2022 Pennsylvania Integrated Water Quality Report

This report, prepared by the Pennsylvanian Department of Environmental Protection, is the fifteenth in a series of reports for the Federal Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 303(d) listing of impaired waters requiring total maximum daily loads (TMDLs), and Section 305(b) reporting of the overall condition of Pennsylvania’s aquatic resources. It is compiled and submitted to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) once every two years. Unlike the 305(b) report, EPA must approve or disapprove the 303(d) list.

The following narrative contains the data used to satisfy the requirements of Sections 303(d) and 305(b). This report covers the current status of Pennsylvania's waters and summarizes various programs in place to protect and improve water quality.

This report format is interactive and offers the ability to convey tremendous amounts of information in a way that is flexible and easy to understand. Please scroll down to view the Integrated Report or use the top menu to jump to a specific topic. If you encounter problems while viewing the content, please try opening the website using another web browser. Changing the browser zoom level may also provide a better user experience. DEP hopes this digital format significantly increases the transparency and public understanding of the programs currently in place to protect Pennsylvania's waters. To facilitate the use of this report, DEP has also created a  demonstration video  that provides useful instructions and covers some advanced features of this report.

DEP provided notice in the  PennsylvaniaBulletin  of a 45-day public comment period for this Integrated Report that was open from January 15, 2022 to March 1, 2022.  After the public comment period, DEP compiled, considered, and responded to the comments provided. The comment-response document is available by clicking on the link below.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this report is based on the data contained in DEP information systems at the time of publication. Most information pertains to the biennial reporting period (October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2021); however, some information may cover longer periods of record. Some datasets may be incomplete due to DEP's jurisdictional restrictions.

As part of the obligation to protect Pennsylvania's waters, DEP conducts assessments of protected water uses (e.g., Potable Water Supply, Fishing). For more information on Pennsylvania's protected water uses, see 25 Pa. Code  § 93.3 .

Assessment determinations fall into three general statuses: attaining, impaired, or unassessed. For example, a body of water is considered "impaired" if it fails to meet one or more water quality standards. The categories below follow these general statuses but add more qualifiers. Category 5 and 5alt are the “list” of impaired waters (i.e., 303(d) list) that require the development of a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL). In the process of developing this list, a full status of all Pennsylvania waters is created to satisfy Section 305(b) reporting requirements. It is the integration of these requirements (i.e., Section 303(d) requirements and Section 305(b) requirements) that establishes the structure and function of DEP’s Integrated Report. A fully interactive mapping application with advanced search capabilities is also available with DEP’s  2022 Integrated Report Viewer . DEP has also created a  demonstration video  that covers all of the advanced features of this tool. It is important to note that DEP uses the United States Geological Survey’s National Hydrography Dataset (provided at the 1:24,000 scale) to represent data geospatially throughout this Integrated Report and in the Integrated Report Viewer. Consequently, some geospatial information may appear to extend beyond Pennsylvania’s jurisdiction, but it should not be applied or interpreted for areas outside of Pennsylvania.

Category 1: Waters attaining all uses.

Category 2: Waters where some but not all uses are met. The assessment status of the remaining uses may be unknown because data are insufficient to assess the water, or it may be impaired.

Category 3: Waters for which there are insufficient or no data to determine if any uses are met.

Category 4a: Waters impaired for one or more uses, not needing a TMDL because a TMDL has been completed.

Category 4b: Waters impaired for one or more uses, not needing a TMDL because uses are expected to be attained within a reasonable timeframe.

Category 4c: Waters impaired for one or more uses, not needing a TMDL because the impairment is not caused by a pollutant.

Category 5: Waters impaired for one or more uses by a pollutant that requires the development of a TMDL.

Category 5alt: Waters impaired for one or more uses by a pollutant that are selected for alternative restoration implementation. A TMDL is still required if the alternative is not successful.

The data that make up this Integrated Report consists of over  300,000 assessment records ; however, much of this information has been reviewed and approved by EPA during previous Integrated Reports. To make reviewing new information easier, DEP produces lists of changes that were made from the previous Integrated Report (2020). Click the buttons below to view changes in tabular format, or explore the dashboard for an interactive experience.

DEP provides additional information for assessment changes called "delistings" because these changes require the review and approval of EPA. Technically, a "delisting" is any removal of a cause of impairment from Category 5 (the 303(d) list); however, the term has been used interchangeably for several other situations, including: removal of one or more causes from other impaired categories (4a, 4b, and 4c); full restoration of water quality standards; or even corrections to previous assessment determinations or delineations. DEP exceeds EPA's delisting reporting requirements by providing a report on all impairment cause removals. Click the button below to see DEP's delistings report for 2022.

