With the help of Pennsylvania Power & Light Co. and the Lehigh Valley Peregrine Project, the peregrine falcons are back in the Lehigh Valley this summer.

Four young peregrines arrived today (6/30) and are living in a nesting box on the parapet of the 23rd floor of the PP&L Building in Downtown Allentown. This is the third summer since 1995 that young falcons have been raised on the building.

The birds are brought to Allentown by the Lehigh Valley Peregrine Project, a partnership of area businesses and community and environmental groups that was formed by PP&L to help the Pennsylvania Game Commission's efforts to re-establish the birds in the state.

"We hope that by releasing the falcons in Allentown, the birds will make their home in the Lehigh Valley or somewhere else in Pennsylvania," said Jeff Luzenski, a PP&L employee and coordinator of the Lehigh Valley Peregrine Project. "PP&L happens to have a perfect building for releasing falcons and a strong corporate commitment to the environment. It's the right match."

Peregrine falcons are an endangered bird in Pennsylvania. In recent years, the Pennsylvania Game Commission has been working throughout the state to release peregrines in an attempt to build the peregrine population in the state.

The birds on the PP&L building were raised by a peregrine breeder in the Midwest and flown to Philadelphia this morning by Northwest Airlines. The birds are about 40 days old.

"PP&L and all the partners of the Lehigh Valley Peregrine Project realize that the environment — and all those that live in it — benefit when the natural balance of nature exists," Luzenski said.

"That's why a commitment was made to work hard to restore these majestic birds to Pennsylvania, and hopefully, the Lehigh Valley."

A local falconer and Luzenski will attach metal identification bands around the legs of the birds Tuesday (7/1) at 2 p.m. The bands are used to identify and track the birds when they migrate.

The birds will be kept in a release box until they are about 45 days old. At that time, the box will be opened and the birds released. Food and water are supplied for at least one month after the birds' release, at which time the young falcons can feed themselves.

The PP&L building, because of its height and multitiered architecture, makes a good substitute home for the falcons, which nest on cliffs and rockfaces in the wild to avoid predators.

Since the inception of the program, PP&L has developed numerous information sources for falcon communications.

• Telephone information line - 1-800-354-8383. Available during the spring and summer, this line allows callers to get the latest on the falcons, leave a message or report a falcon sighting.
• Television monitor. When the birds are in the hack box, a live picture of the young falcons is broadcast to a television monitor in a display window of the PP&L building. Service Electric Cable TV-2 also broadcasts the picture on cable-access channel 84. An updated picture also will be put on channel 2, the station's information channel, every 15 minutes for one minute.
• Internet. This year, PP&L Resources has added a peregrine falcon information section to the company's Internet home page.
• Allentown Library Display. The Allentown Library on Hamilton Street will continue to host a peregrine falcon information display during the month of July. The display provides educational material about the peregrines.

The Lehigh Valley Peregrine Project is a community effort that began with the participation of PP&L, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, Wildlands Conservancy, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society, the Downtown Allentown Improvement District Authority and Northwest Airlines. The group has added additional sponsors for this year's program. Organizers still are seeking donations and support for a second release of falcons this summer. Call the toll-free number for more information.

To complement the efforts of the peregrine project in Allentown, PP&L has installed nesting boxes at company power plants throughout central and eastern Pennsylvania. The 2-foot-by-3-foot boxes are located on plant emission monitoring equipment and provide suitable nesting locations for migrating falcons.