For the fourth year, the Elk County Conservation District is challenging fellow PA conservation districts to pick up trash throughout April and May.

The district that picks up the most trash in their county is the winner. First, track the number of bags and weight of trash (if possible). Then, share your district’s photos and results on Facebook using the hashtags #ConservationCallout and #DistrictTrashTalking.

The winning district will be recognized during the July PACD/SCC Joint Annual Conference and receive the trash talker award (pictured) for the year. Washington County currently holds the trophy, which will be passed on to the 2024 winner.

Registration is now open for Chapter 102 Basic Technical Training May 20-24, 2024, at the Red Lion Harrisburg Hershey in Harrisburg, PA. Attendance is open only to conservation district and DEP employees working with Chapter 102.

The training is appropriate for individuals who are new or relatively new to their position, have never taken a similar training, would like a refresher, or would like guidance and skill enhancement for field inspections. The course curriculum assumes all participants have completed the prerequisite coursework on the Clean Water Academy.

There is no cost to register, most meals are provided, and a partial lodging reimbursement is available. The training is in-person only. Click here for additional information and to register. You will need to log into the Clean Water Academy (CWA) to access this link. Please contact Christopher Grimsley at cgrimsley@pacd.org if you need assistance accessing the CWA. All other questions may be directed to Molly Burns at mburns@pacd.org.

This training is funded through a grant from the PA Department of Environmental Protection and made possible through the cooperation of the PA Association of Conservation Districts and Pennsylvania’s conservation districts.

Conservation District Week (April 28-May 4) is all about promoting conservation districts’ work across the Commonwealth. New for 2024, PACD is hosting an Instagram Photo Contest. 

How to participate:

• Must post and select only one photo of conservation district staff at work each weekday during Conservation District Week: Monday, April 29; Tuesday, April 30; Wednesday, May 1; Thursday, May 2; and Friday, May 3. A different photo must be posted and tagged each day.
• Must post photos on an official PA Conservation District Instagram account
• Must use #CDWeek and tag @PAConservation in each post
• By entering the contest, conservation districts are giving PACD permission to repost and use the photo entries
• Winner will be the district with the most likes on their tagged photos – a total of all five photos posted for the contest April 29-May 3
• The winning conservation district will receive a trophy (and bragging rights) at the PACD/SCC Joint Annual Conference in July

This contest is not sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Instagram.

Questions should be directed to PACD Director of Communications & Education Shannon Wehinger at swehinger@pacd.org.

 

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.

The Snyder County Conservation District (SCCD) held its annual Farmers Winter Meeting outside Selinsgrove on February 16, 2024. Seventy people attended the meeting.

Topics included the district’s soil health bucket program, managing soils for phosphorus, and helping farmers better utilize nitrogen for corn production during the growing season while potentially decreasing nitrogen losses in the environment.

Click here to read the entire article and see more photos from the event. 

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.

Nominations are now being accepted for the PACD Conservation Awards. New for 2024, the award nominations have been simplified and streamlined with an online nomination form. Nominations must be received by April 30, 2024.

The awards are:

• Ann Rudd Saxman Conservation District Director or Associate Director Excellence Award
• Conservation District Employee Excellence Award
• Legislator Recognition Award
• Maurice K. Goddard Award for Excellence in Environmental Recreation

Click here for information on the awards program. Contact Roxanne Dohner at rdohner@pacd.org or 717-794-6108 with any questions.

PACD is accepting mini-grant applications from conservation districts for up to $3,000 to implement educational and outreach activities that support and extend the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) work. Projects should focus on CREP enrollment, re-enrollment, and/or CREP maintenance.

Applications will be accepted and approved on a rolling basis until funds are expended. The project completion and final report deadline is August 31, 2024.

Project examples include:

– Walkabouts/field days

– Farmer and landowner workshops

– Riparian buffer workshops

– Workshop series with several topics

– Developing educational materials like brochures, flyers, fact sheets, or even billboards

– Hire interns to provide CREP outreach

The guidelines, application, and reporting documents for the CREP mini-grant program can be found here. 

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.

On February 9, 2024, PACD Conservation Engineer Danielle L. Kalp, P.E., presented an hour-long seminar. The students who attended the seminar are enrolled in the environmental engineering program at Saint Francis University in Cambria County.

Danielle spoke to the students about agricultural engineering and the diversity of projects she works on.

 

Two conservation district and PACD staff members were nominated for performance awards from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. They are:

Mike Schlauch – Conservation Specialist, Luzerne Conservation District – PACD’s Conservation District Umbrella Program

During Fiscal Year 2023, Mike wrote 232 acres of EQIP/CTA/CREP conservation plans for seven producers. Mike has been prompt in completing all Highly Erodible Land determinations assigned to him, 40 in total. Throughout the year, Mike has either assisted the engineering staff with, or completed on his own, eight Inventory and Evaluations and five surveys/designs.. Due to staff turnover, Mike has been critical in achieving the agency’s mission within Luzerne County.

Andy Wodehouse – PACD TAG Program

Andy Wodehouse was asked to prepare for a training event and deliver that training to all new Civil Engineering Technicians and Soil Conservation Technicians in the entire North East area. The Training Topic was “Basic Surveying.” He put together an excellent training event. This training was to teach new employees entry-level surveying techniques and how to use survey equipment. The training was hands-on and delivered very effectively. He did a fantastic job putting this training event together. This training will decrease assistance needed by the technical office, increase productivity, get more practices built, assist with construction inspection, and start earning Job Approval for each employee. This task is not normally assigned and is in addition to yearly assigned performance goals.

Congratulations to Mike and Andy for their exceptional work!

Submitted by Rob Cronauer, Westmoreland Conservation District Manager/CEO

District board members and staff recently attended the National Association of Conservation District (NACD) Annual Meeting in San Diego, California. The five-day event featured informative sessions on conservation topics like soil health, community outreach, climate change, and water quality. USDA Deputy Secretary for Agriculture Xochitl Torres Small announced a new initiative called the Working Lands Climate Corps at the event. This program will provide skills-based training for careers in conservation that will assist farmers with climate-smart agricultural solutions.

Participants also had a chance to meet and share ideas with conservation district staff nationwide. Westmoreland Conservation District Board Chair Ron Rohall is the Pennsylvania representative to NACD and has been active in advancing educational and funding opportunities to conservation districts at the national level.