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97-413: The dominant land use in the watershed of Bowman Creek is forested land, which occupies nearly 90 percent of its area. Minor land uses in the watershed include meadows, agricultural land, and many others. Most of the development in the watershed is clustered along the highways that run through it. The creek has, on occasion, experienced major flooding. Bowman Creek was visible on maps by 1791, and there were

194-606: A Migratory Fishery, as are most of its tributaries. The creek is inhabited by brook trout , brown trout , and rainbow trout and reaches of it are stocked with trout. The creek is well known in the area for its significance as a trout stream. Reaches of it are also navigable by canoe . Parts of the creek are in Pennsylvania State Game Lands Number 57 and Ricketts Glen State Park . Bowman Creek begins in Ross Township, Luzerne County at

291-519: A considerable portion old-growth forest deforestation is the result of small-scale migrant farming. As forest cover is removed, forest resources become exhausted and increasing populations lead to scarcity, which prompts people to move again to previously undisturbed forest, restarting the process of deforestation. There are several reasons behind this continued migration: poverty-driven lack of available farmland and high costs may lead to an increase in farming intensity on existing farmland. This leads to

388-478: A consistent, long-term record to quantify change variability over time. Through observing patterns in land cover changes, scientists can determine the consequences of these changes, predict the impact of future changes, and use this information to inform strategic land management . Modeling risk and vulnerability is also one of land change science's practical applications. Accurate predictions of how human activity will influence land cover change over time, as well as

485-490: A dominant greenhouse gas . Human activity is the most significant cause of land cover change, and humans are also directly impacted by the environmental consequences of these changes. Collective land use and land cover changes have fundamentally altered the functioning of key Earth systems . For instance, human changes to land use and land cover have a profound impact climate at a local and regional level, which in turn contributes to climate change . Land use by humans has

582-513: A few others. Miscellaneous includes cemeteries, golf courses, marshes, deserts, and other areas of "low economic value". The total land area of the United States is 9.1 M km but the total used here refers only to the contiguous 48 states, without Alaska etc. Land use change is "the change from one land-use category to another". Land-use change, together with use of fossil fuels , are the major anthropogenic sources of carbon dioxide,

679-471: A few small patches further to the east. On the westernmost and southwesternmost fringe of the watershed, there is a band of Burgoon Sandstone . Other rock formations occupy far smaller areas. The Mauch Chunk Formation occurs in a few tiny patches along the western and southwestern edges of the watershed, and one tiny patch of the Pottsville Group occurs on the watershed's western edge as well. In

776-564: A group of fifty others were raising money to build bridges over Bowman Creek. By the early 1800s, there were a few settlers in the valley of Bowman Creek. However, the land was poor and most inhabitants were located near the Susquehanna River. A surveyor named Josiah Newberry was one of the first settlers to arrive in Monroe Township, Wyoming County; he settled on the creek in 1813. The first post office in Monroe Township

873-415: A long history, first emerging more than 10,000 years ago. Human changes to land surfaces have been documented for centuries as having significant impacts on both earth systems and human well-being. Deforestation is an example of large-scale land use change. The deforestation of temperate regions since 1750 has had a major effect on land cover . The reshaping of landscapes to serve human needs, such as

970-408: A number of settlers in its vicinity by the early 1800s. Historically, industries in the creek's watershed included lumbering, agriculture, tanneries, gristmills, and ice harvesting . Numerous bridges have been constructed over Bowman Creek. The Bowmans Creek Watershed Association is active within the creek's watershed. The main stem of Bowman Creek is designated as a High-Quality Coldwater Fishery and

1067-529: A slow recession . Because the peak flow also corresponds to the maximum water level reached during the event, it is of interest in flood studies. Analysis of the relationship between precipitation intensity and duration and the response of the stream discharge are aided by the concept of the unit hydrograph , which represents the response of stream discharge over time to the application of a hypothetical "unit" amount and duration of rainfall (e.g., half an inch over one hour). The amount of precipitation correlates to

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1164-556: A substantial history of angling. The upper reaches of Bowman Creek are in Ricketts Glen State Park . The creek also flows through Pennsylvania State Game Lands Number 57 . A tract of land at the creek's headwaters is owned by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission . Legal hunting and trapping is permitted on Commission property unless otherwise posted. The road alongside the creek near its headwaters

1261-459: A surface area of 77 acres (31 ha). A number of swamps are also present in the watershed. The area contains a narrow valley surrounded by hills that are between 800 feet (240 m) and 1,000 feet (300 m) in height. Glaciation has affected the watershed in the past. The channel of Bowman Creek is sinuous , with alluvial floodplains in some areas. The creek flows through rock formations made of sandstone and shale . Glacial drift

