172 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

Here are 172 new stories in the PA Environment Digest about individuals, groups, local governments, farmers, businesses, watershed groups and many more working all across Pennsylvania to restore and protect the environment and show others the beauty that surrounds us.

Thank you for your leadership!

-- Slippery Rock Watershed Coalition Celebrates 30th Anniversary Oct. 4 At Jennings Environmental Center In Butler County  [PaEN] 

-- Lancaster Farming: 70 Years Of Conservation - From Soil Health To The Chesapeake Bay 

-- Observer-Reporter: Washington County Celebrates 50th Farm Preserved Through Conservation Program 

-- Morning Call Guest Essay: Why We Preserve Lehigh Valley Farmland - By Mark Lichtenwalner, Lower Macungie Township Farmer 

-- PA Solar Center: Cornell School District Becomes First In Allegheny County To Go 100% Solar Saving $2.5 Million Over 30 Years  [PaEN] 

-- Dr. Eve Puhalla Honored By Upper Hanover Township In Montgomery County With Keep PA Beautiful Community Pride Award  [PaEN]

-- Chesapeake Bay Monitoring Cooperative Involving Over 100 Organizations Celebrates 10 Years Collecting Data To Support Restoration Efforts  [PaEN] 

-- PittsburghUnionProgress.com: PA Chapter Of The American Planning Association Names Frick Park, Boyce Park Additions To PA Great Places 

-- Morning Call: Allentown Park Renamed After Longtime Barber, Community Leader Clyde E. Bosket, Sr. 

-- Independent Research Study By Pitt, Duquesne Ties Water Well Contamination To Shale Gas Drilling In 2 Greene County Townships That Declared Water Disaster Emergencies  [PaEN]

-- Pittsburgh Public Source - Quinn Glabicki: Independent Peer-Reviewed Study Ties Water Well Contamination In 2 Greene County Townships To Shale Gas Drilling; Townships Declared Disaster Emergencies Over Water Woes

-- PA Capital-Star/Public Source: Study Ties Southwestern PA Communities’ Water Woes To 2022 Shale Gas Frack-Out, Narrow State Law

-- Federal Court Denies Request For Injunction In Lawsuit By New Freeport Residents Against EQT Gas Drilling Company Over Contaminated Water Supplies in Greene County  [PaEN]

-- Permits For Controversial CNX Resources Drakulic Shale Gas Wells Expire Potentially Ending Appeals; CNX Can Apply For New Permits Starting The Process All Over Again  [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Sept. 13 to 19 - Pipeline Rupture At Gas Storage Area; Spill By DEP Plugging Contractor; Failure To Have Shale Gas Emergency, Spill Plans  [PaEN] 

-- Protective Buffers PA Hosts Sept. 24 Webinar: Safeguard Our Backyards - Join The Campaign For Health-Based Protective Buffers From Shale Gas Operations  [PaEN] 

-- Environmental Health Project, Partners Host Sept. 25 Webinar On Health Professionals Toolkit For Protecting Patients From Medical Conditions Related To Oil & Gas Development; [PA Medical Society Learning Center Course Available]  [PaEN]

-- DEP: Natural Gas, Wastewater Released From Pipeline Rupture At The Eastern Gas Transmission North Summit Underground Gas Storage Reservoir In Wharton Twp., Fayette County  [PaEN]

-- Marcellus Drilling News: EQT's Mountain Valley Pipeline Urges WV Appeals Court To Revive Civil Lawsuit Against Pipeline Protesters [Pipeline Finished In June 2024]  [PaEN] 

-- Courier Times: Federal Pipeline Safety Agency Says Energy Transfer/Sunoco Withheld Information On Jet Fuel Pipeline Leak In Upper Makefield Twp., Bucks County  [PDF of Article]

-- Fox29: Residents Demand Answers In Meeting In Energy Transfer/Sunoco Jet Fuel Pipeline Leak In Upper Makefield Twp., Bucks County

-- Williamsport Sun: DEP Report Shares Outline Of Cleanup, Closure Of 3 Eureka Resources Oil & Gas Wastewater Facilities   [PDF of Article]

-- Williamsport Sun: Cleanup Of Spilled Material At One Eureka Resources Oil & Gas Wastewater Nearly Complete

