Quittapahilla Watershed Association

Lebanon County Countywide Action Plan (CAP)

   Thanks to a federal mandate from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in 2020 three Pennsylvania departments -- the departments of Environmental Protection (PA-DEP), Agriculture (PDA), and Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) -- developed a plan to reduce the amount of nitrogen, phosphorous, and sediment flowing into the Cheseapeake Bay from Pennsylvania's waterways.

   The plan is called the "Phase III WIP," short for "Pennsylvania's Chesapeake Bay Phase 3 Watershed Implementation Plan."

   The Phase 3 WIP is described in some detail on this page of the PA-DEP website, from which the map below was plucked:

https://www.dep.pa.gov/Business/Water/Pennsylvania%E2%80%99s%20Chesapeake%20Bay%20Program%20Office/WIP3/Pages/Phase-III-WIP-(Watershed-Implementation-Plans).aspx

To quote from the PA-DEP web page cited above, "In 2020 four counties—Bedford, Centre, Cumberland, and Lebanon—are in the process of developing their Countywide Action Plans to improve local water quality. DEP provided a Community Clean Water Planning Guide and Toolbox to county leaders that describes the local planning process and information about the Phase 3 WIP, watershed wide initiatives, and countywide expectations. Learn about the planning process in this webinar: Healthy Waters, Healthy Communities. Find out more and get involved in these counties’ efforts here."

Here in Lebanon County, the CAP initiative is being spearheaded by Mike LaSala of LandStudies, Inc., who put together a Steering Committee and led the development of a draft Lebanon Countywide Action Plan in summer 2020. This draft CAP was submitted to PA-DEP in October.

The screenshot below shows most of the members of the CAP Steering Committee during a Zoom meeting in November 2020. Third from the left in the top row is CAP Coordinator is Mary Kate Gallagher of the Lebanon County Conservation District, freshly hired in November 2020 to coordinate this Phase III WIP initiative.

In the top row from left are:

• Bryan Hoffman, Lebanon County Stormwater Consortium

• Michael Schroeder, President, Quittapahilla Watershed Association

• Mary Kate Gallagher, CAP Coordinator, Lebanon County Conservation District

• Laurel Etter Longenecker, Sustainable Design Coordinator, LandStudies, Inc.

In the middle row:

• Robin Getz, Director of Public Works, City of Lebanon

• Rocky Powell, President, Clear Creeks Consulting, Inc.

• Mike LaSala, Specialist / Analyst and MS4 Program Manager, LandStudies, Inc.

• Julie Cheyney, Executive Director, Lebanon County Planning Department

In the bottom row:

• Brent Kaylor, Vice Chair, Lebanon County Conservation District and farmer, North Annville Township

• Katie Doster, District Manager, Lebanon County Conservation District

• Matt Bomgarder, Pennsylvania Grazing Lands Coalition Chairman and owner, Blue Mountain View Farm

• Stephanie Harmon, Watershed Specialist, Lebanon County Conservation District

Not pictured but also members of this Steering Committee are:

• Russ Collins, President, Doc Fritchey Trout Unlimited

• Dan Cannistraci, Lebanon County Stormwater Consortium

• Randall Leisure, Chair, Lebanon County Conservation District and farmer, North Annville Township.

The initiative is being led by five "action teams" as seen in the organizational schematic diagram below:

The Quittapahilla Watershed Association is most involved in the Education & Outreach Action Team, on which QWA President Michael Schroeder serves, and the Coordinating Action Team, on which QWA Board Member Russ Collins serves.

This page, like the CAP, is a work in progress. It is envisioned as a repository for updates and key documents on the CAP process, so check back again soon.