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WHIP Improves Aquatic Habitat in Abram Creek
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West Virginia State Conservationist, Kevin Wickey (third from left)
joined Governor Joe Manchin III and other partners announcing the Abram
Creek Restoration project on April 19, 2008. |
Abram Creek, part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed in Grant County, is being
restored. Acid mine drainage from previous mining activities in the area has
resulted in the loss of aquatic life in Abram Creek and many of its tributaries.
The goal of the project is to improve water quality, restoring aquatic life and
recreational fisheries in more than six miles of tributary streams, and more
than 18 miles of Abram Creek.
In 2006, NRCS provided $60,000 through WHIP to improve aquatic habitat. An
annual instream application of limestone sand will help neutralize the effects
of acid mine drainage. Limestone will be placed in the tributaries to be
naturally dispersed into the streams by rain or rising water levels. The benefit
accrual from limestone fines application begins immediately.
Restoration of the watershed will be achieved by ongoing neutralization of the
acid content in the water by using limestone dosers, which are structures placed
alongside a waterway that release limestone into the water increasing the pH
level. The project is a cooperative effort─Federal and state agencies, as well
as private entities have worked together to make this stream restoration
possible.
As water quality improves, Abram Creek is expected to provide a diverse trout
fishery, with opportunities for native brook trout expansion in the headwaters.
Abram Creek was prioritized by the multi-state North Branch Potomac River Task
Force and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as the most significant West Virginia
contributor of acid water to the North Branch of the Potomac.
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