The entirety of the creek is designated as an impaired waterbody due to metals from abandoned mine drainage.

A colliery historically discharged waste water into North Branch Shamokin Creek.

North Branch Shamokin Creek begins in a valley near Big Mountain, in the census-designated place of Wilburton Number Two, in Conyngham Township, Columbia County.

The creek flows west-southwest through the valley for more than a mile before exiting Congnyham Township and Columbia County.

[2] The entire length of North Branch Shamokin Creek is designated as an impaired waterbody and has poor water quality.

[7] The concentrations of acidity and alkalinity in the creek are 81.88 and 1.54 milligrams per liter (0.08179 and 0.00154 oz/cu ft), while the daily loads are 2,082.8 and 39.2 pounds (944.7 and 17.8 kg).

[6] The concentrations of manganese and iron in North Branch Shamokin Creek are 2.72 and 9.74 milligrams per liter (0.00272 and 0.00973 oz/cu ft), while the daily loads are 69.2 and 247.8 pounds (31.4 and 112.4 kg).

[6] The elevation near the mouth of North Branch Shamokin Creek is 1,027 feet (313 m) above sea level.

[9] Communities in the creek's watershed include the borough of Marion Heights and the census-designated place of Strong.

[8] In 2009, Northeastern ITS requested a permit to discharge stormwater into North Branch Shamokin Creek for construction purposes.

[4] North Branch Shamokin Creek was entered into the Geographic Names Information System on August 2, 1979.

[9] This name appears in Israel C. White's 1883 book The geology of the North Branch Susquehanna River Region in the six counties of Wyoming, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Columbia, Montour and Northumberland.

[15] A prestressed box beam or girders bridge carrying Pennsylvania Route 61 over North Branch Shamokin Creek in 2008 in Atlas.

The goal of the project was to improve the water quality of several Operation Scarlift discharges in the watershed, thus reducing mine pollution to the creek.

[7] Algae flourishes in a deep mine discharge in the watershed of North Branch Shamokin Creek due to a lack of predators.