A virtually dead zone in an otherwise fishable creek will benefit from a restoration project that was conceived, designed, permitted, coordinated and funded by students at Greater Latrobe Junior-Senior High School.

Nine Mile Run, which flows into Loyalhanna Creek near St. Vincent College at Latrobe, is generally clean enough to benefit trout (stocked in the Loyalhanna as far downstream as Monastery Run) that might be seeking a breath of cool, oxygenated water, particularly during the summer.

But recent flooding has damaged portions of the creek, leaving those areas practically lifeless.

Throughout the current school year, more than 50 Greater Latrobe students have studied the creek and raised money for its restoration.

This week, with the help of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, they'll roll up their sleeves and plunge in, building a series of baffling walls to direct the current, enabling the creek to build its own channels, pool and bank overhangs, improvements intended to attract wildlife.

"The creek is relatively clean," said Carole Wright, the teacher coordinating the project. "Hurricane Ivan severely eroded it, destroying the fish habitat. The kids figured it out and with help from Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, identified the site."

Students conducted a macro-invertebrate study, electro-fishing biological assessment, chemical analysis and visual assessment of the stream. They wrote the grant proposal that landed $2,500 from the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds, solicited additional funding from Loyalhanna Watershed Association, Latrobe Rotary and Latrobe Foundation, and even called for estimates for the wall-building materials.

"What they found was the diversity of Nine Mile Run is just not there," said Wright. " Upstream in Loyalhanna, Mill Creek, Four Mile Run -- all have more variety of fish species and macro-invertebrates."

Three or four big rain events after the baffles are built, she said, the stream improvements should be evident on Nine Mile Run.