Pittsburgh Tribune Review
www.PittsburghLive.com
23 April 2006
By Joe Murphy
Brad Allamong, president of the Morgantown Area Chamber of Commerce, recently welcomed about 100 participants to the inaugural Mon River Summit.
The conference, sponsored by the Upper Monongahela River Association, was attended by representatives of river communities in West Virginia and Pennsylvania.
The first speaker, Pat Donovan, acting head of the West Virginia Port Authority, presented the theme of the conference.
"We're here to talk about rivers and waterways and the partnership between rivers, people and business. We think our rivers divide us, but they really bring us together," Donovan said.
After reviewing commercial activities on the Mon in both states, Donovan recommended moving away from site to regional development projects.
"How do we go beyond state lines?" he asked. "That's the challenge."
Donovan cited the clearing of debris from the river as a problem with the potential for bringing people together.
He also noted the collaboration between the Port Authority of Pittsburgh and the Appalachian Regional Commission and counterparts in Europe watching over the Danube River.
The Europeans believe their inland port organization has more in common with American river communities than with European rivers that flow into a sea, such as the Rhine, because the Danube, like the American rivers, has several locks and dams. The Europeans visited Pittsburgh this year and will host a river conference in Brussels later this year to exchange ideas.
As commercial development continues, Donovan also projected that "this segment of the Mon River may not be industrial in the future."
Referring to recreational uses of the river, he said that "heritage tourism ties into public docks."
In the follow up discussion, Norma Ryan, former mayor of Brownsville, referred to five slips at the wharf in the borough as preparation for a future in tourism. "Any partnership will pull us together and make this (Brownsville) a destination. One can take a cruise on the Rhine. Why not the Mon?" she asked.
Frank Jernejcic, director of the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, pointed out that along the 130 mile stretch of river from Fairmont to Pittsburgh, there are nine locks and dams three in West Virginia and six in Pennsylvania. He said the Point Marion pool is the second largest after Opekiska.
He reported that in tailwater fishing the fish are attracted to the downstream side of a lock or dam and that lock walls could be developed as fishing sites.
Dean Orr, vice president of dock operations at Consol Coal Co., sees new cottage industries along the river, barging limestone needed by the scrubbers used in coal production when new environmental regulations permit the use of local high sulfur coal .
"Local coal will be shipped like crazy," he said.
He confessed to a love of the Mon.
"I grew up in Charleroi, swam in it and camped on the river. I encourage my kids to swim in it," he said.
Richard Lorson, area fisheries manager for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, reported a renaissance of fish in the waterway.
"The Mon River is no longer dead. A joint study by several federal and state agencies reported in 2003 that there are 40 to 43 species in the river, including nine previously on the endangered species list," he said.
He pointed to the success of the Bassmaster Classic held recently in the Mon River at Pittsburgh as proof of this improvement.
Tim Terman, a West Virginia University professor, gives theme kayaking tours on the Mon through his business "Adventures on Magic River."
He said he loves the river but deplores the debris.
"It doesn't make me happy to be hit with a Coke bottle while swimming," he said.
Terman recalled starting the business by buying two kayaks, one for his wife and one for himself.
"She was very upset about it at first and didn't use it for a year," he said. "But she has come around."
Ken Mabery, National Park Service superintendent for Fort Necessity and the Friendship Hill, identified a number of issues involving the Mon, including the need for resolving perceived conflicts of use; positioning the Mon for national tourism; riverside restoration; using historic resources; regional planning; and new industries for the Mon.
Barry Pullay, vice president of the Upper Mon River Association, observed that "we are using only a small portion of the river's bandwidth."
Brad Allamong identified goals of the conference raising awareness of the river, working together, and creating a long range goal, a direction, a vision.