Peters Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed August 15, 2011

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 the

Monongahela River The Monongahela River ( , )—often referred to locally as the Mon ()—is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 15, 2011 river on the Allegheny Plateau in North Cen ...

and part of the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

and

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

watersheds, flowing through southwestern

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Variant names

According to 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 ...

, it has also been known historically as: * Peter's Creek

Course

Peters Creek starts in Nottingham Township in Washington County and runs generally northerly until it joins the Monongahela River at Clairton in Allegheny County.

Watershed

The Peters Creek watershed is a diverse fifty square miles in southwestern Allegheny County and northeastern Washington County. From the heavy industry in the east where Peters Creek enters the Monongahela River, to the commercial northeast, the suburban northern communities, and the still rural and farming south, the watershed is a veritable patchwork of land use types. There is also a county park, a turnpike, a landfill, and a coal mining legacy to add to the mix. Some communities are relatively stable while others are undergoing rapid development. Peters Creek and its tributaries provide utility to them all in a myriad of ways.

Tributaries

*Lewis Run, in Jefferson Hills *Beam's Run, in Jefferson Hills *Lick Run, in South Park Township *Piney Fork Run, in South Park Township Peters Creek also collects numerous unnamed tributaries along its course.

Water quality and recreation

Because of past water quality issues, Peters Creek was not considered to have any recreational purpose, but since the 1990s the water quality has improved dramatically. Once plagued with garbage and

acid mine drainage Acid mine drainage, acid and metalliferous drainage (AMD), or acid rock drainage (ARD) is the outflow of acidic water from metal mines or coal mines. Acid rock drainage occurs naturally within some environments as part of the rock weathering ...

, the water quality is now high enough to support its own fish population, which includes

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salmoni ...

, bass,

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive, ...

carp Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. While carp is consumed in many parts of the world, they are generally considered an invasive species in parts of ...

, and

bluegill The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or "copper nose" as is common in Texas, is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and ...

. It is now again possible to enjoy the stream through such activities as fishing, swimming, and during high water, kayaking. There is also a new bike trail that runs along its bank, formerly part of the

Montour Railroad The Montour Railroad was a short line railroad company operating passenger and freight service in southwestern Pennsylvania. At its height in the 1930s, the railroad served 27 mines transporting nearly seven million tons of coal annually in Alle ...

.Welcome to Peters Creek Watershed Association Web Site
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References