A first-of-its-kind project by the Philadelphia Water Department is working on reintroducing native freshwater mussels into Philadelphia’s waterways to help improve water quality, writes Cari Shane for Philadelphia Magazine.
Led by a small team of aquatic biologists, the project focuses on studying freshwater mollusks native to urban rivers, streams, and canals in the Philadelphia region.
The mussels clean the water by feeding on contaminants that pollute freshwater, including nitrogen, phosphorus, pathogenic bacteria like E. coli, microplastics, metals, pharmaceutical residues, and personal care products.
The research makes the PWD the only water company in the country using freshwater mussels to clean the waterways that are a part of its own watershed. The company is also propagating, or breeding, mussels.
“We have the first, the only that we know of, municipally owned and operated freshwater mussel hatchery in the United States,” said Lance Butler, who runs the lab and launched the freshwater mussel project eight years ago.
The PWD partnered with the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, and the Water Works to develop the hatchery.
The project could have the potential to restore local waterways, including the Schuylkill and the Delaware, which could make them not only drinkable but also swimmable and fishable once more.
Read more about the project the improve Philly’s waterways and water quality in Philadelphia Magazine.
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Editor’s Note: This post first appeared on PHILADELPHIA Today in January 2025.
