It's Personal...Scenic Pennsylvania Lake Community Celebrates Protecting the Environment for Earth Day with USDA Funding

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Jacki Ponti-Lazaruk, Assistant Administrator, Water and Environmental Programs, USDA Rural Development, on April 25, 2014 at 5:00 PM

Tom Williams, PA RD State Director, Jacki Ponti-Lazaruk, RD WEP Program Assistant Administrator, and Jack Lennox, Roamingwood Water & Sewer Association General Manager, ceremoniously sign a portion of the new pipe that will replace old lines in the current system, making the system more energy, cost and water efficient.

As part of USDA’s weeklong celebration of the 44th anniversary of Earth Day, I had the pleasure of visiting Wayne County, Pennsylvania to announce funding that will bring improved water and wastewater services to residents and businesses of The Hideout, one of the state’s lake communities in the Pocono Mountains.

Thanks to congressional passage of the 2014 Farm Bill, USDA Rural Development received an additional $150 million to help rural communities build or upgrade water and wastewater systems in 40 states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. We are pairing that grant money with an additional $232 million in regular funding to support 116 projects nationwide.

During my visit, I had the opportunity to talk with several long-time residents about the infrastructure projects.  The residents’ personal commitment and leadership was on display as they talked passionately about the importance of the funding. Betty Sullivan, the charismatic Board President of the Roamingwood Water & Sewer Association, an agent of the South Wayne County Water & Sewer Authority, has been involved in the infrastructure improvement project for twenty years. She has a keen understanding of the environmental importance of the project for both the existing residents and for future generations that will live, work and play here.

Bob Taggart, the father of a 12-year-old son, has owned a home in the community for over 20 years. Impressed by the quality of the school system and the community’s amenities, Bob made the decision to move here permanently from the New York City suburbs just five years ago. As a former environmental specialist for private industry, he also understands the environmental importance of the project. He is interested in the potential for connecting adjoining communities to the new system to help further protect the waters surrounding the community.  With the strong sense of community coupled with federal, state and local support, the future is promising for the growth of the community. The residents are all very appreciative of the Farm Bill funding that will help keep their water and sewer rates reasonable.

The work will be overseen by the South Wayne County Water and Sewer Authority, which is receiving a grant for more than $5 million and a loan of $8.4 million to replace a portion of a gravity sewer collection system.  The second Earth Day project involves replacing leaking water lines in a section of the 30 year-old water distribution system. Rural Development is providing a $2.3 million grant and a loan of almost $4.6 million to help with that effort. By replacing the old water and sewer lines, the project will significantly improve services, making them more energy, cost and water efficient and preventing the Authority from a costly expansion project for more than 3,200 homeowners of the Hideout Community.

As Assistant Administrator for Water and Environmental Programs, it is not hard to see why Earth Day ranks high on my list of favorite anniversaries and holidays!  I am especially grateful that the 2014 Farm Bill expanded our capacity to improve aging infrastructure in rural communities here in Pennsylvania and across the nation.

Planting the Seeds of a Successful Future for our Children on Earth Day

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Patrice Kunesh, Deputy Under Secretary, USDA Rural Development, on April 23, 2014 at 1:00 PM

Deputy Under Secretary Patrice Kunesh (left) and California RD State Director Glenda Humiston join children and families to plant a community vegetable garden at Mountain View Estates.

Earth Day is an every-day celebration! It’s also about the future — creating a safe and healthy environment for our children and grandchildren. That’s just what I celebrated with the families at Mountain View Estates in Oasis, California, alongside Congressman Raul Ruiz and California State Director Glenda Humiston. Thanks to a terrific partnership between Rural Development and the local community, as well as with public and private support, these families now have homes hooked up to a new water system that provides them clean drinking water and wastewater disposal.

I am very proud of Rural Development’s work in the Mountain View Estates mobile home park.  Upon learning that 181 families were being displaced from their dilapidated trailer park because of hazardous conditions, mainly sewage backups and water contamination, Rural Development looked for opportunities to help re-build that community.  Today at Mountain View Estates, every family has access to basic amenities like clean drinking water, and reliable waste removal. Even electricity is no longer is a luxury.  This project not only improved the environment, it has also improved the overall quality of life for these families.

