July 21, 2010 - Biofuels Permitting and Feedstock Workshop from 10:00 am - 12:00 pm. Marco Island Marriott Resort. This Pre Florida Chamber's 24th Annual Environmental Permitting Summer School workshop will discuss and explore the opportunities and obstacles the State of Florida faces in permitting of biofuel facilities.  To register send an email to: info@@flbiofuels.org. For additional information and sponsorship opportunities please contact Jeremy Susac at 850-205-5283 or by email at jeremy@flbiofuels.org

July 28-29, 2010 - Florida Stormwater, Erosion, and Sedimentation Course for Inspectors and Contractors.

FREE 2-Day Program for inspectors and contractors to obtain state certification from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Stormwater, Erosion, and Sedimentation Control Program. For those without email access, please call 407-246-2257. The Class will be held at Winter Park Civic Center at 1050 W. Morse Boulevard, Winter Park, FL 32789. The civic center is NE of W. Fairbanks Ave and SR 17-92 (a.k.a. N Mills Ave / N Orlando Ave). Course manuals and pencils will be provided. For your own study preferences, bring highlighters & sticky notes. A certification exam will be given on Thursday, July 29th. This FDEP class is sponsored by the City of Winter Park Streets and Drainage Division and the City of Orlando Streets and Stormwater Division

July 28-30, 2010 - FLERA 2010 Annual Conference. CALL FOR PRESENTATION PROPOSALS. Share your expertise and learn from your colleagues in the environmental resources community!  The Florida Local Environmental Resource Agencies invites you to present at the 2010 Annual Conference on July 28-30, 2010 at the Hyatt Regency Sarasota in Sarasota, Florida.  Professionals in state, regional and local government, and in the environmental, academic and consulting communities are encouraged to submit presentation proposals. 

Presentations for conference sessions can be on case studies, current policy questions, new practices, research projects, etc.  The conference theme is Leveraging the Green Revolution focusing on how local governments can protect Florida’s environment during times of shrinking budgets.  Visit the FLERA website at http://www.flera.org/conference.html for details and an application.  Proposals will be accepted until February 26, 2010.  Questions?  850-561-0904.

July 29-30, 2010 - Lake County Green Symposium at Mission Inn Resort & Club. The Lake County Green Team is presenting its Second Annual Green Symposium. An agenda of presentations will cover a variety of topics including energy, green job creation, alternative transportation, water conservation, green tourism and sustainable communities. The intended audience for the symposium is business entrepreneurs, land-use planners, engineers, architects, civil engineers, solid-waste staff, transportation experts, energy block grant officials, organic health professionals, public health & government officials and several other disciplines.

The cost of attending the symposium is $100, which includes breakfast Friday morning, lunch on Thursday and Friday and a banquet Thursday evening. Attendees also have options of attending luncheons or the banquet dinner for discounted rates. To register for the symposium, fill out the Web form. After submitting your registration form, you may pay the registration fee online or mail a check for the total registration fee to the Lake County Board of County Commissioners, attn: Brenda DeMartino, P.O. Box 7800, 315 W. Main St., Tavares, FL 32778-7800.

August 1, 2010 - Survey of Sustainable Seed Harvesting, Conditioning, and Storage Methods for Florida Liatris. Florida Native Plant Society Request for Proposal. Deadline: 5 p.m., August 1, 2010.

Submit to: Shirley Denton, PhD
Wildflower Seed Research Committee Chair
Florida Native Plant Society
ecotypes@verizon.net

Proposals must be received by 5 p.m. August 1, 2010. Investigators are responsible for ensuring that submissions are received by the deadline. Electronic submissions are required.

August 9-13, 2010 - Natural Areas Training Academy (NATA) Basic Wildland Firefighter Training. National Wildfire Coordinating Group Certified Courses (I-100, S-130, S-190, L-180).

Time: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. with one hour for lunch daily

Location: University of Florida Campus (Gainesville) & Ordway-Swisher Biological Station (Melrose)

Tuition: $100.00 for University of Florida students, $125.00 for Non-UF students (Includes registration, materials, and lunch on the day of the fire exercise)

Registration:  Registration form is online, http://nata.snre.ufl.edu/registration.htm. Pay at time of registration.

Requirements:  Students must have a pair of 6” or higher leather boots and leather gloves, Provide own lunch (lunch is provided on the day of the fire exercise).Must be able to provide own transportation to OSBS in Melrose (only one day). Students must complete I-100 online course prior to August 9th (http://training.nwcg.gov/courses/i100.html).

Please visit the Natural Areas Training Academy web site for more information:  http://nata.snre.ufl.edu/. Course Coordinators: Steve Coates, University of Florida, Zach Prusak, The Nature Conservancy

August 11, 2010 - Oyster Mat Party sponsored by AECOM and CFAEP. Consider helping Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) restore oyster reefs by making oyster shell mats.  Each mat is made up of 36 oyster shells attached vertically with zip ties.  No experience necessary – training to occur August 11, 2010 6-8pm at AECOM. Snacks and drinks will be provided.  Please RSVP by August 9 to Kelley.Peterman@aecom.com; Mike.Howe@aecom.com or Derek.Bieber@aecom.com.

