Lackawanna River
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The Lackawanna River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed August 8, 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 drai ...
of the
Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...
in Northeastern Pennsylvania. It flows through a region of the northern
Pocono Mountains The Pocono Mountains, commonly referred to as the Poconos , are a geographical, geological, and cultural region in Northeastern Pennsylvania. They overlook the Delaware River and Delaware Water Gap to the east, Lake Wallenpaupack to the north, ...
that was once a center of
anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the hig ...
coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...
mining in the United States. It starts in north
Wayne County, Pennsylvania Wayne is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The county's population was 51,155 at the 2020 census. The county seat is the Borough of Honesdale. The county was formed from part of Northampto ...
and ends in east Luzerne County, Pennsylvania in Duryea, Pennsylvania. The lower reaches of the river flow through the urban areas of
Scranton Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...
, which grew around its banks in the 19th century as an industrial center. Its name comes from a
Lenni Lenape The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory inclu ...
word meaning "stream that forks". The river rises in two branches, the West and East branches, along the boundary between Susquehanna and Wayne counties. The branches, each about long, flow south, closely parallel to each other, and join at the Stillwater Lake reservoir in Union Dale. The combined river flows southwest past Forest City, Carbondale, Mayfield, Jermyn, Archbald, Jessup, Blakely, Olyphant, Dickson City, Throop,
Scranton Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...
, Taylor, Moosic, Old Forge, and Duryea. It joins the
Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...
at the northern boundary of
Pittston Pittston is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is situated between Scranton and Wilkes-Barre in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The city gained prominence in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as an active anthracite coal ...
about west-southwest of Scranton. As part of the Susquehanna River, it ultimately flows to
Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the Eastern Shore of Maryland / ...
. By the mid-20th century, the river was severely polluted from mine drainages in its watershed. The decline of industry in the region, as well as federal, state, and private efforts, have improved the water quality. Still, the Lackawanna River is the largest point source of pollution in the Chesapeake Bay. The upper reaches of the river are a popular destination for
fly fishing Fly fishing is an angling method that uses a light-weight fishing lure, lure—called an artificial fly—to catch fish. The fly is Casting (fishing), cast using a fly rod, Fishing reel#Fly reel, reel, and specialized Fly line, weighted line. T ...
of
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-salm ...
. It was designated as an American Heritage River in 1997.


Course

The Lackawanna River begins at the confluence of the East Branch Lackawanna River and the
West Branch Lackawanna River The West Branch Lackawanna River (also known as Ball Creek) is a tributary of the Lackawanna River in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through Ararat Township, Susquehanna County, Pennsylva ...
in Stillwater Lake in Clifford Township, Susquehanna County. It flows south-southeast for a few miles in a deep valley, crossing Pennsylvania Route 171 and passing through Forest City. The river then enters Clinton Township, Wayne County. Here, it flows south for more than a mile before turning southeast for several tenths of a mile. It then turns south-southwest for a few miles,
meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex ban ...
ing into Vandling, in Lackawanna County. The river only flows through Vandling for a few tenths of a mile before entering Fell Township. The western side of its valley becomes steeper again and the river continues meandering south-southwest for a while before turning west for several tenths of a mile and into Simpson, where its valley broadens again. In Simpson, it turns southwest and crosses Pennsylvania Route 171 again before receiving the tributary Wilson Creek from the
right Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical ...
. After receiving the tributary Wilson Creek, the Lackawanna River continues flowing southwest alongside Pennsylvania Route 171 and soon enters Carbondale. After flowing for several tenths of a mile through Carbondale, the river turns south for a few tenths of a mile, receiving the tributary
Racket Brook Racket Brook is a tributary of the Lackawanna River in Wayne County and Lackawanna County, in Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through Canaan Township in Wayne County and Carbondale Township and Carbondale ...
from the
left Left may refer to: Music * ''Left'' (Hope of the States album), 2006 * ''Left'' (Monkey House album), 2016 * "Left", a song by Nickelback from the album '' Curb'', 1996 Direction * Left (direction), the relative direction opposite of right * ...
and crossing
Pennsylvania Route 106 Pennsylvania Route 106 (PA 106) is a state highway located in both Susquehanna and Lackawanna counties in Pennsylvania. Route 106 begins at a fork from U.S. Route 11 (US 11) in the community of Kingsley. The route ...
and a spur of US Route 6. It then turns west-southwest for several tenths of a mile and receives the tributary Fall Brook from the right before turning southwest for several miles. In this reach, the river passes through Carbondale Township and enters Mayfield. It eventually enters Jermyn, where it crosses Pennsylvania Route 107 and receives the tributary Rush Brook from the right. The river then turns south for a few miles, receiving the tributary Aylesworth Creek from the left and entering Archbald. In Archbald, it continues flowing south, receiving the tributaries White Oak Run and Laurel Run from the left. Several tenths of a mile downstream of the latter tributary, it enters Jessup and turns abruptly west. After flowing west for several tenths of a mile, the Lackawanna River receives the tributary Grassy Island Creek from the left and continues flowing in a generally westerly direction for several miles. The river begins flowing along the border between Blakely and Olyphant. In this reach, it crosses Pennsylvania Route 247 and receives the tributaries
Sterry Creek Sterry Creek (also known as Storrs Creek) is a tributary of the Lackawanna River in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through Jessup, Pennsylvania, Jessup and Olyphant, Pennsylvania, Olyphant ...
and Wildcat Creek from the left and right, respectively. Further downstream, the river crosses Pennsylvania Route 347 and receives the tributary Hull Creek from the right. It then begins flowing in a southwesterly direction along the border between Olyphant and Dickson City, though it makes several sharp turns along the way. After some distance, it receives the tributary Eddy Creek from the left and begins flowing along the border between Dickson City and Throop. After a few miles, the river enters
Scranton Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...
and crosses US Route 6/
Interstate 81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Isla ...
. It then turns south for several tenths of a mile, receiving the tributary Leggetts Creek from the right before turning southwest. After a few tenths of a mile, it abruptly turns north, and then west-southwest before turning south. After more than a mile, it crosses
US Route 11 {{Infobox road , country=USA , type=US , route=11 , map={{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, frame-height=330, type=line, from=U.S. Route 11.map , map_custom=yes , map_notes=US 11 in red, US 11E in blue, US 11W in ...
/
Pennsylvania Route 307 Pennsylvania Route 307 (PA 307) is a north–south route of the Pennsylvania Highway System that runs for . The southern terminus is PA 435 in Covington Township and the northern terminus is PA 92 in Tunkhannock Township. The highway is ...
and passes the
Steamtown National Historic Site Steamtown National Historic Site (NHS) is a railroad museum and heritage railroad located on in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, at the site of the former Scranton yards of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W). The museum is buil ...
before turning south and receiving the tributary Roaring Brook from the left. After receiving the tributary Roaring Brook, the Lackawanna River flows in a southwesterly direction for several miles, alternating between flowing south and flowing west. In this reach, it receives the tributary Stafford Meadow Brook from the left and eventually begins flowing along the border between Scranton and Taylor before receiving Keyser Creek from the right and beginning to flow alongside the border between Taylor and Moosic. After some distance along the latter border, the river crosses
Interstate 476 Interstate 476 (I-476) is a auxiliary Interstate Highway of I-76 in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The highway runs from I-95 near Chester north to I-81 near Scranton, serving as the primary north–south Interstate corridor throu ...
and turns south, now flowing along the border between Old Forge and Moosic. After more than a mile, it begins meandering west, receiving Spring Brook and Mill Creek. Several tenths of a mile further downstream, it receives the tributary Saint Johns Creek from the right and turns west-southwest. After several tenths of a mile, the river exits Lackawanna County and enters Duryea, in Luzerne County. It continues flowing west-southwest through Duryea for a few miles before reaching the border between Duryea and
Pittston Pittston is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is situated between Scranton and Wilkes-Barre in Northeastern Pennsylvania. The city gained prominence in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as an active anthracite coal ...
. The river flows along this border for the remaining several tenths of a mile to its confluence with the Susquehanna River. The Lackawanna River joins the Susquehanna River upriver of its mouth.


