed from posts that are connected by boards, wire, rails or netting. A fence differs from a wall in not having a solid foundation along its whole length. ...

s, though this could eventually increase to . Stabilization occurs on only of streams, though this could increase to in the future.

Watershed and biology

The

watershed Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...

of Muddy Run has an area of . The mouth of the stream is in the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

quadrangle of Lewisburg. However, the source is in the quadrangle of Mifflinburg. The watershed makes up 3 percent of the watershed of Buffalo Creek. There are of streams in the watershed of Muddy Run, of which are in agricultural land. A total of 57 percent of the watershed of Muddy Run is on

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

ed land. Another 35 percent is on

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

land, while 3 percent is on impervious surfaces. The amount of land on impervious surfaces could be as high as 26 percent in the future. There is a field lane improvement project on of Muddy Run. A total of of agricultural land in the watershed is on slopes of more than 3 percent. There are of unpaved roads in the stream's watershed. A total of of streams in the watershed of Muddy Run have

riparian buffer A riparian buffer or stream buffer is a vegetated area (a "buffer strip") near a stream, usually forested, which helps shade and partially protect the stream from the impact of adjacent land uses. It plays a key role in increasing water quality i ...

ing, but this could increase to as much as in the future.

History

Muddy Run was entered into the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

on August 2, 1979. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1182059. While some deeds reference Muddy Run as the name, the original name was Armstrong Run, as depicted on an official survey map of Union County dated 1874. Armstrong Run is also the name referenced in the landowners and residents map published in 1868 by Pomeroy and Beers of Philadelphia. A concrete stringer/multi-beam or girder bridge carrying State Route 1001 was constructed over Muddy Run in Mazeppa in 1932. It is long.

References