Experts in the field of environmental policy and management, watershed hydrology and stream ecology and restoration, and environmental engineering will present on a wide range of topics when the Bucknell Center for Sustainability & the Environment (BCSE) hosts the 19th Annual River Symposium on Friday, Nov. 8 and Saturday, Nov. 9, in the Elaine Langone Center (ELC).
“One of the focuses of this year’s event will be the legacy of coal mines in Pennsylvania, specifically new findings about how discharges from these abandoned mines ultimately impact the Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay,” says Professor Benjamin Hayes, director of the Bucknell Center for Sustainability and the Environment’s Watershed Sciences & Engineering Program and symposium chair.
Stream restoration, terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, science and management priorities and social-ecological dynamics will be featured in oral and poster presentations from faculty, students and professionals. Members of the general public can interact with academics and professionals through presentations and breakout discussions.
All events take place in the ELC. If you plan to attend the symposium, registration is free, highly recommended and can be accessed via the symposium website. You can also participate remotely using Zoom links provided on that website during the day of the event.
The symposium begins on Friday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Forum with opening remarks entitled “Healing Broken Landscapes,” by Betty Lyons (Gaeñ hia uh), a member of the Snipe Clan, Onondaga Nation of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy and president and executive director of American Indian Law Center and Alliance in New York City. She is a widely respected environmental educator on environmental sustainability and also represents indigenous peoples to the United Nations.
Dr. Charles A. Cravotta III, a retired research hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey and a leading professional geologist specializing in the treatment of abandoned coal mine discharge, will deliver the keynote address “Abandoned Mine Discharge, the Susquehanna River, and the Chesapeake Bay” from 7:30-8 p.m. in the Forum. Afterward, more than 100 students and faculty from over 10 colleges and universities throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed will present research posters in the Terrace Room from 8-10 p.m. Exhibitors from watershed groups, emergency management agencies and environmental organizations will also be part of the poster session.
Awards will be given for the best student poster and oral presentations on both Friday and Saturday.
The symposium continues on Saturday, Nov. 9, with an exciting line-up. From 9-9:30 a.m., Jill Whitcomb, acting deputy secretary for the Office of Water Programs at the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection will co-present a plenary presentation entitled “The Next Generation of Watershed Restoration: Planning for 2025 and Beyond” alongside Anna Killius, executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Commission.
From 9:30-10 a.m., Kathy Boomer, scientific program director for the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research, will deliver a plenary address entitled “Exploring Two-Eyed Seeing to Support Green Sustainability.”
From 1-1:30 p.m., Brian Cooper, project manager with Trout Unlimited’s Pennsylvania Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program, will deliver a plenary address entitled “Two Birds, One Stone: AMD Treatment Restores Fisheries While Reducing Chesapeake Bay Sediment,” and from 1:30-2 p.m., Bobby Hughes, executive director of the Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation, will deliver a plenary address entitled “Regional Efforts to Assess Community Impacts and Restoration Alternatives for Mitigating Abandoned Mine Discharges in Eastern Pennsylvania.”
Each set of plenary talks will be followed by breakout discussions where symposium participants interact with the plenary speakers. Saturday’s program will include additional oral presentations from 11 a.m. to noon and 3-4 p.m. in the ELC.
As previously mentioned, the annual River Symposium is free and open to the public. It is made possible through financial support from the BCSE and the Pennsylvania Water Resources Research Center at Pennsylvania State University. Registration helps keep accurate food counts to prevent food waste. You can register or find additional information on the symposium website.
