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F. X. Browne, Inc.
Lake and Watershed News
April 2007
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These pools that, though in
forests, still reflect
The total sky almost without defect,
And like the flowers beside them, chill and shiver,
Will like the flowers beside them, soon be gone,
And yet not out by any brook or river,
But up by roots to bring dark foliage on.
The trees that have it in their pent-up buds
To darken nature and be summer woods-
Let them think twice before they use their powers
To blot out and drink up and sweep away
These flowery waters and these watery flowers
From snow that melted only yesterday.
~ Robert Frost - Spring
Pools
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Photo:
by Kerry Barringer
Brooklyn
Botanic Garden
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Editor's
Notes:
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The National Environmental Education & Training Foundation is
coordinating National Environmental Education Week (NEEW) from April
15-22, 2007.
NJ DEP is offering free
tree seedlings to nonprofit groups and local organizations to
celebrate Arbor Day. For information on other Arbor Day celebrations in
your area, visit the National
Arbor Day Foundation's website.
F. X. Browne, Inc. is the “stormwater
expert” to turn to for assistance in meeting the mandates of PA DEP’s
new Stormwater Management Manual. To find out more, check out the
Topic of the Month!
And last but not least, Happy Earth Day
on April 22! Visit the Earth Day
Network for ideas on how to celebrate.
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Topic
of the Month:
PADEP Publishes Improvements to the NPDES Stormwater Permitting Process
The 2000 Stormwater NPDES Amendments to the federal Clean Water Act have increased the demand for stormwater permits issued by DEP,
and
have consequently nearly doubled the workload of department staff responsible for processing the permits.
To address these issues, including improving the quality of permit
applications and reducing the DEP's review time, several improvements to
the NPDES permitting process have been finalized. More...
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Happy Arbor Day!
The idea for Arbor Day originally came from
a Nebraska pioneer, J.
Sterling Morton, who wished to revegetate his new homestead on the
treeless plain. In 1872, Morton first proposed a
tree-planting holiday to be called “Arbor Day” at a meeting of the
State Board of Agriculture. It was estimated that more
than one million trees were planted in Nebraska on the first Arbor
Day. During the 1870s, other states passed legislation to observe Arbor
Day, and the tradition began in schools nationwide in 1882.
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Today the most common date for the state observances is the last
Friday in April, and several U.S. presidents have proclaimed a
national Arbor Day on that date. But a number of state Arbor Days are
at other times to coincide with the best tree planting weather.
http://www.arborday.org/arborday/history.cfm
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News Clips:
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Residential Green Building Standard Planned
The two most
influential groups in the home building industry and the code
development and enforcement community, the National Association
of Home Builders (NAHB) and the International Code Council (ICC), are collaborating to
develop a residential green
building standard. More...
Legacy Sediments Could Have Big Impact on Bay Cleanup
Researchers from Franklin and Marshall
College
have determined that "legacy" sediments that built up
behind old mill dams continue to haunt the region’s waterways and may
pose a major threat to the Chesapeake. More...
Corps of Engineers Revises and Renews Nationwide
Wetland Permits
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has revised and renewed
the nationwide permits for regulating work in wetlands and other waters
of the United States under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and
Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899. More...
Green Infrastructure Report Lauded
The USEPA Nonpoint Source Control
Branch recently sent out an invitation to communities and states to work with
EPA on opportunities to use green infrastructure to reduce nonpoint source
pollution. More...
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Policy
Update:
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently released its 2007 Farm Bill
proposal. The proposal highlights the creation of a new Environmental Quality
Incentives Program, creation of new Regional Water Enhancement Program, and additional funds for the Conservation
Innovation Grants (CIG) program. |
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The National Water Program has released the Draft FY 2008 Water Program
Guidance for public review and comment. The Draft Guidance describes FY
2008 program priorities and strategies for accomplishing the
environmental goals established in the new EPA Strategic Plan. Comments
on the draft Guidance are due by April 6. |
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The draft
National Coastal Condition Report III was released on March 9
for a 60-day comment period. The Report describes the ecological and
environmental conditions in U.S. coastal waters. |
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The Eastern Brook Trout
Joint Venture released a first-of-its-kind conservation
strategy to restore healthy, fishable populations of eastern brook trout
throughout their eastern native range. Only 5
percent of historic brook trout habitat remains intact.
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Public comment is invited
until June 8 on draft regional water conservation and efficiency
objectives for the Great Lakes--St. Lawrence River Basin. |
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New Jersey's industries
are boosting economic output as they dramatically cut the amount of
wastes they discharge to the environment, according to a recently
released analysis
of pollution-prevention trends. |
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A study
conducted last spring on trout residency in the days following
stocking indicates that for the vast majority of waters, hatchery
trout distribute themselves within proximity of the stocking site. |
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An environmental association
is being formed in Solebury, PA to look after the 4,900-acre Aquetong
Creek watershed. |
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2007 Watershed Snapshot Seeks
Volunteers
The 2007
Watershed Snapshot will be held from April 20-29 in Pennsylvania and
around the United States and your watershed group is invited to
participate. The Watershed Snapshot is a survey of water bodies and
watersheds that happens every year around Earth Day. Participants may
assess any stream in their state, using whatever monitoring tools they
have. Even if monitoring tools are lacking, many parameters can simply be
observed and reported.
