PA Environment Digest Blog

Friday, February 7, 2014

Thursday, February 6, 2014

DCNR February 5 Resource Newsletter Now Available

The February 5 issue of DCNR’s Resource newsletter is now available. Go to the bottom of the Resource webpage to sign up for your own copy.

Next Pollution Prevention, Energy Efficiency Roundtable Feb. 20

The PA Association of Environmental Professionals will hold its next Pollution Prevention and Energy Efficiency Roundtable meeting at 8:30 a.m., February 20 at Tobyhanna Army Depot in Monroe County.

Mike Dominick of the Tobyhanna Army Depot will present an emergency demand case study and a tour of the depot’s energy projects will be conducted including its solar carport, solar tubes, heat recovery system and green roof.

DEP’s Janel Warnick will give a presentation on DEP’s Natural Gas Vehicle Grant Program.

For information, visit the PAEP P2E2 Roundtable webpage.

(Reprinted from Feb. 6 DEP News)

DCED, DEP Schedule Brownfields Seminars For Municipal Officials

The departments of Environmental Protection and Community and Economic Development are teaming up to hold half-day seminars on brownfield development for municipal officials, township, borough and community leaders, county/city planners, redevelopment authorities, economic/industrial development agencies.

Attendees will learn about how to breathe life into abandoned and vacant properties, hear local success stories, learn the basics of brownfields, find out about the availability of public funding and how to apply for it, network with other representatives of municipal organizations and get answers to questions.

The seminars are free and run 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Lunch will be provided. Space is limited. Click on the links below to register.

-- March 20 – Chester Co. EDC., Exton (register here)

-- April 10 -- DEP Regional Office, Williamsport (register here)

-- May 2 -- DEP Regional Office, Meadville (register here)

-- May 14 -- DEP Regional Office, Pittsburgh (register here)

For more information, contact Kim Hoover at 717-783-1566 or send email to: khoover@pa.gov.

(Reprinted from Feb. 6 DEP News)

State, Federal Government, Utilities Respond To Winter Storm Emergency

Gov. Tom Corbett Wednesday signed a disaster emergency proclamation to assist state and local authorities in responding to an ice and snow storm that has damaged infrastructure, slowed travel across much of the state and caused widespread power outages.

The assistance is approved for the counties of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Lancaster, Montgomery, Philadelphia and York.

On Thursday, President Obama followed the Governor’s action by signing a Pennsylvania emergency declaration.

The Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency is authorized to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures to save lives and to protect property and public health and safety, or to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe.

“At the height of this storm, nearly 849,000 customers were without power in Pennsylvania,” Gov. Corbett said. “This will be a days-long recovery process, and we’re utilizing this disaster declaration to speed up state assistance to all affected parts of the state.”

The proclamation authorizes state agencies to use all available resources and personnel, as necessary, to cope with the magnitude and severity of this emergency situation. The time-consuming bid and contract procedures, as well as other formalities normally prescribed by law, are waived for the duration of the proclamation.

The text of the declaration is available online. Click Here for information on available disaster assistance.

PEMA & DPW Disaster Stress Hotline

The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and Department of Public Welfare announced that a disaster distress hotline is available to help citizens cope with stress stemming from severe weather and power outages that are expected to last several days.

The phone number, 1-800-985-5990, is available to all Pennsylvanians to help ease the stress related to the circumstances surrounding the severe weather damage caused by the recent ice and snow storm. Trained professionals will take phone calls to provide emotional support for callers. The TTY number for deaf or hearing impaired individuals is 1-800-846-8517. Help is also available by texting 66746.

Water, Ice Available To Met-Ed, PPL Customers

Met-Ed customers who remain without power following the damaging winter storm that hit the area can receive three gallons of water and one bag of ice per household per day at no charge from participating stores as restoration efforts continue. Click Here for a list of locations.

Water and ice are available to customers of PPL without power. Click Here for locations.

