ENCLOSURE C
Description of Aquatic Habitat
8.A.(1).(2). Describe food chain production and general stream habitat, including:
nesting, spawning, rearing, resting, migration, feeding, escape cover, etc.
The unnamed tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy Creek flows through the project area.
This unnamed tributary is an intermittent fourth order stream, which flows into the North Branch
Neshaminy Creek. The tributary itself is not stocked with trout, according to the Pennsylvania
Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC), but as a tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy Creek, it
has a direct impact on trout stocked waters. Title 25, Chapter 93 of the Pennsylvania Code
Water Quality Standards classifies the North Branch Neshaminy Creek as a Trout Stocking and
Migratory Fishery (TSF/MF) from the dam at Lake Galena to the confluence with the West
Branch.
Within the project area, the unnamed tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy Creek flows
through a forested riparian corridor consisting mainly of deciduous trees and shrubs.
Surrounding land use is agricultural and rural residential. North of New Galena Road, riparian
buffer consists of high canopy with sparse understory, shrub and herbaceous layers. South of
New Galena Road the riparian buffer is significantly wider with a more developed shrub and
herbaceous layer. The banks are primarily silt materials with abundant gravel and cobble. The
east side of the stream is eroding, exposing tree roots and causing three to five foot vertical cuts
into the stream embankment. The upstream side has transient sand/gravel bars with
sand/gravel landings along the inside stream bends. No large reservoirs of fine sediments are
observed within study area. The streambed upstream and downstream of New Galena Road
consists of cobble and gravel with a few small boulders. A large cobble/gravel bar is located on
the upstream of the bridge along the right downstream bank, and there is abundant
benthic/attached algae on the streambed cobbles and gravel. There is also coarse sand and
some areas of finer materials within the stream channel. The bed substrate appears to have an
embeddedness of 30% to 50%.
During the 2005 site visit, the depth of the unnamed tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy
Creek ranged from 0.5 to 2.5 feet. During the July 2007 visit, residents near the creek indicated
that the stream receives water from an upstream rock quarry and has periods of no flow during
the summer months. Maximum water depth is less than 4 feet in the pools.
The primary energy source for food chain production in the stream is an influx of organic
material from leaf litter and in-stream, benthic algae production. Leaf litter sustains shredding
and filtering macroinvertebrates and provides nutrients to the stream. In-stream cover for fish,
other than the root wads overhanging at cut banks, is moderate, mostly consisting of large
cobbles and small boulders. There is little woody debris in the stream, though a large debris pile
is trapped on the upstream side of the bridge to the side of the wetted channel. The large gravel
and cobbles prevalent in the riffles appear to provide good benthic macroinvertebrate habitat.
The open tree canopy cover, upstream and downstream of the road crossing, results in
abundant benthic/attached algae on the streambed cobbles and gravel. Several species of fish,
including minnows, chubs, white suckers and sunfish, are present in the deep pools
downstream of the bridge. The PFBC does not stock this intermittent tributary with trout but
does stock downstream areas of the North and West Branches of Neshaminy Creek. No inwater work restrictions are enforced on the unnamed tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy
Creek.
D:\106738961.doc
Page 1
S.R. 4001 Section 62M New Galena Road
New Britain Township, Bucks County, PA
8.A.(3). Describe habitat for threatened and endangered plant and animal species.
Coordination with the Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory (PNDI), US Fish and Wildlife
Service (USFWS), Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR),
and Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) indicated that a Phase I Bog Turtle
(Clemmys muhlenbergii) habitat assessment should be conducted in wetlands within 300 feet of
the proposed project area that will be directly or indirectly impacted by the project. A Phase I
habitat assessment was conducted July 20, 2007, and determined that the wetland habitat is
unsuitable for bog turtles. A Phase I Habitat Investigation Report was submitted to USFWS and
PFBC in October 2007. No other threatened or endangered plant or animal species are known
to exist within the project study area (Wetland Identification and Delineation Report, Appendix C
Agency Correspondence).
8.A.(4). Describe environmental study areas in the form of a) sanctuaries and b) refuges.
A July 20, 2007, field visit, USGS topographic maps, and Bucks County maps indicate that no
sanctuaries or refuges are located within or near the project area. Peace Valley Park, a Bucks
County nature and recreational area, is approximately 0.8 miles northeast of the site.
8.A.(5). Provide a description of the in-stream macroinvertebrate community if the project
proposes a stream relocation, a stream enclosure, or dredging.
The stream will be temporarily diverted, and the existing wood and asphalt bridge will be
replaced by a pre-cast concrete box culvert. Many benthic species prefer cobble, gravel boulder
substrate habitat, so the loss of natural stream bottom benthic habitat may reduce the overall
number of benthic species that may use the site. The proposed widening will slightly increase
the area of shaded stream channel. Filter bags will be utilized, and the Erosion and Sediment
Pollution Control (E&S) Plan will be approved and implemented prior to any work in and near
the waterway to prevent additional sediment from entering the stream.
8.B. Describe water quantity and stream flow, including: natural drainage patterns,
flushing characteristics, groundwater discharge for baseflow, and natural recharge
areas for ground and surface waters.
