Months after a shooting range was deemed the culprit of lead contamination in a popular Laurel Ridge stream, high levels of the heavy metal still flow through the water despite ongoing remediation.
Testing performed this month by the Mountain Watershed Association showed there were 336 micrograms of lead per liter in part of Blue Hole Creek. Testing in April 2025 showed there were 370 micrograms of lead per liter in the stream that at one time was a popular fishing spot and an option to replenish water for users of the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail.
Although the amount of lead has decreased somewhat, there still are major wildlife and public health concerns, said Eric Harder, Youghiogheny riverkeeper.
“It’s really unfortunate that we haven’t really seen an improvement in the water quality throughout this last year,” he said.
Highlands Sporting Clays, identified by the state Department of Environmental Protection as the source of runoff contamination, voluntarily suspended operations in January. Highlands Ventures spokeswoman Katie Buchan said the facility will remain closed indefinitely while remediation work is ongoing.
State officials issued a violation notice to Highlands Sporting Clays in July that found the range wasn’t adhering to best management practices, such as lead removal and bullet containment techniques, to prevent runoff contamination. The violation notice indicated Blue Hole Creek had high levels of aluminum, cadmium, lead, manganese and zinc, as well as low pH values.
Remediation has involved the removal of surface shooting debris from all three ranges, including broken and whole clay pigeons, shell casings and lead shot, said DEP spokeswoman Laina Aquiline. Soil sampling on one of the ranges has been completed, and plans are in the works for how Highlands will handle the remediation.
It is unclear when the cleanup will be finished. A timeline was not available.
“We take this matter very seriously and are committed to addressing it responsibly,” Buchan said.
Ongoing issues
Issues with Blue Hole Creek, at the border of Fayette and Somerset counties, have been ongoing for a few years, and it is no longer designated as an exceptional value stream. That label is reserved for waterways free from pollution and nearby development that have high water quality and abundant stream life.
A 2024 DEP report previously obtained by TribLive indicated the agency received a complaint in 2021 and conducted testing on Blue Hole Creek in 2023. Those tests showed waterways in that area were impaired.
Mountain Watershed Association conducted its own testing last spring after noticing odd conditions in the stream and fewer-than-expected macro invertebrates, or aquatic bugs. The findings, and warnings to the public, were spread on social media. Signs about lead contamination have been posted along the stream where it crosses the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail and at a popular swimming hole.
A filter typically used by hikers to clean water will not remove lead. The Environmental Protection Agency says there is no safe level of lead in drinking water.
“It’s really unfortunate. This is one of Pennsylvania’s most revered, high-quality water streams,” Harder said.
The state Fish and Boat Commission this year removed Blue Hole Creek from its trout stocking program because of the contamination.
The creek starts at the top of Laurel Ridge near Seven Springs Mountain Resort. It passes through the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail and flows along a gravel road in Forbes State Forest that is popular with cyclists, anglers and snowmobile riders. It eventually flows into Laurel Hill Creek.
On a day this month, Harder and watershed specialist Chantelle Hutchens gathered samples of water and bugs that live in Blue Hole Creek. Samples from two locations — where Cole Run empties into the water and about a mile upstream — were sent for lab testing.
The bugs can be an indicator of a stream’s health, Harder and Hutchens said. A lot of bugs, and diversity in types, specifically ones that are sensitive, show a waterway is a good habitat.
“It’s important for them to have clean water because they can’t go anywhere else,” Hutchens said.
Using her feet and a net, Hutchens kicked up the stream bed and captured some of the tiny macro invertebrates. While sifting through the material afterward, she found stone flies and tucked them into a glass jar with leaf debris to be sent to the lab for analysis. Some of the bugs are so tiny they have to be identified through a microscope lens.
She and Harder said the quantity of bugs collected near the Cole Run connection was low. There were even fewer found a mile upstream, Harder said.
It was the second time Mountain Watershed Association conducted water tests there this year. Results from the beginning of April found the highest contamination levels for lead and aluminum at a spot closest to Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail and Highland Sporting Clays, according to lab results provided to TribLive.
“To this day, we haven’t seen the grand improvement in water quality that we’ve been really hoping for,” Harder said. “And maybe that’ll take some more time.”
Questions remain
While DEP officials continue to review plans from Highland Sporting Clays, Mountain Watershed Association will regularly do water testing to keep track of water quality.
In the meantime, Harder said communication with the public from DEP and Highlands Sporting Clays has been lacking. It’s also unclear who will be responsible for long-term monitoring of the waterway, he said.
“That’s really important to not only us, but I think everyone in this region — when is this site going to be cleaned up, how are we going to know it’s improved and where is the transparency from Highlands to the general public?” he said.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s manual for best management practices indicates ranges should keep track of the types and number of rounds fired, implement bullet containment measures and consider the direction of surface water runoff.
The manual details options to prevent lead pollution from potentially migrating offsite — for instance, by planting vegetation or building a filter bed.
For Harder, the situation is especially frustrating: There’s no way for the public to weigh in on where a shooting range is because, he said, there’s no requirement for an application to DEP.
Mountain Watershed Association has received donations to help with the testing and has fielded questions about the ongoing issue.
“At some point, we hope that this is returned to its exceptional value designation,” Harder said. “But right now, it’s been impaired for a couple years.”