DEP Sets Virtual Meeting Schedule For State Water Plan Statewide Regional Advisory Committees

The Department of Environmental Protection has announced a schedule of virtual meetings for the Statewide Water Resources and Regional Water Resources Advisory Committees for 2020.  (formal notice)

The purpose of the meetings is to continue the development of the next update to the State Water Plan.

Meeting Schedule

The committees will hold virtual meeting/conference calls starting at 9:00 a.m. [unless otherwise noted] on--

-- Statewide Water Resources Committee: August 19 and November 12;

-- Delaware Watershed: July 14, October 13;

-- Lower Susquehanna: July 15, October 14;

-- Upper/Middle Susquehanna: July 30, October 29 - 9:30 a.m. start times;

-- Potomac Watershed: July 16, October 15 - 1:00 p.m. start times;

-- Ohio Watershed: July 28, October 27 - 1:00 p.m. start times; and

-- Great Lakes: July 29, October 28.

Visit DEP’s State Water Plan Advisory Committees webpage for more information. Individuals are encouraged to visit each Committee's webpage to confirm meeting date, time and location prior to each meeting and to obtain meeting materials. 

Background

DEP held an initial round of advisory committee meetings to introduce the process for updating the State Water Plan to new committee members and the public.  Click Here for an online introduction.

The Plan update, required every five years by Act 220 of 2002, serves as a policy and guidance document providing information, objectives, priorities and recommendations to be considered in a broad range of state, local and private water resource decisions.

The State Water Plan was last updated in 2009.

The goal of the initial meetings is to formally organize the regional water resources committees and begin a discussion of several issues to be examined in the Plan update, including--

-- Impacts of climate change on water resource availability and use and implement applicable strategies included in the 2018 PA Climate Action Plan;

-- Assessment of Stormwater Management Issues and Best Management Practices; and

-- Discussion of Integrated Water Resources Planning.

Another goal of the Plan update is to review and finalize Critical Area Resource Plans in the Potomac and Ohio regions that were left unfinished during the 2009 update.

Also being developed is a Digital Water Atlas that will make water use information now being collected more accessible to the State Water Planning process, river basin commissions and users of water information statewide, both public and private.

This initial step in the Plan update process is expected to take 1 to 2 years, followed by a more comprehensive analysis of water resources data after the 2020 census becomes available to help identify water resource use issues and opportunities.

Committee Members Needed

Each Regional Committee and the Statewide Water Resources Committee has openings for representatives of specific sectors of water users.  The most pressing need is for members of local governments.

Click Here for a list of members needed.  If you are interested, send a letter of interest and resume to Mark Matlock at DEP by email to: marmatlock@pa.gov or call 717-783-2285 with questions.

Visit DEP’s State Water Plan Advisory Committees webpage for more.

Visit DEP’s State Water Plan webpage for more information.   Questions can be directed to Mark Matlock, Office of Water Resources Planning, at marmatlock@pa.gov or 717-783-2285.

Related Articles:

-- DEP Begins State Water Plan Update With Regional Water Advisory Committee Meetings; Members Needed

-- First Meetings Of DEP Regional Water Resources Committees Jan. 14, 16 - Join Online; PA Clean Water Academy Presentation Available On State Water Plan Process

[Posted: June 26, 2020]  PA Environment Digest