The Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC) is a federal-interstate compact commission created by the Susquehanna River Basin Compact (Pub. L. 91-575) between three U.S states: (

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, ...

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 * '' ...

, and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...

), and the federal government, and signed into law by President Richard Nixon on Christmas Eve 1970 to be effective 30 days later on January 23, 1971.

The Compact

In the late 1960s, a broad group of concerned citizens saw the need for a federal-interstate coordinating agency to lead the conservation, development, and administration of the Basin's resources that would preserve and enhance its value as a scenic and recreational asset for the people who live in the Basin. The need to coordinate these efforts, along with those of three states and the agencies of the federal government, led to the drafting of th
Susquehanna River Basin Compact
which was signed into law on December 24, 1970. The Compact, as adopted by the Congress of the United States, and the legislatures of New York State, Pennsylvania, and Maryland, provides the mechanism to guide water resource management of the Susquehanna River Basin.

Membership

State membership on the Commission includes the governors of the three participating states or their designees. Under Pub. L. 110-114, the federal member is ''ex officio'' the Commander, North Atlantic Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The members appoint alternate members to serve in their place. As of August 2018, Major General Jeffrey L. Milhorn is the federal member of the Commission. Secretary Ben Grumbles is the member from Maryland and Basil Seggos is the member from New York. Secretary Patrick McDonnell is the member from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Major General Jeffrey L. Milhorn also serves as the United States Member of the Delaware River Basin Commission under the authority of Pub. L. 110-114. The Commission's appointed members do periodically change.
Here is the most current member list.

Purpose and Activities

The purpose of the SRBC is to manage the water resources 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 ...

under comprehensive planning principles through its own programs and by coordinating the efforts of the three states and the federal government. These program efforts include implementation of structural and non-structural flood mitigation projects, regulation of water withdrawals and consumptive use, allocation of water resources among the member states, restoration and preservation of

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, ...

and

wetlands 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) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...

, protection of future

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 ...

(including availability of flows into the

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 / ...

), and protection of

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 ...

. Commission staff develops and implements the programs as directed by the commissioners and as found in Commission's comprehensive plan. The six priority management areas of th
Comprehensive Plan
are listed below, along with desired results. Sustainable Water Development: To regulate and plan for water resources development in a manner that maintains economic viability, protects instream users, and ensures ecological diversity; and meets immediate and future needs of the people of the basin for domestic, municipal, commercial, agricultural and industrial water supply and recreational activities. Water Quality: To support the existing and designated uses of all water bodies by achieving water quality that meets or exceeds standards. Flooding: To prevent loss of life and significantly reduce future damages from floods within the Basin through an integrated system of structural and nonstructural flood damage reduction measures. Ecosystems: To achieve healthy ecosystems that provide groundwater and surface water of sufficient quality and in adequate supply to support abundant and diverse populations of aquatic, riparian, and terrestrial organisms, as well as human use. Chesapeake Bay: To manage the water resources of the Susquehanna River Basin to assist in restoring and maintaining the Chesapeake Bay so it meets or exceeds applicable water quality standards and supports healthy populations of living resources, including oysters, crabs, fish, waterfowl, shore birds, and underwater grasses. Coordination, Cooperation and Public Information: To maximize available human resources and achieve common and complementary management objectives by the Commission, its member jurisdictions and others; to promote the planning and management of the basin's water resources in the most efficient manner possible; to inform the public on the Commission's water management responsibilities; and to enhance the public's access to Commission information and in commenting on Commission activities.

Program Areas

The Commission completes much of its work throug
four program areas
These programs include:
Project Review
– the permitting arm of the Commission's regulatory program, the Project Review team receives and reviews applications for water withdrawals and consumptive water use, makes recommendations to the commissioners for actions on those applications, and helps to develop key standards guiding how, when and where the Commission's policies and regulations are exercised.

– the enforcement arm of the Commission's regulatory program, the Compliance Program works to ensure that water related projects have the appropriate approvals and operate within the constraints of those approvals. Site inspections, quarterly reporting requirements, and an extensive project database are some of the essential tools used by the program.
Monitoring & Protection
- Monitoring and Protection scientists collect data to better understand the interactions of biological, chemical, and physical traits of streams throughout the Basin. These activities include water quality monitoring/sampling for macroinvertebrates & fish, stormwater, nutrient and sediment loadings, and abandoned mine drainage. Key protection efforts include operation of systems that provide real-time monitoring in sensitive watersheds and in the vicinity of drinking water supplies, establishing Total Maximum Daily Load criteria, assessing risks to drinking water sources, and characterizing the cause and extent of impairment to Basin waterways.
Planning & Operations
– Planning and Operations provides technical support to the other programs and is tasked with assessing the nature and quantity of water use in the Basin. The Planning and Operations team also leads coordination efforts to help ensure that Basin agencies and residents are prepared to withstand and react to flooding and drought conditions.

Controversy

In 2012 the Commission attracted protests by approving the extraction of water for use in

fracking Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of bedrock formations by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the high-pressure injection of "frac ...

, an activity whose opponents claim causes earthquakes, creates ground-water pollution and contributes to

global warming In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...

. This water extraction involved the sale of a mobile home park by the owner to

Aqua America Essential Utilities (formerly Aqua America and Peoples Natural Gas) is an American utility company that has stakes in Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia The company provides drinking wate ...

who had gotten permission from the Commission to withdraw up to 3 million gallons of water per day from the Susquehanna at that site. Aqua America then evicted the occupants so as to build a pumping station on the site, attracting further protests from the residents of the site and their supporters. The sale of the property, not the Commission approval, triggered the eviction due to a local ordinance about operating the mobile home park in a floodplain. http://articles.philly.com/2012-04-18/business/31361933_1_fracking-trailer-park-anti-drilling

References

External links

*
Susquehanna River Basin Commission
in the

Federal Register The ''Federal Register'' (FR or sometimes Fed. Reg.) is the official journal of the federal government of the United States that contains government agency rules, proposed rules, and public notices. It is published every weekday, except on fede ...

SRBC's listing at the Maryland State Archives
{{Authority control United States interstate agencies Susquehanna River Government agencies established in 1970 Water management authorities in the United States United States interstate compacts Maryland law New York (state) law Pennsylvania law