Please consider volunteering to help at the conservation district exhibit at the 2016 Pennsylvania State University Agricultural Progress Days. Ag Progress Days is held at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs, nine miles southwest of State College, PA, and features the latest technology and research exhibits, educational programs, and guided tours. About 60% of the 45,000 expected to attend are actively engaged in agriculture or related activities. With so many farming families from across Pennsylvania at this event, it’s a great opportunity to call attention to the work and programs done at the districts. This year’s event will be held August 16-18, 2016. Volunteers are needed for the shifts listed below. Send your name and contact information to tfisher@pacd.org or call 717-238-7223 with questions or to schedule your shift. Tuesday Aug. 16: 9:00 am – 1:00 pm (1 volunteer needed) Tuesday Aug. 16: 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm (2 volunteer needed) Wednesday Aug. 17: 9:00 am – 1:00 pm (2 volunteer needed) Wednesday Aug. 17: 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm (2 volunteer needed) Wednesday Aug. 17: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm (2 volunteer needed) Thursday Aug. 18: 9:00 am – 1:00 pm (2 volunteer needed) Thursday Aug. 18: 9:00 am – 1:00 pm (filled) A final volunteer schedule, parking passes and other show information will be sent to volunteers when available. For more information on Ag Progress Days go to their website at https://agsci.psu.edu/apd.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Submitted by Krista Scheirer, Watershed Specialist, 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.  

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.

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.

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.

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!