http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler stories of landscapes, conservation, and people in and beyond the Rivanna Watershed Tue, 03 Feb 2009 16:11:58 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 en hourly 1 © lmiddleton@embarqmail.com () lmiddleton@embarqmail.com() stories of landscapes, conservation, and people in and beyond the Rivanna Watershed lmiddleton@embarqmail.com No no http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/wp-content/plugins/podpress/images/powered_by_podpress.jpg http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler 144 144 http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2009/02/03/119-fernbrook-natural-area-hosts-winter-landscapes-and-much-more/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2009/02/03/119-fernbrook-natural-area-hosts-winter-landscapes-and-much-more/#comments Tue, 03 Feb 2009 15:53:12 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/?p=176 http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2009/02/03/119-fernbrook-natural-area-hosts-winter-landscapes-and-much-more/feed/ 0 4:49 January 15, 2009 Fernbrook Natural Area in northern Albemarle County near Stony Brook is host of images of death, decay, and resurrection in the flora and ... January 15, 2009 Fernbrook Natural Area in northern Albemarle County near Stony Brook is host of images of death, decay, and resurrection in the flora and fauna of the Piedmont woods. The January cold spell has arrived ndash; always a harsh reminder, especially here in Virginia ndash; of the intractability of winter.nbsp; Being from New England, it feels welcome, like a patch of remnant habitat ndash; familiar and necessary for my survival.nbsp;nbsp; The bite of cold when I first leave the house for my walk, the peeling back of layers as heat of my body meets morning chill. The knowledge of light that has come with experiencing over half a decade of Januarys, as the skies are brighter, the days are longer, but still, somehow, muted by the cold.nbsp; My need to be outside is greater at this time of year than others --against the inertia that a warm house foster, an urgency tugs at me as the voices of the winter landscape are calling. I went to feed this winter hunger last weekend at Fernbook Natural Area, thenbsp; 63-acre preserve owned by The Nature Conservancy in northern Albemarle County near Stony Point.nbsp; This time of year, it is a palette of earth tones, rich with every shade of brown, red, yellow, orange, and black.nbsp; Green pokes up here and there: running cedar emerging from the layer of leaves, the rhododendron on the northern slopes; and the ever-reliable, Christmas fern, though sagging from the weight of wingter, it is still standing, ready to be counted. The trail slopes down through a tall stand of red oak, hickory and yellow poplar towards a small stream that drains the ridge.nbsp; Only the beech trees and few oaks still hold their leaves, browned now, quaking in the slight wind.nbsp; The late afternoon light is mediated by clouds, occasional patches of blue lingering before a darkening sky. This winter in particular, I am attuned to disintegration and death, and a forest like the one at Fernbrook is as good a place as any to find it.nbsp; Decay is everywhere:nbsp; dense downed logs along the trail are scuffed by travelers' boots into light tufts.nbsp; The bark of Virginia pine still standing, is pocked by holes that spiral round the trunk marking the drill of the downy woodpecker.nbsp; A cavity higher up could be home to a pileated.nbsp; These are some of the larger agents of change in the forest, foraging for a meal beneath the bark of host trees giving way slowly to insects. Still on the branches of beech trees, are black clumps of sooty mold.nbsp; A hunk the size of my fist has dropped to the ground at the base of a beech, and I pick it up ndash; light as a sponge, this is final stage for the mold that is unique to the beech tree.nbsp; Scorias spongiosa, as a species of sooty mold that grows below colonies of beech woolly aphids, whose honeydew ndash; or excrement ndash; provides nourishment through its life stages.nbsp; In January, these aphids are long gone, but when I pry the mold apart, I find shiny black ants feasting on the spores. Cleared in colonial days for timber, Fernbrook was abandoned sometime after the Civil War.nbsp; But here and there, the pencil-sharp snags of Virginia cedar point skyward, and from time to time, the slope is anchored by a mound of rocks that marked perhaps the corner of an old field.nbsp; The small stream has the characteristic steep banks of our Piedmont streams that have been cut vertically during the years of high erosion when no protective measures stemmed the flow of topsoil from newly logged acres. Just as surely as I am looking at death and decay, I am also witness to rebirth, in everything from the defiant fist-like buds of the dogwoods in understudy, to the delicate, cigar-shaped twist of the beech bud.nbsp; Each soggy, rotten log hosts its own ecosystem of fungi, bacteria, and insects, thriving in dark spaces, drunk on the nutrients they release back to the cycle of life. Through the bare trees I can see upward to the sky, anoth... Albemarle,County,,Climate,,Ecology,,History,,Natural,History,,North,Fork,Rivanna,,Sediment,,Trails,and,Footpaths lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2009/01/08/118-you-me-and-stormwater/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2009/01/08/118-you-me-and-stormwater/#comments Thu, 08 Jan 2009 20:00:17 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2009/01/08/118-you-me-and-stormwater/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2009/01/08/118-you-me-and-stormwater/feed/ 0 5:34 January 8, 2009 The City of Charlottesville, along with Albemarle County, UVA, and PVCC, are all submitted renewal applications for the Virginia Stormwater Management Program (VSMP) ... January 8, 2009 The City of Charlottesville, along with Albemarle County, UVA, and PVCC, are all submitted renewal applications for the Virginia Stormwater Management Program (VSMP) General Permit for Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4's).nbsp; The permit describes how these entities will manage stormwater in their jurisdictions, but much of the management really rests on you and me and how we manage the stormwater that we create because of our modern lifestyle. Chilling, cold, welcome, seasonal.nbsp; These words could all describe the precipitation of the last couple of days.nbsp; Cold and chilling, as temperatures hovered below freezing, icing roads and dusting the Blue Ridge white.nbsp; Welcome, and seasonal, since we rely on wintertime precipitation to keeps our rivers and wells flowing, our groundwater replenished, our reservoirs full and to hold off the press of drought. But this water ndash; mostly clean as transits from clouds to earth ndash; becomes something else once it hits our streets, yards, and houses.nbsp; It becomes storm water ndash; and it is hardly benign.nbsp; Rather than infiltrating the soil as it does in the forests, stormwater rushes to creeks and to the Rivanna, carrying litter, oils, pet waste, and dirt, rushes in such volume and velocity that stream banks are continually scoured and the Rivanna runs brown after even a modest rain. Environmental professionals characterize water pollution sources as either "point" or "non-point."nbsp; Point sources are discrete - water from a single point or conveyance, such as the waste treatment plants at Moores Creek, Camelot, Lake Monticello, discharges from which are highly regulated with increasingly stringent controls. Non-point sources are simply the opposite ndash; pollution that enters our streams from a diffuse or general area, such as excess water that travels across agriculture or playing fields transporting pollutants such as excess fertilizer or manure.nbsp; Rainwater that traverses urban parking lots and roads into storm "sewer" systems might be considered non-point because it is a collection of water (and all that is carried with it) fromndash; my yard, my street, my neighbor's yard, the street around the corner. But the Clean Water Act defines this kind of stormwater also as a point source ndash; because it is conveyed through separate storm sewer systems (such as maintained by Charlottesville or Albemarle County in the urban areas) ndash; and through ditches and channels that direct the water, untreated for the most part, before it enters the river. And as a point source, it too is regulated by the Clean Water Act, with permits required by the state of Virginia for urban areas, industrial sites, and construction activities.nbsp; In the second phase of permitting, since 2003, Charlottesville, Albemarle, UVA, and PVCC are defined as operating Municipal Storm Sewer Systems, or MS4s.nbsp; The five-year reapplication process is underway right now ndash; applications in which these entities show how various programs are reducing the discharge of pollutants from areas and facilities under their jurisdiction to the maximum extent practicable. Now, I have read the permit application from the City of Charlottesville, and it includes descriptions of how the City will maintain structural controls, such as curb inlets and retention basins; and how it will maintain public roads (and try to minimize pollutants coming off of them).nbsp; I've read how Parks and Rec. will minimize use of pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers.nbsp; How the City will permit and monitor erosion and sediment control practices on construction sites.nbsp;nbsp; But the bottom line is this:nbsp; much of the pollution that ends up in stormwater results from how we citizens live our day-to-day lives.nbsp; After all, you'd have to keep a fleet of street cleaners busy 24 hours a day to keep most of the street wastes out of the storm sewer system ndas... Albemarle,County,,Charlottesville,,Education,,Neighborhood,,Rivanna,River,,Sediment,,Stormwater,,Water,Quality lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/18/116-the-emerald-ash-borer/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/18/116-the-emerald-ash-borer/#comments Thu, 18 Dec 2008 19:26:49 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/18/116-the-emerald-ash-borer/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/18/116-the-emerald-ash-borer/feed/ 0 5:34 December 18, 2008 Learning to identify trees is the business of the amateur naturalist -- and these days, one that includes learning about and spreading the ... December 18, 2008 Learning to identify trees is the business of the amateur naturalist -- and these days, one that includes learning about and spreading the word about invasive pests that are threatening whole species, such as the Emerald Ash Borer. Last weekend I took a short walk along the scrubby and thinly buffered banks of the Rivanna near Free Bridge with some fellow Master Naturalists.nbsp; We were out to hone our tree identification skills ndash; best done, I've found, after the fall of leaves when one is forced to use the most reliable tools of branching, bark, and leaf scar shape to confirm the ID. Land disturbance and compaction at this site along the river has been pretty much uninterrupted with a succession of fords and bridges dating back to the 1700s ndash; making the area vulnerable to a host of invasive species, such as Siberian elm, callery pear, and Oriental bittersweet.nbsp; But we also found plenty of natives: box elders, sycamores, and green and white ash.nbsp; I've learned over the short time I've practiced my naturalist skills that it is best to focus on one or two species in any given walk, lest I become overwhelmed and loose everything in the resulting confusion.nbsp; On this day, I'd chosen the ash tree, genus Fraxinus, a tree