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October
2002
Water
Policy News
Newsletter of the Water Resources Education Network
In this Issue
www.drinkingwaterwise.org
Placemats for Education
WREN Sponsors Workshops on Protecting Drinking
Water
American Rivers— River Restoration Grant
WREN Project Highlights
Resources
What's New
www.drinkingwaterwise.org
A website devoted to information on protecting sources of drinking water
is under development by the WREN project. The website will makes its
debut with information and on-line registration for the WREN workshop
series on protecting drinking water sources (see adjacent story). www.drinkingwaterwise.org
will provide information to help people make informed decisions on how
to best protect their drinking water supplies. Visitors will find links
to a wide variety of resources and materials about drinking water, case
studies of communities working to protect their drinking water sources,
funding available to develop local protection programs and a directory
of watershed groups in PA.
Placemats for Education
Several WREN projects received funding to develop placemats to use as
an educational tool. The WREN Team proposed that a template be developed
that all groups could use and customize to their area. After some delay
the project has gotten off the ground and will soon be available, either
as a "water graphics library" on the WREN website, or as CD-ROM
or floppy disk that will be sent to interested groups. If you have ideas
for water messages and graphics to accompany them, or would like to
be notified when the template is available, please contact estevens@ptd.net.
Grants Available
WREN Sponsors Workshops
on Protecting Drinking Water
The WREN project is planning a series of informative workshops
this fall to help drinking water suppliers, municipal officials, and
communities find out how to safeguard their sources of drinking water.
Titled The Future of Drinking Water: Fountain of Health or Risky Business?
Taking Action to Protect Drinking Water the free workshops will be held
at four locations in November. Additional workshops at locations around
Pennsylvania are planned for the coming year.
The workshops will provide information on how to protect drinking water
sources, benefits, examples of source water protection across Pennsylvania,
technical support and funding available to develop local protection
programs.
Grants are available from both the Department of Environmental Protection
and the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania to help public water
systems and communities develop and carry out protection programs. Information
about how to obtain these grants will also be provided.
Co-sponsors include the PA Rural Water Association (PRWA), the PA Section
of the American Water Works Association and PA Department of Environmental
Protection. Funding is provided by PA DEP.
For more information, directions, and to register: contact Julie Kollar,
juliek@voicenet.com, phone
267-468-0555, or register online at www.drinkingwaterwise.org.
November 14 8:30 am – Noon
Greensburg
Sheraton Four Points Hotel
November 15 8:30 am – Noon
Pittsburgh
DEP Southwestern Regional Office, 400 Waterfront Drive,
Pittsburgh
November 19 1:00 pm - 4:30pm
Lehigh County
Holiday Inn Conference Center
Intersection I-78 and Route 100
Fogelsville, PA
November 20 1:00 pm - 4:30pm
Monroe/Northampton County
Monroe County Public Safety Center, Snydersville, PA
American Rivers— River Restoration
Grant
American Rivers is seeking proposals for community-based river restoration
grants as part of its partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) Community-Based Restoration Program. These grants
are designed to provide support for local communities that are utilizing
dam removal or fish passage to restore and protect the ecological integrity
of their rivers and improve freshwater habitats important to migratory
(anadromous) fish.
Application deadline is November 1, 2002. Potential applicants are encouraged
to contact American Rivers to discuss projects prior to submitting an
application. For a complete application and eligibility guidelines,
visit www.amrivers.org/feature/restorationgrants.htm
or email: rivergrants@amrivers.org.
WREN Project Highlights
Greene County Students on the M/V Scout
The Pittsburgh Voyager education program has found a sure-fire way
to interest kids in their water resources -- get them out on the water.
Here students from Waynesburg High learn about sampling with a secchi
disk from Ann Tipper of the Voyager program. With WREN funding, the
vessel traveled up the Monogahela river from Pittsburgh to Waynesburg
in Greene County where they took 375 students from 6 schools out on
the river for up- close exposure to water sampling. Contact: atipper@pittsburghvoyager.org.
Maiden Creek Watershed Association
The city of Reading draws its water from Lake Ontelauee which is fed
by the Maiden Creek and its tributaries but no grassroots group focused
on the Maiden Creek watershed. Pam Spayd, watershed specialist at the
Berks County Conservation District, has helped organize a Maiden Creek
Watershed Association and obtained a WREN grant to further the group's
goals of protecting the watershed. The group has developed a brochure
describing the watershed and things residents can do to make their watershed
a better place and puchased a tabletop display which was used at the
Reading and Kutztown fairs. They also plan to place stream name signs
at major routes throughout the 216 square mile watershed. Contact Pam
Spayd, pspayd@bccd.org, 610-372-4657
X208.
