Wissahickon Growing Greener 
Let's Promote and Educate RESIDENTS about a Sustainable Future for OUR Area   

News                        

Portland is using turbines in water supply pipes to power buildings.

Volunteer with Friends of the Wissahickon
  • FOW is looking for Crew Leaders to help lead projects throughout the Wissahickon. Crew Leaders are experienced volunteers who are skilled in leading volunteer groups, experts in trail building and/or habitat restoration, are able to share their knowledge and expertise with others, and are committed to FOW’s mission of habitat protection in the park. Crew leaders are able to participate in a variety of trainings held throughout the year.  Click here to apply before March 2nd!
  • Trainings this year include: Machinery Operation, Trail Building, Trail Maintenance, Tree and Shrub Planting, Plant Identification, First aid and CPR, and Volunteer Leadership and Safety.The first 2015 training will be Volunteer Leadership and Safety and will be held on March 7th.  Please contact Volunteer Coordinator John Holback at holback@fow.org for more information or to apply.

It's still SO COLD outside.  


Systemic Pesticides and Food Health
  • Instead of being sprayed on a growing crop, "systemic pesticides are absorbed into the plant’s tissue, usually via the roots. They are highly water soluble, which means that a plant simply drinks up the pesticide-laden water, and the chemical is transported through the plant’s vascular system. If a bug attempts to nibble any part of this plant, it will soon die.Some pesticides are now being applied to seeds, here by growing in the food we eat."  Read about this in Eartheasy's article.  


Pennypack Farm & Education Center sponsors Sixth Annual Sustainability Expo and Film Series
  • The films will be shown at the Ambler Theater located at 108 E. Butler Avenue in Ambler, PA.  These films discuss issues related to hunger in America, the American diet, and global waste.  Tickets are $10 each or $24 for a subscription to all three films.  Each film will begin at 7:30pm and will be followed by a panel discussion to delve further into the issues the films raise and to answer audience questions.  A Sustainability Expo will be held in the theater lobby prior to each film and will begin at 6:30pm.  For more information and advance ticket sales, please visit http://www.amblertheater.org/pennypack.
    Films include:


Sign up for Recyclebank and get rewarded for recycling
  • Recyclebank is a website that awards points for recycling and also completing interactive features on the site, like taking crash courses, reading stories and referring friends. Once you earn the points, you can redeem them for discounts at participating restaurants, movie theaters and retail stores across the country and at their online specialty store. Sign up today to start collecting points and saving money for doing simple, good things for the environment.
Help plant and care for trees in your region, your community, or your yard. 
  • Become a PHS Tree Tender! The PHS Tree Tenders® program offers hands-on tree care training for residents of the five-county Philadelphia region. The training covers tree biology, identification, planting, proper care, and working within your community. Available for ISA, PA LA, and PLNA credit. This course is not appropriate for children under 16. Fee is $25  To Register:  www.pennhort.net/treetenders
  • Montgomery County: May 5, 12 and 19 – 6:00-9:00 PM (Tuesdays), Abington Friends School Upper School, Room 15, 575 Washington Lane Jenkintown, PA  19046

The Pennsylvania Land Trust Association has published a guide to nature play. 
  • You can view or download the beautifully illustrated edition at ConservationTools.org or access the text-only edition.  Unstructured, frequent childhood play in informal outdoor settings powerfully boosts the cognitive, creative, physical, social and emotional development of children. It also engenders deep conservation values-more so than any other factor. If we want future generations to carry on the work of conservation, then we need to be paying attention to what is happening in childhood. To make conservation efforts endure, we must emotionally connect children to nature.


2015 Montgomery County Recycling Events have been posted.


Tip from the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Authority:  Manage your Stormwater at Home
  • Consider installing a rain barrel or rain garden at your home to be part of the stormwater solution! Rain gardens and barrels help to filter, evaporate or re-use stormwater to prevent flash flooding in urban and suburban areas with high impervious cover. Keep your stormwater out of the storm drain and use it on your land instead.


