PaEnvironmentDigest Oct. 31, 2016

PA Environment Digest
An Update On Environmental Issues In Pennsylvania

Edited By: David E. Hess, Crisci Associates
Winner Of PA Association of Environmental Educators
Business Partner Of The Year Award
PA Environment Digest Daily Blog
Issue #644
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Harrisburg, PA
October 31, 2016
CFA OKs $14 Million In Act 13 Drilling Fee Funding For 94 Projects
Gov. Tom Wolf Monday announced the Commonwealth Financing Authority approved $14
million in funding to support 94 projects through six Act 13 Marcellus Legacy Fund programs
designed to support conservation projects and environmental protection measures throughout
Pennsylvania.
Using fee revenue collected from unconventional gas wells, Act 13 supports statewide
environmental projects from flood control, to sewage treatment, to greenways, trails and
recreation that help improve, protect, and conserve Pennsylvanias natural beauty and
wellbeing, said Gov. Wolf. We anticipate a tremendous, positive impact that can be witnessed
and shared by communities across the state as a result of these investments.
The 94 projects approved today are located in 38 counties: Allegheny, Armstrong,
Bedford, Berks, Bucks, Butler, Cambria, Cameron, Carbon, Centre, Chester, Clearfield, Clinton,
Cumberland, Dauphin, Delaware, Erie, Fayette, Franklin, Greene, Huntingdon, Indiana,
Lackawanna, Lawrence, Lehigh, Luzerne, Mercer, Montgomery, Northampton, Northumberland,
Philadelphia, Potter, Snyder, Somerset, Susquehanna, Tioga, Wayne and Westmoreland,
counties.
The CFA approved the following for six of the Marcellus Legacy Fund programs at the
October meeting:
-- Abandoned Mine Drainage Abatement and Treatment: 2 projects approved; $563,191 total
-- Flood Mitigation: 8 projects approved; $1,821,325 total
-- Greenways, Trails and Recreation: 68 projects approved; $9,182,299 total
-- Orphan or Abandoned Well Plugging: 1 project approved; $130,00 total
-- Sewage Facilities: 4 projects approved; $141,647 total
-- Watershed Restoration and Protection: 11 projects approved; $2,161,538 total
Click Here for a list of approved projects.
The Marcellus Legacy Fund was created by Act 13 of 2012 to provide for the distribution
of unconventional gas well impact fees to counties, municipalities, and commonwealth agencies.
To date, the fee has generated more than $1 billion to support local community
initiatives.
The programs are administered jointly by the Department of Community and Economic
Development, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and the Department of
Environmental Protection, under the direction of the CFA.

The announced deadlines coming up for other CFA funding programs are--- October 31-- CFA Small Water & Sewer Project Funding
-- January 1? -- CFA High Performance Buildings (60 days before next CFA meeting)
-- January 1? -- CFA Renewable Energy Program (60 days before next CFA meeting)
The next scheduled meeting of the CFA board is set for December 6.
For more information on funding available, visit the Commonwealth Financing Authority
webpage.
NewsClips:
Waynesboro Gets $205K State Grant For Park Upgrades
Greene County Receives Grants To Extend Greene River Trail
Related Story:
CFA OKs Funding For High Performance Building Project In Montgomery County
Bill Making It Easier To Safely Dispose Of Unwanted Drugs Goes To Governor
The Senate and House Wednesday unanimously took final action
on legislation House Bill 1737 (Maher-R- Allegheny) to
make it easier and safer to destroy unused and unwanted
prescription and over-the-counter drugs, sending it to Gov. Wolf
for his action.
The bill is sponsored by Rep. John Maher (R-Allegheny), Majority
Chair of the House Environmental Resources and Energy
Committee.
The bill was supported by a variety of groups, including DEPs Environmental Justice
Advisory Committee and Covanta Energy who highlighted the importance of providing safe
disposal of unwanted or unneeded prescription and other drugs.
Covanta Energy, which supplies safe and secure disposal of prescription drugs through its
Rx4 Safety Program, also supports the legislation. Covanta operates five energy-from-waste
facilities in Pennsylvania, including in Dauphin, Delaware, Lancaster, Montgomery and York
counties.
In Gov. Wolfs address to a joint session of the House and Senate on the opioid and
heroin crisis, he noted there are nearly 520 take-back boxes located at police stations across
Pennsylvania, and we have collected and destroyed over 145,000 pounds of prescription drugs,
including opioids.
Drug Take Back Locations near you can be found by visiting--- Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs;
-- PA State Police; and
-- U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
A House Fiscal Note and summary is available.
NewsClips:
NJ Garbage Hauling Company Is Top Turnpike Toll Violator
House Defeats Plan To Ban Fees On Single Use Plastic Bags
Gov. Wolf Vetoes SB 562 Allowing Senate, House To Block A Regulation By Inaction
Gov. Tom Wolf Friday vetoed Senate Bill 562 (Gordner-R- Columbia) saying the bill has the
potential to grind the regulatory review process to a halt and decreases transparency in state
government. His veto message says in part-In promulgating regulations, executive agencies are simply exercising legal authority
already granted to them by the legislature. Existing law already supplies the legislature with
significant influence in the regulatory process. The General Assembly has acted in many
instances pursuant to this process to object to and significantly change regulations that members
have felt exceeded the authority of the executive branch.
Finally, this bill decreases the transparency in state government by preventing state
agencies from publishing explanations of why regulations are needed. Public notice, which is
required by current law, helps inform interested parties of the need and reason behind the
changes in the rules. We should be increasing-- not decreasing-- transparency in our
government.
A copy of the veto message is available online.
The House passed Senate Bill 562 by a vote of 109 to 81 and the Senate 31 to 16 largely
along party lines. Neither margin is veto proof.
Earlier on Friday, the PA Environmental Council, Chesapeake Bay Foundation-PA,
Western PA Conservancy and the Environmental Defense Fund urged Gov. Wolf to veto Senate
Bill 562 (Gordner-R- Columbia) because it allows the General Assembly to block a regulation by
inaction for no reason and prohibits an agency from publishing a statement of purpose for a
regulation taking away the publics right to know why a regulation is being adopted.
The text of the letter follows-Dear Governor Wolf:
We are writing to urge your veto of Senate Bill 562, which passed the General Assembly
on concurrence vote October 26, 2016. This legislation amends the Regulatory Review Act to
expand legislative review of rulemaking proposals our concern is that the amendments
decrease public transparency, and could lead to invalidation of proposals merely due to
legislative inaction.
Senate Bill 562 grants standing committees of the General Assembly the ability to
prevent a rulemaking from proceeding to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission, or an
agency from promulgating a rulemaking, unless and until that committee conducts a hearing and
vote on the proposal.
The Committee is granted the greater of a set number of calendar or legislative session
days to conduct this vote. Given the uncertainty of the General Assemblys calendar, this review
may not occur for several months.
When you consider that a rulemaking proposal, under law, must be finalized within two
years of initial publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin, an extended or uncertain hold on the
proposal could in effect invalidate the rulemaking altogether, even without any action formal
taken by the standing committee or General Assembly.
In practice, this could even mean that a simple majority of a standing committee less
than a dozen members of the General Assembly could fully block a final rulemaking proposal
that has undergone extensive public involvement and review pursuant to existing law.
Furthermore, Senate Bill 562 blocks publication of an agencys Statements of Purpose for
proposed rulemaking in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. There is no rationale for this change in long
standing practice in effect, it decreases transparency by limiting information provided to the

public even when it is shared with the General Assembly.
We believe these amendments to existing law are against the public interest. For that
reason, we urge you to veto Senate Bill 562.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Harry Campbell
Pennsylvania Executive Director
Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Andrew Williams
Senior State Regulatory and Legislative Affairs Manager
Environmental Defense Fund
Davitt Woodwell
President
Pennsylvania Environmental Council
Cynthia Carrow
Vice President, Government and Community Relations
Western Pennsylvania Conservancy
NewsClip:
Wolf Vetoes Bill Giving Legislators More Control Over Regulations
Senate, House Finish Session With Flurry Of Action On Bills, No Action On DEP Secretary
The Senate and House Thursday finished voting on bills for
this session (at least as of now), putting 55 bills on the
Governors desk for his action. Seven of those bills were
related to environmental issues of one sort or another, some
good, some bad and some missed opportunities.
Legislation to make it easier to safely destroy unwanted or
unused prescription drugs, an extension of the Realty Transfer
Tax exemption for conservation easements and increasing the
effectiveness of Transit Improvement Districts made it to the Governors desk.
Unfortunately legislation that would allow the General Assembly to block regulations
through its inaction (Gov. Wolf vetoed this bill Friday) and an extension of the PA One Call
utility safety program without a provision including natural gas gathering lines are also on the
Governors desk.
Also in the unfortunate category is Senate Resolution 385 adopted by the Senate last
week which directs the Joint State Government Commission to identify environmental laws and
regulations more stringent than federal law as a prelude, no doubt, for some legislator to rollback
those laws.
The Senate did not take action on Gov. Wolfs nomination of Patrick McDonnell as
Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection, so the clock starts again on his
nomination in January.
Heres a quick summary of what did and did not happen.
On The Governors Desk
Final action was taken on legislation included--- Destruction Of Prescription Drugs: further providing for the safe destruction of unwanted or
unused prescription and other drugs (House Fiscal Note and summary).
-- Land Conservation Easements: House Bill 2370 (Moul-R-Adams) among other provisions,
the bill extends the conservation easement Realty Transfer Tax exemption (House Fiscal Note
and summary).
-- Transit Improvement Districts: Senate Bill 385 (Pileggi-R-Delaware) further providing for
Transit Revitalization investment Districts by, among other changes, establishing a TRID Fund
to provide grants (House Fiscal Note and summary).
-- Reauthorizing PA One Call Law: extends the PA One Call utility safety program for another
year, but without a provision to include natural gas gathering lines added by the Senate and
opposed by conventional oil and gas drillers (House Fiscal Note and summary).
-- Public Utilities: Senate Bill 881 (Blake-D-Lackawanna) exempting from the definition of
public utility a resort offering water or sewer service to private homes within a resort (House
Fiscal Note and summary).
-- Guaranteed Energy Savings Contracts: House Bill 2107 (Baker-R-Tioga) among other
provisions, it includes additional notice requirements for financial obligations and validation of
budgetary sources of all energy-related cost savings (House Fiscal Note and summary).
-- Extended Review Of Regulations: Senate Bill 562 (Gordner-R-Columbia) amending the
Regulatory Review Act to allow the General Assembly to block a regulation by inaction for no
reason and prohibits an agency from publishing a statement of purpose for a regulation taking
away the publics right to know why a regulation is being adopted (House Fiscal Note and
summary). (Gov. Wolf vetoed this bill Friday)
Bullets Dodged
The Senate and House did NOT take final action on several amendments and bills
opposed by environmental groups. They include--- Blocking Some Marcellus Shale Drilling Reg Changes: Provisions included in Senate Bill
1229 (Vogel-R- Beaver) and amendments set to be offered to the unrelated House Bill 1391
(Everett-R- Lycoming) would have rolled back well site restoration, waste disposal reporting and
freshwater construction standards now in DEPs Chapter 78a Marcellus Shale drilling
regulations. Both bills died in the House. Click Here for more information. Earlier this month
the Marcellus Shale industries filed suit in Commonwealth Court to block implementation of
these parts of the regulation.
-- Uniform Construction Code: House Bill 568 (Evankovich-R-Allegheny) which would
change the way the states Uniform Construction Code is updated, including energy conservation
measures, but in ways that prevent timely updates. The bill was opposed by several
environmental groups. The bill died in the House.
-- Endangered Species Protection: Rep. Jeff Pyle (R-Armstrong) has filed amendments to
Senate Bill 1166 (Stefano-R- Fayette) and Senate Bill 1168 (Eichelberger-R-Blair) now on the
House Calendar to add unrelated language to reduce protection for endangered species during
environmental permit reviews. Neither bill was considered in the House and died. The
amendments were opposed by many environmental and other groups. Click Here for more
information.
-- Ban On Plastic Bag Fees: House Bill 1280 (Farry-R-Bucks) that would have prohibited a
plastic bag ban, tax or fee was defeated on final passage 75 to 112. No doubt this will be
introduced again next year.

Hint Of Future Action?
Legislators often take advantage of the end of session to introduce bills they know will
not go anywhere, but are hints that action may be taken on those issues next session.
Two of those bills-- one good, one bad-- were introduced this week--- Good: Water Quality Improvement Grants: Senate Bill 1401 (Alloway-R-Franklin,
Corman-R- Centre) establishing the Water Quality Improvement Grants to support watershed
restoration projects funded by a water resource use fee. A Senate hearing on October 19 clearly
found agreement on the need to find more resources to address Pennsylvanias water quality
problems and the obligation to cleanup the Chesapeake Bay. A coalition of Senators also
introduced bipartisan legislation recently-- Senate Bill 1374-- to establish a Growing Greener III
program. In the House, legislation has also been introduced to establish a water use fee and to
study the development of a fee to fund water quality improvement projects.
-- Bad: Bion Bailout Bill: House Bill 2430 (Tallman-R-Adams) would create a Nutrient Credit
Trading Program in law that has taxpayers paying for the credits instead of the existing program
where credits are bought and sold between those generating credits and those needing credits
without taxpayer involvement. These transactions take place in a framework administered by
PennVEST. The sponsor summary says ALL investments now made by the state in farm
conservation BMP installation, stormwater and wastewater compliance would be diverted into
this new program. Almost identical legislation-- Senate Bill 724-- introduced earlier this session
was opposed by agricultural and environmental groups.
January is a new year, and the beginning of a new legislative session.
It will be a great opportunity to make the focus of 2017 restoring water quality in our
over 19,000 miles of polluted waterways to help celebrate the 80th anniversary of Pennsylvanias
Clean Streams Law, the basic state law that protects water quality in the Commonwealth.
NewsClips:
PA One Call Utility Safety Program Extended Without Expanding It
Swift: Updated Natural Gas Lines Bill Faces Urgency In Legislature
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Senate/House Agenda/Session Schedule/Govs Schedule/ Bills Introduced

Here are the Senate and House Calendars and Committee meetings showing bills of interest as
well as a list of new environmental bills introduced-Bill Calendars
House (November 14): House Bill 1391 (Everett-R-Lycoming) establishing a guaranteed
minimum oil and gas well royalty (sponsor summary); House Resolution 872 (Causer-R-Forest)
urging federal and state regulatory agencies to use science-based, peer-reviewed data to evaluate
crop protection chemistry and nutrients (sponsor summary); Senate Bill 1166 (Stefano-RFayette) authorizing hunting license changes by Game Commission and Senate Bill 1168
(Eichelberger- R-Blair) authorizing fishing license changes by Fish & Boat Commission.
<> Click Here for full House Bill Calendar.
Senate (November 16): Senate Bill 16 (Yudichak-D-Luzerne) establishing a task force on lead
and the hazards of lead poisoning and authorizing a study (sponsor summary); House Bill 1103
(Zimmerman-R- Lancaster) exempting agricultural high-tunnel greenhouse structures from
stormwater permitting requirements (House Fiscal Note and summary). <> Click Here for full
Senate Bill Calendar.
Committee Meeting Agendas This Week
House: <> Click Here for full House Committee Schedule.
Senate: <> Click Here for full Senate Committee Schedule.
Bills Pending In Key Committees
Check the PA Environmental Council Bill Tracker for the status and updates on pending state
legislation and regulations that affect environmental and conservation efforts in Pennsylvania.
Here are links to key Standing Committees in the House and Senate and the bills pending in
each-House
Appropriations
Education
Environmental Resources and Energy
Consumer Affairs
Gaming Oversight
Human Services
Judiciary
Liquor Control
Transportation
Links for all other Standing House Committees
Senate
Appropriations
Environmental Resources and Energy
Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure
Community, Economic and Recreational Development
Education
Judiciary
Law and Justice
Public Health and Welfare
Transportation
Links for all other Standing Senate Committees
Bills Introduced
The following bills of interest were introduced this week-Water Quality Improvement Grants: Senate Bill 1401 (Alloway-R-Franklin, Corman-RCentre) establishing the Water Quality Improvement Grants funded by a water resource use fee.
Bion Bailout Bill: House Bill 2430 (Tallman-R-Adams) would create a Nutrient Credit Trading
Program in law that has taxpayers paying for the credits instead of the existing program where
credits are bought and sold between those generating credits and those needing credits without
taxpayer involvement. These transactions take place in a framework administered by PennVEST.
The sponsor summary says ALL investments now made by the state in farm conservation BMP
installation, stormwater and wastewater compliance would be diverted into this new program.
New Drinking Water Standards: House Bill 2431 (Murt-R-Montgomery) would require DEP
to set standards for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in our
drinking water (sponsor summary).
17 Principles Of Environmental Justice: House Resolution 1108 (Bullock-D-Philadelphia)

recognizing the 25th Anniversary of the adoption of 17 principles of environmental justice
(sponsor summary).
Explore PA Outdoors: Senate Resolution 477 (Teplitz-D-Dauphin) designating October 23 to
29 Explore PA Outdoors Week (sponsor summary) was adopted by the Senate.
Session Schedule
Here is the latest voting session schedule for the Senate and House-Senate
November 16
House
November 14, 15
Governors Schedule
Gov. Tom Wolf's work calendar will be posted each Friday and his public schedule for the day
will be posted each morning. Click Here to view Gov. Wolfs Weekly Calendar and Public
Appearances.
Bills On Governor's Desk

The following bills were given final approval by the Senate and House and are now on the
Governor's desk for action-Destruction Of Prescription Drugs: House Bill 1737 (Maher-R-Allegheny) further providing
for the safe destruction of unwanted or unused prescription and other drugs (House Fiscal Note
and summary).
Reauthorizing PA One Call Law: Senate Bill 1235 (Baker-R-Luzerne) extends the PA One
Call utility safety program for another year, but without a provision to include natural gas
gathering lines added by the Senate and opposed by conventional oil and gas drillers (House
Fiscal Note and summary).
Guaranteed Energy Savings Contracts: House Bill 2107 (Baker-R-Tioga) among other
budgetary sources of all energy-related cost savings (House Fiscal Note and summary).
Transit Improvement Districts: Senate Bill 385 (Pileggi-R-Delaware) further providing for
to provide grants (House Fiscal Note and summary).
Land Conservation Easements: House Bill 2370 (Moul-R-Adams) among other provisions, the
bill extends the conservation easement Realty Transfer Tax exemption (House Fiscal Note and
summary).
Public Utilities: Senate Bill 881 (Blake-D-Lackawanna) exempting from the definition of public
utility a resort offering water or sewer service to private homes within a resort (House Fiscal
Note and summary).
Extended Review Of Regulations: Senate Bill 562 (Gordner-R-Columbia) amending the
away the publics right to know why a regulation is being adopted (House Fiscal Note and
summary). The bill was vetoed by the Governor. Click Here for veto message.
Senate/House Bills Moving

