In a recent study that compiled all available data to characterize Basin-wide water use and availability, the Commission estimated that there are possibly more than 700 older, unpermitted facilities with an estimated water use of nearly one billion gallons per day. If accurate, this volume of water use is roughly equal to the total amount […]
It’s been about 85 years since a ferry shuttled people across the Susquehanna River at Wrightsville. But local residents and tourists might be able to cross the river by boat again with a proposed water shuttle service. The idea has been floated by the nonprofit Susquehanna Heritage as a way to transport local residents and […]
Millersville University’s Environmental Advocacy Writing course has taken to the Susquehanna River as a source of inspiration. The students have been tasked with telling stories of the river, focusing on the people, plants, animals, and places that make the Susquehanna a valuable connector for our area. What better way to start that process than by […]
In extreme northwestern Lancaster County, when the Susquehanna River recedes, as it has now, careful exploring on foot reveals an otherworldly canvas where geology meets art. Here, at the Conewago Falls near Falmouth, Conoy Township, just below Three Mile Island, molten rock, ruptured glacial lakes and thousands of years of erosion have left behind a […]
Certainly we should all be worried about the root causes of disease and intersex problems that have beset the Susquehanna River’s most revered game fish, the smallmouth bass. But don’t be such a worrywart that you don’t go fishing and miss what has suddenly become the river’s best bronzeback fishing on record. At least in […]
Congressman Lloyd Smucker (R-Lancaster), along with Congressmen Scott Perry (R-Cumberland) and Pat Meehan (R-Lancaster/ Philadelphia), and U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) introduced legislation in Congress in June to create the Susquehanna River National Heritage Area. The bills would include Lancaster and York Counties as a National Heritage Area– a Congressional designation where “natural, cultural, historic, […]
Swayed by the concerns of many Pennsylvania anglers, the state’s fishery managers decided Tuesday not to lift a springtime ban on smallmouth bass fishing in the middle and lower Susquehanna and lower Juniata rivers. The eight-member Fish & Boat Commission voted unanimously to extend the spawning season catch ban for at least another year, requesting more evidence […]
There’s something about water that draws people to it. Whether the benefits are emotional or economical, there’s no denying the appeal of rivers, lakes and streams — three features that make Central Pennsylvania an attractive place to live, work or visit. The Susquehanna River is the most prominent water feature in the region. At 444 […]
I am given the opportunity to deliver an Executive Director’s report at every quarterly business meeting of the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission’s (PFBC’s) Board of Commissioners. I typically use the time to update the Board, staff and visitors on my past, present and future activities. However, there are times when I change the pace […]
At Millersville University’s new faculty orientation, I mentioned to an older gentleman who served as our tour guide that I had been fishing the Susquehanna almost daily since moving to Lancaster County from Pittsburgh. The man assumed I meant from a boat, but when I told him I’d been wading the river he replied with […]
In 2001, Branden S. Diehl formed Earth Wise Consulting. Branden has a BS degree in geology, environmental studies, and surface water hydrology, with an additional minor in politics. He is a 2001 Juniata College graduate. He has an extensive background in project development, financing, grant writing and project management. Diehl serves as the grant and […]
My River Story Growing up fishing the tributaries to the Susquehanna River helped me to weave a connective thread with water, the surrounding environment, and the interactions and influences of humans on these seemingly separate ecosystems. However, the circuitous route to get to this point in my understanding of this complex relationship has been as […]
I have spent three decades contemplating place and how people and communities fit into the larger landscape. For a decade I worked on the Susquehanna Greenway, helping to craft the vision and organizational framework to encourage local communities to reconnect with the river while empowering them to plan and build their part of the evolving greenway […]
Kayaking the stretch of the Susquehanna from Fort Hunter down to the Highspire takeout near the Turnpike Bridge takes you on a journey that tells the story of the River and the history of Pennsylvania. The river here winds through what is the most urbanized stretch of the Susquehanna. Yet, as you push off from […]
When I moved to Harrisburg back in 2004, the first thing I noticed was the river. It was so wide; it dominated the landscape. From that first glance, I wanted to know more about it. But not by reading books or internet articles, I wanted to experience it firsthand. A kayak would become the vessel […]