Speaker: Kenneth R. Brown, Manager, Brodhead Creek Regional Authority

Title: “BCRA’s Source Water Protection Program to Protect Drinking Water - and Now the Hard Work Begins”

Abstract: Brodhead Creek Regional Authority (BCRA) is the largest water Authority in Monroe County, PA, serving over 22,500 people, and also serves water to the Borough of Stroudsburg, a large part of Stroud Township and portions of Smithfield Township, Hamilton Township and Pocono Township. BCRA has demonstrated a strong commitment to source water protection to assure continued production of high quality drinking water and protection of public health. With funding from DEP, BCRA has developed a source water protection program based on good science about the region’s watershed and underground aquifers, which also includes several core programs: land conservation, public education, emergency response, and partnership with area municipalities to maintain the natural filtration services in the watershed.

Bio:Ken Brown has been the Manager of the Brodhead Creek Regional Authority or “BCRA” (formerly Stroudsburg Municipal Authority), the largest water Authority in Monroe County, PA, since 1995. BCRA serves approximately 2.22 MGD to the Borough of Stroudsburg, a large part of Stroud Township and portions of Smithfield Township, Hamilton Township and Pocono Township. BCRA serves water to over 5,400 billing accounts representing a population of approximately 22,500 people in residential, commercial, public and industrial settings. Mr. Brown is a licensed Pennsylvania Water Plant and Sewer Plant Operator, and holds a Master of Science in Public Administration from Marywood College, and B.A. in Biology from Millersville State University. Prior to his work with BCRA, Mr. Brown was the Borough Manager of East Stroudsburg Borough from 1986 to 1995, and from 1979 to 1986 was the Director of Public Works for East Stroudsburg Borough.

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Speaker: Michael M. Stokes, AICP, Asst. Director, Montgomery County Planning Commission

Title: “The PA State Water Plan and Critical Area Resource Planning in the Delaware River Basin”

Abstract: This discussion will include an overview of the recently adopted State Water Plan and its impact on the Delaware Basin. The critical area resource planning process established through the Pennsylvania Water Resources Planning Act (Act 220) of 2002 will also be examined.

Bio: Michael Stokes is the Assistant Director of the Montgomery County Planning Commission where he has worked for the past 21 years. In addition, he has been serving as the Chairman of the Delaware Committee of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s State Water Plan. Michael held a number of planning and environmental management positions. He holds a Master of Science degree in water resources engineering from Villanova University and a Master of Regional Planning degree from the University of North Carolina. He is also a graduate of Vanderbilt University, and resides with his family in Limerick Township, Montgomery County.

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Speaker: Will Price, Program Director, Pinchot Institute

Title: “The Common Waters Fund: a Forest-to-Faucet Approach for the Delaware River”

Abstract: The Common Waters Fund is being launched in the Upper Delaware watershed to provide financial incentives for forest conservation and management in areas most important to water quality, while linking water users across the Basin to the source of their drinking water.

Bio: Will has been at the Pinchot Institute since 1999, working on public policy and market-based solutions that improve forest management and advance conservation. His studies on forest certification have included projects with state and federal agencies, companies, universities, and First Nations. In recent years he has also worked with agencies and landowners on ways to sequester carbon through forest conservation. Prior to the Pinchot Institute he consulted with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation; and worked as a research technician with NASA, and with the Forest Service PNW Research Station in Corvallis, OR. Will graduated from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies with a Master of Forest Science degree, and holds a Bachelor's of Science from University of Notre Dame, where he studied ecology.

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Speakers: Matt Genchur , Source Water Protection Program Manager, PA Rural Water Association; Marian Keegan, Director of Community Conservation, Hemlock Farms Community Association

Title: “Putting Source Water Protection into Practice at Groundwater Systems”

Abstract: This session will overview groundwater considerations and the resources and personnel that PRWA and PADEP have available to encourage systems and communities to implement voluntary source water protection efforts. The Pennsylvania Rural Water Association (PRWA) has been assisting public water systems in the Commonwealth for 20 years with source water protection planning, training, and implementation activities, particularly smaller systems with limited resources. PRWA works cooperatively within the industry to support not only its members, but all the water and wastewater utilities throughout the Commonwealth with professional technical support, certified training, legislative representation, and other valuable services and benefits. Hemlock Farms received DEP approval for its Source Water Protection Plan in September 2009 and has an active SWP Committee to monitor PSOC's, get management options funded, and oversee Plan implementation, including its most recent action involving changing sewage disposal code to include inspection of the entire system and a checklist for the sewage companies to promote uniform services.