19th National Environmental Conference at Tar Creek DRAFT AGENDA

Tuesday - September 26

  9:00  Welcome 
            Rebecca Jim, LEAD Agency
            Bethene Fahnestock, Vice President of Academic Affairs, NEO A & M College
 9:15  Keynote Address:
Top 10 Tar Creek Myths - Ed Keheley
Urban legends and other misinformation about a complex site like the Tar Creek Superfund Site are not unusual. Ed will present some of the urban legends and misinformation that often surfaces and seek to dispel them.

  9:45  EPA Region 7 Updates for Kansas and Missouri - Todd Campbell, EPA

10:00 Tar Creek OU 2 Yard Remediation - Brian D. Stanila, ODEQ
 
10:15 - 10:30  Break
 
10:30  Update on the Cleanup for the Tar Creek Superfund Site - Rafael Casanova, EPA
The presentation will discuss the current status of the remedial actions at Operable Unit 4 (Chat Piles) and will describe the cleanup work accomplished throughout the Tar Creek Superfund Site.
10:45  Chat pile cleanup on non-tribal properties - Zach Paden, ODEQ

11:00  EPA Region 6 and 7 OU 5 Sediment Updates - Rafael Casanova, EPA Todd Campbell, EPA

11:20  "Two Down, Many More to Go:" Successful Mine Water Passive Treatment Under Considerable Design Constraints - Bob Nairn, Ph.D. , OU
In early 2017, the second full-scale mine water passive treatment system (PTS) in the Tar Creek watershed began operation. The Southeast Commerce PTS treats about 100 gallons per minute, and complements the 160-gallon per minute Mayer Ranch PTS which has been successfully improving water quality for nine years. The new system includes four process units, unique solar-powered aeration and sulfide-removal systems, and has already improved the chemical and biological quality of the receiving stream.
 
11:45  Morning Reflections with Greg McCann
 
11:50 - 1:00 Lunch   J. Pat Carter, photographer
"If a Leaf Falls'  Carter's career began with Agent Orange and led him to environmental disasters from 3-Mile Island to Tar Creek
      ++ Special Announcement by Suzanne Dunn, US FWS and Larry Tippit, Peoria Tribe
 
  1:00  Tribal-Led Remedial Activities at the Tar Creek Superfund Site: An Update     
      - Tim Kent and Craig Kreman, Quapaw Tribe

  1:25  Panel on Recent Environmental Research

• Source and Transport of lead in and around the Tar Creek Superfund Site                   

           - Jason Rech, Miami University

• Streamflow Data Collected by USGS in Ottawa County, 2012-17                                   

           - William Andrews, Ph.D., USGS

• Examining the Effects of Environmental Contamination on the Cognitive Abilities of Free Living Birds - Heather LePage, OU

            A Study of how lead and zinc affect adult birds a the Tar Creek Superfund site.

• Presence of Metals in Grand Lake Sediments and Potential Ecological Impact - Joel Hickey, OSU

Potential environmental Impacts of metals contamination has long been a concern in Grand Lake. Previous work has suggested that contamination is present and frequently above general sediment quality guidelines (SQGs). However, limited toxicity of trace metal sediment has typically been observed during ecological toxicity testing. Our continued work will evaluate if ecological impacts are occurring based on the presence of metals-tolerant snail populations.
 
 2:30  Reflections and Perspective of the Tar Creek Superfund Site - Ed Keheley
As we prepare to move forward with OU5 it may be useful to reflect on the past at Tar Creek and learn from our mistakes before we declare the site a role model for other Superfund Sites.
 
3:00 - 3:15  Break
 
3:15  Panel on Water Quality

• Swimmable, Fishable, Drinkable Water - Earl Hatley, Grand Riverkeeper
• An Overview and Update of GRDA's Ecosystems and Watershed Management   Department in Grand Lake o' the Cherokees and Its Watershed - Richard Zamor
• GRDA Restoration Efforts in Ottawa County - Aaron Roper
• Using Nature to Manage Stormwater: Research and Examples from Oklahoma - Jason Vogel, Oklahoma Water Survey

A New paradigm for managing stormwater using natural process known as low impact development (LID) will be discussed. We have implemented a number of example of LID practices at both the commercial and residential level across Oklahoma, including northeastern Oklahoma. These demonstrations and accompanying research have demonstrated effective performance for both water quantity and water quality. the goal of this presentation will be to provide ways that you can benefit your watershed by sustainably managing stormwater runoff where you live and work.

