Feature Article

Maintenance is Key to a Successful Riparian Buffer

You’ve hauled the soil, you’ve purchased the plants, you’ve lined up the volunteers, and you’ve spent the day bent over with your hands in the dirt on the bank of your beloved stream, planting shrubs, live stakes, and wildflower seeds. You stand back and brush the dirt off your hands, congratulating yourself on a job well done. Success! Not yet…maintaining your riparian buffer until it becomes well established is critical to the longevity of your efforts. More…

Trees Provide Both Environmental and Economic Benefits:
	The branches and trees of urban forests help to intercept and slow rainfall so that it does not become storm water runoff. The canopy of a mature oak tree can intercept and retain more than 500 gallons of rainfall in a given year, which helps reduce the volume of storm water runoff in urbanized areas. According to researchers, a healthy forest canopy can reduce storm water runoff by as much as seven percent. While this doesn't seem like much, it would cost more than five billion dollars to replace this free service within the Baltimore-Washington area.
	An acre of trees can remove 40 tons of carbon from the atmosphere and incorporate it into woody structure each year. The same acre produces enough oxygen each year to sustain about a thousand people.
	Forested neighborhoods (those with a 40% forest canopy) save homeowners at least four percent in heating bills in the winter and ten percent on cooling bills in the summer. Energy savings can be as high as 30% when trees are planted on the east and west sides of each home.
	Trees contribute to better neighborhoods, and homebuyers are willing to pay a premium to live in forested neighborhoods. Economic research has shown that property values are at least 5% higher in forested neighborhoods than in comparable, un-forested ones.
	About 80% of the forests in the Chesapeake Bay watershed are privately owned, with the remaining 20% owned by federal, state or local agencies. Private forest parcels are becoming smaller over time, with more than 40% of these now less than 100 acres in size. Private landowners can make a real contribution to the Bay by managing these woodlands.
October 2003 Envirocast http://www.stormcenter.com/envirocast/2003-10-14/index.html

News Clips

Failing to Protect Wetlands Could Be Financially Risky

According to a new World Wildlife Fund (WWF) report, $70 billion worth of goods and services from freshwater resources could be lost annually if governments fail to manage their wetlands sustainably. More…

Potential New Method for Protecting Trees from Deer

Duke Farms in Hillsborough, NJ serves as an outdoor laboratory for landscape studies, including investigations into ways to deter white-tailed deer from damaging trees. More…

NJ CREP Program Initiated

NJ Governor McGreevey has signed a $100 million agreement that will provide financial incentives to New Jersey farmers to install stream buffers to reduce nonpoint source pollution. More…

Keystone Species Aids Riparian Buffers in Yellowstone

Scientists were puzzled about the sudden regrowth of riparian vegetation in Yellowstone National Park beginning in the 1990s. Only one thing has changed to explain the phenomenon: the reintroduction of wolves to the Park. More…