The following bills of interest saw action this week in the House and Senate-House
Guaranteed Energy Savings Contracts: House Bill 2107 (Baker-R-Tioga) among other
budgetary sources of all energy-related cost savings. The House concurred in amendments made
by the Senate and the bill now goes to the Governor for his action. A House Fiscal Note and
summary is available.
Land Conservation Easements: House Bill 2370 (Moul-R-Adams) among other provisions, the
bill extends the conservation easement Realty Transfer Tax exemption, was passed by the House
and now goes to the Senate for action. A House Fiscal Note and summary is available.
The bill was reported from the Senate Finance Committee and was passed by the Senate.
The bill now goes to the Governor for his action.
Extended Review Of Regulations: Senate Bill 562 (Gordner-R-Columbia) amending the
away the publics right to know why a regulation is being adopted was referred into and out of
the House Appropriations Committee and was passed by the House 109 to 81. A House Fiscal
Note and summary is available. The bill returns to the Senate for a concurrence vote.
The bill was reported from the Senate Rules Committee and concurred in by the Senate
31 to 16. The bill now goes to the Governor for his action.
Public Utilities: Senate Bill 881 (Blake-D-Lackawanna) exempting from the definition of public
utility a resort offering water or sewer service to private homes within a resort was removed from
the Table, was amended on the House Floor to exclude stormwater, was referred into and out of
the House Appropriations Committee and was passed by the House. The bill returns to the
Senate for a concurrence vote. A House Fiscal Note and summary is available.
The bill was reported out of the Senate Rules Committee and was concurred in by the
Senate. The bill now goes to the Governor for his action.
Reauthorizing PA One Call Law: Senate Bill 1235 (Baker-R-Luzerne) extends the PA One
Call utility safety program for another year, but without a provision to include natural gas
gathering lines added by the Senate and opposed by conventional oil and gas drillers, was
referred into and out of the House Appropriations Committee after being amended to be just a
simple extension of the PA One Call program for another year and was passed by the House. A
House Fiscal Note and summary is available. The bill now returns to the Senate for a
concurrence vote.
The bill was reported out of the Senate Rules Committee and was reluctantly concurred
in by the Senate. The bill now goes to the Senate for action.
Ban On Plastic Bag Fees: House Bill 1280 (Farry-R-Bucks) prohibit a plastic bag ban, tax or
fee was reported out of the House Appropriations Committee and was defeated on final passage
75 to 112. A House Fiscal Note and summary is available. The bill now goes to the Senate for
action.
Senate
Destruction Of Prescription Drugs: House Bill 1737 (Maher-R-Allegheny) further providing
for the safe destruction of unwanted or unused prescription and other drugs was passed by the
Senate unanimously and now returns to the House for a concurrence vote.
The bill was reported out of the House Rules Committee and concurred in unanimously
by the House. The bill now goes to the Governor for his action. A House Fiscal Note and
Transit Improvement Districts: Senate Bill 385 (Pileggi-R-Delaware) further providing for
to provide grants on concurrence was amended and reported out of the Senate Rules Committee
and was passed by the Senate. The bill now returns to the House for a concurrence vote.
The bill was reported out of the House Rules Committee and the House concurred in
Senate amendments. The bill now goes to the Governor for his action. A House Fiscal Note and
Energy Efficiency Exemption: Senate Bill 805 (Boscola-D-Lehigh) exempting certain large
electricity users from Act 129 energy efficiency requirements was amended on the Senate Floor
and was passed by the Senate. The bill now goes to the House for action.
Storage Tank Insurance Board: House Bill 1895 (Metzgar-R-Bedford) changing the
membership of the Underground Storage Tank Indemnification Board from appointments only
by the Governor to appointments by both the General Assembly and the Governor was removed
from the Table, referred into and out of the Senate Appropriations Committee and is now on the
Senate Calendar for final action.
Marcellus Shale Drilling Reg Changes: Senate Bill 1229 (Vogel-R-Beaver) amends the
Administrative Code with several provisions, including changes to the Horse Breeders Fund and
eliminating certain provisions of DEPs final Marcellus Shale regulations was amended to
eliminate all the provisions except for language related to the Horse Breeders Fund contained in
House Bill 2303 and reported out of the House Rules Committee and is on the House Calendar
for action.
Uniform Construction Code: House Bill 568 (Evankovich-R-Allegheny) which would change
the way the states Uniform Construction Code is updated, including energy conservation
measures was reported out of the Senate Rules Committee, but only after reverting back to
Printers Number 3705, the version that passed the Senate previously. A Senate Fiscal Note and
summary is available. The Senate passed the bill and it now returns to the House for a
concurrence vote. The bill remains in the House Rules Committee.
Land Conservation Easement Exemption: House Bill 2370 (Moul-R-Adams) extending the
conservation easement tax exemption was referred into and out the Senate Appropriations
Committee and is now on the Senate Calendar for action.
Potomac River Basin Commission: House Bill 577 (Moul-R- Adams) providing for the
appointment of alternates on the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (House
Fiscal Note and summary) was reported out of the Senate Appropriations Committee and is now
on the Senate Calendar for action.
Private Dam Assistance: House Bill 1712 (R.Brown-R-Monroe) establishing a Private Dam
Financial Assurance Program (House Fiscal Note and summary) was removed from the Table,
referred into and out of the Senate Appropriations Committee and is now on the Senate Calendar
for action.
Explore PA Outdoors: Senate Resolution 477 (Teplitz-D-Dauphin) designating October 23 to
29 Explore PA Outdoors Week (sponsor summary) was adopted by the Senate.
Federal Floodplain Management Changes: Senate Resolution 421 (Argall-R-Schuylkill)
urging the President and Congress to review changes to the federal floodplain management
regulations that negatively impact blighted communities (sponsor summary) was adopted by the
Senate.
News From The Capitol

October Environmental Synopsis Now Available From Joint Conservation Committee
The October edition of the Environmental Synopsis
newsletter is now available from the Joint Legislative Air
and Water Pollution Control and Conservation Committee
featuring stories on--
-- Highlights From The September Forestry Task Force Meeting

-- Drone Technology Applied To Agriculture Growing Industry
-- Texas Coal-Fired Power Plants Face Retirement
-- The Impact Of Artificial Lights On Bat Behavior
-- Non-Native Forest Pests And Their Effects
Sen. Scott Hutchinson (R-Venango) serves as Chair of the Joint Conservation
Committee.
For more information, visit the Joint Conservation Committee website, Like them on
Facebook or Follow them on Twitter. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from the
Committee.
(Photo: Sustainable Forestry Practices, Western PA Conservancy.)
News From Around The State

EnergyWire: 3 PA Senators Want Court To Lift Drilling Moratorium In Delaware Basin
EnergyWire Thursday reported Senators Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson), Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne) and
Gene Yaw (R-Lycoming) filed a brief with U.S. District Court asking to join the landowners
lawsuit challenging the moratorium on oil and gas drilling imposed by the Delaware River Basin
Commission in 2010.
"Notwithstanding this comprehensive statutory and regulatory framework duly enacted
by the Pennsylvania General Assembly, DRBC, through its interpretation of [the interstate
compact], has taken upon itself the role of arbiter of who may construct well pads or related
facilities and engage in related drilling activities in those parts of Pennsylvania that are contained
in the Basin," the Senators' brief says.
The filing continues with objections to the commission's moratorium, saying it ignores
energy and business laws the state has already enacted and usurps the state Legislature's
authority to oversee oil and gas development.
"Indeed, pursuant to this authority, the General Assembly has enacted a careful
legislative plan that regulates shale drilling activities," the filing says. "This plan will be rendered
meaningless if DRBC can prohibit landowners in the Basin from engaging in any activities
related to such drilling. Only the Pennsylvania General Assembly has the authority to regulate
this activity."
Environmental groups have sought to intervene in the case on the DRBC's side, arguing
that a determination that the commission lacks authority over oil and gas development would
undermine its purpose to protect the basin.
Maya K. van Rossum, Delaware RiverKeeper, said, Its inappropriate and disturbing for
legislators to be stepping in for a landowners group trying to force drilling upon communities in
the Delaware Watershed. Its another example of legislators siding with the industry against the
people.
This is also about undermining the authority of the Delaware River Basin Commission
to protect water quality in the watershed, said van Rossum.
Click Here for the full article.
NewsClips:
Delaware River Salt Front At 6-Year High After Prolonged Dry Spell
Delaware RiverKeeper Oct. 28 RiverWatch Video Report

Related Stories:
DRBC: Lower Delaware Drought Warning Becoming Likely
Philadelphia Water Hosts Rain Check Residential Stormwater Workshops In November
October Update On Delaware Basin Science, Academy Of Natural Sciences
Delaware River Basin Commission Executive Director Steve
Tambini Wednesday announced storage levels in two
reservoirs in the Schuylkill and Lehigh river valleys of
Pennsylvania are quickly approaching levels that would
require the Commission to issue a lower basin drought
warning unless the region receives much-needed rainfall.
The Commission will hold a hearing November 9 at 1:30 p.m.
at the Washington Crossing Historic Park Visitor Center, 1112
River Road, in Washington Crossing, Bucks County to accept
public input on the persistent dry conditions throughout the basin and how to address them.
The DRBCs primary drought management objective is to provide for conservation of
regional reservoir storage for purposes of water supply and flow augmentation for the Delaware
River as well as salinity control in the Delaware Estuary.
Low flows in the Delaware River caused by the ongoing dry conditions prompted the
DRBC beginning in early September to direct releases from the Beltzville (photo) and Blue
Marsh reservoirs to meet the minimum flow target at Trenton, N.J., said Tambini. As of
October 24, nearly 7.5 billion gallons (bg) of water had been released from these two lower basin
reservoirs to meet the Trenton target, along with an additional 2.7 bg from the New York
City-owned upper basin reservoirs.
Both Beltzville Reservoir (located on a tributary to the Lehigh River in Carbon County,
Pa.) and Blue Marsh Reservoir (located on a tributary to the Schuylkill River in Berks County,
Pa.) are owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
DRBC pays the Army Corps of Engineers from its Water Supply Storage Facilities Fund
for reservoir storage that is used for directed releases during dry conditions.
The purpose of the Trenton flow target is to control the salt line or salt front in the
tidal Delaware River. Freshwater is needed to keep the salty or brackish water from
advancing up from the Delaware Bay during low-flow conditions and reaching drinking water
intakes serving residents in Philadelphia and New Jersey or industrial intakes along the river.
The salt front is currently more than 13 river miles upstream from its normal location for
this time of year despite significant freshwater reservoir releases, said Tambini. If more water
is needed to address salt front management, we can expect additional declines in reservoir
storage and additional drought risks.
The declaration of a drought warning for the lower basin, which is the portion of the
basin downstream of Montague, N.J., would reduce the flow objective at Trenton based on the
location of the salt front.
The effect of these actions would be to conserve reservoir storage, given the uncertainty
of how much longer it will be necessary to direct releases from the reservoirs to support low
river flows, added Tambini.

A lower basin drought warning also gives the DRBC the option of calling for releases
from additional reservoirs, if necessary, to bolster flows.
Many areas in the Delaware River Basin continue to experience significantly
below-normal precipitation with resulting effects on streamflows, groundwater levels, and
reservoir storage, said Tambini. These conditions have already prompted New Jersey, New
York, and Pennsylvania to declare drought watches or warnings in more than half of the counties
that lie within the basin.
Nov. 9 Hearing
The Commission will hold a hearing November 9 at 1:30 p.m. at the Washington
Crossing Historic Park Visitor Center, 1112 River Road, in Washington Crossing, Bucks County
to accept public input on the persistent dry conditions throughout the basin and how to address
them.
The hearing will be part of the regularly scheduled DRBC quarterly public hearing.
The commission will consider the potential for declaring a water supply emergency in
the future if conditions continue to worsen and will be seeking input from interested parties
before possibly taking this step, said Tambini.
The DRBC is also urging all water users to fully cooperate with requests by the basin
states to voluntarily curb water use where drought watches and warnings have been issued and to
maximize water efficiency wherever possible.
Over 15 million people rely on basin waters and we sometimes believe this resource is
limitless because, unlike in the western states, it seems to always be there in this region, said
Tambini. The fact is that we never know when the next significant and long-term drought might
begin so we should all collectively work towards improving water efficiency every day, not only
when we see persistent dry conditions like now.
Dec. 14 Business Meeting
The DRBC will hold a business meeting on proposed water withdrawal requests and
drought-related conditions on December 14 at Washington Crossing Historic Park Visitor
Center, 1112 River Road, in Washington Crossing, Bucks County starting at 10:30.
The DRBC is a federal/interstate government agency responsible for managing the water
resources within the 13,539 square-mile Delaware River Basin without regard to political
boundaries.
The five commission members are the governors of the basin states (Delaware, New
Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers'
North Atlantic Division, who represents the federal government.
For more information on drought-related issues, visit the DRBC Flow And Drought
Management webpage.
NewsClips:
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The Philadelphia Water Department Rain Check Program is hosting a
series of workshops for residents interested in participating in its
program to help residents manage stormwater at their homes. The
workshops will be held--- November 5: North Light Community Center, 175 Green Lane,
11:00;
-- November 7: Haverford Library, 5543 Haverford Avenue, 5:30;
-- November 17: PHS Town Hall Meeting Room, 100 N. 20th St.,
First Floor, 5:30;
-- November 19: PHS Town Hall Meeting Room, 100 N. 20th St.,
First Floor, 11:00; and
-- November 29: Overbrook Park Library, 7422 Haverford Avenue, 5:30.
Click Here for details on the workshops and to register.
Rain Check supports Philadelphias Green City, Clean Waters Program which is working
in neighborhoods across the City, adding green features to keep excess stormwater out of sewers.
The program is funded by Philadelphia Water and managed by the PA Horticultural
Society in partnership with the Philadelphia Sustainable Business Network.
For more information, visit Philadelphia Waters Rain Check Program webpage.
NewsClips:
Congratulations To Philadelphia Water For 5 Years Of Green City, Clean Waters
Bay Journal: PA Municipalities Begin Uphill Paddle To Reach Runoff Goals
Related Stories:
The October Update On Delaware River Basin Science is now available from the Academy of
Natural Sciences of Drexel University featuring articles on--- How Can You Use Data Collected By Delaware River Monitoring
-- Growing Greener Grant Funds Evaluation Of Restoration Techniques
-- Out And About: Philadelphia Youth Network WorkReady
-- Internships Open
-- Click Here to sign up for your own copy.
For more information on this initiative, visit the Academy of Natural Sciences Delaware
River Watched Initiative webpage.
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Wolf Tours Flood Damage in Northcentral PA, Gives Update On Response
Gov. Tom Wolf, Acting Secretary of Environmental Protection Patrick McDonnell and
Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency Director Richard D. Flinn Jr. Sunday toured
flood damage in Northcentral Pennsylvania and gave an update on the states response.
On Thursday night, heavy rainfall dropped in excess of six inches of rain causing flash
flooding in some towns across the center of the commonwealth, including areas of Centre,
Clinton, Lycoming, Bradford and Sullivan Counties.
Pennsylvania state agencies, local officials, and first responders worked quickly to
ensure the safety and well-being residents and mitigate the effects of the storm, Governor Wolf
said. Director Flinn, Acting Secretary McDonnell, Secretary Richards, and I will continue to
monitor this situation and ensure the counties have the support they need as clean-up continues.
PEMA reports that the Incident Management Team deployed to Sullivan County has
demobilized and returned to Harrisburg.
PEMA staff are currently working with county personnel to conduct damage assessments
in the affected areas. Teams will spend several days compiling damage reports to gather a
comprehensive picture of the extent of the damage.
While the floodwaters have receded, we know that the recovery process has just begun,
said Flinn. We will stay in touch with county personnel to ensure survivors have quick access to
whatever support the Commonwealth can provide.
In Centre County, PennDOT reports that flooding in Milesburg was significant and
affected many local roads. Impacted state roads include SR 3006 (Valleyview Road) in Benner
Township which is restricted due to a stump blocking a pipe.
The 4-lane section of SR 144 between Milesburg and Wingate is also restricted due to
flooding. In addition, there are some shoulder washouts in the low lying areas of SR 1002
(Marsh Creek Road).
Debris clean-up has begun and the department continues to work with municipalities and
emergency management teams
During these trying times, it is of utmost importance to keep safety at the forefront,
said PennDOT Secretary Leslie S. Richards. We will continue to keep those affected by the
flooding aware of travel restrictions, road closures and their subsequent openings. We encourage
patience as we work through this storm together.
Impact to Lycoming County was more devastating. PennDOT crews were deployed to
close roads and begin assessments of damage on October 21, with inspectors, maintenance, and
design staff working around the clock throughout the weekend.
Three emergency contracts have been executed to address the most critical areas and
provide access to residents and inspection teams at sections of SR 1004 and SR 1003.
Emergency contracts started this morning in the Hillsgrove area in Sullivan County to
address TR 87 and SR4010 and SR 1006 from Bodines to Kellysburg in Lycoming County.
According to PennDOT, 144 of the 154 bridge inspections have been completed with the
remaining ten scheduled for Monday. At this writing, three bridges will require replacement,
nine others will require repairs and 23 will require scour repair and debris removal.
Five roads (Lycoming SRs 1003 & 1006 and Sullivan SRs 87, 4001, 4010) are closed due
to flooding. Permanent detours are being signed today and work will continue thru tomorrow.
Preliminary damage estimates and list of contract needs should be available by the
evening of Monday, October 24.
NewsClips:
Wolf: Upstate Flood Damage Fails To Meet Federal Aid Threshold
AP: Washed-Out Bridge Blamed For Pipeline Rupture, Gasoline Spill
AP: Spill From Gasoline Pipeline Has Had No Impact On Water So Far
No Gasoline Detected Yet In River From Lycoming Pipeline Spill
Officials: No Drinking Water Impact By Sunoco Pipeline Spill
In Wake Of Sunoco Pipeline Spill, Cleanup, Monitoring Underway
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DEP Update: Pipeline Spill Has Not Caused Problems For Downstream Water Supplies
DEP Update: Pipeline Spill Has Not Caused Problems For Downstream Water Supplies
The Department of Environmental Protection Thursday
provided this update on the gasoline spill into Loyalsock
Creek in Lycoming County. The spill was caused when an
8-inch pipeline was ruptured by a bridge and other flood
debris that had been washed out by floodwaters
Sunoco has removed the damaged section of pipeline,
which will be further analyzed per Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Safety Administration protocols. DEP and Sunoco
will discuss needs for repair of the pipeline.
DEP continues to monitor the Susquehanna River for
impacts from the spill. Preliminary results from water samples taken from the Harrisburg area
Monday morning did not have detectable levels of contaminants related to gasoline, and
sampling by water systems farther upstream have also been unable to detect contaminants from
the spill.
DEP continues to be in contact with public water suppliers with the sampling results. There is
still a concern to water suppliers for the highly turbid water caused by the heavy rains and
flooding, however there are no anticipated impacts to the water systems from the gasoline spill at
this point in time.
DEP will continue to work with the local community to rebuild and restore any damages from
the flooding and pipeline break.
(Photo: Sunoco Logistics)
NewsClips:
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Wolf Tours Flood Damage In Northcentral PA, Gives Update On State Response
Susquehanna River Basin Commission Hearing On Water Project Applications Nov. 3
The Susquehanna River Basin Commission will receive public comment at a hearing on
November 3. The subjects covered by the hearing include project applications for two diversions
of water and several applications for water withdrawal and consumptive water use projects.
The SRBC Commissioners are scheduled to vote on these and other action items at its
next business meeting on December 8 in Annapolis, Md.
The hearing will be held at the Pennsylvania State Capitol, Room 8E-B, East Wing,
Commonwealth Avenue, Harrisburg. The hearing will begin at 2 p.m. and end at 5 p.m. or when
public testimony concludes, whichever comes first.
Members of the public who are planning to present oral testimony at the public hearing
are encouraged to notify SRBC prior to the hearing of their intent and to indicate the subject of
their comment.
The notices are to be directed to Mr. Jason Oyler, General Counsel, Susquehanna River
Basin Commission, 4423 North Front Street, Harrisburg, PA 17110, Telephone: 717-238-0423,
ext. 1312, Fax: 717-238-2436.
SRBC will accept written comments until November 14; comments may be submitted
electronically through SRBCs Public Participation Center or mailed or faxed to Mr. Oyler.
SRBCs guidelines for public hearings include:
-- Anyone wishing to attend the hearing must sign-in and show photo identification.
-- Signage, posters, banners or other display media will be permitted only in designated areas.
-- The press is permitted to set up and use video and recording devices in a designated area. The
public is permitted to use small, hand-held devices that remain in their possession and are used in
a non-disruptive manner.
The list of 27 project applications and options for submitting comments electronically are
all available on SRBCs Public Participation Center webpage.
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Why The Susquehanna River Looks Brown
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Pittsburgh Botanic Garden Adds 66 Acres Courtesy Of DEP Mine Reclamation Program
The Department of Environmental Protection Monday
announced phase 2 of a coal mine cleanup project that
will enhance 66 acres of the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden.
DEP selected the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden, in
North Fayette Township, Allegheny County, to receive a
share of $30 million in federal funding from the Office
of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
(OSMRE) through its Abandoned Mine Lands
Economic Revitalization Pilot Program.
The Garden project is one of 14 mine reclamation projects in Pennsylvania chosen for the
pilot funding on the basis of strong potential for combined community, economic, and
environmental outcomes. The Garden project received over $700,000.

