Communications Workgroup Minutes
Monthly Meeting
October 2, 2014
9:45AM-11:00AM
Participants:
Mike Land, NPS (Chair) Phil Miller, DNREC
Margaret Enloe, ACB (Coordinator) Kristin Peterson, MD DNR
Jenna Valente, CRC (Staff) Andrew Stacy, WVCA
Catherine Krikstan, ACB Bill Hayden, VA DEQ
Tom Wenz, EPA Mary Gattis, ACB/LGAC
Matt Ellis, CRC/STAC Deb Kleiner, CCWC
Guy Stephens, UMCES Kristin Wolf, PA DEP
Will Parson, ACB Kim Couranz, NOAA
Round Robin Updates:
CBP Web Team:
- Working on a refresh of the Bay Backpack and Chesapeake Stat sites
CBP Communications:
- Will Parson, the new videographer, is working on creating Bay 101 videos for every category on the Bay Program Issues pages.
- Catherine Krikstan will be switching roles. She has accepted a new position with UMCES and will be working on Bay Program indicators across the Bay Program sites
- CBP Communications will be doing a session for the RAE conference
- Catherine Krikstan, Mike Land and Guy Stephens will also be doing a workshop
EPA:
- Working on developing a response to a 21 question query from the Natural Resources News Service on Bay restoration
- CBF will publish and economics benefits report on Bay clean up that will be similar to a cost-benefit analysis that EPA is working that uses different parameters
- EPA be holding a meeting in Adamstown, Pa. to talk about BMP management and development
DNREC:
- Wrapped up the Reclaim Our Rivers: Nanticoke Series with guided nature walk and other events sponsored by Dogfish Head brewery
- The event included a trash clean up throughout the nature area
- It was a good day and an overall successful series
MDE:
- Governor O’Malley is making an announcement addressing the TMDL on October 8th in Ellicott City
- Event is sponsored though MDOT and the announcement is about a $500 M investment throughout the state to meet the TMDL goals
- Action: Send more information about the event to the group including, the draft press release and media advisory
- MDE is currently seeking a new Communications Director
- Action: Tom Wenz will send Kristin Peterson an e-mail about the Environmental Justice Symposium in College Park, MD on December 6-7 where an EPA headquarters representative will be participating in a panel on fish consumption warnings and they are looking for other people to be on the panel, maybe Bruce Michaels?
WVCA:
- Have been holding many workshops lately
o October 4th: Chainsaw safety workshop and forest management in the Bay watershed
- Recently had an Agriculture Day on Eastern Panhandle to discuss cover crops, nutrient management, soil health, riparian buffers and more
- Communitree tree planting coming up in Martinsburg on the 10th in partnership with the local garden club
VA:
- DEQ is in the process of updating their stormwater website
- Next month or so, the new page will be released and will include better access to information
- Action: Bill, let the Communications Workgroup know when the site is ready so we can help spread the word
LGAC:
- In collaboration with the Alliance hosted a workshop on monitoring at the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Forum to identify strategies for getting more monitoring information to local governments to help them accomplish their restoration goals
- Resounding theme is that local governments do not know what information exists that is already available to them.
o Many do not know if they have a local TMDL or if their streams are impaired so LGAC will be working on some next steps to address this issue and will share them with the group when more information is available
STAC:
Upcoming:
- Onsite septic system report
- Management effects on water quality trends report
- Pervious report
- Stream restoration
- Action: Matt will send Margaret a list with exact dates for the report publications once they are determined
- Roadside Ditch Management Workshop on October 9-10 at the Tidewater Inn in Easton, MD
NOAA:
- Planning an event for late October to announce FY 2014 funding for fisheries research projects
- Oysterfest will be held on October 25th at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum
Choose Clean Water Coalition:
- The City of Harrisburg, Pa. to pass a stormwater utility
- Working on putting together communications package for the city of Harrisburg, Pa.
