Susquehanna River Basin Compact

Susquehanna River Basin Compact
Name	Susquehanna River Basin Compact
Formed	1970
Jurisdiction	Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland
Headquarters	Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Contents

Susquehanna River Basin Compact The Susquehanna River Basin Compact is an interstate agreement created in 1970 to manage water resources across the Susquehanna River watershed, coordinating policy among Pennsylvania, New York, and Maryland with oversight tied to state statutes and federal interests such as the Environmental Protection Agency, the United States Geological Survey, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Compact established a commission to balance competing uses tied to regional entities like the City of Harrisburg, the City of Binghamton, and the City of Baltimore, and to address challenges linked to events such as the 1972 Hurricane Agnes flooding and long-term concerns exemplified by the Chesapeake Bay Program, the Clean Water Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Background and Purpose

The Compact emerged amid 20th-century interstate compacts such as the Colorado River Compact, the Delaware River Basin Compact, and the Sussex-Pawtucket Compact precedent, responding to watershed issues highlighted by incidents like the Three Mile Island accident and policy developments from the National Environmental Policy Act and federal agencies including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Its purpose aligns with goals found in the Chesapeake Bay Agreement, aiming to protect water quality, manage withdrawals for utilities such as the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and the City of Philadelphia Water Department, and coordinate flood mitigation efforts comparable to those executed after the Johnstown Flood and by organizations like the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Parties to the Compact include the states of Pennsylvania, New York, and Maryland, joined administratively by appointed commissioners drawn from executive branches similar to appointments made to bodies like the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin and the Susquehanna River Basin Commission itself. Governance structures mirror mechanisms used by the Tennessee Valley Authority and regional entities such as the Delaware River Basin Commission, featuring a commission, an executive director, advisory committees populated by representatives from municipalities including Scranton, Pennsylvania, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and Binghamton, New York, and technical staff with expertise akin to personnel at the U.S. Geological Survey and the State University of New York system.

The Compact's provisions create regulatory authority over water withdrawals, consumptive use, and interbasin transfers, paralleling regulatory regimes found in statutes like the Water Resources Development Act and court decisions involving the Supreme Court of the United States on interstate water disputes. It requires permitting similar to frameworks used by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and enforcement comparable to mechanisms in the Missouri River Basin governance, addressing issues such as minimum streamflows, drought contingency plans like those used by the Colorado River Basin, and standards consistent with the Clean Water Act and state water quality certifications under the Section 401 of the Clean Water Act.

Funding for Compact activities is drawn from state appropriations, permit fees, and federal grants administered in coordination with agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the Economic Development Administration. Administrative operations reflect fiscal practices seen in interstate entities like the New York-New Jersey Port Authority and depend on budgeting cycles of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the New York State Legislature, and the Maryland General Assembly, with audits and reporting analogous to those conducted by the Government Accountability Office and state comptrollers.

Implementation has included watershed planning, flow monitoring networks using stations like those operated by the United States Geological Survey, drought management that echoes the responses to the 2002 North American drought, and infrastructure projects for water supply reliability paralleling upgrades by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and the Baltimore City Department of Public Works. Major projects have involved interstate coordination for floodplain mapping similar to FEMA initiatives, studies in partnership with the University of Maryland, the Pennsylvania State University, and the State University of New York system, and collaborative restoration efforts linked to the Chesapeake Bay Program and habitat projects championed by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

The Compact has influenced environmental outcomes affecting tributaries such as the West Branch Susquehanna River, the East Branch Susquehanna River, and the Lackawanna River, contributing to pollution control measures akin to Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection actions and restoration initiatives resembling those under the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load framework. Legally, the Compact has been cited in disputes involving interstate water rights and administrative law analogous to proceedings before the United States Court of Appeals and informs cooperative approaches like those used by the Delaware River Basin Commission and the Susquehanna River Basin Commission in balancing municipal, agricultural, and industrial interests represented by entities such as Exelon Corporation, PPL Corporation, and regional utilities.