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The BEAT News

March 12, 2008

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Follow all the environmental news and events in Berkshire County delivered to you computer weekly.
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In the News:

CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Environmental Monitor
Public Notices Alphabetically by town
The BEAT News Archives

Advocacy News (Includes how to reach your legislators)

DEP Enforcement Actions In The Berkshires

Next Citizen Coordinating Council meetings with GE, EPA, and DEP -  3/26 (CT) & 3/27 (MA)

Here are draft agendas for each of the upcoming Citizens Coordinating Council meetings in Connecticut and Massachusetts.  The CT meeting is on March 26, at 6 PM, at Kent Town Hall.  The MA meeting is on March 27, at 5:30 PM, at Lee Middle and High School in Lee MA.  Both meetings will cover the same topic, a presentation on the Corrective Measures Study that General Electric Co. (GE) will complete this month for the Rest of River project .
For more information on the CCC including a link to the summary of previous meetings, please see BEAT's CCC web page, or for more information on the issue of GE and PCBs in the Housatonic River visit BEAT's webpages on these issues, or the Housatonic River Initiative's website, or the EPA/GE website.
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The current issue of "E: The Environmental Magazine" focuses on green college initiatives, in a series of excellent articles. 
Click on the links below if you are interested...

http://www.emagazine.com/index.php?toc&issue=137 

CLEANER, GREENER U. - Students are driving the campus climate movement, fighting Big Coal and putting legislators on notice
Today’s environmentally aware students are organizing effectively, passing campus climate initiatives, fighting Big Coal and putting legislators on notice.

SIDEBAR: SUSTAINABILITY ON THE MENU
On-campus organic gardens, local food in the cafeterias and composting initiatives.

SIDEBAR: GOING WITH THE FLOW
Colleges have a big thirst, and they’re just beginning to get serious about saving water.

SIDEBAR: BIG IDEAS
Students create their own sustainable solutions.

SIDEBAR: THE GREEN NITTY GRITTY
Students create their own sustainable solutions.
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Report on the Acceptance of Green Building Practices

Here is a really interesting report commissioned by the Cape and Islands Renewable Energy Collaborative. 

BEAT would love to get feedback from architects, builders, and those who are having projects built about what you think of the answers in this report.

The report describes the results of thirty interviews done with architects and builders who had attended a full-day workshop on green building practices almost two years earlier.   Interviewees gave thoughtful responses to questions about:

-- the extent to which they subsequently applied information from the workshop in their work; 
-- their level of satisfaction with green building practices, in terms of implementation difficulty and performance;
--
factors that have stopped them from integrating green building practices more fully into their work; 
-- the mechanisms through which they have obtained clients for green building projects, and the motivations that influence clients’ desire for green building practices;
--
the extent to which applying green building practices has changed the way that they market their services; 
-- the extent to which applying green building practices has affected the bottom line for them; and
--
what would help them integrate high performance green building practices into their work and what advice they would have for others who are interested in doing so.

The report can be accessed at: http://www.acetiassociates.com/pubs/ReportFinalCIREC2.pdf.
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Stream Teams for the Hoosic River Watershed

HooRWA (Hoosic River Watershed Association) has been funded, through grants from Mass Riverways and the Berkshire Environmental Endowment, to organize a Stream Team for the South Branch of the Hoosic River.  We are trying to contact all parties who might be interested in participating, and would appreciate your help.

Background info:

What's a Stream Team?

The Stream Team is a group of volunteers that takes on stream stewardship tasks, to be determined by the group itself (or subgroups with specialized interests).  These might be:

·       Occasional stream walks to detect trouble spots and solve problems as needed
·       Collecting samples of stream bottom invertebrates for identification, or water samples for testing
·       Habitat assessments
·       Habitat restoration projects, where feasible
·       River cleanups
·       Public education activities such as labeling storm drains and making exhibits available to schools
·       Helping reduce runoff by installing rain gardens and other measures for homeowners and businesses

HooRWA will provide coordination, training opportunities, the loan of equipment, and a repository for data; the Team provides passion, knowledge, community contacts, time, creative solutions, and elbow grease!  Guidance and technical assistance is also supplied by the Mass Riverways program of MA Fish and Game.  There's more information about Stream Teams at www.mass.gov/dfwele/river/programs/adoptastream/streamteams/htm

If this interests you, read on.
 
