PA Environment Digest Blog: November 2018

The U.S. Environmental Protection agency is now accepting applications for FY19 Brownfields Assessment, Cleanup and Multipurpose Grants. The deadline for applications is January 31.

Click Here for all the details on how to apply.

Agriculture, Military Affairs Kick Off Trees For Troops Donation Weekend

On November 30, Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding and Maj. Gen. Tony Carelli, Pennsylvania’s Adjutant General and head of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, helped kick off the 2018 Trees for Troops weekend, encouraging Pennsylvanians to donate Christmas trees to active-duty military and their families.

“We often talk about the importance of partnerships in building a coalition of support for Pennsylvanians; and forging relationships to inspire, and to grow, and to provide,” said Secretary Redding. “Today we invite our friends and neighbors to join us in this partnership and help us thank Pennsylvania’s military service members. This simple act can help inspire hope and can provide our troops with a little piece of home, no matter where they are.”

Trees for Troops is a national program that provides free, farm-grown Christmas trees to armed forces members and their families each holiday season.

Pennsylvanians can participate in the program by visiting a farm or participating location from November 30 through December 2, and purchasing a tree for distribution to service members.

"The Christmas tree is a symbol of the holiday spirit to many people across the globe. This outstanding program will send trees overseas to spread joy to service members deployed far away from their families, and also deliver trees stateside to brighten the hearts of our troops and their families who were fortunate to be home for the holidays," said Carrelli. "By donating a tree, this program gives people a meaningful opportunity to say thank you to our troops and help ensure military families have the kind of joyful traditional Christmas memories that we would wish for America's heroes."

Speakers at the event, held at Bustard’s Christmas Trees in Landsdale, encouraged Pennsylvanians to do their part by contributing one of the more than 17,000 trees heading to military installations throughout the country this month as a part of the annual program.

During the event, Redding and Carelli joined attendees to load a FedEx trailer with trees donated from the farm.

FedEx partners to provide transportation services delivering the trees to more than 65 military bases in the U.S. and overseas, and has driven more than 573,000 ground miles for the program.

This is the 14th year of Trees for Troops, which since 2005 has provided more than 176,000 Christmas trees to military families and troops in the United States and overseas. Last year, more than 17,400 Christmas trees were delivered to 70 U.S. military bases and 250 trees delivered to four international bases.

The program is part of the Christmas SPIRIT Foundation, a non-profit branch of the National Christmas Tree Association, which represents more than 700 active member farms, 29 state and regional associations, and more than 4,000 affiliated businesses that grow and sell Christmas trees or provide related supplies and services.

For more information and participating locations, visit the Christmas Spirit Foundation website.

Want to know more about Christmas Trees in Pennsylvania? Visit the PA Christmas Tree Growers Association website.

(Photo: Maj. Gen. Tony Carelli and Secretary Russell Redding.)

Ned Smith Center For Nature And Art Offers New Exhibit Of Ned Smith's Work In Dauphin County

Working Together Through Time is the title of an exhibit on display through January at the Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art in Millersburg, Dauphin County and a description that truly embodies well-known artist Ned Smith’s nearly lifelong association with the Game Commission.

Smith began working with the Game Commission shortly after World War II, when he started illustrating for Pennsylvania Game News as a freelance artist.

The new kid in the Game News’ stable of artists, Smith displayed an early talent to illustrate stories with made-to-order pen-and-ink drawings that gave the magazine’s pages the pop that was so important in publishing then.

“Even in Ned’s early work, it’s not hard to see how talented he was,” said Game Commission Executive Director Bryan Burhans. “But Ned was never satisfied. He continued to grow as an artist throughout his life. His commitment to excellence is almost overwhelming.”

Smith illustrated his first Game News cover in 1950. Over his life-- and posthumously-- his work has appeared on 124 covers.

Of course, Smith was more than magazine covers to the Game Commission. He was an award-winning columnist, helped start the agency’s Working Together for Wildlife and Waterfowl Stamp programs, and made considerable contributions to conservation as a naturalist.

He also served a brief stint as Game News editor. Smith’s 1971 Gone for the Day book, a compilation of his Game News columns, remains one of the agency’s best-selling books.