1358-594: Is a joint-use road, with car traffic, snowmobiles , and hikers permitted on it. As of the time that the Wyoming County Natural Areas Inventory was published, there was a park in the vicinity of Bowman Creek and the Bowman Creek Ledges. According to the Wyoming County Natural Areas Inventory, this location is "very scenic". However, the ledges themselves only experience slight disturbances. Land use Land use

1455-399: Is a measure of the quantity of any fluid flow over unit time. The quantity may be either volume or mass. Thus the water discharge of a tap (faucet) can be measured with a measuring jug and a stopwatch. Here the discharge might be 1 litre per 15 seconds, equivalent to 67 ml/second or 4 litres/minute. This is an average measure. For measuring the discharge of a river we need a different method and

1552-434: Is a relatively small creek, about the size of a brook , in its upper reaches. However, by the time it reaches Stull, it is 40 feet (12 m) wide and by the time it reaches Noxen, the creek has a width of 40 to 60 feet (12 to 18 m). There are several deep holes along the creek, as well as oxygen-rich riffles . Many reaches of Bowman Creek are shallow enough for wading. However, its currents can be swift at times. There

1649-590: Is also present in the watershed. Interbedded sedimentary rock and sandstone are prevalent in the creek's watershed. Copper ore has been discovered in the vicinity of the creek. The most common rock formation in the watershed of Bowman Creek is the Catskill Formation , which occupies most of the eastern part of the watershed. Further to the west, there is a sizable band of the Huntley Mountain Formation , which also occurs in

1746-417: Is an umbrella term to describe what happens on a parcel of land. It concerns the benefits derived from using the land, and also the land management actions that humans carry out there. The following categories are used for land use: forest land , cropland ( agricultural land ), grassland , wetlands , settlements and other lands. The way humans use land, and how land use is changing, has many impacts on

1843-460: Is at least one area of the creek consistently has cool and deep waters. A portion of Bowman Creek is on the plateau of North Mountain. The creek flows through a deep valley that somewhat resembles a gorge . The stream banks of the creek have riprap in some places. Houses line the creek in places as well. A waterfall known as Evans Falls is situated on Bowman Creek. It is 8 feet (2.4 m) high. Additionally, there are strainers on portions of

1940-544: Is closed to traffic. A steel stringer/multi-beam or girder bridge carrying State Route 3002 was built over the creek in Noxen Township, Wyoming County in 1933. A steel truss bridge carrying Pennsylvania Route 29 across the creek was built in 1936 in Eaton Township, Wyoming County and was repaired in 1985 and a two-span steel girder and floorbeam system carrying the same road over the creek was built in 1937 in

2037-558: Is important to land use and land cover change for a variety of reasons. In particular, urbanization affects land change elsewhere through the shifting of urban-rural linkages, or the ecological footprint of the transfer of goods and services between urban and rural areas. Increases in urbanization lead to increases in consumption, which puts increased pressure on surrounding rural lands. The outward spread of urban areas can also take over adjacent land formerly used for crop cultivation. Urbanization additionally affects land cover through

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2134-414: Is listed as a high-rank site on the Wyoming County Natural Areas Inventory. A northeastern hardwood forest with high levels of biodiversity occurs on the ledges. The canopy is dense and contains trees of varying ages. It mainly consists of beech , hemlock , sugar maple , and yellow birch . In the shrub layer, there is witch-hazel and striped maple . Numerous ferns and wildflowers also occur at

2231-510: Is not designated as an impaired waterbody. However, in the creek's middle or upper reaches, 0.3 miles (0.48 km) of streams are impaired by atmospheric deposition . The upper reaches of the creek experience seasonal acidity problems. During the summer months, the creek is shallow and clear. John Levitsky, a member of the Luzerne County Conservation Association, has sprinkled limestone on roads to raise

2328-445: Is one form of land-use regulation. For example, Portland, Oregon is required to have an urban growth boundary which contains at least 20,000 acres (81 km ) of vacant land. Additionally, Oregon restricts the development of farmland. The regulations are controversial, but an economic analysis concluded that farmland appreciated similarly to the other land. In colonial America, few regulations were originally put into place regarding

2425-503: Is one of the few streams in Pennsylvania that supports a wild rainbow trout population. Acid rain once adversely impacted the native brook trout population in the creek, but they have made a comeback. Mayflies have been observed on Bowman Creek during the summer months. Ospreys are sometimes seen flying over the creek. A feature known as the Bowman Creek Ledges is located along Bowman Creek in Eaton Township, Wyoming County. It

2522-542: Is that of the United Nations ' Food and Agriculture Organization : "Land use concerns the products and/or benefits obtained from use of the land as well as the land management actions (activities) carried out by humans to produce those products and benefits." As of the early 1990s, about 13% of the Earth was considered arable land, with 26% in pasture, 32% forests and woodland, and 1.5% urban areas. As of 2015,

