The January 11 PA Environment Digest is now available. Here are just a few of the headlines--
The Department of Environmental Protection Wednesday released the final version of its Chapter 78 (conventional) and Chapter 78A (unconventional-- Marcellus Shale) oil and gas drilling regulations it has submitted to the Environmental Quality Board for consideration on February 3.
The regulatory package-- over 2,500 pages-- is available on the EQB webpage. The package includes the Executive Summary, Preamble, Final Regulation, Comment/Response- Part 1 (original comment period), Comment/Response- Part 2 (advanced notice of final rulemaking), Regulatory Analysis Form, 1-Page Summaries and a Regulation Fact Sheet.
Comments by the Conventional Oil and Gas Advisory Committee and comments by the Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board are also available.
The Department of Environmental Protection invites Pennsylvania businesses, farms, government agencies, educational institutions, non-profit organizations and individuals to submit nominations for the 2016 Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence. Nominations are due January 15.
Nominations for the 2016 Western Pennsylvania Environmental Awards are now being accepted. The deadline for nominations is February 12.
A sculpture made from more than 1,000 pounds of butter and showcasing the diversity of Pennsylvania agriculture exhibited throughout the 100th Pennsylvania Farm Show was unveiled Thursday at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center in Harrisburg.
At the close of the show, the butter, which was donated by Land O’ Lakes in Carlisle, Cumberland County, will be given to a Juniata County dairy farm. The butter will be put through a methane digester, where it will be converted into renewable energy for the farm.
If you're a farm operator in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, you soon will have a chance to highlight what steps you and your fellow farmers have taken to protect and enhance water quality in the region.
Several agricultural and governmental organizations have partnered to develop a mail survey to over 20,000 farmers that will ask producers to document conservation practices they have adopted to promote water quality and soil health in the bay watershed.
On average, Pennsylvania receives over 40 inches of precipitation each year, but in some areas, all it takes is one-tenth of an inch to cause polluted stormwater to overflow into municipal sewer systems.
The steps being taken throughout Pennsylvania to keep stormwater in check and reduce the flow into natural waterways is the topic of December’s edition of “Environmental Focus,” the Pennsylvania Environmental Council’s monthly environmental affairs television program.
The Township News, published by the PA State Association of Township Supervisors did a cover story in their January issue by Jill M. Ercolino on how townships have used the Act 13 drilling fees to benefit their communities.
In 2015, the PA Resources Council’s Zero Waste PA team assisted nearly 40 different events with sustainable waste management solutions. In total, ZWPA served more than 700,000 individuals through 40 various events in 2015.
Nearly 14,000 volunteers from 44 counties across Pennsylvania canvassed their communities to remove over 1 million pounds of trash and debris from Pennsylvania’s waterways and coastal regions during the 2015 International Coastal Cleanup.
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful is proud to be the Pennsylvania statewide coordinator for International Coastal Cleanup, the world’s largest volunteer effort to improve the health of the world’s oceans and local waterways.
The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Thursday convened the first meeting of the 30-member Green Ribbon Task Force on Forest Products, Conservation and Jobs at the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg.
The application period for the second round of Get Outdoors PA Mini-Grants Program is now open for Get Outdoors PA Community Partners. Applications are due March 4.
While it might be winter, landowners can begin making plans to help wildlife this spring – and beyond – by planting tree and shrub seedlings offered by the Game Commission’s Howard Nursery. The 2016 seedling order form is available online, and sales began Monday morning.
To read the Digest, visit: www.PaEnvironmentDigest.com. Click Here to print the entire Digest.
PA Environment Digest is edited by David E. Hess, former Secretary Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, and is published as a service of Crisci Associates.
PA Environment Digest was the winner of the PA Association of Environmental Educators' 2009 Business Partner of the Year Award.
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Questions?: Send email to David Hess at: DHess@CrisciAssociates.com
