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Lackawanna River Watershed Lackawanna County Prepared By:Lackawanna County Regional Planning Commission Walter B. Satterthwaite & Associates, Inc. (West Chester, PA) September, 1991 -Covers an area of approximately 348 square miles, encompassing 51 municipalities (33) municipalities lie within Lackawanna County
( 7) municipalities lie within Luzerne County
( 6) municipalities lie within Susquehanna County
( 5) municipalities lie within Wayne County
-The watershed is characterized by urban/suburban development in what is referred to as the "Valley" area (This concentration of development generally runs southwest to northeast from Pittston to Forest City with the most densely populated area centered around the City of Scranton -The southeastern portion of the watershed -- the area generally drained by the Roaring Brook and locally referred to as the North Pocono Region -- is characterized by steep slopes of forest cover with spotted residential and agricultural land-use areas -The headwater area of the watershed -- the area north of Forest City -- is also characterized by steep, forested slopes with small, scattered agricultural areas -The topographic features that stand out the most in the Lackawanna River Watershed are the 2 nearly parallel mountain ranges that traverse the watershed in a southwest to northeast direction, thereby forming the area known as the Lackawanna Valley -Each of these ranges reach an average height of 2,000 feet above sea level with 20 % or greater slopes, while the valley floor ranges in elevation from 600 feet in the southwestern section to 1,500 feet in the northeastern part -The width of the valley area is greatest at the southern end and gradually narrows as you travel northward to Carbondale and Forest City -Beyond the eastern ridge, that area drained by the Roaring Brook, the topography is that of rolling hills, with elevations ranging from 1,300 to 2,200 feet above sea level -The Lackawanna River begins as 2 branches in northern Wayne and northeastern Susquehanna counties -The West Branch begins at Ball and Romobe Lakes in Ararat Township, Susquehanna County at an elevation of 1,950 feet -The East Branch has its origin at Bone Pond in Preston Township, Wayne County at an elevation of 2,045 feet above sea level -The 2 branches converge at Stillwater Lake in Union Dale Borough, Susquehanna County -- the man-made lake created by the Stillwater Dam (elevation-1,572 feet above sea level) -- from there the river flows southwesterly through the urbanized Lackawanna Valley to its confluence with the Susquehanna River in Pittston City, Luzerne County, at an elevation of 540 feet above sea level Floodplain Information -Floodplains exist along the low-lying areas of the Lackawanna River and along the various streams and creeks -- These area experience significant flood damage during heavy rain events -Development in the various floodplains throughout the Lackawanna River Watershed was begun by the Indians and early settlers of the Lackawanna River Valley area -The relatively flat and agriculturally-friendly soils located along the river and stream valleys made these areas attractive -Despite possible flood hazards people settled and cultivated these areas and in turn attracted businesses and manufacturers to do the same -- over the years, development has branched off and expanded outward from the originally settled areas -Urban expansion, culm piles, and strip mining activities have strongly altered large portions of the watershed’s floodplains -Areas such as the Olyphant Flats and Plot Section of Scranton are 2 prime examples of floodplain development -These areas are densely populated and because of their close proximity to the Lackawanna River, feel the brunt of its flooding -Development of the hillside areas along the floodplains has further increased water run-off potentials -Where development was previously non-existent, homes and businesses now stand -An outmigration of people from the City and Valley communities to the outlying areas of the watershed has further intensified stormwater runoff -Other areas, including Leggetts and Keyser Creeks, are also flood prone -Commercial and residential developments along these 2 creeks have altered both the land and creek patterns, resulting in a higher frequency of flooding as well as flood damage -Existing development along the floodplain of the Lackawanna River from Forest City south to the river’s confluence with the Susquehanna at Pittston is characteristic of an urban /suburban area, with a mix of various densities of residential areas, commercial districts, and some industrial and recreational sites -The river’s floodplain above Forest City is undeveloped open space or consists primarily of agricultural development -Existing development along the river’s tributaries varies greatly -- The tributary floodplains within the urbanized "valley" area consists of development similar to that of the river itself, while the outlying floodplains are basically open space, agricultural, or low-density residential areas -Scattered undeveloped and previous "coal wasteland" areas within the floodplain of the Lackawanna River are continuously being transformed into developable land for various uses, mainly commercial and industrial uses, as well as some recreational developments -A review of development plans submitted to the county planning agencies within the last few years, indicates that