2619-459: Is the only form of fishing permitted on a 0.8-mile (1.3 km) stretch of Bowman Creek between Pennsylvania Route 292 and the tributary Marsh Creek. The creek is highly popular among anglers from the vicinity of Wilkes-Barre and Scranton . Bowman Creek has been described as "one of northeastern Pennsylvania's top trout streams", "a fisherman's stream", and its trout have been described as "legendary in northeastern Pennsylvania ". The creek has

2716-416: Is the sum of processes within the hydrologic cycle that increase the water levels of bodies of water. Most precipitation occurs directly over bodies of water such as the oceans, or on land as surface runoff . A portion of runoff enters streams and rivers, and another portion soaks into the ground as groundwater seepage . The rest soaks into the ground as infiltration, some of which infiltrates deep into

2813-399: Is typical for a freestone stream in that it contains few dissolved substances such as calcium and that its pH is close to neutral. The average annual discharge of Bowman Creek in its middle reaches is 89.9 cubic feet per second (2.55 m/s). The maximum flow time from the creek's headwaters to a point in its middle reaches is 23 hours and 19 minutes. In the mid-1970s, the turbidity of

2910-404: Is typically expressed in units of cubic meters per second (m³/s) or cubic feet per second (cfs). The catchment of a river above a certain location is determined by the surface area of all land which drains toward the river from above that point. The river's discharge at that location depends on the rainfall on the catchment or drainage area and the inflow or outflow of groundwater to or from

3007-462: The Amazon and Central America . Moreover, the underlying drivers of economic development are often linked to global economic engagement, ranging from increased exports to a foreign debt . Broadly, urbanization is the increasing number of people who live in urban areas. Urbanization refers to both urban population growth and the physical growth of urban areas. According to the United Nations ,

Bowman Creek - Misplaced Pages Continue

3104-578: The Aral Sea is an example how local-scale land use and land change can have compounded impacts on regional climate systems, particularly when human activities heavily disrupt natural climatic cycles, how land change science can be used to map and study such changes. In 1960, the Aral Sea, located in Central Asia, was the world's fourth largest lake. However, a water diversion project, undertaken by

3201-602: The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (today embodied in 16 U.S.C. 461 et seq.) and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). Discharge (hydrology) In hydrology , discharge is the volumetric flow rate (volume per time, in units of m /h or ft /h) of a stream . It equals the product of average flow velocity (with dimension of length per time, in m/h or ft/h) and

3298-535: The Rhine river in Europe is 2,200 cubic metres per second (78,000 cu ft/s) or 190,000,000 cubic metres (150,000 acre⋅ft) per day. Because of the difficulties of measurement, a stream gauge is often used at a fixed location on the stream or river. A hydrograph is a graph showing the rate of flow (discharge) versus time past a specific point in a river, channel, or conduit carrying flow. The rate of flow

3395-645: The Soviet Union to irrigate arid plains in what is now Kazakhstan , Uzbekistan , and Turkmenistan , resulted in the Aral Sea losing 85% of its land cover and 90% of its volume. The loss of the Aral Sea has had a significant effect on human-environment interactions in the region, including the decimation of the sea's fishing industry and the salinization of agricultural lands by the wind-spread of dried sea salt beds. Additionally, scientists have been able to use technology such as NASA 's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) to track changes to

3492-592: The Wyoming Valley . In the early 1900s, the major communities in the watershed of Bowman Creek included Noxen, Beaumont, and Eatonville. In 1921, their populations were 500, 208, and 161, respectively. A gauging station was established on Bowman Creek at Eatonville in January 1914. In 1962, a tannery spill on the creek killed nearly 300 legal trout. A steel truss bridge carrying Church Drive crosses Bowman Creek 2 miles (3.2 km) southwest of Tunkhannock and

3589-471: The cross-sectional area (in m or ft ). It includes any suspended solids (e.g. sediment), dissolved chemicals like CaCO 3 (aq), or biologic material (e.g. diatoms ) in addition to the water itself. Terms may vary between disciplines. For example, a fluvial hydrologist studying natural river systems may define discharge as streamflow , whereas an engineer operating a reservoir system may equate it with outflow , contrasted with inflow . A discharge

3686-418: The urban heat island effect. Heat islands occur when, due to high concentrations of structures, such as buildings and roads, that absorb and re-emit solar radiation, and low concentrations of vegetative cover, urban areas experience higher temperatures than surrounding areas. The high temperatures associated with heat islands can compromise human health, particularly in low-income areas. The rapid decline of

3783-485: The Aral Sea and its surrounding climate over time. This use of modeling and satellite imagery to track human-caused land cover change is characteristic of the scope of land change science. Commonly, political jurisdictions will undertake land-use planning and regulate the use of land in an attempt to avoid land-use conflicts . Land use plans are implemented through land division and use ordinances and regulations, such as zoning regulations . The urban growth boundary

