Pennsylvania DEP to Hold Phase 2 Chesapeake Bay Watershed Implementation Plan Summit on Aug. 3

HARRISBURG, Pa., Aug. 2, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Department of Environmental Protection will host a Pennsylvania Phase 2 Chesapeake Watershed Implementation Plan Summit on Wednesday, Aug. 3, with the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds.

The summit will be from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Keystone Conference Center in the Farm Show Complex & Expo Center in Harrisburg.

"This event is the first of several opportunities for local officials and the public to engage in the crucial process of including stakeholder input in the development of this plan," DEP Secretary Mike Krancer said. "We think such input is fundamentally important to both the technical development of this plan and its eventual implementation, and we are delighted to be working with the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds in making sure that stakeholders are fully heard and involved."

The summit will begin discussions on Pennsylvania's Phase 2 Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) by taking an in-depth look at the steps needed to address the nutrient and sediment reductions at a local level.

DEP submitted Pennsylvania's Phase 1 WIP to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Nov. 29, 2010. The document outlined the state's plan to address nutrient and sediment loadings that drain to the Chesapeake Bay and addressed EPA's expectations for the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Loading (TMDL), published on Dec. 29, 2010.

The WIP is part of Pennsylvania's initiative to help restore the Chesapeake Bay through a feasible and cost-effective plan. The Phase 2 plan will address the revised nutrient and sediment Phase 2 WIP planning targets that EPA announced on Aug. 1. The revised planning targets are a result of EPA's updated Watershed Model, in which the agency directed the states to develop the Phase 2 WIP by dividing the reductions among local areas, using the revised planning targets for nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment.

The summit will also include a roundtable to actively engage open dialogue about the Phase 2 WIP. The roundtable discussion will include members of EPA, DEP, the Pennsylvania Natural Resources and Conservation Service, WIP Management Team Workgroup Chairs and representatives of the Chesapeake Bay Funders Network and Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Success stories of Pennsylvanians who have worked on various projects will be highlighted.  

The Penn State Cooperative Extension will broadcast the summit through a webinar, which will be recorded and can be accessed at http://extension.psu.edu/aec.  

For more information, visit www.depweb.state.pa.us or call 717-772-4785.

Media contact: Jamie Legenos or Lisa Kasianowitz, 717-787-1323

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection

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