Centre County is in the Susquehanna River basin. Moshannon Creek, Black Moshannon Creek, Beech Creek, Bald Eagle Creek, Little Fishing Creek, and Penns Creek are the major streams in the county. Each of these streams has many potential impoundment sites that could be developed for municipal and industrial water supply, recreation, and flood control purposes. Many of the streams in the northwestern part of the county have been polluted by acid drainage. Sayers Reservoir on Bald Eagle Creek was constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for flood control and recreation. Several smaller dams have been constructed in the past for recreation or water supply but do not have flood control capabilities.

Potential subsurface water supplies vary, depending on the nature of the underlying rock. Where sandstone bedrock is dominant, quantity and quality of water are generally good. Where shale is the dominant underlying rock, quantities are generally limited, and quality of water is variable. On the Allegheny Plateau in the northwestern part of the county, the subsurface water from many of the shale areas has excess minerals that may make it unpalatable and objectionable to use if not treated. In the eastern Penns Valley area, much of the well water from the carbonaceous shales has a high sulfur content and the associated offensive odors.

Where springs or surface seep areas are available, their development for water supplies can be an economical method of overcoming the problems of unsatisfactory well water in shale areas. In the valley areas underlain by limestone, quantity of water is generally quite good if the well is located in a rock fissure, but quality may be questionable. In the limestone areas the ground water travels through large solution channels and rock fissures, making water sources difficult to locate. Ground water in this area is also easily contaminated by sewage or industrial wastes that are dumped into dry wells or sinkholes.

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