Latest / Clean Water Conversations / Episode 4 with Molly Deger

Transcript

Episode 4 with Molly Deger · Clean Water Conversations

0:11
SPEAKER_04: Hello everyone and welcome to Clean Water Conversations, a podcast where we have casual discussions about creating clean and clear waterways right here in Lancaster County.
0:20
SPEAKER_04: I'm Ken.
0:21
SPEAKER_02: Hi, and I'm Alison.
0:22
SPEAKER_04: Allison, we're in episode four.
0:24
SPEAKER_02: It's amazing how time arrives.
0:26
SPEAKER_04: I know.
0:26
SPEAKER_04: And and we've gotten a lot of great feedback.
0:29
SPEAKER_04: And we I just want to say right out of the gate, thank you for everybody who's subscribing, downloading, whatever you want to call it.
0:37
SPEAKER_02: Just making sure they listen in.
0:39
SPEAKER_04: Yes.
0:40
SPEAKER_04: So thank you for those for those who do.
0:42
SPEAKER_04: That's that's that's awesome.
0:43
SPEAKER_04: This is a lot of fun.
0:45
SPEAKER_04: It is.
0:45
SPEAKER_04: And and the ability to tell the stories through it is just so powerful.
0:50
SPEAKER_02: And there are some amazing people here in Lancaster County, so it's really exciting to be able to sit down and chat with them, hear what's going on in their world and share that.
0:58
SPEAKER_04: In fact, this week we are talking with Molly Degger, who is the Deputy Director of Public Works in the Sustainability and Environment Division of the City of Lancaster.
1:09
SPEAKER_04: That's a mouthful.
1:10
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
1:11
SPEAKER_04: Yes.
1:11
SPEAKER_04: But she had a lot to say too, which was very cool.
1:15
SPEAKER_04: Um she talked about the combined sewer overflow.
1:20
SPEAKER_04: She talked about neighborhood engagement.
1:22
SPEAKER_04: She talked about the climate action plan.
1:24
SPEAKER_02: They are a busy place there.
1:25
SPEAKER_04: Yes, they are.
1:26
SPEAKER_04: Yes, they are.
1:28
SPEAKER_04: And uh oh, by the way, before I forget, um we haven't got a whole lot of feedback on the info at email.
1:36
SPEAKER_04: I mean, there is a Nigerian Prince who wants to sponsor the podcast.
1:39
SPEAKER_04: But I mean, other than that, but I wanted to remind everybody that that option is still out there.
1:46
SPEAKER_04: If you want to contribute to the show, give us suggestions, give us uh an attaboy, at a girl, what whatever.
1:51
SPEAKER_04: We just hit us up at the email info at lancastercleanwaterpartners.com.
1:58
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, any ideas like a celebration that's happening this month where we can invite a guest or we can give a shout out.
2:05
SPEAKER_02: Things like March is Women's History Month.
2:07
SPEAKER_02: And so for that kind of reason, we're really excited to have Molly with us.
2:11
SPEAKER_04: Yes.
2:12
SPEAKER_04: You know what?
2:13
SPEAKER_04: Let's get right into it.
2:14
SPEAKER_04: Let's do it.
2:15
SPEAKER_04: So hey Molly.
2:17
SPEAKER_04: Hi.
2:18
SPEAKER_04: Welcome to Clean Water Conversations.
2:20
SPEAKER_04: Uh we are so glad to have you here.
2:22
SPEAKER_04: Um we've a lot to talk about today, so but we always start these off with an icebreaker.
2:27
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
2:27
SPEAKER_04: And your icebreaker is this.
2:29
SPEAKER_04: If you could have had any famous musician, dead or alive, play at your wedding, who would it have been and why?
2:38
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
2:40
SPEAKER_00: Um I think I would have to go classic and say someone like the Beatles or someone with just such a discography of their own.
2:50
SPEAKER_00: And yeah, that's you know, a wide variety.
2:55
SPEAKER_00: Either that or Michael Jackson's pretty fun, too.
2:59
SPEAKER_04: There you go.
2:59
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, yeah.
3:00
SPEAKER_04: Speaking of a discog discography, it's tougher to say.
3:04
SPEAKER_02: That's a new one for me.
3:08
SPEAKER_04: Oh wow.
3:08
SPEAKER_04: That's cool.
3:09
SPEAKER_04: That's a great answer.
3:10
SPEAKER_04: That's a great answer.
3:11
SPEAKER_04: So tell us a little bit about your background.
3:13
SPEAKER_04: I mean, have you always been interested in the environment?
3:19
SPEAKER_04: How did you grow up?
3:20
SPEAKER_04: Where where did you grow up, first off?
3:22
SPEAKER_00: So I grew up in Bel Air, Maryland, um, which is part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
3:27
SPEAKER_00: I had family on the eastern shore of Maryland, still have some family on the eastern shore of Maryland.
3:31
SPEAKER_00: So yeah, my dad, uh, we had a crabbing boat for a while and you know, spent summers down there.
3:36
SPEAKER_00: So, yes, I mean I've always been pretty passionate about the environment.
3:41
SPEAKER_00: I got to take a trip when I was a freshman in high school to the Teton Science School.
3:47
SPEAKER_00: And I think that kind of solidified it for me.
3:50
SPEAKER_00: So, yeah, 14 years old.
3:51
SPEAKER_00: I didn't know what I would do with that.
3:53
SPEAKER_00: I didn't know if that would be a a career or a hobby.
3:56
SPEAKER_00: And I've yeah, been really fortunate to be able to kind of blend the two into this career of mine.
4:01
SPEAKER_00: So um, I went to Virginia Tech for engineering.
4:05
SPEAKER_00: I didn't know I was gonna go pre-vet, um, but I my dad said, Hey, you're good at math and science.
4:10
SPEAKER_00: Maybe you should go to school for engineering.
4:12
SPEAKER_00: I didn't know what engineering was.
4:14
SPEAKER_00: He was an engineer, thought it might do pre-vet, uh, be an equine vet.
