PA Environment Digest Blog

Friday, July 31, 2020

PRC, Eastern Delaware County Stormwater Collaborative Complete 3 New Rain Gardens

The PA Resources Council and partners, Eastern Delaware County Stormwater Collaborative and Haverford Township’s Hav-A-Rain Garden Program, completed 3 new rain garden installations this spring.

Rain gardens are an excellent way to manage stormwater runoff and improve water quality. Two of the rain gardens were built at homes in Haverford Township and the third was constructed at the Darby Friends Meeting House in Darby.

PRC is very thankful for all the volunteers that participated in the socially distanced construction of these gardens.

Rain gardens are shallow, planted depressions that collect runoff from impervious surfaces and allow it to infiltrate into the soil. Rain gardens are planted with deep rooted native plants and can absorb 30 percent more water than a traditional lawn.

By capturing and absorbing runoff from yards, roofs, and paved surfaces, rain gardens reduce the amount of water entering storm drains during rainstorms, which help improve water quality.

Rain gardens can filter many common pollutants in stormwater runoff and provide habitat for many birds, butterflies and beneficial insects.

To date, 50 rain gardens have been installed through PRC’s stormwater management initiatives.

For more information about PRC’s stormwater initiatives, email Diana Andrejczak by sending an email to: andrejczak@prc.org.

For more information on programs, initiatives and special events, visit the PA Resources Council website. Click Here to sign up for regular updates, follow PRC on Twitter or Like them on Facebook. Click Here for PRC’s Events Calendar. Click Here to support their work.

Get Your Items Ready For PA Resources Council ReuseFest In Erie Sept. 12, Pittsburgh, Oct. 17

[Posted: July 31, 2020] PA Environment Digest

DEP Posts 51 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In August 1 PA Bulletin

The Department of Environmental Protection published 51 pages of public notices related to proposed and final permit and approval/ disapproval actions in the August 1 PA Bulletin - pages 3904 - 3955.
Sign Up For DEP’s eNotice: Did you know DEP can send you email notices of permit applications submitted in your community? Notice of new technical guidance documents and regulations? All through its eNotice system. Click Here to sign up.

DEP Invites Comments On Proposed TMDL Plans For Watersheds In Adams, Bedford Counties

The Department of Environmental Protection published notices in the August 1 PA Bulletin inviting comments on the proposed Total Maximum Daily Load Plans for Mummasburg Run Watershed, Adams County (PA Bulletin, page 3955) and Imlertown Run Watershed in Bedford County (PA Bulletin, page 3954).

Click Here for a copy of the proposed Mummasburg Run TMDL Plan.

Click Here for a copy of the proposed Imlertown Run TMDL Plan.

Public comments are due August 24. Questions should be directed to Michael Morris at 717-772-5670 or by email to: michamorri@pa.gov.

[Posted: July 31, 2020] PA Environment Digest

PUC Publishes Final Regs. Increasing Consumer Protections, Price Transparency In Competitive Electric Market

The Public Utility Commission published notice in the August 1 PA Bulletin of final regulations intended to increase consumer protections and ensure greater price transparency in the competitive retail electricity market.

The Commission voted 5-0 in February to adopt the changes to Chapter 54 of the Public Utility Code regarding customer information, including electric generation supplier (EGS) disclosure statements for residential and small business customers.

The revised rules, drafted by the PUC’s Office of Competitive Market Oversight, are intended to provide customers with accurate, timely pricing information when they are shopping for electric service from EGSs.

The rulemaking revises several rules regarding electricity generation customer choice, including:

-- A ban on early termination fees during the final month of an expiring contract. This will allow residential and small commercial customers the freedom to shop for a new supplier during the final month of their contract with their current supplier without fear of incurring early termination fees.

-- Requirements that EGSs display their prices in a format that allows for easier price comparisons.

-- Requirements that any introductory price be clearly identified and explained to the customer and disclose both the introductory price and the price after the introductory period expires.

-- Requirements to provide more information about variable prices and time-of-use products.

-- Use of common, consistent terminology by EGSs in their customer communications, including marketing, billing and disclosure statements.

-- Simplifying the format of customer contract summaries that customers receive with their full EGS disclosure statement.