-- Inside Climate News: Shale Gas Was Supposed To Lower PA Electric Bills, Instead They’re Higher Than Ever And About To Get Worse [Due To LNG Gas Exports, A.I. Data Center Demand]

 -- Utility Dive: Residential Electricity Rates Up 6.6% Over Last Year As Natural Gas Prices Rise  

-- Bloomberg: EQT Shale Gas Driller Says High Electric Bills Will Drive Use Of More Natural Gas  ‘We’ve Never Produced More Energy… But Americans’ Energy Bills Are Up Over 35%’

-- Gov. Shapiro To Convene 13-State Summit Sept. 22 On Critical Changes Needed At PJM To Keep Energy Costs Low, Bring New Electricity To Grid, Serve Power Demands Of A.I. Data Centers  [PaEN] 

--  Tribune-Democrat: 13 States Meeting In Philly To Consider Solutions To PJM Electric Grid Energy Needs To Meet A.I. Data Center Demands 

-- NRDC: Another Proposed PJM Plan To Deal With Massive A.I. Data Center Electricity Demands Fails To Protect Consumers, Will Increase Electricity Bills Up To $100 Billion From 2028 To 2032  [PaEN]

-- Team PA Releases PA Energy, Data Center, A.I. RoadMap, Includes ‘Aggressively Streamlining Permitting,' Establishing Regional Permitting Commissions  [PaEN]  [Warning]

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: A.I. Data Centers Will Have Uneven Impacts On Electric Utilities, Forecasts Show  

-- In Case You Missed It: A.I./Data Center Articles & NewClips From Last Week -  September 22  [PaEN] 

-- TribLive Letter: House Bill 502 Energy Facility Siting Legislation A Betrayal Of Local Communities - By Megan McDonough, Food & Water Watch  [Warning] 

-- Scranton Times: Powering NorthPoint 1,250 Acre HazelNut A.I. Data Center: What To Expect From NE PA’s Largest Data Center Project In Luzerne County; Other Projects In Lackawanna, Schuylkill Counties  [PDF of Article] 

-- PennLive Guest Essay: Pennsylvania Must Use Every Resource Available To Keep The Lights On - By Andy Tubbs, Energy Association of PA [Electric, Gas Utilities]

-- Triblive Guest Essay: Natural Gas Not Sustainable For PA’s Data Centers - By Matt Shorraw, Physicians For Social Responsibility-PA 

-- TribLive Guest Essay: A.I., Crypto And Pennsylvania’s War On The Little Guy - Rep. Mandy Steele (D-Allegheny); Bill McKibben, author of Here Comes The Sun; Joe Morinville, EIS Solar 

-- US DOE Seeks Information On How Best To Support Large-Scale Power Generation, Transmission Projects To Feed A.I. Infrastructure, Data Centers   [Warning]

-- Reuters: US Launches Effort To Speed Power Grid Projects To Support A.I. Infrastructure  [Warning]

-- WESA - Rachel McDevitt: Proposed EPA Rule Allowing Construction Of A.I. Data Centers Before Air Permits Are In-Hand Undermines Clean Air Protections, Environmentalists Say  [Warning]

-- EPA Convenes A.I. Roundtable Highlighting Permitting Reform To Make US The A.I. Capital of The World [Warning]

-- EPA Prioritizes Review Of New Chemicals Used In A.I. Data Center Projects Under Toxic Substances Control Act  [Warning]

-- Utility Dive: New FERC Chairman Rosner Outlines Priorities: ‘We Need To Build, Build, Build’   [Warning]

-- Inside Climate News - Kyle Bagenstose: The A.I. Boom Is Coming For Pennsylvania, How Will Lawmakers Respond? 

