Published on March 6, 2008
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Final entries have trickled in for the “Clean Water Begins and Ends With You” Drawing Contests, and judges have begun the difficult task of choosing a handful of winners from more than 2,800 students across 13 grade levels throughout the City of Philadelphia and the State of Delaware.

Each of the first-place drawings will be featured in advertising campaigns celebrating the 38th anniversary of Earth Day. And all those who place will see their artwork published in a colorful calendar available for free to the public.

Other prizes to be awarded at ceremonies in April include framed certificates, a variety of art supplies, and gift cards ranging from $25 to $100. Furthermore, the first two schools that submitted 100 qualified entries will be rewarded with $500 gift cards that are redeemable for school supplies.

The “Clean Water Begins and Ends With You” Drawing Contests are coordinated by the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary on behalf of their regional sponsors, the Delaware Department of Transportation and the Philadelphia Water Department.

For more information or to receive future contest mailings, please call Dee Ross at (800) 445-4935, extension 106. Additional details are also available on the Partnership’s website, located at www.DelawareEstuary.org.

Staff from the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary will coordinate dozens of volunteers as part of this year’s Christina River Watershed Cleanup on April 19, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Working as a team, our goal will be to remove as much debris as possible from the Christina River in downtown Wilmington, just one of more than a dozen cleanup sites overall.

To aid in this effort, the Wilmington Rowing Center will provide its boathouse and dock, both of which are located at the southern end of the city’s Riverwalk in a retail complex known as the Shipyard Shops. Meanwhile, employees of the Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife will use motor boats to shuttle volunteers and pick up trash bags full of litter.

To help the Partnership in this endeavor or to volunteer at other sites in New Castle County, please register online at www.ChristinaRiverCleanup.org. Participants are advised to wear: brightly colored clothing, long-sleeved shirts, pants, boots or water-resistant shoes, hats, and heavy-duty gloves. Insect repellent and sunscreen are also suggested, as are waders or hip boots if available.

Each volunteer who participates in this Earth Day activity will receive a free event t-shirt. For further details regarding the Christina River Watershed Cleanup, please call Shirley Posey at (302) 838-1897.

The Partnership for the Delaware Estuary and the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences will host a public forum on May 6, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., on the effects of climate change in the Delaware Estuary. This town hall-style meeting is part of the Academy’s “Town Square: Science for Citizens” series.

Prior to the evening’s discussion, scientists will be joined by policy makers and resource managers, among others, for a day-long technical workshop. The goal of this earlier gathering is to compare data on climate change in a way that allows professionals to move forward in a concerted, regional approach to natural resource restoration and protection. The results of the workshop will be presented during that evening’s Town Hall meeting in an effort to gather public input.

“Town Square: Science for Citizens” is made possible thanks to the financial assistance of the Claneil Foundation, the Richard Lounsbery Foundation, and the Environmental Associates of The Academy of Natural Sciences. Please visit www.ANSP.org/townsquare for more information as it becomes available.

Jennifer Jones has stepped down as environmental stewardship coordinator at the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary to take a position with our neighboring National Estuary Program (NEP) to the south. Beginning in March, Jones will take on new challenges as development coordinator at the Center for Inland Bays, located in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. The Partnership for the Delaware Estuary and the Center for the Inland Bays are among 28 National Estuary Programs recognized by Congress for their importance to the nation.

Jones was hired by the Partnership in 2000 and, since then, has played an integral role in the organization’s rapid growth. Under her guidance, the Partnership’s Corporate Environmental Stewardship Program has grown to include a total of 28 participating companies. She has also been instrumental in the development of the Native Plant Demonstration Garden located at the University of Delaware’s Hugh R. Sharp campus in Lewes. Jones has also managed the Partnership’s Sense of Place Program and has played a critical role in coordinating the Philadelphia Water Department’s annual exhibit at the Philadelphia Flower Show.

Jenn will be greatly missed by her coworkers here at the Partnership. We extend our sincere gratitude for her many years of loyal service.

Don’t be surprised to see some new faces at the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary this spring. Beth Haas has returned as office manager and the hiring process is under way for four new staff members to work on science, restoration, and education-and-outreach programs.

For information about future employment opportunities at the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, please stay tuned to www.DelawareEstuary.org.

The Schuylkill Action Network (SAN) will reward select schools in the Schuylkill River Watershed with Source Water Protection Awards during National Drinking Water Week in May. Schools have until March 10 to submit a brief application explaining how their environmental project has helped to protect sources of drinking water.

Winning schools will receive a SAN Source Water Protection Award and prizes valued at $200 during a ceremony on May 7, from 10 a.m. to noon, at the Fairmount Water Works Interpretive Center in Philadelphia. Special guest, Meteorologist Maria LaRosa of CBS 3’s Eyewitness News This Morning, will address awardees.

The Partnership for the Delaware Estuary has been an integral member of SAN since 2004, when it was awarded a $1.15 million grant by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for a series of demonstration projects in the Schuylkill River Watershed.

For details about the Source Water Protection Awards, or to get involved in SAN, please call Dee Ross at (800) 445-4935, extension 106, or visit www.SchuylkillActionNetwork.org.