Wise counsel from the councils

By SANDY LONG

UPPER DELAWARE REGION — Debbie Smorto has targeted 32 creeks and streams throughout Lumberland, NY to begin a water quality monitoring program. As chairperson of the Environmental Management Council (EMC) for the town, Smorto hopes to gather enough volunteers to perform tests to establish a current baseline against which to measure future changes or environmental impacts to the town’s waterways.

Volunteers will test for factors such as pH, nitrates, phosphates, dissolved oxygen and fecal coliform bacteria on a quarterly basis. The tests are easily performed and can be completed within 30 minutes. Smorto will train interested individuals, who will return test results to her for compilation of the data.

The effort will help set the stage for protection of those waters. It’s the sort of thing that Environmental Councils (EC) in New York, and Environmental Advisory Councils (EAC) in Pennsylvania, typically become involved with.

In both states, ECs serve as advisory bodies, making recommendations on open space and addressing issues related to environmental protection and conservation, as well as use of local natural resources.

In Pennsylvania, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) oversees such councils (whose establishment was authorized in 1973 when the PA General Assembly passed Act 148, revised as Act 177 in 1996). EACs are defined as “officially constituted municipal boards created to advise on matters dealing with the protection, conservation, management, promotion, and use of natural resources located within the municipality’s territorial limits.”

Act 177 also empowers EACs to keep an index of all public and private open space and to make recommendations for the possible use of open land areas and on the acquisition of property. The act gives authority to neighboring municipalities to form regional, multi-municipal EACs. Such councils enable a broader focus on natural systems, such as watersheds, forests and aquifer recharge areas that may cross municipality borders. The DCNR points out, “The regional perspective offered by a multi-municipal EAC can be highly beneficial to the participating municipalities as they plan, individually or together, for natural resource protection.”

To date, more than 100 EACs have been established in Pennsylvania, though Pike and Wayne counties each have only one. In Pike County, an EAC has been established in Delaware Township, while in Wayne County’s Sterling Township, an EAC was started but is currently inactive. DCNR is encouraging the establishment of more.

According to Dennis DeMara, Recreation and Parks Supervisor for DCNR’s Northeast Region, EACs create an important environmental voice in the community and tend to increase openness to environmental issues.

The Pennsylvania Environmental Council has established the EAC Network, which provides an array of information and assistance to those interested in starting an EAC. For more information, visit www.greentreks.org/eacnetwork/index.asp or call 215/592-7020.

In New York’s Sullivan County, ECs have been established in the towns of Lumberland, Highland and Thompson. The Town of Thompson calls theirs a Conservation Advisory Council. According to chairperson Dr. James Green, members perform water sampling, attend planning board meetings and make recommendations on projects with potential environmental impacts. Mary Ellen Sutherland chairs Highland’s EC, which acts also in an advisory capacity and currently is not involved in any special projects.

Lumberland’s environmental council got its start back in the seventies. Glen Spey resident Ann Danuff remembered those early days. “The town board wanted a council to impart public information to help residents understand the nature of environmental issues,” said Danuff, whose personal interest lies with wetlands and their unique attributes.

Early EC efforts focused on doing surveys and inventorying the town’s natural resources. When Danuff became chair of the council, she started a series of seminars on subjects like trees and Y2K preparedness. Her daughter, Lori McKean, who went on to found The Eagle Institute based in Lackawaxen, PA, started Lumberland’s earlier water testing program, which eventually lapsed over time. The EC also established annual litterpluck and Earth Day programs, which continue today.

Two years ago, Smorto began chairing the council and is committed to taking an active role. “I raised my two children here and now I’ve got two grandchildren. I have a vested interest in this town,” said Smorto.

With assistance from Lumberland council member Nadia Rajsz, Smorto obtained funding for the water project through a grant offered by the Upper Delaware Council, based in Narrowsburg, NY. “Our town has identified water quality as a top priority,” said Smorto. “I think there’s cause for concern about many of our waterways. We’ll know more after we complete the first year of tests.”

For information on this or other projects sponsored by Lumberland’s EC, contact Smorto at 845/858-2931.