Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited Tertiary Treatment

September 3 : Video presentation entitled: "The Underwater World of Trout -- Feeding Lies". This is a 60-minute DVD of spectacular underwater filming of trout on a small stream done by Wendell "Ozzie" Ozefovich. Everyone who has seen this recently released video has concluded it is very enlightening; it should improve your fishing as well as educate you.

October 1: Pat Moffitt, "Steelhead Fishing with the Moffitt System -- How to Fish the Moffitt System for Great Lakes Steelhead Including Tips and Techniques". Pat will also describe how to locate overlooked "micro-holding areas" in hard pressured rivers.

Editor's Note: Further information about this decision is included in the June Minutes of the board of directors and in Attachment A of those minutes.

The Spring Creek Canyon Master Plan process was initiated by Benner Township and the Pa. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. The consulting firm, Environmental Planning and Design, LLC was contracted to guide the process. Additionally a Steering Advisory Committee, a Technical Advisory Committee, and a Public Advisory Committee provided substantial input to the Plan.

The committee members included the Pennsylvania State University, Benner Township, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, the Rockview Correctional Institute, various professional technicians, and representatives from each of the Spring Creek Watershed municipalities. Two public meetings were held to allow the citizens of the local area to express their views and evaluate the progress.

The Master Plan is not a perfect plan. The plan reflects the results of the planning process and has been found acceptable by the project sponsors. It represents a substantial body of information, advice and recommendations that will be used by the future owners of the property as they implement the provisions of the plan.

The plan evolved into a Conservation Strategy that includes a series of Goals, Objectives and Principles. The Goals include preservation of the property’s unique natural resources and the integrity of Spring Creek.

Through the master planning process these Goals were expanded to reflect significant aspects of the property including historic and pre-historic cultural resources and opportunities for conservation oriented research, and education. The Objectives and Principles included the protection of the site’s natural and cultural resources, the balance of recreation opportunities within the sites capacity, and the coordination of public and private access.

The Conservation Strategy provides a Master plan, a Management Plan and requirements for a Conservation Easement to be agreed upon by the future property owners. The Master Plan provides 27 detailed recommendations including site activities, capital projects, policies and additional needed assessments. Also included are Conservation Values that include specific assessments and recommendations related to natural resource ecosystem functions, aquatic and terrestrial habitats, flora and fauna and open space. Also included are guidelines and requirements for management of the Spring Creek Canyon that compliment the Conservation Values.

The provisions contained in the Conservation Strategy are to be specifically referenced into the Conservation Easement document which is now being prepared by The ClearWater Conservancy and the Pa. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. It is expected that the actual transfer of land will not occur until all parties to the Agreement have agreed to terms and conditions.

The Master Plan provides a legal basis or blueprint upon which to prepare the legislation to transfer the property. The Master Plan becomes the key to the land transfer process.

In conclusion, the Spring Creek Canyon Master Plan, now referred to as the Conservation Strategy, is supported by the Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited. It is our belief the plan represents a reasonable solution among the various alternative strategies that were advanced during the planning process.

THANKS TO THE VOLUNTEERS AT THE FIRST CAST FLY FISHING CAMP

            "I want to express my thanks to the volunteers who help us at this year's First Cast Fly Fishing Camp. There were 12 volunteers who provided at total of 228 hours of assistance.
            It is your help that makes this camp run smoothly and your efforts are greatly appreciated by me and the staff at the Millbrook Marsh Nature Centre.
            Thanks to Rick Van Horn, Ed Jeffries, Judi Sitler, Dick Stevenson, Dick Leah, Dan Kerstetter, Bill Palmer, Marl Pancek, Bob Carline, Paul Leah, and of course Mike Lyle, our lead instructor."

Board Members present: President Bill Brusse, Judi Sittler, Rick Van Horn, George Moellenbrock, Allen Phillips, Cliff Wurster, Jay Lynch, Bob Donaldson and Bob Eberhart.

Approval of Minutes: The draft minutes of the meeting of May 18 were approved as submitted.

