MSC IECA xxxx Newsletter Volume xxx

MSC IECA Quarterly News & Updates
February, 2018
News
IECA Annual Conference 2019

The annual conference for the International Organization is coming to the Mountain States Region for the first time in it's history of the organization.  The Mountain States Chapter is excited to host the convention and is looking forward to Regional, National, and International training and white papers being presented.  We want to encourage all of our members to get involved and plan on attending  from February 19 to 22, 2019.  If you are interested in giving a paper or presentation for the conference, get ready to submit your application.  Submissions for IECA Annual Conference 2019 in Denver, CO will begin March 1, 2018.  Submit your abstract from Here.

The Mountain States Chapter will be seeking volunteers to help organize several events and provide help during the conference.  If you are interested, please contact us at [email protected].


Articles
Mountain States Conference 2017 Recap

The chapter held our annual conference on November 16, 2017.  All of the conference proceedings are now on the IECA website as well as the list of exhibitors and your Continuing Education Certificates if you attended.   Click Here for more information

The con ference included three general sessions with keynote speakers as well as 12 shorter learning opportunities.  There are 7 CEU's available if you attended all day.  We would like to thank everyone that attended, presented, sponsored, and exhibited at the conference again this year.  We increased our participation to over 200 people and that is a tribute to word of mouth advertising done by past participants.  

The closing session was about Acid Mine Drainage and the Gold King Mine with Jane Clary and Brik Zivkovich.  


The lunch keynote presentation was given by Jennifer Hildebrand on "Making Environmental Compliance Happen."

The Opening Keynote was presented by Erick McWayne on "Connecting Particle Size Distribution with BMP Performance and Surface Water Quality"

 We had 70 attendance  surveys returned to us and had some very positive results.  

Over 50% heard about the conference from a peer and 98% said they would recommend the conference to future attendees. No one stated that they wouldn't attend the conference next year although 27% were uncertain and 73% said yes. The biggest reason for attendance was the educational content of the presentations.  Thank you everyone that gave us your responses.  It will help us to plan future conferences.
 
To Coir or not to Koir?
Submitted by Ron Whiteman - MSC treasurer

Coir blankets have become more common in recent years along the Front Range due to specs from Urban Drainage and Flood Control District, SEMSWA, FEMA and various State and County entities.
 
What is Coir? Coir is a fiber extracted from the husk that  covers the coconut.  Coir fibers are one of the strongest and most durable of the natural fibers, making it ideal for bioengineering designs.  Natural woven coir blankets have high tensile strength and functional longevity to ensure protection of soil and plants during the germination and establishment period.  Some bioengineering techniques can be for streambank stabilization to hold erodible soils in place, wetland plantings and shoreline protection.
 
Woven Coir mats should not be confused with coconut blankets.  A woven coir mat is made from the husk fibers, spun into a yarn, then woven into a coir mat.  A coconut blanket consists of coconut fibers stitched between photdegradable or biodegradable netting.
 
Coir mats come in several different apertures sizes. The 400 series have openings about 1"x1" in both directions.  The 700 series openings are about 1/2"x1/2" in both directions.  The 900 series openings are about 1/4"x1/4" in both directions.
 
All coir mat products are not the same.  The premium  products come from inland areas and have naturally low salt content.  These fibers are double washed to remove tannins and remaining salts before being woven into a mat.  This process enables good vegetative growth without releasing excess salt from the fibers into the soils.  Inferior coir mats are sourced from coastal areas and will have high salt content.  These fibers are not washed before being woven into mats.  Without removing excess salts from the fibers the result will be a release of the salts into the soils once installed on a project.  Excess salt in soils is detrimental to the growth of vegetation and plant establishment and can leach into the surrounding water ways.

News from the Mountain States Region
Colorado Update
Jim Bowlby  - CO state representative

The Construction General permit is currently  out for a second public comment period due to numerous changes.  The comment period ends March 5, 2018 .  To review and comment, the documents can be found  HERE .  The Mountain States Chapter will host a permit information session once the final permit is issued.

There are several National and International Conferences in Denver in the next year.

Society of Wetland Scientists Annual Meeting - May 29 to June 1 SWS Information
StormCon  August 12-16, 2018  StormCon info
IECA Annual Conference 2019  February 19-22, 2019   Annual Conference
 

Montana Update
John Whittingham- MT state representative

There are two conferences in May that deal with erosion and sediment control and water quality in Montana.  

The MSC will have a booth at the MTDEQ Stormwater Conference in Bozeman May 1 - 3 promoting membership to our organization.  The information for that conference is located  HERE.   The agenda is set and has a lot of good information to be presented.  Please let the chapter know if you are interested in attending as we need a couple of people to help John man our exhibit space and talk about the benefits of being a member of IECA.

John will also be attending the Montana Tech Mine Design, Operations, and Closure Conference May 6-10, 2018 at Fairmont Hot Springs.  

For more information , click here 
Montana Wildfire 2017 Summary
 
Western States have experienced catastrophic wildfire seasons in recent years.  Montana is no exception.  The following statistics put Montana wildfire season 2017 into perspective.  (Taken from Glenn Marx, Montana Association of Land Trusts).
 
