Pennsylvania Clean Water Week Goes Digital
By Emily Rinaldi Baldauff, Campaigns Director, PennFuture
The coronavirus pandemic has drastically changed the day-to-day lifestyles that we have all known for years. Though it’s largely been a dim time with rapid change, not all change has been negative. This pandemic has opened doors for people to have time and reason to visit the outdoors and enjoy nature more frequently. This surge of nature-based activities was the perfect platform to highlight the importance of clean water across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. While physical distancing requirements have limited meetings with legislators in Harrisburg and in their district offices, we can’t stop advocating for our the watersheds that we all rely on.
Pennsylvania’s Watersheds, Source: Coservation Voters of PA
That’s why the week of April 13-17, 2020, PennFuture and our partners celebrated the first ever Pennsylvania Clean Water Week. In conjunction with the Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed and the Choose Clean Water Coalition, we celebrated the waters of Pennsylvania and advocated for environmental conservation. We rely on water for everything: cleaning, washing, farming, and fishing are all made possible thanks to clean water. We also encouraged legislators to support funding for environmental agencies that protect our waterways, such as the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and the Delaware River Basin Commission. Without proper funding, these agencies are unable to invest in staffing, equipment, research/testing, and other resources needed to protect and conserve natural resources.
Each day of Pennsylvania Clean Water Week, we featured a different Pennsylvania watershed on social media. We communicated the assets, benefits, and regions of the watersheds to increase public awareness and engage members of the public. On social media, several Pennsylvania organizations encouraged their followers to take small actions from home for clean water. This included calling their legislators, fixing a water leak, picking up litter, planting a tree, or clearing a storm drain.
On Monday, April 13, we celebrated the Delaware River Watershed. On Tuesday, the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, which includes the Susquehanna & Potomac Rivers were highlighted. Wednesday we celebrated the Ohio River Watershed, which includes the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers. Then Thursday included a celebration of the Lake Erie and Genesee River Watersheds. Finally, Friday was a wrap-up of Pennsylvania Clean Water Week with a virtual webinar to celebrate all of these brilliant watersheds!
Clean water advocates meet with State Representative Peter Schweyer (PA-22) for Pennsylvania Clean Water Week. Source: Ezra Thrush
Every day of the week, folks were able to celebrate Pennsylvania’s streams and rivers by sharing photos of their local waterways, posting a short video on why clean water matters to them, writing a poem or short story, or posting on social media. Clean water week collected this testimonies using the hashtag #PaCleanWaterWeek, and the coalitions were able to share contributions during the celebration webinar on Friday, April 17.
Missed the webinar? No Problem! You can view the recording here.
Also throughout the week, Coalition members hosted virtual meetings with over a dozen state legislators offices advocating for clean water funding. Since our annual Clean Water Education Day in Harrisburg had to be postponed until further notice due to safety concerns, these online meetings created a line of communication organizations wouldn’t have otherwise had. The participating organizations from the Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed and Choose Clean Water Coalition appreciated the legislators who took the time to meet with them during such a busy and uncertain time.
Anyone wishing to learn more about Pennsylvania Clean Water Week should contact PennFuture’s Campaigns Director, Emily Baldauff.