Over the last several years, Whitpain Township has been part of a coalition of 13 local municipalities, including Philadelphia, working to improve water quality in the Wissahickon watershed. 

These municipalities are joined by several wastewater treatment plants, the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association, and experts from the University of Maryland to address standards created by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to control the amount of phosphorus and other pollutants in the creek.

“Prophecy Creek, which runs entirely through Whitpain, is one of the few unimpaired tributaries in the entire Wissahickon Watershed,” said Whitpain Township Engineer Jim Blanch. “The health of Prophecy Creek is a direct correlation to protecting large amounts of open space in the Township.”

Whitpain continues leading the charge on improving the Wissahickon Creek by retrofitting stormwater basins in the area. 

“Decades ago, stormwater basins were created simply to hold water back as a means to control flooding,” said Blanch. “Our current focus is to retrofit these basins with amended soils and specific plantings to allow stormwater to filter back into the ground which purifies the water before it reaches the creek.”

Click here to learn more about the Township’s sustainability efforts.