pa environment digest jan. 28, 2013

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PA Environment DigestAn Update On Environmental Issues In PAEdited By: David E. Hess, Crisci Associates

Winner 2009 PAEE Business Partner Of The Year Award

Harrisburg, Pa January 28, 2013

Growing Leaner: Shrinking Commitment To The Environment Over Last 10 Years

On February 5 Gov. Corbett will present his FY 2013-14 budget proposal to the GeneralAssembly outlining how he would spend the $28 billion or so in General Fund tax revenuereceived by the Commonwealth.

In anticipation of the Governors budget address, heres a yardstick readers ofPA

Environment Digest can use to better judge the impacts of Gov. Corbetts budget proposals onenvironmental programs.

Shrinking Commitment

There is no doubt about it, Pennsylvania isnt Growing Greener, its Growing Leaner.The last 10 years have seen a steady shrinking of the commitment to provide adequate

funding and staff and innovation for environmental protection and restoration programs.In fact, over $1.7 billion has been cut or diverted from environmental programs over the

last decade to balance the state budget or to provide funding to other programs which could notget funding on their own.

It all started with the record budget and staff cuts in each and every year of the RendellAdministration.

Gov. Rendell's share of these cuts/diversions is $1.4 billion. Gov. Corbett's share is$314.7 million, so far. (Click Here for an itemized list of cuts and diversions.)

The cuts included support for operating local wastewater treatment plants, environmentaleducation programs, training programs for staff, citizen water monitoring programs, and staff forwater quality and many other programs.

The diversions included hundreds of millions of dollars to balance the General Fundbudget taken from the Underground Storage Tank Cleanup Fund, Keystone Recreation, Parksand Conservation Fund, Oil and Gas Fund and the Environmental Stewardship (GrowingGreener) Fund and the Recycling Fund to name a few.

Programs like Growing Greener set up originally to fund watershed restoration, farmconservation and other on-the-ground projects with real, measurable environmental benefits

were first bankruptby the Rendell Administration and then hijacked to fund windmills, parkinggarages and other non-environmental projects.

DEP Staff Cuts

Significant cuts in staff have also occurred. The states PennWATCH website confirmedin December DEP lost 615 permanent positions-- nearly 20 percent-- since FY 2002-03, from3,211 to 2,596.

DCNR's now has 1,300 salaried employees, down from 1,391 in FY 2002-03.
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Consequences

The result of a decade of budget and staff cuts has been a decrease in environmentalcompliance, an increase in the time between compliance inspections, permit review backlogsand few if any environmental and compliance education programs to improve compliance or ourunderstanding of the environment.

There have also been no annual reports on DEPs accomplishments or a detailed annualreport on environmental compliance program by program to measure the agencys progress andperformance since 2003.

In addition, objective measures of indicators like acres of abandoned mine landreclaimed, miles of streams restored and miles of stream buffers installed are not being reportedor measured. In fact, there are still 16,599 miles of impaired streams in the state which do notmeet water quality standards.

In December, the Budget Office released the general 2011-12 Report on StatePerformance which shows the percentage of sites in full compliance with DEP droppedsignificantly from 2001. (Click Here for full summary.)

The report said compliance dropped 12 percentage points since 2001, from 89.9 percent

in 2001 to 77.71 percent in 2011-12 performance report and lower than in 2009-10 at 78.75percent.At the same time, the report said the percentage of inspections with violations increased by 0.6percent-- 14.9 percent to 15.51 percent, and higher than in 2009-10 at 15.03 percent.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources reported a 10,428 acre dropin the number of land acquired through fee simple acquisition or easements for conservationpurposes, from 17,405 last year to 6,977 in 2011-12 and less than in 2009-10 at 11,936 acres.DCNR did see a $2.3 million increase in Community Conservation Partnership Grants awardedin 2011-12-- $29.1 million to $31.4 million, which was more than in 2009-10 at $25.3 million.