Tributaries

The Lackawanna River has 33 named direct tributaries and another 32 sub-tributaries and sub-sub-tributaries. Of the eight tributaries that drain an area of more than , Spring Brook and Roaring Brook are the largest, with watersheds than drain and , respectively. They join the Lackawanna River and , respectively. The East Branch Lackawanna River drains an area of and joins the Lackawanna River upriver of its mouth. Leggetts Creek drains an area of and joins the river upriver of its mouth. The West Branch Lackawanna River drains an area of and joins the river upriver of its mouth. Other tributaries that drain an area of more than include Stafford Meadow Brook, Fall Brook, and Mill Creek.


Hydrology

The Lackawanna River and its tributaries are in "good-to-excellent" condition in its upper reaches. The river deteriorates slightly as it approaches Scranton, but becomes considerably more degraded downriver of Scranton. A large number of mine seeps, outfalls, and boreholes occur within the watershed. The aquatic habitat in the last is nonexistent due to
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 ...
from the Old Forge Borehole, which discharges 100 million gallons of acid mine drainage into the river every day. Another 40 million gallons of acid mine drainage per day come from the Duryea Outfall. Other impacts include
combined sewer overflow A combined sewer is a type of gravity sewer with a system of pipes, tunnels, pump stations etc. to transport sewage and urban runoff together to a sewage treatment plant or disposal site. This means that during rain events, the sewage gets dil ...
s and urban
stormwater Stormwater, also spelled storm water, is water that originates from precipitation ( storm), including heavy rain and meltwater from hail and snow. Stormwater can soak into the soil ( infiltrate) and become groundwater, be stored on depressed l ...
. The stormwater discharges begin to become more common as the river reaches the Mid Valley region, and their frequency rapidly increases in the Down Valley region. The lower have a yellow-orange color due to
iron oxide Iron oxides are chemical compounds composed of iron and oxygen. Several iron oxides are recognized. All are black magnetic solids. Often they are non-stoichiometric. Oxyhydroxides are a related class of compounds, perhaps the best known of wh ...
contamination. There are a total of 158 combined sewer overflows on the river. Several reaches of the Lackawanna River have been designated as impaired between 1996 and 2004. The causes of impairment include pH, metals,
siltation Siltation, is water pollution caused by particulate Terrestrial ecoregion, terrestrial Clastic rock, clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay. It refers both to the increased concentration of suspended sediments and to the ...
, and flow alteration. The source of impairment include abandoned mine drainage and resource extraction. The Lackawanna River has a
perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also widel ...
flow. Nevertheless, it experiences low flow conditions during warm weather. The
discharge Discharge may refer to Expel or let go * Discharge, the act of firing a gun * Discharge, or termination of employment, the end of an employee's duration with an employer * Military discharge, the release of a member of the armed forces from ser ...
of the river near Forest City was observed to range from 3904.83 to 69,568.83 gallons per minute, with an average of 35,584.83 gallons per minute. The river's discharge near Archbald ranged from 3976.60 to 323,158.40 gallons per minute, with an average of 97,130.90 gallons per minute. Below the Broadway Street Bridge, it ranged from 34,560 to 586,397 gallons per minute and averaged 222,732.46 gallons per minute. Near Coxton Road, the discharge averaged 266,478 gallons per minute.