Other Agenda items: Dick Stevenson, though not present, had prepared packets of coupons that, during the period of July 13 to July 25, entitle diners at Harrisons Wine Grill to request that part of their bill be donated to the Chapter. The packets were distributed to Board members with the request that the coupons be given to acquaintances who might be dining at Harrisons. For Chapter members, the fund-raising opportunity will described on the Chapter’s website and in the newsletter, Tertiary Treatment .

Bill Brusse announced that he had signed the agreement by which the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has awarded the Chapter $42,000 for habitat work. Some of the grant can be counted as matching funds for other grants. The funds will be needed for next year’s in-stream work near the Spring Creek Park in College Township.

Rockview Position Vote: Before the meeting, Board members had received two position statements, one for acceptance of the Spring Creek Canyon Master Plan, the other for rejecting it. After a brief discussion of the pros and cons of each position, Bob Donaldson moved to endorse the acceptance position; Jay Lynch seconded. The motion passed 7-3, with Donaldson, Lynch, Wurster, Sittler, Van Horn, Phillips, and Trostle (voting in absentia) voting yea, and Brusse, Moellenbrock and Eberhart voting nay. The full text of the acceptance position is included as Attachment A to these Minutes. Bob Eberhart then moved that since we endorse the Master Plan, the Chapter should state explicitly that we endorse the ownership by Penn State, Benner Township, PFBC and Rockview that is presumed but not stated in the Plan; Rick Van Horn seconded . The motion was defeated 8-1 with Eberhart casting the sole yea vote.

There was then discussion about how the Chapter’s position should be publicized. It was agreed that the statement should be published in Tertiary Treatment, posted on the Chapter’s Website, and published in the Centre Daily Times, either as a Letter to the Editor, or if possible as a longer My View article.

Treasurer’s Report and Budget Discussion: Rick Van Horn presented his treasurer’s report. As of May 31, the Chapter had a net worth of $38,971; this does not include $52,961 of DCNR grant money that is kept in a separate account and must be spent on the Habitat Project.

Habitat Projects Update: Cliff Wurster reported that requests for bids for logs, rock, and other material for this summer’s projects have been sent out and about half of the bids have been received. As reported at the last Board meeting, the project at the McCoy Dam site is scheduled for August 10-14 with fall back dates of August 17-21, and the Lower McCoy project located near Allegheny Power in Milesburg is scheduled for September 21-25 with fall back dates of September 28-30.

State Sales Tax Exemption: the Chapter’s effort to be granted a state sales tax emption has been held up because our Articles of Incorporation do not include a Dissolution Statement ( a statement of how the Chapter’s assets will be distributed should the Chapter be dissolved.) Rick Van Horn has revised the Chapter’s Articles of Incorporation to include a Dissolution Statement. The Board moved to approve this change, and the new articles of incorporation will include a dissolution statement.

Dirt and Gravel Roads: Bob Donaldson described a program operated out of Penn State’s Center for Dirt and Gravel Roads. One of the goals of the program is to prevent sediment from rural dirt and gravel roads from entering streams, especially during storm events. Bob, through the Spring Creek Watershed Community, hopes to get the Spring Creek Watershed Commission to encourage the municipalities of the Watershed to participate in this program. He asked the Chapter to support the recommendation for municipalities to participate in this program. The Board agreed to support this recommendation.

July and August Board Meetings: Bill Brusse suggested that because of the difficulty of getting full attendance during the summer months and because there are no pressing issues before the Board, the regularly scheduled July and August Board meetings should be cancelled. Special meetings could be called if necessary. The Board agreed to cancel the July and August meetings.

DRAFT 2 IN SUPPORT OF THE SPRING CREEK CANYON MASTER PLAN

What is a Master Plan? Simply put a Master Plan is a reflection of the desires of those who are the participants in a Planning Process. Often a consultant and the project sponsors guide the Plan and the Process.

More specifically the Spring Creek Canyon Master Plan is a reflection of the planning process sponsors that included Benner Township and the Pa. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. The Consulting Firm of Environmental Planning and Design and a Public Participation Process that included a Steering Advisory Committee [SAC], a Technical Advisory Committee [TAC] and a Public Advisory Committee [PAC] provided substantial additional input into the Plan. The SAC was made up of the potential future property owners including the Pennsylvania State University, Benner Township, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and Rockview Correctional Institute; the TAC was represented by various professional technicians who volunteered their time; and the PAC which was made up of representatives that were appointed by the local municipalities that make up the Spring Creek Watershed. Two public meetings were held to allow the citizens of the local area to express their views.

