DEP Chesapeake Bay Update: Conservation District 2023 Accomplishments; Grants Coming Up; County Accomplishments; Much More

DEP’s latest Chesapeake Bay newsletter highlights conservation district highlights from 2023, updates on grants awarded and coming up, county clean water plan accomplishments and much more.

Conservation Districts Highlights 2023 Activities

The PA Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. (PACD) released their Highlights of Conservation District Activities in 2023 report, which recognizes and credits the PA General Assembly for providing significant additional funding for conservation districts and focuses on local conservation district(s) activities. 

The report notes several accomplishments for every conservation district, including additional activities made possible by the increased conservation district funding, which further ensures natural resource protection and restoration.

County Clean Water Plan Snapshots Available

New Pilot and Tier 3 and 4 county 2023 snapshots are now available on the PA DEP ​Bureau of Watershed Restoration and Nonpoint Source Management website. These snapshots reflect the updated Chesapeake Bay modeling scenarios each county submitted as part of its Two-Year.

The newsletter includes updates from Blair, Cumberland, Lycoming, and other counties.

Connect With Your County Clean Water Team!

Please consider how you might join in or help support this work. Check out each county’s Phase 3 WIP Countywide Action plan and make connections with your county team!

Livestaking 101 Webinar

Join the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay to learn more about the process and science of livestaking through their Livestaking 101 Webinar. 

Livestaking is a quick and simple way to acquire cuttings of fast-growing trees and shrubs that thrive in wet areas. Species like elderberry, boxelder, buttonbush, and others are all good species for livestaking.

Click Here to read the entire newsletter.  Click Here to sign up for your own copy.

Visit DEP’s Chesapeake Bay Watershed webpage to learn more about cleaning up rivers and streams in Pennsylvania's portion of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.  Click Here to sign up for regular updates on Pennsylvania’s progress.

How Clean Is Your Stream?

The draft 2024 report has an interactive report viewer that allows you to zoom in to your own address to see if the streams near you are impaired and why.

Click Here to check out your streams.  Click Here for a tutorial on using the viewer.

For more information on environmental programs in Pennsylvania, visit DEP’s website, Report Emergencies, Submit Environmental Complaints; Click Here to sign up for DEP’s newsletter; sign up for DEP’s eNotice; visit DEP’s Blog,  Like DEP on Facebook, Follow DEP on Twitter and visit DEP’s YouTube Channel.

Related Articles - Watersheds:

-- WVIA: Bernie McGurl, Lackawanna River Conservation Assn. - A Life Dedicated To The River's Flow  [PaEN] 

-- PA Environmental Professionals Host April 24 Webinar On Protecting PA’s Aquatic Ecosystems from Thermal Discharges In An Era of Climate Change  [PaEN]

-- Bay Journal - Karl Blankenship: Will Climate Change Add More Nutrient Pollution To Chesapeake Bay?  [Spoiler - Yes]

-- Chesapeake Bay Foundation: PA Photographers Invited to Enter Save The Bay Photo Contest   [PaEN]

[Posted: March 6, 2024]  PA Environment Digest