3880-542: The Lake Catalpa Dam, the Beech Lake Dam, The Meadows Dam, Splash Dam, and Splash Dam No. 2. Some reaches of the creek have been channelized . Bowman Creek is somewhat narrower than the nearby Mehoopany Creek . The annual rate of precipitation in the watershed of Bowman Creek ranges between 45 inches (110 cm) and 55 inches (140 cm). In two measurements in the mid-1970s, the water temperature of

3977-434: The actions of private developers and individuals. Judicial decisions and enforcement of private land-use arrangements can reinforce public regulation, and achieve forms and levels of control that regulatory zoning cannot. There is growing concern that land use regulation is a direct cause of housing segregation in the United States today. Two major federal laws passed in the 1960s limit the use of land significantly. These are

Bowman Creek - Misplaced Pages Continue

4074-399: The area, stream modifications such as dams and irrigation diversions, as well as evaporation and evapotranspiration from the area's land and plant surfaces. In storm hydrology, an important consideration is the stream's discharge hydrograph, a record of how the discharge varies over time after a precipitation event. The stream rises to a peak flow after each precipitation event, then falls in

4171-502: The community of Noxen during this time period. Additionally, the creek's water flow powered a gristmill . The Lehigh Valley Railroad passed through the watershed of the creek and ran parallel to it in its upper reaches in the early 1900s. The Noxen railroad depot was constructed in 1893 in the creek's watershed and is now owned by the North Branch Land Trust . Splash dams on the creek historically supplied ice to

4268-420: The community of Stull. The creek then turns roughly east for a few miles and its valley widens as it passes through the community of Noxen. In Noxen, the creek receives the tributaries York Run, Hettesheiner Run, and Beaver Run. Upon exiting Noxen, the creek enters Monroe Township, Wyoming County . In this township, it picks up the tributary South Run and turns north, flowing parallel to Pennsylvania Route 29 . As

4365-403: The company withdrawing too much water, but the withdrawals were found to not impact the creek. The elevation near the mouth of Wyoming Creek is 584 feet (178 m) above sea level . The elevation of the creek's source is between 1,840 and 1,860 feet (561 and 567 m). Between 1,900 feet (580 m) above sea level (river mile 25.5) and 640 feet (200 m) above sea level (river mile 3.5),

4462-485: The corresponding discharge from the rating curve. If a continuous level-recording device is located at a rated cross-section, the stream's discharge may be continuously determined. Larger flows (higher discharges) can transport more sediment and larger particles downstream than smaller flows due to their greater force. Larger flows can also erode stream banks and damage public infrastructure. G. H. Dury and M. J. Bradshaw are two geographers who devised models showing

4559-705: The creek flows over splash dams . Bowman Creek has been known to flood "from time to time". However, because the creek's floodplain is not developed, such floods typically cause a relatively small amount of damage. A flood on the creek in 1850 carried away many buildings such as houses, barns, and mills . In the 2000s, the creek and its tributaries experienced significant damage due to major flooding . The creek also experienced flooding in Noxen due to Hurricane Irene in 2011. Major roads providing access to Bowman Creek include Pennsylvania Route 309, Pennsylvania Route 29, and Pennsylvania Route 292. There are no mining sites in

4656-618: The creek have also been stocked with brook trout , brown trout , and rainbow trout . In 1919, a brown trout with a length of 24 inches (61 cm) and a weight of more than 4 pounds (1.8 kg) was caught in the creek and a 23.25-inch (59.1 cm) brown trout weighing nearly 5 pounds (2.3 kg) was caught on Bowman Creek in or before 1945. In the 1800s, the Luzerne County Sportsmans' Association stocked thousands of California salmon in Bowman Creek. As of

4753-558: The creek near Tunkhannock ranged from 4.5 to 22.5 °C (40.1 to 72.5 °F). The watershed of Bowman Creek has an area of 120 square miles (310 km). The watershed is in northwestern Luzerne County and southern Wyoming County. The drainage basin of the creek is part of the Upper North Branch Susquehanna River drainage basin. In the upper 54 square miles (140 km) of the creek's watershed, there are 73 miles (117 km) of streams. In 2010,

4850-585: The creek near Tunkhannock ranged from 2 to 30 Jackson Turbidity Units . The specific conductance of the creek ranged from 45 to 150 micro-siemens per centimeter at 25 °C (77 °F). The pH was close to neutral, ranging from 6.6 to 7.3. In the mid-1970s, the concentration of dissolved oxygen in Bowman Creek near Tunkhannock ranged from 11.0 to 11.6 milligrams per liter (0.0110 to 0.0116 oz/cu ft). The carbon dioxide concentration ranged from 1.8 to 5.9 milligrams per liter (0.0018 to 0.0059 oz/cu ft). The concentration of organic carbon

