Centre County Pennsylvania Senior Environmental Corps

March 14, 2014 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

Dan DeLotto has ordered and received premixed standards for calibrating pH and conductivity meters.  Each group possessing the shared colorimeters will share the calibrating standards as well.

Ken Johnson has ordered small stainless steel funnels to enable easier loading of chemical reagents into sample cells.  To clean the funnels between reagents, tap on a hard suface to remove any powder clinging to the funnels.

Several new members were welcomed and introduced to the group.  Some will be placed on the Bald Eagle Creek Milesburg and Fisher Farm Team 4.

Team members are needed for the Marcellus East and West Teams (13 & 14) and for Team 3, Bald Eagle Creek - Port Matilda, Julian, and Unionville.  Interested members are asked to contact Ralph Locklin.

One of our new members mentioned that there will be dumping of bio-solids from Canada and New York on land adjoining Sterling Run.  Some private wells also adjoin Sterling Run in the same area.  It could be a potentioal new monitoring site for us in the future.

Dan Delotto demonstrated the new H-Series HACH H135 Professional miniLab ISFET pH Meters and how to calibrate them with the new premixed standards.  Time to calibrate was greatly shortened versus the Oakton Meters currently being used.  If the Hach H135 pH meter is exposed to bright light, however, the meter is unable to settle on a reading.  Members were cautioned not to expose the meters to bright lights.  Also, the meters are water resistent, NOT water-proof!

A CCPaSEC member will speak about our CCPaSEC Organization at the May or June Kiwanis meeting.  Dates have not yet be determined. 

April 10 and 11, the West Branch Susquehanna Restoration Coalition Symopsium sponsored by  the PADEP and the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds will be held at the Toftrees Resort in State College, PA.  For more details and to register visit http://www.wbsrc.org/2014%20Symposium.html.

Watershed Clean-up Day will be Saturday, April 26 from 8 a.m.-noon.  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 9,  9:30 a.m., at the Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte. 

April 9, 2014 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

Watershed Clean-Up Day will be April 26.  Interested members should sign up with Genie Robine.   Fillmore, Slaughter House and Upper Gyp Rd. in Benner Township will be worked on from 8 AM to Noon followed by a picnic lunch at Spring Creek Park.

The stainless steel funnels will not be ordered as yet due a concern with iron testing.  Jim Wert of Nature Abounds is looking for a glass version for use.  It is recomended that each funnel used be only used for one parameter and permanently marked as such (nitrate, phosphate, sulfate). 

Ken Johnson has found color Macros ID Charts.

New Water Monitoring Site Physical and Chemical - Flowmeter Method and Water Monitoring Site Physical and Chemcial - Float Method are available on the website on the Forms webpage.  The new forms have spaces for entering duplicate data as well as Hach, Oakton, ISFET, YSI, Hanna meters and Colorimeter data.  The form for use with the Flowmeter has space to enter stream width, depths, and stream velocities.  This information is to be input in the on-line Flow Calculator which is also available on the Forms webpage.  When entering flow data in the data sheets, only enter the flow number in cubic meters per second given by the on-line flow calculator.

Meter data ranges have been added in the Water Monitoring Site Physical and Chemcial - Float Method data sheet.  No changes have been made with the float section data recording on that sheet.

Potential new monitoring sites were discussed.  Sterling Run, an area where bio-solids are being dumped, and a site on Bald Eagle Creek, where leachate will be discharged from the Engineered Rock Placement Area - off I-99, were mentioned.  No formal decision was made on these sites.

CCPaSEC has several new members in the last couple of months.  A training session is needed to cover meter use and other topics.  A suggestion for a May training session was made.

Doug Macneal has been invited to be on the Board of the Penns Valley Conservation Association which has received a grant for monitoring.  We have been asked for assistance from them to get started.  Andrea Ferich, the director, will be asked to visit our May meeting for more information on their needs.

