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May 27, 2010

Senator John Pippy E-News

News from Around Pennsylvania

Paddle at the Point - June 5, 2010
Help Celebrate the United Nations World Environment Day in
Pittsburgh with World Record Attempt

As Pittsburgh and the world celebrate World Environment Day on Saturday, June 5, join Paddle at the Point and help put Pittsburgh's watershed on the map by setting a new Guinness World Record™ for Largest Raft of Canoes/Kayaks. 1,200 canoes and kayaks are needed to set a mark at the confluence of the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio Rivers. Don't have a boat? Don't worry; you can sign up to rent a boat.  We'll need everyone and anyone, clubs and groups welcome! Free parking will be provided on the North Shore, where will launch to paddle just across the river to Point State Park. Be part of history in the making and celebrate World Environment Day in Pittsburgh with Paddle at the Point!

In case anyone needs more incentive than breaking a world record, all participants are entered to win great prizes. For each boat that a person brings (with someone in it), they are entered to win two pairs of tickets each for the Steelers, Penguins, and Pirates, 2 pairs of tickets each for the Pittsburgh Opera, Ballet, and Symphony, plus 2 Season Passes to Kayak Pittsburgh and Venture Outdoors membership packages. And everyone receives a frameable certificate for being part of the world record attempt.

Visit www.paddleatthepoint.com for Registration information. 

Put Pennsylvania's Alert System to Work for You 

Don't be caught off-guard when an incident or emergency occurs whether you are at work, home, or relaxing in the park while your children play.  Sign-up for Pennsylvania's Alert System, administered by Commonwealth officials, for timely information about emergencies allowing for educated decision-making.   

Receive emergency notifications, including PA Amber Alerts, through your communication devices by incorporating your email account, cell phone, pager, and Smartphone/PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) when you sign-up through AlertPA.gov to ensure timely warnings. 

Participants may receive precautionary warnings as deemed necessary, such as: 

• Severe weather warnings
• Change in the Homeland Security Advisory System terror alert level
• Pre-cautionary evacuation order if on high alert
• Biological recalls
• Disease precautions for travel destinations
• E-coli
• Influenza
• Recalls and product safety

Register your accounts and devices to establish your secure AlertPA account today.  During registration, use the Control key for multiple selections allowing you to receive notification for loved ones at additional locations.

Turn Around, Don't Drown 

Pennsylvania is one of the most flood-prone states in the nation.  From rural areas to suburban communities, floods - especially flash floods - are a constant concern, according to the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.   

Except for heat-related fatalities, more deaths occur from flooding than any other hazard, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the National Weather Service.   

Failure to realize the power of water contributes to nearly 100 flood-related deaths annually according to the NWS and is the catalyst for the "Turn Around, Don't Drown" campaign.  Just six inches of fast-moving flood water can knock you off your feet and sweep your vehicle downstream.  

Flash floods can roll boulders, tear out trees, trigger catastrophic mud slides, destroy buildings and bridges, and carve new channels.

Bluebird Cam Offers Respite from Daily Grind 

Are you stuck in a building with no windows or live in an urban area with little natural environment to enjoy, or maybe a rainy day is keeping you cooped-up inside?  You are now a click away from a peaceful respite with a family of bluebirds, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC).   

Activity surrounding a bluebird nesting box on the grounds of the PGC's Harrisburg Headquarters is now being webcast via live streaming video.  The five recently laid bluebird eggs appearing in the specially-placed bluebird nest box are visible day and night through the installation of an infrared video camera.   

Bluebird nest boxes placed close to buildings almost always attract competition from sparrows, which annually chase native bluebirds from nest boxes and nesting cavities.  Competition from sparrows for a nest box is thwarted by the use of monofilament fishing line stretched from the roof over the entrance hole.   

May is the peak of spring migration.  Grab your binoculars and turn an eye to the sky and you may see Baltimore orioles, scarlet tanagers, wood thrushes, black-throated green warblers, red-eyed vireos, yellow warblers, and olive-backed thrushes.  June delivers the height of the nesting season and more migration while July marks the beginning of fall migration.  

Access the PGC's Howard Nursery Wildlife Homes 2010 Order Form (scroll to bottom of page) to purchase a bluebird box for just $7.  Hang it in your backyard along with other available wildlife homes to bring nature home. 

DEP Reminds Pool Owners to Handle Wastewater Safely

Clean Streams Law Prohibits Discharging Chlorinated Water to Storm Sewers 

HARRISBURG -- As pools across Pennsylvania prepare to open for the season, the Department of Environmental Protection is reminding private and public pool owners, as well as pool management companies, that pool and chlorinated wastewater must be handled responsibly. 

"With warmer weather here, many residents and municipalities are getting their pools ready for the summer," said DEP Secretary John Hanger. "But almost every spring, as swimming pools are cleaned and prepared for summer use, we see fish kills in local streams that easily could have been prevented." 

The department says pool owners and professional pool cleaners should dispose of old water correctly and neutralize wastewater that contains harmful chemicals such as chlorine. Most importantly, every effort should be made to ensure the wastewater is going into the sanitary sewer system where permitted and not into storm sewer systems. 

When chlorinated water is drained from a swimming pool into a storm sewer, it quickly makes its way to a stream or other body of water where aquatic life is damaged or killed. 

Discharging swimming pool water Pennsylvania's waterways without a permit violates the Clean Streams Law. Property owners and pool companies that violate this law may be prosecuted and penalized for damages.

If the local municipality grants permission, all wastewater – including pool backwash water, neutralized pool cleaning wastewater and standing water – should be discharged to the local sanitary sewer system. If sanitary sewers cannot be accessed, the wastewater should be hauled off site for disposal at an approved treatment facility. 

In cases where sanitary sewers cannot be accessed and wastewater cannot be hauled away, DEP offers detailed guidance for treating and disposing water containing chlorine or chemicals used to clean pools on-site at www.depweb.state.pa.us by clicking on "Water" in the left navigation bar, then "Bureau of Watershed Management." A "Swimming Pool Water Discharge Guide" can be found then by clicking on the "Fact Sheets and Publications" link. 

Questions on how to handle pool wastewater may also be directed to any of DEP's regional offices. Contact information is available through the "Regional Resources" link on DEP's home page.

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Information Courtesy:

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
Department of Environmental Protection
Commonwealth News Bureau
Room 308, Main Capitol Building
Harrisburg PA., 17120

CONTACT: DEP/Susan Rickens 717-787-1323