The Blog

Things are looking greener over at the Nichols School thanks to the work of our Eco-Schools environmental club and a couple of local partnerships we have forged over the past school year! Check out our new Eco-School video produced by Nichols students Alex Fisher ('15) and Brady Stevens ('15), and then read on: http://vimeo.com/64362365

Since September we've been volunteering at the Community Action Organization (CAO) urban farm at 70 Harvard Place in the city of Buffalo. They do it all at CAO - from composting to hydroponics - and we're learning as we go. We have volunteered our labor to plant vegetables that are sold to local restaurants in the Elmwood area or to the community at reduced prices. We've helped to install hydroponic systems. We've also built and repaired garden beds available to community members. Maintaining a good relationship with the leaders at CAO will contribute to our own learning of urban agriculture.

Our work at CAO has carried over to our participation at this spring's Young Adult Environmental Leadership Conference (YAELP) run by Sustainable Earth Solutions. As a result of both of these partnerships, we have decided that urban farming will become a major feature of our environmental service work. Based on our experiences with CAO and YAELP we're looking to educate our fellow students and teachers and to encourage everyone to become more responsible consumers. By raising awareness about urban farming with the leadership skills obtained at YAELP this year, we hope to show everyone willing to learn the positive social and environmental impacts of urban agriculture.

Does any of this sound interesting to you? We're looking for more community and school partners! Drop our advisor, Kevin Powers, an email at kpowers@nicholsschool.org

 

This story was originally posted on Jackie James Creedon's Blog, The Whole Truth on May 14, 2013.

On Wednesday May 8, Andrew Baumgartner, Tonawanda Community Fund (TCF) intern attended the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 2′s seminar titled “Leveraging Environmental Monitoring – Key Steps in Producing Credible Data” at University of Buffalo (UB) North campus. Here is his review from the seminar.

---

 

 

The purpose of the workshop was to help teach “citizen scientists” how to produce useful data and reports that can be used in community based environmental monitoring, data that could open up new doors for community groups like the Tonawanda Community Fund. Although it’s always been possible for community groups to do their own preliminary research, the EPA now recognizes the effectiveness of this type of research and is promoting concerned citizens to act as partners in change. This was only the third workshop of this type in the country. Judith Enck, our EPA region 2 administrator, is a big proponent of citizen science, so we have her to thank for bringing this seminar to Western New York

 

The first half of the program focused on the details behind what’s considered “good” citizen science and things to keep in mind when designing projects, both from a scientific and an activist point of view. EPA representatives touched on a little bit of everything, from statistics to the organizational structure of a community based project. For the less technical people in the room like myself, this all went by a little fast and was fairly brief. Focusing on mostly air and water sampling, the information didn’t always directly apply to the soil testing like that of the Tonawanda Community Fund (TCF), but did get across the main idea of the need to look heavily into the design of a study before starting. Things like background samples, co-location of test sampling, contamination all need to be taken into account before proceeding. Since community groups usually don’t have a lot of extra cash sitting around, this is easier said than done.

Sampling, whether it’s the equipment or the lab analysis, is expensive so community groups have to pick and choose between spending money on gathering more data or validating data already obtained. This is where the EPA comes in. When having to make decisions like these, the EPA can be a great ally. Also available are local colleges and universities who can help out and provide everything from professor input to undergraduate volunteers to help provide the most credible data for the money spent.  We understand how this resource can be helpful because UB and the State University of NY at Fredonia are currently collaborating with us on a soil testing project in Tonawanda.

The second half of the program focused on what to do once the community based data was obtained. Groups can then use their reports to apply for grants and gain more support both politically and residentially for their cause. The main purpose of a preliminary study is to show whether or not further study is warranted, and it’s hard to say exactly where to go from there until you have a judgment call on what the data actually means. Touching on an example used, an air sample showing toxins could mean either that the air is polluted, or that am amtrack train was idling nearby giving a “false positive”. This judgment call is up to whoever is reading the report, whether it be somebody at the EPA, a local professor or a politician. This is why it’s so important that citizen scientists focus on gathering “good” data not just data. Even if a study does show high levels of whatever toxin you’re looking for, there’s a long process of rationalization that has to be done afterwards to determine whether or not those numbers reflect what’s going on in the community as a whole.