CCPaSEC will be participating in the 3rd annual Centre Foundation fundraising campaign, Centre Gives, through ClearWater Conservancy.  An email with more information on how to donate will be sent to members closer to the start of the 36 hour campaign which will be held May 6, 12:00 AM through May 7, NOON.

Ken Johnson and Bill Leech are building birdhouses to place in the riparian areas they are working on as Site Stewards through ClearWater Conservancy.   Donated wood is available for the bird houses.

The next meeting will be on May 14,  9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317.

May 14, 2014- General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

Results from the April 26, 2014 Watershed Cleanup Day were announced.  60 tons of trash were collected with 7 CCPaSEC members participating and one spouse.

Teams monitoring with a Quality Team member conducting duplicate testing were asked to enter the duplicate data in the 'field duplicate' columns as well as their own data.

Teams were urged to carry extra batteries in their colorimeter kits in case the colorimeter batteries go weak or go bad during the monitoring event.

Quality Control issues discussed:

• Segregating and cleaning of the colorimeter sample cells are important.   
• Ensure all reagent in each packet is used by emptying contents into the new stainless-steel funnels into the sample cells. 
• When using the new HACH H135 Professional minilab pH Meter, make sure the meter is protected from bright light and only the tip exposed to water.
• Note the pH meter used to obtain the pH readings in the appropriate column of the online data sheet.
• Each team member present should check the Physical & Chemical Data Recording sheet for accuracy, completeness, and In-Range results before leaving the monitoring sites.
• Each team should be represented at monthly meetings and training sessions to keep all team members aware of new information and procedures relevent to their monitoring.

Nature Abounds has purchased 2 more YSI Meters for CCPaSEC bringing our total to 6.

CCPaSEC will purchase 2 more Flowatch Flowmeters.  We are hoping that Nature Abounds will purchase two more for us also.

A proposal for training as needed with individual teams rather than a formal training session was made.  It will be formalized and voted upon at the June meeting.

3 members participated in the West branch Susquehanna Restoration Symposium in April in State College.  The CCPaSEC's board and information was displayed along with Dr. Khalequzzaman's poster for Marcellus Site data.

Two brochures were given to CCPaSEC from the Fish and Boat Commission:  Pennsylvania Fishes Identification Guide and Lifecycles of Aquatic Insects.  Both have color photos or illustrations.

Several teams need more members.  Potential members will be contacted to try to match them up with a team.

Laurie Jeffreys will make an 11 x 17 visual for display at presentations.  It will be large enough to focus attention and draw people's interest.

Trout Unlimited requested help at a training session for chemical testing for young people.  Mick McKay will help with this as he did last year also.

The July meeting will have a presentation from Susan Brantley, Distinguished Professor of Geosciences and Director of Penn State’s Earth and Environmental Systems Institute.  

The annual picnic will be held in August.  We chose Buffalo Run Park on August 13 at 9:30 AM through noon.

The next meeting will be on Wednesday June 11 at 9:30 AM at the Willowbank Building Room 317 in Bellefonte.

June 11, 2014- General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

New FlowWatch Flowmeters were ordered and paid for.  This will bring the total number of flowmeters to 6 to be shared by all teams.

Ralph Locklin presented a 3 pronged approach to training to deal with items which aren't covered in the training manuals:

• 1-2 training sessions per year
• Training as an integral part of testing every month
• Hot Training Tips - a monthly email communication to all members dealing with topics of concern

The August picnic will be held at Buffalo Run Park starting at 9:30 a.m.  A flowmeter demo will be done during the picnic.  Family members - or others interested are invited.  Each member is asked to bring a dish to pass, drinks, and their placesettings.

Andrea Puzycki (RSVP) is writing a newpaper article for the Centre Daily Times concerning CCPaSEC. The article will appear on July 17.  Ralph will write an article concerning CCPaSEC for the ClearWater Conservancy's next newletter.