4:18
SPEAKER_00: I grew up riding horses as well, and then found this kind of niche of it was called biological systems engineering.
4:25
SPEAKER_00: And they have an ecological tract, and then they have more of the micro bio tract, um, and do actually have a pre-med pre-vet tract now.
4:34
SPEAKER_00: They didn't want to, that was you kind of a create your own path.
4:38
SPEAKER_00: But yeah, so I I ended up in the ecological side of that, um, stormwater specifically, a lot of soil science, um, plants for environmental restoration.
4:48
SPEAKER_00: So some really cool things that have just really lended itself to this career of mine.
4:53
SPEAKER_00: I've done kind of private sector engineering, um, really love public sector.
4:57
SPEAKER_00: So now I'm I'm here in Lancaster uh in the for the city of Lancaster.
5:01
SPEAKER_04: Aaron Powell Nice.
5:02
SPEAKER_04: Uh now I saw that you studied at I'm gonna try not to botch this up too bad here.
5:07
SPEAKER_04: Universidad Federal dos Espíritos Santo.
5:11
SPEAKER_04: Am I close?
5:12
SPEAKER_04: That's really close.
5:13
SPEAKER_00: In Brazil.
5:14
SPEAKER_00: In Brazil, yes.
5:15
SPEAKER_00: What took you there?
5:16
SPEAKER_00: So yeah, so I got to spend part of a summer there.
5:19
SPEAKER_00: I got six credits.
5:21
SPEAKER_00: Um I took a non non-point source pollution course and then a GIS course.
5:26
SPEAKER_00: But it was just really boots on the ground um watershed study.
5:31
SPEAKER_00: Um we had a a professor of ours that had a a former PhD student that had then gone back to Brazil.
5:39
SPEAKER_00: Uh and so then they had this I think they might have switched off years, and I just happened to be in the year I was a rising senior and got to go down there and from the top of the watershed, look at the coffee plantations and some of the, you know, it's funny, I I saw three feet of erosion from their dirt roads.
6:03
SPEAKER_00: You know, you could see like, you know, we we talk about dirt and gravel roads sometimes in our in our work and low volume roads, and that was just it was pretty amazing.
6:11
SPEAKER_00: Really steep slopes and just had like three feet of washout over decades.
6:16
SPEAKER_00: You know, so you think about where that's landing, obviously.
6:19
SPEAKER_00: Um and then, you know, all the way down to the river, and I don't even remember the name of the water course, but uh in-stream monitoring we got to do, a little bit of Portuguese, and yeah, we lived in an apartment in Vitoria, Brazil, and it was it was a blast.
6:35
SPEAKER_00: Such a cool experience.
6:36
SPEAKER_04: Now I had a a question I saw on your I think your LinkedIn that you speak Spanish.
6:42
SPEAKER_04: But they speak Portuguese.
6:43
SPEAKER_04: Now I know that a lot of a lot of Brazilians can understand Spanish pretty well, but was there kind of um a trouble with the language or yes.
6:52
SPEAKER_00: And I might need to change my LinkedIn if you took away that I speak Spanish.
6:56
SPEAKER_00: I was a Spanish.
6:58
SPEAKER_00: That's good feedback, real-time feedback.
7:01
SPEAKER_00: I I did I was a minor in Spanish in college.
7:03
SPEAKER_00: Um the year before I had actually gotten to study abroad in Spain, was pretty proficient by the end.
7:08
SPEAKER_00: We lived with host families that didn't speak any English, weren't allowed to speak English with us.
7:12
SPEAKER_00: Um I was pretty proficient by the end of the summer, didn't have to take any more Spanish coursework.
7:18
SPEAKER_00: I really wanted to graduate in four years and uh an engineering degree and Spanish or any other really non-math or science degree.
7:25
SPEAKER_00: It's it's hard to cram it in there.
7:26
SPEAKER_00: So I think I stopped taking Spanish at that point, then took a week intensive Portuguese, and then it was a blend of of English and Portuguese while we were there.
7:37
SPEAKER_00: Really just messed up my Spanish, honestly.
7:40
SPEAKER_00: Uh it's so I it they're very similar in certain ways, but it was it's a very different language.
7:49
SPEAKER_00: And so, you know, aside from uh thank yous and things like that, I I don't know much Portuguese at all.
7:55
SPEAKER_00: And then um, yeah, that that'll be a pet project of mine someday is to reteach myself Spanish.
8:00
SPEAKER_00: There's a lot, a lot of cool programs out there I know, but yeah, finding time to do it.
8:05
SPEAKER_00: Oh my goodness.
8:07
SPEAKER_00: That's impressive.
8:08
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
8:09
SPEAKER_04: So what actually is it that brought you to Lancaster?
8:12
SPEAKER_00: This job opportunity, honestly, I am a resident of Chester County.
8:16
SPEAKER_00: I graduated from uh Virginia Tech and moved up to, I worked for a firm in Phoenixville, and then I had been kind of in the uh doing a lot of work in the Philadelphia, mid-Atlantic region, and then worked for seven years for the Chester County Conservation District.
8:31
SPEAKER_00: So really broadening my horizons in terms of stormwater and clean water-related issues and challenges, you know, in the agricultural sector and opportunities, certainly, and wanted a a career change.
8:44
SPEAKER_00: I went back to the private sector, had a really great opportunity there through that private sector employer, um, Jacobs Engineering.
8:52
SPEAKER_00: They've been a longtime supporter and program manager of our green infrastructure program.
8:58
SPEAKER_00: I did a sort of a staff augmentation.
9:00
SPEAKER_00: I came last summer as a part-time stormwater program manager through my consultant role.
9:05
SPEAKER_00: Never thought that I would leave, you know, and and take a new opportunity so soon, but um really fell in love with the city of Lancaster, with the Department of Public Works, with the administration uh and the priorities of city council.
9:19
SPEAKER_00: And I'm just amazed with the the package, really, just the whole package of how you know there's so much, it's a small city that just gets a lot done.