First, we want to get the word out, so... 
·       If you know individuals or organizations who should hear about this, please forward this message or send HooRWA their contact info.
·       If you would like HooRWA to give a brief presentation to your organization (e.g. Trout Unlimited, Berkshire Flyfishers, a Conservation Commission, a service organization, etc.), please contact us and we will come to a meeting.

Second, we're scheduling dates for getting acquainted, getting organized, getting trained, and getting out on the river. 
Here is a TENTATIVE schedule. Does it work for you? Suggest alternate dates and times if needed.  We will do our best to adjust.  You don't need to come to all, but at least 3 or 4 out of 6 would get you in the loop.
(Note, the grant stipulates that we complete this phase by June 30)

·       Saturday, March 15, Adams Visitors Center, 1-3 PM.  Intro meeting:  How stream teams work.
·       Saturday, March 29, possibly MCLA, North Adams, 10-1:30.  Projects currently underway  on river (monitoring, dam removals, research, etc.);  identify needed work, interests of volunteers, etc.
·       Saturday April 19, possibly Adams Visitors Center and in field, 10-2:  Training in stewardship techniques:  sampling, assessments, safe cleanup procedures, habitat restoration options, etc.
·       Saturday, May 3, ditto, more training in stewardship techniques; picking spring projects
·       Saturday, May 31:  project day
·       Saturday, June 7:  project day
June and beyond:  Activities arranged as needed by the Team, with HooRWA's help

Third, please get in touch if you have ideas, questions, or simply want to be kept informed and on the e-mail list.  This is a team effort-- we value your comments.

Thank you for your time.  We hope to hear from you!

Sincerely,
Eileen Fielding, Executive Director (office@hoorwa.org; 413-458-2742)
Caroline Scully, Stream Team Coordinator (cascully@earthlink.net; 413-652-1549)
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Rural Energy Efficiency Loans Now Available
(From: Massachusetts Forest Update - March 2008, An online publication of the Massachusetts Forest Landowners Association If you have information you'd like to get out, or know of meetings or events you'd like others to plan around, let Greg Cox know  gcox@crocker.com.)

USDA will accept $220.9 million in loan and grant applications within USDA's Renewable Energy Systems and Energy Efficiency Improvements Program. Loan guarantees and grants are available to agricultural producers and rural small businesses to purchase and install renewable energy systems or to make energy efficiency improvements.

Eligible applicants may seek loan guarantees to cover up to 50 percent of a project's cost, not to exceed $10 million. Grants are available for up to 25 percent of a project's cost, not to exceed $250,000 for energy efficiency improvements and $500,000 for renewable energy systems. USDA Rural Development has invested $674 million in more than 1,763 renewable energy and energy efficiency projects since 2001. These investments include ethanol, biodiesel, wind, solar, geothermal, methane gas recovery systems and biomass.

The Bush administration's Farm Bill proposal recommends a $1.6 billion increase in renewable energy funding. Were Congress to agree, cellulosic ethanol development proposals would receive a $2.1 billion loan guarantee program, while $500 million would be available for bioenergy and bioproducts research programs, as well as another $500 million for renewable energy development and energy efficiency grants. Details are available at www.usda.gov/farmbill .

USDA will issue one grant solicitation for two separate competitions in FY 2008. For the first competitive window, grant-only applications must be submitted no later than April 15, 2008. For the second competitive window, grant-only applications must be submitted no earlier than April 16, 2008, and no later than June 16, 2008. Applications for loan guarantees, as well as those for loan/grant combinations must be completed and submitted to the appropriate USDA Rural Development State Office no later than June 16, 2008.

Further information on rural programs is available at a local USDA Rural Development office or by visiting USDA's web site at
http://www.rurdev.usda.gov .
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Project Learning Tree Grants Available!
(From: Massachusetts Forest Update - March 2008, An online publication of the Massachusetts Forest Landowners Association If you have information you'd like to get out, or know of meetings or events you'd like others to plan around, let Greg Cox know  gcox@crocker.com.)

Project Learning Tree® (PLT), the environmental education program of the American Forest Foundation, has awarded 36 GreenWorks! grants to PLT schools and youth organizations across the country for community-based environmental projects. GreenWorks! is PLT's service-learning program that engages PLT educators and their students with their local community in "learning-by-doing" neighborhood improvement projects.