Joyce and Mick McKay attended the West Branch Susquehanna Restoration Coalition meeting June 10.  Several publications were given out which could act as models for our group to use to communicate our mission and activities:  "A Decade of Progress for the West Branch Susquehanna Restoration Initiative, 2004 – 2014" and  "Celebrating 15 Years of Restoration in Pennsylvania's Kettle Creek Watershed, 1998 – 2013".  Grant money may be available for publishing and printing.  

Team 13 is interested in monitoring Sterling Run.  The details of this are still to be worked out.

The next meeting will be on July 9, starting at 9:30 a.m.  Dr. Susan Brantley, Distinguished Professor of Geosciences and Director of Penn State Earth and Environmental Systems Institute will speak on Marcellus activity and water quality.

July 9, 2014 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Room 317

Dr. Susan Brantley, Distinguished Professor of Geosciences and Director of Penn State Earth and Environmental Systems Institute spoke on Marcellus activity and water quality in Pennsylvania.

She also spoke about the Shale Network (http://www.shalenetwork.org/) which is a project funded by the National Science Foundation to help pubish data about water resources that may be affected by gas exploitation in shale.  Scientists from Penn State, the University of Pittsburgh, Dickinson College and from throughout Pennsylvania initiated the project in Nov. 2011.

HydroDesktop is the application which allows a user to access the Shale Network Database containing water quality data from Pennsylvania.  To download the application visit: http://hydrodesktop.codeplex.com/.  

Dr. Brantley would like to mine our data and is willing to work with us to have our data included in the ShaleNetwork Database.  

Ralph Locklin composed an article about CCPaSEC to ClearWater Conservancy to be included in their next newsletter.  

The next Hot Training Tips topics for July will be:

• Keep a Record of battery changes for all meters and keep with meters.  Change batteries twice per year.
• New members should be encouraged to participate in testing in their first few outings with a team.
• YSI meter use training video:  

http://ccpasec.centreconnect.org/index.php?option=com_content&;view=article&id=456:ccpasec-care-and-use-of-a-ysi-do-meter-video&catid=65:videos&Itemid=188

The Clearfield County SEC picnic will be held September 15, 10 a.m. at Bilgers Rocks near Curwensville.  Centre County SEC is invited.  Please bring a dish to pass.  The McKays will be attending and are willing to carpool.  Please contact them for more information.

Lou Mayer will attend an RSVP Volunteer Fair at Liberty Hill on September 30 from 3-5 p.m.  He will represent CCPaSEC.

The next meeting will be at the annual picnic on August 13 at Buffalo Run Park (Along Rte. 550) starting at 9:30 a.m. A flowmeter demo will be done during the picnic.  Family members - or others interested are invited.  Each member is asked to bring a dish to pass, drinks, and their placesettings.   All teams, please bring all equipment to the picnic.  

August 13, 2014 - General Meeting & Picnic - at Buffalo Run Park.

15 members of CCPaSEC attended along with many spouses.

Clearfield County SEC invited us to join them on September 15 at Bilger's Rocks near Curwensville.  Those who are interested in attending should contact Mick or Joyce McKay for car-pooling arrangements.

CCPaSEC has been invited by Dr. Susan Brantley to participate/cooperate with the Teen Shale Network project under PSU's Shale Network innitiative.  The participation was approved.  Several members will accompany a group on Monday, August 18  to several sites in the Black Moshannon State Park.   

Mick McKay helped at the PA Brookies Wildlife Leadership Academy July 9 sponsored in part by Trout Unlimited (TU).  He learned that TU uses our data for screening areas for new projects focusing on areas of greatest concern. 

The Centre Hall Lions Club has requested us to give a presentation about our group and activities this fall.  We will make arrangements to do so.

Nature Abounds has asked Ken Johnson to expand CCPaSEC's Mini-Manual to use with a wider audience.  He has agreed and is soliciting input on additions to the mini-manual.

