Pre-Gas Drilling Drinking Water Testing—An Educational Opportunity for Extension

The increase in shale gas drilling in Pennsylvania has resulted in thousands of landowners receiving pre-drilling testing of their drinking water. Landowners often have difficulty understanding test reports resulting in low awareness of pre-existing problems. Extension and several partners developed a program to improve understanding of pre-drilling water tests. Educational workshops with various companion publications and websites were used by 79% of participants, and follow-up evaluations found that nearly all were able to understand their test reports and that 80% had taken actions on their water supplies. The program represents an emerging educational opportunity for Extension in shale gas drilling regions

The Master Well Owner Network: Volunteers Educating Pennsylvania Well Owners

The Master Well Owner Network (MWON) was created to expand the capacity of Penn State Extension by training volunteers who would provide education to rural residents about private water system management. Eight workshops were conducted throughout Pennsylvania, and 243 volunteers representing 55 of 67 counties in Pennsylvania successfully completed the training. MWON volunteer reports have been very positive, with education provided directly to over 7,000 Pennsylvania residents and another 29,000 educated through the mass media. MWON\u27s successes in Pennsylvania may serve as a model for other states that wish to increase outreach to the private water system education audience

Distance Education of Pennsylvania Pond Owners

Pennsylvania pond owners represent a large audience with a great need for educational programming and assistance. Penn State Extension attempted to reach this audience via a pond management program delivered by satellite. Evaluations by both program attendees and Extension professionals demonstrated that the program was successful. However, attendee respondents indicated that they wanted more in-depth information over a shorter time frame. A relatively small proportion (10%) of attendees did not favor satellite delivery. This level of dissatisfaction is quite low and may be improved by focusing on shorter, more focused satellite programs and by providing videotapes of satellite programs

Education to Increase Water Availability to Pennsylvania Homeowners

Recurring droughts in all or part of Pennsylvania over the past ten years have resulted in increased conflicts and questions about water availability. In response to this demand, Penn State Cooperative Extension created a variety of educational resources in 2002 to assist homeowners with water supply management and conservation. Publications were created on household water conservation, managing a well during a drought, intermediate storage water systems, and water system planning along with table-top displays on water conservation. These resources joined existing publications dealing with rainwater cisterns, saving water during an emergency and community water conservation. A web site was also created in 2002 to house water availability publications and to provide links to drought indicators in the state. Twenty-five county extension agents received training in water supply and conservation in 2003 following a severe drought. In the last two years, these educators have utilized these resources to educate hundreds of Pennsylvania residents on water conservation practices. Many have used the table-top displays at fairs or offered specific programs related to water conservation. For example, rain barrel workshops were offered in 2005 to about 100 homeowners. Thousands of homeowners have visited the water availability web site, especially during dry weather in the summer of 2005. The network of trained county extension agents, web visibility and educational resources have provided valuable education for Pennsylvania residents to increase water availability through water conservation and improved household water management

The Pond Guidebook (NRAES 178 - FRONT MATTER ONLY)

This 76 page publication (NRAES-178) was originally published by the Natural Resource, Agriculture, and Engineering Service (NRAES, previously known as the Northeast Regional Agricultural Engineering Service), a multi-university program in the Northeast US disbanded in 2011. Plant and Life Sciences Publishing (PALS) was subsequently formed to manage the NRAES catalog. Ceasing operations in 2018, PALS was a program of the Department of Horticulture in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) at Cornell University. PALS assisted university faculty in publishing, marketing and distributing books for small farmers, gardeners, land owners, workshops, college courses, and consumers.Includes insights and management tips for pond owners and those considering constructing a pond. Based on research and experience, the book addresses water chemistry, construction, safety, weed management, fish selection, nuisance wildlife, beach construction, leaking, and more. Oriented to the Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, and Northeastern United States. It includes 34 photos, 24 illustrations, and management tips. DUE TO OUSTANDING COPYRIGHT ISSUES OR CLEARLY IDENTIFIED OUT-OF-DATE PRACTICES (E.G. SAFETY CONCERNS), ONLY THE FRONT MATTER (E.G. COVER, ToC, ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, ETC) ARE PROVIDED HERE AT THIS TIME. Print copies of this item can be found at libraries listed here: www.worldcat.org/oclc/15699440

Development and Demonstration of an Endocrine-Disrupting Compound Footprint Calculator

Chemicals in personal care products used in everyday lives become part of the wastewater stream. Wastewater treatment plants were not designed to remove these chemicals; therefore, these products and their metabolites persist in the effluent. Many of these chemicals are known, or suspected to be, endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) and can cause adverse impacts to aquatic organisms at trace concentrations. Here, we developed a publicly available EDC footprint calculator to estimate a household’s EDC footprint. The calculator prompts users to input the number of products they own in each of three categories: health and beauty, laundry, and cleaning. The calculator, which is programmed with average values of EDCs in each product, outputs an estimate of the user’s EDC footprint (mass) and ranks the contribution of each product to the footprint. When used by a group of 39 citizen scientists across the Susquehanna River Basin in the northeastern United States, the average household EDC footprint was ~150 g. Results of this tool aid in decision making by providing users with the information necessary to reduce the household’s footprint through product selection that avoids specific ingredients or by replacing the top-ranking products with greener alternatives