Drury Run facts for kids

Drury Run is a stream in Clinton County, Pennsylvania. It flows into the West Branch Susquehanna River. It's about 7.7 miles (12.4 km) long. Most of the land around it, called its watershed, is covered by forests.

Parts of the stream and its smaller branches are affected by something called acid mine drainage. This is polluted water from old mines. Drury Run starts in Tamarack Swamp. It flows through a few towns like Leidy Township, Noyes Township, and Renovo. You can find fish like brook trout, brown trout, creek chub, and eastern blacknose dace living in the stream.

Where Drury Run Flows

Drury Run starts in the Tamarack Swamp, near the town of Tamarack. It begins by flowing south, following Pennsylvania Route 144. As it flows, it passes by several small valleys.

The stream then enters a valley that gets deeper and narrower. In the southern part of Leidy Township, it joins with two smaller streams called Sandy Run and Woodley Draft. Here, the stream turns to flow southeast.

At the edge of Leidy Township, Drury Run flows through the Renovo Reservoir. It then enters Noyes Township. It continues southeast, passing by old strip mines. It picks up another small stream called Stony Run. Finally, Drury Run flows into the West Branch Susquehanna River near the town of Renovo.

Smaller Streams Joining Drury Run

Several smaller streams, called tributaries, flow into Drury Run. These are Sandy Run, Woodley Draft, Whiskey Run, and Stony Run.

• Sandy Run's area is about 3.6 square miles (9.3 km²) and has about 5.45 miles (8.77 km) of streams.
• Woodley Draft's area is about 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²) and has about 1.82 miles (2.93 km) of streams.
• Whiskey Run is not an official stream name. It's actually water polluted by acid mine drainage flowing out of an old mine.
• Stony Run's area is about 4.04 square miles (10.5 km²).

Water Quality

The water quality of Drury Run changes along its path. Near Tamarack Swamp, the water's pH (how acidic or basic it is) is usually between 5.3 and 5.8. This means it's slightly acidic.

The water in the upper part of the stream is stained brown. This is because of natural substances called tannins from the swamp. These tannins also make the water a bit acidic.

Unfortunately, parts of Drury Run are affected by acid mine drainage. This is polluted water from old coal mines. It contains harmful metals like aluminum, iron, and manganese. It also makes the water very acidic.

The last 3.5 miles (5.6 km) of Drury Run are most affected by this pollution. The tributary called Stony Run is the most polluted of all the smaller streams that flow into Drury Run. For example, the water from Stony Run has high levels of aluminum, iron, and manganese. Whiskey Run, which is actually mine water, also adds a lot of these metals and acidity to Drury Run.

To make the water safe, the amount of acid in the stream would need to be greatly reduced.

Land Around the Stream

The land area that drains into Drury Run is called its watershed. This watershed is located in Clinton County, Pennsylvania. It covers about 11.5 square miles (30 km²).

Most of the watershed is covered by forests. Underneath the ground, there are layers of rock that formed a long time ago. These rocks contain different types of coal.

There are also many old, abandoned mines in the southern part of the watershed. These mines are a big reason for the acid mine drainage that pollutes the stream.

History of Drury Run

People have used Drury Run for a long time.

• In the 1800s, a dam was built on the stream. It was replaced around 1911.
• The very first school in the town of Renovo was built near where Drury Run flows into the larger river in 1864.
• Around 1915, the Renovo Water Company used Drury Run as a source for drinking water.
• Coal and clay mining took place in the areas around Drury Run and its tributaries. Underground mining happened from the late 1800s until 1940. Surface mining (mining on the surface of the land) was done from the 1940s to the 1980s. These mining activities are what caused the acid mine drainage problem we see today.

Animals and Plants

Drury Run is a good home for fish and other water creatures in some parts.

• From its start at Tamarack Swamp down to where Woodley Draft joins it, Drury Run is a high-quality stream for trout.
• Brook trout and brown trout live and reproduce in the parts of the stream that are not affected by acid mine drainage.
• However, in the parts of the stream that are heavily polluted by mine drainage, no fish can survive.
• Other fish like creek chub and eastern blacknose dace also live in the stream.
• The tributary Stony Run is so polluted that no fish live there at all.

Small water bugs, called macroinvertebrates, also live in the stream. These are important because they show how healthy the water is.

• In the parts of Drury Run and its smaller streams that are not polluted, there are many different kinds of macroinvertebrates.
• You can find lots of mayflies there, which are sensitive to pollution. They make up more than 40% of the population in healthy areas.
• Below where Sandy Run joins, the number of mayflies drops a lot. Instead, you find more stoneflies, which can handle more pollution.
• Further downstream, after Woodley Draft and Whiskey Run, there are even fewer types of macroinvertebrates. Mayflies make up less than 2% of the population here.
• At the very end of the stream, mayflies are almost gone, making up less than 1%. Sandy Run is the only tributary that still has a good population of mayflies.