whose wood is strong and straight-grained for use in hardwood flooring, but tough and elastic when used in baseball bats, canoe paddles, and oars.nbsp; Within several hundred yards I met both the green ash, common here in the southeast, and the white ash, at the lower end of its hardiness zone.nbsp; Fraxinus belongs to that small category of trees and shrubs whose branching is opposite, and the mature bark presents interlacing ridges that form a diamond shaped pattern -- both attributes helpful in the identification of a tree commonly planted for shade.nbsp; And there, in the bottom-land along the river, we weren't surprised to see it had taken root, because it thrives in moist soil while tolerating drought well. As I paused to look closely at the pointy terminal bud of the green ash and compare it with the more oblique bud of the white, someone mentioned the Emerald ash borer, a bug that, as it name implies, is up to no good with a tree that fills out the hardwood canopy of our oak-hickory forests here in the south. Later, perusing the various web-sites devoted to trees and forest health, I learned enough to alarm me ndash; that the Emerald ash borer, a small, strikingly green insect arrived from Asian and made itself first known in Michigan in 2002.nbsp; After claiming the lives of at least 30 million trees in Michigan alone, it has moved east, into Maryland and now Northern Virginia, where it was found in 2003 ndash; eradicated ndash; and then rediscovered in the summer of 2008 in Fairfax. The emerald ash borer works fast, excavating serpentine tunnels through the circulatory system of the tree just below the bark.nbsp; The effects are hard to detect in trees until the damage is done ndash; upper branches die first, and as the canopy declines, the tree sprouts wildly at its base in the effort to make new leaves.nbsp;nbsp; The beetle's range is about a half a mile, so destruction of ash trees in a radius around the infested site is one control method ndash; as are quarantines of wood products and plant stock. In July, the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services established a quarantine area that consists of Fairfax, Arlington, Prince William, Fauquier and Loudoun counties and the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Manassas and Manassas Park. Public awareness campaigns have sprouted up, too.nbsp; Slogans such as, "Spread the word, not the pest" may help ndash; and you can find more information at websites such as dontmovefirewood.org and stopthebeetle.info. It is not an exaggeration to say that the loss of these trees may change our Eastern forests as radically as the chestnut blight altered them in the early 1900s. At a time w... Albemarle,County,,Charlottesville,,Ecology,,Education,,Natural,History,,Other,waters lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/11/115-south-fork-rivanna-reservoir-stores-our-dirt-too/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/11/115-south-fork-rivanna-reservoir-stores-our-dirt-too/#comments Thu, 11 Dec 2008 20:00:51 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/11/115-south-fork-rivanna-reservoir-stores-our-dirt-too/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/11/115-south-fork-rivanna-reservoir-stores-our-dirt-too/feed/ 0 5:23 December 11, 2008 There's a lot of different ways to look at our diminishing resources -- running out of clean water, clean air, and .... good ... December 11, 2008 There's a lot of different ways to look at our diminishing resources -- running out of clean water, clean air, and .... good dirt?nbsp; We might do well to look past the problem of the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir filling up with dirt -- and try to understand the causes of -- and consequences of losing dirt from the landscapes upstream. This show originally aired on December 11, 2008nbsp; on ldquo;The Rivanna Rambler,rdquo; a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net. There is slow steady winter rain thatrsquo;s keeping temperatures hovering around forty degrees and the skies dark with winter gloom.nbsp; But the rain is good -- for our groundwater, for our reservoirs, and it is good for the plants and animals that need this most essential resource to survive.nbsp; This rain is also filling our rivers ndash; and I would wager ndash; sending a good amount of water into the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir, along with a healthy amount of dirt. Now, that dirt is slowly but surely filling the reservoir ndash; each year, decreasing its capacity from 1 to 5 per cent since it was completed in 1969.nbsp; In another example of our human short-sightedness, like many public works installations of the era, the design life of this reservoir was only fifty years, at which time the reservoir would be filled to over 50% of its capacity. This was the "water supply plan" back then ndash; and it is, in part, this plan that has us where we are today, scrambling to find a way to maintain the usefulness of a reservoir that was poorly situated with an uncharacteristically large watershed from which to drain --nbsp; and one that, in the conventional wisdom of the day, was always expected to fill up with sediment.nbsp; Hence, the current discussions about dredging. Since the cost of disposal of the dredge material is generally agreed to be the most expensive part of any dredging operation, this got me thinking about the value of the sediment itself and whether we are, once again, missing the mark in the way we think about our natural resources ndash; letting the pocket book drive the decision without consideration for other factors that, because they are ecosystem benefits and difficult to quantify, don't often get put into the cost benefit analysis. There have been some creative responses by contractors interested in dredging the South Fork Reservoir ndash; and in most cases, we donrsquo;t know