The Pittsburgh Botanic Garden project showcases what our coal mine reclamation work
can achieve, said DEP Acting Secretary Patrick McDonnell. Reflecting the collaboration of
committed partners, the results of this project are many: needed public safety improvements,
restoration of environmental health, enhancement of the areas native natural beauty, and
expansion of this regional tourist destination, with resulting economic benefits.
The PA Infrastructure Investment Authority, Hedin Environmental, Allegheny County,
North Fayette Township, Collier Township, the American Chestnut Foundation, and the Western
Pennsylvania Conservancy join the DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation, OSMRE, and
Pittsburgh Botanic Garden as project partners.
The project will take two years to complete.
An innovative component is the passive water treatment system installed at the Lotus
Pond to remove acid mine drainage in phase 1. The Garden received the 2014 Governors Award
for Environmental Excellence for this work.
In addition to water quality improvement, work includes removing dangerous highwalls,
filling subsidence holes and vertical mine shafts, removing coal refuse piles, and installing a new
sludge control system in place.
American chestnut trees will be planted in an effort to bring back this all-but-lost native
tree species. In short, the location will be transformed.
"Receiving this funding is extremely important to our planning and preparing for
development of the site, said Keith Kaiser, interim president of the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden.
It will help us provide the connection between the sites industrial history and its current role as
a public garden, a place of beauty for all."
The Pittsburgh Botanic Garden is located on 430 acres owned by Allegheny County.
When plans for the gardens were first envisioned, the location was deemed perfect, with wooded
slopes, broad vistas and four streams.
However, because the area had been deep mined in the 1920s and surfaced mined in the
1940s, the location was discovered to have many problems associated with old coal mines.
Phase 1 of the reclamation project began in 2011, and the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden
opened in 2014. It has since welcomed thousands of visitors from around the region and, when
complete, will be one of the largest botanic gardens in the United States.
Click Here to watch a video about the project.
For more information on DEPs Pilot $30 Million Mine Reclamation/ Economic
Development Program, visit DEPs Pilot Reclamation Project webpage.
NewsClip:
Pittsburgh Botanic Garden Brims With Life After Mine Land Cleanup
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WPCAMR Abandoned Mine Posts: Turning Liabilities Into Assets, New Video
Clean Creek Pottery Showcases Reuse Of Metals Recovered From AMD
It isn't news to our community that Pennsylvania's
historical unregulated coal mining practices left a
legacy of environmental and socioeconomic liabilities
for future generations to contend with.

Many of us are also aware of some of the ingenious ways we have dealt with the
pollution caused by abandoned mine lands and were able to turn a liability into an asset.
For instance, generating electricity from the flow of abandoned mine drainage or using
the geothermal properties of abandoned mine pools to heat and cool buildings are ideas and
practices that have been played with in recent years.
But, have you ever made a list of all of the benefits we get from abandoned mine lands?
We have, and we produced this new video to explore and highlight some of our favorites.
Click Here to watch the video from the Western PA Coalition for Abandoned Mine
Reclamation.
Do you have other assets of abandoned mines that you would like us to feature in a future
video? Please feel free to share comments and suggestions.
And, if you haven't seen it already, check out "Reauthorize the Abandoned Mine
Reclamation Fund," which is a short video advocating for the continuation of the collection fees
associated with the Surface Mine Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) of 1977.
An action by Congress can extend the collection of fees which pay for abandoned mine
reclamation past its expected expiration in 2021.
(Photo: Harvesting iron for use as pigment from the Marchand AMD Treatment System in
Westmoreland County.)
(Written by Anne Daymut, WPCAMR, Reprinted from the October 25 Abandoned Mine
Posts from the Western PA Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation. Click Here to sign up
for your own copy.)
NewsClip:
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Campaign Starting Now To Reauthorize Federal Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fee
Looking for a holiday gift that will please the most
discriminating taste and help the environment? Consider
pottery products from Clean Creek.
Clean Creek Products, a division of Stream Restoration
Inc., a nonprofit watershed restoration organization, was
formed to market the metals recovered in treating
abandoned mine drainage. One of the uses for these
metals is in ceramic pottery glazing.
Every product you purchase from Clean Creek will not
only support the artists that create them, but also helps
support watershed groups doing local projects to help
restore Pennsylvania's over 16,500 miles of polluted waterways.
Click Here to see a video on Clean Creek pottery.
NewsClip:
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Campaign Starting Now To Reauthorize Federal Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fee
Chesapeake Bay Journal: PA Municipalities Begin Uphill Paddle To Reach Runoff Goals
By Rona Kobell, Chesapeake Bay Journal
Pennsylvania is beginning to tackle its mammoth and
long-neglected stormwater runoff problems, beginning the
work in some unlikely places.
Blair County, a good 180 miles from the
Chesapeake Bay, has begun to corral the various
municipalities within its 340,000 mostly forested acres to
work on cleaning the runoff from their developed areas.
Lancaster, a city so firmly rooted in the past that
Amish buggies still ply its streets, has become a model
nationwide for green streets and green roofs.
And Harrisburg, which declared bankruptcy and couldnt even air-condition its own city
hall five years ago, has managed to restructure itself and begin to unclog its drains.
Those efforts are starting to intercept at least a little of the polluted runoff bound for the
Susquehanna; instead, the rain soaks into the ground, gets reused or is otherwise kept out of the
degraded river.
Still, its just a drop in the proverbial bucket.
Pennsylvania has achieved only 3 percent of its total urban and suburban stormwater
infiltration goal.
While the states biggest Bay impact comes from its agricultural sector, it also produces
more nitrogen-laden urban runoff than any other, with 17.1 million pounds in 2015 according to
federal-state Bay Program estimates.
Thats almost half of the total nitrogen load from stormwater for all six states and the
District of Columbia, and far short of its goals of 13.1 million pounds by 2017 and 10.3 million
pounds by 2025.
Complicating matters is that the Keystone State is home to more than 2,500
municipalities, 700 of which are in the Chesapeake watershed. Every township is responsible for
its own runoff management even those with part-time mayors and little money for major
infrastructure improvements.
The state hasnt given the runoff reduction effort much of a push to date the
Department of Environmental Protection is so understaffed that it has zero inspectors dedicated
to overseeing stormwater practices in the watershed.
And until the law changed three years ago, some municipal leaders believed they werent
even allowed to regulate stormwater.
Theres a huge learning curve in Pennsylvania for getting these things done, said
Donna Morelli, Pennsylvania director for the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay. Our townships,
some are basically a part-time mayor and a couple of volunteers salting the roads. Its not much
of a government, its very small, and its trying to deal with something huge like this.
Now, though, Pennsylvania is committing in its Bay reboot plan to reduce its
urban/suburban stormwater load for nitrogen by 41 percent, phosphorus by 45 percent and
sediment by 50 percent by 2025.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is demanding action because the state has
lagged far behind in meeting its cleanup goals under the Chesapeake Bays total maximum daily
load, or pollution diet.
Though the Bay restoration effort received a $28 million infusion of state and federal
funds in October, that money is targeted to help farmers control polluted runoff from their fields
and animal feeding operations, which is the leading source of Bay pollution.
In some cases, local officials have only recently embraced their authority to regulate
runoff, let alone seek grants and develop partnerships to tackle it.
Legislation passed in 2013 expressly authorizes the creation of municipal stormwater
authorities.
Though some jurisdictions had created authorities, many believed they were not legal
without express permission from the state legislature, said Harry Campbell, Pennsylvania
director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. That belief may have delayed action, but there were
other problems as well.
A 2012 report by the EPA outlined shortcomings at the state DEP, which only had five
employees in its central office to process all permits for stormwater.
Campbell said the situation is still dire.
Department spokesman Neil Shader said that staffing remains an issue, and water
programs have been particularly hard hit by budget cuts.
Even with all of the challenges, some municipalities are taking action.
One of our biggest challenges is how do we operationalize all these good works?
Campbell asked. How do we make it not just the exception to the rule, but the standard? How
do we get it to take root in all these other places?
They have, in some cases, learned from mistakes made in Maryland, which passed and
then repealed a mandate for the 10 largest jurisdictions to assess a stormwater fee.
Opponents derided the fee as a rain tax, and momentum built to overturn it. The
jurisdictions still must find a way to fund projects such as stream restoration and rain gardens
that will reduce the amount of stormwater flowing into creeks and streams.
But under a new law, they can decide how they wish to do it or not do it, as
environmental advocates contend that despite state approval, many Maryland localities are
skimping on local funding for stormwater cleanup.
Even with that hiccup, Maryland is much further along than Pennsylvania, said Dan
Nees, executive director of the Environmental Finance Center at the University of Maryland. The
10 largest jurisdictions deliver more than 80 percent of the stormwater load, and include dozens
of municipalities instead of hundreds.
Nees, who is undertaking a stormwater study in Virginia, said he expects to find that state
is about on pace with Maryland. Virginia already has 15 stormwater utilities, more than any
other watershed state. Theyre all in the Bay watershed.
Lancaster: Leading With Green
About five years ago, Lancaster faced a serious dilemma as its combined sewer and
stormwater systems regularly overflowed, polluting the Conestoga River. The EPA demanded
that the city clean it up.
In a combined system, the stormwater mixes with the sewage, clogging sewer lines
during rainstorms and sending large volumes of diluted but untreated wastewater into nearby
streams and rivers. Untangling the web of combined systems is expensive, difficult and
time-consuming.
At that time, green infrastructure projects were relatively new, and mostly done in places
like Portland, OR, and Chicago.
But Lancasters mayor, Rick Gray, and its public works director, Charlotte Katzenmoyer,
decided they would rather spend $140 million over 25 years to put in projects that would absorb
runoff and provide public green space than spend $300 million on the storage and treatment of
the combined sewage and rainwater.
The EPA required convincing, and may still.
The city is fighting an agency decision to place them under a consent order for millions
of gallons of pollution entering the Conestoga after heavy storms from their combined system.
City officials are still hoping the infiltration systems theyve put in will convince the agency they
are tackling the problem effectively so that they will not need the additional pressure.
Lancasters approach is systematic.
Every time an alley needs to be repaved, the city tries to use porous pavement. Every
time a street needs resurfacing, the city endeavors to make it a green street with vegetated
retention areas to absorb the rainfall runoff.
The city has 60,000 residents and 100,000 square feet of green roofs, more per capita
than any other municipality in the country, according to Karl Graybill, Lancasters
environmental planner.
The city started by turning its own buildings into demonstration projects, but moved on to
greening efforts at Franklin and Marshall College, at a popular local brewery and at a furniture
store.
After many projects were in place, the city assessed a stormwater fee, with little
opposition. Initially, Lancaster struggled to find contractors who could do the work or developers
who wanted to build green. Thats less of an issue now.
Developers are coming to the city and asking how they can fit into our green
infrastructure, said planner Douglas Smith. And now, it feels like we have everyone on board
in the city. It was no surprise when we implemented the fee, and people could see what it was
going toward.
Though hailed as a model, Lancaster has faced challenges. Public projects have come
along, thanks to grant funding, but private projects are not where the city would like, Graybill
said.
The city has hired a ground-truthing person and is measuring and modeling to quantify
the results. And some of the park projects have not gotten the community buy-in that city
officials had hoped for, particularly in lower-income neighborhoods. Going forward, Graybill
said, the city will work harder on outreach.
Its not really been a tradition in Lancaster to outreach, he said. Were still pretty
top-down.
Harrisburg: Breaking Away
For much of the last decade, Harrisburg was not in a position to pay for stormwater
improvements. For a time, it couldnt even pay to keep the air conditioning running at City Hall.
In 2011, the city declared bankruptcy, a rare move for a sizable municipality. Harrisburg
had borrowed $125 million to rebuild its trash incinerator, which city officials believed would be
a revenue booster.
They miscalculated, and the incinerator left the city nearly $300 million in debt. (Not
helping matters was a former mayors decision to spend $7.8 million on memorabilia for a Wild
West museum in Central Pennsylvania.)
Maintenance was deferred on the citys combined sewer and stormwater system. Clogged
storm drains were not unclogged. The citys wastewater plant, which was the largest point source
of nitrogen in the Susquehanna, had no money to begin its upgrade.
Fortunes changed in 2013, when the city spun off its water authority and created Capital
Region Water.
The agency, with its own budget, oversaw the Harrisburg plant upgrade and then turned
its attention to stormwater, with financial assistance in low-interest loans from the Pennsylvania
Infrastructure Investment Authority.
Capital Region Water voted in 2014 to increase rates by about 8 percent to help fund the
improvements. In 2015, Capital Region Water and the EPA announced a settlement of previous
violations, with the utility agreeing to spend more than $82 million on continued improvements.
The city has a campaign called City Beautiful H20. It has been working on maintenance
issues about half of the 4,000 clogged storm drains are unclogged and it also has a
community greening plan and a green infrastructure plan.
A $125,000 grant from the states Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
helped to fund the citys efforts to engage neighborhoods in stormwater control efforts. Over the
next couple of years, officials said, residents will start to see projects in the ground.
Andrew Bliss, the authoritys community outreach manager, echoes the other
Pennsylvania officials who say its easier to win public support for local improvements than to
peg projects to restoring the Chesapeake Bay.
Weve pushed the message that this is about beautifying our neighborhoods, improving
our lives and improving our local quality. We really want people in the city to drive this, he
said. We were so slow to do things for many years. I never want to be beating our chest. Were
definitely picking up speed, but its taken us awhile to get there.
Blair County: Coming Together
Blair County, PA, is home to the city of Altoona, an outpost of Penn State University,
and a hospital system. Its largest industry is agriculture, its largest land use is forests.
Blair County is also home to the Juniata River, a major Susquehanna tributary. Parts of
the river are under a total maximum daily load because of pollution.
The watershed includes 10 small cities that require stormwater permits. Few have staff to
apply for them and mitigate any issues.
So, four years ago, the municipalities pooled resources and, with the DEPs approval,
they are acting as one entity for the purpose of reducing stormwater. Together, they have
undertaken several stormwater projects in public parks and one at the YMCA.
Coordinating it all is a familiar face: Donna Fisher of the Blair County Conservation
District.
Though soil conservation districts often work on agricultural projects, in this case, Fisher
said, the municipalities decided the office had the skills to run the projects. Now, Fisher is
looking to hire a stormwater coordinator who will be paid by the municipalities.
Grants totaling $1 million, with technical help from American Rivers, the Alliance for the
Chesapeake Bay, and the Environmental Finance Center, helped to get the project off the ground.
Fisher started an education campaign about stormwater, made a website and put in some
demonstration projects with the funds.
Blair County has not yet created a stormwater authority or assessed fees. It is considering
these steps, but its started slowly, a milestone considering its distance from the Bay.
We are pretty far removed, so its a difficult connection, but obviously, if you look at a
map, its pretty easy to see, Fisher said.
York County: Joint Permit
York County may be closer to the Susquehanna, but its job was tougher than Blairs. It
had to wrangle 44 municipalities, persuade them all to join one plan, then pay for those practices.
It worked; only one community, Franklin Township, is not in the countys cooperative
stormwater agreement.
The municipalities operate under one joint stormwater permit and get credit for pooled
practices. In Yorks case, the county planning commission is coordinating the projects.
So far, they have embarked on two stream restorations, three bio-retention ponds, one
bioswale, one porous pavement park and one riparian forest buffer.
All of these practices will help, said Felicia Dell, executive director of the York County
Planning Commission. But they must do more, she said.
There are 70 projects in the pipeline. The plan is to leverage $200,000 a year over the
five-year life of the permit that the group collects from its pool of municipalities and can use to
obtain more grants.
Were ahead within Pennsylvania, but for our goals, we are so far behind. I cant run
fast enough, Dell said. We have over 300 miles of impaired streams in York County. I cant
get anything moved off that list.
(Photo: Rain Garden in Altoona, Blair County.)
(Reprinted from the Chesapeake Bay Journal, October 26. Click Here to subscribe to the
Chesapeake Bay Journal)
For more information Pennsylvanias Chesapeake Bay efforts, visit DEPs Chesapeake
Bay Office webpage.
For more on Chesapeake Bay-related issues in Pennsylvania, visit the Chesapeake Bay
Foundation-PA webpage. Click Here to sign up for Pennsylvania updates (bottom of left
column). Click Here for a copy of CBF-PAs most recent newsletter.
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Chesapeake Conservancy Creates Stormwater Reporting Tool For York County

The Chesapeake Conservancy recently partnered with the
York County Stormwater Consortium to create a
customized, web-based tool to streamline and
standardize the data, calculations, and formatting of
stormwater project reports that are submitted by the 44
participating municipalities, including the County, each
year.
The tool will allow the Consortium to identify,
compare, and prioritize the most cost-efficient projects to
help achieve water quality goals, and save time during the review process.
The York County Stormwater Consortium is a coalition of York County municipalities
that work cooperatively to address the municipalities responsibilities to clean up impaired
waters.
Through reductions in nutrient and sediment pollutants, water quality in local waters and
the Chesapeake Bay will be improved. The staff of the York County Planning Commission serve
as the Administrative Team for the Consortium.
The tool, called the York County Stormwater Consortium Best Management Practices
(BMP) Reporting Tool, was rolled out in June 2016 as the required process for municipalities to
report progress toward meeting their Chesapeake Bay Pollutant Reduction Plan program goals.
This year, reports on more than 70 stormwater projects were submitted through the tool.
The first reporting cycle using the Chesapeake Conservancys web-based tool increased
the efficiency of the reporting process. Reports were submitted more timely and the data could
easily be downloaded into an excel spreadsheet for analysis and PA Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) reporting purposes, York County Planning Commission Chief
of Long Range Planning Pam Shellenberger said. The land cover analysis and estimated
pollutant reductions will help the Consortium focus on implementing projects that reduce the
most pollutants for the least amount of cost to clean up York County waters and the Chesapeake
Bay.
The Chesapeake Conservancys web-based tool is the kind of creativity and innovation
that will help local governments plan and implement stormwater BMPs to restore the health of
the Chesapeake Bay and local waters, Nicholas DiPasquale, Chesapeake Bay Program Director,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said. By working smarter, we can work more
effectively. Other communities could benefit greatly from using this type of tool to meet their
stormwater management requirements.
This tool provides local communities with the resources to make the best decisions
based on the best available data combined with local knowledge and expertise to identify the
most efficient and effective projects. This is a classic example of what we call precision
conservation, bringing the right practices, the right skills, at the right place and at the right
time, Chesapeake Conservancy President and CEO Joel Dunn said. The partners can identify
at a county-scale where the priorities are, and guide future Chesapeake Bay Pollution Reduction
Plans. These efficient, cost-effective investments in Pennsylvania are key to Chesapeake Bay
restoration. Dunn said.