Policy Update

	The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) is seeking comment on several possible regulatory strategies for controlling and reducing the occurrence of unregulated contaminants in New Jersey's drinking water. The results of a number of studies conducted in New Jersey revealed that very low levels of currently unregulated semi-volatile and non-volatile organic contaminants are present in ground water, surface water and finished drinking water. The Department is considering several options to address the question of what, in the absence of information on human health information on these contaminants, its response should be to the new information. Public comment is being solicited until April 2. Visit the Department’s website at http://www.nj.gov/dep/rules/ipr.html for more information.
	PA DEP published a draft General NPDES Permit Associated with Industrial Activities for comments in the Feb. 7 issue of the Pennsylvania Bulletin. Some of the major changes proposed to the General Permit deal with: (1) listing of general and industry specific Best Management Practices (BMPs); (2) splitting of the airports category into two separate categories (large and small airports) based on the usage of deicing chemicals; (3) implementation of no exposure provision under stormwater Phase II rule; and (4) authorizing the use of the permit to provide coverage for stormwater discharges from selected salt storage piles and all petroleum marketing terminals. The public notice in the Pennsylvania Bulletin summarizes proposed changes to the existing permit. DEP invites public comments on the proposed revisions to the permit, including the Notice of Intent (NOI), and other related permit documents. The Pennsylvania Bulletin can be accessed electronically at http://www.pabulletin.com.  For more information, contact Parimal Parikh, at 717-783-8394, or e-mail pparikh@state.pa.us.
	The nine municipalities in the watershed of the Raritan River are forming a regional watershed group to protect the river from degradation. The effort is being coordinated by Morris Tomorrow and led by Mendham Township Mayor Robert Pierson. The towns are forming a compact that will develop model laws for member towns to adopt, including ordinances to control growth and runoff. Members also will share ideas, consultants and, possibly, equipment. The towns include the Mendhams, Chesters and Randolph Township on the north branch of the Raritan River, and Mount Olive, Washington, Roxbury townships and Mount Arlington on the south branch of the Raritan.
	A New Jersey Assembly committee recently voted unanimously to pass a bill reinstating a statewide environmental prosecutor. The post, designed to track down and prosecute polluters and enforce environmental laws, was eliminated in 1994 under the Whitman administration. The bill will now go to the full Assembly.
	The 2005 federal budget proposal has recently been released that the Bush Administration says includes a $133 million increase in EPA funding over 2004 levels. The increased funding will benefit programs such as the Chesapeake Bay Program, the Great Lakes Legacy Program, the Targeted Watersheds Program, and other grant programs to assist with pollution reduction and cleanup. However, some lawmakers contend that while the budget includes more money to clean up toxic waste sites, it reduces funding for clean water projects. For more information, visit http://www.epa.gov/ocfo.
	The New Jersey NRCS recently announced an increase in funding for five voluntary USDA programs in New Jersey: the Wetlands Reserve Program, Environmental Quality Incentives Program, Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program, Farm and Ranchland Protection Program, and Grassland Reserve Program. For more information, contact your local NRCS/Soil Conservation District Office, or visit http://www.nj.nrcs.usda.gov.
	A controversial bill to establish the New Jersey Clean Water, Drought Mitigation, and Water Resource Security Trust Fund Act is being resurrected in a New Jersey Senate committee after failing to win approval during the last legislative session. The bill calls for a 3-cent levy on each 1,000 gallons of water shipped by utilities to customers. The tax would create a dedicated source of funding for environmental cleanups and land preservation, costing most residential public water users in New Jersey about $2.50 per year. For the text of the bill, visit http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2004/Bills/S0500/192_I1.HTM.

Grant Programs  (Click on a grant for more information) PA DEP Growing Greener Watershed Grants Private Stewardship Grant Program NOAA Omnibus Grants 2004 NY-NJ Harbor Estuary Program Mini-Grants
Buffer Restoration Plant Give-Away EPA Wetlands Program Development Grants NJ Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program Grants PA Water Resources Education Project Grants

Events (Click on a grant for more information) Southeastern Pennsylvania Regional Conference for Environmental Advisory Councils
Low Impact Development and Stormwater Management Delaware River Basin Public Meetings Environmental Issues Conference PA Watershed Organization Development Workshops PA Recycling Workshops NJ Environmental Federation Annual Conference
NJ Coldwater Conservation Forum   New York State Wetlands Forum Annual Meeting   PA Land Conservation Conference   Geomorphology in Stream Assessment and Stabilization Workshops   2004 Burlington County Stormwater Forum

 

 

 

 

A Bit ‘O Celtic Humor

There was a student at an English university, called Donald MacDonald from the Isle of Skye, who was living in the hall of residence in his first year. After he'd been there a month, his mother came to visit, carrying reinforcements of scones and oatmeal. "And how do you find the English students, Donald?" she asked. "Mother," he replied. "They're such terrible, noisy people. The one on that side keeps banging his head against the wall, and won't stop. The one on the other side screams and screams and screams, away into the night." "Oh Donald! How do you manage to put up with these awful noisy English neighbours?" "Mother, I do nothing. I just ignore them. I just stay here quietly, playing my bagpipes." Darragh was boasting of his grandfather: "He lived for ninety-four years and never once used glasses."  He had the right of it," nodded Phelim. "I always said it was healthier to drink from the bottle." A Scotsman, an Englishman and an Irishman were up before the firing squad. Noticing how nervous the squad were, they hit upon the idea of giving them a shock to put them off their aim. "Flood!" yelled the Scotsman, and the soldiers dropped their rifles and ran away. "Earthquake!" shouted the Englishman, and again the soldiers fled. Then it was O’Brien's turn. "FIRE!" he yelled.

