The Patriot-News reported Thursday Paulette Viola, a member of DCNR’s Conservation and Natural Resources Advisory Council since the mid-1990s, resigned from her position saying the Corbett Administration made it impossible for the Council to “effectively and efficiently meet the spirit of the law or its responsibility to the public.”

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

The following bills were given final approval by the Senate and House and are now on the Governor's desk for action--

The following bills of interest saw action this week in the House and Senate--

Bucknell University in Lewisburg will host the 7th Annual Susquehanna River Symposium, "Wasn't That A Mighty Storm! Flooding in the Susquehanna watershed," October 12 and 13 in the Terrace Room (Room 256) of the Elaine Langone Center.

The Chesapeake Bay Program is now promoting two new videos on stormwater management and solutions.

The Friends of the Wissahickon is partnering with REI Conshohocken and Philadelphia Parks & Recreation for a Planting Day at Cresheim Creek on October 28 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Suppose you are thinking about buying a house with a basement, how can you tell if it might have water problems?

Brian Oram, a professional geologist and soil scientist and founder of B.F. Environmental Consultants, announced Monday the firm is making available “The Pennsylvania Guide for Groundwater for Private Well Owners: What Do the Numbers Mean?” through the Water Research Center Portal.

The PA Section of the American Water Resources Association will hold its annual Water Quality in Pennsylvania Conference on October 11 at Harrisburg Area Community College in Harrisburg starting at 8:00 a.m.

Agents from the Attorney General’s Environmental Crimes Section have filed criminal charges against an Elk County man in connection with alleged falsified environmental reports submitted to the Department of Environmental Protection for the James City Sewage Treatment Plant.

Monday, the Keystone Energy Forum, in partnership with the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, held its 2nd Annual “Outdoors Forum” focusing on natural gas development and its interaction with Pennsylvania’s countryside.

From farms to factories, hospitals to homes and everything in between, life as we know it would not be possible without energy.

Paschall Village, the Philadelphia Housing Authority’s high-performance, green development in southwest Philadelphia, has received top honors from the Pennsylvania Association of Housing and Redevelopment Authorities.

Wednesday the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy released their annual scorecard, ranking Pennsylvania 20th in the nation for energy efficiency policy and performance. The state improved by five spots from last year tying it for 4th most improved state in the country.

The PA Petroleum Marketers & Convenience Store Association, Empire State Petroleum Association of New York and the Petroleum Marketers Association of America honored Gov. Tom Corbett for his efforts to keep a strong refinery presence in Southeast Pennsylvania as part of their annual convention and trade show at the Hershey Lodge & Convention Center Tuesday.

The Clean Air Council is challenging a decision by environmental regulators to allow the Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery to claim credit for a reduction in emissions caused by the closure of Sunoco's Marcus Hook refinery.

Register now for the 2012 PA Brownfields Conference on October 29-31 in Monroeville near Pittsburgh. This special event will focus on the technical, and economic aspects of brownfields reclamation and development and the opportunities for community redevelopment.

Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley toured brownfields along the Ohio River Thursday that once were home to a closed steel mill. They are now ready to serve new companies looking to do business with the proposed Shell ethane cracker.

Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Mike Krancer announced Friday the agency has finalized guidance on air quality permitting decisions for oil and gas operations. The guidance applies to permitting sources of emissions from the exploration, extraction and production of oil and gas.

Chatham University’s Office of Career Development and the Rachel Carson Institute are sponsoring a series of sustainability leadership lectures to illustrate the pathways environmental leaders have followed to success.

The Friends of the Wissahickon will host a Community Forum on Sustainability in the Wissahickon Watershed with Dr. Priscilla Sands on October 23 at Valley Green Inn. The lecture will begin at 6:00 p.m. and is free and open to the public.

An interdisciplinary team of scholars has received an $11.9 million award from the National Science Foundation to support the establishment of a multi-institution research network on Sustainable Climate Risk Management strategies.

The state’s largest nonprofit historical preservation group Monday honored Sen. Lloyd Smucker (R-Lancaster) for his efforts to protect and rehabilitate historically significant buildings in Pennsylvania.

The Friends of Tom Ridge Environmental Center will present the 2012 John C. Oliver Environmental Leadership Award at a special celebration on October 26 at the Center in Erie.

The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission recently presented the 2012 Visionary in Preservation Award to Ira Beckerman at the annual Historic Preservation Awards Ceremony hosted by Preservation Pennsylvania.

The final lecture of the year in the South Mountain Speaker Series will focus on the challenges of conserving water quality and quantity in the region on November 8, in Memorial Auditorium at Shippensburg University.

Episode 6 of the Field Notes podcast,a spoken word podcast that details anecdotal stories by Charles Bier, the senior director of conservation science, is available from the Western PA Conservancy.  The title of this podcast is Seek Natures Truth and Fear Not!  Click Here for a list of all the podcasts available in this series.

Join DCNR Bureau of Forest Botanist Ed Dix on a hike through the early fall forests of Pennsylvania in this new iConservePA.org video.  Click Here to watch the video.  Click Here for more information about the best times to see Pennsylvania’s fall forest colors.

The Western PA Conservancy Fall issue of eConserve Magazine is now available.  Read about WPC’s work in the Allegheny National Forest, a sustainable forestry project on preserved land, WPC urban forestry work and much more.

At its quarterly business meeting today, the Fish and Boat Commission previewed a mentored youth pilot program it will launch next spring on the Saturday preceding the southeast regional opening day of trout season.

Following significant public comment, Game Commission Executive Director Carl G. Roe Thursday announced the agency will not be moving forward to draft regulatory changes to place three species of bats on the Commonwealth's endangered species list.

The Department of Environmental Protection published notice of the opportunity to bid on a mine reclamation projects in Cambria County, Clarion 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 NewClips 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 Environmental Quality Board meets October 16 to consider Final Chapter 105 Dam Safety, Waterway Management Fees, Final ultra low sulfur limits for fuel oil and the withdrawal of Drinking Water Program fees.

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.