Environment & Energy Educational Opportunities For Students & Adults

Opportunities to learn more about environmental and energy issues affecting Pennsylvania for students and adults--

-- We’ve Heard This Before: ‘We’re Providing Jobs - Stopping Pollution Threatens Jobs’ - A Brief Review Of Pennsylvania’s Conservation History  [PaEN]

Awards/Recognition

-- Reading Eagle: Schuylkill River Trail Garden To Honor Reading-Area Philanthropist David Thun 

-- Citizen Standard: 38 Teams Participated In Schuylkill County Conservation District Envirothon

-- Wilkes-Barre Times Leader: Greater Nanticoke HS Students Took First Place In 46th Annual Luzerne County Envirothon

-- NextPittsburgh: Exploring Wild Pennsylvania With Adam Haritan Of Learn Your Land

-- Penn State Master Gardeners: Ken & Mee Park In Montgomery County Recognized With Pollinator Habitat Of Merit Award; Aug. 16 Bee, Bugs, Blooms Open House  [PaEN]

-- Warren Times Editorial: Thank You Warren Garden Club For Years Of Tending To Parks, City Gardens 

Grants

-- DCNR Now Accepting Applications For Wild Resource Conservation Grants  [PaEN]

-- DCNR Now Accepting Applications For Wild Resource Conservation Grants To Protect At-Risk Wildlife, Native Plants

-- Capital & Main - Audrey Carleton: Solar Grants Being Held Hostage In PA Legislature As Demand Soars

Help Wanted

-- Help Wanted: Berks Conservation District Resource Conservation Technician  [PaEN]

-- Still Time To Organize Local Cleanups, Volunteer For Keep PA Beautiful's Pick Up Pennsylvania Initiative  [PaEN] 

Upcoming Events

-- Patch.com: Newtown Township & Newtown Borough May 8 Native Plants, Thriving Habitats: How You Can Help Program, Newtown Boro 7:00 p.m.

-- PittsburghUnionProgress.com: Frick Environmental Center In Pittsburgh Aims To Help Residents Create Migratory Bird-Friendly Spaces At May 10 Event

-- PennEnvironment: Delaware County Officials Hold May 10 Expo Promoting Renewable Energy, Environmental Protection

-- NorthPennNow.com: Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy Hosts Native Plant Sale May 10-11, Harleysville, Montgomery County

-- PA Senate Committees To Hold May 12 Hearing On PJM Grid Reliability Initiative, Electric Generation Markets Update  [PaEN] 

-- Latrobe Bulletin: PA Native Species Day Workshop May 14 Free To Public In Ligonier Twp., Westmoreland County

-- Citizen Science: Shippensburg Center For Land Use And Sustainability Hosts May 20 Webinar On Tracking Wildflower Climate Resilience  [PaEN] 

-- PA Recreation & Park Society To Hold May 22 Playground Maintenance Workshop In Cumberland County  [PaEN] 

-- Beaver Times: RiverWise Hosting Summer Program For HS Students On Sustainability, Community Improvement 

-- Headwaters To The Ohio Water Network Spring 2025 Confluence June 6 At Westminster College, Lawrence County  [PaEN]

-- PA American Water To Host June 23-25 Wonderful World Of Water Camp In The City Of York  [PaEN] 

-- Warren Times: Warren Conservation District Opens Registration For Summer Camps - ‘A Little Dirt Doesn’t Hurt’

-- Save The Date: Penn State Mining PA Conference, Aug. 11-13 In State College 

-- Penn State Master Gardeners: Ken & Mee Park In Montgomery County Recognized With Pollinator Habitat Of Merit Award; Aug. 16 Bee, Bugs, Blooms Open House  [PaEN]

Public Participation

-- DEP Citizens Advisory Council Meets May 13 On Updates To On-lot Sewage System/Sewage Planning Regulations; Township Government Initiatives [PaEN] 

-- DCNR Conservation & Natural Resources Advisory Council Hosts May 22 Webinar On Sustaining The State Park, Forest System And Growing PA's Outdoor Recreation Economy  [PaEN] 

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - May 10  [PaEN]

-- DEP Posted 75 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In May 10 PA Bulletin  [PaEN]

-- DEP Hosts Virtual Climate Action Plan Workshop May 8 [PaEN] 

-- DEP Invites Comments On Draft PA Energy Development Authority Energy Development Plan; $156 Million In Solar For All Funding Still Locked Up  [PaEN]