Click Here to read the entire PA Bulletin notice.

[Posted: July 31, 2020] PA Environment Digest

Fish & Boat Commission Proposes Update To Royalties For Sand, Gravel Dredged From Rivers In PA

The Fish and Boat Commission published notice in the August 1 PA Bulletin of a proposed rulemaking updating the royalty rates for sand and gravel dredged from rivers in Pennsylvania.

The Commission, with the concurrence of the Department of Environmental Protection, is authorized to adjust the amount of royalty payments per ton or cubic yard of usable or merchantable, or both, sand or gravel, or both, extracted from Commonwealth waters.

There are four companies currently maintaining permits which allow the dredging of material from navigable waters of this Commonwealth.

Historically, royalty rates were set in 1970 and involved establishing a flat rate of $0.10 per adjusted dry ton that was about 6 percent of the selling price.

The rate was adjusted $0.05 each year from 1998 to 2001 culminating in $0.30 per dry ton.

Between January 1, 2002, and December 31, 2010, a variable calculation using the change in the producer price index (PPI) for sand and gravel from the base year (2002) was used.

This was an administratively burdensome process that required the carry forward calculations from 2002 with annual adjustments to make the Commission whole due to the timing of PPI rate releases.

In 2010, dredger representatives, the Department and the Commission simplified the process into its current configuration using a straightforward calculation with a fair rate that multiplied the immediately preceding year's published price, average value, dollars per metric ton (converted to U.S. ton) for the commodity sand and gravel in the United States Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summary per dry ton, provided that the rate per dry ton is not less than $0.48.

This straightforward approach removed any ambiguity in the rate setting process and has been successful for the past decade.

As such, the current royalty rate schedule, which was adopted in 2011 and is set forth in the Commission's regulations at § 51.92, expires on December 31, 2020.

The Commission and four representatives from the sand and gravel dredging industry have unanimously agreed to extend the previous process for setting royalty rates for the 10-year period of January 1, 2021, through December 31, 2030.

Public comments are due August 31.

Read the entire PA Bulletin notice for more information.

[Posted: July 31, 2020] PA Environment Digest

DEP Unconventional Drilling Well Permit Fee Increase Effective August 1

The Environmental Quality Board published the final regulation increasing the DEP permit fee for unconventional drilling permits in the August 1 PA Bulletin. It becomes effective August 1.

The fee will increase from $5,000 for nonvertical unconventional wells and $4,200 for vertical unconventional wells, to $12,500 for all unconventional well permit applications to administer the 2012 Oil and Gas Act.

This is the first fee increase since 2014.

DEP first started to develop this regulation in February 2018 with the Oil and Gas Technical Advisory Board-- over two and a half years ago.

The revenue projections done for the regulation were based on DEP receiving 2,000 permits a year. Between January 1 and June 19, DEP received 535 unconventional well permits, a little more than half the number needed to adequately support the program.

In January, DEP did collect a penalty assessment of $30.6 million from ETC Northeast Pipeline for the 2018 explosion of the Revolution Pipeline in Beaver County that was deposited into the Fund supporting the Oil and Gas Management Program. Read more here.

However, DEP has never used penalties as a way of raising money to support its regulatory programs and it would be bad public policy to do so.

Neither the Senate nor the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committees expressed their opposition to the final regulation to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission.

Click Here for a copy of the PA Bulletin notice.

IRRC Unanimously Approves EQB Regulation Increasing Unconventional Gas Well Drilling Permit Application Fee

[Posted: July 31, 2020] PA Environment Digest

Delaware River Basin Commission Virtual Hearing Aug. 12, Business Meeting Sept. 10

The Delaware River Basin Commission will hold a virtual hearing on August 12 and business meeting on September 10 to consider water permits and budget-related resolutions. (formal notice)

Specific agenda items will be posted on DRBC’s Upcoming Commission Meetings webpage as well as instructions for joining the hearing and meeting.

For more information on programs, initiatives and upcoming events, visit the Delaware River Basin Commission website. Click Here to sign up for regulator updates. Follow DRBC on Twitter. Visit them on YouTube.

