Since June of 2004, the PA Environment Digest has printed over 1,160 stories about thousands of businesses, farmers, schools, local governments, students of all ages, nonprofit groups, organizations and individuals just like you recognized for doing great things to protect and restore Pennsylvania’s environment in every corner of the Commonwealth.

Gov. Tom Wolf told the Associated Press Wednesday he will propose a FY 2017-18 budget that is balanced using funding cuts and steps to make government more efficient, rather than ask Senate and House Republicans for an income or sales tax increase to cope with an estimated deficit of over $2.2 billion.

Here are the Senate and House Calendars and Committee meetings showing bills of interest as well as a list of new environmental bills introduced--

On December 1 members of the Senate and House began circulating co-sponsor memos to their colleague announcing bills they plan to introduce or re-introduce in the new session. 

The December edition of the Environmental Synopsis newsletter is now available from the Joint Air and Water Pollution Control and Conservation Committee featuring articles on--

LancasterOnline.com’s Ad Crable reported Friday Lancaster County’s farmland provides environmental benefits worth more than $676 million annually and that’s not counting  agricultural products they produce, according to a new study commissioned by the Lancaster County Agricultural Council.

The PA Farm Bureau Monday said a Penn State survey, which identifies best management practices (BMPs) paid for entirely by farmers, confirms that farmers have done much more than they have ever been given credit for in implementing measures that improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.

The saying “everything flows downstream” is especially important in a place like Pennsylvania, where the land-management decisions of farmers and forest landowners are helping send cleaner water downstream to the Chesapeake Bay, according to Denise Coleman, PA NRCS State Conservationist.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack Wednesday announced 88 high-impact projects across the country will receive $225 million in federal funding as part of the USDA's Regional Conservation Partnership Program, including one grant in Pennsylvania.

The most often question asked this time of year?  When’s the Pennsylvania Farm Show?  This year’s Show will run from January 7 to 14 at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex off Cameron Street in Harrisburg.

The Greening the Lower Susquehanna volunteer corps, organized by Penn State’s Agriculture and Environment Center had another successful 2016 filled with tree plantings, litter pickups, maintenance days, and other exciting volunteer events.

The interstate Chesapeake Bay Commission will hold its next meeting in Annapolis on January 5-6 to hear a presentation on the Bay and climate change, positive signs of change in Bay water quality and the importance of continuing federal involvement in the Chesapeake Bay cleanup.

The Partnership for the Delaware Estuary is in the middle of a series of public workshops to solicit ideas from stakeholders on what should be in an updated Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan for the Estuary. 

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service-PA is now accepting applications from Pennsylvania landowners and groups interested in protecting wetlands in selected watersheds through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program in parts of the Delaware River Watershed.

The December edition of the Stream Samples newsletter from the Delaware Watershed Initiative is now available from the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.

The Penn State Extension Master Watershed Steward Program was established to help address nonpoint source pollution, which remains one of the biggest challenges facing surface water quality in Pennsylvania.

Do you know an outstanding volunteer in the community that deserves recognition? It is about that time of year again to nominate individuals for the President’s Volunteer Service Award.  The deadline for nominations is January 15.

We think of our community park as a great place to take a walk, be active, or enjoy nature, but with a few key features they also can help manage the runoff and flooding that occurs when it rains or when snow melts.

The Healthy Watersheds Consortium is now accepting proposals for the 2017 Healthy Watersheds Consortium Grant Program. The deadline for proposals is February 1.

The River Network is now seeking nominations for its national River Hero Award to recognize and celebrate people whose efforts to protect and restore their local waters have been extraordinary in scope, scale, impact and heart.   The deadline for nominations is January 20.

With the new year, come resolutions to be healthier by losing weight, quitting smoking, or getting real face-time with family and friends. In the spirit of the season, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation-PA offers resolution suggestions to help manage stormwater on the homefront and improve the health of local waters.

As part of the statewide Clean Water Counts In Pennsylvania campaign by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation-PA, county maps of streams with impaired water quality were posted online.