Is the resulting Master Plan a “perfect plan”? Certainly not. Does everyone agree and support the plan? No. However the plan does reflect the results of the planning process and has been found acceptable by the project sponsors. It also represents a substantial body of useful information, advice and recommendations that will prove to be useful to the future owners of the property as they implement the provisions of the plan which aim to protect and enhance the cultural and natural resources of the Spring Creek Canyon.

The Conservation Strategy builds upon a series of Goals, Objectives and Principles. The Goals include the preservation of the property’s unique natural resources and the preservation of the integrity of Spring Creek which requires that the protection of the property’s ground water recharge, it’s springs, wetlands and flood plains be consistent with the provisions of the Master Plan.

Through the master planning process these goals were expanded to reflect other significant aspects of the property to include historic and pre-historic cultural resources and opportunities for conservation oriented research, education and recreation. Stated guiding principles included the protection of the site’s natural and cultural resources by minimizing human impact; the balance of recreation opportunities within the sites capacity and sensitive environs; the coordination of public and private access needs; and the development of a responsive strategy for protecting on-site cultural resources.

The Conservation Strategy contains a Master plan, a Management Plan and provisions for a Conservation Easement to be agreed upon by the future property owners. The Master Plan provides 27 detailed recommendations including site activities, capital projects, policies and additional needed assessments.

Also included are Conservation Values, prepared by the Technical Advisory Committee. These Values include specific site assessments and recommendations related to natural resource ecosystem functions; aquatic and palustrian habitats; terrestrial habitats; flora and fauna; and open space.

Provisions contained in the Conservation Strategy are intended to be specifically referenced into the Conservation Easement document which is now being prepared by The ClearWater Conservancy and the Pa. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Similar provisions are also to be included in the draft enabling legislation. It is expected that the actual transfer of land will not occur until all parties to the Agreement have agreed to terms and conditions.

Without a Master Plan there would be no legal basis or blueprint upon which to draft the legislation to transfer the property, nor would there be provisions to include in the Conservation Easement. The Master Plan becomes the key to the land transfer process

In conclusion, the Spring Creek Canyon Master Plan, now referred to as the Conservation Strategy, should be supported by the Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited, as the plan represents a reasonable compromise solution among the various alternative strategies that were advanced during the planning process. Other solutions were evaluated but no other interested parties declared their commitment as potential future owners of the Spring Creek Canyon property. As such, the Spring Creek Canyon Conservation Strategy represents the “best” solution resulting from the planning process.

As some are aware, the Chapter has the capability to do email notifications of important events, updates, and to provide last minute notifications of changes. Of the 350 Chapter members, only 75 or so members have provided email addresses to receive these updates. We plan to begin the distribution of Tertiary Treatment by email. If you want to be added to the list, just email a request to Bill Brusse at the email address listed on page 3.

Board meetings are held at the Comfort Suites Hotel, 132 Village Drive, State College at 7:30 p.m. on the second Monday following the scheduled Membership Meeting. Chapter members are encouraged to attend the Board meetings. The Board members welcome and would appreciate greater participation from Chapter members. As many of you know, our membership and board meetings are held at the Comfort Suites Hotel. Comfort Suites provides the rooms to us at no charge. We want to thank Karen Mansfield and her staff for their support.

VISIT THE SCTU WEB SITE: springcreektu.org

The Web Site lists membership and board meeting dates; contains the past 5 months of Tertiary Treatment; and provides links to Spring Creek USGS stream flow conditions, weather, and a number of other good information sources.

Chapter Officers

President Bill Brusse

Vice-President Judy Sittler

Treasurer Rick Van Horn

Secretary Bob Eberhart

When your membership is about to expire, or join for the first time, fill out the form below and forward it with a check (payable to Trout Unlimited) to the address indicated below.

State _____________ Zip ________________ Business Member ($295) Conservator Member ($250)

Tertiary Treatment

A Monthly Newsletter from the Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited

www.springcreektu.org

Nonprofit Org.

U.S. Postage

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Permit No. 196

State College, PA