- The idea is to be able to use them in other jurisdictions that are trying to pass the same thing
- Two webinars coming up:
o October 7th on climate change and water issues surrounding the 2017 mid-point assessment
o October 17 on diversity in environmental organizations
- Action: Send Margaret Enloe the link to the report on diversity
Leadership of Communications Workgroup:
- We need people to step up into leadership for this group by the end of the year
- We also need a Vice Chair
- MD is a suggestion for the Chair or Vice Chair roles because they Chair the Executive Council and a similar request will be sent to VA if the chair is passed their way in January
CBP 6 month editorial calendar review:
- Action: Catherine Krikstan will send out copies of CBP’s editorial calendar to the group after the meeting
- Suggestions:
o PA DEP will be working on marketing plan and series of videos about Pa’s roll in the Chesapeake Bay cleanup and will be looking to do more with it during spring 2015
o Lititz Run and township in PA would make a great story about how monitoring is used by local governments. Contact: Dan Zimmerman
o There will be a new Executive Council Chair in January
o Reducing Pollution indicator will be updated in late fall or early winter
o Highlight someone who is protecting land through a conservation easement – Conservation Fund, MD DNR, Choose Clean Water might have leads
o Check with Forest Service about the forestry program/Following up with Forest Champion, Nancy Baker
o Need to be telling more VA, WV, DEL, PA, NY stories
o Conservation Farm of the Year award. Winner in WV will be announced at the end of the month. Contact: Andrew Stacy
o Climate education: Contact: Bill Hayden and/or Skip Styles, Director of Wetlands Watch for information on climate education in Norfolk, VA
o Upcoming indicator updates: shad, SAV, public access, fish passage
o Active shad restoration: FWS might a good contact on that
o EO Progress Report will be released in January/February – reach out to feds about restoration stories to highlight their role in the partnership
o Story may come out of the Choose Clean Water Conference on May 19-20 about Harrisburg, PA
§ Their water supply system has changed ownership and the management is doing amazing things with drinking water and the community outreach side of things
§ Conference will be at the Hilton in Harrisburg, fieldtrips will be held on May 19th
o Action: Communications Workgroup please promote CBP’s critter costume and March Critter Madness bracket social media campaigns
Video brainstorm: Chesapeake Unscripted:
- Chesapeake Unscripted are two-minute man-on-the-street videos
- Past questions:
o What are we doing to protect our rivers?
o What happens to runoff?
o What is a watershed?
- Brainstorm:
- How has the Bay changed since the Middle Ages?
- Tease out questions about people’s connection to the Chesapeake
- What do people do on the Chesapeake?
- How do you use the Chesapeake?
- PA – Chiques Creek watershed Alliance Expo in June may be a good place to shoot one because a lot of families come through
- Public perception survey – understanding what people’s hope are for the clean Bay
o Do you think it will ever be clean?
- What do you remember about growing up on the Bay?
- Tell us a story about climbing a tree or playing in a creek
- What is your water? What does interacting with it do for you? What does the Bay mean to you?
- Action: send ideas to Will Parson
Conowingo (and Lower Susquehanna) Communications:
o Big issue in reference to the TMDL and meeting goals
o LSWRWA will be releasing a report in the next 2 weeks by Army Corps
o It’s a new analysis of information - the conclusion is that the reservoirs behind the dam are not trapping sediment anymore until storms come though, carve out old sediment and make room for new sediment
o Old science thought we had 10-15 years before we reached this point
o The nutrients that attach to the sediment are actually a larger issue in comparison to the sediment because sediment settles faster, the nutrient remain in the water and contribute to algae blooms and dead zones
o There will be a 45 day public input session
o Suggestion is that TMDL and WIPS already exist and should be used to mitigate the long term effects of the nutrients and sediment – dredging is not feasible or sustainable
o This will become more of a Bay Program/Partnership issue to resolve in context of the TMDL and the WIPS
o Bay Program will add a new issues page to the website to express the science behind the Conowingo dam
o CCWC and CBF are very concerned about the efforts to derail the various watershed plans and the mindset that nothing is going to get better until the Conowingo is addressed
o They are putting together some messaging for members to share and reach out to elected officials with
o They are looking to recruit non-traditional partners – looking for those outside of the environmental field
o Will be doing some training on the Eastern Shore so that people can better articulate the position and counteract the argument of the Conowingo being a problem for the Eastern Shore – t
o The training will be on October 15th
o Clean Chesapeake Coalition is group of MD counties that are voicing their opposition to a number of restoration projects
BMP Verification Communications Plan:
· Drafted 3-4 different strategies and decided that for the next 18 months we will focus on getting everyone on board with BMP verification
· The PSC approved this plan last week
· Progressively more expansive outreach within all goal teams, workgroups, MB and PSC will be happening in the coming 3-6 months
· Next 3-6 months CBP communications will develop presentations and materials to hand out for a BMP verification outreach
Upcoming Meeting: November 6th