Reducing energy consumption / Forest management

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What to look for on Smart Talk Friday, November 16, 2018:

Winter weather arrived in Pennsylvania last week and with it, higher energy demand from area homes and businesses.

The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center recently released a guide to help Pennsylvanians conserve energy and reduce waste. The energy-saving measures in the guide titled, It’s Time to Take Charge: A Citizen’s Guide to Saving Energy, focus on energy waste, particularly during colder weather.

By using better technology and eliminating waste, American’s can reduce energy consumption 40-60% in the next 25 years. And in the world of conservation, energy that is not used is considered a resource.

Joining Smart Talk to discuss the guide and practical recommendations for reducing energy consumption are Allie Astor, clean energy fellow with PennEnvironment, Mark Hand, energy program specialist with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, and Dave Althoff, director of energy programs, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.

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Mark Hand and Dave Althoff

Also, the California wildfires are capturing the nation’s attention, with death and destruction of historic proportions, and large areas of the state’s forests destroyed.

In Pennsylvania, more than 2.2-million acres of state forests comprise about 13 percent of the forested area in the commonwealth and are one of the largest expanses of public lands in the eastern United States. Managing this important resource and preventing fires in “Penn’s Woods” falls to the oversight of the State Forester.

Appearing on Smart Talk to discuss forest management and fire prevention in the Commonwealth are Matt Keefer, assistant Pennsylvania State Forester, and Michael Kern, chief of the Forest Fire Protection Division.

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Matt Keefer and Michael Kern