The Dec. 19 edition of the Watershed Winds newsletter is now available from Penn State Extension featuring articles on--

The U.S. District Court of the Western District of Pennsylvania approved a settlement between PennFuture, the Department of Environmental Protection and Confluence Borough Municipal Authority in Somerset County on December 16 to end the discharge of untreated sewage into the Youghiogheny River and prevent future pollution.

The DEP Small Water Systems Technical Assistance Center Board is scheduled to meet on January 5 in Harrisburg to discuss a proposed $7.5 million increase in drinking water permit and annual administration fees to help deal with cuts in state General Fund support for this program.

The PA Section of the American Water Works Association has issued a call for abstracts for its 2017 Annual Conference to be held on April 25-27 at the Hershey Lodge in Hershey.

Gov. Tom Wolf, Sen. John Yudichak (D-Luzerne), and Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski (D-Luzerne) Thursday announced the state would commit $125,000 for a temporary fix to the Solomon Creek flood wall in Wilkes-Barre to try to prevent further erosion until a full repair can be made.

The U.S. Department of the Interior Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement Monday released final regulations to prevent or minimize impacts to surface water and groundwater from coal mining.

Greenwire Friday made available the 76-page Regulatory Transition Report given to the Trump Transition Team detailing the current status of environmental regulations and an overview of the agency’s organization and staff.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources’ Bureau of State Parks has updated its schedule of Environmental Education Workshops for Teachers at state parks providing Act 48 credits.  Among the new workshops are—

Santa Claus is likely to bring good little girls and boys lots of new electronic devices and peripherals-- bigger screen TVs, computers, tablets, phones, printers, scanners and more.

The Department of Environmental Protection Tuesday announced it will host a public hearing on January 17 on the permit application to expand the Chrin Landfill in Williams Township, Northampton County.

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney Tuesday signed an Executive Order creating the Zero Waste and Litter Cabinet, charged with creating a comprehensive plan for waste reduction and litter prevention.

The December 22 edition of DEP News is now available from the Department of Environmental Protection featuring stories on--

10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania will honor the Southeast PA Transportation Authority and the Philadelphia Water Department with its annual Commonwealth Award and Drexel University with its inaugural Joanne Denworth Founders Award for Institutional Excellence at a special awards program January 24 in Philadelphia.

The Department of Environmental Protection published notice in the December 24 PA Bulletin (page 8095) it has approved Section 401 Water Quality Certification for Dominion Transmission’s Leidy South Project to upgrade pipeline compressor stations in Centre, Clinton and Franklin Counties.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette PowerSource’s Laura Legere reported Saturday Pennsylvania will receive $110 million to reduce air pollution from the $2.7 billion EPA settlement with Volkswagon over the company’s diesel emissions-cheating scandal.

The Public Utility Commission Thursday released the results of its annual Cold Weather Survey, which showed that more than 22,000 households across the state are entering the winter season without heat-related utility service or using unsafe heating sources. 

The Public Utility Commission Thursday issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking public comment on new regulations designed to reduce the time it takes customers to change natural gas suppliers (NGSs), and further align rules and procedures for the state’s NGSs with electric generation suppliers (EGSs).

By Coleen P. Engvall, Joint Conservation Committee

NRG Energy, Inc. Monday announced it has completed the coal-to-gas projects at four power plants across NRG’s fleet, including 2 plants in Pennsylvania-- Shawville, Clearfield County, and New Castle, Lawrence County.

NJR Clean Energy Ventures Tuesday announced the completion of the Ringer Hill Wind Farm located in Somerset County.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Janet McCabe Monday announced her agency would not finalize the model rules intended to help states implement the Clean Power Climate Plan, but will rather make them available as working drafts.

Presidents and Chancellors from more than 170 Colleges and Universities, including 12 from Pennsylvania, joined together Monday to urge president-elect Trump and the incoming congressional representatives to accelerate progress towards a clean energy future.

Westmoreland County Cleanways and Recycling would like to encourage everyone to continue the spirit of giving by recycling your live Christmas tree.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the PA Urban and Community Forestry Council, Tuesday announced grant funding for 21 TreeVitalize tree planting and innovative projects throughout the state.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the PA Recreation and Park Society are now accepting nominations for the Green Parks Award.  Nominations are due January 27.