9:32
SPEAKER_00: And I think just that the vision and the and the passion and you know the challenges, it we're not a rich city by any means, and we need to be really mindful of that.
9:41
SPEAKER_00: Um, but just a lot of really cool opportunities that that I'm excited about.
9:45
SPEAKER_00: Plus, it kind of brings back that blend.
9:47
SPEAKER_00: I tend to be rather city focused, but you can't help but broaden your horizons and look at the county in and of itself, and what a cool opportunity to sort of um you know work again in in that blend of of rural and you know the rural characteristics that really make up Lancaster County.
10:07
SPEAKER_02: That's so fun because the technical side and the expertise that you bring there, but then also even just speaking multiple languages and knowing how to work between different types of um cultural divides, areas that are a community-driven element that each community would be would bring their own unique piece to it.
10:27
SPEAKER_02: So I love how you describe it as a package because all of those pieces help make Lancaster what it is.
10:32
SPEAKER_02: Um tell us a little bit about how neighborhood engagement and how that is such a priority within the administration and how you're seeing that really come to life.
10:43
SPEAKER_02: I I feel like I can sense you really loving that part too as part of the package.
10:49
SPEAKER_02: So I I just I think it's such a unique piece of Lancaster City.
10:53
SPEAKER_02: So how how does that come to life for you?
10:55
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, that's that's an awesome point.
10:57
SPEAKER_00: And it really does uh hit home for me.
11:00
SPEAKER_00: You know, I I I was saying before I didn't know how the environment would how if I would make a career of it or not.
11:06
SPEAKER_00: I think advocacy and engagement are also something that I didn't know when you go to school for engineering, those two paths don't cross a whole lot.
11:17
SPEAKER_00: And so I love that the city has formed the Department of Neighborhood Engagement.
11:21
SPEAKER_00: Um they really are in their infancy, but you wouldn't know it by looking at it.
11:25
SPEAKER_00: There's so much that is already happening, uh, and it's so great to be in this role as you know the deputy director for public works, but it really is it crosses organization boundaries.
11:38
SPEAKER_00: And so I've been really excited, you know, from the subtle we installed some some signage at the new Longs Park Wetland project.
11:47
SPEAKER_00: Um, and you know, in a matter of days, we was able to set up a meeting with the Department of Neighborhood uh engagement.
11:54
SPEAKER_00: They then translated those signs.
11:57
SPEAKER_00: They they helped to make the language more accessible, so use of plain language to um really be able to speak to a broader audience there.
12:05
SPEAKER_00: And then we now have translations in Spanish, Swahili, and Arabic um linked through the QR code.
12:12
SPEAKER_00: And I and I feel like that's that just happened so cohesively, and and I that was just such a great uh introduction into that program.
12:21
SPEAKER_00: So, you know, I think they have uh their neighborhood leaders academy, um, and you know, I think there's opportunities there to really bring neighborhood-driven, just be have those be at the forefront of of what we're trying to do, not only with our messaging, but with our action as well.
12:39
SPEAKER_00: I've had some meetings with them, with some of our newly formed, um, I I say our to mean, you know, it's the the city is not doing these um climate action neighborhoods that are forming in the city.
12:50
SPEAKER_00: And so, you know, how we can learn from them, be of service to them.
12:54
SPEAKER_00: Um, and you know, that really is just a partnership with, you know, multiple organizations of the city.
13:02
SPEAKER_02: I feel like there's a couple ways we can go here because I want to know more about the climate.
13:06
SPEAKER_02: I want to know more about the neighborhood pieces.
13:09
SPEAKER_02: So I'm gonna start with the the green infrastructure and the um public work side of things.
13:15
SPEAKER_02: So the city has a combined sewer overflow, the green infrastructure is part of that.
13:20
SPEAKER_02: Tell us how those pieces kind of exist within your world.
13:24
SPEAKER_02: And knowing that you, as the deputy director of this, are part of a team that's working on it.
13:29
SPEAKER_02: But how do you, as one of the new members of that team, really kind of dive into something that's can be really technical, but then you're having to make sure that there's QR codes so the general person can understand it too?
13:42
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and this is this is where I'm I'm learning the most about what my role is here.
13:48
SPEAKER_00: I think that um there has been a great team.
13:52
SPEAKER_00: Uh, so we're the sustainability environment division, Stormwater Bureau is under that, Climate Action Plan is under that, but the Stormwater Bureau, uh, there is a a team of um engineers, um, landscape architects, uh, maintenance staff, inspectors that that report to and are under that division, but it really is a department-wide and citywide initiative.
14:17
SPEAKER_00: There are uh construction supervisors, there are uh you know that we we're getting for support from the comms team, uh we're getting support from planners, and and so you know, from project infancy, and and one of the things that I'm um prioritizing is is getting uh a capital plan, a stormwater capital plan.
14:40
SPEAKER_00: Um we have we've done it in a really successful way in sort of a shorter term, and we're really trying to project out now and really do some organization.
14:52
SPEAKER_00: So uh that doesn't sound fun for all, but that's really that's pretty fun for me.
14:57
SPEAKER_00: Um and so just trying to elevate my role and and sort of being the the leader and um and just sort of letting people do what they do best um to really get these projects planned, get these projects funded, get these projects in the ground.
15:13
SPEAKER_00: And so I'm I'm sort of, you know, I find myself in a lot of meetings, but it's really important.
15:18
SPEAKER_00: Um there's a lot of pieces that have to fall into place here.
15:21
SPEAKER_00: Um and so, you know, learning about the financing and things like that are just have been really very cool opportunities that um that are just really you know fun.
15:30
SPEAKER_00: We have some bigger projects that are happening this year.
15:33
SPEAKER_00: We have uh the first of our uh sewer separation projects.
15:37
SPEAKER_00: So this will actually be uh separating the combined sewer system into uh and building a new stormwater pipe that will collect most of the stormwater, if not all of the stormwater, um, and uh have a a new sometimes a new discharge, sometimes relying on existing discharges, but separating that out um in conjunction with some of our green infrastructure, these are pretty big projects that we're planning, and and we're really excited about these opportunities.