While I was working with the TCF on our preliminary soil study in Nov. 2012, I kept these things in mind during its design. We had to think about contamination, background sampling and the overall scientific validity of our work. To prevent contamination, we made sure that our samples were taken several feet away from the curb, grills, lawnmowers, driveways and anything else onsite that could be another potential source for the contaminants (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons or PAH’s) we were looking for. We took our comparison sample upwind, in Grand Island, of the suspected pollution source. This was used to compare samples from an area of suspected contamination to that of what we considered “normal” soil in the area. We wanted to be able to take more background samples, as well as co-locate samples as suggested in the EPA seminar, but our financial limitations acted as a roadblock. Our report was finished in the spring of 2013 and given to both the EPA and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation for their interpretations of our study.

This summer (2013), the TCF will be doing an extension to our original soil study by taking 12-24 more samples in neighborhoods around the Tonawanda industrial corridor.  If you live in Grand Island, the Tonawanda’s, North Buffalo, or Kenmore, and are interested in having the soil tested in your yard, contact TCF at 716-873-6191.

 

The University at Buffalo's Ecosystem Restoration through Interdisciplinary Exchange (ERIE) Program is offering a series of summer workshops in stream restoration as well as a Professional Certificate program. The Certificate program was developed in 2012 to address the educational needs of professionals and students who intend to work in the growing field of stream restoration, as there are limited educational opportunities available in the U.S. to receive formal training in river and stream restoration.

A professional Certificate in Stream Restoration will be awarded to participants who complete 15 days of summer workshops, including a set of core/introductory courses, within a three-year period. The core/introductory workshops, each two to four days in length, introduce participants to stream restoration topics in: 1) physical processes; 2) ecological processes; 3) design and planning; and 4) monitoring and assessment. The remainder of the 15-day Certificate requirement can be made up of selected elective workshops. Elective offerings vary by year, but generally include topics related to invasive species, field data collection, modeling, and stream assessment techniques. The workshops combine classroom, field, and lab experiences. The Certificate does not provide academic credit or transcript notation, but is a professional program tracked by continuing education credits (CEUs).

This summer we have an exciting line-up of workshops taught by restoration scientists and practitioners from western New York and around the country. You can learn more on our webpage and register here. Registration closes Friday, May 17, 2013. We hope to see you this summer!

The first full week of May is the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s celebration of “Water Week,” which encourages us to think about how we can protect, restore, and conserve our abundant water resources.  The Erie County Department of Environment and Planning shares this enthusiasm for protecting our resources.  That is why they recently organized the 2013 Rain Barrel Painting Contest.

Teams from twenty-five middle and high schools in both Erie and Niagara counties used the theme, “Rainwater is a Resource, Not Just Runoff,” to design and paint retrofitted syrup concentrate barrels from the Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Buffalo, Inc.  The Western New York Stormwater Coalition and the Erie County Water Quality Committee encouraged the teachers and students to learn more about how they could collect stormwater runoff and help prevent it from polluting our waterways.

Stormwater is precipitation that flows over or across impermeable surfaces such as driveways, streets, and parking lots. This runoff picks up contaminants like lawn chemicals, automotive fluids, pet wastes, and other litter as it makes its way into our area streams and rivers every time it rains. Capturing runoff through the use of a rain barrel is one easy way to protect the environment while collecting and storing rainwater suitable for lawn, garden, and other non-drinking uses. You can learn more about how you can protect water quality, as well as test your stormwater knowledge at,  www.erie.gov/stormwater.

Over 300 students from around the region took part in the contest and in the process, learned more about conserving and protecting our natural resources.  Winners of the contest were: the Lewiston-Porter H.S. team led by teacher Mr. Joshua Milovich; the City Honors team led by teacher Ms. Seana Root; and the team from Lancaster H.S., led by teacher Ms. Amy Balling.  A panel of judges ranked the barrels based upon their depiction of the theme, creativity, and execution.  Winners received cash prizes from the Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Buffalo, Inc.  View the entries at the Erie County Department of Environment and Planning’s Facebook page.