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May
2002
Water
Policy News
Newsletter of the Water Resources Education Network
In this Issue
WREN Awards Grants to 28 Projects
Community coalitions from across the state have been awarded funds
to carry out education projects in the coming year. Funding comes from
PA Department of Environmental Protection for activities that will either
address nonpoint source pollution issues on a watershed basis or help
protect sources of drinking water. The successful grantees are:
Watershed Protection:
The Lackawaxen River Conservancy, in Lackawanna, Pike and Wayne
counties, $5,000 to produce a variety of watershed educational materials.
Mifflin Co. Planning and Development Department, $1,500 to hold
a workshop on innovative stormwater management techniques.
The District Township EAC, in Berks Co., $4,000 to hold public
forums produce newsletters and develop a webpage.
Bob's Creek Stream Guardians, in Bedford, Blair and Cambria counties,
$2,700 to hold public meetings and develop a volunteer monitoring program
Conemaugh Valley Conservancy, in Armstrong, Somerset, Westmoreland,
Indiana and Cambia counties, $5,000 to develop a community outreach
project based on restaurant placemats.
Elk Creeks Watershed Association, in Chester Co., $4,000 to design
and install watershed identification signs.
Chartiers Creek Watershed Association, in Washington Co., $4,600
to develop educational materials based on their River Conservation Plan.
University of Sciences in Philadelphia, $3,800 to create a demonstration
landscape adjacent to Mill Creek.
Lancaster Co. Conservation District, $5,000 to develop watershed
awareness educational materials.
Powell's and Armstrong Creeks Watershed Association, in Dauphin
Co., $2,000 to promote community support for watershed planning.
Berks Co. Conservation District, $3,400 to place stream identification
signs in the Maiden Creek Watershed and to develop outreach materials.
Greene County Watershed Alliance, $3,000 to develop and maintain
a website and distribute educational materials.
Streets Run Watershed Association, in Allegheny Co., $4,000 to
develop watershed awareness educational materials.
Juniata Clean Water Partnership, in so. central PA, $2000 to
develop a Watershed Resource Center at Juniata College.
Drinking Water Protection:
Aging Services of Indiana County, $5,000 for a drinking water
awareness campaign.
York County Parks Foundation Charitable Trust, $5,000 to install
wayside interpretative signs at drinking water reservoirs.
Brodhead Watershed Association, in Monroe Co., $4,600 for a public
educational campaign using groundwater flow models.
Montgomery County Conservation District, $4,800 to hold workshops
in the Perkiomen and Mingo Creek watersheds.
Natural Lands Trust, in Delaware and Chester counties, $4,912
to develop and distribute a watershed poster/brochure about the Crum
Creek and develop a template for others to use.
Wildlands Conservancy in Lehigh Co., $5,000 to implement education
recommendations of the City of Allentown Source Water Assessment Program.
Bucks County Planning Commission $3,200 to develop an educational
program for the Pennridge area.
PA Rural Water Association, $2,800 to develop and distribute
statewide, a flyer explaining the Water Supply Area signs.
The Antis Township Action Committee, Blair County, $5,000 to
continue outreach activities for the Bellwood Borough Authority and
Bellmeade Civics water supplies.
Montoursville Borough, in Lycoming Co., $2,650 to educate school
children about their water supply.
Center in the Park - Senior Environmental Corps, in Philadelphia,
$4,980 to continue a water education program in partnership with Philadelphia
Water Department.
Fayette County Conservation District, $3,100 to hold a second
annual children's groundwater festival.
Nanty-Glo Water Authority in Cambria Co., $2,060 to design and
install watershed protection signs.
Mars Area School District, in Butler County, $3,910 to purchase
equipment for their Stream Testing-Groundwater Protection program.
