| Stony Run | |
| Source1 Location: | valley in West Buffalo Township, Union County, Pennsylvania |
| Mouth Location: | Buffalo Creek in Buffalo Township, Union County, Pennsylvania |
| Mouth Coordinates: | 40.9613°N -77.0031°W |
| Progression: | Buffalo Creek → West Branch Susquehanna River → Susquehanna River → Chesapeake Bay |
| Length: | 3.3miles |
| Source1 Elevation: | between 680feetand700feetft (andft) |
| Mouth Elevation: | 505feet |
| Basin Size: | 1.46sqmi |
| Tributaries Left: | one unnamed tributary |
Stony Run is a tributary of Buffalo Creek in Union County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 3.3miles long and flows through West Buffalo Township and Buffalo Township. The watershed of the stream has an area of 1.46sqmi. The stream is impacted by nutrient pollution, sediment, E. coli, and thermal radiation. The watershed mostly consists of forested land and agricultural land. It is designated as a High-Quality Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery. The stream also has a healthy population of benthic macroinvertebrates.
Stony Run begins in West Buffalo Township. It flows east-southeast through a broad valley that it shares with Rapid Run. After more than a mile, the stream enters Buffalo Township. Here, it turns southeast for several tenths of a mile before receiving an unnamed tributary from the left. It then turns southwest for several hundred feet before turning east-southeast again. After several tenths of a mile, it turns southeast and a few tenths of a mile after that, it reaches its confluence with Buffalo Creek.
Stony Run joins Buffalo Creek 9.68miles upstream of its mouth.
Stony Run is impacted by nutrient pollution, sediment, E. coli, and thermal radiation.
In 2000, the sediment load of Stony Run was 89897lb, while in 2008, it was 83827lb. This equates to less than 100lb/acre. However, the annual sediment load could in the future be reduced by 68.43 percent to 26467lb. In 2000, row crops and streambank erosion contributed 46974lb33173lb of sediment, respectively. A total of 4438lb came from hay and pastures, 2710lb came from low-density urban land, and 2602lb came from other sources.
In 2000, the load of nitrogen in Stony Run was 8325lb and in 2008 it was 8231lb. This equates to between 5lb/acre10lb/acre. The annual load of nitrogen could be reduced by as much as 36.17 percent to 3254lb. In 2000, 2131lb of nitrogen came from groundwater/subsurface water. Another 483lb came from row crops and 224lb came from hay and pastures. 27lb came from low-density urban land, 15lb came from septic systems, 2lb came from streambank erosion, and 79lb came from other sources.
The phosphorus load of Stony Run in 2000 was 378lb and in 2008, it was 370lb. This equates to about 0.4lb/acre. However, the phosphorus load could be reduced by 46.22 percent to 199lb per year. In 2000, row crops contributed 64lb of phosphorus to the stream, while groundwater/subsurface water contributed 53lb and hay and pastures contributed 22lb. A total of 4lb came from low-density urban land, 2lb came from septic systems, 1lb came from streambank erosion, and 4lb came from miscellaneous sources.
The elevation near the mouth of Stony Run is 505feet above sea level. The elevation of the stream's source is between 680feetand700feetft (andft) above sea level.
There are no fences along any streams in the watershed of Stony Run. However, there could eventually be 1miles of fences. No stream reach in the watershed has stabilization, but up to 4miles could potentially be stabilized. Forest Hill is located near the headwaters of Stony Run.
A debris fan from the late Pleistocene occurs in the vicinity of Stony Run.
The watershed of Stony Run has an area of 1.46sqmi. The stream is entirely within the United States Geological Survey quadrangle of Mifflinburg. There are a total of 4miles of streams within the watershed. Of these, 1miles are on agricultural land. The mouth of the stream is near Cowan.
A total of 61 percent of the watershed of Stony Run is on forested land. Another 32 percent is on agricultural land and 3 percent is on impervious surfaces. The area of land on impervious surfaces could potentially rise to 30 percent. The agricultural land in the watershed includes 195acres of row crops and 143acres of hay and pastures.
None of the agricultural land in the watershed of Stony Run is on slopes of more than 3 percent. There are no unpaved roads in the stream's watershed.
The watershed of Stony Run makes up 1 percent of the Buffalo Creek drainage basin.
Stony Run was entered into the Geographic Names Information System on August 2, 1979. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1188794.
The John Umstead tract, which was located along Stony Run, was surveyed by Thomas Sutherland on May 17, 1770.
In a 2008 report, the watershed of Stony Run was ranked tenth amongst sub-watersheds in the Buffalo Creek drainage basin for restoration priority.
The drainage basin of Stony Run is designated as a High-Quality Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery. The stream has a population of benthic macroinvertebrates that has been described as "healthy".
There are 0.2miles of vegetated riparian buffers along streams in the watershed of Stony Run.
The pathogen load in Stony Run is on the order of 6.842 × 1015 organisms per month. The largest contributor of pathogens is urban areas (6.738 × 1015 organisms per month). Farm animals contribute 1.034 × 1014 organisms per month, septic systems contribute 3.287 × 1011 organisms per month, and wildlife contributes 1.745 × 1011 organisms per month. The pathogen load could in the future be reduced by 1.16 percent to 6.762 × 1015 organisms per month.