To use the Chesapeake Conservancys tool, the user selects the project area, and the tool
automatically generates the associated Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data, including a
high resolution land cover analysis for all of the land area draining through the project footprint
and guides the user through inputting this data into a nutrient/sediment load reduction model.
In addition to creating the tool, the Chesapeake Conservancy has also trained a select
group of eight local professionals to serve as technical assistance providers.
Working closely with the local community and training local users to be proficient in the
tool and its use has increased local technical capacity and secured community buy-in.
The tool was created as part of the Envision the Susquehanna initiative and is a direct
result of outreach and stakeholder engagement made through the initiative. This
community-based conservation collaborative combines the effort of federal, state, and nonprofit
partners in the Susquehanna River watershed.
Through the initiative, the partners seek to improve the ecological and cultural integrity
throughout the Susquehanna landscape and in so doing improve the quality of life for all citizens
along the river.
For more information on programs, initiatives and upcoming events, visit the Chesapeake
Conservancy website.
NewsClips:
Related Stories:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Thursday
announced a package of tools to help communities plan
long-term strategies for managing stormwater pollution.
EPAs tools promote the use of flexible solutions that spur
economic growth, stimulate infrastructure investments, and
help compliance with environmental requirements.
Initially the draft guide will be utilized by five communities
selected for $150,000 each in technical assistance to
develop long-term stormwater management plans, including
in Chester, Delaware County.
Chester and the other communities will be the beta testers for EPAs web-based toolkit,
which will be refined and released more broadly next year.
EPA has released the step-by-step guide to help communities develop long-term
stormwater plans, a web-based toolkit for the planning process, and technical assistance for five
communities to develop plans as national models.
This approach was built on input from states, communities, industry, academia, and
nonprofits.
"When communities link the timing and implementation of stormwater projects with
broader planning activities, they can reduce costs and support more sustainable local
development," says Joel Beauvais, deputy assistant administrator for the Office of Water. As
stormwater increasingly threatens public health and the environment, EPA can help communities
integrate stormwater management with broader plans for growing their economies, investing in
critical infrastructure and meeting their water quality objectives.
Each year billions of gallons of runoff laden with trash, nutrients, metals, and other
pollutants flow into waterways. Stormwater runoff is one of the fastest growing sources of
pollution across the country and it can overwhelm wastewater systems and overflow sewers.
Many cities have utilized green infrastructure as part of a comprehensive, long-term
approach to managing stormwater. Communities are finding the benefits from such approaches
go well beyond helping to meet regulatory requirements and actually turn hazards into
opportunities.
Comprehensive, long-term plans can guide smart investments by tying together multiple
community objectives like street improvements, outdoor open spaces, greenways or recreation
areas, as well as community revitalization.
For more information, visit EPAs Stormwater Planning webpage.
NewsClips:
Related Stories:
Oct. 24 Watershed Winds Newsletter Now Available From Penn State Extension
The October 24 edition of the Watershed Winds newsletter is now available from Penn State
Extension featuring articles on--- Extension Water Information Shared At Northcentral Senior Expo
-- Senate Hearing: More Resources Needed To Meet Water Pollution Cleanup Obligations
-- USDA: Protecting Americas Water Supply
-- Researchers Harness Big Data To See The Big Picture On Lakes, Nutrient Cycles (photo)
-- 4 Steps Well Owners Can Take To Protect Water Wells During Flooding
-- Click Here to sign up for your own copy.
NewsClips:
AP: Dunkard Creek Recovery Effort Will Take Years After Fish Kill

DEP: 90 Public Water Systems Exceed Lead Action Levels In PA
New drinking water testing for lead and copper by
more than 2,859 public water supply systems found 11
exceeded both the lead and copper action levels, 79
exceeded only the lead action level, and 42 exceeded
only the copper action level.
An action level exceedance occurs if the results from
more than 10 percent of the homes tested are above the
action level, which is 15 parts per billion (ppb) for lead
and 1.3 parts per million (ppm) for copper.
Water systems are required to sample the water from
consumers' homes on a specific frequency, which is either every six months, annually or
triennially (once every three years).
DEP has posted the results on its Safe Drinking Water webpage that can be searched by
public water system name and other criteria.
Notification Of Customers By Water Suppliers
Residents served by systems that have had an exceedance can expect to be notified within
60 days by their water supplier. Water systems that have exceeded the action level for lead or
copper will be required to sample again every six months until there have been two consecutive
sampling rounds below the action level.
Lead exposure in drinking water typically comes from plumbing fixtures and not the
source of the water supply.
What You Can Do
Residents who are concerned about lead and copper in drinking water - either from public
water systems or well water - should take the following steps to reduce possible exposure.
-- Run water to flush out lead and copper. If water hasn't been used for several hours, run
water for 15 to 30 seconds or until it becomes cold or reaches a steady temperature before using
it for drinking or cooking. This flushes out any stagnant water in the home's plumbing and
replaces it with fresh water from the water main in the street.
-- Use cold water for cooking and preparing baby formula. Do not cook with or drink water
from the hot water tap; lead and copper dissolve more easily into hot water. Do not use water
from the hot water tap to make baby formula.
-- Do not boil water to remove lead or copper. Boiling water will not reduce lead or copper. In
fact, lead or copper concentrations will be higher in water that is boiled since some of the water
is removed as steam.
-- Test water for lead or copper. Contact the water system for more information about
obtaining water testing. Some water systems may offer to test its customers water free of
charge. The water system can also provide information about local laboratories that conduct lead
testing.
-- Private well water users should contact a DEP-accredited lab for information about water
testing. Here is the link to a listing of DEP-accredited labs.
-- Identify plumbing fixtures containing lead. There are lead check swabs that can detect lead
on plumbing surfaces such as solder and pipes. These swabs can be purchased at plumbing and
home improvement stores.
In February, DEP said its review of 159 public water systems covering 6 million people
in the state found none that exceeded EPA action levels for lead.
In May, DEP took action against the Pittsburgh Water Authority when drinking water
sampling found lead results above action levels.
For more background on lead levels in drinking water, visit DEPs Lead In Drinking
Water webpage.
NewsClip:
York Water Company Finds Some Lead Contamination
Aqua Pennsylvania Reminds Low-Income Families There Is Help To Pay Water Bills
Aqua Pennsylvania is reminding customers that its Helping
Hand assistance program is available to low-income families
who find it difficult to pay their water bills.
The Helping Hand program is multifaceted, offering customers
a payment plan to pay down arrears and ensure their water isnt turned off; an opportunity for
customers who make payments on time to earn a monthly credit toward their arrears; and a
conservation kit to help customers curb usage and therefore, reduce their bills.
The conservation kit includes leak-detection tablets, a low-flow shower head, low-flow
aerators for kitchen faucets, and more. Customers who reduce their usage are also reducing their
bills.
Interested customers can call Aqua at 877-987-2782 to find out if they qualify for
Helping Hand. Aqua will refer eligible customers to a local agency to apply.
Aqua uses the following requirements to determine eligibility:
-- The customers household income is less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level;
-- The account is more than 21 days past due; and
-- The customer has at least $110 in unpaid water bills.
Customers who wish to contribute to the Helping Hand program may also call Aqua at
877-987-2782 or Click Here to download a Helping Hand flyer.
For more information on drinking water service, visit the Aqua Pennsylvania website.
NewsClip:
Sheetz, Wawa, Keep York Beautiful Team Up To Improve Community Garden In York
On October 14, representatives from Sheetz and Wawa
worked alongside Keep York Beautiful and Keep
Pennsylvania Beautiful to reach their goal of restoring, enhancing and strengthening the Hope
Street Garden and Learning Lab in York, PA.
Twelve volunteers worked together to relocate a greenhouse nearer to the entrance and a
water source, construct a composting area and planted apple trees.
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful is proud to be a part of this partnership to improve a
community space that will benefit the local community, said Shannon Reiter, President of Keep
PA Beautiful. It is inspiring to see volunteers from Sheetz and Wawa join together for a
common cause. We are proud to have both Sheetz and Wawa as Keep PA Beautiful Business
Council Members and sponsors of the Great American Cleanup of PA.
Sheetz is connected to the communities we operate in and we are dedicated to doing our
part to improve the environment, said Ryan Sheetz, AVP of Brand Strategies at Sheetz. We are
grateful that we were able to participate in this effort to help restore the Hope Street Garden in
York. Our Sustainability Coordinator, Matt Michrina, led the effort for our group and we were
proud to work alongside the good people at Wawa to make this event a success.
The Hope Street Garden and Learning Lab was founded in 2013 with the mission to
make York City a healthier place to live through a partnership that includes residents, students,
schools, neighborhood associations, religious organizations, businesses, and government
agencies to grow healthy minds and bodies through an urban farm.
The Learning Lab is shared by Lincoln Charter School, Helen Thackston Charter School,
Logos Academy, the former New Hope Academy Charter School and William Penn Senior High
School.
The Hope Street Garden includes features such as ponds, play areas and themed areas.
For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the Keep
Pennsylvania Beautiful website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from KPB, Like them
on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, Discover them on Pinterest and visit their YouTube Channel.
Also visit the Illegal Dump Free PA website for more ideas on how to clean up
communities and keep them clean and KPBs new Electronics Waste website.
PA Resources Council: 5 Composting, Vermicomposting Workshops In Allegheny County
The PA Resources Council will hold 3 Backyard Composting and 2
Verimcomposting Workshops in Allegheny Council in November and
December.
Not sure what to do with leftover kitchen scraps and yard debris?
Learn how to turn organic waste into a natural, homemade compost
for lawns and gardens by attending a PA Resources Council Backyard
Composting or Vermicomposting Workshop.
Composting kitchen waste and yard debris is easy to do and requires
little time and effort and produces a complete and natural food for
the soil, improving its structure, water-retaining abilities and overall health.
Backyard Composting
The Backyard Composting Workshops will be held
-- November 17: from 6:30 8 p.m., Ann Jones Gerace Center (formerly CCI Center), South
Side
-- November 19: from 10:30 a.m. Noon, Lauri Ann West Community Center, OHara Twp.
-- December 3: from 10:30 a.m. Noon, Construction Junction, Point Breeze

Learn to turn kitchen scraps as well as leaves, garden and yard debris into a natural
homemade compost for your lawns and gardens. Youll receive a composting bin at class.
This workshop thoroughly covers the importance and benefits of composting, including
the overall process, methods for setting up a compost pile, proper maintenance and ways to use
finished compost.
Participants receive a FreeGarden EARTH Compost Bin, which features an 82-gallon
capacity ideal for both urban and suburban settings.
Cost: $70 per person ($75 per couple) and includes a composting bin. Pre-registration is
required.
Vermicomposting
The Vermicomposting Workshops will be held
-- December 1: from 6:30 8 p.m., Ann Jones Gerace Center (formerly CCI Center), South Side
-- December 10: from 10:30 a.m. Noon, Construction Junction, Point Breeze
Worm Your Way into Composting with PRC! Would you like natural, homemade
fertilizer for your lawn and garden in the spring? Then expand your recycling efforts to include
kitchen scraps by attending a Vermicomposting Workshop, and turn kitchen waste into a
valuable resource.
Worms produce a product (castings) that is considered an especially good soil
amendment and nutrient source. If sheltered from the cold, the system can maintain production
year round.
Participants will receive a complete, ready-to-use vermiculture system. Learn how to
house, feed, harvest and care for your own worms!
Cost: $70 single ($75 couple) and includes one compost box with worms. Pre-registration
is required.
To register for a PRC workshop, visit PRCs Backyard Composting or Vermicomposting
webpages, or call 412-488-7490 x226.
For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the PA Resources
Council website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates, follow PRC on Twitter or Like them
on Facebook. Click Here for PRCs Events Calendar.
NewsClips:
NJ Garbage Company Is Top Turnpike Toll Violator
250+ Attend DEP Statewide Brownfields Conference In Lancaster
Department of Environmental Protection Acting Secretary
Patrick McDonnell addressed more than 250 civic leaders at the
11th annual Pennsylvania Brownfields Conference on
Thursday.
The Conference was held at the Lancaster County
Convention Center at Penn Square from October 26 to 28, to
promote discussion on how to transform communities by
recognizing brownfields.
The theme of this years conference, Transforming
Communities, highlighted the success of both DEPs Land Recycling Program and EPAs
Brownfields Program in transforming communities like Lancaster throughout the
Commonwealth.
The conference was hosted by the Department of Environmental Protection, in
partnership with the Engineers Society of Western Pennsylvania.
Brownfields are properties where expansion, redevelopment or reuse are jeopardized due
to the presence of hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants. Pennsylvanias approach to
brownfields redevelopment has proven to be a national model for transforming abandoned, idled
properties into places of economic opportunity.
Visit the 2016 Brownfields Conference webpage to learn more about the Conference.
Click Here to learn more about DEPs Brownfields Program.
(Photo: Patrick McDonnell and EPA Region III Administrator Shawn Garvin.)
NewsClip:
Loan Jump-Starts Development Of LTV Steel Site In Hazelwood
EPA Now Accepting Applications For 2017 Brownfield Assessment, Cleanup Grants
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is now accepting applications for its 2017
Brownfield Assessment and Cleanup Grants. Applications are due December 20.
These grants may be used to address sites contaminated by petroleum and hazardous
substances, pollutants, or contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with
petroleum
Applicants can apply for up to $200,000 per brownfield site and can submit up to three
separate, site-specific cleanup proposals.
Click Here for all the details.
NewsClip:
DEP Fines JKLM Energy $472,317 For Drilling Surfactant Discharge In Potter County
The Department of Environmental Protection Friday announced it has finalized a $472,317 civil
penalty with JKLM Energy LLC of Sewickley, Allegheny County, for groundwater
contamination caused by the use of an unapproved surfactant during the drilling of a natural gas
well.
The contamination impacted six private drinking water wells in Sweden and Eulalia
townships, Potter County, in September 2015.
This was a serious incident that may have been prevented if JKLM had used better
judgement at the time, DEP Director of Oil and Gas Operations John Ryder said. The
department is satisfied with the companys cooperation in remediating the contamination, and
ensuring that the affected families will have safe drinking water now and in the future.
In addition to the payment of that civil penalty, JKLM has agreed to provide $100,000 for
a Community Environmental Project, which will be conducted by the local Triple Divide
Watershed Coalition.
The money will be used to purchase and install continuous conductivity monitors for
eleven public water supplies in Potter County. The project will be jointly supervised by the
watershed coalition and the Potter County Planning Commission, and be administered through
the countys treasurers office.
The incident occurred in mid-September 2015 when JKLM began drilling the Reese
Hollow 118 2HU natural gas well and the drill bit became stuck in the well bore approximately
570 feet below the ground surface.
During the next several days, JKLM introduced an estimated 100 gallons of an
unapproved drilling surfactant called F-485 into the well bore hole to assist with the drill bit
recovery operation.
The surfactant, which had been diluted with fresh water, eventually migrated into the
groundwater via subsurface fractures.
There were 17 private water supply complaints received by DEP, with six of those found
to have been impacted by the release. JKLM provided alternate private water sources in response
to the initial incident, and has since installed treatment systems on all of the affected private
water supplies.
Four public water supply wells operated by the Coudersport Borough Water Authority
and Charles Cole Memorial Hospital were sampled and monitored. Although they were all
temporarily taken off-line as a precautionary measure, none appear to have been impacted.
Since late October 2015, JKLM has:
-- Installed four groundwater monitoring wells;
-- Plugged the three gas wells at the site;
-- Installed treatment systems on the impacted private water wells;
-- Continued to monitor the affected private water wells and the monitoring wells;
-- Returned the three Reese Hollow well permits to DEP; and
-- Agreed not to apply for any new well permits or drill new wells on the site
The penalty addresses violations of the 2012 Oil and Gas Act, the PA Clean Streams Law
and DEPs Chapter 78 oil and gas regulations.
A copy of the consent order and agreement is available online.
For more information, contact DEPs Northcentral Regional Office at 570-327-3636.
Related Stories:
Drilling Company Wins Water Well Contamination Case, But Court Says Actions Reckless
Drilling Company Wins Water Well Contamination Case, But Court Says Actions Reckless
Commonwealth Court issued an opinion Friday
saying Washington County landowner Loren
Kiskadden did not meet the burden of proving
Range Resources Yeager Marcellus Shale drill
site operations contaminated his water well from
2009 to 2011.
The Court, however, took the unusual step
of chastising Range Resources for its reckless
business practices which it said were bordering
on reprehensible.
The Court said, Ranges reckless business practices, combined with its repeated failure
to report problems at the Yeager Site, are irresponsible in the extreme, bordering on
reprehensible. The list of leaks and spills at the Yeager Site is troubling.
Although there is little dispute that the activities at the Yeager Site impacted the
environment and contaminated the soil and adjacent springs, the issue before this Court was
whether Ranges activities impacted Kiskaddens water well. (page 42)
Kiskadden appealed a 2015 Environmental Hearing Board decision to Commonwealth
Court after the Board also found, after an extensive investigation of the facts, he did not meet the
burden of proof. (Click Here for EHB docket On Kiskadden appeal.)
The Environmental Hearing Board record, however, quoted by the Court, found 11
instances (7 in 2010 and 4 in 2011) where Range Resources did not report leaks and spills at the
Yeager site as they were required to do. (page 5)
Commonwealth Court said, The problems at the Yeager Site persisted after Kiskadden
filed his complaint, including one instance where, without obtaining Department approval,
Range flushed the drill cuttings pit with 30,000 gallons of water. At the time of flushing, the soil
contained contaminants above background levels. (page 6)
The Court concluded, Although Kiskadden presented a great deal of evidence,
unfortunately, that evidence did not carry the day before the Board. Kiskaddens evidence did
not outweigh strong, conflicting evidence that the contaminants in his well water, particularly in
the ratios and concentrations detected, were naturally occurring and not unique to oil and gas
activities.
Moreover, his evidence did not prevail over other credible evidence refuting the
existence or likelihood of a physical pathway between his well and the Yeager Site.
Taking into consideration our appellate role and the weight and credibility assigned to
the evidence by the Board, we are constrained to conclude that the Boards findings are
supported by substantial evidence and that the Board did not capriciously disregard the evidence
or improperly rely on speculative evidence.
The Boards findings support the conclusion that Kiskadden did not prove by a
preponderance of the evidence that a hydrogeological connection exists between his water well
and Ranges operations at the Yeager Site.
Accordingly, we affirm. (pages 42-43)
Commonwealth Court Judge Patricia McCullough issued a dissenting opinion which
argued the Environmental Hearing Board had granted Kiskadden a rebuttable evidentiary
presumption when Range Resources failed to respond to requests for discovery. (page 45)
Judge McCullough said the Board then basically reversed the presumption it granted to
Kiskadden by saying the contaminants in Kiskaddens well could have come from somewhere
else.
A copy of the opinions are available online.
In September of 2014, the Department of Environmental Protection signed a consent
order and agreement with Range Resources covering violations at six of its Washington County
drilling site impoundments, including the Yeager site.
A record $4.15 million penalty was included in the agreement with Range.
DEP has available a list of water supplies it confirms were damaged by conventional and
unconventional oil and gas drilling through September 7, 2016. There are now 282 on this list,
an increase of 34 since September of 2014.
Related Stories:
DEP Fines JKLM Energy $472,317 For Drilling Surfactant Discharge In Potter County
October 28 DEP News Now Available
The October 28 edition of DEP News is now available featuring stories on--- 250+ Attend DEP Statewide Brownfields Conference In Lancaster
-- Pittsburgh Botanic Garden Adds 66 Acres Courtesy Of DEP Mine Reclamation
-- DEP Begins Reclamation Of Abandoned Coal Mine Highway In Jefferson County
-- DEP: 90 Public Water Systems Exceed Lead Action Levels In PA
-- PA Environmental Council Honors Northeast Environmental Leaders
DEPs Northeast Regional Office Director, Mike Bedrin, welcomed guests to the
Northeast PA Environmental Council Partnership's 26th Annual Awards Program in front of an
audience of 250 at the Woodlands Inn, Wilkes-Barre. PEC Connects citizens, expands resource
conservation, facilitates nature-based economic development, and transforms communities with
green infrastructure.
The NERO DEP has been a partner since the inception of the award banquet and serves
on the dinner committee.
Sean Robbins, PADEP Assistant Counsel, represented DEP on the 2016 Reception
Committee because of his outstanding professional work and his exceptional athletic
accomplishments which fit well within this year's dinner theme.
The keynote speaker was Terrence Sweeny Ph.D., University of Scranton, who spoke
about his Extreme Physiology course that connects people, fitness, and exercise with the
outdoors. This annual premier environmental event is co-sponsored by the PA Environmental
Council, DEP, DCNR, the Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance, PPL, Procter & Gamble and
Wilkes University.
Click Here for a full list of award winners.
-- DEP Staff Address National Governors Association State Policy Forum
DEP Director for the Bureau of Oil and Gas Planning and Program Management Kurt
Klapkowski and DEP Deputy Policy Director Hayley Book spoke at the National Governor's
Association State Policy Forum on Responsible Shale Energy Development. Director
Klapkowski spoke on a panel discussion titled 'Processes for Designing Effective State
Regulations'. Director Book spoke on the panel discussion titled 'Successes and Challenges for
Expanding Natural Gas Vehicles.
-- Click Here to sign up for DEP News
For more information, visit DEPs website, Like DEP on Facebook, Follow DEP on
Twitter and visit DEPs YouTube Channel.
PA Environmental Educators Accepting Presentation Proposals For 2017 Conference
The PA Association of Environmental Educators is now
accepting presentation and workshop proposals for its 2017
Conference to be held at the McKeever Environmental Learning
Center, Sandy Lake, Mercer County, March 13-14. Proposals are
due November 31.
The theme of the conference - Deepening Connections, Inspiring Innovation - celebrates