For contact information and/or names of partners in these coalitions,
contact Sherene Hess, WREN Project Director at 724 465 4978 or sherenehess@yourinter.net
Water, Land and Community
Andrew McElwaine, keynote speaker at the WREN Orientation and Networking
meeting, to be held June 13 and 14 at the Allenberry Resort, will discuss
a subject all who work in water resource education know needs more attention:
how do we make the connection between land and water resources in our
communities. Other topics at this meeting for WREN grantees (2001 and
2002) include: working with local officials, building consensus, getting
your message out, making program evaluation a tool to improve your project
and much more. Save the date!
Highlights from WREN Projects
Wysox Creek Watershed Association
The Wysox Creek Watebrshed Association and its many coalition partners
in Bradford County are targeting several age groups in their educational
outreach. A coloring book entitled The Wysox Creek Watershed was given
to second graders; a new comprehensive brochure includes watershed history;
and the second edition of the Wysox Creek Watershed News is being distributed
to watershed residents.
In addition, training of area volunteers in macroinvertebrate testing
techniques has begun and will lead to a watershed-wide monitoring plan
and an educational Natural Stream Design project to be held on Johnson
Creek this summer. For more information contact Tom Robinson at 570-247-7700.
Bushkill Stream Conservancy
A self-guided visitors' brochure, Touring the Bushkill Stream Watershed,
describing the environment and history of the Bushkill Stream Watershed
in Northampton County has been developed by the Bushkill Stream Conservancy.
The brochure will soon be available to aid efforts to protect the watershed
and to make the public aware of the significance of the Watershed in
maintaining a high quality of life in the region.
For more information contact John D. Bennett, Jr. at 215-253-4211.
The Borough of Springdale
The citizens of Springdale Borough, and particularly the Borough Wellhead
Protection Advisory Committee, realized the need for increased public
awareness of the community's drinking water source, the Springdale Borough
Sand & Gravel Outwash Aquifer. With the help of a WREN grant. water
supply area signs have been erected along the streets entering the groundwater
supply area. A sign has also been built on the bank of the Allegheny
River in front of the well field.
A Groundwater Simulator and Rainmaker have been purchased and is being
used in partnership with the Allegheny Valley School District to educate
sixth grade students about groundwater use and protection. The students
also tour the waterplant. For more information contact April Winklmann
at 724.274.6800 or at springdaleboro@hotmail.com.
Aultman Run Watershed
Aultman Run Watershed in Indiana County is a small 28 square mile watershed
whose main stem is a direct tributary of the Conemaugh River. It is
located in the center of what was once one of the richest deposits of
bituminous (soft) coal in the world. The coal was readily accessible
and was among the earliest to be exploited, leaving a legacy of severely
degraded streams and land.
Residents of the watershed formed the Aultman Watershed Association
for Restoring the Environment (AWARE) in early 2000 to find ways to
remediate the land and water in the watershed and to use these improvements
to stimulate economic and cultural development in the rural watershed.
To date AWARE has received 4 grants, including a WREN grant to do community
outreach and a Growing Greener grant to complete a surface water assessment
in the watershed. For more information contact bokey@grove.iup.edu
Congratulations to:
Huntingdon Area Middle School students, 7th graders, Amy Slicker, Kaleigh
Felisberto, and Margo Wilson whose WREN funded study of Standing Stone
Creek was selected as a national award winner of the President's Environmental
Youth Awards (PEYA) representing EPA Region 3. The students received
the award from President Bush in the Rose Garden. See WPN for May 2001
for a report on the project.
Shohola Watershed Photo Contest
The newly formed Shohola Watershed Association, in Pike County, took
advantage of a WREN Opportunity Grant to sponsor the first annual Shohola
Creek Photo contest. The goal of the contest was to make people and
businesses aware of the beauty of the Shohola Watershed. The contest
has been deemed a huge success.
Photos celebrated a beauty that goes beyond the water that forms the
Shohola Creek, a beauty that includes the land, plants and animals that
makes up the Shohola Creek Watershed. Posters have been made using the
winning photos. The winning photo is shown below, and is also shown
on the WREN website, along with the runners-up. Visit
http://palwv.org/wren/contest/best.html to see them all.
