Gov. Rendell this week announced the investment of more than $21.5 million in 144 Growing Greener projects to reduce pollution from stormwater runoff and farms, treat acid mine drainage, reduce flooding and improve water quality across the Commonwealth.

On February 3, members of the Fair Share for Clean Water Coalition wrote to the Acting DEP Secretary John Hanger and Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolf offering their assistance to help draft the next update to the Chesapeake Bay Tributary Strategy to reduce nutrient and sedimentation.

The new Chesapeake Bay Watershed Initiative, recently authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill, offers additional conservation opportunities for farms located within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed for technical and financial assistance to install agricultural practices to help control erosion and minimize excess nutrients and sediments to restore, preserve, and protect water quality.

With Pennsylvania estimated to receive more than $6 billion from the federal stimulus package signed into law this week (more details below), the key question is: what role will the General Assembly have in spending all that money-- the equivalent of about 20 percent of the General Fund budget?

The Pittsburgh and Philadelphia Clean Cities Coalitions are now soliciting alternative fuel infrastructure and upgrade and retrofit projects to be funded with the new federal stimulus funding.

Wildlands Conservancy received a $5,000 grant from IronPigs Charities to fund a week-long “Bats to Bats” program designed to create an appreciation for the natural world and introduce 120 inner-city children to close to home environmental pursuits.

Five new online videos are now online from the Penn State Extension Service to help the more than 1 million private water well owners properly maintain and identify well problems.

The first episode of the National Science Foundation's "To What Degree? What Science is Telling Us About Climate Change" television series will feature Penn State climate researchers Richard B. Alley, Evan Pugh professor of geosciences and Michael E. Mann, associate professor of meteorology and director of the Earth System Science Center.

The Pennsylvania Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus, a bipartisan organization consisting of members of both the state House of Representatives and Senate, has elected its leadership team and created an executive council.

The February issue of the Environmental Synopsis from the Joint Legislative Air and Water Pollution Control and Conservation Committee is now available online.

Rebecca Dunlap, Project Manager for Trout Unlimited’s West Branch Susquehanna Restoration Initiative, will present An Economic Benefit Analysis for Abandoned Mine Drainage Remediation in the West Branch Susquehanna River Watershed, at 7 - 8 pm on March 12 at Foxdale Village Auditorium in State College.

High demand has exhausted this year’s fund to reimburse municipal sewage enforcement agencies for part of the cost of on-lot sewage permitting and enforcement, forcing the Department of Environmental Protection to halt payments.

The Philadelphia Water Departmenti s now accepting entries for its 10th annual art competition, the theme of which is “Protect Philadelphia’s Hidden Streams.” In addition to drawings, students are now invited to submit short video clips depicting polluted rainwater, a leading threat to Philadelphia’s waterways.

The Penn’s Corner Resource Conservation and Development Council is seeking teams for the 2009 Grassland Evaluation Competition,an outreach program for youth and is open to all Pennsylvania chapters of Future Farmers of America and 4-H program.

The Fish and Boat Commission has scheduled a public meeting for March 2, in western Pennsylvania to receive public comments on the agency’s proposal to list five mussel species as threatened or endangered.

The ClearWater Conservancy is looking for landowners that are interested in enrolling their streamside property into ClearWater’s 2009 and 2010 Riparian Conservation Program.

The Department of Environmental Protection is expected to present a new version of a controversial permit-by-rule proposal that would eliminate permit reviews for development projects to the Water Resources Advisory Committee on February 25.

A two-year study of over 700 private water wells by the Penn State Extension Master Well Owner Network sponsored by the Center for Rural Pennsylvania shows levels of lead and nitrates have dropped sharply over the last 25 years, but as many as 40 percent of the wells surveyed still do not meet safe drinking water standards.

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania this week announced its unanimous decision to uphold a Commonwealth Court ruling in 2005 rendering a Salem Township, Westmoreland County ordinance regulation oil and gas well drilling invalid.

The Professional Recyclers of Pennsylvania announced this week it will hold their 19th Annual PROP Conference in Scranton from July 28 – 31, 2009 at the elegant Scranton Hotel & Convention Center. This year the conference will feature a Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful Mini-Summit and Awards Luncheon.

For the second year, Montgomery County Community College is participating in RecycleMania, a10-week nationwide contest during which colleges and universities compete to see who can reduce, reuse and recycle the most campus waste.

PA CleanWays is excited to announce it is now accepting nominations for the annual Litter Hawk Youth Award Program.

Volunteers are wanted by the ClearWater Conservancy to help conduct a deer density and browse impact survey in Musser Gap and surrounding properties in the Rothrock State Forest in Centre County on March 27 starting at 8:00 a.m. in the Ferguson Township Building. April 1 will be the snow date.

The Fund for Wild Nature continues to accept applications to provide funding for campaigns to save and restore native species and wild ecosystems, including actions to defend wilderness and biological diversity.

The PA Parks and Forests Foundation will hold its annual awards banquet on May in Harrisburg to recognize groups and individuals for their outstanding service to State Parks and Forests.

The 2009 Philadelphia Flower Show will again feature a green landscaping exhibit with the theme "Water is Life, Llife is Water" by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from March 1 to 8.

The Allegheny Land Trust this week announced BP America recently donated more than $40,000 to Allegheny Land Trust to support conservation projects, including the North Park Greenway project in southwestern Pennsylvania.

The Agricultural Preservation Board this week approved an additional 4,682 acres on 48 farms through the state's nationally recognized Farmland Preservation Program.

AFC First Financial Corporation is now accepting applications for rebates and loans under the Keystone HELP Program to promote homeowner energy savings program.

ConocoPhillips and Penn State this week launched the 2009 ConocoPhillips Energy Prize, a competition to recognize -- with awards up to $300,000 -- new ideas and original, actionable solutions that can help improve the way the United States develops and uses energy.

Uncovering the most cost-effective energy improvement projects through the use of energy audits and thermal imaging are two topics the Energy Roundtable will tackle during its next quarterly meeting at 9 a.m. March 5 at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center, 301 Peninsula Dr., Erie.

Industrial and commercial businesses, institutions, and local government operations can learn to reduce energy consumption while improving system reliability by attending the Department of Energy’s full-day Motor System Management workshop March 25 at the Union County Government Center, 155 North 15th Street, in Lewisburg.

Covanta Energy, a world leader in development, operation and ownership of Energy-from-Waste and other renewable energy projects, this week announced it has been named a "Climate Action Leader" by the California Climate Action Registry.

The newly constructed Gray’s Woods Ambulatory Care facility by Geisinger Health Systems in State College is the only healthcare facility in Pennsylvania and one of only seven in the nation to achieve LEED Gold green building certification.

The 2009 Pennsylvania Solar Energy Conference, sponsored by the Penn State Center for Sustainability and other partners, will be held on May 6-7 at the Penn Stater Conference Center in State College.

FirstEnergy's Metropolitan Edison and Pennsylvania Electric companies have filed plans with the Public Utility Commission to procure electric generation supply beginning January 2011 for customers who choose not to shop with alternative suppliers.

PPL Electric Utilities has asked the Public Utility Commission for permission to offer customers a second option for spreading out higher electricity prices.

Gov. Rendell and U.S. Senator Arlen Specter this week signed a letter of commitment that will ensure the planned Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Somerset County, is completed and dedicated by the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

A new book, Agenda For A Sustainable America edited by Widener Law School Professor John C. Dernback, provides a comprehensive assessment of progress in the United States toward sustainable development. The book also provides a roadmap of next steps toward achieving sustainability.