4947-460: The creek passes between Schooley Mountain and Brier Mountain, it receives the tributary Leopard Creek. Some distance later, it turns northeast and enters Eaton Township, Wyoming County . In this township, the creek turns east and then north for a few miles. It then turns east for a few miles and reaches its confluence with the Susquehanna River. Bowman Creek joins the Susquehanna River 218.00 miles (350.84 km) upstream of its mouth. Bowman Creek

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5044-417: The creek's elevation decreases at a rate of 57.3 feet (17.5 m) per mile. The highest elevation in the watershed is approximately 2,470 feet (750 m) above sea level, on North Mountain . The lowest elevation is approximately 570 feet (170 m) above sea level, near the Susquehanna River. Many of the highest elevations occur in the western and southwestern parts of the creek's watershed. Bowman Creek

5141-492: The creek's watershed are on private land, and most of these areas are posted against trespassing. Most of the creek upstream of Noxen flows through forested land. However, downstream of Noxen, the creek flows through forested land, farms, and small settlements. Some reaches in this area are also posted. There are at least three natural gas drilling pads in the watershed of Bowman Creek. There seven groundwater withdrawals and no surface water withdrawals for public water supply in

5238-520: The creek's watershed). R-2 tracts of 0.5 to 1 acre (0.20 to 0.40 ha) also make up 0.12 square miles (0.31 km) (0.10 percent of the creek's watershed), while mining land makes up 0.07 square miles (0.18 km) (0.06 percent of the watershed). Open space and R-4 tracts of less than 0.125 acres (0.051 ha) each occupy 0.05 square miles (0.13 km) (0.04 percent of the watershed), while R-3 tracts of 0.25 to 0.33 acres (0.10 to 0.13 ha) makes up 0.04 square miles (0.10 km) (0.03 percent of

5335-662: The creek's watershed, while the Oquaga-Lackawanna-Arnot association occurs in the western part of the watershed. The Mardin-Bath-Volusia occurs on rolling uplands north of Harveys Lake , and the Wyoming-Pope Association occurs in terraces and floodplains along the creek. The first two soil associations are the most common in the creek's watershed. Bowman Creek is at the eastern boundary of the North Mountain region of Pennsylvania. To

5432-411: The creek. At Eatonville, the creek has high streambanks and a streambed of gravel . The creek's valley is 2 to 3 miles (3.2 to 4.8 km) wide. The topography of the watershed of Bowman Creek is described as "rough and hilly" in a 1921 book. There are steep hills in the upper reaches of the watershed, but gentle slopes on the valley floor. There are some small lakes such as Rymans Pond, which has

5529-731: The deforestation for farmland , can have long-term effects on earth systems and exacerbate the causes of climate change. Although the burning of fossil fuels is the primary driver of present-day climate change, prior to the Industrial Revolution , deforestation and irrigation were the largest sources of human-driven greenhouse gas emissions . Even today, 35% of anthropogenic carbon dioxide contributions can be attributed to land use or land cover changes. Currently, almost 50% of Earth’s non-ice land surface has been transformed by human activities, with approximately 40% of that land used for agriculture , surpassing natural systems as

5626-418: The discharge of a river is based on a simplified form of the continuity equation . The equation implies that for any incompressible fluid, such as liquid water, the discharge (Q) is equal to the product of the stream's cross-sectional area (A) and its mean velocity ( u ¯ {\displaystyle {\bar {u}}} ), and is written as: where For example, the average discharge of

5723-541: The dynamics of land use and land-cover. LCMs are a means of understanding ways that humans change the Earth's surface in the past, present, and future. Deforestation is the systematic and permanent conversion of previously forested land for other uses. It has historically been a primary facilitator of land use and land cover change. Forests are a vital part of the global ecosystem and are essential to carbon capture , ecological processes, and biodiversity . However, since

5820-513: The early 1990s, Bowman Creek is only stocked as far upstream as a point 3.5 miles (5.6 km) upstream of Stull , on the Luzerne County/Wyoming County line. However, it is stocked as far downstream as the mouth, 18 miles (29 km) further downstream. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission stocks trout before the opening day of the fishing season, as well as twice during the fishing season. Trout are not stocked in

5917-400: The east of the creek, there are considerably lower mountains, such as Bowman's Mountain and Eaton Knob. There is also a high divide between Bowman Creek and Mehoopany Creek . A steep, east-facing slope known as the Bowman Creek Ledges is located along the creek in Eaton Township, Wyoming County. These ledges are made of sandstone and shale. Major dams in the watershed of Bowman Creek include

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6014-469: The environment . Effects of land use choices and changes by humans include for example urban sprawl , soil erosion , soil degradation , land degradation and desertification . Land use and land management practices have a major impact on natural resources including water , soil , nutrients , plants and animals . Land use change is "the change from one land-use category to another". Land-use change, together with use of fossil fuels , are

6111-416: The extent and timescale of changes, and how changes vary through time. To this end, scientists use a variety of tools, including satellite imagery and other sources of remotely sensed data (e.g., aircraft imagery), field observations, historical accounts, and reconstruction modeling. These tools, particularly satellite imagery, allow land change scientists to accurately monitor land-change rates and create

