By Pat Beaudet, Sylvanian Staff
In our recent survey, we asked readers what kinds of stories they were most interested in reading in the Sylvanian. Many responded they would like to hear news about the groups. So...the Sylvanian team will attempt to fill that need by profiling one group each month for the next 10 months. Our future hope is that groups will update their profile by contributing news and items of interest throughout the year for publication.
This month we are featuring the Lehigh Valley Group (LVG).
The Lehigh Valley Group, located in eastern Pennsylvania, has1,500 members in Lehigh, Northampton, Carbon, and Monroe counties. LVG was founded in 1978 by Jeff Schmidt, Doug Roysdon, and Paul McHale. Schmidt became the first director of the Pennsylvania Chapter in 1983 and served in that role for over 30 years. Paul McHale became the U.S. Congressman for the Lehigh Valley. Doug Roysdon remains a member of the Lehigh Valley Group Executive Committee.
LVG is bordered on the west by the Lehigh River and on the east by the Delaware River. This provides many recreational opportunities for biking, hiking, boating and camping. The Delaware River Gap National Recreation Area is a popular destination for folks from Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The Lehigh and Delaware rivers define the group's conservation efforts in many ways.
Let's start with the Lehigh River. The group monitors water quality and air quality in the Lehigh Valley. In 2018, LVG joined a partnership headed by the Wildlands Conservancy and funded by public agencies to protect 500 acres of the Lehigh River Headwaters. The success of this partnership was a watershed (no pun intended!) moment for conservation in Pennsylvania. The water quality program also includes surveys of heavy metals in the Lehigh and its tributaries. One such study the group is focused on is reducing high levels of aluminum in Buck Mountain Creek from an AMD site that has rendered the stream toxic to aquatic life from Weatherly to Rockport.
A relatively new and ongoing project is the building of a pedestrian/bike bridge over the Lehigh River that would connect the north and south parts of the city of Bethlehem. This project has social and economic impacts as well as climate change impacts by (hopefully) reducing the number of cars on the road. The project was incorporated into Bethlehem's Climate Action Plan and stands as a symbol of Bethlehem's progressive future, a future that would include a lively downtown auto-free zone.
The group also works to protect the Delaware River Basin Watershed, which provides drinking water and other essential resources for over 15 million people. Volunteers are invited to become Delaware Defenders as the river faces multiple pressures from pollutants to fracking.
There are several non-river projects the group is working on too, for example, purchasing an observation beehive and donating it to Lehigh Gap Nature Center for educational purposes. It was operational last year and will be again this year. Another successful project was the building of a vernal pond in a municipal park to create wetland habitat for native plants and wildlife. This project had the additional advantage of helping the township relieve stormwater pressures in the park and provides an educational opportunity for residents who use the park regularly.
These are just the highlights of the group's conservation work. Visit the Lehigh Valley Group’s website for more information.
Matt MacConnell is the current chair of LVG. Previous chairs have included Holly Cadwallader, followed by the late, great Dave McGuire, and then Don Miles. Congratulations to the leaders and members of LVG for 55 years of helping to conserve our environment!
This blog was included as part of the May 2023 Sylvanian newsletter. Please click here to check out more articles from this edition!