 

 

 

Link Of The Month

 

Do conservation buffers make economic sense?  Can landowners earn income on buffers after cost-share programs are completed? Does removing an existing buffer make economic sense? Answering these questions is now easier with a new tool called Buffer$, a simple spreadsheet-based application to assist landowners and planners in analyzing the cost-benefits of conservation buffers. Buffer$ can be downloaded from the National Agroforestry Center’s Web site, http://www.unl.edu/nac/conservation/. It requires Microsoft Excel to run. Developed by the NAC in Lincoln, Nebraska, with input from Natural Resources Conservation Service personnel, Buffer$ can calculate potential income from a buffer using cost-share programs, growing agroforestry specialty products, and incorporating other income opportunities. To aid in decision-making, the buffer alternative can then be compared to the potential income generated from a cropping alternative using this tool.

 

 

 

May all your weeds be wildflowers!  - Irish Blessing

New Publications

National Stormwater Quality Database Report

The University of Alabama and the Center for Watershed Protection have collected and evaluated stormwater data from a representative number of National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Phase I municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) permit holders. This project provides nationally summarized and accessible data from the existing U.S. EPA NPDES stormwater permit program. The data from this project will be useful for both developing pollutant loading assessments and water quality evaluations associated with compliance monitoring activities, and determining the need for runoff monitoring as part of future stormwater permits. The initial version of this database, the National Stormwater Quality Database (NSQD Version 1.0), is currently being completed, but a report providing a brief summary of the more notable findings to date is now available at http://www.cwp.org/NPDES_research_report.pdf. The report presents preliminary recommendations for application of data findings, and identifies remaining research gaps. A final report will be produced by the fall of 2004.

Mid-Atlantic Invasive Plant Guidebook

This guidebook, produced by the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chesapeake Bay Field Office, provides color photographs and information on 49 species of highly invasive plants affecting aquatic and terrestrial natural areas in the mid-Atlantic region (i.e., Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia). The manual includes an introductory section explaining the invasive species problem, write-ups on each species organized by type of plant (i.e., aquatic, herb, shrub, tree, vine), photographs, a glossary of terms used, references, and sources for more information. The guidebook is available online in html or .pdf format at http://www.invasive.org/eastern/midatlantic/. Alternatively, copies can be requested by calling the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Chesapeake Bay Field Office at 410-573-4500.

Smart Growth Publication

EPA and International City/County Management Association (ICMA) have recently released, "Getting to Smart Growth II: 100 More Policies for Implementation.” The publication provides states and communities with 100 policy options that can be mixed and matched to fit local circumstances, visions, and values, and highlights steps that the private sector can take to encourage more livable communities. A free hard copy of this publication is available for a limited time from the Smart Growth Network and EPA by calling EPA's Development, Community, and Environment Division at (202) 566-2878. To download an electronic copy in PDF format, visit http://www.smartgrowth.org/library/articles.asp?art=870.

River Sojourn Organizers Guide

The Pennsylvania Organization for Watersheds and Rivers (POWR) has announced the availability of a new publication, “River Sojourn Organizer’s Guide: Pennsylvania’s Experience.” The manual leads the reader through the process of organizing a river sojourn to raise awareness about local watershed issues. Much of the guidance contained in the manual derives from the experiences of successful sojourn organizers. The 50-page manual contains planning information about assembling a planning team, regulatory and logistical concerns, environmental education and other program planning, safety and risk management, budget and sponsorship issues, and more. The appendices contain examples of eighteen planning lists and forms such as a risk management plan, a day planning form, and a monthly planning checklist. The guide is available electronically at http://www.pawatersheds.org/sojournguide/index.asp.

Stream Restoration Case Studies: The Effect of Highways on Streams

The Federal Highway Administration has documented six case histories from across the nation (Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, and Washington). These projects successfully protected stream habitats and natural characteristics by careful design and restoration of natural features in the stream channels that had to be relocated due to road construction. A DVD is available from the Office of Natural and Human Environment by e-mailing environment@fhwa.dot.gov.

CD Raises Money for Environmental Justice

There are great causes and there is great music. Seldom do the two come together quite so potently as they do on Where We Live - Stand For What You Stand On. The cause is a simple but vital one - the right for us all to drink clean water and breathe clean air in the face of industrial pollution and environmental degradation. The music is soulful and inspiring and comes from such great artists as Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Norah Jones, Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt, Lou Reed, and over a dozen others on tracks specifically donated to the cause. Although it is not a record that in any way preaches, the songs were all chosen to reflect a commitment to the well-being of our earth and its people. For more information or to order the CD, visit http://www.wherewelive.org/cd/.

Newsletter Editor: Rebecca L. Buerkett Newsletter Design and Layout: Dianne M. Brown