16:04
SPEAKER_02: Wow.
16:05
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
16:06
SPEAKER_02: Very cool.
16:08
SPEAKER_04: Is there any um uh like solar projects that are involved in that?
16:13
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
16:14
SPEAKER_00: I think that Lancaster really is just a leader in sustainability.
16:19
SPEAKER_00: I was meeting with one of our uh our chief planner, Douglas Smith, who was a former role as a sustainability planner, and we were just walking through the timeline here of all of the sustainability efforts.
16:31
SPEAKER_00: And this is a little preview because we're we're putting together a presentation for the uh climate summit that Regional is um hosting, but just from green infrastructure uh really lends itself to some of the other plans and initiatives that the city has has put forward.
16:46
SPEAKER_00: Um, and so we have our 2019 Municipal Climate Action Plan, uh, and and a lot has happened with that.
16:53
SPEAKER_00: There's a lot more to come with that, but one of the really cool opportunities that I hope to see uh implemented this year or next year is um a large-scale solar project.
17:03
SPEAKER_00: Um there's a couple of sites that we're considering right now.
17:06
SPEAKER_00: Uh we have, we're working with a number of consultants on this effort.
17:11
SPEAKER_00: There's some new financing opportunities that are out there, kind of speaking to um really taking a dive into a lot of those tax credits that are now available for municipalities.
17:22
SPEAKER_00: So some really neat opportunities uh to advance and help offset the cost of the water and wastewater operations.
17:32
SPEAKER_00: It's a need that we can't ignore, certainly, but it is it's a large, large user of energy.
17:40
SPEAKER_00: And we are sourcing 100% renewable energy, but we want to take that a step um, you know, a step further, uh, potentially making this more economical, but certainly just practicing what we preach and doing this at home as well.
17:53
SPEAKER_00: So, I mean, luckily we have a long history of you know creative financing and uh and implementation, and so we're really excited to take that particular opportunity to the next level.
18:04
SPEAKER_02: You gave an example of the solar project uh uh as something that's kind of up and coming.
18:10
SPEAKER_02: What are some of the green infrastructure projects that have you really jazzed about clean water right now?
18:14
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, you know, I mentioned a little bit earlier, but I'm really still kind of riding on the coattails of of all the effort that was put into the Longs Park Wetland mitigation project.
18:25
SPEAKER_00: Um and and seeing more of those types of projects um planned in the city, I think are are going to be really cool.
18:33
SPEAKER_00: And I think that kind of leads into you know floodplain restoration and some of these other really absorptive landscapes that we can be that we can be doing here.
18:42
SPEAKER_00: The city really does prioritize nature-based solutions and as many of the green infrastructure practices as possible.
18:49
SPEAKER_00: Uh but because of utility challenges and being in a you know karst um topography and and there's just there are certain things that wait, what is a karst topography?
19:02
SPEAKER_00: So the entire city is underlain by carbonate geology, and that makes it more susceptible to sinkhole formation.
19:09
SPEAKER_00: So one school of thought uh that is that you shouldn't infiltrate in karst.
19:15
SPEAKER_00: That is not necessarily the case.
19:17
SPEAKER_00: The city has a lot of successful practices across the city that sort of debunk that myth.
19:23
SPEAKER_00: It is important to put the due diligence in ahead of time and have investigations take certain construction techniques and apply them.
19:34
SPEAKER_00: Um, and really it just makes it, frankly, a little bit more expensive.
19:37
SPEAKER_00: The benefits certainly outweigh and we think are worth the added expense to be able to do this.
19:44
SPEAKER_00: But that's all to say that it's not as simple as digging a hole and pouring water into it, especially in an urban landscape where you can be flooding someone's basement, you can be causing a sinkhole, and just you know, the realities of that can make you know the ultra-urban green infrastructure practices um challenging.
20:05
SPEAKER_00: That's not to say that we don't try to incorporate them as much as possible.
20:08
SPEAKER_00: But looking at other opportunities like Longs Park Wetland, uh floodplain restorations, um, you know, continuing with some of our uh parks planning, we're in the second phase, uh, wrapping up a new Parks Master plan, and the city was hugely successful in the last iteration of incorporating green infrastructure in almost all.
20:30
SPEAKER_00: I don't want to um I don't want to misspeak, but the vast majority of of the parks that were uh renovated or built or reconstructed as part of the the former uh Parksmaster plan included green infrastructure.
20:43
SPEAKER_00: So the second phase of that I'm really excited about.
20:46
SPEAKER_00: These just become kind of larger opportunities to really bring in a lot of a lot of stormwater and divert that from our sewers and provide that water quality that we're looking for.
20:56
SPEAKER_02: So you're doing those things, like you said, in an ultra-urban area, which can be have its own complications.
21:03
SPEAKER_02: How can we help be the storytellers of your success so that it can be replicated in somewhere whether in a place that may not have as many restrictions?
21:13
SPEAKER_02: So I'm thinking of all the suburban areas that have big parking lots, and as they look to renovate them or they look to adjust that flow calculation to how can they learn from some of the parking lots or the infiltration techniques that you guys have done so that they can say, oh, okay, well, this is possible.
21:31
SPEAKER_02: It's not just a city thing.
21:34
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's a great question.
21:36
SPEAKER_00: I think uh it's a little bit of a mindset shift and and getting getting the right group of professionals together, I think, is a really key way to do this early, and then condensing that ultra technical information and making it more accessible so that we can explain why the pros outweigh the cons here.
22:00
SPEAKER_00: Um, I think that'll be really important.
22:02
SPEAKER_00: I think that having champions elsewhere is just it that makes all the difference in the world.
22:11
SPEAKER_00: I've been doing this and now, especially at my with my time at the conservation district, in in you know, hundreds of meetings a year with with engineers, and there's some really, really great engineers out there.
22:21
SPEAKER_00: I'm an engineer, I think that technical knowledge is is super important, but just going in with a bit of an open mind, I think, goes a long way.