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Rachel Carson Book Club
Rachel Carson is considered by many to be the mother of modern-day
ecology. This year, to mark the 100th anniversary of Rachel Carson's
birth, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, working with the Friends of
the National Conservation Training Center, will launch the Rachel Carson
Online Book Club. Beginning in March and continuing through November
2007, the online book club will focus on the life and work of Rachel
Carson.
Through the study of her writing, the Book Club will provide an
opportunity for dialogue and discussion of current environmental issues
in light of Carson's legacy. http://rcbookclub.blogspot.com/
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Photo: USFWS Digital Repository
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Link of the Month:
EPA Office
of Water Releases Two New Water Quality Tools
WQX is a new data
transfer system that makes it easier for states, tribes, and others to
submit and share water quality monitoring data over the Internet. The release of WQX provides for the transfer of chemical and fish
tissue data, and for physical parameters such as temperature. With WQX, groups who collect water quality data no longer need to use
EPA's STORET database to submit their information to the National STORET
Data Warehouse. http://www.epa.gov/storet/wqx.html
Also newly available is a Web-based Watershed Summary tool designed to
help water quality managers and the public use the information in the
National STORET Data Warehouse. This tool allows users to create a summary
of available data for an individual watershed. The user can then download the specific
data needed for that watershed. http://www.epa.gov/storet/wtshd_summary.html
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Photo: National Geographic Society, 1979,
taken from
Biogeography
of the Northern Flying Squirrel
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PA Wild Resource Conservation Program
Celebrates 25 Years
The Pennsylvania Wild Resources
Conservation Program (WRCP) will mark its 25th year in 2007, making the Pennsylvania
program one of the longest-running, non-game wildlife funding programs
in the United States. The WRCP officials have officially proclaimed 2007 the “Year
of the Northern Flying Squirrel,” bidding farewell to the "Year of the
Fungus." Join in on the celebration by attending one of their Wild
Resource Festivals in May and June.
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New Tools and
Publications:
Special Journal Issue Covers Hydrologic
Connectivity
The Journal of
the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) recently published an issue devoted
to the hydrological connectivity of headwater streams and their contributions to
the integrity of downstream waters. Considering the debate over non-navigable
waters and the regulatory turmoil caused by the SWANCC and Rapanos wetlands
Supreme Court decisions, this article provides a review the state of our
scientific understanding of the contributions of headwater, intermittent and
ephemeral streams to the integrity of downstream waters.
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1752-1688.2007.00001.x
E&S Techniques Article Available
A discussion of current
erosion and sedimentation control practices, Sediment and Erosion Control on Construction
Sites, by Carol Brzozowski, was published in the October 2006 issue of
Stormwater.
This article explores the
types of sediment and erosion control techniques typically used at construction
sites. http://www.erosioncontrol.com/ecm_0609_sediment.html.
Illustrated Riverpedia of North America Published
Art Benke’s
Rivers of North America is the source for information on the hydrology,
biodiversity and human impact of rivers on the North American continent. This
riverpedia, illustrated with photographs by renowned conservation photographers, is a must have for any river lovers’
bookshelf. http://www.powells.com/biblio/9780120882533?&PID=23831
New DVD Highlights Aging Water, Sewer
Infrastructure Options
EPA's Local Government Advisory Committee (LGAC)
has developed a DVD that highlights how local governments are addressing aging
sewer and water systems to meet current and future challenges facing our
communities. The project profiles five real communities and demonstrates how
they are meeting the daily needs for repair or replacement of aging systems,
coping with population growth, and addressing issues related to environmental
health and water security demands. The DVD presents some innovative options that
are available and necessary to ensure water quality in the future. http://www.epa.gov/waterinfrastructure/lgac_video/index.html
Create a Manure Management Plan Online
The Purdue Manure Management Planner
(MMP) is a Window-based
computer program used to create manure management plans for crop and animal
feeding operations. The MMP currently supports 33 states by automatically
generating fertilizer recommendations and estimating manure nitrogen
availability based on each state's County Extension Service and/or National
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and EPA for nutrient management planning.
The MMP includes an extensive set of reports, planning calendars, charts, and
tools, both built-in and custom. http://www.agry.purdue.edu/mmp/
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Newsletter
Editor/ Design and Layout:
Rebecca
Buerkett |
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F. X.
Browne, Inc. – Environmental Consulting
Engineers – Planners – Scientists
29 Years of Excellence & Innovation
Corporate
Office: Lansdale, PA
Pocono Office:
Marshalls Creek, PA
New York Office:
Saranac Lake, NY
For more information, call us at (215) 362-3878 or visit:
http://www.fxbrowne.com.
For a printer
friendly version of the newsletter, click here.
Unless otherwise cited, all photos
in this newsletter © Rebecca Buerkett. Photos may not be used or reproduced without
permission.
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