what makes PAEE conferences so special: the connections we form with each other, with nature,
and with our profession.
Presentations and workshops should be interactive, engaging and fun. Presenters are
encouraged to take advantage of McKeever's outdoor teaching areas.
In addition to telling a story, workshops should incorporate experiences or activities from
community events, summer camps, school programs or staff trainings.
For more information and to submit a proposal, visit the PAEE Conference Workshop
Proposal webpage.
For more information, visit the PA Association of Environmental Educators website.
Click Here to sign up for the EE Resources newsletter (bottom, left of page).
(Reprinted from the October 24 PAEE newsletter.)
Nominations Now Being Accepted For PAEE Environmental Educators Awards
The PA Association of Environmental Educators are
now accepting nominations for the 2017
Environmental Educators Awards to be presented at
the PAEE Conference in March. The deadline for
nominations is December 31.
The Award categories include--- The Keystone Award: This prestigious award
recognizes an educator who has dedicated their life
to advancing the quality and opportunity for
environmental education in Pennsylvania.
Recipients of this award display uncommon and
exceptional understanding, passion and commitment to environmental education and serve as an
inspiration to other environmental educators.
-- Daisy S. Klinedinst Memorial Award-Outstanding Contribution to Environmental
Education: The award recognizes an educator with fewer than five years of experience who
shows dedication to expanding their involvement with environmental education.
-- Outstanding Environmental Educator: This award recognizes an educator who has made a
significant impact and contribution to the environmental education field in a formal or
non-formal setting through innovative or inspiring teaching practices.
-- Outstanding Environmental Education Program: This award recognizes an exemplary or
innovative environmental education program which could serve as a model of excellence for
educators throughout the Commonwealth of PA. This award is presented to someone who has
contributed to environmental education in a non-teaching area, such as publishing or research.
-- Business Partner Award: This award recognizes a company, corporation or member of the
business community that has made significant contributions that promote environmental
education within the Commonwealth of PA.
-- Government Partner Award: This award recognizes a government official who serves on a
local, state or national level and has demonstrated significant support for environmental
education within the Commonwealth of PA.
For all the details and to submit a nomination online, visit the PAEE Environmental
Educators Awards webpage.
For more information, visit the PA Association of Environmental Educators website.
Click Here to sign up for the EE Resources newsletter (bottom, left of page).
(Reprinted from the October 24 PAEE newsletter.)
Panda Power Liberty Natural Gas Power Plant Commissioned In Bradford County
Panda Power Funds Thursday commissioned the
nations first power plant designed to take
advantage of abundant U.S. natural gas reserves
discovered in the Marcellus Shale-- the 829
megawatt Panda Liberty generating station in
Bradford County.
The combined-cycle facility will provide
power for up to one million homes.
The commissioning of the state-of-the-art
plant is part of a national trend away from
coal-fired to natural gas-fueled generation. The discovery of massive deposits of natural gas in
shale basins such as the Marcellus has driven down the price, and price volatility, of
natural gas.
At the same time, the implementation of strict air emission standards has driven up the
cost of environmental compliance for competing coal-fired generation. As a result, much of the
nations 350,000 megawatts of coal-fired generation is at risk of early retirement.
Calling Pennsylvania the front line of an American energy revolution, Todd Carter,
senior partner and chief executive officer of Panda Power Funds, encouraged those in attendance
to continue to responsibly develop the regions shale gas deposits.
Few things are as important in a dangerous and uncertain world than having a reliable
supply of domestically produced, clean and affordable energy, stated Carter. Bradford County
isnt just supplying natural gas, or electricity, to the marketplace but energy security to the
nation.
The state-of-the-art Liberty generating facility will utilize the latest, most advanced
emissions-control technology, making it one of the cleanest natural gas-fueled power plants in
the nation.
In addition, unlike approximately 95 percent of the nations generating facilities, the plant
is cooled with air rather than water.
As a result, the Panda Liberty plant does not draw water from, or discharge water into,
the Susquehanna River eliminating potential impacts to species in the Susquehanna
watershed. Special blade designs, low-output motors and building enclosures were also used to
help minimize sound.
The Liberty plant also utilizes Siemens H-class gas turbines the worlds first
generation technology designed to achieve operating efficiencies of 60 percent. Liberty is the
first plant in the United States to use Siemens H-Class gas turbines in a very efficient single
shaft configuration.
The generating facility is consequently expected to displace generation from coal-fired

power plants which are much less efficient and environmentally friendly.
Accordingly, the Panda Liberty plant will produce about 60 percent less carbon dioxide
than a comparably sized coal-fired facility, or the equivalent of taking approximately 350,000
cars off the road for an entire year. SO2 and NOX emissions will also be reduced by more than
90 percent, and mercury emissions will be virtually eliminated when compared to a plant fueled
by coal.
According to an economic impact study conducted by Impact Data Source of Austin,
Texas, the Panda Liberty plant will contribute an estimated $5.97 billion to the areas economy
in the now-past construction phase and the facilitys first 10 years of operation.
More than 1,000 jobs were created to construct the Liberty power plant with
approximately 650 at peak construction. Twenty-seven full-time employees currently operate the
facility, and forty-five indirect jobs are expected to be created within the community to support
the plant during operations.
Equally important, in a region largely devoid of pipeline infrastructure, the Panda Liberty
generating station is helping to create a long-term market for local royalty owners whose natural
gas holdings are otherwise trapped, according to the company.
For more information, visit the Panda Liberty Power Plant webpage.
NewsClips:
Panda Power Fund Commissions Bradford County Natural Gas Power Plant
Marcellus Shale Power Plant Commissioned In Bradford County
Ribbon Cutting For First Of Its Kind Natural Gas Power Plant
Related Story:
Natural Gas Power Plants Reviewed By DEP Could Replace All Coal-Fired Plants In PA
PUC Begins Prepare Now Campaign To Help Utility Customers Prepare For Cold
Weather
As part of its 14th year of Prepare Now education
efforts, the Public Utility Commission Thursday urged
utilities to help Pennsylvania consumers prepared for
handling the costs associated with upcoming winter
energy bills.
Click Here for a special message on Prepare Now
from PUC chair Gladys Brown (photo).
The PUCs Prepare Now campaign educates consumers
about the availability of low-income programs; increases
consumer awareness of ways to reduce winter heating costs; educates consumers on energy
conservation.
It also encourages consumers to check electric and natural gas bills and supplier
contracts, while informing consumers about PAPowerSwitch.com and PAGasSwitch.com as
resources to shop for services.
A letter signed by the five PUC Commissioners has been sent to all of Pennsylvanias
electric and natural gas utility companies under the PUCs jurisdiction, asking them to join the
Commission in educating consumers about the many winter assistance programs and services
that are available.

The letter also includes specific suggestions for utility companies and emphasizes that
they have more flexibility to make allowances for payment-troubled customers than the PUC
does, under the law.
Changing circumstances may trigger a need for assistance for individuals and families
who may not have faced this situation before. It is imperative that we work together to remind
consumers about the availability of such programs, and we urge all utilities to increase their
outreach efforts to ensure that consumers receive information about any program for which they
may be eligible, the Commissioners wrote.
The Prepare Now campaign encourages consumers on limited or fixed incomes to call
their utility about programs to help heat their homes or pay their energy bills such as Customer
Assistance Programs (CAPs) and Low Income Usage Reduction Programs (LIURP).
It also appeals to the companies to increase efforts to educate consumers about other
programs, such as grants under the federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
(LIHEAP) which is administered by the Department of Human Services.
Consumers interested in more information about these important programs can visit the
PUC website; follow social media messages that contain the #PrepareNow tag; or call the PUC
at 1-800-692-7380.
Consumer outreach specialists from the PUC are active across the state, conducting or
participating in workshop events, free seminars, roundtable discussions and community fairs.
During those events, plain language materials and literature designed to educate
consumers about assistance programs and their rights are handed out.
Materials include information on consumer rights in dealing with terminations and
reconnections, available low-income programs and tips on how to Prepare Now for winter.
For more information on hosting a PUC consumer outreach specialist at a community
event, please call 717-787-5722.
Visit the PUCs Prepare Now for all the details.
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Competition Has Brought PA Cheaper, Cleaner Power
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PA Receives Nearly $30 Million More For Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
Energy Coordinating Agency Fall Energy Conservation Conference Nov. 17
PA Receives Nearly $30 Million More For Low-Income Energy Assistance Program
Gov. Wolf Thursday announced the Department of
Human Services has received approximately $185.5
million in federal funding for the 2016-17
Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
(LIHEAP) season.
During the 2015-16 LIHEAP season,
345,791 households statewide received $156.3
million in assistance. These households received an average of $452.

This season marks the Commonwealths 35th anniversary participating in the program.
The LIHEAP cash and crisis program opens November 1 and is scheduled to close March
31, 2017.
Making sure all Pennsylvanians are safe and healthy is my top priority, said Governor
Tom Wolf. It is essential that we ensure that every Pennsylvanian has a warm home and I
encourage anyone who needs this assistance to apply through COMPASS or at their local county
assistance offices.
LIHEAP provides assistance for home heating bills to keep low-income Pennsylvanians
warm and safe during the winter months. The program is available to both renters and
homeowners.
The support comes in the form of a grant, so the individual does not have to repay
assistance, and goes directly to their utility company or home heating fuel provider.
This federally funded program provided hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians a
warm place to live during last winter, said Secretary Dallas. That numbers includes thousands
of the commonwealths most vulnerable citizens including elderly, children and individuals
living with a disability. The administration is proud of the work the program provides and
encourages recipients who need assistance with heating bills to apply before the worst of the
winter weather arrives.
Individuals can apply for LIHEAP by using COMPASS the online benefits website, by
visiting your local county assistance office or call the LIHEAP hotline at 1-866-857-7095
Monday through Friday (individuals with hearing impairments may call the TDD number at
1-800-451-5886).
Additional information about weatherizing your residence and other assistance that may
be available can be obtained by visiting DHS Low-Income Home Energy Assistance.
Related Stories:
PUC Begins Prepare Now Campaign To Help Utility Customers Prepare For Cold Weather
Department of Community and Economic
Development Secretary Dennis Davin and
representatives from ACTION-Housing, Inc. Friday
toured in-progress weatherization work to highlight the
importance of the Weatherization Assistance Program
in recognition of the 40th anniversary of the U.S.
Department of Energy's National Weatherization Day
on October 30.
"As cold weather approaches, many families
across the commonwealth are turning up their
thermostats," Secretary Davin said. "For low-income families, the winter months can quickly
become a financial burden. Through the department's Weatherization Assistance Program, we
are providing assistance to combat that challenge by providing permanent solutions to reduce
energy costs and increase safety year round."

The Weatherization Assistance Program reduces energy costs for low-income eligible
households by increasing the efficiency of homes through a federal allocation received from the
U.S. Department of Energy, which in turn is allocated to local agencies statewide.
As part of the program, an energy audit of the home is conducted to determine airflow
and leakage and weatherization measures are chosen to best reduce the home's energy usage.
Measures may include weather-stripping, insulation placement, and window or door
repair. The federally-mandated statewide average to be spent on individual weatherization work
per home is $7,105.
Eligible applicants include low-income individuals, at or below 200 percent of the federal
poverty level, with priority given to higher risk residents such as the elderly, disabled
individuals, families with children, and high energy users.
"ACTION-Housing started implementing this program 35 years ago," said Larry
Swanson, executive director of ACTION-Housing, Inc. "What started as inspection audits has
evolved into truly life-changing work. Since its inception, we have fixed an estimated 41,000
homes. This program allows us to alleviate the burden of utility bills for our clients, and we
continue to eradicate many unsafe living conditions. Naturally, this kind of work gives birth to
compelling stories."
Another critical element of WX is DCED's partnership with the Pennsylvania Department
of Human Services (DHS) through which DCED receives a separate allocation of 15 percent of
the statewide Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP Crisis) for the repair or
replacement of furnaces during heating emergencies.
"Through our federally administered Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or
LIHEAP, we are able to help keep Pennsylvanians safe and warm during the cold winter
months," DHS Secretary Ted Dallas. "You, or someone you know, could be eligible for
LIHEAP. Apply today at COMPASS.state.pa.us or by visiting your local county assistance
office."
Since 1977, DCED in collaboration with its local partners, have weatherized more than
535,176 homes and responded to 114,620 heating crisis emergencies.
To commemorate National Weatherization Day's 40th year, Gov. Wolf signed a
proclamation to formalize the observation throughout Pennsylvania, bring further awareness to
DCED's Weatherization Assistance Program, and further demonstrate the administration's
commitment to creating strong, stable communities.
For more information, visit DCEDs Weatherization Assistance Program webpage.
Related Stories:
Energy Coordinating Agency Fall Energy Conservation Newsletter Now Available
The Fall newsletter is now available from the Energy Coordinating Agency in Philadelphia, a
nonprofit dedicated to helping people conserve energy, featuring articles on--- Celebrating Energy Awareness Month
-- Clean Energy Training Can, Does Change Lives: Click Here to watch video
-- ECA Passes Energy Professionals Review With Flying Colors

-- Community Energy Centers In Delaware
-- ECA Conference Nov. 17: Connect The Dots Now, Self-Sufficient Energy Future
-- ECAs Energy Efficiency Breakfast Briefings: Nov. 10
-- Schedule An ECA Energy Conservation Workshop!
With winter on the way, ECA is ready to help residents save energy. With support from
PGW, ECA is offering free workshops around Philadelphia.
ECA teaches residents how to install DIY energy-saving materials and will provide these
materials free of charge to each household that attends, in addition to offering valuable guidance
to help you save energy and save money.
To schedule a workshop for your school, church, community group or event, contact
Maile Munro by sending email to: mailem@ecasavesenergy.org or call 215-609-1439.
For more information on programs, initiatives and other upcoming events, visit the
Energy Coordinating Agency website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from ECA
(bottom right of the page), follow ECA on Twitter, Like them on Facebook or visit ECAs
YouTube Channel.
Related Stories:
CFA OKs Funding High Performance Building Project In Montgomery County
The Commonwealth Financing Authority Monday approved $245,835 for a high performance
building project in Montgomery County.
Be Amazing, LLC will receive a $245,835 grant to assist with the construction of a high
performance Goddard School in Plymouth Meeting.
The early childhood education facility will achieve LEED gold certification through the
U.S. Green Building Council, featuring triple pane windows and doors, full sub-slab insulation, a
roof insulation system to meet Passive House standards, daylight harvesting, and a
high-efficiency VRF heat pump system with heat recovery.
The project is expected to reduce energy consumption by an estimated 732 MBtu
annually, and has a total estimated cost of $3,902,681.
The announced deadlines coming up for other CFA funding programs are--- October 31-- CFA Small Water & Sewer Project Funding
-- January 1? -- CFA High Performance Buildings (60 days before next CFA meeting)
-- January 1? -- CFA Renewable Energy Program (60 days before next CFA meeting)
The next scheduled meeting of the CFA board is set for December 6.
For more information on funding available, visit the Commonwealth Financing Authority
webpage.
Related Story:
CBF OKs $14 Million In Act 13 Drilling Fee Funding For 94 Projects
PUC Votes To Implement Modified Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards
The Public Utility Commission Thursday voted to implement modified regulations related to the
Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards Act of 2004, following more than two years of public
input, regulatory review and discussion.
The Commission voted 5-0 to adopt the revised Rulemaking Order, which clarifies issues
related to net metering, interconnection and compliance provisions. The 153-page order was
originally approved by the PUC in February 2016, and then modified in June 2016, based on
objections raised by the states Independent Regulatory Review Commission.
The action by the PUC addresses concerns raised by IRRC and the Office of Attorney
General (OAG) regarding the definition of utility in the regulations, and further clarifies that
definition. These final-form regulations will become effective upon publication in the
Pennsylvania Bulletin.
The rulemaking addresses numerous issues related to AEPS standards, including:
-- The addition of definitions for aggregator, default service provider, utility, grid emergencies,
microgrids and moving water impoundments;
-- Revisions to net metering rules and inclusion of a process for electric distribution companies
to seek Commission approval to net meter alternative energy systems with a nameplate capacity
of 500 kilowatts or greater;
-- Clarification of the virtual meter aggregation and independent load language;
-- Clarification of net metering compensation rules for customer-generators receiving generation
service from electric distribution companies and default service providers;
-- Addition of provisions for adjusting Tier I compliance obligations on a quarterly basis to
comply with the Act 129 of 2008 amendments; and
-- Clarification of the authority given to the program administrator to suspend or revoke the
qualification of an alternative energy system and to withhold or retire past, current or future
alternative energy credits for violations.
Docket No. L-2014-2404361
For more information, visit the PUCs Alternative Energy webpage.
NewsClips:
PUC Adopts Changes to Alternative Energy Regulation
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Renewable Energy Electric Projects Outpace Non-Renewable In 2015
Renewables Made Up Half Of Net Electricity Capacity Added Last Year
West Penn Sustainable Energy Fund Clean Energy Project Funding Workshop Nov. 10
The West Penn Power Sustainable Energy Fund will host a
Funding Workshop For Clean Energy Project on November 10 at
the West Overton Village and Museum, 109 W. Overton Road,
Scottdale, Westmoreland County, from 10:30 to 12:30. Click
Here for available details and to register.
NewsClips:

DEP Climate Advisory Committee Meets Nov. 1 On 2018 Update To PA Climate Plan
The DEP Climate Change Advisory Committee meets on
November 1 to hear presentations on the biggest drivers and
strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and a revised
schedule for completing the 2018 update of Pennsylvanias
Climate Action Plan.
Also on the agenda are--- Presentation On Solar Market Report
-- Draft 2014 Combustion Of Fossil Fuels In PA By Sector
-- Georgetown Climate Center Overview Presentation
-- 2017 Meeting Dates Of Committee
-- Click Here for available handouts.
The meeting will be held in Room 105 Rachel Carson Building starting at 10:00 a.m.
For more information, visit DEPs Climate Change Advisory Committee webpage.
Questions should be directed to: Mark Brojakowski, Bureau of Air Quality, 717-772-3429 or
send email to: mbrojakows@pa.gov.
Information on what DEP is doing on the climate change issue is available on the
agencys Climate Change webpage.
(Photo: The Nature Conservancy-PA, windmills and a Marcellus Shale well pad in Northeast
PA.)
NewsClips:
City Of Philadelphia To Release Citys Greenworks Sustainability Plan Nov. 2
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney and the Office of
Sustainability will release the Citys sustainability plan,
Greenworks: A Vision for A Sustainable Philadelphia, on
November 2.
The event will be held at the Free Library of Philadelphia at
1901 Vine Street in the Skyline Room and Terrace from 4:00
p.m 6:00 p.m.