Another result of all these cuts is thepermit review backlog DEP said was alreadybuilding in 2009 and in truth the last 7 years, delaying hundreds of millions of dollars ineconomic development projects across the state.

For example, the Rendell Administration left a backlog of 5,000 permits and approvals inDEPs Southwest Regional Office alone, according to the Regional Director.

The Ridge and Schweiker Administrations left office in 2003 with few backlogged permitapplications as a result of the 1995 Money-Back Guarantee Permit Review Program created byExecutive Order 1995-5.

The recent efforts by the Corbett Administration through its Permit Review GuaranteeProgram will certainly bring some order back to the permit review process, but the fact remainsit will take staff time to clear the backlog and address new permits, staff DEP the agency has toolittle of.

Of course, overall, DEP and DCNR still have the same amount of work to do, the samelaws to enforce and the same State Forests and State Parks to protect and manage.

Neither the General Assembly nor the Governor eliminated any of the responsibilities ofDEP or DCNR like private industry would do when faced with these kinds of significant cuts inbudgets and staff.

In the case of DEP, they face the further challenge of new programs to get up andrunning, like the electronics recycling program, and the continuing challenges of regulatingMarcellus Shale drilling.

Support For Green Funding
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Public opinion surveys have repeatedly found significant support for environmentalfunding.

In December, the Growing Greener Coalition pointed to a newly released statewidesurvey as clear evidence of strong public support for state funding to preserve farmland and openspace, provide parks and trails and protect rivers and streams.

Overall, the survey found that more than 92 percent of the 608 Pennsylvanians surveyedthink that state funds dedicated to preserving farmland and open space, providing parks and trailsand protecting rivers and streams should continue to be used for these purposes.

In addition, the survey found that nearly 78 percent of respondents support increasingstate funds to conserve and protect open space, clean water, natural areas, wildlife habitats,parks, historic sites, forests and farms even if would cost the average household $10 moreannually. Further, these high levels of support are constant throughout every geographic regionand every gender, ethnic, educational and economic demographic throughout the state.

Bottom Line

Given the drastic cuts in funding and staff over the last 10 years, we face three options:consider which programs should be eliminated to match its shrinking resources; find ways to

fund those programs without stealing; or take drastic steps to restructure programs.As Gov. Corbett said during his campaign, shouldnt DEP be returning to its corefunctions?

Here are some steps to think about.Are there federally mandated environmental programs Pennsylvania should be returning

to the federal government to administer-- Air Quality, Mining, Waste, NPDES Water Quality,etc.?

Should DEP really be spending money and staff time on alternative energy and energyefficiency programs when it lacks funds to restore the water quality in our rivers and streams?(You Cant Go Fishing With A Solar Panel)

Is climate change a must issue for DEP to address like it is now, or is it a nice tohave? Or should state government actually pay for it.

Should some programs be turned over entirely to other agencies on a fee-for-servicebasis, for example, county conservation districts? The Chapter 102 erosion and sedimentationcontrol program comes to mind.

Another option is to centralize things like permit reviews rather than have each ofDEPs six major regional offices and six district mining offices. In this age of advancedcommunications technology there is no reason for certain functions to be repeated a dozen timesin the field.

It seems pretty basic, but the General Assembly should not give DEP any newresponsibilities without providing full funding for those programs. Unfunded mandates can beimposed on state agencies as well as local governments and they have been repeatedly in thepast.

Pretending DEP is now doing everything its required to do by law defies common sense.Its time for state government leaders to deal with that fact and try to dig environmental

protection programs out of the hole they spent 10 years excavating by either cutting, funding andrestructuring programs.

And as a start, why not take some of the $75 million devoted to giving tax breaks tomovies like Zack and Miri Make A Porno that was filmed in Pennsylvania, and make that moneydo some good for a change.
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March 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20April 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 29, 30May 1, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14June 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28

HouseFebruary 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13March 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20April 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24May 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15June 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18, 19, 20, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28Bill Calendars

House (February 4): Click Here for full House Bill Calendar.