Resources
Accepting the Challenge (Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition,
2001, 79 pp) A primer about the history, cause, and solutions to abandoned
mine drainage. Available from Stream Restoration, Inc. 724-776-0161
or sri@salsgiver.com
Environmentally Sound Community Planning (PA Environmental Council,
2001, 46 pp) A one-stop resource for municipal officials searching for
model ordinances or other information on land and water resource management.
Available from PEC, 215-563-0250.
The Adventures of Drinking Water (DEP, 2001, 14 pp) A coloring
book for grades K-2. Available from DEP's Environmental Education Center,
717-772-1828 or Bureau of Water Supply Management, 717-783-3795.
Arsenic in Pressure-Treated Wood (Joint Legislative Air and
Water Pollution Control Committee, 2002, 4 pp) a report on the phase-out
of the use of arsenic in pressure treated lumber. A Green Paper, Environmental
Issue Monograph, available from the Committee, 717-787-7570.
PA Water Resources Directory (PA Association of Conservation
Districts, 2002) a compilation of resources about water quality and
watersheds. Available from PACD, Chuck Rohrer, 717-545-8878x12, chuck-rohrer@pacd.org
or online at www.pacd.org.
Contaminants and Drinking-Water Sources in 2001: Recent Findings
of the U.S. Geological Survey
(USGS, 2001, 9 pp) A sampling of the drinking-water related projects
of the USGS. Available from USGS, Branch of Information Services, Box
25286, Federal Center, Denver, CO 80225.
National Survey of MTBE and other VOCs in Community Drinking-Water
Sources (USGS, 2001, 4 pp) A description of an ongoing survey of
VOCs in drinking water sources. For more information contact: John Zogorski,
VOC National Synthesis National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program,
jszogors@usgs.gov or http://sd.water.usgs.gov/nawqa/vocns
On-line Resources
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) brochures.
Timely for spring:
"Grubs In your Lawn? A guide for lawn care professionals and homeowners"
"Weeds and Your Lawn"
"Weeds and Your Garden"
"What's all the Buzz About Mosquitoes?"
Timeless for home IPM:
"IPM for Homes"
"Found a Roach? Don't Panic"
"Evict and Exile Mice from your Home"
from Cornell University
http://www.nysipm.cornell.edu/publications/index.html
TAPWATER CONNECTS WATER SUPPLIERS AND CLASSROOMS
A new environmental program, known as TAPWater (Talking About Pennsylvania
Water), is designed to change the way our youth view their drinking
water supply.
The program is being offered by the Pennsylvania Section of the American
Water Works Association in conjunction with water utility companies
statewide. To help our youth become better water stewards, water utility
personnel throughout the state will soon be presenting TAPWater to schools
within their distribution areas.
TAPWater consists of a curriculum supplement featuring text, experiments
and fun activities for grades 2-7 plus a supplemental kit box filled
with educational videos, interactive CD ROMs, a water-testing kit, posters
and other teaching aids. The TAPWater manual covers a wide range of
water-related topics such as the water cycle, watersheds, wetlands,
conservation, pollution, water treatment and distribution. There is
also a section on water facts, games and trivia.
By September 2002, the program is expected to be available throughout
the state. Teachers can then simply contact a water utility company
within their district to obtain information about the TAPWater curriculum
supplement and the accompanying kit box of educational materials. Those
school districts which are not serviced by a participating water utility
company can get TAPWater kits by contacting PA AWWA at (717) 230-8935.
TAPWater is being funded through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department
of Environmental Protection. For more information on TAPWater, contact
Mike Snyder, project coordinator, at 717-230-8935 E-mail: mikesnyder@paawwa.org
This newsletter is a project of the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania
Citizen Education Fund - WREN. Funded by a grant from the PA
Dept. of Environmental Protection
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