Greenversations

by Lina Younes

How many times do you want to do something special on the weekend to enjoy the great outdoors? How many times do you want to volunteer to give back to the community? How often do you look for special outings where the entire family can have some fun while enjoying the fresh air? Well, this Saturday, September 25th, there will be numerous opportunities throughout the country, including Puerto Rico, to volunteer. There are two major events, National Public Lands Day (NPLD) and International Coastal Cleanup Day (ICC) taking place at a park or waterfront near you, I’m not talking exclusively about big expansive lands with majestic vistas. These public lands can be at an urban park in your very neighborhood.

This year, EPA will be joining forces with the National Environmental Education Foundation to encourage employees to volunteer for these park cleanups and plant some trees. For those of us living the Washington metropolitan area we will have an added bonus. Administrator Lisa P. Jackson will be joining us this Saturday morning at Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens in Washington, DC. I had been meaning to go to this park for quite some time, but never actually ventured there. Now I will have a chance to roll up my sleeves and have some fun doing something positive for the environment.

Also this Saturday, not far from Kenilworth Park, some of my colleagues will be volunteering at another event in Anacostia as part of the International Coastal Cleanup Day effort. For that occasion, EPA will be partnering with the Ocean Conservancy to remove debris from our waterways. We urge you to search both sites to find events where you can take the whole family.

Coincidentally, yesterday I attended a meeting on environmental education where EPA’s Deputy Administrator Bob Perciasepe spoke about the importance of hands-on activities to instill the values of environmental stewardship and conservation among our youth. I would like to share the quote with you: “I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” Hopefully these volunteer events this weekend will serve as opportunities to make our children environmentally responsible citizens at an early age

About the author: Lina Younes has been working for EPA since 2002 and chairs EPA’s Multilingual Communications Task Force. Prior to joining EPA, she was the Washington bureau chief for two Puerto Rican newspapers and she has worked for several government agencies.

Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in Greenversations are those of the author. They do not reflect EPA policy, endorsement, or action, and EPA does not verify the accuracy or science of the contents of the blog.

The third Saturday in September is recognized across language and cultural barriers as a day to support and protect our waters as the International Coastal Clean-up (ICC). At last year’s Cleanup, nearly 400,000 volunteers collected over 6.8 million pounds of trash in 100 countries and 42 US states; the largest volunteer effort of its kind. Beginning 23 years ago in Texas, the event has grown into a premiere service event around the world and echoes President Obama’s call to service. Many of the locations are located directly in the heart of large urban populations and serve as sources of education on important water issues. The events’ impact is evidenced by the reduction of trash in the waterways that participate and demonstrates how other clean up efforts around the country can help revitalize the water.

I joined the EPA several summers ago as an intern, while a student at Howard University in Washington, DC. This is when I was first introduced to this annual event, and more importantly the cleanup was my first real experience with water issues and the concept of protecting America’s urban waters. At the time my sole job was managing the partnership EPA had with Howard University, and one of my areas of focus was community service. The two seemed like a perfect a fit since one of the sites designated for a cleanup was here in DC at the Anacostia River. The first year in 2008, we lead a group of about 20 students. With a great response, they were able to develop a sense of ownership responsibility for the waters in their community. In 2009, the amount of support more than doubled, with a little over 50 volunteers from the University and presence at two sites within the city.

I have witnessed the impact that clean ups like this have on our water and in the hearts of the volunteers through my work with EPA and Howard University firsthand. It also brought Environmental issues and more importantly issues with urban waters (like trash and runoff) to both students at Howard and the general population of DC. As this particular event approaches its 25 year anniversary there is still more that can be done especially on our urban waterfronts. Unfortunately trash may always find its way into our waters, but our clean up efforts make a large difference to communities that leave in these areas.

Link about the coastal cleanup.

About the Author: Jarred McKee is a Fellow in the Oceans & Coastal Protection Division in the Office of Wetlands, Oceans & Watersheds. He has been with the EPA for several years now and annually works on the Agency’s Partnership with the Ocean Conservancy and International Coastal Clean Up.

In 2009 dredging began in the Upper Hudson River to remove sediments with PCBs. Read more.

Phase 1 of the Hudson River dredging project provides a chance to evaluate whether the equipment and methods being used are adequate to meet the project’s cleanup goals. This phase is underway and will continue until the beginning of November. So far, dredging has removed more than 16,000 cubic yards of the river bottom. You can follow the project’s productivity at the following website: www.hudsondredgingdata.com/

That website also provides information about the various types of monitoring being done to ensure the project is performed in a way that is protective of human health and the environment.

The design elements to be scrutinized during Phase 1 include the equipment selected for dredging sediment and transporting dredged materials to the sediment processing facility, PCB resuspension control and monitoring equipment, the processes and equipment used for dewatering and stabilizing the dredged material and for treating water generated during sediment processing, the rail infrastructure designed for transport of processed dredged materials to the final disposal location in Texas, and the methods and equipment used to backfill dredged areas and, in certain areas, to reconstruct habitat. EPA will be watching all of these project components closely.

At the end of Phase 1 dredging and prior to the start of Phase 2 dredging, EPA and an independent scientific panel will separately evaluate the project to determine whether the dredging design or dredging operations should be modified for the final phase. If all goes according to plan the entire project will be complete by November of 2015.

About the author: Kristen Skopeck is originally from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is an 11-year Air Force veteran and was stationed in California, Ohio, Texas, Portugal, and New York. After working for the USDA for three years, Kristen joined EPA in 2007 and moved to Glens Falls, NY to be a member of the Hudson River PCB dredging project team. She likes to spend her time reading, writing, watching movies, walking, and meeting new people.