Chemical hydrology

In 2002, the concentration of
iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in ...
in the Lackawanna River near Forest City was less than 0.3 milligrams per liter. The
manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of ...
concentration ranged from less than 0.05 to 0.175 milligrams per liter, with an average of 0.1103 milligrams per liter. The concentration of
aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...
ranged from less than 0.5 to 0.692 milligrams per liter, with an average of 0.6255 milligrams per liter. The pH ranged from 6.1 to 7.4 (with an average of 6.7), the acidity concentration ranged from 0 to 10.4 milligrams per liter (with an average of 1.73 milligrams per liter), and the
alkalinity Alkalinity (from ar, القلوي, al-qaly, lit=ashes of the saltwort) is the capacity of water to resist acidification. It should not be confused with basicity, which is an absolute measurement on the pH scale. Alkalinity is the strength ...
concentration ranged from 16.4 to 32 milligrams per liter (with an average of 22.3 milligrams per liter). The
sulfate The sulfate or sulphate ion is a polyatomic anion with the empirical formula . Salts, acid derivatives, and peroxides of sulfate are widely used in industry. Sulfates occur widely in everyday life. Sulfates are salts of sulfuric acid and many ...
concentration ranged from less than 20 to 30.7 milligrams per liter, with an average of 28.4 milligrams per liter. The iron concentration in the Lackawanna River near Archbald ranged from less than 0.3 to 0.794 milligrams per liter, with an average of 0.5 milligrams per liter. The amount of
manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of ...
ranged from less than 0.083 to 0.16 milligrams per liter, with an average of 0.12 milligrams per liter. The amount of
aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...
ranged from 0.4 to 0.742 milligrams per liter, with an average of 0.57 milligrams per liter. The pH ranged between 6.5 and 7.2, with an average of 6.7. The concentration of acidity was 0 milligrams per liter and the
alkalinity Alkalinity (from ar, القلوي, al-qaly, lit=ashes of the saltwort) is the capacity of water to resist acidification. It should not be confused with basicity, which is an absolute measurement on the pH scale. Alkalinity is the strength ...
concentration ranged from 17 to 38 milligrams per liter (with an average of 27.57 milligrams per liter). The
sulfate The sulfate or sulphate ion is a polyatomic anion with the empirical formula . Salts, acid derivatives, and peroxides of sulfate are widely used in industry. Sulfates occur widely in everyday life. Sulfates are salts of sulfuric acid and many ...
concentration ranged from less than 20 to 136 milligrams per liter, with an average of 59.55 milligrams per liter. The amount of iron in the Lackawanna River below the Broadway Street Bridge was typically less than 0.3 milligrams per liter, but once reached 0.348 milligrams per liter. The manganese concentration ranged from less than 0.067 to 0.139 milligrams per liter, with an average of 0.09 milligrams per liter. The aluminum concentration ranged from less than 0.5 to 0.753 milligrams per liter, with an average concentration of 0.63 milligrams per liter. The pH of the river at this point ranged from 6.7 to 7.3 (with an average of 6.95) and the acidity concentration was 0 milligrams per liter. The alkalinity concentration ranged from 19 to 36 milligrams per liter (with an average of 28.17 milligrams per liter). The concentration of
sulfate The sulfate or sulphate ion is a polyatomic anion with the empirical formula . Salts, acid derivatives, and peroxides of sulfate are widely used in industry. Sulfates occur widely in everyday life. Sulfates are salts of sulfuric acid and many ...
ranged from less than 30.5 to 66.8 milligrams per liter, with an average of 46.25 milligrams per liter. The iron concentration in the Lackawanna River near Coxton Road ranged from less than 1.21 to 10.5 milligrams per liter, with an average of 3.98 milligrams per liter. The amount of
manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of ...
ranged from less than 0.199 to 1.35 milligrams per liter, with an average of 0.67 milligrams per liter. The
aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...
concentration ranged from less than 0.5 to 0.664 milligrams per liter. The pH ranged between 6.5 and 6.7, with an average of 6.58. The acidity concentration was typically 0, but once reached 15.4 milligrams per liter. The
alkalinity Alkalinity (from ar, القلوي, al-qaly, lit=ashes of the saltwort) is the capacity of water to resist acidification. It should not be confused with basicity, which is an absolute measurement on the pH scale. Alkalinity is the strength ...
concentration ranged from 24 to 68 milligrams per liter (with an average of 44.37 milligrams per liter). The
sulfate The sulfate or sulphate ion is a polyatomic anion with the empirical formula . Salts, acid derivatives, and peroxides of sulfate are widely used in industry. Sulfates occur widely in everyday life. Sulfates are salts of sulfuric acid and many ...
concentration ranged from 30.2 to 221 milligrams per liter, with an average of 104.78 milligrams per liter. Between the upper Carbondale city line and Green Ridge Street, the concentration of
alkalinity Alkalinity (from ar, القلوي, al-qaly, lit=ashes of the saltwort) is the capacity of water to resist acidification. It should not be confused with basicity, which is an absolute measurement on the pH scale. Alkalinity is the strength ...
in various reaches of the Lackawanna River ranges from 14 to 34 milligrams per liter. The lowest concentration occurs in the reach from the Mellow Park Foot Bridge to Pennsylvania Route 347 and the highest concentration occurs in the reach from Pennsylvania Route 347 to Green Ridge Street.