  • 1.2 Million Acres, the highest amount burned in over two decades.
  • 28 of 30, the number of the nation's top fires burning in Montana by early September.
  • 3 Million Acres, $315 Million, acres burned and cost for British Columbia fires, both records.
  • Nearly $400 Million, total record cost to fight Montana wildfires.
  • $62 Million, Montana's contribution to fighting wildfires within the State.
  • $48 Million, total cost of Montana's most expensive fire, the Lolo Peak Fire near Missoula.
  • $2.7 Billion, record amount of total federal government firefighting cost during fiscal year 2017.
  • 51 percent, approximate proportion of USFS total budget allocated to firefighting in 2017.
  • 600 - 1000 Micrograms, range of peak air pollutant concentrations per cubic meter, Seeley Lake.
  • $240 Million, estimated economic loss from State tourism income due to wildfires and drought.
  • 89 percent, percent of over 3,000 wildfire fuel reduction treatment areas, later burned over, where wildfire intensity was reduced.
  • 13 inches, snow that fell on Rogers Pass, September 15-16, heavy snow throughout Montana.     
2018 Montana Calendar Dates
 
March 6-7, Montana Water Summit Conference, Helena, MT
April 27, Annual Montana Forest Landowner Conference, Helena, MT
May 1-3, Montana Storm Water Conference, Bozeman, MT
May 6-10, Montana Tech Mine Design, Operations, and Closure Conference, Fairmont Hot Springs, MT

New Mexico Update
Brian Roche - NM State Representative

There is an EPA regional conference being held in Albuquerque, NM in August that the MSC will be taking part in and promoting membership to our organization.  If you are planning to attend, please let the MSC board know as we will be looking for backup for Brian at our exhibit booth.
For more information,  Click Here

The call for educational presentations is currently open until April 27, 2018.  
North Dakota Update
Neal Barnes - ND state representative
 
No new updates were found.  If you have information from your state that you would like to see published in our newsletter, please submit them to [email protected].

South Dakota Update
Opal Forbes - SD state representative (acting)  
Looking for a representative that lives in SD for the board.
 
South Dakota's General Permit for Stormwater Discharges Associated with Construction Activities was public noticed on February 9, 2018. The public notice and supplemental documents can be found on DENR's One-Stop Public Notice  page.  There is also a Temporary Discharges permit that is on the public notice site.




Utah Update
Greg Baptist- UT state representative
 
The MSC is co-sponsoring the CISEC Training Modules and Exam with Salt Lake County  in April.  The last day to submit a application to attend is March 23, 2018.
Click Here for more information.


Wyoming Update
Aaron Peterson - WY state representative
 
State of Wyoming Updates
 
Industrial and Mineral Mining General Permit Renewals
 
The public comment periods for both Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality's (WDEQ) Industrial General Permit (IGP) and Mineral Mining General Permit (MMGP) are closed.  These permits are for covering storm water discharges from any industrial or mining activities. The current IGP and MMGP expired August 31, 2017 and March 31, 2017, respectively.  Operators with active permit authorizations will maintain coverage under WDEQ administrative extension until the drafts get finalized.   Upon the new permit issuance, all active permittees will receive a mailing with information on renewing coverage.  It is recommended to notify and update the WDEQ storm water staff of any recent storm water personnel or mailing address changes.
 
Updated Notices of Intent
 
Updated Notices of Intent (NOIs) for construction, mineral mining, and industrial storm water dischargers are available on the WDEQ website.   Additional verbiage has been added regarding access by WDEQ personnel to permitted facilities in response to legislation passed by the Wyoming Legislature:  
"Access to facility and map of access route(s): As part of its application, the applicant shall certify under penalty of perjury that the applicant has secured and shall maintain permission for Department of Environmental Quality personnel and their invitees to access the permitted facility, including (i) permission to access the land where the permitted facility is located, (ii) permission to collect resource data as defined by Wyoming Statute ยง 6 - 3 - 414, and (iii) permission to enter and cross all properties necessary to access the permitted facility if the facility cannot be directly accessed from a public road. A map of access route(s) to the facility shall accompany the Notice of Intent and SWPPP."
Previous versions of the NOIs will not be accepted and will be returned to the applicant.
 
Temporary Discharge General WYPDES Permit Renewals
 
Renewals for three Wyoming Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (WYPDES) temporary discharge general permits are now available on the WDEQ website along with corresponding updated NOIs. The following were renewed in September 2017:
  • WYG720000 - Construction Activities
  • WYG740000 - Ground Water Well Pump Testing and Development
  • WYG940000 - Involving Ground Water Remediation
 
Aaron Peterson, CISEC, CPESC, IECA MSC Wyoming Representative
SWCA Environmental Consultants

Upcoming Events:

Elections for positions on the MSC board will be held in June.  We will put out a call for nominations soon, so if you think you might be interested in being a member of the Board, please be ready to submit a short bio and reason that you would like to serve.  There will be 5 or 6 positions to be filled.  

Do you have an upcoming event that is relevant to the Erosion Control and Water Quality Industry? Send your information to [email protected] and we will include it in the upcoming events section.  

Volunteers Needed to submit newsletter articles, post articles on our LinkedIn page, and help with conference planning.  Please contact us at [email protected] if you would like to help out.
MSC IECA | MOUNTAINSTATESIECA.ORG
STAY CONNECTED: