Archive for April, 2011
Thirsty? Why not reach for a glass of tap water? It’s the planet’s original source of refreshment and hydration, and it’s a vital component of our daily lives. Americans drink more than one billion glasses of tap water per day! In fact, children in the first six months of life consume seven times as much water per pound as the average American adult.
A safe water supply is critical to protecting health. In the United States, community water supplies are tested every day. EPA has drinking water regulations for more than 90 contaminants. Collectively, water utilities in this country treat nearly 34 billion gallons of water daily!
Try to imagine your daily routine without tap water. How would you shower without it? Could you wash your fruit and vegetables? Clean your clothes? Scrub your dishes? Tap water touches every aspect of our lives, from the products we use to the food we eat. Even firefighting would be impacted without tap water. Firefighters depend on a reliable water system with high pressure and volume. In most communities, water flowing to fire hydrants is conveyed by the same system of water mains, pumps and storage tanks as the water flowing to your home.
Many communities are implementing protection efforts to prevent contamination of their drinking water supplies. These communities have found that the less polluted water is before it reaches the treatment plant, the less extensive and expensive the efforts needed to safeguard the public’s health. You can help to protect your public water supply, too. Limit your use of fertilizers and pesticides, clean up after your pets and don’t throw trash in storm drains. For more ideas, visit our webpage for actions you can take today.
So raise your glass, toast the extraordinary effort that goes into ensuring a safe public water supply, and celebrate National Drinking Water Week from May 1st to May 7th, 2011.
Imagine strolling along a street shaded by trees, illuminated by solar-powered street lamps, on sidewalks lined with gardens that quickly soak up rainwater after a spring storm. Imagine a town that is training a local workforce to build these sustainable, green streets. Imagine a town where the new Triple Bottom Line – people, planet, profit – is the standard for local businesses. Imagine a legacy of sustainability.
If this doesn’t sound like your town (or it sounds like what you think your town ought to be), then come to the Green Streets-Green Jobs Forum on April 29th and 30th in Silver Spring, MD, and be a part of the launch of a public-private effort in support of innovative, green infrastructure practices to restore our urban waters and protect public health and safety!
EPA is a partner in the Chesapeake Bay-Anacostia Watershed public-private initiative, whose goal is to build a network of support for communities interested in greening their neighborhoods and towns. The initiative seeks to provide the technical and financial assistance to enable smart planning, watershed and stormwater management, and green infrastructure construction, as well as stimulate the green jobs market and enable families to work where they live and play.
The forum will explore the steps that communities are taking right now to green their streets and towns. Keynote Speaker Mr. Robert Adair will highlight the City of Houston’s Low Impact Development Design Competition, an innovative strategy that makes Houston a leader in demonstrating cost-effective green infrastructure practices. Other local case studies showcasing green street design and planning will also be highlighted, along with the first Green Streets-Green Jobs grant recipients and the leadership of other green infrastructure partners.
For communities looking to make their towns a little greener, speakers from all sectors (state federal and local governments, city planners, engineers, business and industry executives and green street experts) will discuss resources available to support community greening efforts. The forum will showcase policy and planning tools, as well as detailed insight into designing green communities, creating demand for green jobs, and the financing, training, and education that goes along with them.
With the vision of a Triple Bottom Line, green infrastructure has benefits to people, the economy, and the environment. Come learn about these many benefits of integrated watershed planning, like sustainable stormwater management, reduced energy costs, improved air quality, and a new demand for green jobs, just to name a few!
Space is limited, so please RSVP or Register for the Green Streets-Green Jobs Forum by April 21, 2011. We look forward to seeing you there!
The hooks and lines have been in the water for a couple weeks now and spring fishing is in full swing. The Mid-Atlantic Region has some of the greatest fishing in America and if you haven’t been out to try your luck with a rod and reel, then you are missing out. Fishing is an excellent way to relax, experience nature and even catch yourself a meal!
Each state has a great website on fishing. You can visit them below to learn more about the species of fish, get fishing reports, learn about different fishing seasons and how to obtain a fishing license.
Pennsylvania has over 86,000 miles of streams and rivers! Visit the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission for more information on where to catch the whopper near you!