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 the Lackawanna River 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 standardis ...
. The elevation of the river's source is between above sea level. The river is steep and sometimes narrow. Its average gradient between Forest City and Pittston is . For its first , the river's average gradient is . For the next , the average gradient is . For the final , the gradient of the river averages . In general, the topography of the Lackawanna River watershed consists of long, steep-sided ridges with valleys in between. The
headwaters The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source. Definition The ...
of the river are in a group of glacial ponds and
bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...
s in Susquehanna County and Wayne County, about north of Forest City. The river itself begins at Stillwater Lake, which was built by the
United States Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...
in 1960. For much of its length, the river flows through the Lackawanna Valley, which runs in a northeast-to-southwest direction. Many tributaries flow into the Lackawanna River from West Mountain, the
Moosic Mountains The Moosic Mountains is a mountain range in northeastern Pennsylvania that stretches from Scranton to Mount Pleasant Township, a distance of roughly 32 miles. The high point of the range is in Jefferson Township, at an elevation of above sea ...
, or the Pocono Plateau. The headwaters of the Lackawanna River are in the glaciated plateau physiographic province of the
Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. The ...
. However, the Lackawanna Valley is in the northernmost part of the
ridge and valley The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division and are also a belt within the Appalachian Mountains extending ...
physiographic province. The river also flows through a portion of the
Coal Region The Coal Region is a region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is known for being home to the largest known deposits of anthracite coal in the world with an estimated reserve of seven billion short tons. The region is typically defined as compris ...
. The Lackawanna Valley is part of the Lackawanna/Wyoming Syncline, which is a large
syncline In structural geology, a syncline is a fold with younger layers closer to the center of the structure, whereas an anticline is the inverse of a syncline. A synclinorium (plural synclinoriums or synclinoria) is a large syncline with superimpose ...
in the
Allegheny Front The Allegheny Front is the major southeast- or east-facing escarpment in the Allegheny Mountains in southern Pennsylvania, western Maryland, eastern West Virginia, and western Virginia, USA. The Allegheny Front forms the boundary between the ...
and is the main geological feature of the watershed. The syncline is
canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the ter ...
-shaped, with a length of and a width of . The crests of the
anticline In structural geology, an anticline is a type of fold that is an arch-like shape and has its oldest beds at its core, whereas a syncline is the inverse of an anticline. A typical anticline is convex up in which the hinge or crest is t ...
s on both sides have been eroded away. An escarpment known as Campbells Ledge is located near the river's mouth, where the Susquehanna Valley enters the 55-mile-long Lackawanna/Wyoming Valley. A short distance downstream of the Stillwater Dam, the Lackawanna River flows through the Lackawanna River Gap and passes by the Stillwater Cliffs. Numerous other gaps, such as the Leggetts Creek Gap, Cobbs Gap, the Rushbrook Gap, and the Fall Brook Gap, occur on tributaries of the river. Downstream of Scranton, the river's channel becomes broader and the river becomes shallower. Assorted waste and debris is piled in many places in the Lackawanna River watershed. The waste can sometimes block waterways, causing localized flooding. During storms, minor tributaries also wash large quantities of urban debris and coal waste into the river, degrading it further. In its upper reaches, the Lackawanna River is highly rocky and flows over cobbles. It has virtually continuous
whitewater Whitewater forms in a rapid context, in particular, when a river's gradient changes enough to generate so much turbulence that air is trapped within the water. This forms an unstable current that froths, making the water appear opaque and ...
. There are also a few strainers within this reach of the river, due to its small size. Ledges become more common downstream of Forest City and there is one "distinctly high and nasty" ledge near Simpson. Downstream of Carbondale, the river becomes quieter, though there are still some ledges. A few riffles disrupt the otherwise smooth reach between Interstate 81 and Moosic, though there are many ledges at the latter location. In Scranton, the river flows between stone and concrete retaining walls, as well as high banks of
slag Slag is a by-product of smelting ( pyrometallurgical) ores and used metals. Broadly, it can be classified as ferrous (by-products of processing iron and steel), ferroalloy (by-product of ferroalloy production) or non-ferrous/base metals (by-p ...
. In general, riffles and pools on the river form a "watery stairway". The pools can be as short as a few hundred feet or as long as several thousand feet, with larger ones mainly correlating to broad
floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...
s. Rapids mainly occur in reaches such as Panther Bluff (in Fell Township), the Winson area (in Archbald and Jessup), near Cliff Street (in Scranton), and at the Moosic anticline (in Old Forge). The channel of the Lackawanna River is sinuous and flows through narrow, alluvial floodplains at the base of steep hills. There is a dam on the Lackawanna River at Forest City, and another one at Mayfield. A broken dam is located on the river below Jermyn. The average annual rate of precipitation in the watershed of the Lackawanna River ranges from .


