Announcements 2025.10.3

[Walker, Jane]

1.) Water Quality Standards: Site-specific Freshwater Selenium Criteria -- Effective: September 25, 2025
2.) Blue Ridge Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management (PRISM) Events – Various Dates, Starting: October 4, 2025
3.) Water and Wastewater Training – Various Dates, Starting: October 8, 2025
4.) 2025 Living Shoreline Annual Summit -- October 9, 2025
5.) Sustainability Matters Events – Various Dates, Starting: October 9, 2025
6.) Volunteer Opportunity: Catch the King & Map Virginia’s Highest Tides -- October 10-12, 2025
7.) Center for Watershed Protection (CWP) 2025 Webcast Series – Various Dates: Starting, October 15, 2025
8.) Plant Native! Festival -- October 18, 2025
9.) Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay Events
   ++ Blackwell Park Tree Planting – October 24, 2025 
   ++ Chesapeake Watershed Forum – November 7-9, 2025 
10.) North American Association for Environmental Education (NAEE) Events (Virtual) – Research Symposium: October 30, 2025; Conference: November 3-6, 2025
11.) American Water Resources Association (AWRA) 2025 Annual Water Resources Conference -- November 10-12, 2025
12.) Water Center Jobs Board – https://www.vwrrc.vt.edu/jobs/
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See recent announcements and learn more about the Virginia Water Monitoring Council (VWMC) at www.VirginiaWMC.org. Feel free to forward these announcements. When forwarding, please acknowledge the VWMC. If you have a water-related announcement of regional or statewide interest, send it to vw...@vt.edu and ask that it be distributed to the VWMC membership. If someone forwarded this message to you, you can join the VWMC for free by sending your name, water-monitoring affiliation (if applicable), and contact information (email address, mailing address, and phone number) to vw...@vt.edu.  Thank you to Julia Porter, VWMC intern, for developing and organizing this week’s set of VWMC announcements.
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1.) Water Quality Standards: Site-specific Freshwater Selenium Criteria -- Effective: September 25, 2025 -- These revisions (amending 9VAC25-260-310 and 9VAC25-260-490) add site-specific freshwater selenium criteria for the protection of aquatic life to the Water Quality Standards for Virginia. For more information, see https://townhall.virginia.gov/l/ViewNotice.cfm?GNID=3227. Issued by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.
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2.) Blue Ridge Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management (PRISM) Events -- For more information and to register, see https://blueridgeprism.org/events.
   ++ Invasive Plant Identification Walk -- October 4, 2025 (9-10:30am) -- Ruckersville, VA
   ++ Webinar: Invasive Plants in Autumn -- October 8, 2025 (1-2pm)
   ++ Webinar: Fall/Winter Invasive Plant Control -- October 9, 2025 (1-2pm)
   ++ Invasive Plant Field Workshop -- October 10, 2025 (10am-12pm)
   ++ Invasive Plant Removal Workdays --October 11, 2025 (9-11am;  Ruckersville, VA); October 15, 2025 (9-11am; Charlottesville, VA); October 17, 2025 (10am-12pm; Harrisonburg, VA); October 22, 2025 (10-11:30am; Boyce, VA)
   ++ Webinar: Reintroducing Prescribed Fire: Managing Invasive Plants with Controlled Burns -- October 15, 2025 (11:30am-1pm)
   ++ Webinar: How to Be an Invasive Plant -- November 7, 2025 (12-1pm)
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3.) Water and Wastewater Training – Learn more about these events and others at https://www.rcap.org/training-events/. Also, Southeast Rural Community Assistance Partnership (SERCAP) provides free math tutoring for individuals interested in becoming Water Operators (contact Joey Hiner at jhi...@sercap.org). Trainings offered by SERCAP, Rural Community Assistance Partnership (RCAP), and others.
   ++ Risk and Resiliency Technical Training Workshop for Small Water and Wastewater Utility Systems – October 8, 2025 (8am-12:30pm)
   ++ Sanitary Surveys: A Comprehensive Overview – November 6, 2025 (1-2pm)
   ++ Procurement of Professional Services for Small Community Wastewater Improvements – November 13, 2025 (1-2pm)
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4.) 2025 Living Shoreline Annual Summit -- October 9, 2025 (10am-4pm) -- Newport News, VA -- Theme: “Together for Tomorrow: Catalyzing Coastal Resilience through Living Shorelines” -- This event will focus on collaboration to drive innovation in living shoreline projects and coastal resilience. For more information, see https://www.jamesrivershorelines.org/lsc.html. Organized by James River Living Shorelines.
