Photo provided by Beaver County Conservation District.
Twenty-one workshop participants learned about the link between water quality and nonpoint source pollution at the Beaver County Conservation District “Managing Stormwater at Your Home” workshop. Participants mapped their property and decided where to place the best management practices. After a program on watersheds, nonpoint source pollution, and stormwater best management practices, the district demonstrated how to build a rain barrel. Those attending received a rain barrel kit and Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Homeowners Guide to Stormwater.
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.
Logan Stenger, Huntingdon County Conservation District Watershed Specialist and Affiliate Coordinator for KHCB, unloads tires during the 2019 Tire War Challenge. Photo provided by HCCD.
On September 14, 2019, Keep Huntingdon County Beautiful (KHCB) volunteers collected 1,962 tires as part of the 14th Annual Tire War Challenge! The collection includes 1,852 car/truck tires, 74 tractor-trailer tires, and 36 tractor tires. To put this in perspective, they filled two 53′ long tractor-trailers from top to bottom! We await the results from the other participating counties to determine if KHCB retains the Gold Rim Award for most tires collected.
Instead of polluting our land and streams, these tires go to Mahantango Enterprises in Liverpool, PA. The tires are then reclaimed and recycled into usable products such as rubber mulch for playgrounds or athletic tracks. This event was made possible by a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Household/Small Business Hazardous Waste Collection Program.
Photo of the initial slide in the LCCD PowerPoint presentation on manure management.
Dennis Eby, Outreach Coordinator at the Lancaster County Conservation District (LCCD), participated in the “Working with Plain Sect” training that USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service recently held at Elizabethtown College. In his presentation, he mentioned that Lancaster County has success doing Manure Management Plans one-on-one with farmers. He used a PowerPoint that he adapted from the Penn State trainer presentations. The conservation district agricultural technicians that attended the training asked if that PowerPoint could be available for them to use. LCCD uploaded the resource to its website where it is accessible for anyone.
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 November 12-14, 2019 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. The training is free, and lunch will be provided.
The online pre-requisite will be waived this year. Click here to apply by October 4. Questions? Contact Shannon Wehinger at swehinger@pacd.org.
Mark your calendars for the Agricultural Conservation Technical Training (“Boot Camp” Basic Level and Level II). Conservation district staff are encouraged to take advantage of these free, week-long training opportunities which include both classroom learning and experience in the field.
Agricultural Conservation Technical “Boot Camp” Training – Basic Level April 6-10, 2020 Keystone Conference Center, Ft. Indiantown Gap, Annville, PA (Lebanon County)
Agricultural Conservation Technical “Boot Camp” Training – Level II April 27-May 1, 2020 Keystone Conference Center, Ft. Indiantown Gap, Annville, PA (Lebanon County)
The application period will open in January. Questions? Contact Shannon Wehinger at swehinger@pacd.org.
These training opportunities are made possible by the following sponsors: Natural Resources Conservation Service, State Conservation Commission, and the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc.
Clearfield and Jefferson County Conservation Districts held a Cover Crop Field Day on August 23, 2019. Photo provided by Clearfield County Conservation District.
On August 23, 2019, Clearfield and Jefferson County Conservation Districts held a cover crop field day in partnership with USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Local Seed Company, and PA No-till Alliance. There were 49 participants at the workshop. As part of the event, two acres of cover crops were planted for a demonstration of their effectiveness against erosion control and water infiltration.
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.
Photo courtesy of USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
From Ashely Lenig, written by Janette Lesher Reprinted from 9/9/19 USDA NRCS PA Weekly News Flash
The Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Northumberland County Conservation District (NCCD) offices recently worked together to hold an outreach event in the Warrior Run Watershed as part of the newly selected National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI) initiative.
The Warrior Run basin is a priority watershed of the USDA-NRCS and is targeted in the NWQI program. Agriculture is the dominant land use in the Warrior Run Watershed. Riparian buffer zones are nearly nonexistent in the agricultural lands. Livestock also have unlimited access to streambanks in parts of the watershed, resulting in streambank trampling and severe erosion. Producers in the watershed consist of English, Amish, and Mennonite farmers.
As our team began working on a Watershed Plan, we discovered there was a large sector of producers with whom we had not worked. We knew if we wanted to work with them, we needed to get to know them. It was decided to have an ice cream social – homemade, of course!
Recently, we met a landowner whose farm is located next to Warrior Run, so we knew that it was the place we needed to bring farmers together. After explaining our plan to him, he said: “Invite them, and they will come.” Without using any flyers or news releases, the farmer simply invited his neighbors over to his farm.
As we were preparing for this event— expecting 10-15 producers—the landowner told us we had to step up our game, because about 50 people had told him they would attend. Ryan Cherwinski, NCCD Ag Technician, did not disappoint anyone as there was plenty of delicious homemade ice cream to go around.
As NCCD and NRCS staff served ice cream, families sat by the stream. Gary Walters with DEP was gracious enough to demonstrate electro-shocking on the stream. As he began catching fish, the farmers lined up on the stream bank to see what was in the buckets. Clusters of producers started to gather around agency staff to learn about stream health, best management practices, and what we are trying to achieve in the Warrior Run Watershed. As the parents listened and asked questions, the children were able to get their feet wet and help with a macroinvertebrate kick in the stream. NCCD Watershed Specialist Chantel Shambach helped the children identify what they found.
Once the families got back on their bikes and rode home to their farms with a new appreciation of the watershed in which they lived, NRCS and NCCD staff packed up their supplies and left with 50 new friends and many contacts of farmers to visit in the next few weeks. Who would have ever thought that a meeting with no flyers, no PowerPoints, and no set agenda would be successful? Our team had some hesitations but is certainly thrilled with the outcome. We look forward to doing other similar events in the watershed again.
Many thanks to all those on the team who helped make this a successful event: NCCD Ag Technician – Ryan Cherwinski NCCD Watershed Specialist – Chantel Shambach DEP Water Quality Division Chief – Gary Walters NRCS Civil Engineering Technician – Pam Richardson NRCS Soil Conservationist – David McCoy NRCS District Conservationist – Janette Lesher
The CPESC Exam held at the Lebanon County Conservation District on September 4, 2019. Photo taken by Amy Brown.
The Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control (CPESC) review course and exam were held on September 3 and 4, 2019. Nine people attended the course, which was held at the Lebanon County Conservation District Office.
PACD co-hosted the review course in order for conservation district employees to attend at a discounted price.
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.
