Trout enthusiast encourages AWA in land buy

Watershed purchase could help make streams viable for fish

The Beaverdam and Franks­town branches of the Juniata River have the potential to be­come first-class wild trout streams if the Altoona Water Authority follows through on plans to buy a large piece of the Kittanning Run watershed and then clean up the acid mine drainage pollution that seeps from the site, a local trout enthusiast told the board.

Kittanning Run supports virtually no life, but drains into the Beaverdam Branch, which sustains a marginal wild trout population and which in turn drains into the Frankstown Branch, where there's a better-than-marginal -- and growing -- population of wild trout, according to Bill Anderson, president of the Little Juniata River Association.

The small critters the trout eat can't live in the orange-hued water of Kittanning Run because of the acidity and heavy metals like aluminum, lead and iron contained in the mine drainage, which is also harmful to trout, Anderson said.

The authority hopes to buy about 2,000 acres of Kittanning watershed from Cooney Bros. Coal Co., and last month voted to hire a consultant to seek funds for the purchase.

Owning the land above the Horseshoe Curve would facilitate the creation of passive treatment systems like those that have cleaned up nearby Glen White Run.

Glen White flows down the hollow, south of the apex of the Curve, and drains into the authority's three-reservoir complex there, while Kittanning Run flows down the hollow on the north side of the apex, but bypasses the reservoirs in a rock-lined channel followed by a tunnel, so the authority can avoid the difficulty and expense of processing the water.

If the authority can install passive treatment ponds at Kittanning Run, it could add to its reserves, increasing the safety margin in case of drought.

When he toured the Kittanning Run watershed a couple of months ago, Anderson saw "orange slimy water" flowing from five or six acid mine drainage sites, he said.

"Nasty," Anderson said.

The LJRA appreciates the authority's recent sewer plant renovations, which have reduced the amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus discharged into streams, including the Little Juniata River -- already a first-class wild trout stream -- to which the Easterly plant sends its effluent, Anderson said.

Only a few weeks ago, with temperatures in the low 20s, Anderson and a friend caught 25 wild trout in the "Little J" between the Lower Riggles Gap Road bridge and the Easterly outfall, he said.

"Our efforts are meaningless if not for your diligence," Anderson said.

"I commend you for the work you and the association do," said board member Marla Marcinko.