-- DEP To Hold June 17 Hearing On Warren County Sulfur Dioxide Maintenance Plan, Redesignation Request  [PaEN]

-- DEP: Updated Non-Regulatory Agenda Now Available Showing Technical Guidance Documents In Development  [PaEN] 

Programs/Information

-- State Agencies Highlight Program To Replace Invasive Species With Native Plants To Celebrate May 20 PA Native Species Day At Cumberland County Conservation District  [PaEN]

-- Williamsport Sun: Middle Susquehanna RiverKeeping Opens Registration For NERYN Kayak & Fish Programs At Bald Eagle State Park

-- PA Conservation Heritage Project: The Legacy And Evolution Of The Susquehanna River Trail

-- BucksCoToday: Ursinus College Students Set Sail With Aqua Pennsylvania’s Floating Classroom At Green Lane Reservoir

-- Altoona Mirror: Cambria Heights HS Students See Firsthand How Actions On Land Affect Local Waters At Prince Gallitzin State Park

-- WVIA: Young Environmentalists Document Northeast PA’s Coal Mining History

-- Williamsport Sun: Nonprofit Deep Green Journey Helps Adults Connect With Nature

-- Wilkes-Barre Times: Local Students Plant Tree In Kirby Park For Earth Day

-- Wilkes-Barre Times: Reeling In Inclusion: Back Mountain Police Assn. Hosts Annual Fishing Event For Children With Autism 

-- WESA/WVIA: From Classroom To Creek: PA Students Learn About Trout By Raising, Releasing Fish

-- The Nature Conservancy - PA Nature News: 509 Acres Protected; Long Pond Barrens Birding Trail Open In Monroe; Is Manure Injection The Answer?

-- Republican Herald: 7 Ways To Celebrate World Migratory Bird Day

-- PA Environmental Council In Case You Missed It In April Now Available  [PaEN]

-- Inquirer - Frank Kummer: Newly Flowing Manayunk Canal Will Soon Be Home To Thousands Of Mussels, But Not For Eating, To Clean The Water

-- WITF: DCNR - Michaux State Forest Wildfires Human Caused

-- PennLive: Wildfire That Burned 2,700 Acres In Cumberland County Was ‘Human-Caused’

-- DCNR Begins Aerial Treatment Of Nearly 75,000 Acres At 65 Sites To Mitigate Spongy Moth Impacts On State Parks, Forests

-- Penn State Extension Energy Essentials: Grid-Scale Solar Energy Ordinance; How To Choose Solar Vendor; Microquakes Boon For Geothermal Energy

-- Bloomberg: Six Environmental Mapping Tools The White House Doesn’t Want You To See [Environmental Justice, FEMA Risk]

Background On Issues

-- PA Senate Republicans Vote To Punish Communities Taking Steps To Protect Their Residents From Health, Environmental Impacts Of Shale Gas Drilling  [PaEN]

-- Environmental Health Project: 34 Organizations Sign Letter Urging Pennsylvania To Adopt Measures To Better Protect Public Health, Environment From The Impacts Of Shale Gas Drilling  [PaEN]

-- New Report: Shale Gas Industry Expected To Drill 8,400 More Wells In PA; 171 Shale Wells Abandoned So Far; Shale Well Plugging Expected To Cost Up To $8.5 Billion  [PaEN]

-- Erie Times/Capital & Main: Suddenly Abandoned Natural Gas Wells-Turned Cryptocurrency Operation In Elk County Leaves Behind Uncertainty 

-- PA Capital-Star/Inside Climate News: Scientists Map Where Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Wells Pose Threats To Aquifers [Parts Of PA Look Like ‘Swiss Cheese’]

-- Observer-Reporter Letter: PA Needs To Close The Loophole On Road Dumping Oil & Gas Wastewater - By Center for Coalfield Justice

-- Inside Climate News: Nighttime Gas Flaring Caused By A Malfunction At The Shell Petrochemical Plant Lit Up Beaver County ‘Like Dawn’ 

-- The Allegheny Front: Ohio Commission Opens More State Land For Shale Gas Drilling, Then Police Officer Physically Prevents A Reporter From Asking Questions

-- NYT: President Directs Agencies To Stop Estimating The Economic Impact Of Climate Change When Developing Policies, Regulations

-- PUC Launches Post-Storm Review Of Utility Response, System Resilience Following Major Southwestern PA Storm  [PaEN] 

-- PJM Releases List Of 51 Fast Tracked Power Projects To Provide 9.3 GW Of Power-- 7 In PA With Power Potential Of 1.2 GW  [PaEN]