The unnamed tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy Creek is part of the CrosswicksNeshaminy Watershed, which drains 34,472 acres. The tributary flows in a
southerly/southeasterly direction and drains into the North Branch Neshaminy Creek, which
eventually drains into New Galena Lake. During the July 2007 field visit, residents near the
creek indicated that this stream receives water from a quarry less than ¼ mile upstream and
has periods of no flow during the summer months. The tributary is approximately 8 to 10 feet
wide with a rock and mud bottom. Evidence of high velocity stream flow was observed, including
extensive debris lines and large woody material accumulation around the bridge structure,
against the guide rails and along the road.
The existing banks of the stream are composed of cobble and support herbs, deciduous shrubs,
and forest, which would allow for ground and surface water recharge and storage.
Two small ephemeral ditches within the study area flow into the unnamed tributary to the North
Branch Neshaminy Creek. The ditch on the north side of New Galena Road flows in an easterly
direction into the stream through an 18-inch culvert pipe located at the southwest wing wall. The
waterway is hydrologically supplied by runoff and a culvert located to the west of and on private
residential property. A grassy drainage channel is located on the north side of New Galena
Road, east of the tributary. The channel varies in width and consists of grass and gravel as well
D:\106738961.doc
Page 2
S.R. 4001 Section 62M New Galena Road
New Britain Township, Bucks County, PA
as various herbs. The channel is hydrologically supplied by runoff and storm events and drains
into the northeast side of the stream.
One oxbow wetland is located within the study area. It is a small, (less than ½ acre) palustrine
emergent/palustrine forested (PEM/PFO) wetland located south of New Galena Road and east
of the unnamed tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy Creek. This area has been slightly
disturbed due to the presence of a drivable grassy access road. The access road runs parallel
to New Galena Road and then bends in a southerly direction toward the tributary and the North
Branch Neshaminy Creek. No wetland impact is anticipated.
8.C. Describe water quality, including: preventing pollution, sedimentation control and
patterns, salinity distribution, and natural water filtration.
The dense, woody vegetation upstream and downstream of the S.R. 4001 bridge helps with
surface water storage and filtration as well as groundwater recharge. The east side of the
stream bank is eroding and exposing tree roots. This erosion has created a three to five foot
vertical cut into the stream embankment. Sediment from these eroded banks is being
transported downstream. The upstream side also is noted to have transient sand/gravel bars
with sand/gravel landings along the northwest, inside side bend embankment.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) list of 303(d)
Impaired Waters, the unnamed tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy Creek is not impaired.
The North Branch Neshaminy Creek, however, is impaired by high sediment loads due to nonpoint source pollution.
8.D. Describe recreation, including: game species, non-game species, fishing, hiking,
observation of plants and wildlife, other.
Upstream and downstream of the project area, the land is privately owned, consisting of
residential land, agricultural lands, and deciduous forest. The land is not open to the public for
recreation, hunting, or fishing. Located 0.8 mile away is Peace Valley Park, which provides
recreation in the form of hiking, boating, fishing, ice-skating, picnicking, observation of wild
plants and animals, and a nature center.
The unnamed tributary to the North Branch Neshaminy Creek is not a trout stocked waterway
but could seasonally support downstream stocked trout that travel into the waterway. The
waterway does support native fish species. Wildlife within the project area consists primarily of
suburban and rural wildlife and species adapted to human settlement, such as white-tailed deer,
chipmunks, raccoons, opossums, gray squirrels, and waterfowl.
8.E. Describe upstream and downstream property.
Land upstream and downstream of the S.R. 4001 bridge is privately owned by 8 landowners
and consists of mowed lawn and deciduous forest within the project study area. There is one
hay field with a residence located adjacent to the stream.
The property boundaries and ownership information are included on all plan sheets.
8.F. Describe the environmental factors determined by the site investigation.
Field investigations within the proposed project area documented two Waters of the US and one
wetland. Small temporary impacts will occur during construction, and the streambed under the
existing bridge will be impacted by the installation of a culvert.
During the July 18, 2005, investigation, an upland cut roadside drainage ditch was identified in
the southwest quadrant. This manmade, ephemeral, upland cut roadside ditch flows into a pipe
and outfalls to the creek only during storm events.
D:\106738961.doc
Page 3
S.R. 4001 Section 62M New Galena Road
New Britain Township, Bucks County, PA
Coordination with the Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory (PNDI), US Fish and Wildlife
Service (USFWS), Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR),
and Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) indicated that a Phase I Bog Turtle
(Clemmys muhlenbergii) habitat assessment should be conducted if wetlands were identified
within 300 feet of the project. During the Phase I survey on July 20, 2007, the wetland was
determined to be unsuitable bog turtle habitat due to the absence of the critical criteria
necessary to provide suitable wintering sites and nesting habitat. No other known threatened or
endangered plant or animal species exist within the project study area.
Coordination with the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor found that the bridge was
not eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. No listed or other eligible
historic resources are located in the project area.
D:\106738961.doc
Page 4
S.R. 4001 Section 62M New Galena Road
New Britain Township, Bucks County, PA