Geology

Deposits of
glacial till image:Geschiebemergel.JPG, Closeup of glacial till. Note that the larger grains (pebbles and gravel) in the till are completely surrounded by the matrix of finer material (silt and sand), and this characteristic, known as ''matrix support'', is d ...
containing
boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In ...
s,
cobbles Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct f ...
,
sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural class ...
, and
gravel Gravel is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally throughout the world as a result of sedimentary and erosive geologic processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone. Gravel is classifi ...
occur in the Lackawanna River watershed. Some of the river's flow comes from recharge from this till, via ponds and wetlands. Some flow also comes from cracks in
sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicat ...
and
shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especiall ...
strata.
Groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and Pore space in soil, soil pore spaces and in the fractures of stratum, rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit ...
flow along the river has been impacted by manmade events in some reaches. In the Lackawanna River watershed, the boundary between the
Llewellyn Formation The Llewellyn Formation is a mapped bedrock unit in eastern Pennsylvania. It was previously known as the "coal measures" and the post- Pottsville rocks. The formation is named for the community of Llewellyn in Schuylkill County.Wood, G.H., Trexle ...
and the Pocono and Pottsville Formations occurs at around above sea level on both sides of the valley. Numerous
waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several ...
s occur on tributaries at this boundary; well-known once include the Nay Aug Falls, the Fall Brook Falls, Blakely Falls, and Panthers Bluff. The main rock formations in the Lackawanna River watershed contain sandstone and shale, with rich coal deposits. For instance, the Llewellyn Formation contains
anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the hig ...
in the watershed, along with sandstone and shale. Under this
rock formation A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term ''rock formation'' can also refer to specific sedime ...
lie the Pottsville Formation, the Pocono Formation, the Mauch Chunk Formation, and the
Catskill Formation The Devonian Catskill Formation or the Catskill Clastic wedge is a unit of mostly terrestrial sedimentary rock found in Pennsylvania and New York. Minor marine layers exist in this thick rock unit (up to ). It is equivalent to the Hampshire Form ...
. The first of these is made of coal, shale, sandstone, and
conglomerate Conglomerate or conglomeration may refer to: * Conglomerate (company) * Conglomerate (geology) * Conglomerate (mathematics) In popular culture: * The Conglomerate (American group), a production crew and musical group founded by Busta Rhymes ** ...
, while the second contains red sandstones and shales. The Pocono Formation contains dense sandstones and conglomerates and occurs in
outcrop An outcrop or rocky outcrop is a visible exposure of bedrock or ancient superficial deposits on the surface of the Earth. Features Outcrops do not cover the majority of the Earth's land surface because in most places the bedrock or superficia ...
s on the Moosic and West Mountains. The Catskill Formation mainly occurs on the fringes of the watershed. A total of 67 percent of the rock in the watershed is
interbedded In geology, interbedding occurs when beds (layers of rock) of a particular lithology lie between or alternate with beds of a different lithology. For example, sedimentary rocks may be interbedded if there were sea level variations in their sedi ...
sedimentary rock Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic particles at Earth's surface, followed by cementation. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause these particles ...
, while the remaining 33 percent is sandstone. The uplands of the Lackawanna River watershed contain poorly drained, rocky
soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ...
s. The rocky floor contains mostly developed, impervious surfaces, but some abandoned mine lands have rapid permeability.


Watershed

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 the Lackawanna River has an area of . The mouth of the river 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 Pittston and the source is in the quadrangle of Forest City. It also passes through the quadrangles of Avoca, Scranton, Olyphant, Carbondale, and Waymart. The watershed occupies parts of Lackawanna County, Susquehanna County, Wayne County, and Luzerne County. Large parts of the Lackawanna River watershedincluding its upper reaches, the Moosic Mountains, West Mountain, and the North Pocono Plateauare largely
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. However, large areas of urban and suburban development occur in the river's valley from Pittston to Carbondale, with some
urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...
reaching as far as halfway from the river to the ridge tops. Abandoned mining land lies between many of the developed areas in this part of the watershed. Such land contains at least of culm banks, overburden piles, silt basins, non-vegetated soil, and degraded waterways. One of the main owners of forested land in the watershed is the
Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), established on July 1, 1995, is the agency in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania responsible for maintaining and preserving the state's 124 state parks and 20 state forests; ...
, which owns the
Lackawanna State Forest Pinchot State Forest is a Pennsylvania State Forest in Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry District #11. The main offices are located in Lackawanna State Park in North Abington Township in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. ...
that straddles the border between the Lackawanna River and
Lehigh River The Lehigh River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in eastern Pennsylvania. The river flows in a generally southward pat ...
watersheds. The
Pennsylvania Game Commission The Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) is the state agency responsible for wildlife conservation and management in Pennsylvania in the United States. It was originally founded years ago and currently utilizes more than 700 full-time employees and ...
also owns more than several thousand acres of Pennsylvania State Game Lands in the watershed. Additionally, there are more than of
wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (Anoxic waters, anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in t ...
s in the watershed and another historically existed. All of the minor tributaries of the river begin in wetlands in the West Mountains or the Moosic Mountains. Riparian wetlands occur along the lower reaches of the river and a feature known as the Duryea Swamp is located in former mining pits at the river's mouth. Forested land is the most common
land use Land use involves the management and modification of natural environment or wilderness into built environment such as settlements and semi-natural habitats such as arable fields, pastures, and managed woods. Land use by humans has a long ...
in the Lackawanna River watershed, making up 58 percent of its land area. Agricultural land occupies 20 percent of the watershed and developed land occupies 16 percent of it. As of the early 2000s, approximately 240,000 people inhabit the Lackawanna River watershed. The population peaked in the 1920s. The early settlers were of English, Irish, Welsh, and German descent, but in the 1880s and 1920s, immigrants from southern and eastern Europe arrived. The population has been in decline since at least
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. The river passes through approximately 20 municipalities. From Gilmartin Street to Depot Street, a distance of , the Lackawanna River is entirely on private property, but is open to access. From the Mellow Park Footbridge downstream to Pennsylvania Route 347, a distance of , 13 percent of the river is on public property and the remaining 87 percent is on private property, but is open to access. From Route 347 downstream to Green Ridge Street, only 1 percent of the river is on public property, but the remaining 99 percent is on private property that is open to the public.
Water supply Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. Th ...
in the urban part of the Lackawanna Valley mainly comes from numerous reservoirs constructed between the 1870s and the 1930s. These reservoirs are mainly owned by the
Pennsylvania American Water Company The Pennsylvania-American Water Company is a utility company in the state of Pennsylvania which provides water and sewage services to more than 2 million people within the state. There are 370 areas served, including the cities of Pittsburgh, Sc ...
, but smaller companies own reservoirs and wells in the watershed as well. One example is a small reservoir in Covington Township, Lackawanna County, which is operated by the Moscow Water Company. The rural parts of the watershed are mainly supplied by private wells.