the ultimate destination of the sediment, it's just part of the economic equation upon which the offers are being built.nbsp; They range from a method of opportunistic, selective dredging of just sand and gravel when market makes it economically profitable ndash; to more complex projects proposed, including using the fill to extend the Airport's runway ndash; or to fill a nearby quarry, presumably for reuse later on. The US Army Corps of Engineers has been thinking about the use of dredged materials for years.nbsp; Charged with keeping our waterways clear for navigation, the Corps promotes the use of dredged materials for creating wetlands and improving fish and wildlife habitats, as well as the construction-related kinds of uses, such as land creation for runways, buildings, and other human strudtures.nbsp; And dredge materials can also be used to improve the soil structure of poor agricultural lands, creating topsoil or serving as the base structure for soil amendments. Dr. David Montgomery is a geo-moprhologist and a 2008 MacArthur Foundation Fellow, who has spent his career looking at the complex relationship between rivers and the soils that they transport ndash; historically tone of the primary land changing processes. His recent book, Dirt: The Erosion of Civilization, provides a sobering description of the consequences of squandering "good dirt" ndash; the topsoil in which we grow our food, the topsoil that takes generations to create.nbsp; Montgomery's book look... Albemarle,County,,Charlottesville,,Geology,,Headwaters,,Ivy,Creek,,Rivanna,River,,Sediment,,Uncategorized,,Water,Supply lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/04/114-winter-stoneflies/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/04/114-winter-stoneflies/#comments Thu, 04 Dec 2008 20:05:21 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/04/114-winter-stoneflies/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/12/04/114-winter-stoneflies/feed/ 1 5:10 February 28, 2008 In the midst of winter, there are bugs in the stream that are alive and well ndash; and some, eve, are hatching out ... February 28, 2008 In the midst of winter, there are bugs in the stream that are alive and well ndash; and some, eve, are hatching out to become insects, having found their aquatic niche at a time when no others compete.nbsp; During StreamWatch sampling on the upper Doylersquo;s, we find several families of winter stoneflies. This show originally aired on February 28, 2008 and again on December 4, 2008 on ldquo;The Rivanna Rambler,rdquo; a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net. The upper Doyles River, like most headwater streams in the Rivanna watershed, is about as pristine as they come.nbsp; The waters that collect from springs and drainages of the land that is protected by Shenandoah National Park do not suffer the assaults of sediment and runoff that challenge the health of streams at lower elevations.nbsp; For this reason, the community based water monitoring program, StreamWatch, has chosen a spot high on the Doyles as one of several headwater streams that will be used during the next few years as ldquo;reference streamsrdquo; ndash; a standard of ldquo;as good as it gets in our watershedrdquo; -- against which other tributaries of the Rivanna will be evaluated. A couple of weeks ago, during a lull in the waves of wintry mix that so often challenge us in the piedmont, I visited the site for the first time.nbsp; The snow was still in patches on the ground, especially on the cooler, north facing slopes, but the sun was casting bright shadows lighting up the grays and browns of winter.nbsp; The macroinvertebrates, that we were there to count, cycle through their lives no matter the weather.nbsp; Some species are only found in the upper reaches where springs fill rugged, narrow streams that drop through pools and riffles, creating a cool, oxygen rich environment that is ideal for the aquatic world of bugs and the trout that feed on them. Recently, Irsquo;ve become interested in stoneflies ndash; the order Plecopteranbsp; that is well known to aquatic biologists and fishermennbsp; -- and on this day especially I was eager to see which stoneflies might come up to be counted in our mesh net after a vigorous rubbing of rocks and gravel. Ournbsp; total count was 355 bugs from three short net samples ndash; with almost 2/3 of them mayflies ndash; another bug that is known to thrive in cleaner water ndash; but also a hearty count of stoneflies, over forty of these representing at least five different families. In aquatic biology, it isnrsquo;t just the numbers of these sensitive organisms thatrsquo;s important ndash; when many different species are represented, this indicates richness, the abundance of varieties pointing to a complex and thriving ecosystem, with plenty of niches for many different kinds of organisms. The water is 3 degrees Centigrade, or about 38 degrees Fahrenheit, and we collect stoneflies from five families: green, common, perlodid, giant, and small winter stonefly.nbsp; Each of these has its place in the food chain ndash; some are crawlers that graze the algae and bacteria from the rocky bottom.nbsp; Others feed on the abundance of detritus caught between rocky pools and drops, munching through twigs and leaves, and recycling nutrients back to the water.nbsp; Some are carnivorous, and some are opportunistic.nbsp; And their lifecycles also vary: when they lay eggs, hatch into the larval stage, emerge from the water, and finally complete the cycle by depositing eggs for the next generation ndash; these are particular to each kind. Today, wersquo;ve caught a few of the small winter stonefly, which are sometimes called snowflies to honor the season in which they hatch from eggs that have been deposited by their terrestrial parents.nbsp; As the water warms, these bugs burrow down to the region of the loose