22:32
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes it takes some non-engineers to do that as well.
22:37
SPEAKER_00: So I think just kind of getting the right group of people, whether that's the ultra-technical hydrogeologist looking at the the subsurface conditions, um, with folks like Clean Water Partners who can um just really help tell the story of the benefits of doing these, explaining how it is much more cost effective to do it in areas with uh where uh an entire parking lot is either going to be built or rebuilt, and then just having sort of the technical expertise to provide that support, I think, is um is really important.
23:09
SPEAKER_00: I think that if you don't have an advocate from the beginning, it can be really hard to to incorporate it at the end or or after the fact.
23:18
SPEAKER_02: Well, we're so grateful to have experts like you guys who have done it, who've lived it, who have the data and the stories to go along with it of this part worked or this is I like what you said about this is the pros outweigh the cons.
23:30
SPEAKER_02: And then being able to help somebody translate that into their own situation.
23:34
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that's part of one of the beauties of Lancaster is that we all are here with these experiences and pieces we can bring into this clean water work.
23:44
SPEAKER_02: We don't have to go searching for it.
23:46
SPEAKER_02: It's it's amazing how you guys are.
23:48
SPEAKER_02: I mean, you've been doing this for years, so it's very cool to be able to help others learn that.
23:53
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
23:54
SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
23:55
SPEAKER_04: Of all of those projects, of all that work, what are you most looking forward to in 2024?
24:04
SPEAKER_01: Am I allowed to say organizing again?
24:06
SPEAKER_01: I really love it.
24:08
SPEAKER_04: You can depend on how much of it you want to do.
24:12
SPEAKER_00: No, I think um seeing some of these new projects uh like the sewer separations um come to fruition and still it's not an either or.
24:25
SPEAKER_00: It's not sewer separation and green infrastructure.
24:28
SPEAKER_00: Um it has to be both.
24:30
SPEAKER_00: And um and we're committed to that at every level of of the organization.
24:35
SPEAKER_00: And so, you know, we want to keep seeing green spaces, we want to keep we want to continue to increase our urban tree canopy.
24:43
SPEAKER_00: These are absolutely priorities that just because we have a more expensive option on the table doesn't mean that it's the only one.
24:50
SPEAKER_00: So I think planning um and and really kind of understanding our our options here.
24:56
SPEAKER_00: Um we have a great team in our Department of Admin Services to help with some of the grant writing and things like that.
25:02
SPEAKER_00: So utilizing those sources and um and yeah, so you know, getting getting some of these cool projects built, but um looking at what the next 10 years looks like and and 20 years, I think is also really exciting.
25:16
SPEAKER_00: And you know, it's I I like to see the puzzle pieces fall into place here, and I'm looking forward to seeing some of that happen in 2024.
25:26
SPEAKER_02: Some of the leadership trainings that I've been to talk about that vision that you just described of being able to consistently think at five, 10 years, 20 years down the road.
25:35
SPEAKER_02: How do you kind of refill your bucket as a leader in this work?
25:40
SPEAKER_02: That's a good question.
25:41
SPEAKER_00: I think that I do I fortunately am able to really pull from a lot of different inspirational sources.
25:55
SPEAKER_00: So, you know, whether it be just a meeting where I'm able to explain to someone in a way that they had not understood before why uh green infrastructure matters, why we need to not just get the stormwater into the sewer as quickly as possible.
26:14
SPEAKER_00: Um, I find those really inspiring.
26:17
SPEAKER_00: And I think that, you know, even if you have 10 difficult conversations and then, you know, one successful conversation, that's that's a win.
26:24
SPEAKER_05: Yeah.
26:25
SPEAKER_00: Um these are really tough things to talk about.
26:27
SPEAKER_00: And it's not the most important thing to a lot of people.
26:31
SPEAKER_00: And so just kind of remembering that and you know, just taking taking little wins in this, I think is is really successful.
26:39
SPEAKER_00: Um, and and that certainly fills my bucket.
26:42
SPEAKER_00: You know, we have a lot of really great uh staff at Lancaster that, and that was one of the things that drew me back in.
26:49
SPEAKER_00: Um, and that's not to say that I haven't had positive, you know, work environments.
26:53
SPEAKER_00: I've been really fortunate in that sense, but just coming to um I I think when people hear the Department of Public Works, um, you know, teamwork and collaboration is not necessarily the the first thing that that they think of.
27:06
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, it's a it's a department that needs to keep things running.
27:09
SPEAKER_00: Um, but inherently then that that has to happen.
27:13
SPEAKER_00: And and I think that just seeing that um yeah, that collaboration between um different departments and um and the support that that we get, uh, I'm just I'm really thankful for that.
27:24
SPEAKER_00: And I think that that that keeps me going, that it's not it's not just our small group.
27:29
SPEAKER_00: It's it's you know, we all want to you know succeed in each other's um goals here.
27:34
SPEAKER_00: So that's that's really cool.
27:36
SPEAKER_02: And then following up on that, it's Women's History Month, which is exciting.
27:39
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
27:40
SPEAKER_02: So what are some of the ways that you like you mentioned how you find inspiration, but how as a a woman do you find inspiration in this field, which is not always a field dominated by women?
27:51
SPEAKER_02: No.
27:51
SPEAKER_02: And then how do you intentionally be an inspiration for others?
27:57
SPEAKER_00: I actually am very fortunate.
27:59
SPEAKER_00: I think that um I've had a lot of great female leaders.
28:03
SPEAKER_00: I mean, even starting at home, my mom is not in the environmental field, but just is very much an advocate for a lot of she works in public health.
28:13
SPEAKER_00: And so I think that that was always something that, again, I didn't know whether that would be a hobby or a career, but it was just it was it was a non-start or you know, non-negotiable for me that that that that needs to be important.
28:27
SPEAKER_00: Um and and yeah, so but I mean, going to school for engineering, I think it was in my freshman class, I think it was 85% men, 15% women.
28:37
SPEAKER_00: Going then into my major, biological systems engineering, I think was a 50-50 split.
