Many rural areas in southeastern Pennsylvania, including the Big Elk Creek Basin, are undergoing a rapid population increase. New development and an expanding population increase consumptive water use, increase surface runoff, and have the potential to reduce ground-water recharge. The Big Elk Creek Basin is between the Delaware and Susquehanna River Basins and drains directly to the Chesapeake Bay. Both the Delaware and Susquehanna River Basins have basin commissions that regulate and oversee surface-water and ground-water withdrawals. The Big Elk Creek Basin does not have a regulatory agency to oversee withdrawal of water. Ground-water quantity and quality were evaluated for the 79.4-mi2 (square mile) study area that extends from the headwaters of Big Elk Creek in Chester County, Pa., downstream to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) streamflowmeasurement station 01495000, Big Elk Creek at Elk Mills, Md., and to inactive USGS streamflowmeasurement station 01495500, Little Elk Creek at Childs, Md. (fig. 1). The study was done by the USGS in cooperation with the Chester County Water Resources Authority and the Chester County Health Department. The full results of the study are published in a technical report by Sloto (2002). This fact sheet summarizes the key findings presented in the technical report.
