Centre County Pennsylvania Senior Environmental Corps

February 13, 2013 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

The revised Constitution and By-laws document, adding Committee Chair job descriptions, was approved with a few modifications.  (It is now available on the website under the About Us link.)

New and continuing officers were elected for 2013-2014.  They are:

• President - Lou Mayer
• Vice President - Lynn Hutcheson
• Secretary - Ella Bashore
• Treasurer - Diana Hershberger

Communications,  Public Relations, and Historian Chair positions are still vacant.

Colorimeter training will be held in March or April.  There have been issues with fine tuning the procedures for colorimeter testing which need to be communicated to all members.   Loretta Jeffreys and Ken Johnson will work on a Colorimeter training video.

Ken Johnson, Quality Control Chairman, noted that our data indicate more variability with Nitrates testing than with other parameters testing. 

A poster has been created on macroinvertebrates  to be used for educational purposes.  This is one of a series planned.  Millbrook March Nature Center will be contacted to see if the posters would be of interest for posting there for use with school groups.

The Marcellus Region teams will be possibly changing or adding new sites in the region.  Dr. K has indicated he has the capacity to do testing for 9 sites.  If new sites are chosen, former sites will be monitored less frequently.  Dan Delotto will work with others to establish the new sites.

Meetings have been held on possible monitoring efforts on the Logan branch due to potential increased industrial activity in that area.  Of concern would be water withdrawals as well as temperature and turbidity increases in water discharges into Logan Branch.

CCPaSEC is helping to sponsor a Coldwater Conservation Corps Water Quality Monitoring Training Workshop for interested individuals in central Pennsylvania.  The workshop, hosted by the Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited, will be held on March 16, 2013, Trinity Lutheran Church, 2221  N. Oak Lane, State College , PA 16803.  View the poster with added details.

Mick McKay investigated issues with out of range readings using the colorimeters for Sulfate measurements.  Low water temperature may require a longer time interval for reagents to dissolve prior to taking the reading for Sulfate.

Bob Carline has volunteered to speak on macroinvertebrates at the March general meeting.

The next meeting will be on March 13,  9:30 a.m., at the Willowbank Building, Room 317.

March 13, 2013 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

Dr. Bob Carline gave a very interesting presentation on historical changes in water quality in Centre County and the recent status of macroinvertebrates and fish.  He explained how human development in the area affects water quality and which macros are present in good quality versus polluted streams.

Colorimeter training will be held on Monday, April 29 at the Stackhouse building at Fisherman's Paradise at 9:30 a.m.  There have been issues with fine tuning the procedures for colorimeter testing which need to be communicated to all members.   Loretta Jeffreys and Ken Johnson will work on a Colorimeter training video. 

Molly Hetrick from Millbrook Marsh Nature Center will speak at our April meeting on what type of educational materials would be useful as part of a  display at the Nature Center for use with school groups.  A poster has already been created on macroinvertebrates.   This is one of a series planned. 

The Marcellus Region teams will be changing/ adding new sites in the region.  Dr. K has indicated he has the capacity to do testing for 9 sites.  Some new sites have been chosen, so former sites will be monitored less frequently.  Team 13 added two new sites in March, one on Salt Lick, and one on Twin Run. 

Meetings have been held on possible monitoring efforts on the Logan branch due to potential increased industrial activity in that area.  Of concern would be water withdrawals as well as temperature and turbidity increases in water discharges into Logan Branch.  It was determined at those meetings that CCPaSEC will not be involved in this monitoring since more frequent monitoring is desired, similar to the monitoring that the Water Resources Monitoring Project does.

During 2013, teams will be encouraged to participate in meetings by sharing information and stories about their sites at a meeting featuring their team.  Teams will also be encouraged to pair with other teams for a monitoring event.

Producing a newletter for CCPaSEC was discussed.  The merits of mailing versus emailing a newletter were debated.  Also, monthly versus quarterly timing was discussed.  No decisions were made at this time.