History and etymology

The Lackawanna River 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 1199891. The river's name comes from a
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...
word meaning "stream that forks". It has also been known as Gachanai, Hazirok, L'chau-hanne, Lackawannok, Lechau-hanne, Lechau-hannek, and Lechauwah-hannek.


Early history

Native Americans have inhabited the area in the vicinity of the Lackawanna River since at least 9000 BCE. An archaeological site at the mouth of the river contains artifacts from 9000 BCE (the Archaic period) to as late as 1400 (the
Woodland period In the classification of archaeological cultures of North America, the Woodland period of North American pre-Columbian cultures spanned a period from roughly 1000 BCE to European contact in the eastern part of North America, with some archaeo ...
). Various rock shelters have been discovered on the ridgelines of the Lackawanna River valley; they were used by migrating
hunter-gatherers A traditional hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living an ancestrally derived lifestyle in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local sources, especially edible wild plants but also insects, fungi, ...
in prehistory. A number of
Lenape The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory inclu ...
gravesites historically existed on the river near what is now Scranton, but were eventually destroyed. According to Horace Hollister's ''History of the Lackawanna Valley'', one of the destroyed graves may have belonged to Capouse, a Lenape chieftain who was visited by Count Zinzandorf, a Moravian missionary, near the river in about 1750. A number of Native American trails historically existed in the vicinity of the Lackawanna River. One of these was the Minisink Trail, which went from the upper
Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, before ...
to the Lackawanna Valley and the Wyoming Valley via
Wallenpaupack Creek Wallenpaupack Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Lackawaxen River in the Pocono Mountains of eastern Pennsylvania in the United State ...
and the Moosic Mountains. This trail was later used by settlers from
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...
, who turned it into a wagon trail the Connecticut Road. Parts of the trail still exist in the form of
jeep trail Jeep trail is a term originating in the United States to designate unpaved roads designed and maintained for use solely by high-clearance four-wheel drive (4WD) vehicles, regardless of the vehicle manufacturer. Only the more difficult unpaved roads ...
s. The first European settlers arrived in the vicinity of the Lackawanna River between the 1760s and the 1780s from Connecticut and
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
. Land claim disputes led to several skirmishes between the settlers and Pennsylvania settlers; these disputes were known as the Yankee-Pennamite Wars.


1800s and 1900s

For a time after the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
, the main industry in the Lackawanna River watershed was
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
, though economic development was difficult to the mountainous terrain between the river and the coast. After the
War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It be ...
, entrepreneurs began to take an interest in the coal reserves in the watershed. Coal was being mined near the tributary Racket Brook as early as 1820. By the 1820s, the Wurts Brothers had formed the Delaware and Hudson Coal Company to mine coal in the upper Lackawanna Valley and ship it to ports in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
. Due to the difficulties associated with building a canal over the Moosic Mountains, the company instead constructed a gravity railroad to transport the coal to the D&H Canal and on to the
Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between Ne ...
. In the 1840s the D&H Company expanded their mining work further down the Lackawanna Valley, causing many towns in the area to enlarge. Coal mining was eventually done along the center of the Lackawanna Valley all the way from Pittston to Forest City. In 1838, the Scranton and Platt
iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in ...
workers build an iron works near the confluence of Roaring Brook with the Lackawanna River. The iron works eventually grew and became the city of Scranton. The iron and
steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistan ...
industry in Scranton ended in 1902. Additionally, virtually all of the
old-growth forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological feature ...
in the watershed was cut down in the 1800s. In 1852, the Scranton Brothers and other people developed the
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (also known as the DL&W or Lackawanna Railroad) was a U.S. Class 1 railroad that connected Buffalo, New York, and Hoboken, New Jersey (and by ferry with New York City), a distance of . Incorporated in ...
, providing another route to the Lackawanna River watershed and contributing to the valley's development. The
Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad The Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad is a defunct railroad that operated in eastern Pennsylvania during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The company was a subsidiary of the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (LC&N), but for much of its lifetim ...
also went into the watershed, and the
Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the northeastern United States, originally connecting New York City — more specifically Jersey City, New Jersey, where Erie's Pavonia Terminal, long demolished, used to stand — with Lake ...
had a number of routes into it. These included the Erie and Wyoming Valley Railroad, which followed Roaring Brook, and the Jefferson Branch, which entered the river's watershed at Ararat Summit. The
New York, Ontario and Western Railway The New York, Ontario and Western Railway, more commonly known as the O&W or NYO&W, was a regional railroad with origins in 1868, lasting until March 29, 1957 (the last train ran from Norwich to Middletown, NY on this date), after which it was or ...
, which was developed in 1890, was the last railroad to enter the watershed. It followed the river from Scranton to Union Dale before leaving the river's drainage basin via the East Branch Lackawanna River watershed. In the 20th century, the anthracite industry remained the largest industry in the Lackawanna River region, though there was also a
silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from th ...
and
textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, different #Fabric, fabric types, etc. At f ...
industry. Additionally, agriculture remained a significant industry in the watershed into the early 20th century. However, the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
of the 1930s caused a decline in mining activity. Mine pumping in the watershed ceased by 1961 and
underground mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic v ...
in the watershed ended on November 1, 1966, with the closing of the Continental Mine. Nevertheless, a small amount of strip mining and re-mining of previously mined sites has been done since the 1960s. By this point, the valley's railroad system was shrinking due to decreased coal shipments. A gauging station was established on the Lackawanna River at Scranton in July 1908, but was discontinued in July 1913. Another gauging station was set up at Moosic in August 1913.