My visit to Mountain View Estates was part of a tour of the colonias in California’s Coachella Valley, a large agriculture region in eastern Riverside County. Colonias are communities within 150 miles of the Mexican Border that experience seriously inadequate water and sewage systems and insufficient housing.  As I visited these communities,I was startled to see the immense need for community infrastructure, like decent housing and reliable wastewater systems.

These challenges really are terrific opportunities for Rural Development and our many dedicated partners, like Congressman Ruiz, to invest in rural communities and create a healthy, thriving rural America.

Happy Earth Day!

Two Tennessee Town Celebrate Earth Day, Reliable Water and Sewer Service

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by USDA Rural Utilities Service Administrator John Padalino, on April 22, 2014 at 5:00 PM

“How many of you like to swim in the creek or fish in the river?”, USDA Rural Utilities Service Administrator John Padalino asked White County Middle School students during the school’s Earth Day awards ceremony.

Do you like to go swimming or fishing? Rivers and lakes are cleaner thanks to USDA water/sewer investments in rural communities.

On Monday, I joined Earth Day celebrations in the rural communities of Sparta and Monterey, Tenn.  Part of being good stewards of the Earth and our natural resources is making sure that we take proper care of waste and wastewater disposal.  The stories from Sparta and Monterey show how important this is.

At the White County Middle School in Sparta, children recognized Earth Day by planting trees to help the environment.  The celebration also marked the end of a major sewage problem in town.

Principal Craig Lynn told me how, about 10 years ago, students and teachers started noticing the football field was still mushy long after a rain.  Antiquated sewer equipment couldn’t keep up with rainwater runoff anymore, and sewage was overflowing out of drains and manhole covers all over the city.  “It just got real obvious down on the field where so many students practice and play,” Lynn said.

Sparta Mayor Jeff Young added, “It’s not easy to fix something this big, especially when no new customers are being added to increase revenue.  USDA helped us figure out the best solution and how to pay for in a way we could afford.”

“Selling bonds or raising taxes is not usually an option for small towns when something big goes wrong,” he continued  “Private lenders sometimes can’t help with infrastructure, so having USDA as a partner is crucial when it comes to basic public services.”

Tennessee’s Upper Cumberland region has some of the largest stretches of contiguous forestland in the eastern U.S., along with dramatic gorges, lakes and rivers.  The near pristine condition of the natural environment is one of this region’s most valuable economic resources.  The USDA financing has had a positive impact on the local environment and economy.  Dependable water and sewer have had an immediate impact on the quality of life for families and make it possible for local businesses to grow good jobs.

Next, I went to nearby Monterey for Earth Day to celebrate the extension of its water system.  “The smell of fresh water is wonderful,” local resident Shannon Davis said.  She told me about how for 15 years her family had to haul water in jugs from her parents’ house for drinking and cooking.  “To say getting public water is a blessing is an understatement.”

USDA financing made it affordable for the town of 2,800 to extend water service another five miles out into the Walker Hollow area of Putnam County where the Davis family lives.  The Davises and others in Walker Hollow had been using individual water wells that became unsafe due to iron, manganese and coliform bacteria in the water supply.  The water got contaminated because of changes in the water table from recurring droughts and pressures created by growth.  The city made it a priority to get service to households in that area.

“Before public water, we spent over $15,000 to repair and replace appliances,” Davis said.  “The sulfur water ruined refrigerators, a dishwasher and our other appliances with electric coils.  “There are not enough adjectives to express how much getting public water means to my family.”

USDA Rural Utilities Service Administrator John Padalino and White County Middle School students and teachers added three oaks and two pawpaw trees to the school’s tree park to mark Earth Day.

Get Ready for Earth Day 2014: Small Communities Doing Big Projects to Protect Water and the Environment

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Doug O’Brien, Deputy Undersecretary, USDA Rural Development, on April 21, 2014 at 11:00 AM

The future of rural communities depends on safe, clean water supplies and healthy watersheds. That future is being challenged like never before and USDA RD is helping them meet the challenge.