CCPaSEC members' presentation of our monitoring efforts to the Spring Creek Watershed Commission Meeting on February 20, 2013 was taped and broadcast on C-NET Channel 7 (Comcast Cable), on Saturday, February 23 – 4:00 p.m. and Sunday, February 24 – 8:00 p.m. It is also available online at http://cnet.pegcentral.com/player.php?video=c2c097e281eb50a589ddec5cc9115c9e . Click on link 'Report on On-Going Water Monitoring Project in Marcellus Shale R' to view video. 

CCPaSEC is helping to sponsor a Coldwater Conservation Corps Water Quality Monitoring Training Workshop for interested individuals in central Pennsylvania.  The workshop, hosted by the Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited, will be held on March 16, 2013, Trinity Lutheran Church, 2221  N. Oak Lane, State College , PA 16803.  View the poster with added details.

George Kelly from the Penns Valley Conservation Association is looking for a group to monitor sites along Penn's Creek  to provide data for determining if a stream project is effective in raising water quality.  

Watershed Clean-up Day will be Saturday, April 20.  CCPaSEC members who are interested in participating should contact Genie Robine.  Volunteers will meet at the Benner Township Building at 8 a.m.  A picnic following the clean-up will be held at Spring Creek Park.

The next meeting will be on April 10,  9:30 a.m., at the Willowbank Building, Room 317.  Molly Hetrick from Millbrook Marsh Nature Center will speak about educational materials we may provide the center for use by visiting school groups.

April 10, 2013 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

Colorimeter training will be held on Monday, April 29 at the Stackhouse building at Fisherman's Paradise at 9:30 a.m.  There have been issues with fine tuning the procedures for colorimeter testing which need to be communicated to all members.   Loretta Jeffreys, Ralph Locklin, Kathi Ferrigno, and Ken Johnson will work on Colorimeter training videos. 2 members from each team should attend with their colorimeter. 

Molly Hetrick from Millbrook Marsh Nature Center spoke on what type of educational materials would be useful as part of a  display at the Nature Center for use with school groups.  A poster has already been created on macroinvertebrates.   This is one of a series planned.  She also spoke of the many volunteer opportunities that are available for our members to participate in.  Specifically, help is needed with their "Wet Lab", with Water Table activities, and their 13 summer camps.  Her contact information is : This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..  She noted that June 1 is Spring Creek Day with lots of demos for participants.

Quality Control team pairings will be done again this year, since many had positive experiences with this set-up.  Lou Mayer will put together a Team Pairing list.  Members of one team will do duplicate monitoring with the second team and compare results.  Then the second team will do duplicate monitoring with the first team.

Nature Abounds is looking for people who are willing to become certified trainers for using the colorimeter.  These folks will then be available to train other groups or individuals in a regional area.

Meetings have been held on possible monitoring efforts on the Logan branch due to potential increased industrial activity in that area.  Of concern would be water withdrawals as well as temperature and turbidity increases in water discharges into Logan Branch.  It was determined that CCPaSEC would not be involved in this monitoring since more frequent monitoring is desired, similar to the monitoring that the Water Resources Monitoring Project does.  CCPaSEC members are concerned that only temperature and conductivity will be monitored.  Since Logan Branch is the largest tributary to Spring Creek, we possibly could monitor other parameters which are important.  Bob Donaldson & Nick Schipanski should be contacted for their input on this CCPaSEC monitoring possibility.

Mick McKay gave an overview of the Coldwater Conservation Corps (CCC) Water Quality Monitoring Training Workshop hosted by the Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited on March 16, 2013.  Mick gave a presentation at the workshop of CCPaSEC's monitoring in the Marcellus Shale region of Centre County.  The CCC monitoring would be for water & air temperature, conductivity, TDS, pH, and stream depth to estimate flow.  This monitoring would be done weekly or biweekly and also would include looking for land disturbances, spills, water withdrawals violations and natural gas leakages.

John Wilson, a hydrologist from the USGS National Water-Quality Assessment Program, is compiling an inventory of monitoring data in several states in the northeast and mid-west.  He asked for copies of CCPaSEC's data.  Joyce McKay is in the process of forwarding CCPaSEC data through 2012 to him for inclusion.

