Rock, Paper, Water: Western Pennsylvania Landscapes and the Paint

Stonycreek-Conemaugh River Improvement Project

Rock, Paper, Water: Western Pennsylvania Landscapes and the Painterly Eye by Joan Hawk Volume XXVI Number 1 Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art (SAMA) Winter 2019 is planning a multidisciplinary exhibition scheduled for Spring 2021 at SAMA-Bedford, Save the Date: 137 E. Pitt St, Bedford, PA. 15522. 814-589- March 21– SCRIP board meeting, Gan- 3020. The exhibition will feature the artwork der Outdoors, 3 pm. of the nineteenth century Scalp Level artists, including women artists, from Pittsburgh who March 30– Picking were so captivated by the scenery of the Scalp Up Paint Creek Litter Level area that they came here every summer Cleanup. See page 2 for for decades to sketch and paint. This is a very details. Scalp Level artist, George Hetzel’s 19th exciting and ambitious project because the century painting of Paint Creek exhibition will focus not only on the art, but March 31– Bens on geology, ecology, water resources and in- Creek Litter Cleanup. dustrial development—hence the title. The Energy and Earth Resources Department Volunteers meet at at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown will be lending support as well. A robust Jim & Jimmies along series of programs will accompany the exhibition, including interpretive field trips Rt. 985, 9 am. For more info contact Randy Bu- along Paint Creek or at select spots to discuss the geology and ecology. Paint Creek, chanan 814-467-4034. despite the impacts of industry, is still a beautiful stream and has an important story to tell. For further information contact Debbie Grazier ([email protected]) or Joan (continued on page 2) Hawk ([email protected]).

Become a Certified Master Naturalist by Melissa Reckner In This Issue: Become a certified Pennsylvania Master Naturalist volunteer Trout in Classroom 2 in Westmoreland County and join its growing team of volunteers working locally for nature conservation. This course is Westmoreland Earth perfect for educators, volunteers, and nature-lovers who want Day 2 to discover and protect the natural habitats of the Laurel Highlands. (You do not have to work or reside in West- Paint Creek Pickup 2 moreland County to participate!) Volunteer service and life-

Photo courtesy of PMN long learning are at the heart of this program. To become a NatureWorks 3 certified Master Naturalist volunteer, you must complete an State of the initial 50-hour training course followed by annual volunteer service and continuing edu- Environment 4&5 cation in the natural sciences. This initial training course will be offered this fall at Brandywine Conservancy's Pen- Obituary 5 guin Court in Laughlintown. Twelve weekly classes from 6-8:30 PM on Tuesdays, Au- gust thru October 2019, will be supplemented by four Saturday field trips. New Board Member 5 A discounted rate is offered until May 1. Only 15 applications will be accepted with 10

people selected for the training. Don't delay, apply today! Learn more and apply online: People of SCRIP 6 www.pamasternaturalist.org.

Save the Trout in the Classroom Continues Date A Shanksville Elementary School student shows off the (continued) bluegill she caught while fly-fishing during their

Outdoor Day. Photo by Melissa Reckner April 5– 9th Annual Fly Tiers Reunion, Sporting Trout in the Classroom (TIC) continues in many local Clays Lodge at Seven schools! Though she’s now with the Brandywine Con- Spring Mountain Resort servancy’s Penguin Court, Melissa Reckner is still coordi- 6pm nating TIC Release Days for nine schools and helping

with a few other schools’ activities. Volunteer help is April 20– Yellow Creek needed, especially with the schools that have a fishing Cleanup- cvolunteers component to their field trip! If you’re interested in meet at 8 am for break- fast, 9am for work day at helping with one or more days, please contact Melissa at New Frontier Restaurant [email protected] or 724-238-4991. Thanks! For more info, contact Randy Buchanan 814-467-4034.

April 27– Shade Creek Road Cleanup– Volun- teers meet at 9am. For more info, contact Randy Buchanan 814-467-4034.

May 4– Westmoreland Earth Day 2019, Winnie Palmer Nature Reserve at St. Vincent College, 1- 5pm. See details this page.

May 16-18– Pennsylva- nia Land Conservation Conference, Skytop Lodge in The Poconos. Register online: Con- serveLand.org/2019- conference.

July 23– Intro to Kayak Paint Creek Cleanup on March 30 Fishing, sponsored by SCRIP/PA Fish and Boat Commission, The annual Picking Up Paint Creek litter cleanup is scheduled for Satur- Quemahoning Family day, March 30, 2019. Volunteers are asked to meet in the pull-off about Recreation Area, 5-9 pm. half way down Berwick Road in Richland Township at 8:30 AM. Small groups of volunteers will be sent to either end of Berwick and also to a one-mile section of State Route 160 between Elton and Windber, while a few will clean up the local fishing holes in time for the opening day of trout. Light refreshments, gloves, vests, and trash bags will be provided. Volunteers should wear closed-toe shoes or boots and dress for the weather. Contact Melissa at [email protected] if you have any questions.