Senate (January 28):Senate Bill 164 (Yudichak-D-Luzerne) appointing independent counselfor the Environmental Quality Board; Senate Bill 196 (D.White-R-Indiana) further authorizingPennVEST funding for stormwater management and non-point sources projects;Senate Bill 259(Yaw-R-Bradford) further providing for the reporting of royalties from oil and gas wells. Click Here for full Senate Bill Calendar.Committees

House: the House Democratic Policy Committee holds a public hearing on renewable energylegislation in Bryn Mawr. Click Here for full House Committee Schedule.Senate: Click Here for full Senate Committee Schedule.Bills Introduced

The following bills of interest were introduced this week--House

AEPS: House Bill 208 (Godshall-R-Montgomery) deleting the quarterly increase in Tier Ialternative energy sources, House Bill 1962 from last session.Water Testing:House Bill 268 (White-D-Westmoreland) requiring DEP to make water testingresults available to homeowners without cost.Water Well Standards: House Bill 343 (Miller-R-York) providing for the establishment ofwater well construction standards.Senate
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/HC/0/RC/SCHC.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0164http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0196http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0259http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0259http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/SC/0/RC/CAL.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/CO/HM/COHM.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/CO/SM/COSM.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0208http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0268http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0343http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0343http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0343http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0343http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0343http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0268http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0268http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0268http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0268http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0208http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0208http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0208http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=H&type=B&BN=0208http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/CO/SM/COSM.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/CO/SM/COSM.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/CO/SM/COSM.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/CO/HM/COHM.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/CO/HM/COHM.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/CO/HM/COHM.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/SC/0/RC/CAL.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/SC/0/RC/CAL.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/SC/0/RC/CAL.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0259http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0259http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0259http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0259http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0259http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0196http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0196http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0196http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0196http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0196http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0164http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0164http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0164http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/billinfo.cfm?syear=2013&sind=0&body=S&type=B&BN=0164http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/HC/0/RC/SCHC.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/HC/0/RC/SCHC.HTMhttp://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/SC/HC/0/RC/SCHC.HTM


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Water Recreation Board:Senate Bill 261 (Greenleaf-R-Montgomery) establishing a WaterRecreation Advisory Board to conduct an inventory of Pennsylvanias rivers, streams and lakes.Watershed Planning:Senate Bill 287 (Erickson-R-Delaware) enacting the Integrated WaterResources Restoration, Protection and Management Act, Senate Bill 452 from last session.

Water Infrastructure Funding Study:Senate Resolution 13 (Greenleaf-R-Montgomery)directing the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to review the Commonwealthsprogram of funding drinking water, wastewater and stormwater projects under the PAInfrastructure Investment Authority.

Senate/House Bills Moving

The following bills of interest saw action this week in the House and Senate--House

Agricultural Security Areas:House Bill 84 (Miller-R-York) requiring the biennial inspectionsof properties within Agricultural Security Areas to assure compliance with conservationeasements was reported from the House Appropriations Committee and was passed by theHouse. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.Senate

EQB Counsel:Senate Bill 164 (Yudichak-D-Luzerne) appointing independent counsel forthe Environmental Quality Board was reported from the Senate Environmental Resources andEnergy Committee and is now on the Senate Calendar for action.

Stormwater Funding:Senate Bill 196 (D.White-R-Indiana) further authorizing PennVESTfunding for stormwater management and non-point sources projects was reported from theSenate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee and is now on the Senate Calendar foraction.Mineral Rights:Senate Bill 259 (Yaw-R-Bradford) further providing for the reporting ofroyalties from oil and gas wells was reported from the Senate Environmental Resources andEnergy Committee and is now on the Senate Calendar for action.