To promote a healthy start to the new year, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn will join hikers January 1 at Pine Grove Furnace State Park as her department again sponsors free, guided hikes in 28 state parks on New Year's Day as part of America's State Parks First Day Hikes initiative in all 50 states.

Department of Conservation and Natural Resources officials Tuesday announced the department has secured a contractor to facilitate the master planning and redesign of Denton Hill State Park, Potter County.

The December 21 edition of the Resource newsletter is now available from the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources featuring articles on--

The PA Environmental Council joined with its partners in the Greater Philadelphia Circuit Trails initiative to celebrate the opening of a new section of the Delaware & Lehigh Trail in Bristol Township, Bucks County December 16.

The Friends of Allegheny Wilderness announced the Allegheny National Forest released the Environmental Assessment for the proposed Tracy Ridge Mountain Biking On Hiking Trails Project late Friday afternoon.

This week's edition of Take Five Fridays With Pam from the PA Parks and Forests Foundation features a photo too good to be true, but it is. 

The PA Forest Heritage Association reported in its Winter quarterly newsletter Saturday 12,067  acres were burned in 836 wildfires in Pennsylvania to December causing $3.5 million in damage, 1 fatality and 12 injuries.

Denise Coleman, State Conservationist for Pennsylvania NRCS announced Thursday the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service and the U.S. Forest Service will invest $1,074,030 in financial assistance in 2017 to improve and protect the health and resiliency of Oak ecosystems in Northcentral Pennsylvania.

The Western PA Conservancy Thursday announced a forested property located in Hayfield and Vernon townships, Crawford County was permanently protected and became available for recreational use.

A 128-acre woodland in Otter Creek Township, Mercer County, has been permanently protected by the Foundation for Sustainable Forests through a charitable bargain sale.

The PA Forest Heritage Association’s Winter edition of the Burning Issues newsletter is now available featuring articles on--

The Wildlands Conservancy in the Lehigh Valley Wednesday highlighted its schedule of educational programs coming up in January, including--

The PA Parks and Forests Foundation Wednesday announced the appointment of Nancy Ball (retired, Lafayette College), Jae Ellison (Director of Outdoor Leadership & Education, Lycoming College), and Senator Guy Reschenthaler (State Senate), to its Board of Directors, effective January 1, 2017.

In autumn 2016, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Berks County tallied 17,548 hawks in 1,106 hours of effort. The overall total was 6 percent below the 10-year average, but a 2010 record for bald eagle sightings was broken.

A love of the outdoors was instilled at an early age for Amidea Daniel, who grew up fishing, hunting, camping and exploring the natural world around her.

The Fall edition of the PowWow newsletter from the PA Outdoor Writers Association is now available featuring stories on--

The Public Utility Commission Thursday announced the appointment of Kelly Monaghan of Lancaster County as the Director of the Bureau of Audits. Monaghan’s appointment is effective January 1, 2017.

The Department of Environmental Protection published notice of an opportunity to bid on a mine reclamation project in Allegheny County in the December 24 PA Bulletin.

DEP’s Citizens Advisory Council is seeking qualified candidates to fill the position of Executive Director.  The deadline for applications is January 20.

The Wildlands Conservancy in the Lehigh Valley is seeking qualified applicants for a full-time Aquatic Ecologist to be responsible for implementing water quality monitoring programs in the Lehigh River watershed and assisting with a variety of habitat restoration projects.

The Dauphin County-based Manada Conservancy is seeking qualified candidates to fill three positions: Stewardship Director, Development Director and Office Manager.  The deadline for applications is January 31.

This section lists House and Senate Committee meetings, DEP and other public hearings and meetings and other interesting environmental events.

This section gives you a heads up on upcoming deadlines for awards and grants and other recognition programs.  NEW means new from last week. 

Here are NewsClips from around the state on all environmental topics, including General Environment, Budget, Marcellus Shale, Watershed Protection and much more.

No new regulations were published this week.  Pennsylvania Bulletin - December 24, 2016

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Send your stories, photos and links to videos about your project, environmental issues or programs for publication in the PA Environment Digest to:  DHess@CrisciAssociates.com. 

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