Page 2 NatureWorks was held on Saturday March 2 from 10 am-2 pm at the Bottle Works with approximately 350 people at- tending. The 23 exhibitors provided activities and/or information on various environmental topics, activities and clubs in our area. Credit for organizing the event goes to Melissa Reckner and Sue Konvolinka (pictured to the right) and to Bot- tleWorks for hosting. Stonycreek River Improvement Project Unattributed photos on this page by was one of the sponsors of the event. A sampling of the ex- Melissa Reckner. hibitors are below.

Iron oxide chalk activity with Animal tracks with Conemaugh Andy Fresch with Moun- SCRIP’s Larry Hutchinson Valley Conservancy tain Laurel Chapter of Trout Unlimited

Penguin Court, a Preserve of Laura Hawkins with Kiski Brandywine Conservancy & Conemaugh Water-Trail Somerset County Conservation District monarch butterflies Photo by Len Lichvar

Tom Hindman with National Benscreek Canoe Club Lauren Burkert Lazzari Cambria County Wild Turkey Federation with Stackhouse Park Conservation District (Allegheny Plateau Chapter)

Page 3 State of the Environment At the local level conservation district Without this rehab work the systems by Len Lichvar funding was also cut a number of years are and will further fail to function. Every year the President gives the ago and partially replaced with funds from Add to that the millions of dollars re- State of the Union address. Per- the natural gas impact fee under Act 13. quired for a long term trust fund for haps it is time to make a State of maintenance of these and many other Our Environment address. So However, the work load of Districts has systems well into the future throughout here it is. increased and so have expenses while the the region continues to be funded at funding levels have been stagnant that has exactly zero. The Keystone State’s natural re- forced District’s to curtail and limit their sources have been infringed up- locally driven programs and projects. To add to the growing current level of on, altered, reshaped and often unmet need is the as of yet inability of degraded for over 100 years. Of Pennsylvania’s hallmark legislative conser- the state legislature to provide a re- course the reality is much of the vation funding known as Growing Green- quested small increase in a user fee, use and abuse of those natural er has been very successful in empowering known as a fishing license, that would resources also allow us to have local organizations to achieve significant enable the PA Fish and Boat Commis- the comforts and lifestyle we now conservation goals for years. However, sion, that receives no contributions enjoy. There does need to be a the program funds have decreased from from state tax trade off. over 200 million dollars a year in the mid dollars, to properly meet its charge of 2000’s to only 57 million this year. No protecting our water resources and en- However, thanks largely to public viable method has been put forth by the hancing angling and boating recreation funding and public sector federal legislature to re-create the funding levels that generates over 2 billion dollars a and state programs and regula- that are still very much needed. Even year to the state economy. tions as well as professional con- worse, the Governor’s recent budget re- servation organizations and quest transfers funding from the Keystone Unfortunately, the political will to ad- countless volunteers and non- Recreation and Conservation Fund and dress and support funding for conser- profits the abuse of our natural Environmental Stewardship Fund to pay vation measures has fallen on hard resources is not any further out for operating costs of DEP and DCNR times. of balance with the use of them. that will further reduce the available funds for Growing Greener thereby robbing Well then what can be done to improve That balance, which is often out Peter to only partially pay Paul. these shortfalls and counter the imbal- of balance in favor of the abuse, ance? Actually a partial but important is potentially going to get worse On the national level the current White example was the foresighted passing of unless there is motivated support House Administration has initiated an the state transportation legislation Act for actions to be taken to counter assault on the federal Clean Water Act. 89 in 2013 by the legislature that added the trend. The EPA’s current politically driven effort significant funding support for the Dirt to amend the Clean Water Rule would and Gravel Road Program. This For example the PA Department eliminate protection on 20% of the state’s statewide initiative is actually a water of Environmental Protection wetlands and leave countless other high quality conservation program since its which is in charge of protection quality waterways around the country at primary goal is to reduce erosion and and oversight of our natural re- risk of degradation. polluted runoff coming from unpaved sources has seen a 30% reduction roads by properly designed road and in staff since 2002 equating to a To make the point locally in order to culvert improvements and yet has a loss of over 900 staff. The ability maintain the much heralded water quality secondary benefit of improving rural to regulate air and water pollu- improvements in the Cambria-Somerset transportation. tion, require proper safeguards region at least 1.5 million dollars are still for development, address climate required to upgrade and maintain the The additional good news is there are change and dozens of other es- AMD abatement systems that have re- very viable alternatives to directly tax- sential conservation initiatives has turned life to the Stonycreek River and ing citizens. been crippled for going on two tributaries along with renewed economic (Continued on page 5) decades. vitality. Page 4