NO major developments are outside the "valley" or on the hillsides above the floodplains -There is a potential for development along the floodplains outside the "valley" area -Existing floodplain and floodway regulations play a major role in controlling the future development in those damage-sensitive areas -For the purpose of the Lackawanna River Stormwater Management Plan, the damage potential of existing and future floodplain development will be minimized using the following principles: 1. Damage potential of existing floodplain development will remain unchanged for storm events representing the 2-year through 100-year return period events through implementation of the stormwater management criteria included in the Stormwater Management Plan for the Lackawanna River Watershed 2. Damage potential for future floodplain development will be minimized by only permitting specific types of development which are damage resistant consistent with the Floodplain Management Act as implemented through municipal floodplain regulations and the Department of Environmental Resources Chapter 105 - Dam Safety and Waterway Management Regulations and Chapter 106 - Floodplain Management Regulations 3. Damage potential of existing and future floodplain development may be reduced with implementation of remedial measures for areas subject to inundation -- The effectiveness and design life of any remedial measures would be enhanced by implementation of the stormwater management plan -Water obstructions were identified through the municipal questionnaire process and by the county planning commission --They were considered as "points of interest" for the hydrologic modeling efforts -A total of 67 obstructions were identified, 24 of these were determined to be significant, rendering individual attention in terms of model input and structure performance Flood Control Projects -The federal government, through the US Army Corps of Engineers, has undertaken and completed 4 major flood control projects along the Lackawanna River -- The largest being Stillwater Dam in Clifford Township, Susquehanna County, below the junction of the East and West Branches of the Lackawanna River (This earthen dam was designed to control river flooding in the Upper Valley communities, as far south as Archbald -- The other projects along the river include the Mayfield Flood Control Project, South Scranton Flood Control Project, and Duryea Flood Control Project, all consisting of levees along the river in their respective communities to prevent flooding of the low lying areas. -In addition to the projects undertaken along the river itself, the federal government has also completed 3 major projects along tributaries of the river 1. A dam has been built on Hulls Creek above the town of Blakely, and levees have been constructed along the creek where it winds its way through the populated areas of the borough 2. The construction of Aylesworth Dam, on Aylesworth Creek in the northern section of Archbald Borough, not only has curtailed flooding events downstream, but has created a large lake with the surrounding area converted into a recreational park for swimming and picnicking 3. A system of levees has also been constructed along Spring Brook in Moosic Borough to alleviate flooding in that immediate area -Additional federal flood control projects have been proposed for the Lackawanna River in the Olyphant/Blakely area, and in the Albright Avenue and Plot Sections of North Scranton -- Channel dredging and the construction of levees are anticipated to prevent the inundation of those flood prone areas of the watershed -Stormwater Collection Facilities can be found in the municipalities along the Lackawanna river from Pittston in the south to Forest City in the north -- Other portions of the Watershed that contain stormwater collection facilities are the Clarks Summit/Abington and Moscow areas -Typically, stormwater collection facilities would be constructed as either a part of a major subdivision and/or land development project or as remedial measures as part of municipal capital or maintenance programs on an "as needed" basis (as needed, refers to the severity of the drainage problem and the public support or outcry for an improvement) -Stormwater Management Facilities on a watershed level are, for the most part, are non existent within the Lackawanna River Watershed -- Some on site facilities have been constructed to handle stormwater runoff from individual developments -- The majority of the developments within the watershed voluntarily provide for detention/retention basins, but others only have provided storm sewer systems to direct the runoff off site with little or no concern for downflow problems that may occur from increased runoff Storm Drainage Problem Areas -Major commercial area flooding within the watershed occurs along Routes 6 and 11 in South Abington Township, where development upstream of Leggetts Creek has drastically increased the runoff --Inadequately sized culverts, and underground channelization of the stream through the commercial area is now impeding flow during large rain events, sending the creek over its natural channel and onto the roadway and parking lots -Other recurring stormwater related problems in commercial areas were reported in Scranton City, and the boroughs of Archbald, Dunmore, Mayfield, Olyphant, and Forest City -Industrial areas with drainage problems were documented in Archbald, Mayfield, and Olyphant Boroughs |