The Watershed Congress Organizing Committee is now accepting proposals for presentations for the 2017 Watershed Congress, which will be held Saturday, March 11, 2017, at the Montgomery County Community College Pottstown campus.

Submissions are due by 11:59 PM, October 31, 2016.
All applications must be submitted online.

Additional guidance for those interested in submitting a session proposal, with proposal formatting information, is available here.

The Watershed Congress advances the best available information and techniques for protecting and restoring watersheds. The focus on networking across disciplines means that the Congress melds science, policy and practical applications into one program. Every year, a growing and changing group of individuals attends to gain new knowledge, acquire tools, and practice techniques that will allow them to take active roles in the stewardship of their natural resources.

Find more information about the Watershed Congress.
Contact the Watershed Congress Organizing Committee.

The Montgomery County Conservation District is hosting a workshop for contractors to be held at the Montgomery County 4H Center in Creamery on September 14 from 7am-11:30am.

This event is free for participants, but pre-registration is required due to limited seating.

Topics will include tips for meeting NPDES permit requirements, common problems with E&S and Stormwater BMPs on sites, and solutions for proper BMP installation.

Space is still available.  Register now by calling (610) 489-4506, extension 19!

Collegeville, July 22, 2016 – Montgomery County Conservation District (MCCD) was awarded $26,400 to build technical assistance capacity for urban agriculture conservation projects on Sunday, July 17, by the National Association of Conservation Districts. NACD granted a total of $2 million to MCCD and 41 other districts across 25 states.

The initiative, in partnership with the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, aims to increase and stabilize technical assistance capacity where the land is predominantly urban or urbanizing. The 2016 urban grants announced Sunday will allow districts to help urban farmers, community gardens, and other local agricultural partnerships implement conservation practices that support local food production, provide opportunities for education and stewardship, and protect natural resources.

MCCD will use the grant to establish the framework for an urban agriculture conservation initiative to be utilized and implemented in two target areas of Montgomery County within the first year; Norristown and Pottstown. The framework will include the creation of an electronic Urban Agricultural Conservation Resource Guide (eUACRG) to be utilized in the development, execution and sustainability of urban agricultural sites, the production of a documentary video to demonstrate and disseminate project results, as well as the creation of a partnership network to support and provide technical assistance for the expansion of urban agriculture into communities.

For more information on the program, contact Jessica Moldofsky, Ag Conservation Specialist, at the Montgomery County Conservation District, 610-489-4506 x14.

Read the full press release from NACD.

Montgomery County Conservation District and the Schuylkill Action Network are partnering with the municipality of Norristown to install student artwork around a storm drain in downtown Norristown to raise awareness that these drains flow to the Schuylkill River and should be kept clean.

The installation will take place on July 29 at the corner of Main and Swede streets, with information to be presented during a food truck event from 11:30am to 1:30pm.

The artwork for the drain was designed by Kristin Olinger, an eighth-grade student at Phil-Mont Christian Academy in Springfield Township.  Kristin won first place in the Schuylkill Street Art Contest’s Montgomery County category, which had over a hundred entries.

All are invited to come see the new sidewalk art, and join us on July 29 to learn more about doing your part to protect the Schuylkill River.

Winning design by Kristin Olinger to be transformed into street art around a storm drain.

The Delaware River Basin (DRB) provides ecosystem services that support a wide array of commercial, recreational, and residential uses for more than 15 million people. With support from the William Penn Foundation, the Delaware River Basin (DRB) Project- Land Use Dynamics is developing a land cover mapping, modeling, and monitoring system for the DRB. The goal is to provide tools that promote regional planning in the watershed, so that our civic and business leaders can make decisions which produce lasting benefits for the regional economy and quality of life.

Over the past several months, workshops have been held throughout the watershed to collect input on drivers of land use change. The project partners are now extending that conversation so that citizens, business leaders, conservation professionals, and others can have the opportunity to weigh in. All of this information will be used to create land use scenarios that explore the range of possible futures for the Delaware River Basin in 2070.

Please take the survey to share your vision of the watershed, and encourage anyone who lives or works in the Delaware River Basin to do the same. DRB2070 is a collaborative effort, and generating land use scenarios for the entire DRB will require input from make stakeholders to create a shared vision. We need your help! Survey responses will be collected until August 1st. Contact Antonia Price with any questions.