-- House Energy Committee Hears Testimony On How PA Has Enough Geothermal Energy To Meet 100% Of Pennsylvania’s Electricity, Heating Energy Needs  [PaEN]

-- Evangelical Environmental Network Celebrates House Passage Of Community Solar Energy Legislation In PA  [PaEN] 

-- Sen. Yaw Senate Bill 349 To Encourage Responsible Solar Development, Protect Landowners Approved By Senate 49 to 1 [Sen. Laughlin (R-Erie) Voted No]

-- Scranton Times: Ransom Twp. Supervisors Hear Plans For Solar Energy Facility

-- Joint State Government Commission Releases Report On Utility-Scale Solar Energy Facilities And Farming In Pennsylvania

-- Capital & Main - Audrey Carleton: Solar Grants Being Held Hostage In PA Legislature As Demand Soars

-- PA Ranks 49th In US For Renewable Energy Growth; Delays In Adding Clean Energy To The Grid Will Cost Electric Ratepayers Billions  [PaEN] 

-- The Allegheny Front - Kara Holsopple: Map Shows What’s Possible With Examples Of Federal Clean Energy Investment In PA

-- Pittsburgh 2030 District Reduced Carbon Emissions 52.3%, Energy Use 25.6% And Saved $44.2 Million In Energy Costs In 2024  [PaEN]

-- PennLive - Charles Thompson: Critics Slam Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant For Not Reporting Fire In Damaged Unit 2 Reactor Building Feb. 11

-- DEP: Power When It Matters Most: How Microgrids Are Making Pennsylvania More Resilient  [PDF of Article] 

-- Environmental Integrity Project, Partners List Industries Requesting Exemptions From EPA Hazardous Air Pollutant Regulations-- 23 In PA  [PaEN] 

-- Lancaster Farming: Columbia-Manor River Tributaries Projects Aims To Improve Water Quality In Lancaster County Streams

-- Watershed Alliance Of York Issues Invitation To Bid On Codorus Creek Floodplain Restoration Project; May 8 Site Meeting  [PaEN]

-- LancasterOnline: 13,750 Trees Planted Near Octoraro Reservoir In Southern Lancaster County By Chester Water Authority, Alliance For The Chesapeake Bay 

-- TribLive: Lead 400 Times Safe Drinking Level Found In Blue Hole Creek On Fayette, Somerset Border Poses Danger To Wildlife, Humans

-- PA Capital-Star: Shapiro Says President’s Cut To Food Banks Hurting PA Farmers

-- Susquehanna Greenway Partnership: 850+ Volunteers Collected 81,261 Pounds Of Litter, Trash At 24 Community Cleanup Events  [PaEN] 

-- Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful Deploys 3rd Litter Control Boom In Erie At Erie Water Works  [PaEN]

-- Erie Times: New Litter Boom To Help Clean Water Near Erie Water Works Storm Outfall 

-- Beaver Times: These National Park Sites In PA Could Be Affected By President’s $1.2 Billion Cuts To National Park Service 

-- Erie Times: President Proposes $1 Billion Cut To National Parks, Transfer Many Sites To States

-- TribLive: Millvale Celebrates Opening Of Rainbow Raccoon Park In Allegheny County 

-- Warren Times - Audubon Community Nature Center: Hellbenders Are Very Real

-- LancasterOnline: Moms Of All Types Raise Orphaned Raccoons, Eaglets, More At Lancaster County Wildlife Rescues

-- Williamsport Sun: Study Shows How Millions Of Bird Sightings Can Unlock Precision Conservation

-- Williamsport Sun: Checking Off An Item On Bucket List With A Bird Was Well Worth It

-- Williamsport Sun - Bill Bowers: Reflections In Nature: Bees And Wasps Are Out And About This Time Of Year

-- Post-Gazette - Mary Ann Thomas: One Of The State’s Prettiest Wildflowers Is Blooming Earlier: Is That Trillium Already? 

-- Williamsport Sun: Ephemeral Wildflowers Will Arrive In Local Woods This Time Of Year

Visit the  DEP Calendar of Events;  PA Parks & Forests Foundation’s Events webpage and DCNR’s Calendar of Events for activities happening near you.

Visit DEP’s Teaching Green webpage to learn about more environmental education resources.

Visit the PA Environment Digest Calendar Of Events for more opportunities.

[Posted: May 11, 2025]  PA Environment Digest