-- NextPittsburgh: What Does Pittsburgh Gain From Becoming A Global A.I. Hub?  Residents Questioned The True Costs Of Local A.I. Development 

-- TribLive: DEP Faces Citizen Concerns About Air Permit For 4.5 Gigawatt Natural Gas Power Plant For The 3,200 Acre Homer City A.I. Data Center Complex In Indiana County 

-- TribLive: DEP Gives Preliminary Nod To Homer City A.I. Data Center Power Plant, But Environmental Groups Sounds Alarm Regarding Pollution

-- Observer-Reporter: Investment Firm Purchases Hill Top Energy Power Plant In Greene County To Support A.I. Data Center Development

-- Utility Dive: Blackstone To Pay $1 Billion For 620 MW PA Natural Gas Power Plant In Greene County [Part Of $25 Billion Plan To Support Build Out Of PA A.I. Data Infrastructure] 

-- The Citizens Voice: PA Consumer Advocate To Investigate PPL’s Proposed 12-Mile Power Line Project To Feed A.I. Data Center In Luzerne County [PDF of Article]  

-- Environmental, Health Groups Host Sept. 23 Webinar On What The A.I. Boom Means For You And Society - Big Promise Or Big Problems?  [PaEN]

-- Tribune-Democrat: Mount Aloysius College Presents Sept. 23 Program On Big Data Centers, A.I., Crypto At Cresson Public Library

-- Morning Call: Air Products To Lay Off Employees At Lehigh Valley Plant; Teamsters Say Cuts Are A ‘Direct Result Of The Country’s Shift Away From Clean Energy Production’ 

-- City Of Reading, Green Building Alliance Receive $250,000 Grant To Support Reading Revitalization Initiative From National Municipal Investment Fund  [PaEN]

-- Allegheny County To Host The Next Round Of Public Input Meetings On The County's Climate Action Plan Starting Oct. 14  [PaEN] 

-- PA Capital-Star: PA Electric Customers Will Pay To Keep An Old Fossil Fuel Power Plant Running Under US DOE Orders

-- The Guardian: ‘Sun Day’: US Climate Activists To Rally For Clean Energy Amid President’s Attacks

-- River Report Guest Essay: A Truly Brighter Energy Future For Pennsylvania - By Sustainable Energy Education & Development Support, Wayne Count

-- Guest Essay:  Pennsylvanians Are Already Paying For Climate Change, EPA Wants to Make It Worse - By Tom Fink, Councilmember, Camp Hill Borough Council  [PaEN] 

-- AP: National Academy Of Sciences Rebuffs EPA’s Effort To Undo Regulations Fighting Climate Change  [Warning]

-- Penn State Extension Energy Essentials: Energy & Ag Conference Oct. 10; Using Science To Beat The Heat During Extreme Weather 

-- WHYY: Residents In 3 Philadelphia Neighborhoods Can Apply For Cool Roof Coatings, Here’s How 

-- WHYY: Philadelphia Tests ‘Cool Pavement’ In Hunting Park To Combat Summer Heat 

-- Utility Dive: EPA Plan To End Greenhouse Gas Reporting Would Hurt Carbon Capture Efforts: Industry Coalition: Long-Term Success Of Carbon Capture Rests On Robust Reporting  [Warning] 

-- Utility Dive: New FERC Chairman Rosner Outlines Priorities: ‘We Need To Build, Build, Build’  [Warning]

-- Post-Gazette: Exxon CEO Calls For Repeal Of ‘Bone-Crushing’ EU Climate, Human Rights Laws  [Warning] 

-- WESA: Allegheny County Shares Air Quality Testing Results Near US Steel Clairton Coke [Coal] Works Site From Mobile Air Monitoring Units Set Up Days After The Explosion

-- Post-Gazette: Preliminary Air Quality Results Show No Immediate Health Risks After US Steel Clairton Coke [Coal] Works Explosion, Experts Say [Mobile Testing Equipment Arrived 3 Days After Blast]

-- TribLive: No Immediate Health Risks From Air Pollution From Deadly US Steel Clairton Coke [Coal] Works Explosion, Experts Say 

-- Duquesne Light Provides Updates On Actions Taken After April Storms Caused Extended Power Outages

-- WTAE: Updates Ongoing After April 29 Storms Resulted In Thousands Without Power For Weeks, Duquesne Light Says

-- TribLive: Duquesne Light Promises Improvements After Storm-Caused Power Outages In April

-- Penn State Extension: Celebrate Streamside Trees This October During Riparian Buffer Month! [PaEN] 

-- The News-Item: PSU Professor Proposed Kulpmont As Potential Acid Mine Drainage Treatment Plant Location In Shamokin Creek Watershed  

