|
|
|
Nov. 18
Citizens Advisory Council meeting, 10 a.m., Room 105,
Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400 Market St. Harrisburg.
Contact: Jen Swan, 717-783-8727.
|
|
Dec. 9
Climate Change Advisory Committee meeting, 10 a.m., Room
105, Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400 Market St.
Harrisburg. Contact: Mark Brojakowski,
717-772-3429.
|
|
Dec. 10
Coal and Clay Mine Subsidence Insurance Fund Board
meeting, 10 a.m., Room 105, Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400
Market St. Harrisburg. Contact: Lawrence Ruane,
717-783-9590.
|
|
Dec. 10
State Board for Certification of Water and Wastewater
Systems Operators meeting, 10 a.m., 10th Floor Conference Room, Rachel
Carson State Office Building, 400 Market St., Harrisburg. Contact:
Cheri Sansoni, 717-772-5158.
Dec. 11
Laboratory Accreditation Advisory
Committee meeting, 9 a.m.-noon, Room 206, Bureau of Laboratories
Building, 2575 Interstate Drive, Harrisburg. Contact Aaren Alger, 717- 346-8212.
|
|
Dec. 11
Air Quality Technical Advisory Committee meeting, 9:15
a.m., Room 105, Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400 Market St.,
Harrisburg. Contact: Nancy Herb, 717-783-9269.
|
|
Dec. 15
State Board for Certification of Sewage Enforcement
Officers 2014 Examinations, registration starts at 8:30 a.m., exams start
at 9 a.m., Susquehanna Room A and B, DEP South-central Regional Office,
909 Elmerton Ave. Harrisburg. Contact:
Patricia Hodgson, 717-720-4811.
|
|
Dec. 16
Environmental Quality Board meeting, 9 a.m., Room 105,
Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400
Market St., Harrisburg. Contact: Jen Swan,
717-783-8727.
|
|
Dec. 16
DEP public hearing on the Redesignation
Request and Maintenance Plan for the Pittsburgh-Beaver
Valley Nonattainment Area for the 1997 and 2006 Fine
Particulate Matter National Ambient Air Quality Standards, 1 p.m., DEP
Southwest Regional Office, 400 Waterfront Dr. Pittsburgh. Contact:
Nancy Herb, 717-783-9269.
|
|
Dec. 17
Cleanup Standards Scientific Advisory Board meeting, 9
a.m., 14th Floor Conference Room, Rachel Carson State Office Building,
400 Market St.,Harrisburg.
|
|
Dec. 17
Agricultural Advisory Board meeting, 10 a.m., Susquehanna
Room A, DEP Southcentral Regional Office, 909 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg. Contact: Steven Taglang, 717-783-7576.
|
|
Dec. 18
Small Water Systems Technical Assistance Center Board
meeting, 10 a.m., Room 105, Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400
Market St. Harrisburg. Contact: H. Thomas Fridirici,
717-787-2172.
|
|
Dec. 22
State Board for Certification of Sewage Enforcement
Operators meeting, 10 a.m., Conference Room 11
B, Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400 Market
St., Harrisburg. Contact: Patricia Hodgson, 717-720-4811.
|
|
|
|
|
Dec. 17
Act 162 webinar, 11 a.m. To register, click here.
|
|
|
|
|
Nov. 18
Deadline to comment on the proposed Standards and
Guidelines for Identifying, Tracking and Resolving Oil and Gas Violations
(DEP ID: 550-3000-001). Contact John Ryder, 570-327-3636.
|
|
Nov. 24
Deadline to comment on Proposed Rulemaking: Land
Reclamation Financial Guarantees and Bioenergy
Crop Bonding. Contact Thomas Callaghan, 717-787-5015.
|
|
Dec. 1
Deadline to comment on Turbidity and LT2 ESWTR Reporting
Instructions for Public Water Systems Using Filtered Surface Water or
GUDI Sources (DEP ID: 383-3301-106). Contact Pauline Risser-Clemmens, 717-772-5970.
|
|
Dec. 15
Deadline to comment on the Proposed Request for Delegation
of Authority to Implement the Federal Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste
Incinerators Plan. Contact Jay Braund,
717-772-5636.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
RACT Final
Rulemaking Will Impose More Stringent Requirements to Protect Air Quality
HARRISBURG -- DEP has announced it has revised its Reasonably
Available Control Technology (RACT)
final rulemaking to impose more stringent requirements
than originally proposed in April to improve air quality, while still
protecting grid reliability.
The rulemaking establishes additional requirements for
existing major stationary sources of nitrogen oxides (NOx)
and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as electric generating units
(EGUs) and combustion units. As defined by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA), RACT is the lowest emissions limitation that a
particular source is capable of meeting by the application of control
technology that is reasonably available, considering technological and
economic feasibility.
Read
more.