During the past year, the City solicited comments on how to continue and expand upon
the past success of Greenworks, and this announcement will share the Citys vision for bringing
sustainability to all.
During the first hour of the event, there will be an overview of the new plan and each of
the focus areas. The second hour will serve as a resource fair for city agencies to share
sustainability related programs and incentives available to residents.
Click Here for more information and to register for this event.
Reminder: DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant Workshops Begin Nov. 2
In partnership with the PA Recreation and
Park Society, the Department of Conservation
and Natural Resources will be offering its
annual, free, in-person Community
Conservation Partnership Grant Workshops at
6 locations across the state in November.
The Community Conservation Partnerships Program focuses on planning, acquisition,
and development activities associated with conservation areas, community parks, trails, river
conservation and recreation, riparian buffer areas and more.
The workshops will be held from 9:00 a.m to 12:30 p.m. on these dates--- November 2: Montgomery County Community College, Blue Bell;
-- November 3: Giant Food Store Community Room, Camp Hill, Cumberland County;
-- November 9: Luzerne County Community College, Nanticoke;
-- November 10: Penn State Hotel & Convention Center, State College, Centre County;
-- November 16: Park Inn Radisson Hotel, Clarion; and
-- November 17: Upper St. Clair Community Center, Upper St. Clair, Allegheny County.
The window for submitting grant applications will open January 23 and close April 12.
Questions about these workshops should be directed to DCNR at 717-783-2712 or send
email jwyoung@pa.gov.
For grant guidelines, priorities and more, visit DCNRs Community Conservation
Partnership Grant webpage. DCNRs Bureau of Recreation and Conservation Regional Advisors
can also be helpful in the grant process or call DCNR Grants Customer Service at
1-800-326-7734 or send email to: DCNR-Grants@pa.gov.
NewsClips:
Peak Colors Coming To Southwestern PA This Week
Take Five Fridays With Pam, PA Parks & Forests Foundation
New Trails Dedicated In Eries McClelland Park
DCNR Green Ribbon Task Force On Forest Products Issues Final Report
Gov. Tom Wolf Tuesday applauded the work of DCNRs
Green Ribbon Task Force, a panel of forestry experts from
private, public and academic sectors, that has been meeting regularly since January to analyze
current limitations to forest conservation and job growth, and to develop an action plan to
address both objectives.
The Task Force issued its Final Report to the Governor making 5 key recommendations-1. Adopt a statewide forest conservation easement program to conserve privately owned
forestland while preserving access for sustainable timbering and other forest-dependent
activities that support good jobs. A $200 million bond initiative would conserve 160,000
forested acres, slowing forest fragmentation, parcelization, and land conversions. A related
recommendation is to create a Forest Cooperative Areas program through legislation, similar to
existing Agricultural Security Areas, to enable adjacent forest landowners to manage their lands
cooperatively in larger tracts that could be prioritized for easements,carbon offset programs,
timber access, and other benefits. Conservation groups, the Pennsylvania Forest Products
Association (PFPA), forest products industry representatives, DCNR, and the PA Department of
Agriculture (PDA) should collaborate to make this happen.
2. Establish a carbon offset program to attract a pool of voluntary contributions to nance
forest conservation and improved management of private forests. Examples around the
country demonstrate that individuals and companies are willing to donate money to conserve
forests and the bene ts they provide, including carbon sequestration. Existing forest bank models
operate in two ways: raising voluntary carbon offset funds to support community reforestation,
urban tree planting, and private forest conservation and management; and establishing a program
that pays landowners an annuity based on the long-term value of their timber. These models
would also create demand for professional foresters. The conservation community should lead
this effort, and industry, government, and conservation groups should work together to establish
a model program in Pennsylvania.
3. Revise the current Clean and Green and Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) programs to
support forest communities and ensure forest conservation is compatible with other needs.
At the time that the task force was convened, members discussed a recommendation to increase
PILT payments to counties, townships, and school districts then, $3.60/acre total. In July 2016,
a budget was signed that will increase these payments to $6/acre starting July 2017. House Bill
806 was also adopted and signed in July 2016, addressing an inequity in Clean and Green by
ensuring that timber values will not exceed the countys appraised value for a forested parcel
enrolled in the program. The task force recommended additional improvements to Clean and
Green, including requiring forest stewardship plans for newly enrolled parcels to improve forest
management. PFPA, PDA, DCNR, and conservation groups should work together.
4. Provide additional funding to combat invasive plant and pest damage and adopt a plant
labeling program to ensure that consumers dont inadvertently contribute to the spread of
invasive species. Recognizing the alarming advance of invasive plant and pest species in
Pennsylvania, their ecological and economic threat, and current inadequate resources to address
them, the task force strongly recommended two interrelated ways to address this need. First,
boost annual funding for the multi-agency Pennsylvania Invasive Species Council (PISC),
increasing its current annual budget of $45,000 from contributing agencies plus funding from
PDA to a sustainable annual budget of $110,000 for a full-time coordinator. In addition, a
$500,000 rapid response fund would enable state agencies and partners to tackle immediate
threats such as hydrilla in lakes, as well as future threats. A related recommendation, modeled on
a similar program in Maryland, is to adopt a tiered system of categorizing damaging invasive
plants: those restricted from general sale and those allowed, but with a warning label to educate
consumers. PDA and PISC should lead this effort.
5. Adopt legislation and identify funding to enable DCNR to assist the U.S. Forest Service
in increasing management activities on the Allegheny National Forest (ANF). Legislation is
needed to speci cally grant DCNR the authority to enter into a Good Neighbor Agreement (a
program of the federal Farm Bill) with the U.S. Forest Service to enable state collaboration on
federal lands located within the commonwealth. This would allow state partners to assist in
planning, timber harvest management, and other resource management activities that the ANF
is struggling to address with current resource levels. Funding to support this management
assistance, either through conservation investment funds to be paid back or additional support
through the state budget, would help DCNR provide this assistance. DCNR, the PA Game
Commission (PGC), and ANF should work together to make this happen.
Prioritizing conservation and job growth related to this field is vital to creating a
sustainable, dynamic industry in this state where almost 60 percent is forested, Gov. Wolf said.
One of Pennsylvanias greatest strengths is our natural resources, and this groups strength is
the expertise and commitment you folks have demonstrated the past nine months.
The Green Ribbon Task Force was called together following extended discussion
between Gov. Wolf and Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Cindy
Adams Dunn on how Pennsylvanias nearly 17 million acres of forestland could best play an
active role in his call for statewide job creation.
The panels report represents eight months of hard work by the 35 task force members
and many agency staff and experts, Dunn said. It represents dozens of hours in all-day
meetings, work group calls, field trips to see first-hand our forest products industry, lumber
yards, manufacturing plants, our forests, and more. This collaborative effort among agencies and
different stakeholder groups has taught us about each others work, problems, lives, and
passions.
It has also produced better and more workable recommendations. We have learned from
each other, and are making plans to keep working together to address the many issues weve
raised and to put our recommendations into action.
Meeting at the governors invitation at his Harrisburg residence, at least 30 participants
had been selected by DCNR and the state departments of Agriculture and Community and
Economic Development.
They were addressed Tuesday by Gov. Wolf, Dunn and other key speakers, including:
Daniel Devlin, state forester and director of DCNRs Bureau of Forestry; Russell Redding,
Secretary of Agriculture; Dr. Jim Finley, director of the Center for Private Forests and
Pennsylvania Extension Forester; Paul Lyskava, executive director, PA Forest Products
Association; and Wayne Bender, acting executive director, Hardwoods Development Council.
Individual workgroups had been formed, introduced and assigned study and discussion
areas that included: conservation; workforce development and jobs; economic development and
products. Each work groups responsibilities include:
Address the current state of the forest and forest products industry; define the scope of
the workgroup; identify issues to address; develop recommendations to bring to the larger group;
and work with other workgroups to integrate and forge recommendations into a final set.
Since its formation January 7, the task force has held monthly meetings, and individual
work groups also met to discuss issues in greater detail and formulate recommended action
items.
Workgroup chairs then reported out on their groups progress to the larger task force, in
order to stimulate broader discussion.
A copy of the report is available online.
For more information, visit DCNRs Green Ribbon Task Force webpage.
NewsClips:
Last Chance To Peep Fall Foliage In Erie This Weekend
Its Good To See The Green, Green Leaves Of Home
If You Think There Are A Lot Of Acorns Around, Youre Not Nuts
New DCNR Foliage Report: Leaves Are Peaking All Over Pennsylvania
The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Thursday posted its sixth Fall foliage report showing forest
colors will be peaking all over Pennsylvania in the next week.
Fall foliage visitors can also get suggestions about the best
spots to view foliage on DCNRs Penns Woods Fall Foliage
Story Map.
For more information, visit DCNRs Penns Woods Fall
Foliage webpage.
NewsClips:
Nominations Due Dec. 16 For PA Parks & Forests Foundation Awards
The PA Parks & Forests Foundation is now accepting
nominations for its Parks & Forests Awards through December
16. The categories include--- Cliff Jones Keystone Legacy AwardThis top honor
recognizes an outstanding contribution to the protection and/or
enhancement to the park and forest system in Pennsylvania.
Past recipients: Civilian Conservation Corps members, Rose
Eshelman, Joe Healey, William Forrey, Robert Griffith, Senator
Franklin Kury, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, Caren
Glotfelty, Linda McKenna Boxx, Rob Wonderling.
-- Joseph Ibberson Government AwardThe Ibberson
Government Award is given to a person or department at any
level of government to recognize their work in the stewardship
of Pennsylvanias state park and state forest systems.
Past recipients: DCNR Secretary Michael DiBerardinis, Jerry
Walls, Greg Schrum, DCNRs State Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan Team, DCNRs
Forest Assessment Team, James Grace, Representative William Adolph, Bushkill Township
(Northampton County), Norman Lacasse, Penn Nursery.
-- Presidents AwardThe Presidents Award is designed to recognize outstanding citizens or
businesses who have made an impact in protecting open space, conservation, outdoor recreation
or volunteerism.
Past recipients: Recreation Equipment Incorporated, Borough of Ohiopyle, Yellow Creek
State Park, John and Jan Halter, Ralph Harrison, Deloitte, LLP (Philadelphia Office),
Greenwood Furnace State Park Complex.
-- Park of the YearThe Park of the Year Award is designed to recognize a park for their
exemplary or innovative work in any or all of the following: customer service; education,
programming (e.g. events), or recreation; stewardship of the natural, cultural or historic assets;
and/or accommodation of special needs of visitors.
Past recipients: Pymatuning State Park, Moraine State Park, Sinnemahoning State Park,
Nockamixon State Park, Pine Grove Furnace State Park, Kinzua Bridge State Park, French Creek
State Park, Prince Gallitzin State Park, Point State Park, Gifford Pinchot State Park.
-- Forest of the YearThe Forest of the Year Award is designed to recognize a forest district
for its innovative and exemplary work in both forest management and recreation for a wide range
of activities which include: the ability to provide opportunities for healthful, low-density
recreational opportunities that are compatible with maintaining the integrity of forest
ecosystems; to provide information and assistance to the public while ensuring public safety; and
to promote and effectively use volunteers to enhance the Bureau of Forestry's recreational
programming, planning and development activities.
Past recipients: Forbes State Forest, Tioga State Forest, William Penn State Forest,
Michaux State Forest, Susquehannock State Forest, Elk State Forest, Tiadaghton State Forest,
Gallitzin State Forest, Buchanan State Forest, Tuscarora State Forest.
-- Volunteerism AwardsUp to three awards per year can be given for recognition of
achievements made by PPFF chapters, individuals or volunteer groups. Awardees are chosen
from all nominations by a PPFF committee made up of PPFF board and non-board members.
These awards honor organizations or individuals that have made a lasting, positive
impression on the park or forest that they serve and that have advanced the mission of the PA
Parks and Forests Foundation and the DCNR. The three award categories are:
1. Volunteerism Award: The winner attracts and nurtures volunteers and actively
engages them in a wide range of projects, logged in significant volunteer hours in proportion to
the size and location of the park or forest, or has developed an innovative volunteer program.
Past recipients: Friends of Codorus State Park, Mountaineer Search and Rescue, Friends
of Ohiopyle, Friends of Prince Gallitzin, Friends of Mt. Pisgah, Mid-Atlantic Karst Conservancy
(the Cavers of the Forbes State Forest), Nockamixon Trail Group, Gifford Pinchot State Park,
Friends of Nolde Environmental Education Center, Helen Maurella, SONS of Lake Erie, Stephen
Smetana.
2. Improvement Award: The winner has completed capital improvement projects that
benefited the park or forest and or users, provided ongoing maintenance or improvements to
trails, buildings, etc. or innovatively protected the natural or cultural heritage of the park or
forest.
Past recipients: The Miller Family, Friends of the Delaware Canal, Friends of
Shikellamy, Friends of Ridley Creek, Tom Scully, Friends of the State Line Serpentine Barrens,
Paul Yost and the Friends of Milton State Park, Kathy and Gary Diegan, Warren Renninger,
Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail Ridge Runners.
3. Education Award: The winner provides ongoing educational support or
programming, provides a stewardship message through events and programs, and/or organizes
events that support the park and/or the gateway communities.
Past recipients: Cherry Springs Dark Sky Fund, Friends of Laurel Hill State Park, Friends
of Colonel Denning, Friends of M.K. Goddard State Park, John Salvetti, Gwen and Bud Wills,
Pat and Carl Leinbach, Promised Land State Parks Nature Arts and Crafts Program Volunteers,
Friends of Black Moshannon State Park, Pam Karhan (Cherry Springs Dark Sky Association).
-- Young Volunteer of the YearThis award recognizes a significant contribution to a park or
forest by a person under the age of 25. The contribution could be in volunteer hours, a significant
project, an innovative idea, or more. Past recipients: Paul Mickle, Hailey Freeman, Ellie Davis,
Kayce Bobnar.
Click Here for more on the Awards Program and for a nomination form. Questions
should be directed to contact Marci Mowery by calling 717-236-7644 or send email to:
mmowery-ppff@pa.net.
For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the PA Parks &
Forests Foundation website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from the Foundation,
Like them on Facebook or Follow them on Twitter.
NewsClips:
Fall Penns Stewards Newsletter Now Available From PA Parks & Forests Foundation
The Fall edition of the Penns Stewards newsletter from
the PA Parks & Forests Foundation is now available
featuring stories on--- Coming Full Circle: Creating Natural Playgrounds
-- Connecting Gateway Communities to PAs Parks And
Forests
-- Stewarding Hammonds Rocks, Volunteers Deal With
Graffiti Problem
-- New Website For PA Conservation Heritage Project
-- Exploring A Possible Forest Legacy Trail
-- PA Parks & Forest Foundation Award Nominations Due Dec. 16
-- Winners Of Parks & Forests Through The Seasons Photo Contest
-- Friends Of Pine Grove Furnace State Park
-- Snapshot: Judy Wicks, George H. Wirt
-- Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program & PA Parks & Forests Foundation
For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the PA Parks &
Forests Foundation website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from the Foundation,
Like them on Facebook or Follow them on Twitter.

NewsClips:
Gifford Pinchot Grey Towers Open For Veterans Day Nov. 11
Grey Towers National Historic Site in Milford, Pike County, will
offer a fee-free Open House for veterans, active military personnel
and their families on November 11, from 11 a.m. -2 p.m.
The event is in keeping with the Pinchot family tradition of
welcoming the community, including veterans, to their home at Grey
Towers, when Gov. Gifford Pinchot and his wife Cornelia lived here.
The 1886 mansion was active with guests and visitors during its
heyday when Pinchot, who also was founder and first chief of the
U.S. Forest Service, was Governor of Pennsylvania.
In addition to welcoming veterans to his private home, Pinchot rode
the fire truck during a parade in Milford at the conclusion of World
War II and authored numerous articles making a case for
conservation as the foundation for global peace.
For information about the fee-free Veterans Day event contact Grey
Towers at greytowers@fs.fed.us or call 570-296-9630.
For more information on programs, initiatives and other upcoming events, visit the Grey
Towers Heritage Association. Click Here to sign up for updates from the Association, Like them
on Facebook, Follow them on Twitter, visit their YouTube Channel, become part of their
Google+ Circle and follow them on Instagram.
Also visit the Grey Towers Historic Site website and the Pinchot Institute for
Conservation website for information on its conservation research and policy programs. Click
Here to sign up for the Institutes regular updates.
Nature Abounds Expands With Addition Of Biodiversity Program In Kiski-Conemaugh
Nature Abounds Friday announced it recently acquired Natural
Biodiversity, a regional program focused on habitats and landscaping in
the Kiski-Conemaugh watershed. The program was previously managed
by the Conemaugh Valley Conservancy.
Natural Biodiversity is the newest program under the Nature Abounds
umbrella, which also includes signature programs like the Senior
Environment Corps, Watch the Wild, IceWatch USA, Turtle
Ambassadors, Climate Change Ambassadors, and Knitters for Natures
Critters.
Moving forward, the program will engage Nature Abounds supporters in
habitat and landscaping opportunities across the country.

Were really excited to have the Natural Biodiversity program under our umbrella and
are looking forward to transitioning it from a regional program to a national one, said Melinda
Hughes, Nature Abounds President. Natural Biodiversity has already engaged over 100,000
people in conservation education programs, mobilized 2,500 people in environmental service
learning, and restored various tracts of land through habitat restoration and invasive species
control projects, over the past 13 yearsall at the regional level. Just thinking about the
significant impact we will have at a national level is astonishing.
The program will be led by Douglas M. Beri, Jr., who has worked for both Nature
Abounds and Natural Biodiversity.
Through my experience with both organizations, I feel there is an organic fit for Natural
Biodiversity at Nature Abounds, said Beri. Natural Biodiversity embodies the heart of local
grassroots non-profit environmentalism which will be fundamental in advancing its focus
through a national landscape as well as that of Nature Abounds. I am greatly humbled to have the
opportunity to be a part of such a great merger and new direction for both organizations!
A few of Natural Biodiversitys past accomplishments are below:
-- Completed several habitat restoration projects, including one at the Park of 1889 (St.
Michael PA) which engaged over 270 volunteers who planted over 900 individual plants
representing more than 50 native Pennsylvania plant species.
This project was not just significant for its environmental importance, but also for the
site's historic significance of being the bed of Lake Conemaugh which broke causing the
Johnstown Flood of 1889, killing over 2000 residents downstream.
-- Pioneered invasive species education through the creation of a BioBullies educational
supplement for schools. The educational supplement includes a website where educators can
access exceptional resources to incorporate invasive species education into their classrooms.
-- Partnered with West Virginia University to develop a landscape-based predictive model
to prioritize invasive species management activities within the Kiski-Conemaugh (PA)
Watershed. The model utilized geographic data verified with site surveys to determine the
susceptibility of a site to invasive species. The model can now be used to predict where invasive
plants are likely to spread and aid in early detection and rapid response activities within a
localized watershed.
-- Served as a local National Wildlife Federation (NWF) Habitat Stewards Ambassador
host.
Folks will start seeing changes to the Natural Biodiversity and Nature Abounds websites
immediately, and the merging of the program will take place over the next several months, said
Hughes. We also hope to reach out to past supporters of Natural Biodiversity and engage them
in our efforts moving forward.
For more information, visit the Nature Abounds website or send email to:
info@natureabounds.org.
Landmark Fishes Of Pennsylvania Book Worth The Wait
It took 32 years to build both the Great Pyramid of Giza and the
Washington Monument. And it took 32 years for Penn State
Distinguished Professor of Ichthyology Jay Stauffer to publish his
landmark book, "The Fishes of Pennsylvania."