• Our National Nutrient Crisis - Kelly Hunter Foster, Waterkeeper Alliance

  Nationally, waterways in all 50 states are impacted by nutrient pollution – that is enormous amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus discharged to water that cause toxic algal blooms, create dead zones depleted of oxygen and life, shut down fisheries, cause fish kills, render drinking water unsafe, cause illness and death, and keep people from fishing, swimming and boating across the country. This presentation will touch on the pollution sources and available solutions, as well as the major impediments to resolving this national problem.   

 3:15  Breakout Session
            Gardening Safely in a Superfund Site - Kelda Lorax, Stardust Market Garden
 
 4:15  Panel on Fracking and Earthquakes in Oklahoma

• Jeremy Boak, Oklahoma Geological Survey
• Johnson Bridgwater, Oklahoma Sierra Club
• Matt Skinner, Oklahoma Corporation Commission

 
Wrap Up Day 1
 
5:00   Options:
            Toxic Tour Begins
            Walk to Tar Creek
            Poster Session with Science and Artists

6:00   Fish Fry Fundraiser sponsored by the Afton Masonic Lodge # 76 with the Miami Masonic Lodge # 140            
                   Tickets     $7   $5 for Children
            Mike Synar Environmental Excellence Awards and LEAD Agency Scholarship Presentations
            Pie Auction with Harrell Post, Auctioneer
            Entertainment by Solace Unplugged

19th National Environmental Conference at Tar Creek  DRAFT AGENDA

Wednesday - September 27

  9:00 Welcome
  9:10  Keynote Address:
A Fight for Clean Water: Honey Creek - McKalee Steen
Three generations grew up with the crystal-clear waters of Honey Creek, until it all changed. The creek was damaged but it brought her family and others to seek justice for the environmental wrong. Their fight is worth remembering.

  9:45  History and Findings of the Tar Creek MATCH Study  - Dr. Robert O. Wright, Mount Sinai, NY

10:15 - 10:30  Break

10:30  A Developmental Pediatrician's Practice - Dr. Edward Gustavson
Community members will receive answers to their most often asked questions on the effects of lead poisoning on their children.

11:00  Children's Blood Lead Levels and Expanded Public Heath Interventions in Ottawa County
  - Dr. Edd Rhoades, Susan Quigley and Lori Yearout
The Oklahoma Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program presents an overview of childhood lead levels in Ottawa County and Tar Creek. Follow-up and case management services are available to children residing in Ottawa County through Ottawa county Health Department and Oklahoma State Department of Health with support from Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality and EPA Region VI.

11:30  Q & A by the Health Presenters

11:45  Morning Reflections with Greg McCann

11:50  - 1:00  Lunch         Mike Synar Environmental Excellence Award Presentations

1:00  Panel on Behavioral Aspects of Heavy Metal Exposures

• Link Between Lead and Subsequent Criminal Behavior - Dan Clark, Western Illinois University

Lead had been kinked with Criminal Behavior for decades but research continues to widen our grasp of how early exposure has long lasting consequences to individuals and to society.

• Perspectives on Behavioral Health Impacts - Lissa James, Grand Lake Mental Health

Thirty years in mental health services with clients  with life-long exposures to heavy metals seem to impact behavior health throughout a lifetime.

2:00  Keynote Address
The Crucial Importance of Bridging the Partisan Divide - Tonya Bonitatibus, Savannah Riverkeeper
 
 3:00 - 3:15  Break
 
 3:15  Local Environmental Concerns:

• Eagle Picher Laboratory Demolition and Restoration Project
• BF Goodrich Update 

           - Trevor Hammons, ODEQ
           - Dean Kruithof, City of Miami

            Breakout Session
            Yoga to Reduce Stress in a Superfund Site - Greg McCann  (On Campus)

 3:45  Panel on Climate Change, Pipelines and Renewable Energy

•  - Jim Wikel, Native Activist
•  - Earl Hatley, Grand Riverkeeper
•  - Johnson Bridgwater, Oklahoma Sierra Club

 
 4:30   XRF Lead Testing an Interactive Demonstration
Public Invited to bring items to be sampled, examples: toys, coffee cups or other frequently used objects - Shaun West, Cherokee Nation
 
 5:00 Wrap Up Day 2
Reflections will help us know how we can make next year's conference even better.

The Tar Creek Conference is truly a unique, grassroots, community-oriented event.  It brings science and community together.  It's like no other meeting I attend!
 
I have been attending the Tar Creek Conference since it began.  As a University professor, I find it is a great way for my students to understand that our science truly can make a difference in people's lives and for the environment.
 
Robert W. Nairn

Sam K. Viersen Family Foundation Presidential Professor
School of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science
Director, Center for Restoration of Ecosystems and Watersheds
Associate Director, Water Technologies for Emerging Regions Center
University of Oklahoma

Bob not only attends but will be one of our featured speakers again this year, updating us on the Passive Water Treatment Systems in Commerce, OK.