Modern history

Flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...
ing events occurred on the Lackawanna River in 1902, 1922, 1936, 1942, 1954, 1955, 1972, 1985, and 1996, causing millions of dollars in property damage. Flood control dams such as the Stillwater Dam and the Aylesworth Dam were built in the watershed in 1960 and 1970, respectively. A number of
levee A levee (), dike (American English), dyke (Commonwealth English), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is a structure that is usually earthen and that often runs parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastli ...
s and
floodwall A flood wall (or floodwall) is a primarily vertical artificial barrier designed to temporarily contain the waters of a river or other waterway which may rise to unusual levels during seasonal or extreme weather events. Flood walls are mainly ...
s were also erected in response to the floods. A number of investor-owned water companies were developed in the Lackawanna River watershed in the 1880s. These merged into the Spring Brook Water Company at Scranton in 1928. The Spring Brook Water Company became the Pennsylvania Gas and Water Company in 1960 and remained under this name until 1996. Eventually the Pennsylvania Gas and Water Company lands were sold to the Pennsylvania American Water Company. The effect of coal mining on
water quality Water quality refers to the chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of water based on the standards of its usage. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which compliance, generally achieved through tr ...
in the Lackawanna River watershed was known as early as 1904. One early plan for recovering from the effects of coal mining in the watershed was the Scranton Plan of 1942. A large number of studies of the Lackawanna River's water quality and habitat quality have been carried out. The Lackawanna River Corridor Association was founded in 1987 for the restoration and stewardship of the river. They created the Lackawanna River Citizens Master Plan between 1988 and 1990 and have also carried out stream walks and stream surveys on the river and its tributaries. In 1992 and 1993, the United States Army Corps of Engineers funded a study of the river's greenway. The study was carried out by the Corps of Engineers, as well as the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...
, the
Heritage Authority Heritage may refer to: History and society * A heritage asset is a preexisting thing of value today ** Cultural heritage is created by humans ** Natural heritage is not * Heritage language Biology * Heredity, biological inheritance of physica ...
, and the Lackawanna River Corridor Association. The Lackawanna River Watershed 2000 program was funded by the
United States Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it ...
with the aim of alleviating problems from combined sewer overflows, acid mine drainage, and abandoned mine land. As of the early 2000s, there are still 12 active mining operations in the Lackawanna River watershed. Only one has an NPDES permit.


Biology

The upper reaches of the Lackawanna River watershed are a habitat of national significance. Several important natural areas occur in the watershed's upper reaches.


Animals

The
main stem In hydrology, a mainstem (or trunk) is "the primary downstream segment of a river, as contrasted to its tributaries". Water enters the mainstem from the river's drainage basin, the land area through which the mainstem and its tributaries flow. ...
of the Lackawanna River is designated as a High-Quality Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery from the confluence of the East Branch Lackawanna River and the West Branch Lackawanna River to the Pennsylvania Route 347 bridge at Dickson City. From this point downriver to its mouth, the river is designated as a Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery. Wild
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-salm ...
naturally reproduce in the river from its headwaters downstream to the Lackawanna County/Luzerne County
line Line most often refers to: * Line (geometry), object with zero thickness and curvature that stretches to infinity * Telephone line, a single-user circuit on a telephone communication system Line, lines, The Line, or LINE may also refer to: Art ...
, a distance of . Five sections of the river are designated by the
Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is an independent state agency responsible for the regulation of all fishing and boating in the state of Pennsylvania within the United States of America. Unlike many U.S. states, Pennsylvania has a sepa ...
as Class A Wild Trout Waters for
brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morp ...
. The sections are adjacent to each other and run from the upper Carbondale city line downstream to Green Ridge Street, a distance of . Both
brook trout The brook trout (''Salvelinus fontinalis'') is a species of freshwater fish in the char genus ''Salvelinus'' of the salmon family Salmonidae. It is native to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada, but has been introduced elsewhere ...
and brown trout inhabit the river, but only the former are native. In addition to trout, smallmouth bass, sunfish,
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 ...
, suckers,
crappie Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers. Etymology The genus name ''Pomoxis' ...
s, darters, and dace have been observed in the river. The fishery was nearly destroyed by 150 years of
anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the hig ...
mining, but has recovered since the 1970s. The Lackawanna River was historically a "vibrant" brook trout fishery.
Shad The Alosinae, or the shads,Alosinae
anadromous fish. There is anecdotal evidence that the river was able to function as a trout fishery in the early 1900s, though the habitat had experienced significant degradation by then. Recovery began in the once the coal mining industry had ended in the 1960s and 1970s, and continued into the 1980s and 1990s due to the efforts of local groups and fishing clubs. A number of
waterfowl Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which ...
species are common in the watershed of the Lackawanna River. The most common
duck Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form ...
species are black ducks, mallard ducks, and
wood duck The wood duck or Carolina duck (''Aix sponsa'') is a species of perching duck found in North America. The drake wood duck is one of the most colorful North American waterfowl. Description The wood duck is a medium-sized perching duck. A ty ...
s. Other birds in the watershed include
belted kingfisher The belted kingfisher (''Megaceryle alcyon'') is a large, conspicuous water kingfisher, native to North America. All kingfishers were formerly placed in one family, Alcedinidae, but recent research suggests that this should be divided into three ...
s,
great blue heron The great blue heron (''Ardea herodias'') is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North America and Central America, as well as the Caribbean and the Galápagos I ...
s, and green backed herons. Birds of prey that have been observed in the area include
osprey The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...
s,
barred owl The barred owl (''Strix varia''), also known as the northern barred owl, striped owl or, more informally, hoot owl, is a North American large species of owl. A member of the true owl family, Strigidae, they belong to the genus '' Strix'', whic ...
s, coopers hawk,
red tailed hawk The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members with ...
, and sharp skinned hawk.
Amphibian Amphibians are four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terrestrial, fossorial, arbo ...
s such as
spotted salamander The spotted salamander or yellow-spotted salamander (''Ambystoma maculatum'') is a mole salamander common in eastern United States and Canada. The spotted salamander is the state amphibian of Ohio and South Carolina. This salamander ranges from N ...
s and green frogs inhabit the watershed, as do reptiles such as
rattlesnake Rattlesnakes are venomous snakes that form the genera ''Crotalus'' and ''Sistrurus'' of the subfamily Crotalinae (the pit vipers). All rattlesnakes are vipers. Rattlesnakes are predators that live in a wide array of habitats, hunting small an ...
s and
snapping turtle The Chelydridae is a family of turtles that has seven extinct and two extant genera. The extant genera are the snapping turtles, ''Chelydra'' and ''Macrochelys''. Both are endemic to the Western Hemisphere. The extinct genera are ''Acheronte ...
s. Various other fauna, including a number of game animals, inhabit the Lackawanna River watershed. Common mammals include
beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers a ...
s, black bears, foxes,
mink Mink are dark-colored, semiaquatic, carnivorous mammals of the genera '' Neogale'' and '' Mustela'' and part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, otters, and ferrets. There are two extant species referred to as "mink": ...
s,
muskrat The muskrat (''Ondatra zibethicus'') is a medium-sized semiaquatic rodent native to North America and an introduced species in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands over a wide range of climates and habita ...
s,
raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
s, and
white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...
. A few river otters are occasionally observed in the river. Substantial reaches of the Lackawanna River have a healthy and diverse macroinvertebrate population.