Pennsylvania Making Progress in Clean Up of Tire Piles
Tire piles like this one in Southwestern Pa. are an
economic, environmental and health blight.
HARRISBURG -- In March 1996, a catastrophic tire fire
engulfed a busy section of I-95 in Philadelphia, damaging the roadway and
releasing toxic emissions. The fire drew attention to an environmental
issue that had been quietly building in Pennsylvania -- waste tire piles.
[/EC]]
Lawmakers took up the issue that same year, passing
Act 190 that enabled DEP to begin to assess and remediate tire piles, like
the one responsible for the I-95 fire.
In 1996, Pennsylvania had 36 million waste tires in
hundreds of piles across the state. Many had been established for decades
as a less-expensive way to dispose of unwanted tires. Others believed that
they would someday have value, so the tires were stashed in hillsides and
valleys.
Since the passage of Act 190, DEP, in cooperation
with private industry and willing landowners, has cleaned up 97 percent of
these waste tires. Less than a million waste tires remain in the state.
Pennsylvania has proactively addressed this problem
by committing $29 million to remediate waste tire piles. Much of that money
was raised by tipping fees paid by the waste management industry and not
taxpayer dollars.
Waste tire piles are an economic, environmental and
health blight on the landscape of Pennsylvania. The state has been a leader
in waste tire pile removal, but there is still work to be done.
To learn more about the waste tire program, or to see
a list of upcoming cleanup projects, click
here.
Reminder: Act 13 Natural Gas Vehicle Grant Round
Closes Nov. 14
 HARRISBURG --
Applications for the third round of Natural Gas Vehicle grants that will provide
an estimated $6 million to help pay for the incremental purchase and
conversion costs of heavy-duty natural gas fleet vehicles are due by 4
p.m., Friday, Nov. 14.
Since 2013, $14 million has been awarded to 44
organizations and companies making the switch to compressed natural gas
(CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG) and bi-fuel vehicles weighing 14,000
pounds or more.
Those eligible to apply include non-profit
organizations, local transportation organizations, state
owned or state related universities, commonwealth or municipal authorities,
for-profit companies and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.
Requests can be no more than 50 percent of the
incremental purchase or retrofit cost per vehicle, with a maximum total of
$25,000 per vehicle.
Grants will be awarded this winter.
Click here
for more information.
DEP Accepting Nominations for New Aggregate Advisory Board
HARRISBURG -- DEP is seeking qualified candidates to
join the newly-formed Aggregate Advisory Board. Members of the board will
advise DEP on issues related to non-coal surface mining.
The Aggregate Advisory Board will be comprised of the
Secretary of DEP (chair), four representatives from the Citizens Advisory
Council, one representative from the county conservation districts, four
representatives from the General Assembly, and the three representatives of
aggregate surface mining.
Candidates should be willing to serve on the board for
a minimum of two years.
For more information about the board, or to apply for
board membership, click here.
Nominations Sought for "Best Of" Land Recycling
Contest [[/EC]]
 HARRISBURG -- 2015
marks the 20th anniversary of Act 2, Pennsylvania’s landmark Land Recycling
Program. Signed into law in May 1995, this program has been
successful in all areas of the Commonwealth, helping to restore
environmentally-challenged properties back to useful life and economic
prosperity.
To mark this special annivesary,
DEP and the Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania are looking for
Pennsylvania's best of the best brownfield
projects to be recognized at the 2015 Pennsylvania Brownfields Conference to be held May 13-15,
2015 at the Bayfront Convention Center, Erie.
Conference organizers are looking for nominations of
unique or impactful projects that were completed as a result of Act 2. All
types of brownfield projects are encouraged --
big or small, 20
years or six months old. If the project was important to
your community, we would like to hear about it.
Submittals may be considered for verbal
presentations, poster display or recognition at the conference. Be sure to
submit your nominations soon, as we may feature your project on our
Transformation Tuesday Twitter feed. The nomination
form is available on ESWP's
website.
Department of
Health to Offer Free Potassium Iodide on Nov. 20 for Pennsylvanians who
have Tablets Expiring in December 2014[[/EC]]
HARRISBURG -- The Department of Health will provide free
potassium iodide, or KI, Thursday, Nov. 20, to Pennsylvanians who currently
have tablets with a December 2014 expiration date who live within 10-miles
of one of the state’s five nuclear power plants. The department will
properly dispose of expired KI that residents bring with them to the
distribution sites.
KI can help protect the thyroid gland against harmful
radioactive iodine when taken as directed during radiological emergencies.
Individuals should only take KI when told to do so by state health officials
or the governor.
Each adult will receive four 65-milligram tablets.
Children will be given smaller doses based on their age. Individuals can
pick up KI tablets for other family members or those who are unable to
pick them up on their own. Directions detailing when to
take the tablets and how to store them will be provided with the KI.
Read
more.
  
|