“He was Game News’ Norman Rockwell,” Burhans noted. “And his art and writings embodied the crusade for wildlife conservation and a cleaner environment. He truly was one of the best friends Pennsylvania wildlife ever had. I grew up as a kid reading every issue of Game News. Ned Smith’s artwork became iconic of Game News and the Game Commission”

Smith’s original Game News cover paintings, as well as other historical items from the Game Commission’s past are part of “Working Together Through Time: The Game Commission and Ned Smith.”

For more information, visit the Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art website. The center is located at 176 Water Company Road in Millersburg.

Click Here to watch a WITF - PA Conservation Heritage Project documentary on Ned Smith for more information on his career.
(Photo: Gone For Another Day book by Scott Weidensaul, Ned Smith.)

PUC #UtilityCareers Campaign Earns International Recognition

On November 30, the Public Utility Commission announced it has received international recognition-- the 2018 MarCom Gold Award-- for creative communications showcasing the PUC’s ongoing #UtilityCareers campaign.

#UtilityCareers was launched to highlight the types of utility careers available in Pennsylvania and to encourage more talented individuals of all ages and backgrounds to consider careers in the utility sector.

This is the second year in a row that the PUC’s public outreach and education efforts have drawn international honors.

The MarCom award is one of the oldest, largest and most prestigious creative competitions in the world-- recognizing outstanding achievement by creative professionals involved in the concept, direction, design and production of communication materials and programs.

“We are honored that this year’s MarCom award recognizes the PUC’s #UtilityCareers campaign and our collaborative effort to highlight this important workforce development issue,” said PUC Chairman Gladys M. Brown. “The PUC is committed to our public service mission, and we are grateful that our team of dedicated communications professionals has again been selected as among the best in the industry.”

The PUC’s #UtilityCareers campaign was honored alongside the work of numerous U.S. and global businesses and organizations including the American Heart Association, Comcast, Hilton Worldwide, IBM, Microsoft, National Geographic, Nissan North America, PepsiCo and the PGA Tour.

Other MarCom Gold Award winners from Pennsylvania include Temple University Health System, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Villanova School of Business, the American College of Physicians, the Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union (PSECU), the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, FedEx and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

The 2018 MarCom award winners were selected from more than 6,500 worldwide entries. Judges were tasked with looking for entities whose talent exceeds a high standard of excellence and whose work serves as a benchmark for the industry.

MarCom is sponsored and judged by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP), an international organization for creative professionals.

For more information on the careers program, visit the #UtilityCareers campaign website.

Western PA Conservancy: Trees For Johnstown, Cambria County

Trees for Johnstown is a multi-phase project of the Western PA Conservancy in partnership with the City of Johnstown and the Johnstown Shade Tree Commission in Cambria County.

With a generous grant from the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies, WPC has established a comprehensive community forestry program in the city that includes a street and park tree inventory and analysis, the completion of a database to track forestry work, forestry expertise, education and outreach, planting and maintenance plans, and volunteer engagement.

Over the course of 2017, Conservancy staff completed a street and park tree inventory for the City of Johnstown and created a report, called Trees for Johnstown, analyzing the City’s tree inventory, providing in-depth benefits analysis, as well as best maintenance practices for planting and maintenance.

In addition to the report, WPC staff engaged 50 volunteers to plant 25 trees in locations throughout the City in the fall of 2017.

The Trees for Johnstown report includes an iTree Analysis, a leading forestry analysis model developed by the US Forest Service and Davey Tree Company. This analysis provides data on the current environmental, economic and aesthetic benefits of Johnstown’s street and park tree population.

Johnstown’s public trees currently return more than $200,000 in benefits to the community annually. These benefits will increase over time as the tree canopy grows.

The Conservancy is also partnering with Penn State Extension on Tree Tender training courses for the project. This program is a formal training program for community residents to help understand the importance of community forestry, tree biology, and how to plant and care for trees.

Other partners on city-wide community outreach include the Roxbury Civic Group, the City of Johnstown Planning Commission, the Johnstown Shade Tree Commission, the EADS Group as well as collaboration with the Director of Public Works to implement education and outreach efforts for businesses, property owners and residents.