Plants

Successional forest cover and forested wetlands occur in the upper reaches of the Lackawanna River watershed. Even in more urban parts, the river and many of its major tributaries have substantial riparian buffers. However, the riparian buffer is less substantial below Scranton. The watershed contains a temperate mixed forest with a high level of biodiversity. In the south, there are oak and chestnut trees, while in the north, the forests contain maple, ash tree, ash, and hickory. However, the elevations and soils in the watershed also allow several arctic and boreal species to grow in the watershed. Appalachian heath barrens occur on the Moosic Mountains and West Mountains, with communities of scrub oak and pitch pine give way to sedges and lichens. Boreal plants such as tamarack, black spruce, and paper birch inhabit wetlands in the watershed's upper reaches, as well as wetlands in the watersheds of Roaring Brook and Spring Brook. Pitcher plants, lady's slipper, rhododendron, huckleberry, Kalmia latifolia, mountain laurel, and leatherleaf also occur in these wetlands. Virtually all of the
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' ...
s in the Lackawanna River watershed are second-growth forests or third-growth forests. As of the early 2000s, 88 percent of the river's riparian buffer is intact or recovering. The stretches that lack any riparian buffering are most commonly on flood control levees in Dickson City, Duryea, Mayfield, and north Scranton. Property encroachments, coal dumps, and historic buildings in Archbald, Carbondale, Olyphant, and Scranton also detract from the river's riparian buffer.


Recreation

There are numerous recreational facilities in the Lackawanna River watershed. These include state parks, state game lands, county and municipal parks, golf courses, Montage Mountain Amphitheatre, Montage Mountain, and others. Since the 1980s, the Lackawanna River has developed into a well-known "outstanding Class-A coldwater fishery". The river is also a
fly fishing Fly fishing is an angling method that uses a light-weight fishing lure, lure—called an artificial fly—to catch fish. The fly is Casting (fishing), cast using a fly rod, Fishing reel#Fly reel, reel, and specialized Fly line, weighted line. T ...
destination. It has Trophy Trout regulations from Blakely Corners to White Oak Run, forbidding live bait except in limited circumstances. About of the Lackawanna River are navigable by
canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the ter ...
during snowmelt and within three to seven days of hard rain. It is typically navigable when the United States Geological Survey gauge at Archbald reads over , though navigation becomes difficult when the gauge height is over . However, even in the summer, when the gauge height is often , a few pool reaches in Dickson City and Scranton are still navigable. The difficulty rating of the river from Stillwater Lake to Carbondale ranges from 1 to 3. From Carbondale to the river's mouth, the difficulty rating is mostly 1, but there is one class-4 rapid formed by a complex ledge system at Moosic. The scenery above Carbondale is described as "good to poor" in Edward Gertler's book ''Keystone Canoeing''. The scenery below Carbondale is "fair to poor". However, Gertler also described the area as "a place that most of us associate with ugliness, with a capital U". A few of the larger tributaries are also seasonally navigable by canoe or kayak. The Lackawanna River Canoe-a-thon has been conducted on the Lackawanna River annually since 1973. It was originally hosted by the Luzerne–Lackawanna Environmental Council and the Jaycees, but the Lackawanna River Corridor Association took over the role in 1988. The race was postponed once due to flooding and cancelled once due to drought. A land sale of land in the Lackawanna River watershed to the private Theta Corporation generated some controversy. The sale caused many previously-use hunting lands to become restricted. However, the Theta Corporation and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission announced a cooperation to permit hunting on the lands was announced in 2001. At that point, the Theta Corporation owned of land in the watershed, including large tracts in the Spring Brook and Roaring Brook sub-watersheds.


See also

*Abrahams Creek, next tributary of the Susquehanna River going downriver *Hicks Creek (Susquehanna River), next tributary of the Susquehanna River going upriver *List of rivers of Pennsylvania *List of tributaries of the Lackawanna River


References


External links


U.S. Geological Survey: PA stream gaging stationsLackawanna River Corridor Association
{{authority control American Heritage Rivers Rivers of Pennsylvania Tributaries of the Susquehanna River Rivers of Wayne County, Pennsylvania Rivers of Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania Rivers of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania Rivers of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Lackawanna Heritage Valley