News From The Capitol

Senate Environmental Committee Reports Gas Well, Stormwater, EQB Bills

TheSenate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee met Wednesday and reported outlegislation on oil and gas well royalties and rights, authorizing PennVEST to fund stormwaterand non-point source projects and a bill to provide independent counsel to the EnvironmentalQuality Board. The bills include--
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--Senate Bill 164 (Yudichak-D-Luzerne) appointing independent counsel for the EnvironmentalQuality Board;--Senate Bill 196 (D.White-R-Indiana) further authorizing PennVEST funding for stormwatermanagement and non-point sources projects;--Senate Bill 259 (Yaw-R-Bradford) further providing for the reporting of royalties from oil and

gas wells; and--Senate Bill 258 (Yaw-R-Bradford) providing for the disposition of abandoned mineral rightswas not considered by the Committee.

Sen. Gene Yaw (R-Bradford) serves as Majority Chair of the Committee and Sen. JohnYudichak (D-Luzerne) serves as Minority Chair.Bill Introduced On Disclosure Of Water Sampling Results

Rep. Jesse White (D-Westmoreland) introduced legislation this week that would require theDepartment of Environmental Protection to disclose the full and complete testing results,including raw data and documentation, of any environmental tests conducted by the department

on a landowners or leaseholders property in Pennsylvania.According to House Bill 268, DEP would have to make the information available atno cost and within five business days of receiving a written request from the landowner orleaseholder, or face civil penalties of up to $1,500 if the department fails to make the informationavailable.

Rep. White, who previously called on DEP to make public the full testing data andother details related to air and water quality tests amid concerns of nearby Marcellus Shaledrilling operations, said his legislation would ensure that Pennsylvania residents can access theircomplete test results, and prevent that information from being withheld through bureaucraticmaneuvering.

Pennsylvanians have a right to know the entire truth about what DEP discoversfrom testing on their property; nothing more, nothing less, said Rep. White. DEP has usedexemptions in the Open Records Law to deny requests for testing data and has even claimedthere was a greater interest in withholding data than in releasing it to the public, which isfundamentally wrong. There is no justification whatsoever for disclosing anything less than 100percent of the information about the substances in the air and water of Pennsylvania residents.

In June, DEP denied Rep. White the complete details of air quality test results takenat Cornerstone Care, a Burgettstown-area health clinic that was forced to close on multipleoccasions due to a mysterious odor that sickened employees.

After given a series of partial and inconsistent test results, Rep. White said the raw datacould have helped identify the cause of the odors at the clinic, which was located next to aMarcellus Shale drilling site.

In November, Rep. White criticized DEPs usage of its suite code computer-codesystem after a DEP scientist testified in an unrelated case that her laboratory tested for a range ofhazardous materials while analyzing the water-quality impact from a nearby natural gas drillingsite, but reported results for only some of them.

Rep. White said of further concern to him was the recent discovery that DEP developed,but never used, a computer-code called Suite Code 944 or Marcellus Inorganic Survey thatwould test for 45 contaminants in its water analyses, instead opting to use other suite codes thattest for fewer than half the number of potentially hazardous materials.
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threats to our children."Rep. Briggs said his legislation would require each school district to contact the parent

or guardian of each student in writing regarding radon testing in the school buildings. Thenotice must include whether or not testing has been conducted, and the highest amount of radondetected in the testing.

If the legislation is signed into law, all school districts would be required to complete aradon test of each school building by June 30, 2014. Additionally, any newly constructed schoolbuildings would have to be tested within 19 months of the date of occupancy, and any remodeledschool buildings would be retested within 19 months of completion of the remodeling. Inaddition, the bill would require these tests to be completed every five years from the date of theinitial test.House Democrats Outline Issues Coming Up In Committee

House Democrats this week sent outa list of issues they believe will come before eachCommittee in the House along with an invitation to a February 13 meet and greet with

Democratic Leaders and Committee Chairs.Among the issue listed are--Environmental Resources & Energy Committee