Community education and outreach helps guarantee the success of community forestry projects so that everyone has a vested interest in valuing, planting and caring for their trees now and in the future.

The Trees for Johnstown project is in line with and actively contributes to Johnstown’s Vision 2025, a volunteer-based organization with a vision to improve the Johnstown region under three primary concepts: a strong sense of community, life sustaining landscapes and a vibrant and open local economy.

The Conservancy will build on the Trees for Johnstown project in 2018 by working with partners and residents to identify and plant an additional 50 street trees and train residents on proper tree care with Penn State Extension.

Questions about the program should be directed to Jeff Bergman, WPC Director of Community Forestry and TreeVitalize Pittsburgh, by calling 412-586-2396 or send email to: trees@paconserve.org.

For information on community tree resources statewide, visit DCNR’s TreeVitalize webpage.

More information is available on programs, initiatives and special events at the Western PA Conservancy website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates from the Conservancy, Like them on Facebook, Follow them on Twitter, add them to your Circle on Google+, join them on Instagram, visit the Conservancy’s YouTube Channel or add them to your network on Linkedin. Click Here to support their work.

American Rivers Receives Stroud Water Research Center Award For Freshwater Excellence

On November 29, Stroud Water Research Center in Chester County presented the 2018 Stroud Award for Freshwater Excellence to American Rivers and its president and CEO, Wm. Robert (Bob) Irvin, at the Stroud Center’s premiere fundraising gala, The Water’s Edge.

Wilmington Trust was the presenting sponsor of the event, which took place in Delaware, at Winterthur, the childhood home of collector and horticulturist Henry Francis du Pont. This 1,000-acre preserve of rolling meadows and woodlands was designed by du Pont. Its 60-acre naturalistic garden is among America’s best, with magnificent specimen plantings and massed displays of color.

American Rivers is a national nonprofit conservation organization with offices across the country, including in Pennsylvania. American Rivers is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year and the 50th anniversary of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.

Bob Irvin was recognized for his more than 30 year career in conservation and his success advancing the mission of American Rivers, which is to protect wild rivers, restore damaged rivers, and conserve clean water for people and nature.

“It is a great honor to receive this award from the Stroud Center,” Irvin said. “This award is for all of our generous members and supporters who make our work possible. At American Rivers, we believe every person in the country should have clean water and a healthy river and our supporters are moving us closer to achieving that goal.”

“Water is the most important conservation issue of our time. Protecting and restoring the health of the nation’s rivers is essential to our future health and security. We all have a responsibility to be good stewards and to leave a legacy of healthy rivers and clean water for the next generation,” Irvin said.

American Rivers has a 45-year track record of success that includes spearheading the U.S. dam removal and river restoration movement, championing the preservation of thousands of miles of Wild and Scenic Rivers, mobilizing public action through the annual America’s Most Endangered Rivers® campaign, and advancing solutions for innovative water and river management nationwide.

In 2018, American Rivers removed 13 outdated dams, restored more than 400 miles of rivers, and protected more than 300 miles of wild rivers including securing Wild and Scenic designation for Montana’s East Rosebud Creek.

American Rivers also helped win an important legal victory in defense of the federal Clean Water Rule, which safeguards drinking water sources for one in three Americans.

Since its inception in 2003, The Water’s Edge has featured an impressive list of individuals who have made noteworthy contributions to the world of science, fresh water, and conservation.

Previous award recipients have included His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco; National Park Service and its director, Jonathan Jarvis; Alexandra Cousteau; Robert F. Kennedy Jr.; Dr. Jane Lubchenco and Dr. Kathryn Sullivan, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Dr. John Briscoe; and Olivia Newton-John and John Easterling.

For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the Stroud Water Research Center website, Click Here to subscribe to UpStream. Click Here to subscribe to Stroud’s Educator newsletter. Click Here to become a Friend Of Stroud Research, Like them on Facebook, Follow on Twitter, include them in your Circle on Google+ and visit their YouTube Channel.

(Photo: Stroud Board Co-Chairman Rodman W. Moorhead III, American Rivers President and CEO Wm. Robert Irvin, Stroud Board Co-Chairman Charles Porter Schutt III, Stroud Director David B. Arscott. Photo: Gene Miller Photography.)