With Earth Day on the horizon for tomorrow, we at USDA Rural Development are looking forward to sharing some very big news about efforts kicking off across the nation to ensure clean drinking water and healthy watersheds in small, rural communities that face increasing challenges with aging infrastructure, drought and climate change.

As you probably know, Rural Development works hard to help rural communities plan and build the critical infrastructure they need to grow and prosper sustainably.

Over the past five years, in fact, Rural Development has invested nearly $10.3 billion through 7,867 loans, loan guarantees, and grants for rural drinking water and wastewater treatment upgrades across the nation. Collectively, this work generates powerful environmental benefits. Individually, each project demonstrates how even the smallest community — and the everyday people living there — can accomplish the substantial and vitally important work of preserving and protecting our natural resources and quality of life for future generations.

With an infusion of funding provided by Congress in the 2014 Agricultural Act (Farm Bill) and to our local USDA Rural Development’s speedy delivery of those resources, small towns across the country will kick off a record number of water and wastewater system improvements beginning on Earth Day.

Stay tuned this week to learn more about Rural Development’s largest-ever Earth Day commitment and the communities taking action for a sustainable future.

Rural Development Helps Restore Water Supply to Town of Gifford after Devastating Tornado

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Colleen Callahan, Director, Illinois State Office, USDA Rural Development, on April 14, 2014 at 11:45 AM

With landmarks missing it was difficult for even Gifford residents to locate once familiar locations.

Four months after a tornado ripped through the town of Gifford, Illinois, destroying its water tower, 70 homes, and damaging 40 others, visible and emotional aftereffects remain.

On November 17, the day the tornado touched down, I called my colleague and Gifford resident Molly Hammond, who wistfully noted during our conversation, that “Everyone is all right.  But not everything is all right!”

No doubt her sentiments reflected those of Gifford’s other 1,000 residents.

Thankfully no one was killed or seriously harmed.  But town leaders and residents knew they had to move very quickly to restore access to water by rebuilding its water plant and 50,000-gallon water tower.

When the water supply was cut, residents got through the initial stages of the emergency by using a 10,000-gallon tank and borrowed water treatment equipment from nearby communities. However, this Band-Aid approach was only temporary as public health and safety concerns remained.  Most notably, the water treatment equipment is currently located under a tent and efforts to fight a recent fire at a local construction company were hampered by a lack of water pressure.

So it came as very good news indeed when the town learned that it would soon get a $500,000 USDA Rural Development Emergency Community Water Assistance Grant (ECWAG) to help replace the water plant, and another $150,000 ECWAG grant to help construct a new water tower.  “This is absolutely the best news we’ve gotten since the tornado struck,” said village board member Tony Cler.

USDA provides ECWAG grants of up to $500,000 to assist rural communities experiencing a significant decline in the quantity or quality of drinking water due to an emergency such as a drought; earthquake; flood; tornado; hurricane; disease outbreak; or chemical spill, leakage, or seepage.

As circumstance would have it, Gifford was the first entity in the nation to utilize USDA Rural Development’s simplified emergency grant process, which facilitated a quicker review and approval process.  The funding will augment the town’s insurance and other local monies as construction of the water supply infrastructure gets under way, allowing for the town and its residents to recover more quickly from the tornado’s aftermath.

While boarded-over windows, plastic covered roofs and; and felled trees resembling splintered toothpicks dot Gifford’s landscape, good things are happening.  Storm debris is being removed; homes are being repaired; and new ones are being built.

And while not everything is all right just yet, the residents resolve to rebuild – significantly aided by USDA Rural Development funding – signals that it’s just a matter of time before they will be again.

I am glad our funding will help Molly and other residents of Gifford as it continues to heal from last year’s traumatic event. It literally will help our neighbors get back into the flow of life… and water.

What appears to be a circus tent is anything but... rather it's a temporary cover 'protecting' damaged water treatment facility.

Earth Team Volunteer Benefits USDA with Wetland Expertise

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Michelle Banks, Natural Resources Conservation Service, on April 8, 2014 at 4:15 PM

Molly Stetz, a graduate student in wetland ecology in New York, gives of her time and expertise to NRCS through the Earth Team program. NRCS photo.

