Proposal

Memo

Date: April 10th, 2012

To: Michael Nutter, Mayor

Joseph Duda, City Commissioner

Darrell Clark, City Council President

From: Student Student

Subject: Proposal for Environmental Health Studies

Purpose

This proposal is being offered to help achieve several goals by the means of environmental health enhancement. Philadelphia, being the great historical city it has proved itself to be, should be treated with respect in every aspect. This falls short in one area, this being the environmental health of much of the region and the ecological system. The three main areas of Air, Water, and Land will be assessed and work will take place regarding the outcome.

Summary

The Green Team has chosen to offer a Two Phase program will focus on the districts in the southeastern portion of Philadelphia

This area is troubled with pollution of the following types:

• Vehicle/Machinery Emissions (highways/business district)

• Pollution Runoff to the Delaware River

• Waste Management (abandoned homes, lack of funding)

Our members have collaborated and created a two phase, three month plan that will span the summer of 2012. This plan will begin by assessing the environmental health of the community using the skills of the students, followed by action to clean the city up basing the workload around the results of the testing.

Introduction

The Green Team of Penn State University is requesting a $5000 grant to initiate the two-phase program that has been planned. The project scope is a total of three months, separated into two major phases. Each is broken into three smaller areas of focus. The location of the project begins in the southeastern portion of the Philadelphia region. This is merely a starting point for the Team’s major goal of a city-wide clean. If the project can progress as planned, more cleanup and action can be taken throughout more parts of the city.

Proposed Tasks

Phase 1: Phase One, spanning four weeks, is the data collection research portion of the assignment. Over the projected time frame, tests will be done for the following qualities: Air, Water, and Community-Wide Cleanliness. Based on the results of each test, action will be taken accordingly in Phase Two. This portion of the project is beneficial in two factors. The community will have a general consensus on the particular regions environmental health. The up and coming environmental studies students will have some true hands-on experience that will stay prove valuable in the competing job market.

1. The air quality will be tested in a variety of ways.

• • • • CO2 emission level

      • The UV index will be tested

      • Sulfur Oxides (which are produced from industrial equipment)

      • Radioactive pollution

      • The general odor in the region will be noted as well.

2. The water quality of the Delaware River in this region will be tested in a several ways.

• • • • Average pH of the water over Phase One

      • Temperature monitoring

      • Debris observations

      • Radioactivity testing

      • Chemical testing (fuels, pesticides, oil runoff)

3. The regions overall waste management will be observed and reported on

• • • • The city’s utility company will be interviewed on their opinion of the overall environmental health of the city.

      • The amount of waste located on streets and such will be observed and reported.

      • Each district will be given a rank 1-5, the higher the better, which will be used to help determine what action, must be taken.

Phase 2: Implication of Phase Two will begin one week after Phase One has been completed. The reports and findings will be presented to the local municipality for review prior to continuation. Phase Two is expected to last three to six months, depending on the severity of the environmental health. Once more, the organization is non-profit, thus the grant will be used for supplies only.

1. The water quality test will determine the action that needs to be taken to help this issue. It will be rated on a scale of 1-3, 3 being the safest.

• If the general water quality receives a score of 3, no serious action needs to be taken to improve the water quality.

• If a score of 2 is given, investigation will take place. The Green Team will speak with local industries located near the water and learn the source of the runoff.

• If a score of 1 is given. The problem needs to be severely assessed, the types of chemicals and unsanitary waste need to be cleaned. If debris in the water is the major concern, litter filters will be installed off the shoreline to help remove this from the water. Water sanitation companies will be contacted to help resolve the chemical content of the water.

2. Regardless of the specific types of air pollution found throughout the area, one major solution can be used to help offset this.

• Trees will be planted in areas of empty land.

• These will be funded by the grant, but the labor is non-profit and all volunteer

3. Rank 1&2 districts will receive the heaviest care to their streets and towns.

• • • These rank 1 areas being mainly abandoned buildings and low income regions will be resolved with the following:

      • Major cleanup of easily visible areas.

      • Recycling bins will be administered and will be collected by the Green Team every Monday.

      • The streets will be cleaned weekly for two months.

    • Rank 3&4 districts will receive minor cleanup of streets and public areas every two weeks.

    • Rank 5 districts will also receive necessary cleanup biweekly.

Schedule

Phase 1 Schedule (May-June 2012)

Phase 2 Schedule (July-August 2012)

The Team

The green team is comprised of current Pennsylvania State University college students. The non-profit organization currently has 17 members, while welcoming volunteers as well. This organization is formed of moderately studied students focusing their education on ecological sciences, energy management, or other environment related fields.

Student Student, Co-Founder

Energy Engineering

Student Student, Co-Founder

Energy & Business Financing

Student Student, Treasurer

Environmental Engineering

Student Student, Human Relations

Environmental Engineering

Budget

The projected budget for the project is a maximum of $4370. Expecting that the budget will remain below the $5000 grant allowance, any remaining funds will be returned to the local municipality.