Written by bruntt on June 21, 2016. Posted in Events, News

Joint Annual Conference Offers Presentation on New Overtime Rule, Employment Law

Adam Long will present on the new overtime rule on July 28, 2016. Photo provided.

PACD is pleased to welcome Adam Long, attorney with McNees Wallace & Nurick’s Labor & Employment Group, as a presenter for the PACD/SCC Joint Annual Conference. Adam will join us on Thursday, July 28, from 11:00 am to Noon, to present on the new overtime rule, and provide other updates on employment law to the membership. Adam regularly provides advice and counseling to employers on a wide range of labor and employment law issues, including wage and hour compliance, employment discrimination, family and medical leave, labor relations, and non-competition agreements. He is familiar with conservation districts and has provided a number of well-regarded seminars on employment law for conservation districts through the Pennsylvania Leadership Development Committee. Interested in finding out more? Click here to register and learn more about the conference.

Written by bruntt on June 17, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, Mini-grant

Montgomery Rain Garden

The “before” photo on the left shows the issue of standing water. The “after” photo on the right shows the Perkiomen demonstration rain garden after installation. Left photo taken by Bob Kahley, Aqua PA. Right photo taken by Virginia Vassalotti, Partnership for the Delaware Estuary. Photos provided by the Montgomery County Conservation District.

Montgomery County Conservation District planted a 3,000 square foot demonstration rain garden in Perkiomen Township. The project is part of a larger effort made possible by a nonpoint source mini-grant through PACD as well as a $30,000 grant from the Schuylkill River Restoration Fund. In addition to the rain garden, the district will retrofit a stormwater basin and construct two vegetated swales leading to and from the garden to create a stormwater treatment train. In addition to installing these practices, the district held tours and will install educational signage. Click here to see photos from the project.

Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. (PACD) 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.

Written by bruntt on June 16, 2016. Posted in CREP

Pennsylvania CREP: News and Updates Newsletter

One of the ways you can keep informed about the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) is the new Pennsylvania CREP: News and Updates newsletter. This quarterly newsletter is primarily for agencies, organizations, and individuals working with CREP and features stories, techniques, events, and other things of interest. It’s also a good place to start to learn about CREP if you are not familiar with this popular program. Take a few minutes and check it out now at https://conta.cc/25xCsU5. Some of the information you’ll find in the spring 2016 issue is a guide to the other tools the CREP Outreach Program Office has created to share information among CREP partners, with landowners already in CREP, and with people who are just learning about the program. You will also find links to the new CRP Conservation Practice Fact Sheets. These tools and fact sheets are resources that can be used in your CREP outreach and education efforts. Click here to see the newsletter. To receive future editions via email click the “Join our Mailing List” box in the newsletter. Please forward this along to others who may be interested. Send any questions, comments, or information you want to share about your CREP projects or techniques to info@creppa.org or contact Terry Fisher at tfisher@pacd.org or 717-238-7223.

Written by bruntt on June 15, 2016. Posted in Education, Training

Manager’s Summit Attracts 60 to State College

The management summit took place in State College June 7-8. Photo taken by Brenda Shambaugh.

The PA Leadership Development Committee held a Manager’s Summit June 7-8, 2016 in State College. PACD Executive Director Brenda Shambaugh attended both days of the meeting and PACD Executive Assistant & Meeting Planner Molly Burns attended the first day. Over 60 attendees enjoyed presentations and discussion on topics such as developing an effective board, building a winning district team, and more.

Written by bruntt on June 14, 2016. Posted in Awards, Engineering Program (TAG), PACD General

PACD’s Somerset Office Engineering Staff Recognized at Pirates Game

PACD Conservation Engineer Eric Robertson, P.E. (along with other staff from the Somerset Office) was honored by the PA Fish and Boat Commission before a Pittsburgh Pirate game on May 25, 2016. He is pictured on the Jumbotron at PNC Park, Pittsburgh, PA. The award was given to the Somerset staff for their acid mine drainage and stream restoration projects.

Written by bruntt on June 9, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, Education, Events

Montgomery County Hosts 2016 Envirothon and BioBlitz

Submitted by Krista Scheirer, Watershed Specialist, Montgomery County Conservation District

Students using a GPS camera unit to record a species during the BioBlitz. Photo Credit: Jen Isett. Photo provided by Montgomery County Conservation District.

The Montgomery County Conservation District hosted three Envirothon events this spring in an effort to provide free environmental education for local students. Approximately 300 students participated in the events, which were held for the high school, middle school, and elementary school levels. The middle school students also took part in a National Geographic BioBlitz, which is an attempt to record all the living species within a designated area. “In about an hour altogether, the students found 34 unique species. Kristin Byers, from the PA Alliance for Geographic Education, led a station at our middle school event, where students used GPS units to take photos of as many species as they could find. In total, they made 242 observations. This exploration was exciting to watch and really engaging for the students. After the event, the photos were uploaded to iNaturalist, an app that helps to identify the species,” said Krista Scheirer, Montgomery County Conservation District Watershed Specialist. Click here for the project page, which includes the results of the BioBlitz. Click here to read the full press release on the event.

Written by bruntt on June 8, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, Mini-grant

Centre County Showcases Conservation Projects

In May, the Centre County Conservation District held a tour to showcase conservation projects in the county. The stops featured six conservation district projects, including one erosion and sediment control site, two stream restorations, and three farms.

Tour participants look at a conservation district project on a local farm. Photo provided by Centre County Conservation District.

Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. (PACD) 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.

Written by bruntt on June 7, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, CREP

CREP Billboards Erected in Berks County

Photo provided by Berks County Conservation District.

The Berks County Conservation District designed a billboard for the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). Three billboards were displayed in the Tulpehocken watershed for 8 weeks, starting April 11, 2016. In addition to the billboard, the district is planning to hold a series of events including workshop on maintenance and invasive weeds and a field day. 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.

Written by bruntt on June 6, 2016. Posted in Events, PACD General

Registration for the 2016 PACD/SCC Joint Annual Conference Opens Today

PACD members and partners are invited to join us at this year’s Joint Annual Conference to network, learn, and take a leading role in statewide issues. The conference will take place July 27-28 at the Ramada Conference Center in State College, Pennsylvania. As a special service to our members, PACD has arranged for Adam Long from the law firm of McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC to provide an update on employment law on July 28, with a particular focus on the new overtime rule. Adam is familiar to many of our members and regularly provides advice and counseling to employers on a wide range of labor and employment law issues. Stay tuned for more Front Page articles highlighting this and other conference sessions and activities. Click here to register and learn more about the conference. We look forward to seeing you there!

Written by bruntt on May 27, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, Education

Franklin County Conservation District Hosts First Grade Field Trip

First grade students look for macroinvertebrates during their field trip hosted by the Franklin County Conservation District (FCCD). Photo provided by FCCD.

For the third year in a row, the Franklin County Conservation District hosted a field trip at Caledonia State Park for all of the first graders in the Chambersburg Area School District. There were approximately 688 first graders from 31 classes at 12 different elementary schools in the district. Click here to read more.

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