The Joint Annual Conference will take place July 17-18 at the Penn Stater Hotel & Conference Center in State College. The conference features a new venue, a fresh agenda, and a Technology and Innovation theme. Register by June 14 and save $40 on full registration!

Participants can look forward to presentations on Leveraging Technology to Conserve Biodiversity and Utility-Scale Solar in PA–The Approaching Wave. Tour the Rock Springs Research Farm and Ag Progress Days or the Chestnut Restoration Research and Frost Entomology Museum, hosted by Penn State University. Stay after dinner for entertainment by Van Wagner, whose music gives voice to Pennsylvania’s history and ecology with songs like Talking Eel and Shad Blues and Hard Coal.

Stay tuned to future issues of Front Page for more conference highlights. Click here for more information and to register. 

PACD will hold our summer committee meetings via videoconference in June and July prior to the PACD/SCC Joint Annual Conference. The meetings are open to conservation district directors, associate directors, staff, partner agency staff, and invited guests. Registration for the virtual committee meetings will be free and required. Mark your calendars and look for more information in a future edition of Front Page!

PACD Conservation Committee Videoconference
June 20, 2024 | 10:00-11:00 a.m.

PACD District Employees Committee Videoconference
June 25, 2024 | 10:00-11:00 a.m.

PACD Education & Outreach Committee Videoconference
June 27, 2024 | 10:00-11:00 a.m.

PACD Legislative Committee Videoconference
July 1, 2024 | 10:00-11:00 a.m.

PACD Ways & Means Committee Videoconference
July 11, 2024 | 10:00-11:00 a.m.

PACD Operations Committee Videoconference
July 12, 2024 | 10:00-11:00 a.m.

Please mark your calendar and plan to attend your fall PACD region meeting!

September 12, 2024 | 10:00 a.m.                
PACD North West Region Meeting (In-person only)
Elk Country Visitor Center, Benezette, PA

September 24, 2024 | 10:00 a.m.                                        
PACD North Central Region Meeting      
Clinton County Conservation District, Mill Hall, PA

September 27, 2024 | 10:00 a.m.                   
PACD South West Region Meeting     
Westmoreland Conservation District, Greensburg, PA

October 4, 2024 | 10:00 a.m.                
PACD North East Region Meeting      
Lands at Hillside Farms Education Center, Shavertown, PA

October 29, 2024 | 10:00 a.m.                     
PACD South Central Region Meeting      
Cumberland County Conservation District, Carlisle, PA

October 31, 2024 | 10:00 a.m.            
PACD South East Region Meeting     
Henning’s Market, Harleysville, PA

April 28-May 4, 2024, is “Conservation District Week” in Pennsylvania. During this week, district offices will hold conference calls and meetings with legislators. Resources such as letters, a press release, and social media images are available from PACD to promote Conservation District Week.

Conservation District Week materials are available here. 

Lycoming County Conservation District held a Legislative Breakfast in Williamsport on April 24, 2024.

The district’s state Senator attended, along with two House members, all three Commissioners, and an aide from their congressman. District Manager Matt Long gave a presentation. PACD Executive Director Brenda Shambaugh also attended the event and gave a presentation.

 

Close to 4,000 township officials and guests from all over Pennsylvania attended the annual Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors (PSATS) Conference and Trade Show on April 14-16, 2024. Once again, conservation districts had a booth.

Thank you to the following volunteers for staffing the table:

• Kelly Brestensky, Westmoreland Conservation District
• Anne Fox, Allegheny Conservation District
• Danielle Kalp, PACD
• Tyler Keefer, Lancaster Conservation District
• Alicia Ramsey, Clarion Conservation District

We could not participate in these types of events without volunteers like you!

 

Mark your calendars for the 2024 Section 319 Virtual Watershed Planning and Implementation Meeting from 9:00 a.m. to Noon May 28-29, 2024. 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. Look for a registration announcement in an upcoming edition of Front Page.

PACD is revitalizing the PACD/SCC Joint Annual Conference for 2024 and beyond! Join us at the Penn Stater Conference Center July 17-18 to see the changes we’ve made and hear what’s in store for the future. Sessions and tours will center around an Innovation and Technology theme, and participants are encouraged to take advantage of area attractions like the Penn State Creamery. Ice cream, anyone? Stay tuned for more updates! Registration will open in May.

Join us for the PACD spring region meetings! All meetings will be in-person with a virtual option. Click on your region meeting below for more information, and be sure to RSVP to the meeting host.

PACD South Central Region Meeting
March 7, 2024 | 10:00 a.m. to Noon
Cumberland County Conservation District, Carlisle, PA

PACD North Central Region Meeting
March 19, 2024 | 10:00 a.m. to Noon
Clinton County Conservation District, Mill Hall, PA

PACD South East Region Meeting
March 28, 2024 | 9:30 a.m. to Noon
Henning’s Market, Harleysville, PA

PACD North East Region Meeting
April 4, 2024| 10:00 a.m. to Noon
Monroe County Conservation District, Stroudsburg, PA

PACD South West Region Meeting
April 18, 2024 | 10:00 a.m. to Noon
Westmoreland Conservation District, Greensburg, PA

PACD North West Region Meeting
April 23, 2024 | 10:00 a.m. to Noon
Armstrong Conservation District, Kittanning, PA

Click here to find your region. 

Close to 4,000 township officials and guests from all over Pennsylvania will attend the annual Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors (PSATS) Conference and Trade Show on April 14-16, 2024. Once again, there will be a conservation district booth at the show from Sunday, April 14, to Tuesday, April 16.

PACD is seeking volunteers for the following shifts:

• Sunday, April 14, 1:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m. (1st shift) (2 volunteers needed)
• Sunday, April 14, 6:30 p.m.–8:00 p.m. (2nd shift) (1 volunteer needed)
• Monday, April 15, 7:30 a.m.–Noon (1st shift) (1 volunteer needed)
• Tuesday, April 16, 7:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. (2 volunteers needed)

Please consider volunteering for a morning or afternoon shift at the conservation district booth. This is a valuable opportunity to promote the districts and explain the type of work they do, as well as reinforce existing relationships with local township officials.

To volunteer, please get in touch with Roxanne Dohner at rdohner@pacd.org.