6208-461: The global urban population has increased rapidly since 1950, from 751 million to 4.2 billion in 2018, and current trends predict this number will continue to grow. Accompanying this population shift are significant changes in economic flow, culture and lifestyle, and spatial population distribution. Although urbanized areas cover just 3% of the Earth's surface, they nevertheless have a significant impact on land use and land cover change. Urbanization

6305-647: The impact that such changes have on the sustainability of ecological and human systems, can inform the creation of policy designed to address these changes. Studying risk and vulnerability entails the development of quantitative , qualitative , and geospatial models, methods, and support tools. The purpose of these tools is to communicate the vulnerability of both human communities and natural ecosystems to hazard events or long-term land change. Modeling risk and vulnerability requires analyses of community sensitivity to hazards, an understanding of geographic distributions of people and infrastructure, and accurate calculation of

6402-423: The invention of agriculture, global forest cover has diminished by 35%. There is rarely one direct or underlying cause for deforestation. Rather, deforestation is the result of intertwining systemic forces working simultaneously or sequentially to change land cover. Deforestation occurs for many interconnected reasons. For instance, mass deforestation is often viewed as the product of industrial agriculture, yet

6499-424: The level of the stream is described by a rating curve . Average velocities and the cross-sectional area of the stream are measured for a given stream level. The velocity and the area give the discharge for that level. After measurements are made for several different levels, a rating table or rating curve may be developed. Once rated, the discharge in the stream may be determined by measuring the level, and determining

6596-474: The major anthropogenic sources of carbon dioxide, a dominant greenhouse gas . Human activity is the most significant cause of land cover change, and humans are also directly impacted by the environmental consequences of these changes. For example, deforestation (the systematic and permanent conversion of previously forested land for other uses) has historically been a primary facilitator of land use and land cover change. The study of land change relies on

6693-671: The market. In 1885, the Lehigh Valley Railroad surveyed several routes from the Wyoming Valley to Bowman Creek. Several other railroad companies at the time also had interest in such a railroad. By 1892, there was a railroad running to Noxen, on Bowman Creek. This railroad was known as the Bowman's Creek Branch and it was abandoned in 1963. In the early 1900s, the main industries in the watershed of Bowman Creek included tannery and agriculture . The creek and its tributary Hettesheimer Run were used as an industrial supply in

6790-577: The most common is the 'area-velocity' method. The area is the cross sectional area across a river and the average velocity across that section needs to be measured for a unit time, commonly a minute. Measurement of cross sectional area and average velocity, although simple in concept, are frequently non-trivial to determine. The units that are typically used to express discharge in streams or rivers include m /s (cubic meters per second), ft /s (cubic feet per second or cfs) and/or acre-feet per day. A commonly applied methodology for measuring, and estimating,

6887-412: The mouths of North Branch Bowman Creek and South Branch Bowman Creek on North Mountain . It flows northeast for some distance, passing through a lake and receiving the tributary Bean Run. A short distance later, it turns roughly east for a couple of miles, receiving the tributary Wolf Run. The creek then turns northeast for a few miles, entering Lake township, Luzerne County . In this township, it receives

6984-683: The northern part of the creek's watershed, there are four small patches of the Pocono Formation . There are four different soil associations in the watershed of Bowman Creek: the Wellsboro-Morris-Oquaga association, the Oquaga-Lackawanna-Arnot association, the Mardin-Bath-Volusia association, and the Wyoming-Pope association. The Wellsboro-Morris-Oquaga association is prevalent in the eastern part of

7081-591: The other six (Noxen Township, Monroe Township, Northmoreland Township , Forkston Township , Eaton Township, and Mehoopany Township ) are in Wyoming County. The most common land use in the watershed of Bowman Creek is forested land, which occupies 99.30 square miles (257.2 km), or 82.98 percent of the watershed. Another 12.52 square miles (32.4 km), or 10.46 percent, consists of meadows , while R-1 tracts of 2 to 4 acres (0.81 to 1.62 ha) make up 3.21 square miles (8.3 km), or 2.68 percent of

7178-486: The overexploitation of farmland, and down the line results in desertification , another land cover change, which renders soil unusable and unprofitable, requiring farmers to seek out untouched and unpopulated old-growth forests. In addition to rural migration and subsistence farming, economic development can also play a substantial role in deforestation. For example, road and railway expansions designed to increase quality of life have resulted in significant deforestation in

7275-501: The pH of the creek. Since the late 1990s, tons of limestone have been dumped into the creek by the Bowman Creek Watershed Association and a chapter of Trout Unlimited . In a one-year period in 1918 and 1919, the maximum gauge height of Bowman Creek at Eatonville was 5.07 feet (1.55 m). The minimum gauge height was 1.75 feet (0.53 m). Bowman Creek is classified as a freestone stream . It