Since 1992, Project Learning Tree has distributed more than $500,000 to fund over 780 grant projects in communities across the country.  Proposals for the Spring 2008 cycle of grants are due on April 30, 2008.  Grants up to $5,000 are available.

The GreenWorks! grants announced this week will fund elementary through college-age students in 23 different states and the U.S. Virgin Islands as they design native plant gardens, restore streams and riparian habitat, plan and construct outdoor classrooms, build learning trails, and investigate alternative sources of energy, among other projects. Read the press release.

For more information, and a list of PLT's current GreenWorks! projects, visit http://www.plt.org/cms/pages/47_191_0.html.
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DCR Seeks Vendor for Four Forest Landowner Assistance Programs
(From: Massachusetts Forest Update - March 2008, An online publication of the Massachusetts Forest Landowners Association If you have information you'd like to get out, or know of meetings or events you'd like others to plan around, let Greg Cox know  gcox@crocker.com.) 

The Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) is seeking proposals from parties interested in administering and implementing four statewide forestry programs for landowners.  The programs are: Forest Viability Enhancement Program, the Forest Stewardship Program, Estate Planning for Landowners, and a pilot Forest Carbon Offset and Trading Program.  The contract is for up to $1,650,000 through FY2010.

It is the intent of DCR, by issuing one RFR for the administration of four different forestry programs, to combine the outreach and application processes for landowners under one “umbrella.”  Whether this contract is awarded to one Vendor or more, outreach efforts must be coordinated to allow for common outreach sessions and similar application processes between all four programs. 

The deadline for responses is March 31, 2008. 

Program Summaries:

Forest Viability and Enhancement Program: The Forest Viability and Enhancement Program will involve forest landowners currently or potentially engaged in any one or a combination of the following three forest-based business categories: traditional forest products, non-traditional forest products, or recreation and wildlife. In Phase I, landowners selected to participate will receive a business plan worth up to $5,000 developed by a technical team of environmental, economic, and marketing specialists.  A participant’s Forest Viability Enhancement Plan will suggest ways for the forest landowner to increase the economic return from the forest-based business through ecologically sustainable methods such as more efficient production of specialty products, niche marketing, direct marketing, value-added initiatives, eco-tourism, and improved management practices.  In return, the landowner grants DCR a 5-year no-development covenant.

In Phase II, landowners with a DCR approved Forest Viability Enhancement Plan will then be considered for as much as $20,000 in additional funding to implement specific portions of the Plan.  There is an additional 15 year no-development covenant requirement for this phase.

Estate Planning Services: The Land Conservation Estate Planning Program will help pay for qualified landowners to receive a Land Conservation Estate Plan Assessment of Needs, with further funding available to assist in implementing recommended actions.  The objective of this Program is to permanently protect private forest lands from development, transfer forest land to heirs in an orderly fashion, and to minimize the risk of forest land development due to over burdensome taxes during the transfer of ownership.  Landowners selected by DCR to receive implementation funding must execute a contract with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, including a clause that gives DCR a right of first refusal, recorded on the deed.

Pilot Forest Carbon Offset and Trading Program:  This new program will enable interested forest landowners to earn revenue through the sale of green house gas emissions credits from carbon sequestered on forested lands that are managed working forests.  The credits will be aggregated by the vendor and sold on the Chicago Climate Exchange with the proceeds going to the landowners. The goal of this program is to encourage landowners to commit to manage their forests sustainably via the incentives of payment for the carbon their forests sequester.  Qualified landowners will receive cost share to hire a forester to conduct the inventory necessary to establish the baseline of carbon stocks on the property.

Forest Stewardship Program:  The goal of the program is to promote sustainable forest management to the 200,000 plus private landowners that own the majority of woodland in the Commonwealth.  Woodland owners engage a private licensed forester to develop a 10-year forest management plan.  The plan specifies actions that will protect or increase the environmental values of the land while yielding desired social or economic benefits. Landowners receive cost share to help pay for the plan.

