Record 218 Attend the 2009 Schuylkill Watershed Congress

The 2009 Schyulkill Watershed Congress attracted a record attendance of 218 this past Saturday at the Montgomery County Community College West Campus In Pottstown.

 

The keynote speaker, Andrew Pitz, Vice President, Strategic Policy & Planning, Natural Lands Trust, gave a presentation entitled "Climate Change in the Watershed" which provided an overview of the climate change issue and potential impacts in Pennsylvania.

Pitz said conservation can play a critical role in combating climate change, especially increasing forest cover and improving the health of soils so they can absorb and sequester carbon.

 

Thirty-six breakout sessions were held on a variety of topics including: hands-on macroinvertebrate identification, protecting headwaters, improving stormwater practices by homeowners, invasive plant removal, web-based communications for the Schuylkill Watershed, emerging contaminants in Pennsylvania, protecting pristine streams with innovative land use tools, the future of wastewater treatment, streambank reconstruction and lots of case study successes.

 

Participants included volunteers, municipal officials, representatives of state and federal agencies, watershed associations, consulting engineers and many others.

 

Several dozen exhibitors and posters provided additional valuable information to Congress goers.

The primary financial sponsors of this year's Congress included the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Pennsylvania Sea Grant Program, the Schuylkill Action Network and PA Environment Digest/Crisci Associates.

 

Cooperating organizations included: A Great Day Outdoors, Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, Alliance for a Sustainable Future, Alliance for Aquatic Resource Monitoring, Berks County Conservancy, Berks County Conservation District, Bucks County Planning Commission, Center in the Park Senior Environmental Corps, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Chester County Conservation District, Clean Water Action, Delaware River Basin Commission, Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation, Friends of Manayunk Canal, Friends of Mingo Creek, Greater Pottstown Watershed Alliance, Green Valleys Association, Hay Creek Watershed Association, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Hidden River Outfitters, Hidden River Venture, Hopewell Big Woods Partnership, Landscape Architecture Program at Philadelphia University, League of Women Voters of PA WREN Project, Lehigh County Conservation District, Lower Merion Conservancy, Maiden Creek Watershed Association, A.D. Marble & Co., Monocacy Hill Conservation Association, Montgomery County CommunityCollege, Montgomery County Conservation District, Montgomery County Planning Commission, Natural Lands Trust, Octoraro Native Plant Nursery, Inc., Pennsylvania Environmental Council, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, Perkiomen Valley Trout Unlimited, Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy, Philadelphia WaterDepartment, Schuylkill Canal Association, Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, Schuylkill Headwaters Association, Schuylkill River National and State Heritage Area, Stell Environmental Enterprises, Streamline Organizational Services, Stroud Water Research Center, Tulpehocken Creek Trout Unlimited, Valley Forge Trout Unlimited, Union Township United, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, West ChesterFish, Game & Wildlife Association.