EWG'S SEAFOOD CALCULATOR
  • Eat healthy fish and shellfish that are high in omega-3 fatty acids and low in mercury. EWG's Best Bets are also from sustainable sources.  Use EWG’s Seafood Calculator to get your custom seafood list – based on your age weight, gender, age and more.



Tip from the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Authority: Protect & Restore Natural Stream Buffers
  • Stream buffers are the trees, shrubs and vegetation that line a stream, and they are the Wissahickon Creek’s last defense in slowing down and filtering stormwater that flows to the creek. Make sure stream buffers are intact and healthy by letting them grow naturally.

Reuse your kitchen scraps to make Homemade Vegetable Stock
  • Almost any sort of vegetable can be turned into stock. You can use up onion ends, leek tops, carrot skins, turnip bits, and celery ends. It’s best to avoid things like cabbage, broccoli and brussel sprouts, though; those will overpower the other flavors and turn the stock bitter. You can collect the scraps a little at a time: throwing away any bruised or rotting bits, just add your scraps to a large ziploc bag and store in the freezer until you have enough to make stock. Simmer them for a few hours with some seasoning, and you have a great base for your next batch of soups! 

  • Homemade Vegetable Stock

Ingredients:

  • 6 cups veggie scraps - be sure that there is at least one kind of allium (onions, leeks, etc.)
  • 6-8 cups water
  • a few bay leaves
  • whole black peppercorns
  • fresh herbs like parsley and thyme
  • a few garlic cloves (whole but peeled)
Instructions:

  1. Toss everything directly into a large stock pot. Cover the vegetables with water (add at least 6 to 8 cups, but the rule of thumb is to just add water until however many scraps you have are fully submerged). 
  2. Bring to a boil, then immediately turn the heat down to low. Simmer gently for 1-3 hours. 
  3. Strain through a fine mesh colander, divide into glass or plastic containers and cool completely. Refrigerate for about a week or store in the freezer.
  4. If you like to add a little bit of stock to sauces or anything that requires less than a few cups of liquid, you can also store the stock in ice cube trays. This is a great way to have small portions accessible without having to defrost way more than you need!


Tip from the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Authority: Grow a More Natural Lawn and Garden
  • Native plants are adapted to local conditions and often don’t require extra watering, fertilizers, or pesticides to thrive. Take advantage of local flora by consulting the WVWA and reduce or eliminate your pesticides and fertilizer use. Think about replacing part, or all, of your lawn with a natural meadow or rain garden for a native landscape that the local birds and butterflies will thank you for. 

One of the cars on display at the Philadelphia Auto Show is built by local school students — and it runs on used fryer oil from a local restaurant.  http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2015/01/30/local-students-build-car-that-runs-on-used-oil-from-local-eatery/


Monarch update: When planting milkweed, be sure to plant native species, such as Asclepias incarnata. Do not plant tropical milkweed (Asclepias curassavica), which has been shown to increase the odds that monarchs will be infected with a crippling parasite, according to sciencemag.org.http://bit.ly/1woIimz


Tip from the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Authority: Be Aware of the Storm Drains
  • Anything that washes into storm drains during a rain event flows directly to the Wissahickon Creek and its tributaries without being filtered! This water, known as stormwater, brings everything that is happening on the land into the creek during rain events including litter, pet waste, detergent from washing your car, household chemicals, and yard clippings or leaves. These are easily swept into the Wissahickon, increasing bacteria, debris, and algae blooms from increased nutrients in the Creek. Help the Wissahickon by composting yard clippings, washing your car at a car wash, always picking up after your pets, carrying out everything you bring into parks, and disposing of used car oil and household cleaners properly.  Read the entire Currents magazine here.

Resource: iRecycle
  • FIND LOCAL RECYCLING FAST.  iRecycle can tell you how, where and when to recycle just about anything. Using your current location, ZIP code, address or city, get access to vital details for collection points, such as website, phone number, directions, hours of operation and other materials collected.  iPhone/apple device- click here.  Android device- click here. 

