“Jessica’s background in technical writing and communications for non-profit organizations will be helpful to EPCAMR. We’re hoping to have her create some write ups on our projects that we can post to our website to give the public a better understanding of the range of work that the Staff at EPCAMR do across the Anthracite and Northern Bituminous Coal Region,” stated Robert Hughes, EPCAMR Executive Director.

Jess has interests in working in the environmental education, nonprofit, and research sectors. At her college she heads and founded the Community Garden, is the Secretary of OxFam America, and participates in a Sustainability Initiative program with a group of faculty and students. EPCAMR, having focuses on all three sectors, is the perfect place to provide her with all the necessary tools for a complete education from King’s College.

“Jessica’s experience with the Community Garden at King’s is going to be a huge compliment to our current work with our Growboxx Reclaiming Our Backyard Project with ISI, Inc., Groasis, and the Mental Insight Foundation. We will be working with the local school districts in the Wyoming Valley where we are going to be piloting the planting of community gardens with 4th grade students and their families in their neighborhood backyards. Jessica has offered to take a few of the Growboxxes and plant them in the King’s College Community Garden on Madison Street for EPCAMR with student volunteers,” mentioned Robert Hughes, EPCAMR Executive Director.

Jessica grew up in Warren County, New Jersey, spending most of her time outside exploring the Delaware River and the Appalachian Mountain region. She was raised on hiking, fishing, snowmobiling, and a constant yearn for adventure. She spent summers in the mountains of West Virginia, where she would hike, ride quads, and learn to paint. Since Jess was in the third grade, she has never been found on an adventure without a book, a journal, and a pen. She loves to read and to write and takes interest in reading and writing essays with geocentric worldviews. She also enjoys wrestling, playing lacrosse, longboarding, and attending concerts.

“Having the opportunity to begin my professional career with a nonprofit like EPCAMR makes me extremely grateful and excited for what is to come. From educating students on environmental awareness, amending the issue of Abandoned Mine Drainage (AMD), and making Pennsylvania a healthier and more sustainable place for humans and other living organisms, the importance of their work is beyond measure. This is a wonderful place to dip my toes in the water and experience what being an environmental professional is really all about,” exclaimed Jessica.

“We’ll be having Jessica help us gather background information, reports, historical maps, and resources on the Toby Creek watershed for the eventual completion of our Upper Toby Creek Coldwater Conservation Plan (CCP) in partnership with PA Council of Trout Unlimited and the Coldwater Heritage Partnership (CHP). She’ll be able to become certified during her internship as a Lead Observer for Aquatic Organism Passage to help assess culverts within the watershed and will assist with water quality and biological monitoring of tributaries and streams within the Upper Toby Creek. On her first day in the Office, she has already found nearly two dozen reference reports that she will be researching and citing to assist with the development of the Toby CCP. Should EPCAMR get funded for the Huntsville Creek CCP, another major tributary to the Upper Toby Creek, that was recently applied for, she will be able to perform similar tasks in the other portion of the watershed in the Back Mountain. She’ll be tasked with various projects to assist the EPCAMR Staff over the Winter into the early Spring that will provide her with a great experience. She’ll surely find out what it’s like to work in an environmental non-profit that has been tasked for the last two decades that have been working hard on AMD, abandoned mine land reclamation, environmental education, and stream restoration projects to restore, reclaim, and remediate our environment.” said Robert.

Jessica on the Freel Peak Tahoe Rim Trail in Nevada at 9600′ in elevation.

The post EPCAMR brings on Jessica Britten, Senior Environmental Studies Major from King’s College for Winter 2019 Internship appeared first on epcamr.org.

Llywellyn Westrick standing in an old fire tower in Adirondack Mountains, Newcomb, New York.

Lyw grew up on the west-side of the Baltimore-metro area, spending significant time outdoors playing baseball, soccer, hiking Maryland state parks, as well as periodical sailing/fishing on the Chesapeake Bay. He is one of only two members of his entire family working in the environmental field, the other being his great aunt who is an environmental lawyer out in Washington State. He is the oldest of three siblings, each of whom have an interest in environmental awareness. In his free time, Lyw enjoys hiking, watching live music, attending sporting events, and the occasional skateboard sesh.

“As an environmental studies undergraduate student who has been long concerned with the issue of water quality, I am very excited to learn more about the extent of the problem of eastern Pennsylvania Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) and how that impacts stream ecosystems, drinking water, etc.” Though I have gained foundation on the subject through my collegiate studies, I believe that EPCAMR will provide me with professional, firsthand opportunities to participate in efforts to actively address such issues.”