When not in class, Molly Stetz volunteered her time to USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), assisting with the agency’s efforts to restore wetlands and curb other environmental concerns.

As part of National Volunteer Week, NRCS is celebrating the contributions of volunteers like Stetz that help the agency advance the conservation mission through Earth Team.

Stetz, a graduate student in wetland ecology at the State University of New York at Brockport, donated more than 900 hours to NRCS through the agency’s Earth Team volunteer program.

“Volunteers are an integral part of our agency,” NRCS District Conservationist Heath Eisele said. “In a one-employee field office, every bit of assistance helps.”

Stetz worked closely under Eisele’s supervision assisting with many of the day-to-day operations of the office, including compliance reviews, highly erodible land slope measurements, construction checks and wetland plant identification.

“She helped us with so many different projects, it was like having another NRCS position on staff,” Eisele said.

She took the lead in creating a map guide of the Tonawanda Creek watershed and revised a guide on another creek watershed. These are used to show visitors and residents boat launch areas, fishing locations and other attractions within the watershed.

When she wasn’t in the field, Stetz was offering top-notch computer support with geographic information systems, or GIS, and developed innovative techniques for identifying potential natural resource concerns.

She conducted the annual monitoring of seven wetland easement sites throughout Genesee County, N.Y. Her knowledge of wetland plant identification and hydrology was critical to the success of the project, Eisele said.

Her volunteer work helped her with her master’s thesis in wetland ecology. Stetz and her professor received $5,000 as part of a grant from USDA Rural Development for agriculture and water quality studies.

Stetz’s service won her the national individual service award from the Earth Team. Only four of these awards are given out each year. To read more volunteer stories or see how to sign up to be an Earth Team volunteer, visit www.nrcs.usda.gov/EarthTeam.

Conservation Tour Showcases an Awe-Inspiring Partnership

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Jody Christiansen, NRCS Illinois, on August 2, 2013 at 2:45 PM

NRCS Soil Scientist Roger Windhorn shows participants the differences in soil layers and what makes a healthy soil.

A recent tour in Livingston, Ill. showcased the successes a powerful partnership has had in the Indian Creek Watershed.

The 6^th Annual Conservation in Action Tour was organized by the Conservation Technology Information Center to highlight community efforts in the watershed taking place under the auspices of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watershed Initiative.

Through the initiative, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and partners work with landowners and farmers to address nutrient loading in priority small watersheds within the Mississippi River Basin. Program participants implement voluntary conservation practices that improve water quality, restore wetlands and enhance wildlife habitat while allowing them to sustain or improve agricultural productivity. Illinois is one of the 13 states included in the initiative.

More than 270 people from 20 states attended the all-day July tour, including NRCS Chief Jason Weller. Tour attendees visited three farms to listen to local producers and researchers talk about water quality issues being addressed in the watershed. Those attending were federal and state employees, agribusiness representatives and producers.

Producer panels answered questions about their experiences with conservation. They explained the conservation practices they use, such as cover crops, rotational grazing and manure management, and their associated benefits, including increased production, improved soil quality and water quality protection. A live demonstration on aerial seeding of cover crops and a dragline for applying nutrients added to the presentations.

A manure dragline was used to demonstrate how to apply manure on a field.

More than 40 percent of the farmers in the Indian Creek Watershed currently participate in NRCS’s Conservation Stewardship Program. CSP is a voluntary conservation program that encourages producers to address resource concerns in a comprehensive manner, including enhancements that specifically improve water quality.

“We have a lot of family-owned farms,” Eric McTaggart, NRCS District Conservationist in Livingston County, said, “and it’s nice to be able to work hand-in-hand with them to ensure that [preservation for future generations] takes place.”

Terry Bachtold, whose farm was the first tour stop and who is resource coordinator for the Livingston County Soil and Water Conservation District, said the initiative can inspire change beyond its participants.

“A lot of farmers are seeing what one farmer does,” he said, “and they are going to try those same practices on their own land. It is a community effort.”

Follow NRCS on Twitter.

Check out other conservation-related stories on the USDA blog.

A stormy sky didn’t deter the tour stations. Presenters discussed uses and mixtures of cover crops.