Did you know you can fish for over 40 species of freshwater and saltwater fish as well as 5 different shellfish in Maryland? Visit the Maryland Department of Natural Resources web site for even more useful information!
In 1975 there were over 11,000 resident Delaware state fishing licenses sold. In, 2008 the number grew to over 45,000. Fishing is alive and well in the “First State.” Visit the Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife for more information.
Just last year the new state record Yellow Perch was caught in West Virginia. This proves that monster fish are still roaming West Virginia water bodies. Visit West Virginia DNR Wildlife Resources for more information.
More than 800,000 fishermen make Virginia a destination for fishing every year. That generates over $1.3 billion in revenue for the state! Visit the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries for more information.
DC hosts free fishing days. Visit the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation for more information. Also visit the District Department of the Environment for more fishing information.
Keeping your catch and cooking it is a favorite for many fishermen. Many of the species you can catch in the Mid-Atlantic Region are tasty to eat and, because they are packed with low-calorie protein, they are very healthy for you as well.
One aspect you need to be aware of when eating wild or locally caught fish is the chance of contaminants being present in the fish. Pollutants like mercury or PCBs can build up in the fish’s tissue. These pollutants lie in the sediment of a water body and are passed to fish up through the food chain. At certain levels these contaminants can be harmful to humans who consume the fish.
So what do you need to know about eating locally caught or wild fish? The first thing is that many water bodies have already-in-place Fish Consumption Advisories. These are guides that notify people of how much of a certain species of fish they can safely eat, normally over a month’s or a year’s time. You can visit the EPA Fish Advisory main page to learn more.
Each state publishes its own information on Fish Advisories. Visit the states you are interested in below to learn more!
Pennsylvania Fish Consumption Guide
Maryland Fish Consumption Guide
Delaware Fish Consumption Guide
West Virginia Fish Consumption Guide
Virginia Fish Consumption Guide
Have any favorite recipes for fish? Know of any great fishing holes? Share your thoughts on our comments page!
One Mid-Atlantic community has a “trashy” idea. Salisbury, a small city located in eastern Maryland, recently installed netting devices designed to prevent debris from flowing into the Wicomico River. The Wicomico flows through the city and has had an issue with excessive trash. When rainfall occurs, trash and other debris is flushed into the city storm drains, which carries storm water and trash to streams, rivers, lakes and other water bodies. To resolve this problem, the trash nets fit over the end of the pipes, catching garbage before it flows into the river. They are tended by city crews and emptied periodically. The nets even have an overflow release function, which allows the nets to break away from the pipe if it starts to obstruct water flow. The net still remains tethered to the pipe so it doesn’t float away while water flow is restored. Salisbury was very pleased with the netting devices, and is planning to install more in the near future. Read more about this great way to limit trash flowing into the Wicomico River!
Other cities are getting even more innovative with their trash collection prevention. The city of Baltimore installed a Water Wheel Powered Trash Inceptor which lifts the trash out of the water and deposits it into a dumpster. After heavy rains, the city noticed huge amounts of garbage floating into the inner harbor area which is a popular tourist destination. As was the case in Salisbury, the trash got there through storm drains causing an unsightly scene. The wheel is propelled by the current of the water body. In the case of the Inner Harbor, the current was not strong enough to drive the wheel all the time, so solar and wind energy were employed to make the Water Wheel an even greener solution. The dumpster the trash is deposited into is enclosed in a shed which keeps trash out of view. Instead of having a long boom stretch across an area where trash gets stacked up, trash is filtered into the wheel where it is continuously lifted out of the water and into the dumpster. Crews periodically empty the dumpster. The Water Wheel has been known to collect up to 7 tons of trash after one storm!
Trash in rivers and water bodies is becoming a bigger issue among communities throughout the Mid-Atlantic Region. EPA worked with communities in the Anacostia River watershed to establish the first interstate trash pollution diet. The diet consists of limiting the amount of trash that can flow into the river. Click here to learn more about the trash pollution diet for the Anacostia River. Do any water bodies near you have an issue with trash buildup? What are some ways you can prevent garbage from getting into the water? Share your thoughts and ideas below!