FODC is seeking volunteers from Monongalia and Preston counties for our Citizen Scientist stream monitoring program. Our first training day will be held Sunday, April 1st from 1 - 4 PM in Room 334 of Percival Hall on WVU's Evansdale Campus. If you are interested in volunteering for the program, contact pamela@deckerscreek.org. Click the photo to the right for more information.
Friends of Deckers Creek was recognized with the West Virginia Watershed
Network's highest honor of Watershed Association of the Year, on
November 5, 2011, at the 13th Annual Watershed Celebration Day! Thank You to all of our Friends, Volunteers, and Supporters! None of what we do is possible with YOU!!
YAB will continue to grow its community service projects through a national environmental excellence award from Sea World / Busch Gardens in the amount of $10K and a service-learning grant from the State Farm Youth Advisory Board for $83K ! New members are being sought to help with these projects and now is a great time to join!
The only way to change the trajectory of environmental degradation in our state is to educate all watershed citizens and to hold each other to higher "green" standards. Click the photo on the right to learn about what watershed pollutants to look for and who to call when you see them. These resources will help you become an informed, aware, and watchful watershed steward.
Acid mine drainage (AMD) is the most damaging pollutant in Deckers Creek. When coal mining breaks up coal and the rock layers near the coal, water and oxygen react with pyrite, a mineral, and convert it to sulfuric acid and dissolved iron. These chemicals, along with the aluminum that is dissolved out of other rocks by the acid, negatively impact fish and other aquatic organisms.
To get back to a fishable and swimmable Deckers Creek. we need to know if projects aimed at improving water quality are working or not. That means ongoing water quality data collection, from the same set of sampling locations consistently over time.
Deckers Creek is a scenic tributary to the Monongahela River in north central West Virginia. From its headwaters outside the historic town of Arthurdale, Deckers Creek meanders through Preston County into Monongalia County where it descends through a steep scenic gorge. This beautiful section of Deckers Creek is filled with waterfalls, boulders, and rock slides, contains world class kayaking, and is frequented by kayakers, rock climbers, bikers, and swimmers. From here, Deckers Creek passes through several communities and into Morgantown, where it empties into the Monongahela River.
Over the years, Deckers creek has been degraded by numerous pollutants. These pollutants include, but are not limited to, acid mine drainage (AMD), bacteria from combined sewage overflows, heavy metals, sediment, trash, and general abandonment, which negatively impact the 64-square mile watershed. The biggest threat to the watershed is AMD. This product, of abandoned coal mines, destroys the environmental quality of Deckers Creek and its tributaries, turns the waters red-orange, and creates acid conditions in which fish and macroinvertebrates cannot live.
Friends of Deckers Creek is working to clean-up the decades of environmental degradation that have been inflicted on the watershed. Through remediation projects, trash clean-ups, community outreach, and environmental education, it was FODC’s goal for the entire length of Deckers Creek to be fishable by 2010 and swimmable by 2015; turning the creek from a liability into a community asset. However, delays in getting a treatment facility at the devastating Richard mine discharge have pushed back this deadline to 2020 To learn how you can help or to become a member, check out our calendar and newsletter, or send us an email at
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