Lou Mayer noted that Indiana University of Pennsylvania is located in the Marcellus shale region of PA. and currently has 4 operating gas wells on their property from which 50% of the revenues flow back to the university.  They've established a new department for the study of economic and social implications, and research in shale development.  For more information read an article in the IUP Magazine.

Watershed Clean-up Day will be Saturday, April 20.  CCPaSEC members who are interested in participating should contact Genie Robine.  Volunteers will meet at the Benner Township Building at 8 a.m.  A picnic following the clean-up will be held at Spring Creek Park.

The next meeting will be on April 29,  9:30 a.m., at the Stackhouse building at Fisherman's Paradise.  Colorimeter training will be held. 2 members from each team should attend and bring their colorimeter if they have one. 

May 8, 2013- General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

Colorimeter training was held on Monday, April 29 at the Stackhouse building at Fisherman's Paradise.  There have been issues with fine tuning the procedures for colorimeter testing which were communicated to all members present.   Colorimeter training videos were used at the training which was well attended.  Phosphate results among colorimeters were in agreement except for 2 colorimeters.  There will be some follow-up testing of the two colorimeters to try and determine the cause of the differences.  The training videos are now available on the CCPaSEC website from the 'Video Gallery' link on the left-side menu.

Lynn Hutcheson, our liason with ClearWater Conservancy (CWC), reported that the CWC Board had a strategic planning session.  Out of this session, 8 initiatives for the next year were developed.

Marcellus site data can now be access through the Monitoring Sites & Data/Monitoring Sites in the Beech Creek Watershed link on the left-side menu of the website.  Also, the report 'Surface Water Assessments in Centre County Pennsylvania: the Beech Creek Watershed', which was written as the result of the Healthy Waters Grant, is also accessible from this page.  

Joyce McKay has forwarded our data through 12/2012 to John Wilson, a hydrologist from the USGS National Water-Quality Assessment Program, who is compiling an inventory of monitoring data in several states in the northeast and mid-west.  

CCPaSEC will participate in the 2013 CentreGives campaign through ClearWater Conservancy.  The campaign runs for 36 hours from 6 a.m. May 22 to 6 p.m. May 23.  Gifts given to ClearWater for CCPaSEC will receive a matching donation from the Centre Foundation prorated depending on the total amount raised.

Team 1 will continue monitoring their sites at Galbraith Gap and Slab Cabin Run.   There was some discussion concerning changing sites.  Due to potential development in the Galbraith Gap area, it was deemed wise to continue to monitor these sites to watch for changes in water quality.

Several members of CCPasEC participate in the Watershed Clean-up Day on Saturday, April 20.  Many pounds of trash and tires were recovered and disposed of properly.

Ken Johnson helped CWC in monitoring 18 sites for the Water Resources Monitoring Project.

Several members will help with environmental educational sessions at the Muddy Paws Wetland Education Center on June 3 and 4. 

CCPaSEC will host the annual picnic with Clearfield County PaSEC in August.  Details will be announced after they are determined.

The next meeting will be on June 12,  9:30 a.m.

June 12, 2013- General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

A new procedure for Colorimeter sample cell cleaning was developed by Ken Johnson, Quality Control, and commmunicated to all members present.  The cleaning procedure will be available on the CCPaSEC website from the 'Field & Test Kit Manuals' link on the left-side menu.

Ann Donovan announced that Penn Dot plans to discharge leachate from the ERPA (Engineered Rock Placement Area---off I-99, the area containing the pyritic material from the I-99 construction) into the Bald Eagle Creek.  CCPaSEC is considering re-establishment of the site which had been previously monitored.   It may be possible to monitor the site on a rotating basis with other Bald Eagle Creek sites.   

