Written by bruntt on November 4, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, Education

Columbia County Conservation District Shows Students that Good Water = Good Life

High school students are shown at a drama station during Water Education Day playing “Darth Water.” Photo by Nicole Karr Photography. Used with permission.

Middle school students in Columbia County learned all about water at the Columbia County Conservation District’s 2nd annual Water Education Day: how it is cleaned, how it is distributed, how it gets polluted, how streams and development impact each other, how to better understand its movement in landscape, how to value public water systems, how to identify macroinvertebrates and fish and their relationship to water quality, and how objects in nature can make beautiful art. There were 540 students this year at Briar Creek Lake and over 50 presenters and volunteers, in addition to area high school students who gave a dramatic music and dance performance highlighting the importance of good water quality. Other participants included representatives from county watershed groups, the PA Department of Environmental Protection, PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Larson Design, SUEZ, PA American Water, PA Rural Water, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Children’s Museum, and Bloomsburg University. The event was sponsored by the Columbia County Conservation District, PA American Water, and Roaring Creek Valley Conservation Association. Check out more pictures from the day here!

Written by bruntt on November 3, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, Mini-grant

Cover Crop Field Days in McKean and Potter Counties

Submitted by Jody Groshek, McKean County Conservation District

Tim Elder from NRCS provided farmers information about soil health and warm season grasses for forage. Photo provided by McKean County Conservation District.

The McKean County Conservation District, in partnership with Penn State Cooperative Extension and the Potter County Conservation District, held several cover crop field days this fall. The project was made possible through a PACD mini-grant. Click here to read the entire article.

Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts 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 November 2, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, PACD General

Shambaugh Attends Blair County Conservation District’s 50th Anniversary

PACD Executive Director Brenda Shambaugh attended the 50th anniversary banquet and board meeting of the Blair County Conservation District on October, 20, 2016. Pictured left to right are: Donna Fisher, District Manager; John Morrow, Director; Commissioner Terry Tomassetti; Jim Biddle, Secretary/Treasurer; Blaine Smith, Vice-Chair; Shambaugh; Gary Long, Director; Alan Gearhart, Director; and Chairman Harold Bailey.

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

Clearfield County Conservation District Hosts Bounty from the County

On October 14, the Clearfield County Conservation District (CCCD) held a wildly successful event, “Bounty from the County,” in Curwensville, PA. This inaugural event celebrated the benefits of eating locally. “Basically it’s like a Farm to Table meal only we chose a different title and had locally produced goods in addition to food. It was organized by the district and we served food prepared by Shannon’s Catering but the purpose was to highlight our local producers. The entire meal was made up of food grown or raised within the county, right down to dessert,” said Kelly Williams, CCCD Watershed Specialist. Click here to see a list of what was served. Click here for a news article on the event.

Written by bruntt on October 26, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight

Sullivan County Conservation District Holds Awards Banquet

PACD Executive Director Brenda Shambaugh attended the awards banquet for the Sullivan County Conservation District. The event was held October 18, 2016 in Forksville.

Written by bruntt on October 24, 2016. Posted in Education, Training

Free Communications Webinars Set for November, December, January

PACD

and Water Words That Work, LLC are partnering on four upcoming environmental communication trainings starting in November 2016 and ending in January 2017. How do we get more participation at our programs? How can we effectively reach our target audiences and the general public? What are the most cost-effective means to get the word out about our programs? Find out answers to these questions and more during these webinars. The dates are (all webinars will be held 1-2:30 pm):

Water Words that Work Webinar Series – November 29, 2016 – December 1, 2016
More Than a Message – December 6-8, 2016
Perfect Outreach Projects – December 13-15, 2016
Perfect Outreach Projects – January 10-12, 2017

Click here for a detailed description of the training. Financial support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection through the Chesapeake Bay Implementation Grant, the Clean Water Fund and the Chesapeake Bay Regulatory and Accountability Program (CBRAP).

Written by bruntt on October 21, 2016. Posted in Awards, PACD General

Kelly Williams Wins Annual Watershed Specialist Photo Contest

The grand prize winning photo from this year’s annual Conservation District Watershed Specialist Photo Contest (above) was submitted by Kelly Williams, Watershed Specialist for the Clearfield County Conservation District. The photo, which Kelly has titled “Reflections”, captures Kelly and her niece monitoring water quality at a treatment site for abandoned mine drainage. Photo used with permission.

Written by bruntt on October 18, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight, PACD General

Shambaugh Visits McKean County Conservation District

McKean County Conservation District (MCCD) directors and staff show Shambaugh the native plant and pollinator garden adjacent to their office building. The garden was funded by a Lumber Heritage Region grant. https://www.lumberheritage.org/grants1.htm Pictured from left to right are: Cliff Lane, County Commissioner and MCCD Board Director; Kerry Fetter, MCCD Board Chairman; Brenda Shambaugh, PACD Executive Director; Bob Wright, MCCD Board Director; and Sandy Thompson, MCCD District Manager.

PACD Executive Director Brenda Shambaugh visited the McKean County Conservation District (MCCD) office on October 11, 2016. She met with several board members and staff. MCCD manager Sandy Thompson and Director Bob Wright took Brenda on a tour of the property which showcases best management practices and other district projects.

Written by bruntt on October 14, 2016. Posted in Education, Training

16th Annual Watershed Specialist Meeting Concludes

Group photo of the Watershed Specialists taken by Molly Burns.

The annual Conservation District Watershed Specialist Meeting was held October 4-6, 2016 in State College. Sixty-four watershed specialists from conservation districts across the state attended the meeting, which was sponsored by the PA Department of Environmental Protection and facilitated by PACD. Presentation topics included: attracting and engaging adult learners; Pennsylvania’s Wildlife Action Plan; how to deal with Hydrilla (an invasive species); Pennsylvania’s State Water Plan; how to address harmful algal blooms, and much more.

Written by bruntt on October 13, 2016. Posted in Conservation District Project Spotlight

Susquehanna County Conservation District Completes Phase 2 of the DuBois Creek Stream Restoration Project

Submitted by Jim Garner, Susquehanna County Conservation District

A cross vane and root wads used for stream bank protection are pictured. Photo provided by Susquehanna County Conservation District.

Recently the second phase of the DuBois Creek Stream Restoration project was completed. DuBois creek is a direct tributary to the Susquehanna River. The project is taking place in Great Bend Township near Hallstead, PA. Construction went well, with the entire stream channel graded per design. The channel block has been installed near the downstream limits of the project. This structure will aid in stopping debris from moving further downstream under normal stream conditions. Slightly upstream is a rock deflector. The purpose of the deflector is to protect the stream bank from erosion on a very sharp corner. Several other cross vanes have been installed upstream, which will in turn help with fish habitat as well as stream bank stabilization. This phase of the project has been funded by a Grower Greener grant awarded to the Susquehanna County Conservation District to help minimize erosion, and in turn, reduce flooding downstream. The project is being monitored and administered by the District.

Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts

We support Pennsylvania’s Conservation Districts who work for clean water and healthy soil every day.