Voices of Central Pa

Pennsylvania’s 2005 CO2 emissions by sector

by David DeIuliis

To say that climate model projections indicate that average global surface temperatures will increase by up to 6.4 degrees Celsius during the 21st century means little to residents in Central Pennsylvania. To say that State College summers might feel more like northern Alabama’s by 2070 likely means a lot more. While often debated on a global scale in denominations of hundreds of years and billions of dollars, the issue of climate change has foreseeable local implications that transcend political punditry.

“Although you can’t point to any single weather event as evidence of climate change, every decade for the past 30 years has been hotter than the previous decade,” said Ed Perry, a College Township resident and the Pennsylvania Outreach Coordinator for the National Wildlife Federation. “It’s clear that our weather patterns are changing considerably.”

The impacts of climate change are certainly not all negative—energy requirements will likely decline with shorter and warmer winters—but for Richard Alley, a Penn State professor of geosciences, climate change is being caused by those for whom its impacts are only slightly more negative than positive.

Karen Daystar (left) with a bouquet of flowers and another attendee at the MillheimFarmers Market. Photo by Leslie Zuck

by Chris Ulmer

No two farmers markets in Centre County are exactly alike.

The Bellefonte Farmers Market, located in front of the county courthouse Wednesdays and Saturdays from 7 a.m. until noon, is one of the oldest in the area.

In the the 1930s, it was nothing more than a curb market running down a portion of Allegheny Street. Today it fills three sides of the square and is one of the most established farmers markets in the area.

“From August to September you can purchase sweet corn, tomatoes, pork, goat, beef, lamb and many other products,” said president Whitney Duley.

“In recent years the Bellefonte farmers market has become a producer-only market,” she said. Vendors can only sell goods they produce themselves, which is not the case at every market.

The Bellefonte farmers market has a homegrown feel and a loyal following.

“I have been coming to this market for a couple of years now,” said Lavina Stoltzfus, a farmer. “I enjoy it a lot; it is nice, quiet and close to home.”

The Boalsburg Farmers Market is festive. Held at the Boalsburg Military Museum Tuesdays from 3 to 7 p.m., the market is decorated with music and war memorabilia and often features live performers.

“This farmers market is more family orientated,” said Megan Coopey, a local farmer. “There is much more space for families and pets. Much of the year there is a band playing here.

 
Chris Uhl with the bee hives that he maintains in the vacant lot behind his house, with his garden in the background. Photo by Lucy Green

by Lucy Green

The word “sustainability” is everywhere nowadays—on the covers of parenting magazines, on the labels of laundry detergents, in college course titles.

It speaks to the needs of this cultural moment, when nearly 600 gallons of oil spew into the Gulf of Mexico every minute, the unemployment rate hovers around 10 percent and the average American generates 4.5 pounds of trash a day.

It speaks to Central Pennsylvanians, who on average require 20.5 more acres of ecologically productive land to support their lifestyles than is available in Centre County.

But sustainability is also a word that speaks to a hope for change.

Some local people have translated their ideas of sustainability into a way of life, one that involves growing organic food using methods that work with nature rather than against it, while reducing waste and fossil fuel consumption.

A way of living

Husband and wife pair Bob Flatley and Kelle Kersten run Ahimsa Village, an intentional living community near Julian, Pa.

As a teenager, Kersten checked out a book by Bill Mollison and began her lifelong fascination with “permaculture,” a combination of the words permanent, culture and agriculture.

Carla Myers, Maria Wherley, and Kristin Peterson prepare for a ride in Oak Hall, near Boalsburg. Photo by Emily Dabney

by Emily Dabney

In the U.S. women make only half the number of bicycle trips that men do, according to a 2009 Scientific American article entitled “Shifting Gears.”

Three local women hope to change that. They have started a bicycle touring company hoping to get more women out on two wheels in Centre County.

The founders of See Jane Ride, based in Oak Hall, say they want to bring women of all shapes, sizes and athletic experience together to embrace their physical abilities while exploring the hidden beauty of the region’s back roads.

“It’s not a race, and there’s no shame,” said co-owner Carla Myers as she described the bike tours.

Their private company hosts weekly rides, offering the introductory ride for free to women who’d like to try out the sport but are hesitant about getting started. Their classes run for six to eight weeks and are designed to combine learning the skills of cycling with nurturing an enjoyment of the activity.

The first ride starts with a lesson that includes training to position seats correctly and practicing proper gear shifting – little details that, when done right, can enhance a rider’s physical endurance and capability, See Jane Ride co-owner Maria Wherley explained. The sessions begin with a five-mile ride.

The multitude of lines to the left indicate the 32 natural food companies that existed in 1984. The three organizations on the right (Whole Foods bought Wild Oats) indicate the three organic food retailers in the country that have bought them up in the last 24 years. Graphic provided by Prof. Phil Howard, Michigan State University.

by Suzan Erem

With Pennsylvania now ranking third in the nation in organic farm sales, more small farmers than ever are looking to Penn State to provide the research and expertise needed to grow food chemical-free.

And the university, which has for decades pumped out industry-supported research centered on chemically-grown large-scale agriculture, appears to be responding.

“Individual faculty members who have research programs can move much more quickly than the institution can,” explained Charlie White, an extension associate who said his job was created by the effective lobbying of the group to the university’s administration. White’s position is supported one-third by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and two-thirds by Penn State. “So you see a lot of faculty working on organic production but they’ve maxed out the existing facilities. Now the institution has to get up to speed with providing more acreage to do their research.”

White said that an estimated 50 faculty and graduate students participate in the Sustainable Ag Working Group, working to promote sustainable agriculture in the university.

Farmland Preservation Artists associate member Holly Fritchman paints at Tait Farm during the summer solstice celebration. Photo by Shelly Mato

by Shelly Mato

Through the ages, art has often celebrated food, but in a unique turnabout here in Centre County, artists are painting food in order to preserve our local food sources.

The Farmland Preservation Artists celebrated the summer solstice with a gallery showing and working artists on display at Tait Farm June 19. At the Solstice Celebration: Art Show and Artists in Action, visitors could view and purchase members’ art, watch local artists painting in various locations around the farm, talk to artists about their work and the work of the group and enjoy some light refreshment.

The Farmland Preservation Artists of Central Pennsylvania, formed in 2005, is a joint enterprise of the Art Alliance of Central Pennsylvania and the Centre County Farmland Trust. The stated mission of the group is “to promote the preservation and appreciation of farmland through the visual arts.” The FPA has several shows each year, as well as an ongoing presence at the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture conference held each year at Penn State. The goal of these shows is to promote the aesthetic qualities and the food-production potential of the rural areas and farmlands in the area.

Join the SAVE WEBSTER'S Facebook group for news and updates, and to show your support for Websters.

Here's a much bigger Facebook group with the same goal - Solidarity for Webster's Cafe.

The Friends of Webster's google group.