Pennsylvania Power & Light Co.'s Susquehanna Riverlands has been selected as an Important Bird Area in Pennsylvania by the National Audubon Society.

The program recognizes an area for its bird species, or its habitat. The Riverlands was acknowledged for its riverside area and extensive upland forests.

In all, 71 sites were selected in the state. Only four of the areas cited are owned by corporations; the other sites are mostly state- or county-owned properties.

"Being selected as an Important Bird Area shows that energy and the environment can go hand-in-hand," said John Fridman, PP&L's assistant land management superintendent and naturalist at the Riverlands.

"Many forest-dwelling species are abundant and productive on PP&L property on both sides of the Susquehanna River north of Berwick," he said. "These forests are important to many types of birds. With land development throughout the state, many forests have been greatly diminished."

The Riverlands was established in 1980. PP&L operates the Susquehanna Riverlands, on Route 11, six miles north of Berwick, in conjunction with its Susquehanna nuclear power plant in Salem Township.

For more information, contact the Susquehanna Riverlands at (717) 542-2306.