The PACD/SCC Winter Meeting was held in State College January 24-25. During the meeting, sessions were held on Growing Greener III, Farm Bill, Stormwater, and PACD’s On-Call Attorney program. During the Executive Council meeting, a motion was passed to strike the PACD Auxiliary from the Bylaws and a motion was passed to improve the efficiency of the PACD Policy Process. A 50/50 drawing was held with proceeds benefitting the Pennsylvania Envirothon.

PACD is awarding six scholarships for the PA Association of Environmental Educators annual two-day conference on March 13 and 14, 2017 at the McKeever Environmental Learning Center, Sandy Lake, PA.

Pennsylvania conservation district employees involved in environmental education and outreach are eligible to apply. Click here for the online application starting February 1, 2017. Contact: Terry Fisher at tfisher@pacd.org. The scholarships are made possible through an Environmental Education Grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

The Clean Water Farm Award Program recognizes Pennsylvania farmers whose exemplary farm management practices result in improved local and downstream water quality. Pennsylvania’s conservation districts may submit a nomination for a farm in their county. One award will be given in each of PACD’s six regions. Each district that submits a complete nomination will be entered into a drawing to win a $100 pizza party for their office! Deadline: April 30, 2017. Click here for more information. 

Financial support for this award is provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection through the Chesapeake Bay Regulatory and Accountability Program and the Pennsylvania Chesapeake Bay Education Office (administered by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc.).

 

Conservation district volunteers had the opportunity to share about the work conservation districts do in their local communities to conserve the state’s natural resources. Five-hundred, forty-six visitors stopped by the Conservation District Farm Show booth during the eight day event that concluded on January 14. The Farm Show attracts people from across Pennsylvania, drawing visitors to the district booth from sixty one different counties, a few from other states, and even one from New Zealand.

Conservation district facts and contact information were handed out. Visitors also had the opportunity to identify and learn about the watershed they live in by marking their home location on a state map and receiving a fact sheet about their watershed. Other information available during the show included Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program materials, agricultural requirements brochures, and Manure Management Manuals.

A huge thank you is extended to each conservation district that donated staff time to make the show a success. A lot of work goes into preparing and staffing the booth and it would not be possible without the district volunteers.

Through PACD’s Nonpoint Source Pollution Prevention Educational Mini-grant Program, the Juniata County Conservation District (JCCD) planted 170 trees. The “Lost Creek Landowners Buffer-in-a-Basket” project worked with landowners in the Lost Creek Watershed to plant trees in streamside locations.

 A workshop was held in October and trees were distributed to plant as buffers on the landowners property.

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.

 

Registration is open for two technical training sessions on Chapters 102 and 105 for conservation district technicians and DEP employees. The 2017 training sessions will take place at the Ramada Conference Center in State College, PA.

Basic/Refresher – March 20-23
Topic-based – April 5-6

 

Applications are now being accepted for Agricultural Conservation Technical Training.

Basic Level – March 20-24, 2017
Level II – April 10-14, 2017

If you do not receive confirmation from PACD, you will not be admitted. No walk-ins will be accepted. Both courses are held at the Keystone Conference Center, Ft. Indiantown Gap, Annville, PA (Lebanon County). Questions? Contact Shannon Wehinger.

 

The 2017 Chesapeake Bay Program Conservation District and PA Agency Staff Meeting will be held on March 13, 2017 at the Elaine Langone Center, 2^nd Floor, Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA (snow date March 16). To view the day’s schedule, agenda, and to register click here or go to the “Events” tab at www.pacd.org.

Staff from PA state agencies, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, conservation districts, and other organizations working within the Chesapeake Bay are invited to attend. There is no cost to attend, but registration is required. Breakfast, break, and lunch are included and will provide ample time to network with other Bay professionals. See the agenda for a complete listing of sessions and topics to be covered.

Contact Terry Fisher at tfisher@pacd.org with any questions.

The Perry County Conservation District (PCCD) recently wrapped up their Nonpoint Source Pollution Educational Mini-grant project. The Scientific Citizens Observing Pollution (in the) Environment or SCOPE for short, allows volunteers to test stream sites. As part of the grant, field test kits were assembled.

Each test kit includes:

• 1 bucket and lid
• 1 garbage bag
• 1 small first aid kit
• 1 low-cost water monitoring water chemistry kit complete with test tubes, directions, result charts, and chemical tablet refills
• 2 large pipettes
• 1 Fahrenheit thermometer
• 1 ‘Key to Macroinvertebrates’ identification sheet
• 3 paintbrushes
• 2 pencils
• 1 compass
• 12 (1 dram) glass vials and data tags – for preserving and labeling macro specimens
• 1 field scope with a plastic concave slide and battery powered light
• 1 small closing magnifying box
• 1 ice cube tray
• 2 tweezers
• 1 ‘Rite in the Rain’ notebook for recording data

Through the project, five field days/workshops were held to train the volunteers. PCCD plans to continue the program in the coming year.

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.

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 free training will take place March 14-16, 2017 at the Holiday Inn Harrisburg (Hershey area) in Grantville, PA.

The event is for entry-level employees of all organizations in Pennsylvania delivering conservation planning technical assistance, including but not limited to, NRCS, conservation districts, SCC, farmland preservation entities, non-profits, and private consultants. Lunch will be provided.

The application link will be emailed to those who are interested in taking the course after they have submitted their pre-requisite certificate of completion to swehinger@pacd.org. Click here for information on the pre-requisite. The deadline to apply is February 3, 2017.