If learning more about water and natural resource conservation in order to serve your local communities through volunteering and outreach excites you, then you will make an excellent candidate for the Penn State Extension Master Watershed Steward Program!

This program will provide many opportunities to do satisfying volunteer work in an exciting field, have access to the most current information on environmental conservation, and meet lots of wonderful people.

To become certified as a Master Watershed Steward, you must complete 40 hours of training through Penn State Extension and fulfill 20 hours of volunteer service the year after training.

In subsequent years, Master Watershed Stewards maintain their certification by fulfilling 20 hours of volunteer time for watershed projects or programs, and attending a minimum of ten hours of continuing education provided by Penn State Extension.

Examples of volunteer opportunities include both "hands-on" and supporting roles for projects such as organizing stream cleanups, helping with stream-side plantings using native species, designing and installing demonstration rain gardens, educational events that address topics such as backyard conservation or homeowner stormwater management (e.g., rain barrel workshops), stream monitoring, and helping to raise program funds through native tree and plant sales.

Master Watershed Steward Programs are currently offered in 43 counties.  Click Here to find a list and apply to volunteer for the program though their webpage

Visit the Do You Really Want To Be A Master Watershed Steward webpage to learn more and watch a short video about the program.

For more information, visit the Penn State Extension Master Watershed Steward Program webpage.

Upcoming Info Event

-- August 1: Bucks County Extension Office, Middletown Grange Fairgrounds, 576 Pennsylvania Park Road In Newtown, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. To register, email: Kathleen Connally kxc30@psu.edu.

How Clean Is Your Stream?

The draft 2024 report has an interactive report viewer that allows you to zoom in to your own address to see if the streams near you are impaired and why.

Click Here to check out your streams.  Click Here for a tutorial on using the viewer.

Related Articles - Watersheds:

-- PA Assn. Of Conservation Districts Recognizes Conservation Award Winners  [PaEN]

-- PASA Sustainable Agriculture, Keystone Ten Million Trees Partnership Giving Away 100,000 Trees  [PaEN]

-- PennVEST Makes $257 Million Investment In 18 Water Infrastructure Projects In 13 Counties  [PaEN]

-- USDA Awards 2 Conservation Innovation Grants For Projects Benefiting Pennsylvania Totaling $7.1 Million  [PaEN]

-- Penn State Ag Progress Days To Feature 400+ Commercial & Educational Exhibits; Field Demos; Forest Management; Stream Buffers Tour In Centre County Aug. 13-15  [PaEN]

-- PA Organization For Watersheds & Rivers Celebrate Successes Spotlight: Neshaminy Watershed Assn. Is Back And Better Than Ever In Bucks, Montgomery Counties [PaEN]

-- Registration Open! For Acid Mine Drainage Passive Treatment Course Set For Sept. 17-19 In State College  [PaEN]

-- Master Watershed Stewards Of Cumberland, Franklin Counties Host Aug. 26 Watershed Walk - Plant Identification In Letort Spring Garden Preserve, Carlisle, 5:30 to 7:00 p.m.

-- Registration Open! Penn State Extension 5-Part Backyard Stream Repair Webinar Series Starting Aug. 27  [PaEN]

-- Allegheny County Conservation District Releases Updated Development, Stormwater Data; Sept. 24 Workshop On Stormwater Trends  [PaEN]

-- Penn State Extension Master Watershed Stewards Now Signing Up Volunteers For Training Sessions  [PaEN]

-- What’s The Future Master Watershed Program By Penn State Extension, DCNR?  How Can I Start A Group?  [PaEN]

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission Holds Aug. 1 Hearing On Water Withdrawal Requests For Amazon Data Center, Luzerne County; 8 Shale Gas Development, Gas Power Plant Withdrawals  [PaEN]

-- Reminder DEP To Hold July 23 Hearing On Water Quality Permit For Lehigh County Core5 Warehouse Project In Lowhill Township

NewsClips:

-- The Allegheny Front: States Like Pennsylvania Struggling To Access, Spend Federal Funds For Abandoned Mine Cleanup And Redevelopment

--- The Allegheny Front: Chalfant Run In Allegheny County Getting Federal Help To Clean Up Its Abandoned Coal Mine Pollution

-- The Center Square - Anthony Hennen: A $40 Billion Critical Mineral Supply Chain Could Start In PA With Abandoned Mine Drainage 

-- Centre Daily Times: Plans For 1,000 Acre Ampliform/Project14 Solar Energy Project On Abandoned Mine Lands In Rush Twp., Centre County Move Forward, Questions And Concerns Remain

-- Lancaster Farming: Farmers Gain Conservation, Innovation Funds In PA State Budget 

-- StateImpactPA: PA Waterways Contribute To Chesapeake Bay Earning Its Best Grade In Over 2 Decades In This Year’s Report Card

-- Scranton Times: Chesapeake Bay, Its NE PA Watersheds Of The Susquehanna, Lackawanna Rivers Show Improved Aquatic Health

-- The Daily Item Editorial: Progress Is Certainly Good, But Work Remains In Chesapeake Bay Watershed

-- Stormwater Solutions: Hanover, York County Leveraging Community-based Public-Private Partnership To Fund Green Water Infrastructure

-- York Daily Record - Brian Whipkey: Chop And Drop Projects Are Happening Across The State In Wild Trout Waters, Here’s Why

-- WHYY: FEMA Announces $2 Million+ To Help Flood-Prone Eastwick In Philadelphia

-- Citizens Voice: Residents, Officials Still Await Decision On Federal Flood Maps Appeal From 2021

-- Delaware RiverKeeper July 19 RiverWatch Video Report

-- Erie Times: Lake Erie Was At Record Levels In 2019; Where Things Stand Now And a Forecast 

-- Erie Times: NOAA Seeks Advisory Council Members For Proposed Marine Sanctuary In PA Portion Of Lake Erie

[Posted: July 16, 2024]

7/22/2024