The CCPaSEC Volunteer Hours Report will be updated to include a section to input miles driven on volunteer activities for ClearWater Conservancy since ClearWater keeps track of the miles driven.

Training:

Dan Delotto, Rob Fugate, and Bill Leech answered questions regarding the new Hach H135 Professional mini-lab ISFET pH meter, the Flowatch flowmeter, and the YSI Dissolved Oxygen meter.

• The Hach H135 ISFET pH meter can be calibrated in the field.  Great care must be used to not expose the tip to bright light prior to calibrating and taking measurements.
• Flowatch flowmeter used was demonstrated under the pavilion since it was raining. Measurements of stream velocity should be taken at approximately equal intervals across the stream.  10 measurements are recommended, but less if the stream is too narrow.  A Flow Calculator is available on the CCPaSEC website.
• Tthe calibration of the YSI  Dissolved Oxygen meter was described.  The calibration procedure uses tap water to dampen a sponge, placing it in the calibration chamber for a five to fifteen minute period.  Temperatures, air and water are measured with the DO meter as well.  Note:  The last step of the instructions attached to the meter was omitted.  It should read to change the mode to mg/L from %Saturation by pressing the MODE button if needed.

The picnic was held following the meeting and was enjoyed by all!

The next meeting will be held on September 10 at 9:30 a.m. at the Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte.

September 10, 2014 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Bellefonte

Jen Shuey, Executive Director of ClearWater Conservancy provided an updated version of our Memorum of Understanding with ClearWater Conservancy.  A vote was taken for our President Lou Mayer to sign the agreement.  Jen also provided an update of ClearWater activities and projects.  For more information on ClearWater's projects and events, please visit their website, http://www.clearwaterconservancy.org/.  ClearWater's annual meeting will be held on November 20.  

The Quality Controll team will perform duplicate testing this fall.  An equiptment check will be done at a meeting in the winter.

Equipment needs were discussed.  Every team should have an open plastic/fiberglass reel tape measure reading meters/feet, stakes, meter sticks, and a rubber mallet for use with performing flow measurements with the flowmeters.  Rob Fugate will purchase several sets at OLLIE's store for those teams in need.  Rob will also order an additional FloWatch Flowmeter for CCPaSEC.  This should give us enough to share among teams.  Nature Abounds is not able to fund our purchase from their grant due to restrictions placed by the PA Department of Environmental Protection on their purchases.

Hot Training Tips:

• Keep meters inside, not in an unheated/uncooled garage.
• YSI meter: The sponge inside the calibratiion chamber of the YSI meter should be kept moist and not allowed to dry out.
• MiniLab pH meter: 
  • Take care removing the probe cover.  Using too much force or twisting the cover can loosen the probe.
  • Make sure to use the meter in the shade - avoid bright light and sunshine.
  • May use two drop of calibration solution to calibrate.  

The Lions Club of Centre Hall has asked for someone from CCPaSEC to give a presentation on January 15, 2015.

Our Holiday Luncheon will be Wednesday, December 10 following the general meeting.  Location is to still be determined.

Officer positions for next year will be discussed at our October meeting.

Bill Leech and Mick McKay attended a monitoring event with Teen Shale Network(TSN) organizers Dr. Susan Brantley, Jennifer Williams, and Andrew Neal from Penn State.  Christian Kleipeiss, a teacher from St. Joseph's Academy in Boalburg also joined the event.  Samples were tested and collected from 3 sites in Black Moshannon State Park, one below Kephart Dam, and two bracketing a Marcellus drilling site.  CCPaSEC was asked to provide monitoring of the selected sites in months in which students would not be able to monitor and share data collected for use by the students in presentations and reports.  Any CCPaSEC members interested in participating are asked to contact Mick McKay or Lou Mayer.  Photos are available in the Photo Gallery.