PECO Working To Restore Service

Yesterday’s ice and snow storm now ranks as the second most devastating storm in PECO’s history, behind only Hurricane Sandy. Service was interrupted to approximately 650,000 customers during the storm that brought down countless trees and power lines. Hurricane Sandy interrupted service to 850,000 customers.

“We will work as quickly and safely as possible to restore service to customers as soon as we can.”

More than 3,500 PECO employees, contractors and workers from utilities as far away as Arkansas, New Brunswick, Canada, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and Ohio and PECO’s Chicago-based sister utility ComEd, will work around-the-clock to repair damage and restore service to customers as part of this monumental effort.

AG Warns Of Storm-Related Scams

Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane Thursday cautioned both Pennsylvania consumers and businesses about price gouging and other weather-related scams after a State of Emergency was declared last evening by the Governor.

"Pennsylvania consumers are protected from unwarranted, sudden price increases during emergencies," Attorney General Kane said. "My office will accept complaints from consumers and businesses and violators of these protections will be held accountable."

The price-gouging restrictions prohibit anyone involved in the sale or distribution of consumer goods or services from 'unconscionably excessive' increases above average prices during the week prior to the emergency.

Click Here for complete announcement.

PennDOT Updates Traveler Information Services

Pennsylvania's 511PA traveler information system is now providing motorists with better access to traffic information with a new and improved website, www.511PA.com, as well as improved phone and personal-alert systems.

The redesigned website, which works on both computers and mobile devices, provides free, 24-hour travel information for thousands of miles of state roads including the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Users who opt to get their traveler information on the phone will find an easier-to-use system that provides information more quickly and includes better voice recognition technology. The phone system is accessible by dialing 511 from within Pennsylvania. Users who call 511PA from outside the state should call 1-877-511-PENN (7366).

Game Commission Helps Relief Efforts

The Game Commission is contributing to a coordinated relief effort to restore power to hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians who are feeling the effects of a winter storm that on Wednesday wreaked havoc on many parts of the state.

Game Commission personnel have been helping to man the State Emergency Operations Center and allocate equipment and manpower to the relief response. The agency also has sent 27 of its Food & Cover Corps employees to Chester County to help remove fallen trees and enable utility workers to reach and repair power lines.

“Many of our own employees and their families continue to be affected by the aftermath of this severe winter storm, and we certainly are proud to do our part in providing relief,” said Matt Hough, Executive Director.

NewsClips:

Obama Declares State Of Emergency In PA

More Than 455,000 In PA Without Power

Help Arrives To Restore Power To Thousands

Crew Of 5,000 Mobilized To Tackle Power Outages

Outages Go Up, Down In Fight To Restore Power

Residents Struggle As Power Slowly Restored After Storm

Corbett Tours Storm-Ravaged Montgomery County

Attorney General Warns Of Price Gouging, Scams After Storm

DCNR Designates Gordon Natural Area A Wild Plant Sanctuary In Chester County

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Thursday announced the designation of a new Wild Plant Sanctuary in Chester County.

The Robert B. Gordon Natural Area for Environmental Studies, a property managed by West Chester University of Pennsylvania, has been accepted into the DCNR Wild Plant Sanctuary Program, recognizing commitment of the administration, faculty, and staff to preserve the site in perpetuity.

“The Wild Plant Sanctuary Program’s goals are twofold: promote conservation of natural areas and native plants while also recognizing landowners who serve as models of good conservation and stewardship of these special resources,” DCNR Secretary Ellen Ferretti said. “By offering strategies to conserve rare plants as part of their management plans, these properties serve as models for other landowners.”

The 164-acre Gordon Natural Area has benefited from a history of protection by university administration and faculty who recognize its value as an educational resource. Considered a natural laboratory, its streams, forests and open meadows are used actively by faculty and students from a variety of departments, providing many avenues for important research. The site also provides students an escape from sometimes busy college lifestyles.

Autumn bluegrass (Poa autumnalis), a Pennsylvania Endangered species, can be found within the area’s alluvial forest that parallels a shaded stream. The forested slopes of the property also provide sanctuary for nodding trillium (Trillium cernuum), a proposed Pennsylvania Threatened species.