-- Deep Injection (HB 2350 George 11-12 session)-- Marcellus Shale local zoning and local share issuesConsumer Affairs Committee

-- Responsible Utility Customer Protection Act Sunset Date (expires December 31, 2014)-- Implementation of energy efficiency and conservation (EE&C) programs established underAct 129 of 2008.-- Electric Industry Competition/Retail Market Investigation-- Natural Gas Industry Competition-- Deregulation of basic telephone service (traditional landline) (HB 2496 Boyd 11-12 session)-- Payday Lending (HB 2191 Ross 11-12 session)Finance Committee

-- Pension Reform-- Property Taxes (School property tax elimination with higher state PIT and Sales Tax (includesexpanded base) (HB 1776 Cox 11-12 session)-- Constitutional amendment on homesteads (HB 2300 Maloney 11-12 session )-- 1% Sales Tax to lower school property taxes. (1% County Sales Tax & local county,municipal, school district) PIT or EIT to lower school property taxes (excludes Philadelphia)(HB 2230 Grove 11-12 session)-- Capital Budget reform bill (HB 2175 Turzai 11-12 session-- Delaware Loophole (HB 2150 Reed 11-12 session )-- Philadelphia Sales Tax (12/2013 sunset)

The complete list of Committee issuesis available online.
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House Democratic Policy Committee Holds Jan. 29 Hearing On Renewable Energy

The House Democratic Policy Committee holds a hearing on January 29 in Bryn Mawr onrenewable energy legislation- House Bill 100 (Vitali-D-Delaware) increasing the amount ofrenewable energy utilities must purchase (not online).

Witnesses scheduled to appear include:-- Panel One: Dork Sahagian, professor of earth and environmental sciences, LehighUniversity; and Christina Simeone, director, PennFutures Energy Center for Enterprise and theEnvironment-- Panel Two: Tanya McCloskey, acting Pennsylvania consumer advocate; and Jim Cawley,commissioner, Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission-- Terry Fitzpatrick, president and CEO, Energy Association of Pennsylvania-- Panel Three: Tom Bell, former executive director of the Office of Technology Development,Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection; and Bruce Burcat, executive director,Mid-Atlantic Renewable Energy Coalition.

The hearing will begin at noon at the Ludington Library, 5 S. Bryn Mawr Ave., Bryn

Mawrr.Rep. Mike Sturla (D-Lancaster) serves as Chair of the Committee.January Environmental Synopsis Now Available From Joint Conservation Committee

The January issue of the Environmental Synopsis published by the Joint Legislative Air andWater Pollution Control and Conservation Committee is now available.

This months issue features articles on: electric choice, brownfield reuse, cyber threats toinfrastructure, Great Lakes pollution cleanup, markets for scrap commodities and more.

The Joint Committee has also schedule two Environmental Issues Forums---- February 11: a presentation on recycling Marcellus Shale drilling pad liners. Room G-50starting at noon; and-- April 8: a presentation by PA American Water on new energy recovery technologies inWestmoreland County. Noon in the Capitol Building.

Sen. Scott Hutchinson (R-Venango) serves as Chair of the Committee.For more information, visit the Committee website.

News From Around The State

Create Watershed Hero Trading Cards To Recognize Local Volunteers

The PA Abandoned Mine Reclamation Conference Planning Committee wants to recognize you

and other Pennsylvania volunteers as part of this year's 15th Anniversary of the Conference.Submit your very own "Watershed Hero" trading card in honor of the work that you andother volunteers in your watershed have contributed to cleaning up your local environment andthe acid mine drainage impacts in your backyard. Let no one go unnoticed!

There are no limitations on how many nominations can come from any single watershedor community group. Nominate the silent individual community leaders and volunteers thatdeserve to be recognized for their efforts, time, talents, and treasures.
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Only adults should nominated as a Watershed Hero due to concerns with publicizing theimages of children on the Conference website without consent or permission.

