top of page

Local Stewardship

Our conservation outings, lead by master conservationist, Matt MacConnell, represent some of the club’s finest projects. And, for those who have a citizen conservation issue of their own to share, such as conducting bird and amphibian counts or backyard wildlife projects, bring your ideas to the club and we will help you expand your ideas into Sierra Club projects and programs.

A Lehigh River tributary survey was conducted on July 8, 2016.  The temperatures and nitrate levels were measured in 15 tributaries including (from south to north) Jordan, Catasauqua, Coplay, Hockendauqua, Fells, Bertsch, Trout, Aquashicola, Lizard, Pohopoco, Mahoning, Mauch Chunk and Nesquehoning Creeks. 

​

The highest nitrate was observed in Fells creek.  The Coplay creek was nearly dry to due a catastrophic sink hole that has been swallowing the creek flow.  The Sierra Club funded purchase of the Hach DR900 that was used to measure nitrates in all the creeks and in the photo Jim Deebel assists me in making a measurement on the Aquashicola.

On July 27, 2016 the Lausanne Tunnel AMD site was used as a environmental engineering venue for the Lehigh University Summer Engineering Institute.  A number of us volunteered to coordinate the activities of 50 select high school students and twelve Lehigh University students.  The groups studied the devices Sierra Club has installed over the years, including two rectangular weirs to measure flow through the AMD remediation wetland and the wetland bypass flow, measuring ferrous iron in the wetland to gauge effectiveness of the wetland system in iron removal (also using the DR900 purchased by Sierra Club last year) and studying macro invertebrate life in the adjoining Nesquehoning Creek. 

Visit https://www.facebook.com/sierraclublv/ to see videos of this and other news! 

bottom of page