The 411 on Using Deicers (posted in the Montgomery Township e-news)

When inclement weather hits, go green when trying to control ice.  The key is to prevent slipping on ice with environmentally-friendly resources. Excess salt and other deicing chemicals can pollute our streams and adversely impact drinking water supplies. Please remember to:
  • Shovel snow before it turns to ice to limit the need for deicing chemicals, like rock salt.
  • Shovel snow onto permeable surfaces including grass, flower beds, and level landscaping so that as the snow melts, it will soak into the ground rather than flow directly into a nearby storm drain or stream.

If you must use deicing chemicals, consider the following:
  • Avoid over application by controlling the application of chemical deicers.
  • Limit chemical applications near environmentally-sensitive areas including springs, streams, ponds, wetlands, and water supply areas and sensitive landscape and vegetation.
  • Sand, sawdust and cracked corn can be used as an environmentally-friendly alternative to commonly used salt products.
  • Use salt substitutes that are less harmful including Calcium Chloride (CaCl2) and Calcium Magnesium Acetate (CMA). For Calcium Chloride pellets, a handful for every 3 square yards is adequate.
  • For larger areas, apply salt as a brine solution to prevent drift off of paved surfaces.
  • After snow-melt, sweep up residues, including sand, to prevent it from washing into storm drains and streams.

How Clean, Green Is Your Food?
  • The Environmental Working Group has a new tool designed to help you decide which foods most closely match the way you want to spend your food dollars and feed your family. More than 80,000 foods are included in the tool, each rated by nutritional concerns, problematic ingredients, and processing (less is better). The lower a food's score, the better. The organization's web site also offers help finding local stores, co-ops, and farmers' markets, where you can buy clean, locally grown and produced, minimally processed foods that may not be offered at your supermarket.


 Keep Leaves out of Storm Drains 
  • As Autumn approaches, it is important to keep storm drains clear and clean.  The water that runs into storm drain systems is untreated and goes straight into our streams and creeks.  In order to keep drains clear, remember not to blow grass clippings or leaves into the street. Instead, bag them up for disposal or compost your leaves or grass clippings.  Additionally, sweep up yard debris instead of hosing down paved areas in order to prevent debris from running into storm sewers.  The debris can carry fertilizers and pesticides from your yard and deposit them in streams and neighboring creeks.  In addition to fall foliage and clippings, please keep storm drains free of household hazardous waste, fertilizers and pesticides, motor oil and other vehicle fluids, and pet waste.  For more information on how you can reduce stormwater pollution, visit Montgomery Township’s stormwater management page. 


Bring Back the Monarchs: FREE MILKWEEDS FOR SCHOOLS AND NON-PROFITS
  • Monarchs and pollinators need our help due to habitat loss. If your school or non-profit organization is interested in this conservation measure, this can help you create a habitat for monarchs and pollinators. Please apply using the form below. If your organization qualifies, they will provide a free flat of 32 milkweed plugs as well as guidance on how to create a new habitat or enhance an existing garden. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has provided funds for this project.  Free Milkweeds for Schools and Non-Profits Application

Choices for PA Energy Suppliers
  • If you can't put solar panels on your roof but still want to suport renewable energy, you have options.  Check out www.papowerswitch.com and click on the "Shop for Electricity" tab to review different options. If you want to purchase renewable energy, scroll down on the far right, check the "Renewable Energy" checkbox, and slide the slider over to "100% renewable." Once you click the "Renewable Energy" box, options will appear for "Renewable PA" or "Choose PA Wind."


Med-Return Box Available at Whitpain Township Building.  Keep prescription medications out of landfills and water supplies.
  • This Med-Return Unit is a secure box that has been installed in the Police Department lobby. This box will allow anyone to dispose of unwanted drugs at their convenience. There are certain restrictions as to what can be placed in the return box. Use the Med-Return box but please observe these guidelines.
  • Accepted Items: * Prescription Medication, * Prescription Patches, * Prescription Ointment, * Over-The-Counter Medications, * Samples, * Medications for Pets
  • Not Accepted: * Needles, * Hydrogen Peroxide, * Inhalers , * Aerosol Cans, * Medications from businesses or clinics, * Ointments, lotions, liquids, * Thermometers