Five winners will be chosen from all nominations submitted to win a cash prize donationto their home watershed organization they represent. An anonymous donor has contributedsignificantly to the cash prize donation.

All Watershed Hero trading cards will be displayed on the Conference website andwill be printed on a full color Poster-sized Board to be showcased at the Conference. SelectedWatershed Heroes will be featured in a slideshow at the conference and other publicity as well.

No private businesses or company can submit for this cash prize program event.By creating a Watershed Hero trading card with your photo submitted, the PA AMR

Conference Committee reserves to right to use images and all information obtained from thetrading cards to advertise for the Conference and future Conferences.

Click Here to begin making your own Watershed Hero Trading Card. Share theFinal Trading Card with Michael Hewitt, EPCAMR Program Manager by sending email to:[email protected].

Abstracts Wanted For PA Abandoned Mine Reclamation Conference Aug. 8-10The planning committee for the 2013 PA Abandoned Mine Reclamation Conference is invitingproposals for presentations. Proposals are due March 29.

Presentations on innovative AMD Treatment Technologies, AMD and EnvironmentalHealth Studies, Self-sustaining AMD Treatment System Success Stories, Marcellus Shalerelated Industrial Applications of AMD and Iron Oxides, Watershed Data ManagementTools, Economic Benefit Studies in AMD Impacted Watersheds, Economic RedevelopmentOpportunities, and Collaborative Coalition Success Stories that have occurred over the last 15year history of the PA Watershed Movement would be welcome.

Please include the Name of the Primary Presenter and Co-Presenters, Brief Biography,Company Affiliation, Watershed Group Affiliation, Address, Phone Number, email, and a onepage Abstract detailing an Executive Summary of your proposed presentation.

Presenters will be expected to have their full presentations ready to go and availableduring the Conference on a thumb drive of their own.

Presenters selected are expected to pay for the low cost of attendance to the Conferenceto cover registration and meal costs. Should you decide to only present and leave followingyour presentation due to conflicts or limited time availability, please discuss this with eitherEPCAMR or WPCAMR Conference Co-Coordinators in order for us to accurately account forthe registration attendance and meal plan coordination for the event.

If your presentation is not selected, it may still be able to be exhibited in a PosterPresentation, if you would like to format it in such a way where we could present it at theConference. Time slots and availability of those slots will be chosen following the selection ofthe presentations and will be communicated to all presenters.

Organizers will make every effort to try and slot presentations without any conflict frompresenters as we flush out the agenda for the Conference.

Direct your Abstract Submission to Robert E. Hughes, Executive Director, forthe Eastern PA Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation (EPCAMR) by email to:[email protected] or call for more information at 570-371-3523.

For more information, visit the Call for Abstracts webpage.
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Reps Daley, Harhai Salute Launch Of Washington County Mine Reclamation Project

Rep. Peter J. Daley (D-Washington) and Rep. Ted Harhai (D-Westmoreland) Friday hailed theimminent start of reclamation efforts at the Mathies Mine in Washington County.

"Improving the site will improve safety in the area and job prospects in the Mon Valley,"Rep. Daley said. "Improving the property's value and viability is a welcome step.""We also appreciate that a local business was awarded the $230,000 reclamation contract,"Harhai said.

Canestrale Environmental Control Corp. of Belle Vernon won the bond-forfeiture project,which is expected to get underway soon. The site is part of a 1,300-acre property once mined bythe Mon View Mining Co. in Carroll, North Strabane, Nottingham and Union townships.

Six mine shafts and 17 boreholes will be sealed, and four mine shaft housings and twotemporary mine-shaft seals will be demolished. Safety fencing will be installed around the sealedshafts, and enclosures and an access gate also will be built. One acre will be re-vegetated.

The project is expected to be completed in mid-May.

At its peak, the Mathies Mine employed about 200 people before Mon View filed forbankruptcy in 2005. The Mathies Mine was purchased late last March in bankruptcy court by theA.T. Massey Coal Co.