sand, gravel, and cobble where surface water and groundwater mix and wait out the summer in quiet dormancy.nbsp; As the water starts t... Albemarle,County,,Climate,,Doyles,River,,Ecology,,Headwaters,,Natural,History,,Rivanna,River,,Water,Quality,,Wildlife lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/29/113-thanksgiving-for-drinking-water/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/29/113-thanksgiving-for-drinking-water/#comments Sat, 29 Nov 2008 20:05:06 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/29/113-thanksgiving-for-drinking-water/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/29/113-thanksgiving-for-drinking-water/feed/ 0 5:14 November 27, 2008 Walking through the South Fork Rivanna Water Treatment Plant brings a new appreciation for what it takes to turn river water into potable, ... November 27, 2008 Walking through the South Fork Rivanna Water Treatment Plant brings a new appreciation for what it takes to turn river water into potable, safe drinking water. This show originally aired on November 27, 2007 on ldquo;The Rivanna Rambler,rdquo; a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net. In late 1620, the God-fearing and intrepid band of Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, first stepped on the outer shores of Cape Cod ndash; close, but not quite there, in their search for a home and religious freedom in the New World.nbsp; After an arduous 2-month voyage across the Atlantic, their stores of fresh water ndash; and more importantly, the cider and beer on which most people relied for drink -- were precariously low. It took several forays down the sandy arm of the Cape to find rivers that spilled fresh water hellip; and eventually, when they moved the Mayflower to what is now known as Plymouth Harbor, it was chosen as much for its protection from Cape Cod Bay as for thenbsp; fresh water flowing in to it from the Jones River and a "very sweet brook" that flowed beside the landing rock, a brook that William Bradford wrote had as "good water as can be drunk."nbsp; He describe the water as "sweet," perhaps an adjective hard for us to appreciate in our modern day, unless we remember that by the 1600s, many rivers ndash; and city streets in the Old World ndash; were already fouled by sewage and what we would today call gray-water from bathing and laundering -- and were anything but sweet or safe to drink. For our Thanksgiving gatherings today, perhaps the one thing on the table that costs little in money or time to prepare is the water that fills our drinking glasses.nbsp; As a City resident, I get my water from the tap, with a simple turn of the wrist.nbsp; I do pay a monthly bill for this service (so it is not exactly "free").nbsp; Ad because I recently had the privilege of touring the South Fork Rivanna Water Treatment Plant, I now know a little more of what goes in to making the water safe for me to drink and cook with. Our tour, led by David Golladay, deputy manager water operations for the RWSA, starts outside in the chill bright air that has us all hugging ourselves for warmth as we walk the various stations of treatment.nbsp; Raw water from the reservoir is pumped uphill to the treatment facility where it travels through a series of 100-foot long settling basins for processes that remove the organics and dirt that give it the dense green -brown color of raw.nbsp; It's a mini-lesson in chemistry, as we learn how aluminum sulfate and other compounds are added to encourage the unwanted particles to clump together like small gauzy patches of snow and settle to the bottom.nbsp; As the water moves to other basins, long vacuum units remove what is now called sludge and send it down the hill to a dewatering facility that wrings out every last bit of moisture.nbsp; Eventually, the partially treated water moves inside and under cover, where it is dosed a second time with lime to adjust the pH, and where small amounts of chlorine and fluoride are added for our health and inhibitors added to reduce corrosion from the various piping systems it will eventually travel.nbsp; The treated water takes a final pass through filter basins made of crushed stone, sand, and coal, to capture any remaining impurities.nbsp; The result is water that regularly exceeds the Federal safe drinking water standards. All of these processes are overseen by one water treatment operator at the plant aided by modern electronics that provide closed circuit TV, automated and electronically controlled actuators for mixing and for analyzing water quality, pressure head, and flow through the various stages of treatment.nbsp; This plant treats 12 million gallons a day and sends it into the vast distribution network that delivers the water, on demand, 24 ndash;7 to homes and businesses like... Albemarle,County,,Charlottesville,,Rivanna,River,,South,Fork,,Water,Conservation,,Water,Quality,,Water,Supply lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/20/112-ginkgo-trees-the-oldest-living-plant/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/20/112-ginkgo-trees-the-oldest-living-plant/#comments Thu, 20 Nov 2008 20:06:13 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/20/112-ginkgo-trees-the-oldest-living-plant/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/20/112-ginkgo-trees-the-oldest-living-plant/feed/ 1
