Submitted by Jennifer Bratthauar, Ag Conservation Technician, Franklin County Conservation District

The Franklin County Conservation District (FCCD) held its third annual Summer Conservation Farm Tour on August 1, 2018, which was made possible through a PACD Nonpoint Source Pollution Prevention Educational Mini-Grant Project. In addition to recognizing the FCCD’s Conservation Farmer of the Year, this tour also provided attendees with a first-hand look at Best Management Practices (BMPs) that reduce soil and nutrient runoff leaving the farm. This year’s Conservation Farmer of the Year was Martin Farms in Chambersburg.

Financial and other support for this project was provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The FCCD also received financial support from AgChoice Farm Credit.

Click here to read the entire article.

Pennsylvania’s county conservation districts were awarded over $43,000 for twenty-six pollution reduction projects in twenty-six counties. These projects promote water pollution prevention activities through the Non-point Source (NPS) Pollution Prevention Educational Mini-Grant Program. The projects will take place over the next 8 months.

Funding for the grants, up to $2,000 each, is provided through the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the US Environmental Protection Agency.

Click here to read the entire press release including the list of funded projects. 

The results are in! During the 2017-18 Manure Management Manual and Chapter 102 Compliance Workshops Mini-grant Program, 38 conservation districts reached over 2,800 landowners across the state.

Other outcomes include:

• Full-day workshops held: 37
• Half-day workshops held: 36
• One-on-one sessions held: 181
• Manure management plans written: 426 covering 32,798.9 acres
• Agricultural Erosion & Sedimentation plans written: 78 covering 6,482.73 acres

In addition to completing plans, conservation district staff improved awareness of the revised Manure Management Manual and assisted farmers in understanding manure management and Chapter 102 requirements.

PACD would like to thank the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for providing the funding for this program as well as supporting conservation districts as they help landowners achieve compliance.

Financial support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection through the Chesapeake Bay Implementation Grant, the Clean Water Fund and the Chesapeake Bay Regulatory and Accountability Program (CBRAP).

 

In the 2017-18 Nonpoint Source Pollution Prevention Educational Mini-grant round, 37 projects were completed by 30 conservation districts, reaching over 5,000 adults. Click here to see the outcomes and here to see a map of projects completed.

Reminder: PACD is currently accepting applications for a second round of the 2018-19 Nonpoint Source Pollution Prevention Educational Mini-grant Program for Conservation Districts. Click here for more information: https://pacd.org/?page_id=16996. The deadline to apply is June 28, 2018.

Financial and other support for the NPS Mini-grant Program is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

 

Due to continued support of conservation district projects by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, PACD is able to offer a second round of mini-grants in the 2018-19 program year.

Grants up to $2,000 are awarded to conservation districts for adult educational projects that offer strategies for reducing and preventing Nonpoint Source (NPS) Pollution. Projects should stimulate a local awareness of water quality issues, promote the theme “We All Live Downstream,” and encourage citizen participation in activities to improve water quality in local watersheds.

The deadline for NPS mini-grant applications is June 28, 2018.  Click here for the online application and more information. Please note that a Google Account is required to submit an application. Questions should be directed to Shannon Wehinger. 

Financial and other support for the NPS Mini-grant Program is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

 

The Cumberland County Conservation District sponsored a series of one-day events for volunteers to learn about Nonpoint Source Pollution and water quality in the Conodoguinet Creek Watershed. Volunteers collected water samples and analyzed the results. Water quality data included pH, conductivity, temperature, and nitrogen and phosphorus rates.

Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Click here to read the “Conodoguinet Creek Watershed Snapshot” which includes results of the monitoring.

Pike County Conservation District and Penn State Extension conducted a series of three educational workshops titled “Discovering Your Drinking Water: Learn more about protecting the quality of your drinking water!” on August 23, 2017, October 18, 2017, and March 26, 2018. The workshop content was presented by Penn State Extension Educator Peter Wulfhorst. Approximately 40 people attended the three workshops.

Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

 

The Westmoreland Conservation District received a Nonpoint Source Pollution Prevention Educational Mini-grant through PACD’s 2017-18 round. With this funding, the district developed two informational videos about stormwater basin design, assessment, and maintenance to help educate municipal staff, engineers, and others about the role of basins in stormwater management.

The videos were displayed at the district’s annual Municipal Roundtable and Engineers’ Workshop.

Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Click here to view Part 1: https://youtu.be/oSWJWTjEB54 and here for Part 2: https://youtu.be/Y0lhtrxM7uk.

Montgomery County Conservation District (MCCD) was awarded a 2017-18 Nonpoint Source Pollution Prevention Educational Mini-grant for a “Storm Drains to Streams: Pollution Prevention Education for Businesses” project.

For the project, MCCD and the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary’s Schuylkill Action Network partnered with Simon Property Group to host an Earth Week Pollution Prevention Mixer for the King of Prussia restaurant, food service, and hospitality community. The event was held at King of Prussia Mall on April 24, 2018, and was attended by 50 individuals.

Attendees included (but were not limited to) several hotel, restaurant facility, and business managers from the King of Prussia area.

The goal of the event was to educate the target audience about cost-effective, good housekeeping practices/actions that are recommended to prevent water pollution and protect clean water. The event also provided an opportunity for the Montgomery County Office of Public Health to stress the importance of implementing such practices to improve community health and safety.

Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

 

Click here to read the entire article written by Jessica Buck, MCCD Interim District Manager. 

Pennsylvania’s county conservation districts were awarded $39,390 for fourteen projects in fourteen counties. The funds were provided by the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) Mini-grant Program. Conservation districts will use these grants to work with landowners to prevent pollution in our streams, lakes, and rivers. Projects will take place over the next twelve months.

The following projects were awarded up to $3,000 each as a part of the 2018–2019 CREP Mini-grant round:

County Conservation District	Amount Awarded
Berks	$3,000
Bradford	$3,000
Centre	$2,995
Clarion	$2,000
Columbia	$3,000
Cumberland	$2,440
Greene	$3,000
Jefferson	$2,555
Lancaster	$3,000
Northumberland	$3,000
Perry	$3,000
Sullivan	$2,400
Tioga	$3,000
Wyoming	$3,000

 

Financial and other support for the CREP Outreach Program Office Mini-grant Program is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a Growing Greener Watershed Protection grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and with additional support from USDA-NRCS.

Click here to read more about CREP.