W-b Near Picking Towing Company 
The Deadline To Submit Bids To Do The Service For The City Is Friday

Act 72 Raises Concerns At Wvw 
Also, The School Board Approves A Five-year Deal With Pepsi To Provide Drinks.

By IAN CAMPBELL Times Leader Correspondent
 Friday, February 11, 2005 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 5A 





The Luzerne Conservation District board was told Thursday at its monthly
meeting that problems with reimbursements from last year left it unable to
tackle problems with its building on Smith Pond Road. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 There were suggestions that unused areas of the building should be rented
out to other groups and organizations as a means of building up some sort of
capital reserve. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; "We work with about $450,000 a year and it's spent on the various
projects," said board Chairman Marianne Karalunas. "There's not much left
over." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The board was told that between $15,000 and $20,000 in reimbursements were
outstanding from last year. As a result of that and other issues, the district
could not begin to talk about pay raises for its staff until it gets a handle
on its exact financial position. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Currently, four employees are scheduled for reviews and raises. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Changes in the organization of the Chesapeake Bay Project will enable the
board to make wider use of Todd Rush, Chesapeake Bay Nutrient Management
Specialist. Previously, the project concentrated on farm runoff as it affected
the Chesapeake, but in order to meet wider goals, it has evolved a wider
strategy, tackling urban runoff and private property assistance. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Of the 1,305 total stream miles in Luzerne County, 1,076 drain into the
Chesapeake Bay, according to the report Rush gave the board. In the county, 26
of 34 discharge points drain into the Susquehanna, and 15.5 percent of the
river drainage is classed as impaired. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Karalunas said that she was glad the Chesapeake program was extending, and
moving in new directions. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "His technical assistance was legally limited, but this should make his
contact with the public much wider," she said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Rush and watershed specialist Josh Longmore asked permission to seek grants
from a variety of sources to held private owners fix stream and creek erosion,
reapply to the state Growing Greener Program to fund the Dirt and Gravel Road
Maintenance Program, and complete water quality studies at Frances Slocum
Lake. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Agency Waiting For Funds