Environment (continued from page 4) When this common property is used by for profit entities On January 31, 2019 Governor Tom Wolf proposed a 4.5 the citizen owners deserve a return on that use. Currently billion dollar 4 year Renew PA Initiative to fund commu- major water users in the state usurp the resource for free. nity and environmental infrastructure that would include funding for AMD abatement and other essential conser- Only when the citizens demand that the elusive even bal- vation programs. The problem is, however, it is intended ance between use and abuse of our natural resources is to be funded by a severance fee imposed on the natural created and maintained will the political will be powerful gas industry that is unpopular with the gas industry and enough to offset the imbalance and forthcoming environ- therefore not surprisingly has opponents on the political mental and economic disasters we heading straight to- end. ward.

Another innovative user fee funding source is a water This was previously published in the Daily American and opinions stated extraction fee that actually had a state legislative bill intro- here do not necessarily represent those of SCRIP. duced last year that if enacted would raise hundreds of millions of dollars annually even by exempting farmers New SCRIP Board Member and public water suppliers. Water is the state’s most Thomas Clark, Jr. available natural resource and the PA Constitution states Tom Clark grew up in Eureka Mine #42 north of Wind- that the water is the common property of the people. ber, PA and is a graduate of Forest Hills School District. Tom received his B.S. in Biology (Terrestrial Ecology

In Memorium emphasis) from the University of Pittsburgh at John- SCRIP Board Member John Vatavuk, passed away on stown in 1998. He then received his M.S. in Biology January 27 at Windber Hospice. He has served as a Som- (Aquatic Ecology emphasis) from the California Univer- erset County Commissioner from 2008 up until his pass- sity of Pennsylvania in 2003 working under Dr. William ing. Retired from the North Star School District, where Kimmel, respected acid deposition and mine drainage he taught for 36 years and touched the lives of hundreds researcher. During that time, Tom was a 3-year intern at of students. John was a champion for the completion of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protec- Route 219 from Somerset to Meyersdale. That section of tion’s Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation under highway was opened in October of 2018, fulfilling a great the guidance of Pam Milavec. From 2000-2007, Tom part of his longtime dream of seeing it constructed the was an independent watershed consultant and served as whole way to the Maryland border. In addition to the the contracted Watershed Specialist for both Indiana SCRIP board, he served on the Board of Trustees of the and Armstrong Counties. In 2007, Tom accepted the Penn Highlands Community College, the North South Mine Drainage Program Coordinator position with the Highway Coalition, the Continental One Board, Windber Susquehanna River Basin Commission, where he contin- School Board, and numerous other boards and commit- ues to serve. Tom lives in Indiana, PA with his wife tees throughout the County of Somerset. His expertise Kristi and their identical twin 14 year old sons, Adam and kind demeanor will be missed. and Alek.

Join or renew* SCRIP today! Name ______Street Address ______City______State/Zip ______Email ______Phone ______Date ______Do you wish to volunteer? ______Student ($6) ______Individual ($15) _____ Family ($20) _____ Club/Small Business ($50) ______Patron ($50) _____ Sustaining ($100) _____ Sponsor ($500) ______Lifetime ($1000)

Make your check payable to SCRIP, or for a tax-deductible contribution, make the check to Southern Alleghenies Conservancy/ SCRIP. * If you are not sure of your membership status contact SCRIP’s secretary at [email protected]. Send donations to: SCRIP, P.O. Box 164,Windber, PA 15963 Page 5 * *

Non-Profit Organization U.S. POSTAGE Southern Alleghenies Conservancy PAID SCRIP Johnstown, PA 10605 Raystown Road Suite A Permit No. 5 Huntington PA 16652-7542

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www.scrippa.org SCRIP is the Stonycreek-Conemaugh River Improvement Project, a coalition of grass-roots groups and local resource agencies working to restore and promote the Upper Conemaugh watershed.

Board of Directors People of SCRIP

Len Lichvar, Adam Cotchen Renewing Members John Dryzal Chairman Donald & Mary Anderson Mike & Kirsten Pasierb Joe Gorden Thomas Clark Jr., Jenner Township Supervisors Rob & Pam Piper Vice-Chairman Larry Hutchinson Susan & Norman Joseph – NEW Gerald & Ruth Pozun Melissa Reckner, Stefan Long Carl Kahl Somerset County Sportsmen’s League Secretary Karlice Makuchan Elizabeth Mayer & Mike Kane Eva Strang Pam Milavec Jim Eckenrode, Laurel Run Rod & Gun Club Traditional Angler of PA Robb Piper Dick & Connie Mayer E. Lincoln & Barbara Van Sickel Treasurer Bill Strosnider Rob & Cindy McCombie Michael & Terry Vranich George & Elaine Mostoller Robert Wardrop Herb Wilson

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