Mifflin County looks at Innovative Stormwater Design
The Mifflin County Planning and Development Dept. received a WREN grant
to host an Innovative Stormwater Design Workshop which was held Sept
9-10. Speakers included Durla Lathia (Chief of the DEP Stormwater Planning
and Management ), local engineers and several product venders. Topics
of discussion included use of BMPs for stormwater management, incorporating
innovative stormwater management in open space design, understanding
the performance of manufactured BMPs, concepts of low impact development,
permitting and compliance update from DEP, and new requirements for
Act 167 Plans.
About 40 people, representing more than 20 engineering and design firms
and PennDOT, DEP, and the Conservation District attended. The workshop
was free and all attendees received copies of presentation materials
and a copy of the PA BMP Handbook. Contact Jamie Oliver, oliver@mifflinmail.com.
Water Systems Conduct Vulnerability Assessments
Large public drinking water systems (serving more than 100,000 persons)
have received grants from US EPA to assess their vulnerability to potential
terrorist attacks and to improve their security. Grants were also available
for large private systems - up to $115,000 for each eligible utility
system. For information on the grants program visit http://www.epa.gov/safewater/security/rfa_private_grants.pdf
.
Smaller systems may receive funding to improve their security measures
in Phase II of the program, however that funding has not yet been authorized.
Workshops and technical assistance are planned to help these systems
take steps to improve security.
For more information please call Patti Wisniewski, wisniewski.patti-kay@epa.gov,
215-814-5668.
Stormwater Policy
Live Webcast and Video Conference on DEP’s new Comprehensive Stormwater
Policy
October 3 at DEP Regional Offices in Conshohocken, Harrisburg, Wilkes-Barre,
Pittsburgh, Meadville, Williamsport.
The webcast can be viewed live on www.greenworks.tv or can be accessed
at that site after the live program.
For more information about the forum, visit the PA PowerPort at www.state.pa.us,
PA Keyword: “stormwater"
Grants Available for Local Project
The WREN grant application package will be available December 1, 2002.
Application deadline is April 3, 2003.
Visit http://palwv.org/wren/local.html
for info about projects funded by WREN since 1995. Contact sherenehess@yourinter.net
to receive the application package.
Resources
Using Conservation Easements To Conserve Open Space
A Guide for Pennsylvania’s Municipalities
(Heritage Conservancy and PA DCNR, 2002, 40 pp)
An overview, for municipalities and their advisory groups.
Available from DCNR, Bureau of Recreation and Conservation, 717-783-4734.
Riversmart Grassroots Tool Kit
(River Network)
Campaign materials, including television, radio and print ads, to guide
watershed activists through the process of placing public service announcements,
developing relations with local media, and building community support.
Educational materials are also provided including a RiverSmart “Top
10 Tips” flier and a “Family Scavenger Hunt.”
For an annual fee of $100, become a River Network partner and receive
the RiverSmart Grassroots Tool Kit. For more information, visit http://www.rivernetwork.org
Why Watersheds?
(The Center for Watershed Protection, CD-ROM)
A slideshow presentation designed to bridge the gap for people who may
not understand the “whys and hows” of watershed protection.
Explains what a watershed is, how development impacts watershed health,
and why protecting watersheds is so important. Information is included
on steps that planners, watershed groups, and citizens can take to protect
their water resources. To preview the presentation, visit www.cwp.org/water.htm,
or order a copy from the online store.
Clean Water Act Section 319 Success Stories: Volume III
(US EPA, 2002)
Highlights some of the additional successes achieved since the 1997
publication of Volume II. Available online at http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/Section319III/.
Riparian Areas: Functions And Strategies For Management
(National Research Council, a pre-publication online document.)
The report details definitions, structure, and functions of riparian
areas, describes human alterations to the riparian ecosystem and documents
the current status of riparian areas in the US.
Available online at http://www.nap.edu/books/0309082951/html/.
Methods For Evaluating Wetland Condition
(EPA’s Wetlands Division and the Health and Ecological Criteria
Division) a set of 12 booklets which provide “state-of-the-science”
information to help monitor and assess the biological and nutrient conditions
of wetlands in order to evaluate wetland health. Eight additional booklets
are planned for future publication.
Available from the EPA National Service Center for Environmental Publications
(NSCEP) at (513) 489-8190 or toll-free at (800) 490-9198, or email at
ncepiwo@one.net or by mail, at
NSCEP, 11029 Kenwood Road, Cincinnati, OH 45242. The publications may
also be accessed through the web at http://www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/bawwg/publicat.html
WaterNews
(U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water)
a weekly on-line publication that announces publications, policies,
and activities
To subscribe, e-mail waternews-owner@lists.epa.gov
State of the Chesapeake Bay
(Chesapeake Bay Program, 2002, 58 pp)
A look at current environmental conditions and the protection and restoration
efforts made since the Chesapeake 2000 agreement was adopted by the
Bay states and the U.S. EPA in June 2000.
Available free from the Bay Program website at http://www.chesapeakebay.net/pubs/sob
or by calling (800) YOUR-BAY.
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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