[Posted: July 31, 2020] PA Environment Digest

Ag Progress Days Moves Online Aug. 9-12 With Live Webinars, Virtual Tours, Education

The novel coronavirus pandemic will not stop Penn State's 2020 Ag Progress Days-- scheduled for August 9-12-- from providing educational activities, research tours and commercial interactions, even as the event shifts to a virtual format due to COVID-19 restrictions, according to organizers in the College of Agricultural Sciences.

"The global pandemic has presented serious challenges to our agricultural producers, our food supply chains, our businesses, our livelihoods and our health," said Jesse Darlington, Ag Progress Days manager. "But as Pennsylvania's land-grant university, it is Penn State's mission to help our state's farmers, families and communities to navigate these challenges, whether we all can be together in one place or not."

Darlington noted that instead of attending in-person events on the show grounds at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs, visitors to the Ag Progress Days website will find live, interactive webinars, virtual tours of the research center, and video presentations highlighting some of the latest research, educational programs, and best practices in agriculture, natural resources, health and nutrition, and other topics.

"Website visitors also can connect with hundreds of our commercial exhibitors to learn about the goods and services they offer and, in some cases, view product demonstration videos and arrange virtual meetings with company representatives," he said.

Marketplace

The "Marketplace" section of the website features registered Ag Progress Days vendors, offering enhanced exhibitor profiles and the opportunity for attendees to connect with participating vendors virtually.

From a map of exhibitor booth space or from the exhibitor list, visitors can find contact information, product images, show specials, product videos and other information.

46 Webinars

Over the four-day period, at least 46 live webinars will provide virtual attendees with valuable and engaging content addressing a wide range of topics.

Viewers watching the live webinars will be able to ask questions of the presenters, and the sessions will be recorded for future viewing.

The webinars are free, but registration is required.

The interactive sessions will cover issues related to dairy, livestock and poultry production and animal health; business management; field and forage crop production; nutrient management; food demonstrations with healthy recipes; food safety and home food preservation; forestry and wildlife; household and landscape pest management; recommendations for beginning farmers; drinking water quality and pond management; and other topics.

On-Demand Videos

Ag Progress Days also offers on-demand videos-- like a whole series on pollinators from home to farm-- as well as recorded webinars to view any time.

Live Online!

Another live, online session-- hosted by Rick Roush, dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences, and Russell Redding, Pennsylvania secretary of agriculture-- will take the form of a town hall meeting.

The topic of the hour-long forum, to be held at 2:00 p.m. August 10, will be the impact of COVID-19 on Pennsylvania agriculture, lessons learned and next steps in recovering from the pandemic.

A link to register to view the town hall can be found on the Ag Progress Days website.

Among the on-demand attractions of the online expo are virtual tours of the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center-- curated by Penn State's Pasto Agricultural Museum, which is located at the center-- giving viewers a glimpse of some of the field studies conducted at the 2,000-acre facility.

Virtual tour locations will feature American Chestnut Foundation efforts to restore the American chestnut to Eastern forests; experiments on vegetable and small-fruit production in high tunnels; Penn State's Deer Research Center; research on stream riparian buffers; best practices for woodlot management; and dairy beef feedlot management.

In addition, the Pasto Museum will highlight its "I Remember Ag Progress Days" oral history project.

Website visitors will be able to hear friends of the museum and former Penn State faculty members and extension educators discuss their memories of past events and how Ag Progress Days has evolved over the last half-century.

Many other on-demand videos and recorded webinars also will be available from the website, featuring topics typically covered at Ag Progress Days, including home gardening, invasive species such as spotted lanternfly, youth activities, and more.

"We hope Ag Progress Days attendees enjoy this online content, which will be available long after the 'show dates' of Aug. 9-12, and that they find it interesting and valuable enough that they return often to explore the website to the fullest," Darlington said. "We also encourage everyone to mark Aug. 10-12, 2021, on their calendars, when we plan to return to Rock Springs for Ag Progress Days 2021."

Visit the Penn State's 2020 Ag Progress Days website for all the details!

NewsClip:
Marcus Schneck: Major PA Agricultural Event Moves Virtual For 2020 [Ag Progress Days]
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