28:43
SPEAKER_00: And I think that's where it really started to make um a difference, is that I there I was surrounded by um, you know, peers and then also our leaders.
28:52
SPEAKER_00: We had a really a lot of really great professors.
28:55
SPEAKER_00: My first job out of college was by women-owned business and that was predominantly women in engineering.
29:01
SPEAKER_00: And so I just I don't know if I've fallen into these uh really cool opportunities or whether that I don't think that's industry standard.
29:09
SPEAKER_00: I think I've been really lucky.
29:12
SPEAKER_00: Um and so yeah, now, now in a leadership role, I think just um I think I'm fortunate in that I'm now trying to do what was done to me as opposed to I think a lot of women in the field are trying to do uh the opposite of what of what was done to them because maybe they didn't have um you know those role models or positive examples.
29:34
SPEAKER_00: So um yeah, just you know, making space for what uh you know work culture looks like I think is really important.
29:41
SPEAKER_00: Just lifting others up um and just being present uh as a female engineer, you know, a woman in STEM, steam.
29:51
SPEAKER_00: Um and yeah, I I used to do um uh specialize that, by the way?
29:58
SPEAKER_00: Ooh.
29:59
SPEAKER_00: Probably.
30:00
SPEAKER_00: What is STEAM?
30:01
SPEAKER_00: Uh so are you familiar with STEM?
30:04
SPEAKER_05: Yes.
30:05
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so STEAM adds an art into it.
30:07
SPEAKER_00: So it's science, technology, engineering, art, and math, which I think is really So that having been said, I'm gonna do this.
30:18
SPEAKER_04: Thank you for giving me an opportunity to use that sound.
30:24
SPEAKER_04: If if you folks are new to the if you've never uh if this is your first episode, um we uh have a rule against unexplained acronyms.
30:32
SPEAKER_04: So if somebody uses an acronym, that's a sound you get and it basically stops everything, and uh then I can uh ask ask the person who used it to try to explain.
30:40
SPEAKER_04: So yay, thank you for giving me the opportunity here too.
30:43
SPEAKER_00: I'm glad that we made it this long without being buzzed, because we are certainly in an industry full of acronyms.
30:49
SPEAKER_04: So step st uh STEAM is like STEM with art added to it.
30:53
SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
30:54
SPEAKER_04: Gotcha, gotcha.
30:56
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
30:56
SPEAKER_00: So so just being present and showing what what a career in STEAM can look like, I think is just really important, whether that's at a science fair or at a a career you know challenge or you know, different sort of K-12 um opportunities, I think starting as early as that, and then obviously in more of a leadership role, just sort of being um yeah, being being present and being there for others, I think is is awesome.
31:22
SPEAKER_02: Definitely.
31:22
SPEAKER_02: It makes a difference.
31:23
SPEAKER_02: Definitely.
31:24
SPEAKER_02: The the girls see it, they know that um there are options there.
31:29
SPEAKER_00: Yep, exactly.
31:30
SPEAKER_00: And and that's really important to me, having two daughters of my own, that they see that and yeah, that that that is absolutely an option.
31:38
SPEAKER_02: Well, thank you for being that leader and continuing to fill many people's buckets.
31:45
SPEAKER_02: I'm curious how the team within the city uses tools.
31:49
SPEAKER_02: Like you mentioned, there's a climate action plan that your team has, and that there's a green infrastructure plan.
31:54
SPEAKER_02: How does your team use things like the countywide action plan where we're all working towards a set of uh practices that we know are going to reduce the nutrient sediments and and uh fos nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediments.
32:08
SPEAKER_02: How do you use things like that and uh as part of your decision making?
32:13
SPEAKER_00: In many ways, really.
32:14
SPEAKER_00: I think that from just pulling from some of the data that has been gathered, I think, you know, and and then using that as an example as to where we want to be more data-driven, I think is really helpful, just seeing how it's been done and how we might be able to take that information um and and you know, practice what we what we preach there, um, being being data driven and and results driven, I think is is hugely important.
32:43
SPEAKER_00: Seeing the the importance of you know the the urban role that that uh that stormwater plays in in our goals, uh that that's where we really need to do our part.
32:58
SPEAKER_00: Um and so you know, we we do these things because we want to and we think it's the right thing to do, but we can't ignore the fact that there's also some really challenging regulatory requirements.
33:12
SPEAKER_00: And so, you know, the want and the need, I think they uh they're threaded pretty well together, but I think that's where we use something like the Countywide Action Plan to kind of make sense of it all, see where we can be uh what some of in our planning, you know, the next steps there, what what we should be doing, what we should be looking at, um some of the how we pay for some of this.
33:37
SPEAKER_00: I mean, we've we've really valued the implementation funds and the implementation grants.
33:43
SPEAKER_00: Um, working with with staff on that has been really helpful.
33:47
SPEAKER_00: Um that's something that we sort of just plan for very far in advance.
33:51
SPEAKER_00: Um and then I think a lot of you know, taking a little step away from the countywide action plan, but there's so much emphasis on collaboration and partnerships through, you know, Clean Water Partners and inherently in the plan as well.
34:05
SPEAKER_00: But just remembering that we're not in this alone and that we we need to work with partners and and we have we've we have incredible partnerships and there's more opportunities to be uh celebrating them more and inventorying the work that's being done and you know, just understanding where we can work together and where it makes sense to just you know continue to let people be in their lanes and do the good work that they do.
34:31
SPEAKER_00: I think that those are all things, you know, the the County Wide Action Plan puts it into perspective for us and see where we um have a part to play and where we might want to have a part to play in the future, I think.
34:42
SPEAKER_02: That's awesome.
34:42
SPEAKER_02: Because it yeah, it's intended to be a tool that helps bring us all together around common goals.
34:48
SPEAKER_02: But then you're right, everybody has to be in their lane at certain times, and people are really good at some things, but that's why we had we work together on these goals, it should be easier to achieve what we're all striving for.