4 CCPaSEC members presented chemical testing to 7th & 8th graders during a two-day event at Muddy Paws Nature Center as part of our community education involvement. Trout Unlimited has requested members to help with chemical parameter testing with their Brookie Field School for 14 to 17 year olds on July 10.  CCPaSEC has also been requested to present on the Marcellus Shale monitoring efforts at the Beech Creek Watershed Association meeting on Sept. 16. 

The Marcellus Teams 13 &14 have chosen new sites to monitor, with Dr. K's approval, on a rotating basis with their current sites.  This will allow more streams in the area to be included in the baseline testing.   Ken Johnson & Joyce McKay attended the Shale Network Workshop on May 19-20 sponsored by the Shale Network at the Atherton Hotel, State College. They received training on the HydroDesktop Application which allows users to find data on water quality parameters in the Marcellus Shale drilling areas of PA.  Dr. K provided a poster titled Community Based Water Quality Monitoring Projects in Clinton, Centre and Clearfield Counties for presentation at the poster session on Friday evening.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 3 Volunteer Monitoring Conference that was to be held on June 7 and 8 was cancelled and rescheduled for August 9 and 10. Location will be at the National Conservation Training Center, Shepardstown, WV close to the border of West Virginia and Maryland. Cost will be $144.00 but scholarships may be available. If you are interested, contact Mick for details or visit: http://www.dep.wv.gov/WWE/getinvolved/sos/stories/Pages/EPAVolMonConf.aspx  Registration deadline is July 26.

CCPaSEC will host the annual picnic with Clearfield County PaSEC in August.  Details will be announced after they are determined.

The next meeting will be at the annual picnic on August 14, at Black Moshannon State Park.

July 10, 2013 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

Brian Querry, the RSVP Program Director for Centre County wll be assuming another position wih the county in the near future.  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. wll be the new liason with CCPaSEC.

Our treasurer has resigned so we will be searching for a replacement.  If any member is willing to take this office, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ASAP.

A new procedure for Colorimeter sample cell cleaning was developed by Ken Johnson, Quality Control, and commmunicated to all members present.  The cleaning procedure is now available on the CCPaSEC website from the 'Field & Test Kit Manuals' link on the left-side menu.

Ann Donovan will be asked to check into a site location for monitoring discharge leachate from the ERPA (Engineered Rock Placement Area---off I-99, the area containing the pyritic material from the I-99 construction) into the Bald Eagle Creek. The site may be monitored on a rotating basis with different teams or members who are available to do so.   

One member is helping with chemical parameter testing with Trout Unlimited's Brookie Field School for 14 to 17 year olds on July 10.  CCPaSEC has also been requested to present on the Marcellus Shale monitoring efforts at the Beech Creek Watershed Association meeting on Sept. 16. 

1 member of CCPaSEC was interviewed for a portion of a WPSU radio news segment which aired on the morning of June 13, 2013 concerning the Shale Network Workshop.  An audio archive of the interview can be found at: http://wpsu.org/radio/single_entry/LL-4703/stories. Click on the play button to listen to the news segment.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 3 Volunteer Monitoring Conference was rescheduled for August 9 and 10.  Location will be at the National Conservation Training Center, Shepherdstown, WV.  Mick and Joyce McKay plan to attend.  CCPaSEC will provide some monetary reimbursement for expenses, the amount depending on the awarding of scholarships.  The details can be found at: http://www.dep.wv.gov/WWE/getinvolved/sos/stories/Pages/EPAVolMonConf.aspx  Registration deadline is July 26.

Dr. K has invited CCPaSEC to present a poster which he will provide at the Keystone Cold Water Conference focusing on water monitoring in the Marcellus region.  The conference will take place at the Ramada Inn in State College on February 21-22, 2014.  Dr. K has volunteered to be a speaker on his research project with Clearfield & Centre County PaSECs.  We will inform Dr. K that we will participate.

CCPaSEC will host the annual picnic with Clearfield County PaSEC on August 14 at Black Moshannon State Park at 9:30 a.m.  Katie Ombalski, Conservation Biologist for ClearWater Conservancy, will speak prior to the picnic lunch.

