Join the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Office of Environmental Justice and the Allegheny County Conservation District for a webinar on Pennsylvania’s environmental justice policy updates.

After 18 years, DEP is updating its Environmental Justice Policy. The current policy—the department’s first-ever—was adopted in 2004. Learn about how the revamp embeds environmental justice principles throughout the department. Also, learn about the department’s efforts to use new factors to define environmental justice areas in the Commonwealth.

Speaker: Ngani Ndimbie is a regional coordinator in the Office of Environmental Justice at the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. She worked at the Black Political Empowerment Project, ACLU of Pennsylvania, and Bike Pittsburgh before earning her master’s degree in Public Policy and Management at Carnegie Mellon University. Ngani is passionate about fostering equitable, healthy communities.

Date and Time: Tuesday, August 16, 2022 | 1:00 PM–2:00 PM

Registration is free. Click here to register.

PACD is partnering with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the State Conservation Commission (SCC) to deliver a three-day Introduction to Conservation Planning course. This training is scheduled for November 1-3, 2022, at the Holiday Inn Harrisburg (Hershey area) in Grantville, PA.

Intro to Conservation Planning is an introductory course for employees interested in writing conservation plans and becoming an NRCS Certified Conservation Planner. Eligible organizations include NRCS, State Conservation Commission, conservation districts, farmland preservation entities, and non-profits. The training is free, and lunch will be provided.

There is a pre-requisite for the course through AgLearn. 

Click here for the application to attend the course. 

Contact Shannon Wehinger at swehinger@pacd.org with questions.

PACD partnered with Amy Jewitt, Invasive Species Coordinator at the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and Lead Administrator of the Pennsylvania iMapInvasives Program conduct a webinar for conservation districts on June 28, 2022. The webinar provided an overview of the iMapInvasives program. iMapInvasives is a comprehensive tool for online invasive species data management. Forty-three conservation district staff and partners attended the training.

A recording of the webinar is available here. 

The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and PACD are partnering to offer a free iMapInvasives Overview and Training for Conservation Districts!

When: The training will be offered via Zoom on June 28, 2022, beginning at 10 am.

Webinar Description: iMapInvasives is a comprehensive tool for online invasive species data management. It includes many aspects that appeal to natural resource managers, community scientists, and other interested members of the public. By providing a tool that advances knowledge and understanding of invasive species distributions across Pennsylvania, iMapInvasives promotes strategic decisions for conducting future survey and management work in priority locations across the Commonwealth.

Amy Jewitt, Invasive Species Coordinator at the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and Lead Administrator of the Pennsylvania iMapInvasives Program, will provide an overview of the iMapInvasives Program for PACD and Conservation District staff. Amy will show a variety of visual elements from the database and explain tools offered in the platform that are of value for PACD and conservation district staff regarding understanding species distributions, prioritizing management efforts, and using the platform as a data clearinghouse for conservation districts across the state.

Registration: Please click here to register for the event. 

Sixty-five participants gathered at the Red Lion Harrisburg Hershey in Harrisburg for 102/105 Basic Technical Training May 3-6, 2022. A total of 52 employees from 31 conservation districts and 13 employees from the PA Department of Environmental Protection participated.

Classroom training topics included an overview and history of Chapter 102, applications and permits, safety considerations for the field, Chapter 105 updates, and key components of both technical and completeness reviews. The event’s highlight was the field training, which incorporated a site under active construction and a completed site. Special thanks to the York County Conservation District, particularly Program Manager/E&S Resource Conservationist Eric Jordan and Resource Conservationist Tiffany Crum, for making this year’s field experience a success.

This training was funded through a grant from the PA Department of Environmental Protection and made possible through the cooperation of the PA Association of Conservation Districts and Pennsylvania’s conservation districts.

The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and PACD are partnering to offer an iMapInvasives Overview and Training for PA Conservation Districts. The free webinar will be held on June 28, 2022, at 10:00 a.m.

iMapInvasives is a comprehensive tool for online invasive species data management. It includes many aspects that appeal to natural resource managers, community scientists, and other interested members of the public. By providing a tool that advances knowledge and understanding of invasive species distributions across Pennsylvania, iMapInvasives promotes strategic decisions for conducting future survey and management work in priority locations across the Commonwealth.

Amy Jewitt, Invasive Species Coordinator at the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and Lead Administrator of the Pennsylvania iMapInvasives Program, will provide an overview of the iMapInvasives Program for PACD and conservation district staff. Amy will show a variety of visual elements from the database and explain tools offered in the platform that are of value for PACD and conservation district staff regarding understanding species distributions, prioritizing management efforts, and using the platform as a data clearinghouse for conservation districts across the state.

Click here to register.

Twenty-seven individuals attended Agricultural Conservation Technical Boot Camp Training – Level II, April 25-29, 2022. Attendees included staff from conservation districts, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and affiliates.

The Level II annual training consists of two learning tracks: agronomy and engineering. The two tracks allow participants to focus more deeply on their area of study. The event features a balance of classroom work and fieldwork to give participants hands-on experience.

The training is sponsored by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the State Conservation Commission. PACD works with these partners to coordinate the training.

Thirty-three individuals attended Agricultural Conservation Technical Boot Camp Training – Basic Level April 4-8, 2022, at Fort Indiantown Gap in Lebanon County. Attendees included staff from conservation districts, PACD, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and affiliates, and the PA Department of Environmental Protection.

The training is sponsored by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the State Conservation Commission. PACD works with these partners to coordinate the training.

Spring 102/105 Virtual Topic-based Technical Training took place March 29-31, 2022, with a total of 279 participants, 160 from conservation districts and 118 from the PA Department of Environmental Protection. Sessions covered topics related to post-construction stormwater management, road maintenance activities, Chapter 105 fees and e-permitting, and more.

New conservation district and DEP staff working with Chapters 102 and 105 may also attend Spring 102/105 Basic Technical Training at the Red Lion Harrisburg Hershey in Harrisburg, PA, May 3-6, 2022. Click here for registration and other information. (Clean Water Academy login is required for access.)

This training was funded through a grant from the PA Department of Environmental Protection and made possible through the cooperation of the PA Association of Conservation Districts and Pennsylvania’s conservation districts.

The Section 319 Virtual Watershed Planning and Implementation Meeting will take place from 10:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. May 18-19, 2022. The event is open to entities involved in Section 319 Nonpoint Source Management projects, including conservation district staff, DEP and EPA staff, incorporated watershed associations, counties, municipalities, councils of governments; 501(c)(3) non-profits, educational institutions, and municipal authorities.

Click here for more information and to register.