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5:22 November 20, 2008 One of the oldest living plants on earth, Ginkgo biloba, owes its longevity to its ability to tolerate a wide range of climatic ... November 20, 2008 One of the oldest living plants on earth, Ginkgo biloba, owes its longevity to its ability to tolerate a wide range of climatic condition. This show originally aired on November 20, 2007 on ldquo;The Rivanna Rambler,rdquo; a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net Occasionally, I get a call from someone ndash; usually my husband ndash; to report a sighting that is noteworthy of investigating for this show.nbsp; So last week, when my husband called, asking for the Rivanna Rambler in a whiny, pinched voice, I knew another tip was on its way. "I want to report a tree," the voice said. I pretended it was a crank call.nbsp; "What kind of tree?nbsp; Who Is this?" "A tree with leaves falling off of it." "What kind of tree?"nbsp; Hey, leaves were falling everywhere around town as the cold air and shorter days were finally forcing autumn's leafy splendor to the ground. "Gink-go." The voice said. Before I could say, "So what?" my husband, in normal voice now, told me that the gingko trees along Monticello Avenue that had just shed their leaves.nbsp; He had come upon them, empty and bare, a perfect circle of fan-shaped yellow leaves at the base of each tree. Now, I know of ginkgo biloba, used for thousands of years medicinally in the Far East, as a popular herbal supplement that is said to improve circulation and treat memory loss ndash; and researchers at Johns Hopkins say it shows promise of minimizing brain damage from stroke.nbsp; I had not paid it much attention, though, during tree courses, because it was only a specimen tree ndash; requiring propagation because it is not native to this area. But I was startled to learn that the gingko does, in fact, tend to drop its leaves all at one time, as though in response to a signal spread simultaneously through the organism along pathways we have yet to discover.nbsp; A signal, that it is time.nbsp; Time to let go and pass into the quiet dormancy of winter. I thought I'd better investigate for myself, so I drove over to UVA and found a large specimen on the curve of Alderman as it joins Ivy Road, just opposite the Chapel.nbsp; Its dark trunk and branches were not completely bare, but I could see the distinctive spur shoots on its branches.nbsp; Along that side of the road, five other ginkgos had been planted, young ones, only twenty feet tall, and here I saw at the base of each the telltale circle of yellow.nbsp; Later, I learned that the oldest local specimen stands by the Rotunda ndash;- the Pratt Ginkgo, named for William Pratt, the first Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds, who planted it from seed in 1860.nbsp; Blandy Experimental Farm has a grove 340 specimens, one of the largest collections outside of China. By the age of the dinosaurs 200 million years ago, several species of ginkgos had been widespread in North America and Europe for many millions of years.nbsp; But the tree seemed to decline after the age of the dinosaurs, and was gone from both North America Europe two million years ago.nbsp; When it was rediscovered 1691 in Japan, botanists realized that the tree had actually survived in China where Buddhist monks cultivated the tree and spread it by seed to Japan and Korea.nbsp; Records show that individual trees have lived 3000, maybe even 4000 years ndash; and the species perhaps owes its survival to its longevity. The gingko tree is now ubiquitous ndash; as an ornamental in gardens all over the world, as street trees, as specimens in botanical gardens everywhere. In the Far East it is still planted near monasteries and shrines because it is thought that the bark and leaves secrete a sap that is fire-retardant.nbsp; It survives well in urban settings around the world due to its natural resistance to diseases, insects, air pollution and even radioactive radiation. Not surprisingly, once noticed, I started to see the ginkgo tree everywhere.nbsp; Around to... Albemarle,County,,Charlottesville,,Ecology,,Natural,History lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/13/111-autumn-on-the-rivanna-encore/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/13/111-autumn-on-the-rivanna-encore/#comments Thu, 13 Nov 2008 20:05:06 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/13/111-autumn-on-the-rivanna-encore/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/13/111-autumn-on-the-rivanna-encore/feed/ 0
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4:40 November 13, 2008 A warm day on the river traveling to Rivanna Mills to sample provides opportunity to reflect on the need for both the short ... November 13, 2008 A warm day on the river traveling to Rivanna Mills to sample provides opportunity to reflect on the need for both the short and long view of changes in the watershed. This show originally aired on November 8, 2007 and then again on November 13, 2008 on ldquo;The Rivanna Rambler,rdquo; a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net. There is something not altogether right about this day.nbsp; Here it is, November 1st, and we should be bundled in fleece and wearing high rubber boots to venture out on the water.nbsp; Instead, wersquo;re wearing light rubber wading shoes that sink into the mud as we shove the canoe from the launch into the Rivanna at Hells Bend Farm, striving for a patch of water that will be deep enough to float the boat.nbsp; Though the water is a cool 56 degrees, the air temperature is climbing past 65 as the sun arcs into the autumn afternoon.nbsp; Irsquo;m not sure what doesnrsquo;t feel right: is it the air temperature? or the water level? which is still near historic lows in spite of patches of rain wersquo;ve had. Headed downriver to sample for aquatic bugs for the StreamWatch volunteer program, we quickly learn that the shoals in the center extend almost entirely across the river.nbsp; We snuggle up against the left bank, a vertical wall of dying asters and poison ivy, where a channel twice the width of the canoe is just deep enough to get a decent stroke.nbsp; Rounding Hellrsquo;s Bend, we stick to the outside, but in the long straightaway below we have to shove our way to the other side, seeking a route through the shallows of coarse sand deposited as the water slowed and dropped its load after the last storm.nbsp; The bottom is now being sculpted by the gentle flow into underwater ripples and bluffs much like the sharp relief of the winter beach is built by the tides and wind.nbsp; The channels along the banks are a Piedmont version of aquamarine.nbsp; The summerrsquo;s weed is gone, and everywhere, the water is clear enough to see to the bottom, where sunken leaves tumble and pile up against underwater tree limbs and rock outcroppings. Once at the sampling site below the Mill, we get to work, scraping bugs from a shallow cobbled riffle into the mesh net and pouring over the contents with our middle aged eyes.nbsp; We enter the world of macro ndash; where everything of interest is small ndash; one-eighth to as much as an inch long, like the fat, ribbed crane fly larvae that are in abundance today.nbsp; Wersquo;ve also captured small pebbles, twigs, and leaves in various stages of decomposition ndash; and from this tumble of browns and yellows, we must pick out the larvae of mayflies, water pennies, and caddisflies ndash; as well as the tiny clams and snails and worms that inhabit the stream.nbsp; Having sampled for a couple of years, we know that you look until you canrsquo;t find any more bugs, and then you look again, switch sides of the table and look some more, flip the net over and keep on looking, before you can have confidence that yoursquo;ve collected all the bugs in the net, which is necessary to assure quality data.nbsp; While we pour over the net, the river tumbles over the stone from the old dam, the sound making it seem like a fuller river than it is. By four orsquo;clock, wersquo;re winding down, just as the sky turns an ominous gray and the late afternoon sun catches clouds in curving lines stretched out in the wake the tropical depression Noel.nbsp; After pulling the canoe back up through the rapids to head home, I trip trying to step in the canoe and am suddenly on my butt in two feet of water that now feels plenty cool.nbsp; The paddle back upstream is welcome and warming work.nbsp; At the far end of the long straight channel, the late afternoon sky is dense with clouds descending their dark on tawny yellow sycamores that flank the river.nbsp; After straining to find the small bugs, it feels good to ... Climate,,Ecology,,Fluvanna,County,,Natural,History,,North,Fork,Rivanna,,Rivanna,River,,Rivanna,mainstem lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/06/110-here-comes-the-hydrilla-part-2/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/06/110-here-comes-the-hydrilla-part-2/#comments Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:05:46 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/06/110-here-comes-the-hydrilla-part-2/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/11/06/110-here-comes-the-hydrilla-part-2/feed/ 0
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5:04 November 6, 2008 Hydrilla may improve certain aspects of water quality, but it is an invasive aquatic weed that has caused numerous problems around the country.nbsp; ... November 6, 2008 Hydrilla may improve certain aspects of water quality, but it is an invasive aquatic weed that has caused numerous problems around the country.nbsp; The future maintenance of the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir will need to address this growing problem in the reservoir.nbsp; This show originally aired on October 30, 2008 on ldquo;The Rivanna Rambler,rdquo; a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net. Last week, we learned about the aquatic weed, hydrilla, an herbaceous, perennial freshwater herb originally imported from southeast Asian for aquariums and water gardens ndash; and a plant that has taken over millions of acres of shallow standing and moving water in the United States.nbsp; Unfortunately, it has taken rootnbsp; in our watershed, particularly in the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir, but it has also been found in tributaries like the North Fork as well as the river itself downstream from the reservoir. Like many plants that are characterized as invasive, it is not unattractive.nbsp; It has delicate leaves organized in whorls of three to eight around a central stalk that rises to the surface in water that can be from a foot to fifteen feet deep.nbsp; The leaves are 2 to 4 millimeters wide and can be from six to 20 millimeters long ndash; and what distinguishes hydrilla from the native pondweed (elodea), as well as a another look-alike transplant, the Brazilian waterweed, is the presence of many sharp teeth along the margin of the leaves. Invasive species take hold in our local habitat through a variety of means.nbsp; Some terrestrial plants out-compete natives by emerging earlier in the season, or being resistant to the evolutionary system of ecological checks and balances, or by reproducing in a scale that overwhelms local species.nbsp; Hydrilla has its own set of tricks for flourishing in the places it is introduced, whether by boats traveling from one waterway to another, or on the wind, or using other aquatic species to hitchhike a ride.nbsp; Once in a waterbody, it spreads out and forms dense canopies that can shade out native vegetation ndash; and while these areas can provide protective nursery grounds for juvenile fish, it is not a major food source for aquatic species.nbsp; Fishermen on our reservoir report seeing larger fish taking cover in the hydrilla ndash; but it is hard to get to them without snagging a lure full of heavy weed. Hydrilla also alters water quality by raising the pH and decreasing oxygen as well as increasing temperature under the mats of weed.nbsp; In slow moving water, the stands that are rooted to the bottom can catch sediment and accelerate the process of filling in and creating islands, as has been seen along many stretches of the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir. And these clever hydrilla have more than one way of