-- The News-Item: Shamokin Creek Restoration Alliance Awarded Grant To Study How Acid Mine Drainage Impacts The Watershed  

-- TribLive: Why A Turtle Creek Watershed Stream Near Monroeville Mall Is Glowing Bright Blue [Spoiler: Abandoned Mine Drainage Pollution] 

-- TribLive: Westmoreland Students Get Hands-On Environmental Lesson At Lowber’s Mine Drainage Treatment Center 

-- Allegheny Conservation District, State, Federal Partners Invest $1.4 Million In Clean Water, Healthy Soil Farming Projects  [PaEN]

-- Restoring Centre County Stream Health Will Be On Display At Halfmoon Creek Field & Stream Day Sept. 28  [PaEN] 

-- York Daily Record: An Improving Codorus Creek, Integral In York County’s Story, To Receive Upgrades 

-- Forests For The Chesapeake Bay News: Find Tree Planting Volunteer Opportunities Near You This Fall

-- Alliance For The Chesapeake Bay, DCNR PA Woodland Resilience Enhancement Program Cost-Shares Forest Practice Plan Writing, Implementation  [PaEN] 

-- TribLive: Harvest Baptist Academy Students Learn Leadership, Business Skills Through School’s Greenhouse

-- Penn State Extension Master Watershed Stewards Accepting Orders For Kits To Turn Plastic Barrels Into Rain Barrels To Capture Stormwater  [PaEN] 

-- Penn State Extension Nov. 7 Webinar On US Geological Survey Water Science Center Water Quality Monitoring Efforts, 11:00 to Noon  

-- Brodhead Watershed Association Annual Members & Friends Celebration Oct. 9 In Monroe County 

-- PennLive Letter: Gov. Shapiro - Protect Big Spring Creek In Cumberland County By Compelling DEP To Enforce Its Rules - By Big Spring Watershed Association

-- Altoona Mirror Letter: Old Crow Wetlands Being Degraded By Convenience Store Construction - By Michael Kensinger, Juniata Valley Audubon Society  [PDF of Article]

-- Spotlight PA: Help PA Decide How To Spend $14 Million To Help Communities Recover From 2024 Tropical Storm Debby

-- PA American Water Asks Butler County Customers To Reduce Nonessential Water Use In Response To Below-Normal Rainfall Levels Over Last 3 Months

-- Post-Gazette: Pittsburgh Region Drought Designations Worsen, But Relief Could Be On The Way 

-- DEP To Hold Nov. 6 Hearing On A Water Quality Permit For The East Stroudsburg Borough Wastewater Treatment Plant In Monroe County  [PaEN]

-- The Allegheny Front: View From The Monongahela River: Muddy Water, Paddlefish And Sewage Overflow

-- WESA: From A Flush To A River: Behind The Scenes At ALCOSAN’s Wastewater Treatment Plant

-- Penn State Extension Oct. 29 Webinar On PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ And Fish Consumption. Noon to 1:00 p.m.

-- Penn State Extension Watershed Winds: FAQ On PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals;’ Conservation  Measures Transform Farm; Measuring Stormwater Flows; Riparian Buffer Month 

-- WHYY: Philadelphia’s Trash Is Burned In Chester, A Bill In City Council Could Stop That

-- Pittsburgh’s Public Source: Hazelwood Waste Facility Expansion Proposal Brings Call For ‘Environmental Justice’ And Rezoning

-- WHYY: Cheltenham Twp. Bans Single-Use Plastic Straws, Utensils, Expanded Polystyrene Food Packaging Products In Montgomery County

-- Penn State Research: Freshwater Tidal Marshes Like The One At The John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge In Philadelphia Trap Microplastics, Raising Risks For Ecosystems And People 

-- WESA - Rachel McDevitt: Pittsburgh Region Attracts $9 Billion In Tourism Spending In 2024; $50 Billion While Visiting In Pennsylvania

-- DCNR: State Parks, State Forests - Still Open, Still Awesome

-- DCNR Conservation & Natural Resources Advisory Council Meets Sept. 24 On PA, DCNR Climate Action Plans, Industrial Decarbonization [PaEN] 