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5.) Sustainability Matters Events -- For more information about these and other events, see https://www.sustainabilitymatters.earth/events.
   ++ Art & Alchemy: Waste Reimagined -- October 9, 2025 (6:30-8:30pm) -- Alexandria, VA
   ++ Plant Rescue -- October 17, 2025 (1-4pm) -- Bristow, VA
   ++ Native Meadow Seeding Party -- October 18, 2025 (2-4pm) -- Rappahannock County Landfill
   ++ Storytime at Bonfire Bookstore & Yarnery -- October 25, 2025 – Woodstock, VA
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6.) Volunteer Opportunity: Catch the King & Map Virginia’s Highest Tides -- October 10-12, 2025 -- Volunteers will help map how far flooding reaches during the year’s highest tides using an app to drop GPS points that help VIMS improve flood-prediction models used by local government. For more information, see https://www.wetlandswatch.org/catchtheking. Organized by Wetlands Watch.
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7.) Center for Watershed Protection (CWP) 2025 Webcast Series – Various Dates: Next Webcast, October 15, 2025 – Wednesdays (1pm) -- Webcasts are recorded and a link to the recording is provided to registrants.  Learn more and register at https://cwp.org//2025_webcast_list.php.
   ++ October 15, 2025 -- Impacts of Climate Change on Rainwater Harvesting Systems
   ++ November 12, 2025 -- From Regulations to Implementation: Achieving MS4 Compliance
   ++ December 10, 2025 – Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Watershed Planning
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8.) Plant Native! Festival -- October 18, 2025 (9am-1pm) – Dorey Park, Henrico, VA -- This event will feature 13 native plant vendors, over 20 informational organizations, 750 free native trees, $10 vouchers (while supplies last), workshops, and an insect costume contest. For more information, see https://henrico.gov/utility/keep-henrico-beautiful/native-plant-festival/. Organized by Henrico County.
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9.) Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay Events
   ++ Blackwell Park Tree Planting – October 24, 2025 (9am-1pm) – Richmond, VA – Volunteers will help plant trees and shrubs throughout Blackwell Park.-- https://www.allianceforthebay.org/get-involved/events/
   ++ Chesapeake Watershed Forum – November 7-9, 2025 – Shepherdstown, WV -- Theme: “Shaping the Future of Conservation with Human-Centered Approaches” – https://www.allianceforthebay.org/event/chesapeake-watershed-forum/
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10.) North American Association for Environmental Education (NAEE) Events (Virtual) – Research Symposium: October 30, 2025; Conference: November 3-6, 2025 – Theme: “Forward Together” -- For more information, see https://conference.naaee.org/. Organized by the North American Association for Environmental Education.
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11.) American Water Resources Association (AWRA) 2025 Annual Water Resources Conference -- November 10-12, 2025 -- Denver, CO -- This conference will explore innovative, practical, and applied solutions to today’s water challenges. Early-bird registration rates end October 24, 2025. For more information, see https://www.awra.org/Members/Events_and_Education/Events_and_Education_Conferences.aspx. Organized by the American Water Resources Association.
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12.) Water Center Jobs Board – View a listing of current job opportunities and employment resources on the Jobs Board at https://www.vwrrc.vt.edu/jobs/. Developed by the Virginia Water Resources Research Center (Water Center).
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The VWMC announcements are provided with support from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality and the Virginia Water Resources Research Center. Thank you to our sponsors!

You too can sponsor the VWMC announcements.  Tax-deductible contributions can be made to the VWMC to support information updates and other VWMC activities.  Make checks payable to: “The Virginia Tech Foundation” and on the memo portion of the check include “VWMC Fund #872802.” Mail contributions to the Virginia Water Resources Research Center (0444, Attn: Jane Walker) at 210 Cheatham Hall, Virginia Tech; 310 West Campus Drive; Blacksburg, VA 24061.