The role of the vendor is to work closely with the DCR Stewardship Program Coordinator in publicizing this well established program, as well as receive and process applications and cost share payments.  The goal of this contract is to add 29,000 acres of private and municipal forestland to the Forest Stewardship Program by funding the development of Forest Stewardship Management Plans.  DCR anticipates that 460 Forest Stewardship Plans will be completed during the initial term of this contract (FY2008, FY2009 and FY2010).

How to Submit Proposals:
To view the complete RFR and submittal requirements, go to www.Comm-pass.com

select the “Solicitations” tab on the upper left of screen
select    “Browse All Open Solicitations”
select    “By Entity/Department”
select    “Department of Conservation and Recreation”
select under “one item found”                “Department of Conservation and Recreation”
scroll down to Document #DCR331, “Forest Landowner Assistance One Stop Shopping” and click on the “eyeglass” icon in the far right column.return to top

Bat Mortalities in Massachusetts

After receiving reports in February from Vermont and New York about large numbers of bats dying in caves, biologists from MassWildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service investigated caves and mines in western Massachusetts where colonies of bats are known to spend the winter. Biologists observed bats flying around outside of the state’s larges mine when they should have all been inside hibernating, and found dead bats near the entrance of the hibernacula (winter quarters) which were collected for further study. Biologists confirmed that these bats, like the ones in Vermont and New York, were affected with white nose syndrome (WNS), a term used to describe some of the bats found at these sites that look like their faces were dipped in powdered sugar. This white material is a fungus that is growing on the faces of up to 10% of the bats at the affected sites.   Up to 97% of the bats at some affected sites in New York have died.

Bats with crusting white fungus were first found in New York bat hibernacula during the winter of 2006-2007. Mortality was high and aroused concern among the bat conservation community. By winter 2007-2008 the syndrome and associated mortality had spread to many of the largest New York hibernacula and to sites in Vermont and Massachusetts. New sites are still being reported.  Of the eight species of bats currently found in Massachusetts, it appears that the bat species most affected by WNS include widespread and common species such as Little Brown Bats, Eastern Pipistrelles and Northern Long-eared Bats as well as the rare, state listed Small-footed Bats. These bats hibernate in caves or mines. Big Brown Bats which commonly hibernate in buildings are not yet known to be affected.  The Red Bat, Hoary Bat and Silver-haired Bat are migratory and apparently not affected.

Bats at the affected sites have exhibited some unusual behaviors. These behaviors include clusters of bats roosting in the light zone close to cave or mine entrances; dead bats or bat remains found outside of caves in the snow; nearby citizens reporting bats flying during the day in very cold weather (15-20°F) and bats roosting on exterior house walls.  Flying bats have been observed falling to the ground or crash landing and several have been found roosting in woodpiles.  Midwinter necropsies of bats have found the mammals’ fat stores completely depleted, when they would normally last until the bats emerge in spring and begin to feed on flying insects.

Wildlife managers are concerned about the outbreak because bats congregate by the thousands in caves and mines to hibernate during winter months.  If WNS is caused by an infectious agent, this behavior increases the potential that the disease will spread among hibernating bats.  In addition, hibernating bats disperse in spring and migrate, sometimes hundreds of miles away, to spend the summer.  Bats are important predators of mosquitoes and other insects. A study from Boston University estimates that 14 -15 tons of insects are consumed each summer by the 50,000 Big Brown Bats that live within the bounds of Route 128. “High bat mortality is a major concern because bats have a low reproductive rate,” says Dr. Thomas French, MassWildlife Assistant Director for Natural Heritage and Endangered Species. “Most bats raise one pup per year.  It will take decades for bat populations to rebound after a large die-off.”

Currently, scientists do not know what is causing bats to die in such great numbers. It is not clear if white nose syndrome is a cause or a symptom of bat mortality. Currently, there are 9 universities, 4 or 5 federal agencies, state wildlife agencies and health departments from 3 states, and a host of other volunteers, researchers, and cavers working together to gather data, understand this condition and to diagnose the cause.

Anyone wishing to report observations of more than 2 bats flying around outdoors before April 1 can contact MassWildlife by email mass.wildlife@state.ma.us or call 508/389-6360.  The “Homeowners Guide to Bats”, a bat booklet, can be picked up at MassWildlife offices or downloaded from the MassWildlife website.
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HELP STOCK SALMON FRY!