The next meeting will be at the annual picnic on August 14 at 9:30 a.m., at Black Moshannon State Park.  Members are asked to bring a place setting and a dish to pass.  (map)

August 14, 2013 - General Meeting & Picnic - at Black Moshannon State Park.

13 members of CCPaSEC attended along with many members of the Clearfield County SEC.

Dan Delotto received two new flowmeters from Nature Abounds which brings the total to three to be shared with among the teams.  Dan also described the calibration of the YSI & Hanna Dissolved Oxygen meters.  The calibration procedure uses tap water to dampen a sponge, placing it in the calibration chamber for a five to fifteen minute period.

The 2013 Susquehanna River Symposium will be held on Friday, October 18 and Saturday, October 19 at the Bucknell University Environmental Center.  Lou distributed copies of the Susquehanna River Heartland Coalition for Environmental Studies 2012 Pulse of the Heartland Annual Report. The report includes an article on Dr. Md Khalequzzaman's (Dr. K) continuing work on assessing water quality with PaSEC.

Genie Robine reminded members to do their Macro Surveys during their September and/or October stream monitorings.  She will be available for those with questions or concerns.

Our treasurer has resigned so we will be searching for a replacement.  If any member is willing to take this office, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ASAP.

Dr. K has requested our participation in the February 21 and 22, 2014 Keystone Cold Water Conference. There is a September deadline so anyone interested should let Lou Mayer know as soon as possible.

Youth Day at Bilger's Rocks will be held Saturday, August 24 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Katie Ombalski, Conservation Biologist for ClearWater Conservancy, spoke on Clearwater's Stream Restoration projects prior to the picnic lunch.

The next meeting will be our annual Quality Control meeting on September 11 at 9:30 a.m. at the Laurel Haven Environmental Education Center, Julian.  At least two members from each team should attend.  The meeting will focus on the Oakton meters and colorimeters.

November 13, 2013 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte

Nick Shipanski from ClearWater Conservancy talked briefly about the New Zealand mud snail, an invasive species, which has been found in Spring Creek near Fisherman's Paradise.  If we find any of these snails in our monitoring events or just in fishing in our streams, we should contact the Fish & Boat Commission.  The snails are very small and very prolific and hard to eradicate.  He recommended brushing boots and equipment of mud and debris, then washing in soapy water and soaking gear in 1 part ammonia-based cleaner such as 409 and 1 part water for 24 hours or freezing for 24 hours at very low humidity.  This process should be used when moving from one stream to another. 

Nick also gave an update on Logan Branch.  ClearWater has a conductivity meter downstream of the new energy park development site.  Quarterly monitoring is done for salts, conductivity and temperature data.

A discussion was held on Quality Control issues. 

A new Quality Control Team was formed to develop a Quailty plan for 2014.  The QC team will collect and calibrate all meters in Janyary of 2014.

An email has been sent to Julie Vastine of ALLARM to ask for assistance with duplicate testing of some of our stream samples as well as possible testing of some of our Marcellus site samples for Strontium.

An update membership information form was developed and sent by email to all current members requesting members' current contact information.  The information will enable the website to stay current and the membership chairman to have current contact information.  Those who do not have an email address were sent a form by mail and asked to return it with the member information filled in.

Dan DeLotto has received new Dissolved Oxygen meters from Nature Abounds  to be shared among the teams.  Joyce McKay will ask for 3 more FlowWatch flowmeters - Model FW450 in the October Hours Report to Nature Abounds.

CCPaSEC should develop a policy on phasing out use of the Hach Test Kits.  Mick McKay will contact Nature Abounds for a colorimeter update.

On November 18, 2013, Ken Johnson will make a presentation to the Beech Creek Watershed Association at 7:00 p.m.  He will discuss Teams 13 & 14 monitoring efforts in the Beech Creek Watershed. 

The December Holiday Luncheon will be held Wednesday, December 11 at the Gamble Mill Restaurant after the General Meeting.  Lou Mayer sent out a notice and invitation with the RSVP date included.  Members attending could RSVP via a sign-up sheet at the November meeting.