35:00
SPEAKER_02: But without the finger pointing, I feel like we've been able as a community to grow a lot in that collaborative effort to reduce the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus, but also the amount of finger pointing and the the turf wars that people often have.
35:16
SPEAKER_02: So I appreciate how you guys have done that at the city and uh um and how other partners have done it too with their own narrative changing about the city.
35:24
SPEAKER_02: Because it's really easy to say, no, it's their fault.
35:26
SPEAKER_02: But I think there's been so many success stories and thanks to your team and what you have been able to have drive there.
35:33
SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
35:34
SPEAKER_02: Sure.
35:36
SPEAKER_04: And so we have come to the time in our show for my personal favorite segment, which is conservation lightning round trivia, which we're kind of taking taking the lightning round aspect out of it, because yeah.
35:48
SPEAKER_04: Um many, if not most, conservation enthusiasts enjoy being outdoors.
35:54
SPEAKER_04: You're no exception, Molly.
35:56
SPEAKER_04: Um, being a fan of hiking and camping.
35:58
SPEAKER_04: I'm gonna ask you general trivia about hiking and camping.
36:03
SPEAKER_04: Um I usually start the clock, but uh yeah, we we we always exceed the clock.
36:08
SPEAKER_04: So it's more interesting to just roll with them.
36:12
SPEAKER_04: So your first question In what country is the world's longest hiking trail?
36:20
SPEAKER_01: Is that the US?
36:22
SPEAKER_04: Oh it's Canada, actually.
36:25
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, yeah, it is the Great Trail previously known as the Trans-Canada Trail.
36:30
SPEAKER_00: Oh, that does sound familiar.
36:31
SPEAKER_04: I didn't I didn't know that before I did the research for this either.
36:34
SPEAKER_00: So full disclosure, I'm not very good at trivia either.
36:37
SPEAKER_00: Please don't.
36:39
SPEAKER_04: I'm good at asking it, but beyond that, you know.
36:43
SPEAKER_02: I need to look up my definitions because what is the one that goes from like Russia through Spain and then through Africa?
36:49
SPEAKER_02: I thought there was some big connection that just happened.
36:52
SPEAKER_02: Maybe it's not called a hiking trail.
36:54
SPEAKER_04: I don't know.
36:55
SPEAKER_02: Now I've jumped too well.
36:58
SPEAKER_02: Wow.
36:59
SPEAKER_02: Apparently I've something myself.
37:02
SPEAKER_04: Uh in which state is the oldest hiking trail in America?
37:11
SPEAKER_02: State where there's still a lot of hikers.
37:13
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
37:14
SPEAKER_02: Think like Leaf Peepers.
37:17
SPEAKER_01: Is this Maine?
37:20
SPEAKER_01: So close.
37:22
SPEAKER_04: It's New Hampshire.
37:23
SPEAKER_04: Oh is the Crawford Path, uh, which was established in 1819.
37:29
SPEAKER_04: Okay.
37:30
SPEAKER_04: So there you go.
37:31
SPEAKER_00: 1819.
37:32
SPEAKER_00: That's so cool.
37:32
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
37:33
SPEAKER_04: Well, that's why it's the oldest hiking school.
37:37
SPEAKER_04: On average, if you hike an hour a day, about how many calories would you burn?
37:44
SPEAKER_00: In a day.
37:46
SPEAKER_04: One hour a day.
37:47
SPEAKER_04: A day.
37:47
SPEAKER_04: Yes.
37:48
SPEAKER_04: Okay.
37:48
SPEAKER_04: So in an hour.
37:49
SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
37:50
SPEAKER_04: It's a dumb way of asking.
37:51
SPEAKER_04: If you were if you were to hike for an hour, how much how many calories would you on average?
37:57
SPEAKER_01: Hmm.
37:57
SPEAKER_01: I'm going to say 250.
38:00
SPEAKER_01: You are so close.
38:01
SPEAKER_01: You know what I'm going to give it to you?
38:04
SPEAKER_04: It's three to four hundred, but it really varies depending on the change in elevation and your footing and whatnot.
38:11
SPEAKER_02: So uh whether you're chasing two small children.
38:14
SPEAKER_01: Yes, right.
38:15
SPEAKER_01: Or going at their pace.
38:16
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
38:17
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
38:17
SPEAKER_01: You might be up to five or six hundred every place.
38:22
SPEAKER_04: What started the widespread camping craze of the early 1900s?
38:29
SPEAKER_04: This is actually kind of a tough thing.
38:31
SPEAKER_04: That's fascinating.
38:32
SPEAKER_00: Interesting.
38:33
SPEAKER_00: Early 1900s.
38:35
SPEAKER_04: This is all history stuff.
38:36
SPEAKER_04: So yeah.
38:39
SPEAKER_00: All I can think of is like the CCC, uh the establishment of Nash National Parks.
38:45
SPEAKER_00: Oh.
38:46
SPEAKER_04: Close.
38:46
SPEAKER_04: Very close.
38:47
SPEAKER_04: Actually, the affordability of automobiles.
38:50
SPEAKER_05: Oh.
38:50
SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
38:51
SPEAKER_04: Okay.
38:51
SPEAKER_04: So people started camping in their automobiles.
38:54
SPEAKER_04: And they they would uh lay the seats down to have a bed and they'd put tarps over the top of it.
38:59
SPEAKER_04: And so it was like the early, early version of a pop-up camper, essentially.
39:02
SPEAKER_04: So um and that having been said, what this is direct directly related to that.
39:09
SPEAKER_04: What was the name given to the first organized group of recreational campers in the US?
39:20
SPEAKER_01: Something to do with the auto industry still?
39:23
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
39:25
SPEAKER_01: In in an offshoot kind of way, yes.
39:28
SPEAKER_00: Um I don't know, something to do with the automotive or the auto camping society.
39:37
SPEAKER_00: What the autos are made of.
39:39
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I never heard terrible.
39:41
unknown: No.
39:42
unknown: Yeah.
39:43
SPEAKER_04: Uh it's tin cantoris.
39:45
unknown: Oh.