Go figure.
But, scientists, educators, naturalists and fish enthusiasts probably believe it was worth
waiting for. Published by Cichlid Press, the book was released in August.
The large (8 inches by 11 inches), lavishly illustrated, 556-page hardcover tome likely
will serve as the definitive reference on Pennsylvania fishes for much, much longer than it took
Stauffer to create it.
Featuring 575 color fish photos taken by talented nature photographer Rob Criswell and
196 detailed maps showing the ranges of fish species -- all printed on heavy, glossy stock -- the
handsome volume has the look, heft and feel of a coffee table book.
But due to its comprehensive and historic nature, it undoubtedly will serve as a textbook,
too, according to Stauffer, who has written a dozen other books in his academic career.
In any case, he said, "The Fishes of Pennsylvania" is aimed at a mixed audience of
researchers, fisheries professionals and sportsmen.
Chapters cover the history of ichthyology in Pennsylvania, the waterways of the
Commonwealth, the origin of the fish fauna, introduced fishes, conservation efforts, the study of
fishes, basic anatomy, characters and methodology for identification, collection techniques,
photography, videography, and sport fishing opportunities.
The fishing section is guest-authored by John Arway, executive director of the Fish and
Boat Commission, who also wrote the book's foreword.
In addition to Criswell's vibrant photography, vivid illustrations by Nevin Welte (Fish
and Boat Commission and Western Pennsylvania Conservancy) also adorn many pages. Also
contributing to the book was co-author Doug Fisher, a former master's degree student advised by
Stauffer, who now works for the Fish and Boat Commission.
"When I joined the Penn State faculty in 1984, I decided the state needed a book like this,
and I started working on it then. That began many years of collecting fish all over the state,
looking at fish specimens at museums and tracking down the identifications. It was pretty much a
labor of love," said Stauffer -- who perhaps is best known for his more than 30 years of research
involving fishes in vast Lake Malawi in Africa.
"I am pretty happy with the book. It is a huge load off my shoulders to finally get it in
print because I have been working with fishes in Pennsylvania for such a long time. But it kept
getting delayed as we got more information. Now it's done, and I'm relieved."
In addition to support from Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, funding for the
"The Fishes of Pennsylvania" came from the Fish and Boat Commission, PennDOT, the Wild
Resource Conservation Fund and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
"Over the decades, I was able to pretty much piggyback research for the book on a series
of funding contracts we had to collect fishes all over the state, and I had a lot of help from 50 or
so former graduate students, who contributed a great deal during their studies," said Stauffer,
who earned his bachelor's degree at Cornell and his doctoral degree from Virginia Polytechnic
Institute and State University.
"There were many dissertations and theses that came out of this long book effort."
Arway thinks so highly of the book that he arranged to have the Fish and Boat
Commission provide the funding to place a copy in every high school in the Commonwealth.
"It will become the definitive reference for serious students of fisheries science and for
the many others who appreciate the value and importance of our fishes," Arway said.
From Stauffer's perspective, getting young people interested in fish and conserving them
is where it's at -- what drove him to finally finish the book.
"You certainly don't do a book like this intending to make money on the sales -- we have
no expectation of making money. Any royalties that I might get from the book will go into my
Penn State account to pay for research," he said.
"The documentation and history of fishes is crucial, as exotic fishes are invading and
causing problems throughout our waterways. I think you need a record of what's out there, and
I'm hoping that we'll get high school students interested, and maybe they'll go into wildlife and
fisheries science. Once kids understand the uniqueness and diversity of fishes, they are more
likely to study and conserve them."
For more information, contact Dr. Stauffer by calling 814-863-0645 or send email to:
vc5@psu.edu.
The Fishes of Pennsylvania can also be purchased on Amazon.
NewsClips:
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Airplane Hits Deer On Takeoff, But Lands Safely In Lancaster
Arbys To Sell Venison Sandwiches In PA
Entries Due Nov. 20 In Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Digital Photo Contest
Grab your camera and get to the Mountain, because
November 20 marks the final day for local photographers to
submit entries for the Hawk Mountain Digital Photo
Contest.
Photographers of any skill level can enter their best photos
taken at Hawk Mountain for an entry fee of just $5, which
benefits the Sanctuary's education programs. Participants
can enter in as many of the 5 categories as they like, but
only up to 2 photos per category.
Categories include Scenic Views and Wild Landscapes,
Wild Avians, Native Wild Flora, Native Wild Fauna, and Macro Photography. All photos must
be submitted online.
A winner and runner up will be chosen for each category. Honorable mentions and a staff
pick will also be selected. The winner for each category will receive $75 dollars and the runner
up will receive $25.
The award-winning photos will be displayed in an exhibit in the Wings of Wonder
Gallery in the Hawk Mountain Visitor Center for a year and in the Autumn 2017 Hawk
Mountain News.
The digital format of this contest allows any photographer to participate easily.
"Everyone is always taking digital pictures, and some are actually really good at it," says
spokesperson Gigi Romano, the Sanctuary's Communications Specialist. "Anyone could turn in
the winning photo."
"We want people to get out here and explore the Mountain's trails, overlooks, and
programs. This is the perfect chance to practice nature photography and capture the beauty of
Hawk Mountain," she adds.
For a complete list of rules and guidelines or to enter, visit the Hawk Mountain Digital
Photo Contest webpage.
For more information on programs, initiatives and upcoming events, visit the Hawk
Mountain Sanctuary or call 610-756-6961. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from the
Sanctuary, Like them on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, visit them on Flickr, be part of their
Google+ Circle and visit their YouTube Channel.
NewsClip:
Delaware Highlands Conservancy Eagle Watch Volunteer Training Dec. 3
The Delaware Highlands Conservancy will host an Eagle Watch
Volunteer Training Day on December 3, from 9:00 a.m. to 1
p.m. in Lackawaxen, Pike County.
New volunteers will meet at the Upper Delaware Visitor
Center, 176 Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen at 9 a.m.
It is highly recommended that all new volunteers attend
the training day. Please dress warmly waterproof boots, hats
and gloves. If you cannot attend, please contact us to make
alternate arrangements. Volunteers should be able to withstand
cold temperatures and enjoy interacting with the public.
Then, new and existing volunteers will gather next door at the Inn at Lackawaxen at from
10 a.m.-12 p.m. From 12 p.m. -1 p.m., attendees will visit the eagle observation areas.
Take advantage of a wonderful opportunity to learn more about our magnificent national
bird, to help protect eagles in their habitat, and to assist in educating the public about sharing our
region with eagles.
Volunteers are trained to monitor and collect data about the large population of eagles
that migrate to this region every winter. Volunteers also learn how to help the thousands of
people who want to view the eagles in the safest and least intrusive manner, and share Eagle
Etiquette tips.
Volunteers are also needed to help staff the Visitor Center on weekends. Interact with
like-minded eagle enthusiasts, without needing to be out in the cold!
Binoculars, spotting scopes, training manuals, data forms, and hand warmers are
provided by the Conservancy.
The winter Eagle Watch program runs through January and February, weekends only.
Volunteers may cover morning or afternoon shifts. The main monitoring areas are the Mongaup
Reservoir and the Delaware River at Minisink Falls and the Zane Grey boat launch at
Lackawaxen.
Trained eagle volunteers are also needed throughout the year to help staff booths,
participate in workshops, and be a part of other eagle-related Conservancy events.
The Conservancys Eagle Watch program is supported in part by grant funding from the
American Eagle Foundation; the Land Trust Alliance; Orange and Rockland; Sullivan County;
the Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan; and The Philadelphia Foundation.
Advance registration for the Training Day is required. Send an email to

info@delawarehighlands.org, or call 570-226-3164 or 845-583-1010. More information is
available on the Eagle Watch Volunteer Training Day webpage.
For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the Delaware
Highlands Conservancy website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from the
Conservancy (upper right of the page), Like on Facebook and Follow on Twitter.
NewsClip:
In Memoriam: Dennis Guise, Fish & Boat Commission, Military & Veterans Affairs
Today we learned of the passing of Dennis Guise, former Deputy
Executive Director and Chief Counsel of the Fish and Boat Commission
and Chief Counsel of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs.
He passed away on Monday.
Dennis grew up in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. While attending
college and law school, he served as a seasonal park ranger at the
Gettysburg National Military Park.
He graduated magna cum laude from Gettysburg College in
1969. He was class salutatorian and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Dennis was designated a distinguished graduate of the Air Force
Reserve Officer Training (ROTC) program.
After graduation, he continued his professional education at the
University of Pennsylvania Law School, from which he earned a juris doctor degree in 1972.
After law school, he served on active duty in the United States Air Force. His first
assignment was as assistant Staff Judge Advocate for the United States Air Force Academy,
Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Next, he was appointed as instructor of civil law and editor of the Air Force Law Review
at the Air Force Judge Advocate General School, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama.
After completing active military service, Dennis served concurrently as Chief Counsel for
the Department of Military Affairs and the Fish and Boat Commission from 1978 to 1989.
Prior to assuming additional duties as the Fish and Boat Commissions Deputy Executive
Director in August 1995, Dennis served as Chief Counsel for the Fish and Boat Commission
since 1989.
In 1996, he assumed additional responsibilities as Deputy Executive Director of the
Commission in which he performed duties as Chief of Staff and supervisor of executive office
functions, in addition to his duties as Chief Counsel.
He was appointed as Chief Counsel for the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs
in March 2004.
Dennis was involved in a number of community and other activities. In 2003, he retired,
in the grade of Brigadier General (PA Retired), as Staff Judge Advocate for Headquarters,
Pennsylvania Air National Guard.
He was a member of the Lower Paxton Township Planning Commission. He was one of
the founding directors of the Ralph W. Abele Conservation Scholarship Fund, a member of the
Pennsylvania National Guard Scholarship Fund and the National Guard Association of
Pennsylvania.
For just a glimpse of the dedication Dennis had to protecting the environment and the era
he grew up in professionally, Click Here for the remarks he made on behalf of the Ralph W.
Abele Conservation Scholarship Fund in July 2012 unveiling the Pennsylvania historical marker
honoring former Fish and Boat Commission Executive Director Ralph Abele.
Dennis was honored with a moment of silence on the Senate Floor Wednesday when Sen.
Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne), former Chair of the Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency
Preparedness Committee, informed the Senate of his passing.
Interment will be at Indiantown Gap Cemetery on October 31, at 12:30 p.m.
Immediately following interment, a Memorial Service will be held at the Keystone Conference
Center at 2:00 p.m.
Click Here to read his formal obituary.
Public Participation Opportunities/Calendar Of Events

This section lists House and Senate Committee meetings, DEP and other public hearings and
meetings and other interesting environmental events.
NEW means new from last week. [Agenda Not Posted] means not posted within 2 weeks
of the advisory committee meeting. Go to the online Calendar webpage for updates.
October 29-- Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Autumn Lecture Series - Artist Dierdre Murphy.
Visitor Center, Berks County. 5:30.
October 29-- Gifford Pinchot Grey Towers Halloween Dramatic Reading - A Night With Poe.
122 Old Owego Turnpike, Milford, Pike County. 8:00 to 9:00 p.m.
October 31-- Public Utility Commission Be Utility Wise, Learn Whether You Qualify For
Heating Assistance Event. DoubleTree by Hilton, 701 Penn Street, Reading, PA 19601. 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
November 1-- Agenda Posted. DEP Climate Change Advisory Committee meeting. Room 105
Rachel Carson Building 10:00. DEP Contact: Mark Brojakowski, Bureau of Air Quality,
717-772-3429 or send email to: mbrojakows@pa.gov.
-- Presentation On Solar Market Report
-- Analysis Of Biggest Drivers, Strategies To Reduce Largest Impacts
-- Revised Schedule For Completing 2018 Climate Plan Update
-- Draft 2014 Combustion Of Fossil Fuels In PA By Sector
-- Georgetown Climate Center Overview Presentation
-- 2017 Meeting Dates Of Committee
-- Click Here for available handouts.
November 1-- Allegheny National Forest and The Nature Conservancy-PA Hemlock Woolly
Adelgid Volunteer Training Workshop. Allegheny National Forest Supervisor's Office, 4 Farm
Colony Drive, Warren. 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
November 2-- CANCELED. DEP Conventional Oil and Gas Advisory Committee meeting. No
further meetings in 2016. DEP Contact: Todd Wallace, Oil and Gas Program, by calling
717-783-9438 or send email to: twallace@pa.gov. (formal notice)
November 2-- NEW. [Agenda Not Posted] DEP Aggregate Advisory Board meeting. DEP
Southcentral Regional Office, 909 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg. 10:00. DEP Contact: Daniel
Snowden, 717-783-8846 or send email to: dsnowden@pa.gov. NOTE: This meeting may be
available by conference call. (formal notice)
November 2-- DEP hearing on the renewal of the NPDES permit for the Scranton Sewer
Authority wastewater treatment plant at Cedar Ave. & Breck Street. Council Chambers, Scranton
City Hall, 340 N. Washington Ave., Scranton. 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. (formal notice, PA Bulletin,
page 6182) Click Here for more information.
November 2-- PRPS, DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant Workshop.
Montgomery County Community College, Blue Bell. 9:00 a.m to 12:30 p.m.
November 2-- PAAWWA, PWEA & PMAA Joint PA Water Utility Asset Management
Summit. The Penn Stater, State College.
November 2-- Westmoreland Land Trust and the Loyalhanna Watershed Association
Reimagining Our Westmoreland County. The Watershed Farm, home of the Loyalhanna
Watershed Association, 6 Old Lincoln Highway West, Ligonier. 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
November 2-- NEW. City Of Philadelphia releases Citys Greenworks Sustainability Plan. Free
Library of Philadelphia, 1901 Vine Street in the Skyline Room and Terrace.4:00 p.m. to 6:00
p.m. Click Here to register for this event.
November 3-- CANCELED. DEP Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board meeting. The next
scheduled meeting is November 22. DEP Contact: Todd Wallace, Oil and Gas Program, by
calling 717-783-9438 or send email to: twallace@pa.gov. (formal notice)
November 3-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission holds a hearing on proposed water
withdrawal requests. Room 8E-B East Wing, Capitol Building, Harrisburg. 2:00. Click Here for
more information. (formal notice)
November 3-- PRPS, DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant Workshop. Giant
Food Store Community Room, Camp Hill, Cumberland County. 9:00 a.m to 12:30 p.m.
November 3-- Stream Restoration, Inc. Datashed Online Stream Restoration Data Warehouse
Training. Eastern PA Coalition For Abandoned Mine Reclamation, Ashley, Luzerne County.
5:30 p.m to ?
November 4-- PA Environmental Council. Industrial Heartland Trails Coalition Summit.
Regional Learning Alliance, Cranberry Township, Butler County.
Training. Eastern PA Coalition For Abandoned Mine Reclamation, Ashley, Luzerne County.
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m..
November 5-- Manada Conservancy Introduction To GeoCaching. East Hanover Township
Community Park, 88848 Jonestown Road, Grantville, Dauphin County. 10:00 a.m. to Noon.
November 8-- Election Day! (As If You Could Forget!)
November 9-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Water Resource Management
Considerations for Public Water Supply Managers. SRBC Conference Center located at 4423 N.
Front St., Harrisburg. 8:15 a.m to 3:00 p.m.
November 9-- NEW. Delaware River Basin Commission hearing on water withdrawal requests
and on drought-related conditions in the basin. Washington Crossing Historic Park Visitor
Center, 1112 River Road, in Washington Crossing, Bucks County. 1:30. Click Here for more
background. (formal notice)
November 9-- PRPS, DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant Workshop. Luzerne
County Community College, Nanticoke. 9:00 a.m to 12:30 p.m.
November 10-- PRPS, DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant Workshop. Penn
State Hotel & Convention Center, State College, Centre County. 9:00 a.m to 12:30 p.m.
November 10-- PA Resources Council Annual Awards Dinner. Villanova University
Conference Center, Philadelphia.
November 10-- Energy Coordinating Agency Breakfast Briefings On The First Fuel: Energy
Efficiency. Energy Coordinating Agencys LEED certified Training Center at 106 W. Clearfield
Street, Philadelphia. 8:00 to 9:00 a.m.
November 10-- Delaware Valley Green Building Council Green Stormwater Infrastructure
Webinar: Soil Performance In Green Stormwater Infrastructure Part II. Noon to 1:10.
November 10-- NEW. West Penn Sustainable Energy Fund Clean Energy Project Funding
Workshop. West Overton Village and Museum, 109 W. Overton Road, Scottdale, Westmoreland
County. 10:30 to 12:30.
November 11-- NEW. Gifford Pinchot Grey Towers Open Fee-Free For Veterans. Milford, Pike
County.
November 11-12-- 11th Annual Susquehanna River Symposium. Bucknell University,
Lewisburg, Union County.
November 12-- PA Trout Unlimited Coldwater Conservation Corps Volunteer Training.

