HARRISBURG – The Loyalsock Creek is Pennsylvania’s 2018 River of the Year. The public was asked to vote online and choose from five different waterways in the state. Loyalsock Creek received 6,100 out of the over 15,000 votes cast, beating out a Butler County creek by nearly 800 votes.
Loyalsock Creek flows through Worlds End State Park in Sullivan County, and supports trout, and the endangered Eastern hellbender. Carol Parenzan, executive director of the Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association, says they are planning an ambitious schedule of events and programs to showcase the attributes of the Creek to the public throughout the year.
Cindy Adams Dunn, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary says “This annual honor highlights our state’s wealth of rivers and streams, and recognizes the core of dedicated folks who fight to protect them.”
DCNR says the Loyalsock Creek has had its share of conservation challenges from extraction of coal, lumber and natural gas, to erosion and sedimentation issues that have been addressed by the government and private agencies and organizations.
The River of the Year award has been presented annually since 1983 with the 2017 recipient being the Allegheny River in Southwestern, Pennsylvania. (Christopher Elio)