7372-714: The population of this segment of the watershed was 2667. The mouth of Bowman Creek is in the United States Geological Survey quadrangle of Tunkhannock. However, its source is in the quadrangle of Sweet Valley. The creek also passes through the quadrangles of Center Moreland and Noxen. There are twelve municipalities in the watershed of the creek. Six of these (Fairmount Township, Ross Township, Lake Township, Harveys Lake , Dallas Township , and Franklin Township ) are in Luzerne County, while

7469-555: The principal source of nitrogen emissions. Increasing land conversion by humans in future is not inevitable: In a discussion on response options to climate change mitigation and adaptation an IPCC special report stated that "a number of response options such as increased food productivity, dietary choices and food losses, and waste reduction, can reduce demand for land conversion, thereby potentially freeing land and creating opportunities for enhanced implementation of other response options". Land change science relies heavily on

7566-550: The probability of specific disturbances occurring. A key method for studying risk and vulnerability is land change modeling (LCM), which can be used to simulate changes and land use and land cover. LCMs can be used to predict how land use and land cover may change under alternate circumstances, which is useful for risk assessment, in that it allows for the prediction of potential impacts and can be used to inform policy decisions, albeit with some uncertainty. Land change models (LCMs) describe, project, and explain changes in and

7663-583: The relationship between discharge and other variables in a river. The Bradshaw model described how pebble size and other variables change from source to mouth; while Dury considered the relationships between discharge and variables such as stream slope and friction. These follow from the ideas presented by Leopold, Wolman and Miller in Fluvial Processes in Geomorphology . and on land use affecting river discharge and bedload supply. Inflow

7760-405: The same township. In 1975, a two-span prestressed box beam or girders bridge carrying State Route 2007 was constructed across in Eaton Township. This bridge was repaired in 2007. In 1992, a two-span steel stringer/multi-beam or girder bridge carrying Pennsylvania Route 29 was built across the creek in Monroe Township, Wyoming County. A prestressed box beam or girders bridge carrying State Route 3003

7857-487: The site, including Christmas fern , maidenhair fern , marginal wood fern , columbine , wild geranium , and wild ginger , as well as numerous other wildflower species. It is possible to canoe on 10.3 miles (16.6 km) of Bowman Creek during snowmelt and within four days of heavy rain. The difficulty rating of the creek ranges from 1 to 2. Edward Gertler describes the scenery along it as "fair to good" in his book Keystone Canoeing . Catch and release fly fishing

7954-462: The synthesis of a wide range of data and a diverse range of data collection methods, some of which are detailed below. A primary function of land change science is to document and model long-term patterns of landscape change, which may result from both human activity and natural processes. In the course of monitoring and assessing land cover and land use changes, scientists look at several factors, including where land-cover and land-use are changing,

8051-520: The synthesis of a wide range of data and a diverse range of data collection methods. These include land cover monitoring and assessments, modeling risk and vulnerability, and land change modeling . The IPCC defines the term land use as the "total of arrangements, activities and inputs applied to a parcel of land". The same report groups land use into the following categories: forest land , cropland ( agricultural land ), grassland , wetlands , settlements and other lands . Another definition

8148-400: The time, there were no such projects planned for the next ten years. The main stem of Bowman Creek is designated as a High-Quality Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery, as are most of its tributaries. However, the tributaries Cider Run and Sorber Run are Exceptional Value waters. Wild trout naturally reproduce in the creek from its headwaters downstream to its mouth. Various reaches of

8245-569: The total arable land is 10.7% of the land surface, with 1.3% being permanent cropland. For example, the US Department of Agriculture has identified six major types of land use in the United States. Acreage statistics for each type of land use in the contiguous 48 states in 2017 were as follows: Special use areas in the table above include national parks (29 M acres) and state parks (15 M), wildlife areas (64.4 M), highways (21 M), railroads (3M), military bases (25 M), airports (3M) and

8342-541: The tributaries Beth Run and Butternut Run. It then turns north and on the northern edge of the township, the creek leaves Lake Township and Luzerne County. Upon leaving Luzerne County, Bowman Creek enters Noxen Township, Wyoming County . It almost immediately receives the tributaries Sugar Run and Cider Run and then turns northeast. Continuing northeast, the creek picks up the tributaries Broud Hollow Run, Windfall Run, and Sober Run and also passes by Stone Mountain. It then turns north-northeast and picks up Stone Run, passing by

8439-491: The upper 54 square miles (140 km) of the watershed. A gravel road runs from the community of Stull up to the headwaters of the creek. A lake known as Mountain Springs Lake is in the upper reaches of the creek's watershed, although it is currently dry. On the main stem of Bowman Creek, near the confluence of North Branch Bowman Creek and South Branch Bowman Creek, is Ice Dam No. 1, which is also dry. Further downstream,

