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Check out the page to receive coupons from our sponsors and updates on the campaign!
 What is the P.U.P. Club? P.U.P. stands for Pick Up Poop. The P.U.P. Club was formed by the Richmond Regional Pet Waste Committee as a way to recognize pet owners that are doing their part by picking up after pets and properly disposing of the waste.
The goal of the Richmond Regional Pet Waste Committee is to educate the public about the environmental impacts of pet waste and the importance of picking up after pets. The committee also aims to create uniformity in the information on pet waste that is being spread by the localities in the Richmond area. Committee representatives include state and local government, non-profits and other constituent groups in the Richmond, Virginia metropolitan area. The committee was formed in response to many of the area's rivers and streams being impaired by bacteria, including bacteria from pet waste.
Watershed Educational Activity Sheets & MJRT Beverage Coasters are available!
The Roundtable has James River Watershed Educational Activity Sheets available at no charge. The activity sheets educate children and adults about watersheds and pollution prevention. They display a watershed illustration that can be colored by kids and a variety of puzzles and activities. We have distributed tens of thousands of sheets to organizations throughout the James River watershed. One of the main goals of this project is to reach a diverse audience. If you are interested in distributing the sheets in your community please consider a variety of venues! In order to obtain activity sheets please contact info@mjrt.org. To view the activity sheet, please click here.
The same Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund Grant used to design our activity sheets also supported to the reprinting of our popular beverage coasters. The beverage coasters contain 5 ways to help the James River. To view the beverage coaster and its contents, please click here.
More information about the James River Watershed Educational Activity Sheets and Beverage Coasters can be found on our featured projects page.
Watershed Announcements & Events
Membership Drive: Virginia Environmental Professionals Organization (VAEPO)
This new organization aims to provide support for local environmental designers, administrators and inspectors responsible for implementing environmental codes on a local level. The codes initially being focused on (but not limited to) are Erosion and Sediment Control, Storm Water Management, and Chesapeake Bay Act. The goal of the group is to assist with education and outreach of all forms of environmental concerns.
To learn more, see http://vaepo.org/ or contact Jim Hoeft, VAEPO Outreach and Public Affairs Manager at james.hoeft@vaepo.org. |
The Role of Law and Government in Protecting Communities from Extreme Weather & Coastal Flood Risks: Local, Regional, & International Perspectives (January 31 - February 1, 2014)
The William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review (ELPR) in collaboration with the Virginia Coastal Policy Clinic (VCPC), is pleased to host, The Role of Law and Government in Protecting Communities from Extreme Weather and Coastal Flood Risks: Local, Regional, and International Perspectives. The purpose of this Conference is to begin building a bridge between academic disciplines and coastal communities representing several geographic scales.
This two-day event will be held at the William and Mary Law School in Williamsburg, Virginia on Friday January 31, 2014 at 1:30 PM EST to Saturday February 1, 2014 at 3:30 PM EST.
To register for the event, click here.
More information is available here.
25th Annual Environment Virginia Symposium
(April 8-10, 2014 at Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, Virginia)
The theme for the 2014 symposium is "Collective Impact: Working Together to Create a Positive Environmental Legacy". The program will include three plenary sessions and more than 40 breakout sessions on topics including groundwater supply and quality, energy and stormwater management and environmental policy.
To learn more or to register, visit http://www.vmi.edu/Content.aspx?id=10737419910.
For more information, contact Kathy Wirtanen at wirtanenki@vmi.edu.
Event hosted/sponsored by the VA Military Institute, VA DEQ, VA Environmental Endowment, VA Marine Resources Commission, and VA DCR.
Grant Opportunities
EPA Five STAR and Urban Waters Fund
(Applications Due: February 5, 2014)
The Five STAR and Urban Waters fund was created in FY2013 by joining EPA's long standing and very popular Five Star Program with Urban Waters Program funding into one RFP that represents a public-private partnership leveraging federal funding 2:1. The Five Star/Urban Waters Restoration Program seeks to develop community capacity to sustain local natural resources for future generations by providing modest financial assistance to diverse local partnerships for wetland, forest, riparian and coastal habitat restoration, stormwater management, outreach and stewardship with a particular focus on water quality, watersheds and the habitats they support especially those found in urban areas. The RFP can be found at:http://www.nfwf.org/fivestar/Pages/home.aspx
Virginia Trees for Clean Water Request for Grant Proposals
(Applications Due: February 13, 2014)
Through funds from the United States Forestry Service Chesapeake Watershed Forestry Program, the Virginia Department of Forestry has developed a Virginia Trees for Clean Water program which is designed to improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay by planting riparian buffers and trees in our neighborhoods and communities.
Projects include tree planting activities of all types: riparian buffer tree planting, community and neighborhood tree plantings etc. Winning proposals will demonstrate the merit of the project and how the trees will be maintained in perpetuity. The objective is to use on-the-ground accomplishments to obtain clean water in the Chesapeake Bay. Funding is available on a 50/50 match basis. In-kind match including volunteer time is permissible.
Grants are awarded through this program to encourage local government and citizen involvement in creating and supporting long-term and sustained canopy cover. 2014 grant funds will be used for spring and early fall of 2014 projects.
Applications are due February 13, 2014. Click here for complete details on available grant funding.
Chesapeake Stormwater Network (CSN) Best Urban BMP in the Bay Award (BUBBA) Contest
(Submission Deadline: February 28, 2014)
Contest aims to recognize the best urban BMPs that have been designed and installed in the Chesapeake Bay watershed within the past 5 years.
Categories include: Homeowner BMPs; Innovative BMPs; Best Combination of BMPs in a Series; Ultra-Urban BMPs; Best Habitat Creation in a BMP; and Best Stream Restoration.
The top three finalists in each award category will receive certificates of recognition for placing as finalists in the award category and be featured on the CSN website. $5,000 cash award to grand prize winner.
For more information or to submit a project, visit http://chesapeakestormwater.net/the-bubbas/.
For questions, comments, concerns or just general life advice contact: Cecilia Lane, Stormwater Coordinator, Chesapeake Stormwater Network at watershedgal@hotmail.com or 410-750-7635.
Newsletters
The Roundtable Newsletter is distributed through Constant Contact. Please contact us at info@mjrt.org to be added to the Roundtable distribution list. |