39:46
SPEAKER_04: Because the Model T was it was the uh they they called it the tin Lizzie.
39:50
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
39:50
SPEAKER_04: So at least that's one of three versions I heard of it, but that's the one that makes the most sense.
39:55
SPEAKER_04: Interesting.
39:57
SPEAKER_04: How many shapes do sleeping bags come in?
40:01
SPEAKER_02: Shapes?
40:02
SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
40:02
SPEAKER_02: Oh, I disagree with this.
40:06
SPEAKER_01: I'll buzz you.
40:07
SPEAKER_01: No, I'll send you links.
40:11
SPEAKER_01: Um, I'm gonna say three.
40:14
SPEAKER_01: According to the website then.
40:17
SPEAKER_05: Which website?
40:21
SPEAKER_04: Two according to the website.
40:22
SPEAKER_04: And then they would be mummy and rectangle.
40:25
SPEAKER_04: You apparently know motherfuckers.
40:28
SPEAKER_02: The insulated, the down, the child size, the Child Child size is not a shape.
40:34
SPEAKER_04: Yes, it is.
40:38
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I was thinking the mummy, the rectangle, and a double.
40:42
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
40:42
SPEAKER_00: I think that's what I was thinking with the three.
40:45
SPEAKER_04: Fine, I'll give it to you.
40:48
SPEAKER_04: Proved them wrong.
40:51
SPEAKER_04: The uh the multiple choice question here.
40:53
SPEAKER_04: The process of assembling a tent is called which of these?
40:56
SPEAKER_04: Swinging, pitching, grounding, or polling?
41:00
SPEAKER_03: Pitching.
41:00
SPEAKER_04: Yes, you are correct.
41:02
SPEAKER_03: Unless you are Amelia Pedelia.
41:04
SPEAKER_03: Yes.
41:04
SPEAKER_03: Have you read that one?
41:05
SPEAKER_03: That's why I chose Pitching is literally throwing it.
41:10
SPEAKER_03: Throwing it in the bushes.
41:13
SPEAKER_04: I think I've done that actually.
41:15
SPEAKER_01: I've wanted to, for sure.
41:18
SPEAKER_04: Famed for its rocky terrain.
41:20
SPEAKER_04: This trail cuts through Pennsylvania, but is not limited to Pennsylvania.
41:24
SPEAKER_04: It starts in Waynesboro and in Pennsylvania.
41:27
SPEAKER_04: It starts in Waynesboro and ends in the Delaware Water Gap.
41:30
SPEAKER_04: What's the name of that trail?
41:33
SPEAKER_00: The Appalachian Trail.
41:34
SPEAKER_01: It is.
41:35
SPEAKER_04: You got it.
41:36
SPEAKER_04: Now, state parks are a great place for camping, hiking, conservation.
41:41
SPEAKER_04: I gotta bring conservation into this somehow.
41:43
SPEAKER_04: How many state parks are there in Pennsylvania?
41:46
SPEAKER_01: Oh I'm gonna have to do a big guess here.
41:49
SPEAKER_01: Um more than I thought.
41:52
SPEAKER_01: Forty-five?
41:53
SPEAKER_01: Ooh.
41:55
SPEAKER_04: Believe it or not, there are 124 state parks in Pennsylvania.
41:58
SPEAKER_01: Oh my gosh, does that include forests?
42:01
SPEAKER_01: I believe so.
42:03
SPEAKER_04: Now I can tell you that that came from the Pennsylvania.gov site, the PA.gov.
42:09
SPEAKER_02: You're gonna make me say the acronym.
42:11
SPEAKER_02: Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
42:14
SPEAKER_02: Oh, there you go.
42:15
unknown: Yeah.
42:17
SPEAKER_02: I can't let you buzz me.
42:19
SPEAKER_04: I I actually wouldn't have buzzed you, but now you tell me.
42:24
SPEAKER_04: Um so a good cup of coffee goes well with camping.
42:27
SPEAKER_04: And you and your husband like to go try to find a good cup of coffee.
42:30
SPEAKER_04: So uh you can camp at the Fort Fort Washington KOA and attend what nearby Pennsylvania City's coffee festival in October.
42:42
SPEAKER_01: I don't know, and I want to go there.
42:48
unknown: That's the thing I don't know.
42:50
SPEAKER_01: It's Philadelphia.
42:51
unknown: Really?
42:52
SPEAKER_04: It's in Philadelphia in October, yeah.
42:55
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
42:55
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
42:56
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
42:56
SPEAKER_01: I would yeah, I don't don't typically head more towards a city when I can, but I don't know, that might be a rule worth breaking.
43:05
SPEAKER_04: There you go.
43:06
SPEAKER_04: There you go.
43:07
SPEAKER_04: Hey, coffee festival, I'm there.
43:08
SPEAKER_04: Save no more.
43:09
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, there you go.
43:10
SPEAKER_04: And finally, according to author Yvonne Prince, quote, if you can survive camping with someone, you should do what?
43:22
SPEAKER_00: Marry them.
43:23
SPEAKER_04: You got it.
43:24
SPEAKER_04: Marry them on the way home.
43:26
SPEAKER_04: Very good.
43:27
SPEAKER_04: Nice job.
43:28
SPEAKER_04: Well done.
43:28
SPEAKER_04: Well done.
43:33
SPEAKER_04: Well, folks, that is our show.
43:35
SPEAKER_04: Thank you, Molly, for coming and talking to us.
43:37
SPEAKER_04: Very informative.
43:38
SPEAKER_04: My golly.
43:39
SPEAKER_04: Um we will be back in just a couple of weeks.
43:43
SPEAKER_04: Until then, folks, take care.
43:45
SPEAKER_04: Bye-bye.
43:54
SPEAKER_04: Cleanwater Conversations is brought to you by Lancaster Clean Water Partners.
43:59
SPEAKER_04: If you have comments or suggestions on show topics, please contact us at infol at Lancaster Cleanwater Partners.com.
44:06
SPEAKER_04: Thank you for listening.