8536-493: The uppermost reaches of the creek, but fair numbers of wild trout occur there. Wild trout occur in relatively low numbers on the main stem , but are more common in its tributaries. Upstream of Stull, brook trout are most common on Bowman Creek. From Stull to Noxen, brook trout and brown trout are equally common. Below Noxen, brown trout are predominant. Wild rainbow trout occur in the lower reaches, primarily due to natural reproduction and escapes from private hatcheries . The creek

8633-650: The usage of land. As society shifted from rural to urban, public land regulation became important, especially to city governments trying to control industry, commerce, and housing within their boundaries. The first zoning ordinance was passed in New York City in 1916, and, by the 1930s, most states had adopted zoning laws. In the 1970s, concerns about the environment and historic preservation led to further regulation. Today, federal, state, and local governments regulate growth and development through statutory law . The majority of controls on land, however, stem from

8730-777: The vicinity of the creek. Bowman Creek has been described as a "very pristine" stream. Bowman Creek was entered into the Geographic Names Information System on August 2, 1979. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1198468. The creek is also known as Bowmans Creek or Bowman's Creek. The first of these variant names appears in a county highway map published by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation . Bowman Creek appeared on maps as early as 1791. By 1794, Thomas Pickering and

8827-420: The volume of water (depending on the area of the catchment) that subsequently flows out of the river. Using the unit hydrograph method, actual historical rainfalls can be modeled mathematically to confirm characteristics of historical floods, and hypothetical "design storms" can be created for comparison to observed stream responses. The relationship between the discharge in the stream at a given cross-section and

8924-506: The watershed). Most of the residential and commercial development in the watershed of Bowman Creek is clustered along Pennsylvania Route 29 , Pennsylvania Route 292 , and Pennsylvania Route 309 . As of 2000, agricultural land in the creek's watershed is becoming less common, as it is being converted to residential land. Many wetlands on the National Wetlands Inventory are in the creek's watershed. Some forests in

9021-437: The watershed. Agricultural land makes up 3.10 square miles (8.0 km) (2.59 percent of the watershed), water occupies 0.71 square miles (1.8 km) (0.60 percent of the watershed), and farmsteads occupy 0.23 square miles (0.60 km) (0.19 percent of the watershed). Orchards occupy 0.16 square miles (0.41 km) (0.13 percent of the watershed), commercial land occupies 0.12 square miles (0.31 km) (0.10 percent of

9118-1111: Was 3.0 milligrams per liter (0.0030 oz/cu ft) and the phosphorus concentration ranged from 0.03 to 0.14 milligrams per liter (3.0 × 10 to 0.000140 oz/cu ft). The ammonia concentration ranged from 0.051 to 0.232 milligrams per liter (5.1 × 10 to 0.000232 oz/cu ft). In the mid-1970s, the concentration of magnesium and calcium in Bowman Creek near Tunkhannock ranged from 1.5 to 2.5 milligrams per liter (0.0015 to 0.0025 oz/cu ft) and 5.6 to 16.8 milligrams per liter (0.0056 to 0.0168 oz/cu ft), respectively. The iron concentration ranged from less than 20 micrograms per liter (2.0 × 10 oz/cu ft) to 1,460 micrograms per liter (0.00146 oz/cu ft). The sulfate and chloride concentrations ranged from 8 to 16 milligrams per liter (0.0080 to 0.0160 oz/cu ft) and 4 to 11 milligrams per liter (0.0040 to 0.0110 oz/cu ft), respectively. As of 2010, Cabot Oil & Gas withdraws 290,000 US gallons (1,100,000 L) from Bowman Creek per day for gas drilling operations. There were some complaints about

9215-481: Was built over Bowman Creek in 1994 in Eaton Township. In 1996, a bridge of a similar type was built over the creek in Monroe Township, carrying Pennsylvania Route 292 . Yet another bridge of this type was constructed over the creek in 2004; this bridge is 1.75 miles (2.82 km) southwest of Noxen and carries T-310/Sorber Mountain Road. Another prestressed box beam or girders bridge, this one carrying Pennsylvania Route 29

9312-422: Was built over Bowman Creek in Monroe Township in 2006. A watershed association known as the Bowman's Creek Watershed Association is active in the watershed of Bowman Creek. The Act 167 stormwater management plan for Bowman Creek was written in 2000. At that time, there were few measures for stormwater control in the creek's watershed. As of 2000, there are no flood control projects in the creek's watershed. At

9409-501: Was located on Bowman Creek and was named after the creek. There was a lumbering industry in the watershed of Bowman Creek by the late 1800s. In 1876, the Lehigh Valley Railroad purchased 13,000 acres (5,300 ha) of timbering land in the vicinity of the creek. Until the early 1890s, when rail lines reached the area, the lumbering industry used splash dams , creek freshets , and wagons to transport their lumber to

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