DCNR Secretary Ellen Ferretti appeared before the House Appropriations Committee for 90 minutes Tuesday answering questions about the agency’s FY 2014-15 budget request.

Tuesday, citizens from across Pennsylvania joined by members of thirty-five of the state’s conservation, outdoor, environmental protection, and civic engagement organizations rallied in the Capitol rotunda against Gov. Tom Corbett’s proposal to lift an existing moratorium on natural gas leasing in Pennsylvania’s state forests.

This week the Senate and House agency by agency hearings on Gov. Corbett’s FY 2014-15 budget request ended and the real work of putting together a state budget by the June 30 deadline begins.

PA Environment Digest now has a Google+ Circle called Green Works In PA.  Just go to your Google+ page and search for DHess@CrisciAssociates.com, the email for the Digest Editor David Hess,  and let us join your Circle.

Here are the Senate and House Calendars and Committee meetings showing bills of interest as well as a list of new environmental bills introduced--

In a letter delivered to Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane this week, Reps. Garth Everett (R-Lycoming), Sandra Major (R-Susquehanna), Matt Baker (R-Tioga) and Tina Pickett (R-Bradford) are calling for an investigation into Chesapeake Energy Company’s practice of deducting gas royalty payments for post-production costs.

Rep. Robert Godshall (R-Montgomery), Majority Chair of the House Consumer Affairs Committee, held a public hearing on Tuesday on legislation passed in 2008 to promote electric conservation and save money.

In response to the thousands of complaints statewide about skyrocketing electric rates for those individuals who entered into variable rate contracts with their electric generation supplier, the House Consumer Affairs Committee will hold a public hearing in March to gather more information on the issue, said Rep. Matt Baker (R-Tioga), who is also a co-sponsor of comprehensive legislation to address consumer concerns.

The February issue of the Environmental Synopsis from the Joint Legislative Air and Water Pollution Control and Conservation Committee is now available.

The Department of Environmental Protection published notice in the March 1 PA Bulletin of the final technical guidance and a comment/response document for the Policy on Public Participation in the Permit Application Review Process. (formal notice)

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation-PA is hosting two free MS4 stormwater permitting webinars in March with funding from the William Penn Foundation.

Penn State Professor Jim Shortle provided a one hour webinar on January 29 discussing a recent study on the agricultural costs of cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation Winter newsletter is now available.  Some of the topics included are: 21 states outside the Bay watershed challenge Bay standards, 2014 federal Farm Bill,    Click Here for an update on Pennsylvania from Harry Campbell, CBF PA Office Director.

Melting snow, heavy spring rains and flooding can wash out unpaved driveways, farm lanes, and access roads.

The students in kindergarten through high school now have until March 7 to enter the Philadelphia Water Department Green City, Clean Waters Art Contest.

The PA Lake Management Society will hold its annual conference on March 19-20 at the Ramada Inn & Conference Center in State College.

U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) Tuesday announced the Department of the Interior’s Office of Surface Mine Reclamation and Enforcement has awarded Pennsylvania $52,368,972.10 in funds to clean up abandoned coal mines.

The Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, PA Environmental Council and DCNR are sponsoring a Green Design $aves Green Workshop in Fort Washington, Montgomery County on March 26 from 8:30 to 1:30.

The PA Chapter of the National Association of Water Companies will hold its annual meeting May 6 at the Commonwealth Keystone Building, Hearing Room 1 in Harrisburg from 8:30 to Noon.  

Registration is now open for volunteers and sponsors to take part in the Schuylkill Watershed’s largest Stream Clean-up event, hosted by the Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy on April 12. 

Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful congratulates their local affiliate, Westmoreland Cleanways, on the opening of a permanent drive-through Recycling Center on February 3. 

Penn State Extension has put together a video presentation on shale gas development, drilling equipment and practices in Pennsylvania well worth a look.  Click Here to visit their Illustrated Guide to Shale Gas Development.

Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane Tuesday announced two Susquehanna County men have been arrested and charged with the illegal dumping and storage of sewage sludge on a farm property in Lenox Township and at their business property in Hallstead.