The West Branch Susquehanna Restoration Coalition (WBSRC) held their quarterly meeting Tuesday, September 9 at the Clearfield County Conservation District Office.  Following the meeting, attendees visited the Dimelong Discharge Passive Treatment System for Acid Mine Discharge (AMD) which impacts an unnamed tributary to Clearfield Creek.  Joyce and Mick McKay attended.  The goal of the system was to reduce sulfates and remove metals of AMD and add alkalinity.  After operating for one year, Sulfates were reduced from 904 mg/L to 687 mg/L, Iron was reduced from 33.7 mg/L to 0.3 mg/L, Aluminum was reduced from 0.20 mg/L to 0.08 mg/L.  Alkalinity increased from 37 mg/L to 320 mg/L.

The picnic with Clearfield County SEC will be held Moday, September 15 at 10:00 AM.  Please bring a dish to pass.  Those attending please contact Joyce McKay for carpooling.

The next meeting will be October 8 at 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte. 

October 8, 2014 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Bellefonte

Rob Fugate purchased another flow meter.

Two upcoming events are to be noted. First, the Centre County Watershed Summit sponsored by Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences is to be held on November 3 from 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Nittany Lion Inn. Registration must be received by October 27. Second, ClearWater Conservancy's annual meeting will be held on November 20 featuring guest speaker/author Doug Tallamy.

The Watershed Summit will bringing together Penn State and community. We will have a display table. Laurie Jeffreys will finish the new 11x17 inch brochure and get it produced in a glossy finish for use at our display.

The Quality Control team is temporarily short-handed, but said they would soon resume quality control visits at the monitoring sites.

Hot Training Tips will be sent out shortly. The focus will be on the procedures for handling out-of-range results; issues relating to flow meters; and a web site for obtaining flow measurements when you monitor a non wade-able stream. We discussed the benefits of each team having and reviewing the data from the past six monitoring visits before leaving the stream to assure measurements are consistent and/or rechecked if not. Tips should highlight the procedures for out-of-range measurements in the “Hot Training Tips”. This occurs often among teams each month. Before using the flow meter, we should all check the propeller and make sure it is turning freely.

This year’s picnic photo gallery was posted to our website. There are also photos that Mick McKay and Bill Leech took at the Teen Shale Network outing.

Lou Mayer’s gave an educational presentation at Liberty Hill reaching 75 people.

The Lions Club of Centre Hall would like us to present at their January 15, 2015 meeting.

Todd Biddle, a Bald Eagle High agricultural sciences teacher, has requested our help. A Centre Daily Times article about Todd’s class science project at the district environmental center was passed around.

The Beech Creek Watershed Association is trying to get the interest in the association back through newspaper articles and tours.

The Gamble Mill will be the location for our holiday luncheon on Wednesday, December 10.

Officers will be needed for 2015.

The next meeting will be November 12 at 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte.

November 12 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Bellefonte

The Quality Control visits to each monitoring site during each team’s testing are almost finished. One team remains to be visited.

Information regarding care of equipment, monitoring procedures and data input must be communicated with those not attending meetings. The hope is that all members are reading Ralph Locklin’s new monthly communication -- “Hot Training Tips”– and monthly meeting minutes. Quality Control issues are best communicated through a representative in attendance at monthly meetings.

QC Issues: 1) We now have six functioning pH meters. Note the importance of keeping the sensor out of sunlight. Calibrate meters on site at each monitoring. 2) With the arrival of cold winter temperatures, monitoring kits must be stored in heated areas.

The November edition of “Hot Training Tips will focus on the procedures for handling the pH meters.

The Marcellus teams will be available now for helping other teams during the winter.

We will need to update our website since the software it uses will soon no longer be supported. Joyce would like volunteers to assist her in upgrading the site.

Ann Donovan reported on the November 3 Centre County Watershed Summit sponsored by Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences. Ann presented on the Watersheds of Centre County and included comments on all her partners including CCPaSEC. We were represented with a display and the new poster designed by Laurie Jeffreys.