Ohiopyle State Park, 124 Main Street, Ohiopyle, Fayette County. 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
November 14-- DEP Small Water Systems Technical Assistance Center Board meeting. Room
105 Rachel Carson Building, Harrisburg. 9:00. DEP Contact: Dawn Hissner, DEP Bureau of
Safe Drinking Water, 717-772-2189 or dhissner@pa.gov. (formal notice)
November 15-- DEP Environmental Justice Advisory Board joint meeting with DEP Citizens
Advisory Council. Delaware Conference Room, 16th Floor, Rachel Carson Building. 8:30.
DEP Contact: Carl Jones, Director, DEPs Office of Environmental Justice, 484-250-5818 or
send email to: caejone@pa.gov.
November 15- Environmental Quality Board meeting. Room 105 Rachel Carson Building. 9:00.
DEP Contact: Laura Edinger, Environmental Quality Board, 400 Market Street, Harrisburg, PA
17101, 717-772-3277, edinger@pa.gov.
November 15-- Updated Agenda. Joint Meeting Of DEP Citizens Advisory Council and DEPs
Environmental Justice Advisory Board Room 105 Rachel Carson Building. 10:00. DEP Contact:
Katie Hetherington Cunfer, Citizens Advisory Council, P. O. Box 8459, Harrisburg, PA
17105-8459, 717-705-2693, khethering@pa.gov.
November 15-- Public Utility Commission Be Utility Wise, Learn Whether You Qualify For
Heating Assistance Event. Red Lion Inn, 4751 Lindle Rd., Harrisburg PA 17111. 8:30 a.m. to
3:00 p.m.
November 15-- Keep PA Beautiful America Recycles Day.
November 16-- House & Senate Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committees hold
a joint hearing to review emergency preparedness and response measures for natural gas and
petroleum pipeline infrastructure. Hearing Room 1, North Office Building. 9:00.
November 16-- DEP Cleanup Standards Scientific Advisory Board meeting. 14th Floor
Conference Room, Rachel Carson Building. 10:00. DEP Contact: Michael Maddigan, Land
Recycling Program, 717-783-1566 or email: mmaddigan@pa.gov.
November 16-- DEP hearing on the proposed transfer of volatile organic compound emission
credits to the Perdue AgriBusiness soybean processing facility in Conoy Township, Lancaster
County. Bainbridge Fire Hall, 34 South 2nd Street, Bainbridge. 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. DEP Contact:
Brenda Esterline 717-705-4704. Click Here for more information. (formal notice, page 6352)
November 16-- League Of Women Voters 2016 Shale & Public Health Conference. University
of Pittsburgh University Club, 123 University Place, Pittsburgh. 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
November 16-- PRPS, DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant Workshop. Park Inn
Radisson Hotel, Clarion. 9:00 a.m to 12:30 p.m.
November 17-- DEP Radiation Protection Advisory Committee meeting. 14th Floor Conference
Room, Rachel Carson Building. 9:00 a.m.. DEP Contact: Joseph Melnic, Bureau of Radiation
Protection, 717-783-9730 or send email to: jmelnic@pa.gov. (formal notice)
November 17-- PRPS, DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant Workshop. Upper St.
Clair Community Center, Upper St. Clair, Allegheny County. 9:00 a.m to 12:30 p.m.
November 17-- Energy Coordinating Agency Sustainable Energy Conference For A
Self-Sufficient Energy Future. Temple University Student Faculty Center, 3340 North Broad
Street, Philadelphia.
Training. Patton Township Building, State College, Centre County. 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
November 17-- NEW. PA Resources Council Backyard Composting Workshop. Ann Jones
Gerace Center (formerly CCI Center), South Side, Pittsburgh. 6:30 8 p.m.
November 18-- Wildlands Conservancy Green Gala. Desales University Center in Center
Valley, Lehigh County.
Training. St. Francis University, Loretto, Cambria County. 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
November 19-- PA Council of Trout Unlimited and the Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper
Volunteer Training For Pipeline Construction Monitors. Montour Preserve, 700 Preserve Road,
Danville, Montour County. 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
November 19-- NEW. PA Resources Council Backyard Composting Workshop. Lauri Ann
West Community Center, OHara Twp., Allegheny County. 10:30 Noon.
November 21-- Delaware Valley Green Building Council Green Stormwater Infrastructure
Webinar: Plant Performance In Green Stormwater Infrastructure Part I. Noon to 1:00.
November 22-- NEW. DEP Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board meeting. Room 105 Rachel
Carson Building, Harrisburg. 10:00. DEP Contact: Todd Wallace, Oil and Gas Program, by
calling 717-783-9438 or send email to: twallace@pa.gov. (formal notice)
-- Water Supply Replacement Technical Guidance Document
-- Area Of Review Technical Guidance Document
-- Coal-Gas Coordination Report
-- Underground Injection Control Well Permitting
-- Seismic Issues Related To Oil And Gas Activities
-- Chapter 78a, SubChapter C Implementation Issues
-- Click Here for available handouts
December 1-- Westminster College/Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition Student Symposium On

The Environment. Westminster College, New Wilmington, Lawrence County.
December 1-- NEW. PA Resources Council Vermicomposting Workshop. Ann Jones Gerace
Center (formerly CCI Center), South Side, Pittsburgh. 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.
December 3-- NEW. Delaware Highlands Conservancy Eagle Watch Volunteer Training.
Upper Delaware Visitor Center, 176 Scenic Drive, Lackawaxen, Pike County. 9 a.m to 1 p.m.
December 3-- NEW. PA Resources Council Backyard Composting Workshop. Construction
Junction, Point Breeze, Allegheny County. 10:30 Noon.
December 6-- DEP Storage Tank Advisory Committee meeting. Room 105 Rachel Carson
Building. 10:00. DEP Contact: Charles Swokel, Bureau of Environmental Cleanup and
Brownfields, 717-772-5806 or send email to: cswokel@pa.gov.
December 7-- Delaware Valley Green Building Council Green Stormwater Infrastructure
Webinar: Plant Performance In Green Stormwater Infrastructure Part II. Noon to 1:00.
December 8-- DEP Air Quality Technical Advisory Committee meeting. Room 105 Rachel
Carson Building. 9:15. DEP Contact: Nancy Herb, Bureau of Air Quality, 717-783-9269 or send
email to: nherb@pa.gov.
December 8-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission meeting. Loews Annapolis Hotel, 126
West Street, Annapolis, MD. 9:00.
December 10-- NEW. PA Resources Council Vermicomposting Workshop. Construction
Junction, Point Breeze, Allegheny County. 10:30 Noon.
December 13-- DEP Board Of Coal Mine Safety meeting. DEP Cambria Office, 286 Industrial
Park Rd., Ebensburg. 10:00. DEP Contact: Allison Gaida, Bureau of Mine Safety,
724-404-3147, agaida@pa.gov.
December 14-- DEP State Board for Certification of Water and Wastewater Systems Operators
meeting. 10th Floor Conference Room, Rachel Carson Building. 10:00. DEP Contact: Cheri
Sansoni, Bureau of Safe Drinking Water, Operator Certification, 400 Market Street, Harrisburg,
PA 17101, 717-772-5158, csansoni@pa.gov.
December 14-- NEW. Delaware River Basin Commission business meeting. Washington
Crossing Historic Park Visitor Center, 1112 River Road, in Washington Crossing, Bucks County.
10:30. (formal notice)
December 15-- PennTAP Webinar: E3 Overview: Economy-Energy-Environment. Noon to
1:00.
December 20-- Environmental Quality Board meeting. Room 105 Rachel Carson Building. 9:00.
DEP Contact: Laura Edinger, Environmental Quality Board, 400 Market Street, Harrisburg, PA
17101, 717-772-3277, edinger@pa.gov.
December 21-- DEP State Board for Certification Of Sewage Enforcement Officers meeting.
11th Floor Conference Room B, Rachel Carson Building. 10:00. DEP Contact: Kristen
Szwajkowski, Bureau of Point Non-Point Source Management, 717-772-2186 or send email to:
kszwajkows@pa.gov.
January 11-- DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant Writing Webinar. 10:00.
January 19- Penn State Extension Master Watershed Steward Training Program In Berks
County. Berks County Ag Center, 1238 County Welfare Road in Leesport. 6:00 p.m. to 9:00
p.m.
February 16-- PennTAP Webinar: Pollution Prevention: Lean Manufacturing With A Focus On
Food Manufacturing. Noon to 1:00.
March 23-24-- Westmoreland County Conservation District 2017 Engineers Workshop. Fred
Rogers Center, a LEED Gold Certified building at St. Vincent College, Latrobe.
April 5-7-- PA Assn. of Environmental Professionals 32nd Annual Conference. State College.
Visit DEPs Public Participation Center for public participation opportunities. Click Here to sign
up for DEP News a biweekly newsletter from the Department.
Sign Up For DEPs eNotice: Did you know DEP can send you email notices of permit
applications submitted in your community? Notice of new technical guidance documents and
regulations? All through its eNotice system. Click Here to sign up.
DEP Regulations In Process
Proposed Regulations Open For Comment - DEP webpage
Submit Comments on Proposals Through DEPs eComment System
Proposed Regulations With Closed Comment Periods - DEP webpage
Recently Finalized Regulations - DEP webpage
DEP Regulatory Update - DEP webpage
July 2016 DEP Regulatory Agenda - PA Bulletin, page 3731
DEP Technical Guidance In Process
Draft Technical Guidance Documents - DEP webpage
Technical Guidance Comment Deadlines - DEP webpage
Recently Closed Comment Periods For Technical Guidance - DEP webpage

Technical Guidance Recently Finalized - DEP webpage
Copies of Final Technical Guidance - DEP webpage
DEP Non-Regulatory/Technical Guidance Documents Agenda (July 2016) - DEP webpage
Other DEP Proposals For Public Review
Other Proposals Open For Public Comment - DEP webpage
Recently Closed Comment Periods For Other Proposals - DEP webpage
Other Proposals Recently Finalized - DEP webpage
DEP Facebook Page
DEP Twitter Feed
DEP YouTube Channel
Click Here for links to DEPs Advisory Committee webpages.

DEP Calendar of Events
DCNR Calendar of Events
Note: The Environmental Education Workshop Calendar is no longer available from the PA
Center for Environmental Education because funding for the Center was eliminated in the FY
2011-12 state budget. The PCEE website was also shutdown, but some content was moved to
the PA Association of Environmental Educators' website.
Senate Committee Schedule
House Committee Schedule
You can watch the Senate Floor Session and House Floor Session live online.
Add Green Works In PA To Your Google+ Circle

Grants & Awards
This section gives you a heads up on upcoming deadlines for awards and grants and other
recognition programs. NEW means new from last week.
October 31-- PPL Empowering Educators STEM Grant Program
October 31-- PA Resources Council Lens On Litter Photo Contest
October 31-- CFA Small Water & Sewer Project Funding
November 1-- EPA Grants To Reduce School Bus Emissions
November 2-- PennVEST Water Infrastructure Funding
November 11-- DCNR 2017 PA Trail Of The Year
November 14-- Western PA Conservancy Canoe Access Development Grants
November 20-- NEW. Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Digital Photo Contest
November 30-- Game Commission Big-Buck Trail Cam Photo Contest
December 16-- DEP Environmental Education Grants
December 16-- NEW. PA Parks & Forests Foundation Awards
December 16-- Coldwater Heritage Partnership Coldwater Conservation Grants
December 16-- PennDOT Multimodal Transportation Grants, Including Bike Trails

December 20-- NEW. EPA Brownfield Assessment, Cleanup Grants
December 30-- DEP Alternative Fuels Incentive Grants
December 31-- REAP Farm Conservation Tax Credit (or until money runs out)
December 31-- DEP Alternative Fuel Vehicle Rebates (or until 250 rebates paid)
December 31-- Dept. Of Agriculture Succession/Transition Grants (until money runs out)
December 31-- NEW. PA Environmental Education Awards
December 31-- EPA Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards
January 16-- PPFF Anti-Graffiti Video Contest For High School, College Students
January 16-- PPFF Anti--Graffiti Poster Contest For Middle School Students
January 23-- DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grants Open
February 8-- PennVEST Water Infrastructure Funding
March 7-- DCNR Beings Accepting Rural Firefighting Grants
April 12-- DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grants Close
April 19-- SBA Economic Damage Disaster Loans In 5 Southwest Counties
May 3-- PennVEST Water Infrastructure Funding
May 19-- DCNR Rural Firefighting Grants
-- Visit the DEP Grant, Loan and Rebate Programs webpage for more ideas on how to get
financial assistance for environmental projects.
-- Visit the DCNR Apply for Grants webpage for a listing of financial assistance available from
DCNR.

Environmental NewsClips - All Topics
Here are NewsClips from around the state on all environmental topics, including General
Environment, Budget, Marcellus Shale, Watershed Protection and much more.
The latest environmental NewsClips and news is available at the PA Environment Digest Daily
Blog, Twitter Feed and add us to your Google+ Circle.
Air
Residents Concerned Over Air Quality Around Proposed Archbald Power Plant
Groups Ask EPA To Investigate Allegheny County Air Permit Process
Shenango Coke Works Agrees To $225K Settlement Over Air Pollution
Donora Library Plans Smog Museum Addition
Alternative Fuels
Westmoreland Bus Fleet Set For Conversion To Natural Gas
Awards & Recognition
Schuylkill Headwaters President Recognized For Watershed Effort
Natural Lands Trust President Named To Power 76 List
Budget

Chesapeake Bay
Compliance Action
Shenango Coke Works Agrees To $225K Settlement Over Air Pollution
Delaware River
Drinking Water
Drought
Emergency Response
Harrisburg Street Ravaged By Sinkholes Gets Federal Disaster Money
Energy
Residents Concerned Over Air Quality Around Proposed Archbald Power Plant
PECO Wants To Introduce Prepaid Power Plans
Columbia Gas Customers To Pay 7.2% More Dec. 19
Some Consol Retirees Give Up, Others Fight For Healthcare
Energy Conservation
Big Energy Users Seek Energy Efficiency Exemption
Crable: U.S. Calls For Switchover To LED Light Bulbs To Save Energy
Flooding
Forests
Green Infrastructure
Land Conservation
Natural Lands Trust President Named To Power 76 List
Land Recycling
Mine Reclamation
Oil & Gas
Battle Over Pennsylvanias New Drilling Rules Continues
Judge Weighs Whether To Put New Drilling Rules On Hold
Doctors Group Calls For Moratorium On Fracking In PA
Natural Gas Royalty Bill Dies In The House, Supporters Wont Give Up
Shell To Pay $7M To PHMC To Create Online Historical Database
Westmoreland Bus Fleet Set For Conversion To Natural Gas
2 New Natural Gas Processing Plants Move Forward In Western PA
Supporters Of PA One Call Reform Laments Passage Of Bare Minimum Bill
PUC OKs Settlement With PECO On Coatesville House Explosion
Columbia Gas Customers To Pay 7.2% More Dec. 19
EQT Expands Marcellus Shale Holdings
Pittsburgh Gasoline Prices To Rise Over Next Year
Pipelines
Crable: Lancaster Farm, Air Pollution Cause Delay In Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline
Atlantic Sunrise Opponents Rally In Lancaster
Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline Company Awards Local Grants
Crable: Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline Builder Gives 6 Grants In Lancaster
EPA Pressures FERC Over Leach Xpress Pipeline Assessment
PA One Call Utility Safety Program Extended Without Expanding It
Swift: Updated Natural Gas Lines Bill Faces Urgency In Legislature
Recreation
Recycling/Waste
NJ Garbage Hauling Company Is Top Turnpike Toll Violator
Regulations

Renewable Energy
Schuylkill River
Schuylkill Headwaters President Recognized For Watershed Effort
Stormwater
Susquehanna River
Wastewater Facilities
Help On The Way For ALOSAN Customers Struggling With Rate Increases
Watershed Protection
AP: Dunkard Creek Recovery Effort Will Take Years After Fish Kill
Wildlife
Lake Monster Raystown Ray Now Swims To Own Theme Song
Airplane Hits Deer On Takeoff, But Lands Safely In Lancaster
Arbys To Sell Venison Sandwiches In PA
Click Here For This Week's Allegheny Front Radio Program
Regulations, Technical Guidance & Permits

The Environmental Quality Board published notice in the October 29 PA Bulletin of a
correction to its Chapter 78a Marcellus Shale Drilling regulations related to the definition of
well development pipelines.
The EQB also published notice in the October 29 PA Bulletin it has accepting a rulemaking
petition for study related to changing the stream classification for a tributary to Whetstone Run
in Delaware County.
The Game Commission published notice in the October 29 PA Bulletin of a proposed regulation
eliminating the osprey from the threatened category of species.
Pennsylvania Bulletin - October 29, 2016
Sign Up For DEPs eNotice: Did you know DEP can send you email notices of permit
applications submitted in your community? Notice of new technical guidance documents and
regulations? All through its eNotice system. Click Here to sign up.
DEP Regulations In Process
Proposed Regulations Open For Comment - DEP webpage
Proposed Regulations With Closed Comment Periods - DEP webpage
Recently Finalized Regulations - DEP webpage
DEP Regulatory Update - DEP webpage
July 2016 DEP Regulatory Agenda - PA Bulletin, page 3731
Technical Guidance & Permits

The Department of Environmental Protection published notices in the October 29 PA Bulletin of
Nutrient Credit Trading certification requests for EnergyWorks Group Gettysburg Energy and
LASA Farm Property.
The Susquehanna River Basin Commission published notices in the October 29 PA Bulletin of
projects approved in September and notice of project approval rescinded in September.
DEP Technical Guidance In Process
Draft Technical Guidance Documents - DEP webpage
Technical Guidance Comment Deadlines - DEP webpage
Recently Closed Comment Periods For Technical Guidance - DEP webpage
Technical Guidance Recently Finalized - DEP webpage
Copies of Final Technical Guidance - DEP webpage
DEP Non-Regulatory/Technical Guidance Documents Agenda (July 2016) - DEP webpage
Other DEP Proposals For Public Review
Other Proposals Open For Public Comment - DEP webpage
Recently Closed Comment Periods For Other Proposals - DEP webpage
Other Proposals Recently Finalized - DEP webpage

Visit DEPs Public Participation Center for public participation opportunities. Click Here to sign
up for DEP News a biweekly newsletter from the Department.
DEP Facebook Page
DEP Twitter Feed
DEP YouTube Channel
Click Here for links to DEPs Advisory Committee webpages.

DEP Calendar of Events
DCNR Calendar of Events

CLICK HERE To Print Entire PA Environment Digest
CLICK HERE to Print The Entire PA Environment Digest.
Stories Invited
Send your stories, photos and links to videos about your project, environmental issues or
programs for publication in the PA Environment Digest to: DHess@CrisciAssociates.com.
PA Environment Digest is edited by David E. Hess, former Secretary Pennsylvania Department
of Environmental Protection, and is published as a service of Crisci Associates, a
Harrisburg-based government and public affairs firm whose clients include Fortune 500
companies and nonprofit organizations.
Did you know you can search 10 years of back issues of the PA Environment Digest on dozens
of topics, by county and on any keyword you choose? Just click on the search page.
PA Environment Digest weekly was the winner of the PA Association of Environmental
Educators' 2009 Business Partner of the Year Award.
Supporting Member PA Outdoor Writers Assn./PA Trout Unlimited

PA Environment Digest is a supporting member of the Pennsylvania Outdoor Writers
Association, Pennsylvania Council Trout Unlimited and the Doc Fritchey Chapter Trout
Unlimited.

PaEnvironmentDigest Oct. 31, 2016

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PA Environment Digest

An Update On Environmental Issues In Pennsylvania

October 31, 2016

Environmental Protection, under the direction of the CFA.

standing practice in effect, it decreases transparency by limiting information provided to the

introduced again next year.

Senate/House Agenda/Session Schedule/Govs Schedule/ Bills Introduced

17 Principles Of Environmental Justice: House Resolution 1108 (Bullock-D-Philadelphia)

Bills On Governor's Desk

Senate/House Bills Moving

News From The Capitol

-- Highlights From The September Forestry Task Force Meeting

News From Around The State

Delaware RiverKeeper Oct. 28 RiverWatch Video Report

river flows, added Tambini.

Philadelphia Water Hosts Rain Check Residential Stormwater Workshops In November

EnergyWire: 3 PA Senators Want Court To Lift Drilling Moratorium In Delaware Basin

environmental outcomes. The Garden project received over $700,000.

for future generations to contend with.

Chesapeake Conservancy Creates Stormwater Reporting Tool For York County

restoration. Dunn said.

Congratulations To Philadelphia Water For 5 Years Of Green City, Clean Waters

-- December 3: from 10:30 a.m. Noon, Construction Junction, Point Breeze

The theme of the conference - Deepening Connections, Inspiring Innovation - celebrates

The generating facility is consequently expected to displace generation from coal-fired

that are available.

million in assistance. These households received an average of $452.

energy costs and increase safety year round."

-- ECA Passes Energy Professionals Review With Flying Colors

Crable: Lancaster County Tops In State For Solar Panels

p.m 6:00 p.m.

Like them on Facebook or Follow them on Twitter.

habitat and landscaping opportunities across the country.

landmark book, "The Fishes of Pennsylvania."

Advance registration for the Training Day is required. Send an email to

Public Participation Opportunities/Calendar Of Events

November 12-- PA Trout Unlimited Coldwater Conservation Corps Volunteer Training.

December 1-- Westminster College/Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition Student Symposium On

Recently Closed Comment Periods For Technical Guidance - DEP webpage

DEP Twitter Feed

DEP YouTube Channel

Click Here for links to DEPs Advisory Committee webpages.

DCNR Calendar of Events

House Committee Schedule

Add Green Works In PA To Your Google+ Circle

December 16-- PennDOT Multimodal Transportation Grants, Including Bike Trails

Add Green Works In PA To Your Google+ Circle

Waynesboro Gets $205K State Grant For Park Upgrades

Wolf Vetoes Bill Giving Legislators More Control Over Regulations

Regulations, Technical Guidance & Permits

Technical Guidance & Permits

Other Proposals Recently Finalized - DEP webpage

DEP Twitter Feed

DEP YouTube Channel

Click Here for links to DEPs Advisory Committee webpages.

DCNR Calendar of Events

Add Green Works In PA To Your Google+ Circle

Supporting Member PA Outdoor Writers Assn./PA Trout Unlimited

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