PRINTER'S NO. 925
No. 867 Session of 1999
INTRODUCED BY S. H. SMITH, HERSHEY, GEORGE, ARGALL, BAKER,
BENNINGHOFF, CAWLEY, HALUSKA, HASAY, HENNESSEY, HERMAN,
LAUGHLIN, LEH, MICOZZIE, PETRARCA, ROSS, RUBLEY, SAYLOR,
SERAFINI, STABACK, SURRA, TANGRETTI, TIGUE, TRELLO AND
YOUNGBLOOD, MARCH 10, 1999
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY,
MARCH 10, 1999
AN ACT
1 Providing for the funding of volunteer groups to clean up and
2 restore watersheds affected by acid mine drainage;
3 establishing a project selection board to select and oversee
4 projects to be funded; identifying funding sources to aid
5 volunteer organizations in cleanup and restoration projects;
6 and authorizing the Department of Environmental Protection to
7 administer the funding of the selected projects.
8 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
9 hereby enacts as follows:
10 Section 1. Short title.
11 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Watershed
12 Restoration and Partnership Act.
13 Section 2. Declaration of policy.
14 The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
15 (1) Acid mine drainage is a major source of water
16 pollution in this Commonwealth.
17 (2) The Commonwealth has identified at least 2,400 miles
18 of Commonwealth streams that have been affected by acid mine
1 drainage.
2 (3) The cleanup and restoration of Commonwealth streams
3 affected by acid mine drainage is vital to their use as
4 drinking water sources, recreational areas and natural areas.
5 (4) The cleanup and restoration is vital to the economic
6 viability of the area.
7 (5) Cleanup of acid mine drainage problems is
8 accomplished most effectively through a solution that focuses
9 on restoration of an entire watershed rather than a single
10 stream segment.
11 (6) Many organizations have expressed an interest in
12 donating their time and skills to clean up watersheds
13 affected by acid mine drainage. These organizations lack
14 adequate funding to clean up and restore watersheds
15 effectively.
16 (7) Without the active participation of local
17 organizations, the acid mine drainage problem in this
18 Commonwealth will not be solved.
19 (8) Incentives should be put in place to encourage the
20 establishment of additional organizations and to aid in
21 funding organizations ready to donate their time and skills
22 to clean up and restore watersheds affected by acid mine
23 drainage.
24 (9) It is necessary for the General Assembly to adopt a
25 statute that explicitly authorizes the award of grants to
26 eligible organizations dedicated to cleaning up and restoring
27 watersheds affected by acid mine drainage.
28 Section 3. Definitions.
29 Definitions.--As used in this section, the following words
30 and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this
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1 subsection:
2 "Comprehensive Plan for Abandoned Mine Reclamation." The
3 Department of Environmental Protection's document that sets
4 forth the department's framework for cleaning up this
5 Commonwealth's watersheds impacted by acid mine drainage.
6 "Department." The Department of Environmental Protection of
7 the Commonwealth or its successor agency.
8 "Project." An activity to address some or all of the issues
9 identified in a Department of Environmental Protection-approved
10 watershed restoration plan.
11 "Proposal." A document that sets forth a specific concept
12 and requests funding for the implementation of the identified
13 concept. The concept can be for watershed group start-up costs,
14 watershed surveys, development of watershed restoration plans
15 and implementation of part or all of a watershed restoration
16 plan through projects.
17 "Review committee." A committee established under section 4.
18 "Secretary." The Secretary of Environmental Protection of
19 the Commonwealth.
20 "Volunteer watershed organization." Any entity recognized by
21 the Department of Environmental Protection that is made up of
22 volunteer community members and is interested in cleaning up
23 acid mine drainage in a watershed.
24 "Watershed." A geographic area from which surface water
25 drains to a specific water course or water body, including the
26 groundwater regime in that area.
27 "Watershed restoration plan." A document created for an
28 identified watershed that contains an analysis of acid mine
29 drainage problems and solutions to those problems, in accordance
30 with the Comprehensive Plan for Abandoned Mine Reclamation.
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1 "Watershed survey." A survey of a watershed that establishes
2 baseline information for the watershed, including data on acid
3 mine drainage to the water quality of a watershed, stream usage
4 data, acid mine drainage discharge locations and acid mine
5 drainage discharge causes.
6 Section 4. Review committee.
7 (a) Establishment.--There is hereby created a review
8 committee for the following purposes:
9 (1) Reviewing proposals and taking into account any
10 comments submitted by a county conservation district affected
11 by the proposal.
12 (2) Recommending to the department a prioritization for
13 funding proposals.
14 (3) Recommending to the department proposals for funding
15 in accordance with section 7.
16 (4) Advising the department on any activities authorized
17 by this act.
