Deep Brook gets new stream classification

Milford — Deep Brook, which runs through Milford Borough, has been designated as a Class A Trout Stream by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, according to David Kinney, the new Mid-Atlantic policy director at the Trout Unlimited, in a phone call with The Pike County Courier. Trout Unlimited is a nationwide organization whose mission is to “conserve, protect and restore North America's coldwater fisheries and their watersheds.”
Kinney explained that Deep Brook is one of the four final streams in Pennsylvania that made it to the final selection stage.
The designation process has to do with water quality. Trout Unlimited is currently surveying the many streams in Pennsylvania that have not been surveyed as of yet, and the process also plugs into the county’s efforts to keep its waters pure and clean. It also has other, less often considered beneficial impacts on the area.
Kinney added, “It’s not just about anglers having fish to chase after; it’s also about clean water. The water seeps into the ground and affects the quality of drinking water and that in turn has an economic impact on the area.”
He added people who come to the area to fish or for other outdoor activities spend money to buy supplies, food and to stay in the area, often overnight, boosting area economy.
Trout Unlimited plays a role in the Pennsylvania Fish and Wildlife decision-making process.
The designation of streams like Deep Brook has several steps.
“It’s a multi-layered approach,” Kinney explained. “Pennsylvania has 86,000 miles of streams. Only a fraction of them had been surveyed.”
Trout Unlimited has surveyed some of the streams, while other organizations have also done their own surveying.
“Since 2011, we've surveyed about 600 streams, and we generally find wild trout in 40 percent of them,” he said. “Basically, there has to be a substantial naturally reproducing population of trout to make the Class A list.”
Once the designation has been made, the streams are put under special protection by the DEP.
The commission also approved 99 other stream sections to the list of wild trout waters, but to make it to Class A, there has to be a substantial naturally reproducing population of trout in the stream. The other designated wild trout waters have smaller populations.
This year, Trout Unlimited chose to focus on streams in the Delaware River watershed, as well as Susquehanna watershed.
Trout Unlimited and other field teams, such as crews from universities, pass the surveyed information along to the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, which then considers the streams for formal listing.
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission's mission is “To protect, conserve and enhance the Commonwealth’s aquatic resources and provide fishing and boating opportunities,” according to its website, and Pike County already has several streams designated as Class A.
A July 2016 listing on Fish and Boat websites includes Birchy Creek, Burchards Creek, Bush Kill, Kleinhans, Mill Brook, Pond Eddy Creek, Sawkill Creek, Toms Creek, an untitled, “Unt To Shohola Creek Rm 17.35 (1st dnst sr739 on sgl180)”, and Vantine Brook. The next list will include the newly designated Deep Brook.
- Anya Tikka