Robert stated, ” I think Lyw will find that he will have an excellent opportunity over these next few months as we transition from Summer to Fall and Winter activities that there will be enough activities for him to become more familiar with how an organization such as EPCAMR operates, builds community support for projects, seeks funds for grants, educates youth, and builds coalitions with our extensive network of partners across PA in the field of abandoned mine reclamation to help restore our streams impacted by AMD and to support the reclamation and redevelopment of our abandoned mine lands. I am sure that he will do well. On his first day, he has had to clean hundred year old or more mine maps from the former Franklin Brewery that is now the PA DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation’s Warehouse along St. Mary’s Road in Hanover Township, along Solomon Creek, and then came back to the office to seek out donations from local grocery stores for gift cards to support the purchase of supplies and refreshments for the upcoming October 21st, 2017 Centralia Cleanup.”

The post EPCAMR Brings on Llywellyn Westrick, King’s College Senior for Fall Work Study Internship appeared first on epcamr.org.

Being an avid lover of the outdoors and animals, yet not sure which career path to follow, he attended Kings College hoping to sort out his ambitions. There, he rediscovered his great love of the outdoors, and recognized that there was a need to preserve the beauty and transform our local landscapes back home, tarnished by the Anthracite Coal industry of years past. He decided to attend Penn State University and seek a degree in Environmental Engineering and put his passions to work in order to preserve our natural environment, that can benefit all, while sustaining it for generations to come. Realizing the errors of the past, he was inspired to become an environmental engineer in order to contribute to the community he calls home, right back here in the Wyoming Valley, where EPCAMR has its home base, in the heart of the Anthracite Coal Region.

He graduated from Pennsylvania State University in May 2013 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Engineering. While at Penn State, he gained an understanding of the influence of industrial actions on the environment and the choice of cost effective remediation strategies. He also took classes focusing on water and wastewater treatment and sampling and monitoring of the geo-environment. Through his educational experiences in the class, the lab, or field work, he has established the necessary foundation to build a career in the environmental engineering field.

At this time David is putting these skills to use as an unpaid Watershed Outreach Intern working part-time, for EPCAMR, under the direct supervision of the Executive Director, Robert E. Hughes.  He is a team spirited individual with a strong determination to solve problems in a cost efficient and effective manner. He is defined as a student for life; determine to succeed both personally and professionally.

“I anticipate that this internship will give me the experience needed to obtain a full-time job. Robert has already during my initial interview process informed me that within just a few short months time, I will have networked with over 50-100 organizations, industries, non-profits, State and Federal employees, and other reclamation-related partners that will ensure me at least an opportunity to tell them who I am, what my interests are, have the ability to establish a professional rapport with people in my field of interest, and refine my technical skills with hands-on learning, outdoor field training, and will learn all about mine drainage remediation and abandoned mine reclamation from many different aspects from my Supervisor, who is one of the most respected regional experts on watershed restoration efforts in the Coal Region. stated David enthusiastically.

David Svab, EPCAMR Watershed Outreach Intern sampling AMD at the Guten Mine Tunnel Drift discharge in Sullivan County, PA on his first day on the job

David has previously assisted with an EPCAMR Streamside Cleanup on Nockley’s Tributary, in the Solomon Creek watershed with his Father, Bernie Svab, on July 15th, 2013. His first day on his internship, he was able to travel up to Sullivan County with the EPCAMR Staff to conduct water sampling, flow monitoring, and a field investigation of the Lewis property Guten Mine Tunnel Drift discharge, in Cherry Township, Sullivan County, outside of Bernice, PA.  EPCAMR is working with the Moshannon District Mining Office of the PA Department of Environmental Protection, the landowner, Mr. Marc Lewis, and Hedin Environmental, Inc., our contractor to rehabilitate an Anoxic Limestone Drain (ALD) Treatment System that has been having some plugging issues and a reduced treatment system efficiency due to the plugging of the system with iron, aluminum, organic plant material roots from sedges that have taking over the pond, and possible mixing of a compost layer. “He was put to task right away with learning how to monitor AMD discharges in the field by utilizing our AMD HACH Testing Kits, sampling iron levels, acidity, alkalinity, pH, and Temperature. We’ve got lots of small projects for him to undertake that will allow him to get his hands dirty, so to speak, because with EPCAMR, if you don’t come back to the office with some amount of orange-colored iron oxide on you, you probably didn’t work hard enough that day,” joked Robert.

The post David Svab, Recent Graduate from Penn-State’s Environmental Engineering Program from Laflin, PA Joins EPCAMR as a late Summer/Fall Watershed Outreach Intern appeared first on epcamr.org.