People and Places
Philadelphia Water Department
PEC has been a consultant to the Public Affairs Office for many years, supporting watershed plan development and implementation activities in areas within and upstream of the City. Our current work focuses on the creation of a City-wide Public Involvement and Participation Program (PIPP) Plan that identifies public engagement programs and practices that lead to cleaner water and healthier communities. The plan is enabling neighborhood leaders to provide input on community needs and priorities and assist the Water Department in creating more effective programs. The ROZ Group and Hingle Collective are assisting PEC with development of the PIPP Plan.
Delaware River Watershed Initiative
The Delaware River Watershed Initiative brings together 65 groups working cooperatively, with funding from the William Penn Foundation, to protect and restore critical sources of drinking water. As part of this Initiative, PEC coordinates a group of watershed organizations and academic institutions focused on the suburban areas upstream of Philadelphia. This partnership has implemented over 62 larger stormwater management and watershed restoration projects at 41 project locations, and over 230 smaller homeowner stormwater management projects.
PEC and partners also conduct education and outreach programs that promote homeowner and large landowner stormwater management best practices. The partnership also conducts extensive monitoring of project impacts and general water quality conditions, including citizen science volunteers who monitor stream health. Learn more about our collective work through our interactive StoryMap. The overall effort seeks to improve water quality and manage stormwater where it falls, to benefit Philadelphia area watershed residents both inside and upstream of the city.
WVSA (Clean Water Advisory Committee)
Under a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Innovative Nutrient & Sediment Reduction Grant, PEC, in partnership with the Center for Watershed Protection currently assists the Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority (WVSA)’s stormwater division in several activities aimed at strengthening connections between the WVSA and its 32 municipal members.
Collaborating with WVSA stormwater division staff, PEC facilitated the creation of a new Clean Water Advisory Committee (CWAC) to relay citizen and stakeholder feedback, concerns, and recommendations to WVSA’s Stormwater Management Division, which oversees the Regional Stormwater Management Program. PEC recruited interested community and business members within WVSA’s service area and selected an initial group comprised of business owners, academic institution representatives, county agencies, NGOs, and WVSA residents. PEC plans and leads quarterly meetings and arranges special tours and workshops to share information on WVSA’s community GSI and stream restoration projects. For more information click here.
Delaware River Basin Wide Work
Through existing national, state, and regional partnerships, PEC communicates the value of stormwater management best practices to a wide range of public and private audiences in the Delaware River Watershed, including municipal officials, private landowners, and public and private institutions. Examples include:
- Actively establishing/expanding new partnerships with PA local government and institutional/commercial associations to reach wider audiences to promote nature-based/green stormwater infrastructure practices and funding resources to support their implementation and management
- Organizing and delivering workshops to municipal partnerships in Berks and Chester Counties on nature-based practices, policies, and funding opportunities.
PEC collaborates with our partners to provide technical assistance and resources to accelerate the use of nature-based practices by Pennsylvania’s municipalities and private landowners to help mitigate pollution impacts and improve the function and health of local our local waterways.
Master Watershed Stewards
Master Watershed Stewards Program Support: PEC has supported the Penn State Extension Master Watershed Stewardship (MWS) Program since its 2013 inception in Lehigh County.
PEC serves on the MWS Statewide Steering Committee, advising on the expansion of the program which now includes 770 stewards present in 28 PA counties. PEC staff train Master Watershed Stewards at both the county and state level, presenting on Introduction to Watersheds, Stormwater and GSI, and Civic Engagement topics.