Many other locally uncommon native plants have been recorded at the Gordon Natural Area, making it an important reservoir of biodiversity. A comprehensive survey in 2007 showed 343 native plants inhabit the sanctuary grounds off Stadium Drive in West Goshen Township.

With much of southeastern Pennsylvania’s forestland fragmented by development, the natural area functions as a critical, and relatively contiguous, island of habitat for many species.

A recent 12-acre addition linked the two separate parcels and assured protection for the stream on the properties managed by the university.

The Wild Plant Sanctuary designation was announced and celebrated late last year during festivities marking the area’s 40th anniversary.

The Wild Plant Sanctuary Program was established through the Wild Resource Conservation Act of 1982 to establish a voluntary statewide network of native plant sanctuaries on private and municipal lands.

Landowners agree to protect the area and educate others about the importance of native and wild plants and habitats. In return, they receive assistance with a management plan if needed, and have access to technical assistance and ecological checkups.

For more information, visit the DCNR Wild Plant Sanctuary Program webpage, contact DCNR’s Bureau of Forestry at 717-787-3444 or email to: RA-PAPlandSanctuary@state.pa.us.

PEC: Premature To Lift Gas Leasing Moratorium Before A Thorough Public Discussion

The PA Environmental Council sent a letter to DCNR Secretary Ellen Ferretti Thursday saying it would be premature for DCNR and the Governor to proceed with the proposal to lease additional DCNR land for natural gas drilling until significant questions about the environmental impact of existing drilling on DCNR land is finished and the best management practices employed to limit those impacts in the leasing plan are discussed with the public and stakeholders.

PEC also said any revenue from additional leasing should remain in the Oil and Gas Fund for DCNR’s use and should not be used to balance the state budget as has been done since 2009.

The budget proposal Gov. Corbett announced Tuesday calls for lifting the moratorium on leasing additional DCNR land for natural gas development to generate $75 million more in revenue for DCNR’s Oil and Gas Lease Fund. The Governor’s Budget Secretary Charles Zogby said additional leasing would be near existing drilling sites and gas companies would not be allowed to construct new well pads.

Secretary Zogby said Gov. Corbett would be issuing a new Executive Order to replace the Executive Order Gov. Rendell issued in 2010 a few days before the gubernatorial election imposing a moratorium on leasing additional State Forest land. The Rendell Administration leased 137,000 acres of State Forest land for Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling before the moratorium was put in place.

“We believe that it is premature for DCNR and the Governor to proceed with this proposal without substantive deliberation, and without allowing stakeholders to evaluate the impacts analysis being prepared by DCNR of current natural gas operations on state land,” said Davitt Woodwell, Executive Vice President of PEC. “We do not have a comprehensive understanding of impacts from current operations on state land, and have no assurance of which, if any, best management practices are being employed by operators on state land..”

Woodwell noted as a member of the Governor’s Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission, PEC agreed with its recommendations that future leasing would be done with no additional surface impacts to state lands.

“However, while there may be limited instances where leasing of subsurface rights to extend existing well operations located outside of state lands can accomplish minimal impacts to public resources, the decision to proceed should be made only after open and informed consideration,” Woodwell explained.

He said DCNR formed the Natural Gas Advisory Committee to provide advice and expertise to the agency on natural gas management on their lands and the proposal should have been examined by the Committee.

“Given all this, we ask that you suspend pursuance of the Executive Order until this deliberation can take place,” said Woodwell.

A copy of the letter is available online.

For more information, visit PEC’s Marcellus Shale webpage.

Penn State Extension, DCNR PA Forest Health Update Conference March 4

Penn State Extension and DCNR’s Bureau of Forestry will hold its annual PA Forest Health Update Conference on March 4 at the Red Fern Conference Center in St. Mary’s, Elk County.

This 33rd annual spring briefing will review the status of forest health and the important forest insect and disease problems facing Pennsylvania.

There is a $45 fee for the program and the deadline to register is February 27. To register, call 877-489-1398. Online registration will be available shortly.