Sustainability

Description: On I-79, south of Meadville, there is an excellent view of Geneva Marsh, a well-known location to see Bald Eagles. Geneva Swamp is Pennsylvania's largest wetland and has a wide variety of vegetation and wildlife. There are many canoe landings, which can be used to explore the swamp. It is listed as one of Pennsylvania's important bird areas (IBA) by the Audubon Society.

Environmental Issue:

Linesville Fish Culture Station

Description: The Linesville Fish Hatchery is responsible for stocking five million adult trout and salmon and 90 million walleye each year. It houses a multi-story aquarium and exhibits throughout the year.

Environmental Issue: Fish hatcheries in Pennsylvania are in trouble. Hatcheries pull water from wells or, more commonly, from nearby streams. After the water is used to raise fish, it is released back into the stream. Fish waste in discharge water contains nitrogen and phosphorous, nutrients essential for plant growth. When hatcheries release water containing high concentrations of these nutrients, aquatic plants and algae grow at extraordinary rates. Then, bacteria break down the greater-than-normal number of decaying plants, depriving sensitive fish and invertebrates of oxygen. Therefore these animals cannot survive in waters with high nutrient concentrations.

Nutrient pollution is a common problem in northwest Pennsylvania. Hatcheries are struggling to find cost effective solutions that reduce water use and improve the quality of discharged water. Improperly applied manure from farms can leach from soil into waterways. Poorly maintained or inadequate septic and sewer systems also discharge nutrients into streams. Other water quality issues include soil erosion and stream sedimentation, and the loss of riparian zone vegetation.

Pymatuning Wildlife Learning Center

Description: The museum contains exhibits with native waterfowl and mammals and artifacts from earlier days of sport hunting. There is also a viewing area that allows visitors to observe nests of the bald eagles, as well as other wildlife, waterfowl, and birds.

Environmental Issue: Many species in the United States are in danger of extinction from past and present human activities, particularly habitat loss. Endangered species are those that are considered in imminent danger of extinction; threatened species are those that are likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future. Endangered species cannot be harassed, harmed, hunted, shot, trapped, killed, captured, or collected by humans.

The diverse ecosystems located in Pennsylvania support a great variety of plants and animals. In Pennsylvania, there were 71 native species; 11 of these have gone extinct. Most of them were large animals such as the gray wolf, mountain lion, buffalo, and moose. Some mammals such as the beaver and elk that were once extinct have now been reestablished. Today, the greatest threat to mammals in Pennsylvania includes loss of habitat, degradation of habitat, and human manipulation of the environment. Some of Pennsylvania's endangered mammal species include the Indiana bat, Delmarva fox squirrel, and the least shrew. There are many species of birds that are native to Pennsylvania, including 186 species that are regularly there; five of these are now extinct. The main cause of extinction of bird species in Pennsylvania is the loss of habitat, which is often caused by the destruction of wetlands. The bald eagle is one such bird on the endangered species list.

Description: The spillway is a great place to observe ducks, geese, and carp. In fact, there is such a great number of carp that the ducks can actually walk on the carps' backs!

Environmental Issue: After the last glaciers of the ice age moved across the land 15,000 years ago, the Pymatuning area was an enormous wetland. In 1933, the area was dammed and Pymatuning Lake was formed, drastically changing the habitat for many plant and animal species. Damming waters is a major cause in the loss of wetlands. Wetlands are special ecosystems, defined by particular soils, water conditions, and plant species. They also act as filters for sediments and help to improve water quality. Wetlands support a great diversity of life, providing critical habitat for these creatures. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that one-third of all endangered species spend part of their lives in wetlands and nearly half of all original wetlands in the U.S. have been drained, filled, polluted, or degraded.

Description: This is an area where families can pet and feed over 200 animals on display. The park is home to at least six species of deer, including the whitetail deer, the state animal of Pennsylvania.

Environmental Issue: Whitetail deer, Pennsylvania's state animal, are a beautiful asset to the ecosystem, but are also destructive because the deer population is far greater than the environment can support. Whitetail deer feed on understory vegetation of seedling-sapling forests, removing the buds, stems, and leaves of flowers, shrubs, and young trees. Deer selectively browse on certain species of plants, eradicating them from the forest understory. Forests must contain small seedlings and saplings to allow for regeneration after logging or the death of mature trees. The lack of seeding- and sapling-size trees is pronounced in many northwest Pennsylvania forests. The understory is habitat for many small mammals and birds. Deer have altered the structure of the forests, and the makeup of the entire forest ecosystem. Farmers are also concerned about deer overpopulation because deer feed on crops when forests food sources become depleted,