The next general meeting will be Wednesday, December 11 at 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte followed by the December Luncheon at the Gamble Mill Restaurant in Bellefonte. 

October 9, 2013 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte

Since our treasurer had resigned, Rob Fugate volunteered and was elected to be the new treasurer. 

A discussion was held on Quality Control issues. 

• A new Quality Control Team was formed to develop a Quailty plan for 2014.  The team consists of Ken Johnson, chair, Scott Williams, Rob Fugate, Dave Truesdale and Jerry Leathers. 
• Teams will be encouraged to check their chemicals and standards - both packets and liquids for expired dates.  By Jan. 31, 2014, all teams should have replaced expired chemicals and solutions with unexpired ones.
• Each team should calibrate their Oakton meter shortly prior to each monitoring event.  Dan DeLotto will send out the sheet he developed on how to calibrate the Oakton meter to each team leader.
• Data is being checked for 2013.  Notices are being sent to data enterers with anomalies in their team's data sheets to try to resolve the issues.  Data enterers are asked to review the data sheets to check for data entry errors or omissions and contact Joyce McKay if help is needed in correcting the issues.
  
• When out of range data has been recorded, it should be flagged as such (e.g. '50 - out of range') with a note in the Other Observations/comments data entry field.
• Mick McKay reported on a session he attended on Quality at the EPA 2013 Region 3, Volunteer Monitoring Conference in West VA this August.  He compared our Quality practices to those suggested at the conference and reported that he thought we were doing well.

An update membership information form will be developed and sent to all current members requesting members' current contact information.  This will enable the website to stay current and the membership chairman to have current contact information.  The form will be sent via email as the Volunteer Hours submission form is.  If anyone on a team does not have an email address, team leaders are asked to obtain that member's information requested in the form and send it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The December Holiday Luncheon will be held Wednesday, December 11 after the General Meeting.  Lou Mayer will send out a notice and invitation with the RSVP date included. 

The next general meeting will be Wednesday, November 13 at 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte. 

September 11, 2013 - Quality Control Meeting - at Laruel Haven Environmental Education Center, Julian

Our treasurer has resigned so we will be searching for a replacement.  If any member is willing to take this office, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ASAP.

The meeting focused on comparing and calibrating Oakton meters for pH and conductivity, and using colorimeters to measure standard solutions for nitrates, phosphates, dissolved oxygen, and sulfates.

The next meeting will be October 9 at 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte. 

December 11, 2013 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte

Ken Johnson presented a Quality Control Duplicate testing proposal, which includes duplicate testing by the QC committee members, twice a year. An equipment check would be completed once a year.  Following a brief discussion, the proposal was adopted.

Publicity needs were discussed.  Various ideas were mentioned for getting the word out about what we do.  A committee consisting of Lynn Hutcheson, Rob Fugate, Ralph Locklin, and Doug Macneal was formed to investigate these ideas.

Prepared Calibration Standards chemicals will be purchased.

A meeting of the Beech Creek Watershed Association will be held 12/11/13 at 6:30 pm at the Bald Eagle Area High School.  It will focus on revitalizing the Association and remediation of Acid Mine Drainage issues in the Beech Creek Watershed.  Anyone interested is invited to attend.

Ken Johnson gave a PowerPoint presentation concerning Team 13's & 14's monitoring of the Marcellus sites in the Beech Creek watershed.  21 sites are monitored on a rotating basis.  Photos of the sites as well as Healthy Waters grant report findings were presented.  The presentation was well received.

A training video is being made for the care and used of the YSI and Hanna Dissolved Oxygen meters.  The video is being edited by Laurie Jefferys with Ken Johnson, Dave Truesdale, and Dan DeLotto participating.

The December Holiday Luncheon will follow at the Gamble Mill Restaurant after the General Meeting. 

The January Planning meeting will be held Wednesday January 8, 2014, 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Buidling, Room 317, Bellefonte.

The next general meeting will be Wednesday, February 12, 2014 at 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte.