ACTION ALERT: Now is the Time to Fight for Federal Active Transportation Programs
Courtesy of Rails to Trails Conservancy
Right now, there is serious concern about the future of federal programs that fund America’s trails and active transportation infrastructure. Against a backdrop of rising safety concerns—20 people die while walking in America every day—and significant unmet demand for investment—federal active transportation programs like Transportation Alternatives are oversubscribed by a ratio of 4 to 1—there are vocal attacks on these vital funding programs.
RTC provides resources for people who want to advocate for Transportation Alternatives in the BASICS Act.
Check it out:
https://www.railstotrails.org/policy/
ACTION ALERT: The Special District Fairness and Accessibility Act of 2026, H.R.2766, passed out of the House Oversight Committee on Government Reform 32-8.
Courtesy of the National Special Districts Association
We are now actively soliciting new cosponsors and ask you to call on your Congressional Members. Now's the opportunity to contact your district office to invite your Congressmember to an event or stop by their office to provide an update. Click the link below for talking points.
Read more:
https://www.nationalspecialdistricts.org/special-district-bill-talking-points
ActivEnviro is Dissolving
After over 18 years of service to our allied colleagues and communities, ActivEnviro will be ceasing operations as of March 31.
ActivEnviro’s governing Operating Board Members are very sad to announce that after 18 years of research, education, and development for health, recreation, and land management professionals, educators, and allies, the Board has identified the need and voted to dissolve the ActivEnviro organization, effective March 31, 2026, primarily due to financial instability.
Read more:
https://nacpro.memberclicks.net/assets/docs/ActivEnviro-is-Dissolving.pdf
Theme Parks, Public Parks and the Power of Place
Courtesy of NRPA
By Clement Lau, DPPD, FAICP
The theme park experience is not always comfortable. The sun can be relentless, some lines offer limited shade, and the park can feel intensely crowded at peak hours. Yet despite these challenges, there is little visible frustration. Most visitors appear not only patient, but genuinely pleased to be there.
There is an unspoken understanding that waiting and walking are part of the day rather than interruptions to it. No one seems surprised by the lines or resentful of the distance between attractions. Shade, signage and visible staff make the effort feel planned rather than chaotic. Watching this unfold, I could not help but think about public parks and the environments we create there.
One clear insight is that expectations shape tolerance. When visitors believe something meaningful awaits them — whether a ride, a performance or a shared family moment — they are willing to endure long walks, delays and crowded conditions. When people know where they are going, where they can rest and what comes next, the day feels manageable — even when it is crowded.
Read more:
https://www.nrpa.org/blog/theme-parks-public-parks-and-the-power-of-place/
In Parks and on Rooftops, Urban Beekeeping Takes Flight
Courtesy of Bloomberg
By Andrew Zaleski
Pick any commercial office building in DC this summer and there’s a decent chance that at least 50,000 winged insects call the rooftop their home. That’s the typical size of a single honeybee hive. Some are self-managed; others are maintained by companies that specialize in urban apiculture.
But raising honeybees in a city has raised environmental concerns, too. Apis mellifera, the European honeybees that are so important for commercial agriculture in North America, are not native to the continent, and they can outcompete and spread disease to native, wild bee species. “If you want to save the bees, don’t keep honeybees,” Bert Harris, co-director of the Clifton Institute, a Virginia nonprofit saving native species, recently told the Washington Post.
Read more:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-03-26/urban-beekeeping-is-booming-but-how-many-hives-can-a-city-handle/
‘Zero drowning’ program boosts safety and prevents deaths
Courtesy of NACo
By Meredith Moran
FLORIDA - In Miami-Dade County the leading cause of accidental death for children ages 1-14 is drowning. To help turn the tide against child drownings, the county is helping children learn how to swim and investing in community water safety education.
Through the “Zero Drowning” initiative, kindergarteners in Miami-Dade County Public Schools attend 30-minute swimming lessons for 10 days, at a municipal or partnering private swimming pool within 15 minutes of their respective schools. Participating in formal swimming lessons is associated with an 88% reduction in a child’s risk of drowning, according to a 2009 case-control study published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
Read more:
https://www.naco.org/news/zero-drowning-program-boosts-safety-and-prevents-deaths
Bay Area 2050+ Plan Prepares Region for Nearly 5 Feet of Sea Level Rise
Courtesy of Planetizen
By Diana Ionescu
CALIFORNIA - The San Francisco Bay Area’s Metropolitan Transportation Commission adopted a plan dubbed Plan Bay Area 2050+ that offers a long-term blueprint for transportation, urban development, housing, and climate resilience in the coming decades.
The plan includes the region’s first resilience project list, “an inventory of infrastructure projects needed to prepare the region for roughly 4.9 feet of sea level rise in coming decades.
Read more:
https://www.planetizen.com/news/2026/03/137232-bay-area-2050-plan-prepares-region-nearly-5-feet-sea-level-rise
Avian Flu Has Killed Thousands of Birds in the U.S. Pennsylvania Is at the Epicenter.
Courtesy of Inside Climate News
By Kylie Bense
Pennsylvania is a center of the current outbreak, with more than 480 cases officially detected in wild birds and almost 16 million domesticated birds affected over the past four years, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Six million of those birds were affected in just the last 30 days.
“This is a virus that we thought would burn out two years ago,” said Russell Redding, Pennsylvania’s secretary of agriculture. “This strain has not diminished in its strength, and to the contrary, it’s actually strengthened.”
Read more:
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/26032026/pennsylvania-avian-flu-outbreak-epicenter/
Wastewater Will Cool This Memphis Data Center
Courtesy of Governing
By Carl Smith
TENNESSEE - A new data center project in Memphis is demonstrating an innovative approach to water conservation by using treated wastewater—rather than drinking water—to cool its systems. The facility, developed by xAI to power advanced AI computing, would otherwise require millions of gallons of potable water each day—roughly equivalent to the needs of a small town.
By partnering with the city to build a dedicated water recycling plant, the data center will instead draw from an abundant supply of treated wastewater located nearby. This approach helps protect the region’s drinking water aquifer, which has been under increasing strain, and reflects a growing trend among major tech companies to use non-potable water for industrial cooling.
Read more:
https://www.governing.com/resilience/wastewater-will-cool-this-memphis-data-center?
Study: Building More Forest Roads Would Quadruple Fire Risk
Courtesy of Planetizen
By Diana Ionescu
A new study is “throwing more cold water” on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s rationale for rescinding the Roadless Rule and allowing for more road construction in national forests and other federal lands. The study found that between 1992 and 2024 wildfires were four times more likely to ignite within 50 meters of a road than in areas without motor vehicle access. The results were consistent across Forest Service regions around the country.
Read more:
https://www.planetizen.com/news/2026/03/137208-study-building-more-forest-roads-would-quadruple-fire-risk