"The work at the old mine represents an investment in the region," Rep. Harhai said."It's all part of southwestern Pennsylvania's resurgence in energy production," Rep. Daley

said. "Washington County will be better prepared for more jobs and investment through thisproject."Water Resources Education Network Now Accepting Grant Applications

The PA League of Women Voters Water Resources Education Networkis now acceptingapplications for its 2013 round of grants for watershed education, source water protection andWREN Opportunity Grants. Applications are due March 22.Watershed Education: Eligible proposals for watershed education projects are projects sponsoredby community based partnerships that educate, build awareness, and promote water-sustainingpublic policies and/or behavior change. Projects should be designed to encourage individual orcollective action that will protect and improve local water resources.

Grants of up to $5,000 are available for activities which take place from July 1, 2013 toJune 30, 2014. A 5 percent match of in-kind donation or cash is required.

Source Water Protection: County and regional projects are eligible which conduct source waterprotection education and offer guidance about the protection of drinking water in the county orregion.

Grants of up to $7,000 are available for activities which take place from July 1, 2013 toJune 30, 2014. A 5 percent match of in-kind donation or cash is required.Opportunity Grants: Opportunity Grants are available to community groups to carry out localwater education projects. Projects must be related to reduction of Nonpoint Source Pollution toPennsylvania waterways.
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Grants from $100 to $300 are available for activities which take place before June 30,2013.

For more information, visit the WREN Grants webpage.

PennVEST, DEP Set March 20 Nutrient Credit Trading AuctionThe PA Infrastructure Investment Authority and the Department of Environmental Protectionannounced today they will host an auction March 20 for the sale and purchase of nutrient creditsin the Susquehanna and Potomac watersheds.

The auction, intended to encourage and facilitate the trading of nutrient credits, will be aforward auction, where certified credits will be sold at auction; delivered later; and applied to2013 and future compliance years.

It will afford wastewater treatment plants in the two watersheds the opportunity topurchase credits to meet their nitrogen and phosphorus discharge limits for the compliance years.

DEPs nutrient credit trading program provides a cost-effective way for facilities that are

subject to nitrogen and phosphorus limits to meet those limits by working with other facilities,non-point sources or both.PennVEST has chosen Markit Inc. to provide the platform for enrollment and eligibility,

auctions and registry services.PennVEST anticipates charging buyers and sellers 2.5 cents per credit to offset

administrative costs. Future auctions are set for June 12, September 11 and November 6.For more information on these auctions, visit the Markit Inc.Nutrient Credit Auction

webpage. For more information on nutrient trading visit the PennVESTNutrient Credit Tradingwebpage or call Robert Boos at 717-783-4493 (PennVEST) or Veronica Kasi at 717-772-4053(DEP).Joint Budget Committee Looks At Competition To Reduce Chesapeake Bay Pollution

The Joint Legislative Budget and Finance Committeereleased a report Tuesday took a verygeneral look at how competition might help reduce the cost of eliminating pollution fromPennsylvania going to the Chesapeake Bay without looking at many of the logistical and legaldetails involved or the potential impact on individual farmers.

The report also only covered nutrient reductions and not sediment reductions.The report said DEP estimated in 2004 its Chesapeake Bay Tributary Strategy the capital

cost to meet the Chesapeake Bay TMDL at $8.2 billion for all sectors, with an additional $665million in annual costs for operations and maintenance.

Agricultural BMPs account for 75 percent of the nitrogen reductions, but only about7.2 percent of the capital costs ($592 million). Publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) andindustrial dischargers are estimated to generate about 11 percent of the nitrogen reductions andaccount for about 4.6 percent of the estimated capital costs ($376 million).

Urban BMPs account for about 9 percent of the nitrogen reductions, but 68.5 percent ofthe capital costs ($5.6 billion). Finally, septic system denitrification accounts for 2.6 percent ofthe nitrogen reductions and 19.5 percent of the capital costs ($1.6 billion).