Section 303(d) mandates the creation of a list of impaired waters that require the development of a TMDL (Categories 5 and 5alt). Once a TMDL is approved by EPA, the related causes will be placed in Category 4a until water quality standards are restored.

Category 5alt - known as restoration alternatives - is a list of waters where implementation of restoration activities will begin immediately without the development of a TMDL. DEP first incorporated 5alt in the 2016 Integrated Report. Waters are selected to be in the 5alt category because they have implementation plans and active public engagement. The goal of 5alt listings is to restore water quality standards before TMDLs are written, which brings possible advantages to the regulated community. Category 5alt still requires that a TMDL be completed unless water quality standards are achieved through alternative restoration activities within a reasonable time.

Use the  Integrated Report Viewer  to view the status of waters in Category 5 and Category 5alt. It is important to note that Categories 5 and 5alt make up a large portion of Pennsylvania's impaired waters, but these categories do not include all impairments. Impaired waters also include Categories 4a, 4b, and 4c. The picture below represents all of Pennsylvania's impaired waters (approximately 28,000 stream and river miles and 69,000 lake acres) in the 2022 Integrated Report.

Groundwater monitoring efforts in Pennsylvania are displayed in the  Status of Statewide and Legacy Groundwater Quality Monitoring Programs . Pennsylvania's Legacy Ambient and Fixed Station Network Groundwater Quality Monitoring Program began in 1985 to characterize general background and assess changes in groundwater quality within 478 groundwater basins identified in the state. Because of resource constraints, monitoring efforts have been limited since the late 1990s, and only ~12% of the state has been monitored. Under a joint funding agreement with DEP in 2005, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) compiled electronically available groundwater quality data to help point out data gaps and guide future monitoring efforts; over 24,000 wells from 14 different agencies/programs were included in the project. For more information and to access the full report, please visit the  USGS reports webpage .

A project was initiated in 2014 to sample select groundwater stations throughout the state on a regular basis. This effort is referred to as the “Expanded” (or “Statewide”) Fixed Station Groundwater Quality Monitoring Network to distinguish it from the original “Legacy” effort. From this information, DEP has begun to better understand the status of groundwater quality in Pennsylvania. A report by USGS titled “ Characterization of Ambient Groundwater Quality with a Statewide Fixed Station Monitoring Network in PA, 2015-2019 ” is currently under review and will be released in late 2021. Use the map to see the status of select water quality parameters in Pennsylvania’s groundwater from the new, expanded/statewide network.

DEP previously identified and prioritized sources of groundwater contamination based upon regional office input for earlier versions of the report. The information was reviewed and updated in the  Sources of Groundwater Contamination and Prioritization Document .

DEP will provide notice in the  Pennsylvania Bulletin  of a 45-day public comment period for this Integrated Report that will be open from January 15, 2022 to March 1, 2022. DEP encourages the public to provide constructive comments during this period. To submit comments and see comments from other individuals, please use DEP's  eComment tool . The links to view and comment on the Integrated Report will be made available in the “Open Comment Periods” section at the top of the eComment website during the public comment period. Written comments can also be mailed to the Department of Environmental Protection, Policy Office, Rachel Carson State Office Building, P.O. Box 2063, Harrisburg, PA 17105. DEP suggests that comments be organized using the main headings above (e.g., INTRODUCTION, SECTION 303(d)), or by scrolling down and using the subsection headings (e.g., PENNSYLVANIA WATER RESOURCES, LISTING DATA, TRENDS). Persons in need of accommodations as provided for in the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 should contact DEP’s Water Quality Division at 717-787-9637 or through the Pennsylvania Hamilton Relay Service at 800-654-5984 (TTD users) or (800) 654-5988 (voice users) to discuss how DEP may accommodate their needs.

DEP provided notice in the  PennsylvaniaBulletin  of a 45-day public comment period for this Integrated Report that was open from January 15, 2022 to March 1, 2022.  After the public comment period, DEP compiled, considered, and responded to the comments provided. The comment-response document is available by clicking on the link below.

 How's My Waterway  is EPA's newest data tool for everything related to water quality. It was designed to provide the public with water quality information that state, federal, tribal, and local agencies provided to EPA. Water quality information is displayed based on three scales (community, state, and national) to improve the user's experience and understanding. Explore the How's My Waterway  factsheet  and  demonstration video  for more information before diving in. Test out the How's My Waterway widget below.

DEP developed an electronic notification system –  eNotice  – that the public can use to stay up-to-date by receiving free notifications about a range of actions DEP takes in various program areas and geographies.

DEP publishes a  newsletter    that features information about hot topics, recent actions, regulatory updates, webinars, and upcoming events.

For questions or assistance please contact the Water Quality Division at 717-787-9637 or send an email to  RA-epwater@pa.gov .