August 11-13, 2010 - 2010 Farm to Fuel Summit. Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando, FL. for more information go to: http://www.floridafarmtofuel.com/summit_2010.htm

August 25 & 26 , 2010 - Florida Stormwater, Erosion, and Sedimentation Course for Inspectors and Contractors.

FREE 2-Day Program for inspectors and contractors to obtain state certification from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Stormwater, Erosion, and Sedimentation Control Program. For those without email access, please call 407-246-2257. The Class will be held at Winter Park Civic Center at 1050 W. Morse Boulevard, Winter Park, FL 32789. The civic center is NE of W. Fairbanks Ave and SR 17-92 (a.k.a. N Mills Ave / N Orlando Ave). Course manuals and pencils will be provided. For your own study preferences, bring highlighters & sticky notes. A certification exam will be given on Thursday, July 29th. This FDEP class is sponsored by the City of Winter Park Streets and Drainage Division and the City of Orlando Streets and Stormwater Division

September 14-16, 2010 - Conservation Site Assessment and Planning, sponsored by the Natural Areas Training Academy. Ordway-swisher Biological Station, Melrose, Florida

Fee: $380 (early registration on or before August 12, 2010 (fee includes registration, materials, and lunch daily)

The purpose of this workshop is to introduce the participant to assessment and planning techniques being successfully used in Florida. Course Coordinator: Eugene Kelly, Conservation Planner, The Nature Conservancy

October 19-21, 2010 - Managing Visitors and Volunteers in Natural Areas, sponsored by the Natural Areas Training Academy. Gold Head Branch State Park, Keystone, Florida

Fee: $380 (early registration on or before September 17, 2010 (fee includes registration, materials, and lunch daily)

This workshop provides comprehensive guidance for managers on the issues associated with successfully integrating visitors and volunteers into the work of natural areas management. This workshop is relevant for natural areas managers who work in remote wilderness preserves as well as for those managers who work in parks and preserves with more intense visitor use. Course Coordinator: Nels Parson, Recreation Land Manager, St. John's River Water Management District.

December 6-7, 2010 - Phase I Environmental Site Assessment and All Appropriate Inquiry (AAI) Training Course & Licensed Environmental Professional (LEP) Exam. Jacksonville, Florida. The International Society of Technical and Environmental Professionals, Inc. (INSTEP)  has initiated this program to assure that professionals providing Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) have the acceptable academic background and a minimal level of verifiable appropriate experience.  In this program, elements of the ASTM Phase I ESA  Standard E 1527-05, federal standards and practices for All Appropriate Inquiries (AAI), as well as,  ASTM's E 1528-06  (Standard Practice for Limited Environmental Due Diligence: Transaction Screen Process) will be presented.  The focus of this training course is on these standards and other relevant national and Florida specific issues. Information: For course and registration information, call Gene Jones at 850-558-0617.

Natural Areas Training Academy schedule, click here.

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2010 Central Florida LEEDership Awards. Call for Nominations. On October 26, 2010, nominees will be recognized and award winners will be formally announced during the U.S. Green Building Council, Central Florida Chapter's Annual Chapter LEEDership Dinner. Click here to Download Nomination Package

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The Ecological Society of America and the ESA Student Section are organizing several efforts to address the effects of the oil spill on the shores of Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida and Alabama. These actions include sharing of datasets to evaluate biodiversity impacts and hands-on volunteering:

1)      SHARING OF DATASETS:

The aim is to develop a pre-impact wildlife assessment to make monitoring possible in impact sites faster and more accurate. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have begun similar programs for sediment samples in FL, MS, AL and LA.

 

If you have datasets that could be used to evaluate the Gulf of Mexico ecosystems before the oil spill (e.g.  transects, surveys, etc.), please submit information about them to ESAStudentSection@gmail.com with the subject line “Pre-spill information” at your earliest convenience.  ESA Student Section Officers have offered to collate all the information so that ESA can provide summaries about available datasets to researchers based in the Gulf of Mexico to help them establish monitoring sites. 

Please include the following: 1. A description of the data (e.g. water quality), 2. What area it covers, 3. What time frames it includes, & Your contact information

2)      VOLUNTEERING: Please visit the following links for information. Attention: Keep in mind that many of these volunteer efforts require specialized training and protective gear (see links below for more information) because petroleum is toxic to the respiratory system and skin.

LA:  http://www.volunteerlouisiana.gov/

MS: http://www.volunteermississippi.org/1800Vol/OpenIndexAction.do

FL: http://www.volunteerfloridadisaster.org/

AL: http://www.servealabama.gov/2010/default.aspx 

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