We need a reprint of our existing smaller 8½x11brochure for distribution. We will ask RSVP to help with printing.

The Lions Club of Centre Hall would like us to present at their January 15, 2015 meeting.

Todd Biddle, a Bald Eagle High agricultural sciences teacher, has requested our help. Contact with him was attemped with no results yet.

The Teen Shale Network, a part Penn State’s Marcellus Shale Network, whom we helped once, has now reached out to us for collaboration with water monitoring and writing a report in the spring.

The Marcellus teams will soon check out and choose sites in the Moshannon and Sterling Run areas for testing in the next year.

We should consider participating in the Volunteer Fair held at Mt. Nittany School in August or September.

Ann Donovan & Lou Mayer will attend the meeting regarding intergenerational programs focused on environmental education at Penn State University today.

Officers will be needed for 2015. Especially a volunteer is needed for Vice President.

The next meeting will be December 10 at 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte followed by our Holiday Luncheon at the Gamble Mill.

December 10, 2014 - General Meeting - at Willowbank Building, Bellefonte

ClearWater Conservancy recognized 5 of our members in their latest newsletter and letter to members.

The quality control committee would be conducting an equipment check in early 2015. Team leaders will be asked to drop monitoring equipment at the home of Dan DeLotto.

We will purchase another flow meter, which would bring our total flow meters to six to be shared by teams 5 and 15. Supplies will take longer to get since Nature Abounds moved to Clearfield. Wooden meter sticks with metal caps will be purchased for each team for measuring stream depth.

Publicizing our meetings was discussed. Also, Ralph Locklin volunteered to write an article about CCPaSEC for the Centre Daily Times.

Six members attended the Centre County Watershed Summit.

A link is included on our website to Dr. Khalequzzaman’s (Dr K’s) report titled Surface Water Assessments in Centre County Pennsylvania: the Beech Creek Watershed. Dr. K will be printing and sending us his 2014 Marcellus Community Poster.

Ken Johnson will make his Intergenerational Relationships presentation at our February meeting.

We will be updating our brochure and proceed with printing the 8½x11 brochure for distribution. We will ask RSVP to print 30 copies initially.

A report was given on the December 9 meeting of the West Branch Susquehanna Restoration Coalition. A presentation on the River Network’s Assessment Tool for Organizations was given. The tool is designed to assess an organization, interpret data, and identify metrics important to an organization. CCPaSEC should consider taking the survey to help strengthen our organization.

Discussion occurred on our mission as we move forward. Comments reflected our group is moving towards “educating.” 1) Mick McKay and Bill Leech have had conversations/interactions with the Teen Shale Network and a State College High School science teacher who is interested in involving her students in environmental issues; 2) the Teen Shale Network is now requesting our assistance and collaboration with water monitoring and writing a report. 3) Ann Donovan’s presentations on riparian projects to the class of Todd Biddle, a Bald Eagle Agricultural Sciences teacher, resulted in his request to get instruction for his students regarding macro invertebrate surveys. 4) Lou Mayer and Ann Donovan attended Penn State’s meeting regarding intergenerational programs focused on environmental education. 5) Carolyn and Elwood Hatley were asked to attend the intergenerational programs meeting by ClearWater Conservancy. 6) Ken Johnson has been communicating with Matthew Kaplan, a professor of Intergenerational Programs & Aging in the Department of Economics, Sociology and Education at Penn State to put together a presentation on Intergenerational Relationships, and will be meeting with him next week. Ken will request an invitation for Lynn Hutcheson to attend that meeting along with him. Joe Kowalski, a graduate of the Intergenerational Leadership Institute (ILI) is looking forward to becoming involved.

Officers will be needed for 2015. Especially a volunteer is needed for Vice President.

The location of the next Board meeting will be emailed to the board. It will be held January 14, 2015 at 9:30 a.m.,

The next General meeting will be February 11, 2015 at 9:30 a.m., at Willowbank Building, Room 317, Bellefonte.