Volunteers from high schools, sporting clubs, civic groups, colleges and individuals with a passion for rivers, fish or fishing are needed to assist MassWildlife in stocking 1.5 million salmon fry (juvenile fish) as part of the Atlantic salmon restoration program. According to Dr. Caleb Slater, MassWildlife's Anadromous Fish Project Leader, at least 20 stocking dates are planned in April and early May to release salmon fry into dozens of Connecticut River tributaries. The fry will come from MassWildlife's Roger Reed Hatchery in Palmer and the White River National Fish Hatchery in Bethel, Vermont. Fry will be trucked to meeting sites where volunteers will gather and caravan to release sites. The tiny fish will then be moved from truck to water by bucket using volunteer man and woman power.

Dr. Slater offers some tips for potential volunteers, "You may get wet! A change of clothes is a good idea. You will be walking on slippery stream and river beds, so waders or other waterproof footgear is useful." There are a few waders to loan. Volunteers will also be climbing up and down steep stream banks and should be in good physical condition. MassWildlife aids anadromous (migratory) fish in a number of ways: stocking fry in tributaries of the Connecticut River, monitoring fish passage at dams on the Connecticut, Westfield and Merrimack Rivers; trapping salmon and shad for transport to hatcheries and/or upstream release locations, working with other federal agencies to ensure safe upstream and downstream fish passage at hydroelectric dams, and working with local watershed groups to improve freshwater habitat for fish. For more information on dates, meeting locations and times for fry stocking check out the  fry stocking link at www.mass.gov/masswildlife or contact Dr. Caleb Slater at 508/389-6331.
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EPA Releases New Tools to Improve Drinking Water Monitoring and Reporting
(from Water Headlines for March 10, 2008, a weekly on-line publication that announces publications, policies, and activities of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water)

Small water systems, particularly those that serve very small populations or tribal communities, can be challenged in understanding the regulatory requirements that apply to them. EPA is releasing a new set of placards that summarize day to day monitoring requirements for small drinking water systems. Having monitoring requirements readily available in an easy to read format should improve monitoring and reporting compliance at small systems. These placards provide step by step instructions for conducting monitoring under the Total Coliform Rule, Surface Water Treatment Rules and Nitrate regulations. The placards are formatted to be printed 11x17 to hang on the wall for quick reference by drinking water operators. The placards and other tools for small systems are available at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/smallsys/ssinfo.htm. They are also available on a page dedicated to tribal water systems at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/tribal.html.
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EPA Proposing Additional Options for Animal Feeding Operation Rule
(from Water Headlines for March 10, 2008, a weekly on-line publication that announces publications, policies, and activities of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water)

EPA is proposing additional options to a 2006 proposal for concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) under the Clean Water Act. This supplemental proposal has been published and is open for public comment until April 7, 2008. A webcast is scheduled for March 14, 2008, 12 to 2 pm ET.

The combination of clean water permits and no-discharge certifications will increase stewardship and deliver better environmental results for communities and watersheds," said Assistant Administrator for Water Benjamin H. Grumbles. "This high-priority regulation will include flexibility with accountability so livestock operators can choose the most effective way to prevent water pollution and improve manure management. We're committed to finalizing a strong and flexible rule by the summer."

Under current law, if CAFOs do not discharge pollutants to waters of the United States they do not need a Clean Water Act permit. This proposal would, for the first time, allow CAFOs to certify that they do not discharge. EPA is also proposing three different approaches for nutrient management plans (NMPs) that could be used by permitting authorities and CAFOs to determine application rates of manure, litter and wastewater to be incorporated into the permit. An NMP specifies the amount of manure that can be applied to crops so nutrient runoff to water bodies is minimized. EPA has been regulating CAFOs for more than 25 years. In response to a February 2005 federal court decision vacating some portions of a 2003 CAFO rule, EPA proposed a revised rule in June 2006. This proposed rule supplements the 2006 proposal by adding additional options.

EPA is hosting a webcast to provide additional information on the supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking for the CAFO NPDES program. Participants will be able to submit questions about the supplemental proposal to the EPA presenters during the webcast to gain a better understanding of this rulemaking effort. This webcast is intended to support the public comment period for this proposed rule, which closes on April 7, 2008.

Information on Animal Feeding Operations: http://www.epa.gov/npdes/afo/revisedrule

To register for the free webcast: http://www.epa.gov/npdes/training
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