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Front Page: Your Weekly News & Updates
Dive Deeper Summit concludes, Executive Director conference, news from Elk County, free watershed education workshops, and two upcoming field days.
Conservation Districts Represented at Dive Deeper IV Summit

Formal and non-formal educators convened in Harrisburg on September 20, 2018, for The Dive Deeper Summit. The summit is a gathering of youth water educators in the Mid-Atlantic Region that pairs knowledge and resource sharing with networking opportunities.
 
Shannon Wehinger, PACD Director of Communications and Education, and several conservation district staff attended the summit. Sallie Gregory, Lancaster County Conservation District's educator, co-presented at the "Kids Keeping Manure Out of Our Water" session. During this session, three activities were conducted based on the draft "Manure Management Planning for Youth Animal Projects" program, which is due to be finalized in June of 2019. The activity booklet is filled with activities to help youth understand PA Department of Environmental Protection regulations.
 
The summit provided ample opportunities to experience hands-on activities to enhance water education.
 
Photo caption: Sallie Gregory, Lancaster County Conservation District Educator, leads a session during the Dive Deeper Summit. Photo taken by Shannon Wehinger.
Shambaugh Attends Executive Director Conference

PACD Executive Director Brenda Shambaugh traveled to Daytona Beach, Florida, on September 25, 2018, for the National Association of Conservation District's (NACD) Executive Director Conference. The conference allows peers from across the country to compare notes and share their successes. In additional to networking and tours, the conference also addressed capacity building, board training, and a new training program for executive directors of state associations.
 
Photo caption: Executive directors of state conservation district associations from across the United States met in Florida. PACD Executive Director is pictured on the right.
Elk County Conservation District Holds Successful Agriculture Tour with Unique Twist 
By Kelsey Kilhoffer, Resource Conservation Technician, Elk County Conservation District

On August 14, 2018, the Elk County Conservation District (ECCD) held a successful Agriculture Bus Tour. Twenty-six attendees toured Hoffman Appalachian Farm, Straub Brewery, and Chocolate Drop Farm, all located in St. Marys, PA.
 
At Hoffman Appalachian Farm, owner Joshua Brock gave a tour of his hop farm and explained the hop growing process. Brock plans to implement a solar powered irrigation system that utilizes the capture and reuse of rain water. The tour continued at Straub Brewery where George Hasselman gave a very informative overview of the facility's history and brewing process. The tour wrapped up at Chocolate Drop Farm, owned by John and Sylvia Straub. They feed the spent grain from Straub's brewing process to their 17 Hereford beef cattle. They also practice rotational grazing. This has greatly minimized any heavy use areas on their property, reducing nutrient runoff. It was fascinating to see the process from beginning to end. From the growing of the crops, to production, to use of the spent grains, each phase was uniquely interesting.

EPA Logo
Financial and other support for this project is provided by the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts, Inc. through a grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

 
Photo caption: Hops at Hoffman Appalachian Farm. Photo provided by ECCD.
 
Click here to read the entire article. 
Free Workshops for Conservation District Environmental Educators

As part of a collective effort to build statewide capacity for watershed education, the PA Watershed Education Task Force will facilitate workshops for non-formal environmental educators to become Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE) Ambassadors.
 
These free MWEE Ambassador trainings for non-formal educators will take place across 4 regions of Pennsylvania in the next few months:
 
· Stroud Water Research Center in Avondale: October 16-17, 2018
[this session is full, but there is a waiting list]
Join the waiting list here: http://bit.ly/2uIR4og
 
· Sinnemahoning State Park in Austin: October 23-24, 2018
Register here: http://bit.ly/2JA2oYX
 
· Dauphin County Agriculture & Natural Resources Center: February 12-13, 2019
Register here: http://bit.ly/2L2wqud
 
· Jennings Environmental Education Center in Slippery Rock: March 27-28, 2019
Register here: http://bit.ly/2mtG4r6
 
Click here for the event flyer. 
 
Questions? Contact Steve Kerlin at skerlin@stroudcenter.org or call 610-268-2153, ext. 297.
4-R Alliance Hosting Nutrient Stewardship Field Day

The PA4R Alliance invites you to their 4R Nutrient Stewardship Field Day on October 4, 2018 from 9am-1:30pm. The Field Day will be held at the Growmark Research Farm located at the Milton Hershey School Farm, 631 Crest Lane, Hershey, PA.
 
The event is free of charge, but RSVP is required by close of business on October 2. Lunch is provided. CCA and NM CEUs will be available. This event is open to farmers, agribusinesses, legislators, conservation groups, and anyone interested in learning more about 4R nutrient management technologies. Please feel free to forward this invitation to other interested individuals. This event is rain or shine.

Click here to review the event flyer. 
 
RSVP to Katie Turner at katie.turner@tnc.org or 717-232-6001 x 225.
Grazing, Cover Crops, and Soil Health Field Day

On Wednesday, October 24, 2018, from 8:30am-Noon, a grazing, cover crop, and soil health field day will be held at Verdant View Farm, 429 Strasburg Rd., Paradise, PA (Lancaster County).
 
Click here to view the event flyer.
 
Questions? Contact Meeghan Orr at meeghan.orr@pa.usda.gov.
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Conservation Districts in the News 
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Upcoming Events

October 2, 2018
Northwest Chapter 102 Fall Regional Session
DEP Northwest Regional Office, Meadville, PA

October 3, 2018
Southwest Chapter 102 Fall Regional Session
Cranberry Public Library, Cranberry Township, PA

PA Association of Conservation Districts | 717.238.7223 | pacd@pacd.org | www.pacd.org
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