-- DCNR: First Fall Foliage Report Comes Out Sept. 25 

-- TribLive: Fall Foliage In Western PA May Be Less Than Splendid, Forecaster Says  

-- Williamsport Sun: DCNR Forestry Officials Says Fall Leaves Should Be ‘Vivid,’ But Quick

-- Tribune-Democrat: Laurel Highlands Lauded As Top Destination To Admire Fall Foliage 

-- DCNR Grants News: Nov. 6 Grants Workshop; Last Mile Of South Bethlehem Greenway Completed; Bloomsburg Trail Improvements; Waterway Access Grants 

-- DCNR Proposes Exchange Of State Forest Land In Highland & Millcreek Townships, Clarion County

-- Post-Gazette Editorial: Western PA Should Have A National Park

-- DCNR Now Accepting Nominations For 2026 PA Trail Of The Year  [PaEN]

-- Tribune-Democrat: Shapiro, DCNR Encourage 9/11 Trail Communities To Designate Paths, Add Signs

-- Warren Times Editorial: State 9/11 Trail Offers A Tribute

-- Post-Gazette: 3rd Human Case Of West Nile Virus In Allegheny County

-- Discover NE PA: Go Wild With North Branch Land Trust In Butler Preserve, Luzerne County  [Video]

-- Tribune-Democrat: Cambria Recreation Authority Awards Construction Contract For Path Of The Flood Trail Sections

-- Tribune-Democrat: Registration Deadline For Ghost Town Trail Marathon Approaching 

-- WNEP: New York Man Dies In Monroe County ATV Crash

-- Altoona Mirror: Taking A Dip: ‘Forest Bathing’ At Canoe Creek State Park Connects Visitors To Nature  [PDF of Article] 

-- TribLive: Special Needs Playground Project Moving Along In Arnold, Westmoreland County 

-- Post-Gazette Editorial: Welcome Back (River) Otter

-- Post-Gazette - Mary Ann Thomas: Why The Discovery Of A Golf-Ball-Sized ‘Hickorynut’ Mussel In The Shenango River Is A Big Deal 

-- The Allegheny Front: Bringing Life Back To Dunkard Creek One Freshwater Mussel At A Time In Greene County

-- Republican Herald - Doyle Dietz: National Hunting And Fishing Day Is So Much More Than Hunting And Fishing 

-- Post-Gazette - Bob Frye: To Catch A Record Fish In PA, There Is A Season

-- Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Begins Autumn Lecture Series On Oct. 4 From Penguins To How Birds Survive Winter, Global Raptor Conservation, Landscape Fragmentation, Wildlife Rehab 

-- Inquirer Guest Essay: Philadelphia Must Designate FDR Park As Protected Stopover Habitat For Migrating Birds - Robert Karchnyak, Delaware Valley Ornithological Club

-- Williamsport Sun: Reflections In Nature - All That Humans Have Learned Has Come From Nature [PDF of Article] 

-- WHYY: Brandywine River Restoration Trust Removes 2nd Dam As Part Of Its Restoration Project

-- Tribune-Democrat: Spillway Repair Underway At Somerset Lake By Fish & Boat Commission

-- Penn State Extension: Nov. 8 Webinar On Discovering Owls Of Pennsylvania With Wildlife Photographer Pamela Dimeler, 10:00 a.m. to Noon 

-- WITF/Spotlight PA: PA Holiday Touting Geese Could Become Next Groundhog Day 

-- WNEP: Monroe County Residents Marvel At Monarch Butterfly Migration Amid Tagging Efforts 

Visit the PA Environment Digest website to learn more.

REAL Leadership:

-- 172 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 139 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 145 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 129 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 158 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 141 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 192 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 166 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 183 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 161 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 172 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 146 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 153 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 204 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 153 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 149 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA 

-- 139 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 134 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA 

-- 121 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA 

-- 189 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 171 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 136 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA 

-- 111 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 164 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 141 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 126 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 151 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA 

-- 104 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 139 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 101 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 104 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 128 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA 

-- 104 New Stories - REAL Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 5,895 Stories In 2024 - Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

-- 4,258 Stories In 2023 - Environmental & Conservation Leadership PA 

-- 3,190 Stories In 2022 - Environmental & Conservation Leadership In PA

[Posted: September 21, 2025]   PA Environment Digest