Lisa Snider, District Manager Fort Jackson Building, Mezzanine 19 South Washington Street, Waynesburg, PA 15370
Phone: 724-852-5278 / Fax: 724-852-5341
Office Hours: 8:30 a.m—4:30 p.m., Monday—Friday
ALTERNATIVE ENERGY:
On March 28, 2009, a Greene County Alternative Energy Forum was held and hosted by the Greene County Conservation District, sponsored by the Greene County Commissioners and the Greene County Conservation District, and funded by grants from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Foundation Coal and GenPower LLC.
Following is a compilation of alternative energy information generated from the forum:
Alternative Energy Forum Speaker Contact List: (Listed alphabetically by last name)
For questions or information, contact Laurel Rush in the Conservation District at 724-852-5278.
THE PURPLE PANEL TRAP:It's not a kite! -- The Purple Panel Traps are primarily used to attract and capture insects that respond to wave lenghts of purple light, these traps are often supplemented with a pheromone or a chemical attractant designed to mimic a dying host tree. The three-sided purple panel trap is coated with adhesive, which traps insects that are attracted.
Who uses it? Purple panel traps are used by the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Conservation of Natural Resources, Penn State University, USDA-APHIS-PPQ, and USDA Forest Service.
Current Known Use: In 2008, purple panel traps baited with Manuka oil (tea tree oil) are set in 1.5 x 1.5 mile grids in 35 counties in Pennsylvania to support the Emeral Ash Borer (EAB) Surveillance Program.
Wondering Why? ... here's the story! The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), which is deadly to ash trees, is a small beetle with stealth-like behavior patterns that make it extremely difficult to detect. If not managed, the beetle threatens to devastate the entire ash species in North America.
We could lose them all! EAB infestations have been detected in four Pennsylvania Counties: Allegheny, Butler, Beaver and Lawrence, where there is now a quarantine on the transportation of most raw or fresh wood products (like firewood, bark products and ash trees) in an effort to prevent further spread of the bug.
Survey is helping: The PADOA has employed 35 two-person survey crews in several Pennsylvania counties (including Greene County), and the box-like structures seen in trees are the key to this survey's success. Such tiny bugs as the EAB would be hard to cout, until they get stuck on the sticky side of the purple trap.
The purpose of the survey is simply to detect whether there is apresence of EAB in Greene and the other counties being surveyed. A common misconception is that the traps are a means to control EAB, but the traps only serve as a tool for the survey, to determine if there even is a presence of EAB and if so, to what extent .. to help in planning future protection efforts.
You can Help by being on the lookout for signs of EAB infestation as well and alerting the Department of Agriculture if you see them. Visible signs include epicormic sprouting on ash trees - a lot of small shoots coming out on the lower trunk area or you'll see crown dieback, where the very top of the tree starts dying even though lower branches still have leaves.
Also excessive squirrel or woodpecker damage indicates presence of larvae; and bark slits or small "D" shaped emergence holes about an 1/8th inch in size.
If you seen such signs or want to know more about the survey, you can report to the PA Department of Agriculture at:
For general information, please contact the Information Services at 724-852-5399 / Toll Free: 1-888-852-5399. County Office Building, 93 E. High Street, Waynesburg, PA 15370
On March 28, 2009, a Greene County Alternative Energy Forum was held and hosted by the Greene County Conservation District, sponsored by the Greene County Commissioners and the Greene County Conservation District, and funded by grants from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Foundation Coal and GenPower LLC.
Following is a compilation of alternative energy information generated from the forum:
Who uses it? Purple panel traps are used by the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Conservation of Natural Resources, Penn State University, USDA-APHIS-PPQ, and USDA Forest Service.