DEP, Fish and Boat Commission Monitoring Dunkard Creek Fish Kill
News Release
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania - Dept. of Environmental Protection
18 September 2009
PITTSBURGH — The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) announced today
that officials are working with West Virginia Department of
Environmental Protection and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
to address a fish kill in Dunkard Creek, first detected in West
Virginia on Sept. 1 and reported to DEP on Sept. 8.
More than 30 stream miles in Pennsylvania and West Virginia have been
impacted by a discharge, which is originating from West Virginia and
contains high levels of total dissolved solids (TDS). At least 16
species of freshwater mussels and at least 18 species of fish were
killed by this pollution event in Dunkard Creek.
The main stem of Dunkard Creek, located in Pennsylvania, is designated
as a warm water fishery.
DEP is collecting water quality data which will track the progress of
the pollutant and its impact on Dunkard Creek, while the PFBC has
established multiple sampling stations to conduct biological
assessments that include counts of dead aquatic life and the condition
of living fish in the stream.
“The damage done to Dunkard Creek is substantial and tragic. DEP will
continue to monitor water quality so that when the responsible party is
determined by West Virginia and EPA, we are positioned to take
appropriate enforcement action,” said Acting Southwest DEP Regional
Director Ronald Schwartz. “We appreciate the continued cooperation and
efforts by West Virginia and EPA officials.”
“Our staff has documented numerous species of gamefish killed by the
pollution event, including muskellunge, smallmouth bass, and flathead
catfish, and various species of redhorses, minnows, darters, freshwater
mussels, and mudpuppies – also known as aquatic salamanders,” said PFBC
Southwest Regional Law Enforcement Manager Emil Svetahor. “We are
working closely with DEP and other partners to conduct the ongoing
investigation.”
The West Virginia and Pennsylvania forks of Dunkard Creek merge in
Shamrock, Pennsylvania, to form Dunkard Creek, which meanders nearly 38
miles along the southwest border of the commonwealth and West Virginia,
before its confluence with the Monongahela River just downstream of
Point Marion.