18 (b) Membership.--The committee shall be made up of four
19 members appointed by the secretary and three members of the
20 Mining and Reclamation Advisory Board.
21 (1) The secretary shall appoint one member who shall be
22 a current department employee and represent the department,
23 one member who shall represent volunteer watershed
24 organizations involved in acid mine drainage cleanup
25 resulting from bituminous coal mining, one member who shall
26 represent volunteer watershed organizations involved in acid
27 mine drainage cleanup resulting from anthracite coal mining
28 and one member who shall represent an academic institution or
29 shall be an employee of a government agency other than the
30 department who has knowledge about acid mine drainage
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1 cleanups.
2 (2) The Mining and Reclamation Advisory Board shall
3 appoint three members from current members of the Mining and
4 Reclamation Advisory Board.
5 Section 5. Responsibilities of department.
6 The department shall be responsible for:
7 (1) Reviewing and approving or denying watershed
8 restoration plans.
9 (2) Tracking the funds available for the purposes of
10 this act.
11 (3) Selecting proposals for funding under this act.
12 (4) Entering into grant agreements with grantees.
13 Section 6. Scope.
14 (a) Funding.--The moneys authorized by this act are
15 available only to volunteer watershed organizations involved in
16 the cleanup and restoration of a watershed impacted by acid mine
17 drainage.
18 Any volunteer watershed organization seeking funding for
19 start-up costs shall coordinate their proposal with the county
20 conservation district in which any likely watershed restoration
21 project will be proposed.
22 (b) Disclaimer.--Nothing in this act is intended to nor
23 shall it be construed to amend, modify, repeal or otherwise
24 alter any provision of any other legislation that requires a
25 volunteer watershed organization to obtain a permit for
26 watershed cleanup activities conducted by any volunteer
27 watershed organization.
28 Section 7. Funds.
29 (a) Acid Mine Drainage Watershed Restoration and Partnership
30 Fund.--There is hereby created a restricted fund in the State
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1 Treasury to be known as the Acid Mine Drainage Watershed
2 Restoration and Partnership Fund. Upon approval of the Governor,
3 funds may be deposited and/or transferred into this fund at the
4 beginning of each fiscal year from sources which are
5 legislatively consistent with the proposed uses specified under
6 this act. The Acid Mine Drainage Watershed Restoration and
7 Partnership Fund may be supplemented by appropriations from the
8 General Assembly, the Federal, State or local government or any
9 private source.
10 (b) Grants.--All moneys placed in the Acid Mine Drainage
11 Watershed Restoration and Partnership Fund are hereby
12 appropriated to the department for the purpose of providing
13 grants to volunteer watershed organizations for watershed acid
14 mine drainage cleanup proposals and other activities identified
15 in subsection (c). Each grant awarded to a volunteer watershed
16 organization shall be used for proposals in only one watershed.
17 (c) Other use of funds.--In addition to proposals, the
18 moneys available pursuant to this section may be used by the
19 secretary for:
20 (1) Development of demonstration projects to aid in the
21 use of green technologies that can be used for acid mine
22 drainage cleanup.
23 (2) Federal, State or local funding source matches.
24 (d) Annual limits.--In any fiscal year the funding for the
25 proposals shall be limited to:
26 (1) A maximum of 10% of funds available may be used for
27 watershed group start-up costs.
28 (2) A maximum of 25% of funds available may be used by
29 the secretary under purposes identified in subsection (c).
30 (e) Department efforts.--The department shall maximize
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1 efforts to fund proposals which implement watershed restoration
2 plans.
3 Section 8. Proposal approval process.
4 (a) Proposal for grants.--Volunteer watershed organizations
5 interested in receiving grants under this act shall submit a
6 proposal to the department and shall notify any county
7 conservation district in which a project is proposed that a
8 proposal has been submitted. The proposal shall contain
9 necessary and appropriate information as required by the
10 department. The department shall forward to the review committee
11 for evaluation all proposals received.
12 (b) Funding recommendations.--The review committee shall
13 review all proposals and make funding recommendations to the
14 department.
15 (c) Departmental decisions.--The department shall consider
16 the review committee's recommendations in making proposal-
17 funding decisions. The department shall then issue grants to
18 volunteer watershed organizations.
19 (d) Organizations receiving funds.--Volunteer watershed
20 organizations that receive funding through this act shall comply
21 with all applicable laws and regulations.
22 (e) Limitations on funding.--Nothing contained in this act
23 shall require or authorize the secretary to provide any funding
24 in excess of the moneys available under section 7.
25 (f) Departmental conditions.--A grant awarded under this
26 section shall be subject to such terms and conditions as
27 established by the department.
28 Section 9. Report on activity.
29 The department shall prepare a report, to be made available
30 to the public, identifying available funding, number of projects
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1 proposed, number of volunteer watershed organizations
2 participating, miles of stream restored, amount of pollutants
3 removed and any other information deemed appropriate.
4 Section 10. Relationship to other State laws.
5 Nothing in this act shall alter or otherwise affect the
6 department's existing authority to award grants under section
7 18(i) of the act of May 31, 1945 (P.L.1198, No.418), known as
8 the Surface Mining Conservation and Reclamation Act.
9 Section 11. Effective date.
10 This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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