To help lower these costs, the Joint Committee was directed by a provision added to theFiscal Code last year-- Act 87 of 2012- to determine if a competitive bidding process would lead
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to a more cost-effective approach to paying for the nutrient reduction required to protect theChesapeake Bay.

The concept evaluated in the Committees report had a state agency-- possibly the PAInfrastructure Investment Authority-- issue a Request for Proposal to buy nutrient credits acrossthe Pennsylvania portion of the Bay watershed and across all sectors-- agricultural, wastewater,

stormwater, etc.The primary source of the credits, the report concluded, would probably be from theagricultural sector because it has the opportunity to install more cost-effective best managementpractices to reduce nutrient and sediment runoff.

The Committee found using a competitive RFP program would lower overall compliancecosts to the state by 80 percent or more for the agriculture and urban stormwater sectors based ona very broad-brush analysis.

The report did not look at the logistics or scope of an RFP-type process. For example,would the RFP be county-based or by smaller watersheds or for the entire Chesapeake Baywatershed in Pennsylvania.

With millions of pounds of reductions required, any county-wide or larger RFP would

mean only large-scale, capital intensive solutions could deliver the needed reductions. Individualfarmers could be left out of the initiative altogether.The report said, We estimate achieving the required nitrogen reductions for nonpoint

source agricultural and urban runoff through best management practices (BMPs) will cost about$628 million in 2015 and about $1.77 billion in 2025. We estimate a competitive RFP programcould achieve these same levels of reductions at a cost of about $110 million in 2015 and $255million in 2025.

However, the reported noted a source of funding would need to be found for thecompetitive RFP program. In 2010, only about $187 million was spent statewide (federal andstate dollars) on nonpoint source pollution management. While the report said some of thesefunds could be diverted to fund an RFP program, it does not deal with the issue of how thispotential diversion of funds would leave individual farmers without funding to install bestmanagement practices.

The PA Infrastructure Investment Authority and DEP already hold competitiveNutrientCredit Auctions as a vehicle for purchasing credits towards Pennsylvanias Chesapeake Baycleanup commitments.

A new flush tax imposed on individual homeowners such as Maryland imposes ($60annually) would be another possible source of funds the report said.

In addition to needing a major source of funding, the report did not mention majorchanges were needed to DEPs existing nutrient credit trading program based on concernsexpressed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other groups.

The significant limitations of the report make it of limited value in guiding state policydecisions.

The full report and an executive summary are available online.PennVEST Provides $7 Million To Finance Green Infrastructure In Lancaster

The PA Infrastructure Investment Authority and the City of Lancaster have finalized anagreement allowing for the investment of $7 million to finance green infrastructure projects atsites throughout the city.
http://www.markit.com/en/products/environmental/auctions/auction-schedule.pagehttp://www.markit.com/en/products/environmental/auctions/auction-schedule.pagehttp://lbfc.legis.state.pa.us/reports/2013/77.PDFhttp://lbfc.legis.state.pa.us/reports/2013/77fs.PDFhttp://www.pennvest.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pennvest_internet/9242http://www.cityoflancasterpa.com/lancastercity/cwp/view.asp?A=1189&Q=650765http://www.cityoflancasterpa.com/lancastercity/cwp/view.asp?A=1189&Q=650765http://www.cityoflancasterpa.com/lancastercity/cwp/view.asp?A=1189&Q=650765http://www.cityoflancasterpa.com/lancastercity/cwp/view.asp?A=1189&Q=650765http://www.cityoflancasterpa.com/lancastercity/cwp/view.asp?A=1189&Q=650765http://www.cityoflancasterpa.com/lancastercity/cwp/view.asp?A=1189&Q=650765http://www.pennvest.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pennvest_internet/9242http://www.pennvest.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pennvest_

pa environment digest jan. 28, 2013

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