The Delaware Valley Chapter of the Air and Waste Management Association is now accepting scholarship applications for students pursuing a career in the environmental field.  Applications are due March 28.  Click Here for all the details.

In recognition of the 20th anniversary of the Environmental Justice Executive Order, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Wednesday highlighted three environmental justice grants in Philadelphia totaling $90,000 to assist overburdened low-income communities in developing solutions to local health and environmental issues.

The Department of Environmental Protection published notice in the March 1 PA Bulletin requiring all owners and operators of companies involved in coal bed methane gas processing to for the first time report their methane emissions for 2013 by April 30 and each year thereafter.  (formal notice)

Over the past few weeks, the Office of Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection and the independent Office of Consumer Advocate each have received hundreds of calls and complaints from consumers regarding unexpected and dramatic spikes in the cost of their electricity.

The Department of Environmental Protection Tuesday announced it will start accepting applications for its Alternative Fuels Incentive Grant Program March 1 providing an estimated $8 million in grants for the purchase or conversion of alternative fuel vehicles.  

The Department of Environmental Protection invites middle school teachers, administrators and building managers to a March 25 training workshop in Norristown, Montgomery County, on the Keystone Energy Education Program (KEEP) to teach and track energy efficiency in school buildings and homes.

The Department of Environmental Protection will display its interactive “DEP at Home” exhibit during the Erie Home and Garden Expo at the Bayfront Convention Center from March 13 to 16.

Imagine using a thermal imaging camera to identify energy waste, developing a generator that produces electricity as a dock rises and falls with the waves, or turning a waste product into a potentially viable source of energy.

Schindler Elevator Corporation Tuesday announced the grand opening of its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Hanover, York County, earning North America’s first LEED Gold green building certification for an elevator manufacturing plant.

The Pennsylvania Wilds Planning Team is now accepting nominations for the Champion of the PA Wilds Awards designed to recognize individuals, groups, organizations or businesses that have done outstanding work in the last year to help grow and sustainably develop the outdoor recreation economy in the Pennsylvania Wilds.

French Creek winds its way through a 60-acre property, which in turn provides a forested buffer for the biologically diverse stream. And now this land will be permanently protected through a purchase by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.

Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Berks County will host its annual Spring Equinox Celebration March 22 with a variety of programs to celebrate nature’s renewal.

Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Berks County will host a free talk, Gone for Another Day, by the Pulitzer Prize-nominated author Scott Weidensaul at 4 p.m. on March 29 in the Visitor Center gallery.

In a winter like this one, it might seem spring will never come. But it’s guaranteed to get here. And now is the perfect time to start “thinking spring” by making plans to connect with wildlife in your own backyard when temperatures warm.

The Department of Environmental Protection published notice of the opportunity to bid on mine reclamation projects in Centre County and Schuylkill County.

This section gives you a continuously updated thumbnail sketch of issues to be considered in upcoming advisory committee meetings where the agendas have been released

This section gives you a heads up on upcoming deadlines for awards and grants and other recognition programs.  NEW means new from last week.

Here's a selection of NewsClips on environmental topics from around the state-- 

Here are NewsClips on topics related to Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling---

Here are NewsClips on watershed topics from around the state--

The Department of Environmental Protection published notice in the March 1 PA Bulletin requiring all owners and operators of companies involved in coal bed methane gas processing to report their methane emissions for 2013 by April 30 and each year thereafter.  (formal notice)

Upcoming legislative meetings, conferences, workshops, plus links to other online calendars.  Meetings are in Harrisburg unless otherwise noted.  NEW means new from last week.  Go to the online Calendar webpage.

Send your stories, photos and links to videos about your project, environmental issues or programs for publication in the PA Environment Digest to:  DHess@CrisciAssociates.com. 

PA Environment Digest is a supporting member of the Pennsylvania Outdoor Writers Association, Pennsylvania Council Trout Unlimited and the Doc Fritchey Chapter Trout Unlimited.