EAC ACCOMPLISHMENTS 

Rain Garden

In October 2006, a rain garden was constructed at the Igoe, Porter, and Wellings Memorial Field.  The Environmental Advisory Council coordinated all aspects of the planning, secured donations from local businesses for the materials and oversaw construction work completed by the Public Works Department.  Once the rain garden was completed, EAC members and students from Central Bucks South High School planted the garden with shrubs and flowers. Click here: Rain Garden Construction to view pictures.  Special thank's goes to EPA's Region 3 Office of Watersheds Nonpoint Source Pollution Program, Americorp VISTA Volunteers and the Penn State Master Gardner Program. The rain garden captures stormwater runoff from the Soccer club concessions building and soccer field.   The garden and EAC were presented a certificate of recognition award at the 3rd Annual Urban Watersheds Revitalization Conference held in Philadelphia.   

For more information on rain gardens click on the "What can a homeowner do to help their environment?" section of the webpage.

Would you like be involved with EAC community events? Do you have any ideas for future events? Please contact the EAC @ eac.warrington@gmail.com. 

 

2008

We received a $100,000 grant from the PA Department of Environmental Protection to naturalize two detention basins in the Township.  Progress is as follows:

  • Obtained professional design and construction oversite technical assistance from Landstudies.
  • Select 2 basin for naturalization.  Those Basins are located at the Township Building and the corner of Warwick Road and Guneia Lane.  Notified adjacent Landowners.
  • Conducted infiltration studies
  • Secured the Services of Temple University for flow monitoring and installed flow monitoring systems.
  •  Survey and initiate the draft designs for the basins.
  • Drafted the text for an interpretative sign and selected Genesis Graphics for professional design and construction.

Applied for and received a $4997.00 grant from the League of Woman Voters Water Resources Education grant to conduct specific activities. The activities and progress on those activities are as follows:

  •  Promote the healthy yard program through mailings, newsletters and a Warrington Day exhibit.
    • A healthy yard mailing was sent out in July to all homeowners who homes are located in older Warrington neighborhoods where storm water controls were not required during construction. The mailing was sent to 513 homes. A copy of the mailing is included.
    • An article discussing the healthy yards initiative was published in the Township Newsletter. A copy of the article is included.
    • "Healthy Yards" was the theme of the EAC booth at Warrington day. See attached pictures.
  •  Design Basin Planting @ Buxmont Unitarian Fellowship.
    •  A landscape designer developed a model of the detention basin planting, the model was on display at Warrington Day.
  • Recruit Volunteers for the detention basin planting.
    • The planting is expected to take place this Spring, members of the Buxmont Fellowship will plant the basin.

  • Purchase plant and other materials for the basin planting.

    • A meeting was held with the Bucks County Conservation District to develop a preapplication to obtain some trees and shrubs from "Treevitalize". All material purchases and equipment rentals will occur in the spring of 2009.

  • Hold Planting Event at the Buxmont Fellowship Site.

    • The planting is expected to take place this spring.

  • Purchase and install weather resistant sign.

    • The sign will be designed and purchased this winter, then installed in the spring of 2009.

  • Arrange for a private contractor to conduct 25 Homeowner "Healthy Yard" Evaluations.

    • Sign ups for the Healthy Evaluations were completed @ Warrington Day on Saturday September 13th 2008.  Currently, approximately 6 evaluations have been completed.

  • Summarize the changes homeowners commit to making that will promote cleaner water.

    • This will be completed when all healthy yard evaluations have been completed.

  • Hold Healthy Yard poster/brochure contest in local schools.

    • Eight classes within the following schools in Warrington Township, Pennsylvania have currently given the Warrington Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) permission for a Healthy Yards Poster Contest: Jamison Elementary School, John Barclay Elementary School and Mill Creek Elementary School. Participating classes within these schools are scheduled to be introduced to the poster contest through a Healthy Yards educational presentation in January 2009. This presentation will be given by EAC representatives and will cover the topics of storm water runoff, water pollution and healthy yard maintenance. Following the Healthy Yards presentation, representatives will introduce students to the Healthy Yards Poster Contest and its guidelines. Students who choose to participate must submit their work by March 31, 2009 for EAC representatives to review. By Earth Day, April 22, 2009, a winner of each school will be awarded a gift card* for their poster's creativity and the posters will be put on display at Warrington's Town Hall.

      • the gift cards will be from a local store and will be selected by the teacher at the EAC's discretion.

  • Print and Distribute winning poster/brochure.

    • Scheduled for Spring 09

  •   Purchase Rain Barrels for Workshop

    • Barrels and rain barrel plumbing supplies were purchased for 20 rain barrels. An "Assemble Your Own Rain Barrel" workshop was conducted @ Warrington Day on September 13th 2008. See the attached pictures and sign up sheet of those individuals who agreed to receive a free rain barrel.

In cooperation with the Bucks County Conservation District applied for $1600 of funding from Tree Vitalize to purchase specific native trees and shrubs for the 2 detention basins slated for naturalization.

Applied for a $20,000 grant offered by the PA Department of Environmental Protection to conduct a greenhouse gas inventory for Township facilities.

Set up a Healthy Communities exhibit at the Bucks Beautiful Garden Fair that was held at Delaware Valley College from Friday March 21, 2008 - Sunday March 23, 2008.  Board members and friends staffed the exhibit throughout the weekend. 

Completed a social marketing survey of Warrington residents on their knowledge and interest in restoring ecological habitat to the Little Neshaminy Creek and Bradford Lake.

Hosted the Annual Earthday Community Service Event

A student volunteer from Delaware Valley College and members of the EAC created "Thank You" posters for each Business.  Following is a collage picture of those posters.

 

 

 

Created a "Name that Stream" outreach Campaign.

Is there a stream at your school? A brook in your backyard? A channel by your church? Chances are it doesn't even have a name! Warrington EAC is challenging groups and individuals to name the unnamed streams in the township.

Healthy Community Initiative Draws a Crowd At Warrington Day

Free Rain Barrels, Healthy Yard Evaluations, and reusable shopping bags with bottled water were popular giveaways this year.  In addition, sign ups for Clean Energy, Adopt-A-Road and  Name-A-Stream drew large crowds of people to the EAC booths.  The booths staffed with volunteers from Central Bucks South Environmental Club, Americororp VISTA,  Central Bucks German Honors Club, Heritage Conservancy and Smart Power worked hard to educate the community on these initiatives and in coordinating giveaways to participants. The rain barrels are part of maintaining a healthy yard because of their ability to reduce runoff and allow for the saved water to be used in gardening.     Volunteers were able to assemble over 35 barrels for interested community members throughout the course of the day. There were over a 25 sign-ups for residents participating in Healthy Yards which offered a free landscape evaluation by a professional landscape company. The Healthy Yard Evaluation was funded in part by a grant from The League of Woman Voters Water Resource Education Network.   

During the day residents also got the chance to view some of the projects that the EAC is currently working on such as retrofitting detention basins throughout the township and installing riparian buffers. In addition, the EAC displayed several projects in which Warrington residents have been actively participating in including storm drain labeling, the Tree Inventory project and our Name -A-Warrington Stream contest. The EAC is proud to have volunteers that are dedicated to greening the township and promoting Clean Energy.  In addition, all participants in the Healthy Communities Initiative were entered into a raffle to win a Sourwood Tree donated by Heritage Conservancy and gift cards from local businesses.  

A member of the EAC participated in a meeting of the Warrington Business Alliance and asked members to participate in EAC activities.  The Alliance agreed to send out a request to all Warrington businesses to volunteer.