reproducing. The plants, such as those often found in the mid-Atlantic, can host both male and female flowers, making for an easy date between ovary and sperm.nbsp; Plants also produce rhizomes that root horizontally in bottom soils, sending up new shoots opportunistically.nbsp; If that weren't enough, the plants also produce turions, small tuber-like growths that grow between stem and leaf and breaking free in the fall and floating till they fetch up in another spot, ready to take root in the spring.nbsp; With all these reproductive mechanisms at work, it's easy to see how simply mowing down the plants, as is done in some areas to clear docks or swimming areas, is only a partial solution ndash; and how eradication, as well as prevention of its spread, is next to impossible. Though chemical agents can kill the plants, many localities have used grass carp ndash; also an imported species ndash; to control hydrilla, though this has its own risks. Grass carp will out-compete native fish species ndash; and are only recommended in enclosed water bodies.nbsp; Our reservoir is only a temporary impoundment... Albemarle,County,,Charlottesville,,Ecology,,Natural,History,,North,Fork,Rivanna,,Rivanna,River,,Rivanna,mainstem,,South,Fork,,Water,Quality,,Water,Supply lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/10/30/109-here-comes-the-hydrilla/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/10/30/109-here-comes-the-hydrilla/#comments Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:11:35 +0000 admin http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/10/30/109-here-comes-the-hydrilla/ http://www.cvillepublicmedia.org/rambler/2008/10/30/109-here-comes-the-hydrilla/feed/ 0
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5:07 October 30, 2008 While the Virginia Film Festival showcases movies about aliens from other countries, other lives, and other worlds, we need look no further than ... October 30, 2008 While the Virginia Film Festival showcases movies about aliens from other countries, other lives, and other worlds, we need look no further than out own watershed for invasives of the biological variety.nbsp; The South Fork Rivanna Reservoir is now infested with Hydrilla verticillata, an aquatic weed that has caused problems in lakes, rivers, and sounds in other parts of the country. This show originally aired on October 30, 2008 on ldquo;The Rivanna Rambler,rdquo; a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net. I was reading in the paper how Richard Herkowitz, director of the Virginia Film Festival, decided that the subject of aliens could have social, political, as well as entertainment value ndash; and now we are in the midst of the movies about topics that range from immigration to space invasions.nbsp; We use the word alien to describe something that is "not from here" and usually with the connotation that it has no business being here.nbsp; Many times, we ascribe to aliens the notion that they are "invading," and thus underscore the menacing potential. Well, these terms are also used in the biological world.nbsp; While an alien species is simply "one not native to an area," it may become invasive if it is able to out-compete similar but native species.nbsp; If it is able to overcome ndash; or even thrive ndash; within the ecological limits provided by other native organisms, the plants, insects, and animals that have evolved together in a healthy balance. While alien space invaders may be thrilling or scary to contemplate, it is usually much harder for any of us to have a similar reaction about an invasive plant species ndash; like the common reed, Phragmites, that is overwhelming wetlands across the eastern seaboard and changing the visual and ecological character of marshy areas.nbsp; Or the Zebra mussel, whose capacity for feeding and filtering has rendered waters from the Great Lakes to the St. Lawrence Seaway stunningly clear, but biologically barren.nbsp; Usually, we first become aware of such invasions when they have an economic impact ndash; such as the need to keep water intakes from fowling with Zebra Mussels. But thanks to the focused attention of the South Rivanna Reservoir Task Force, we now know that we have an aquatic invasion in our watershed. Hydrilla verticillata, commonly known as hydrilla, is forming dense mats of growth along the margins of the reservoir, reducing access to rowing lanes, snagging fishermen's lures and stopping the strokes of boater's paddles. Those who row on the reservoir say its been a recent addition, only first noticed a couple of years ago, but dramatically increasing during this last growing season. Hydrilla came to the US through the nursery trade in the 1950's and has infested waters in coastal areas since the 1970's ndash; producing thick mats of vegetation on still and slow moving waters in Florida, Washington state, and now in the mid-Atlantic. Nearby in Louisa County, hydrilla management has been in effect for almost a decade to keep water intakes to the power plant unobstructed ndash; and simultaneously clearing the surface of the water for recreational boating. True to its invasive nature, hydrilla has multiple means of reproduction ndash; tubers at its roots, seeds from flowers, and turions ndash; those small seed-like growths at the axil of the plant stem.nbsp; These can survive ice, ingestion, and burial in bottom sediments for several years.nbsp; Mowing or chopping down plants only results in more aggressive growth. Other biological characteristics contribute to hydrilla's success.nbsp; Because it absorbs carbon from the water more efficiently than other plants and can store its own phosphorous, it thrives during summer months when these nutrients can be limited.nbsp; Because of this, some say that hydrilla improves water quality ndash; and though fisherman will say that it'... Albemarle,County,,Charlottesville,,Ecology,,Rivanna,River,,South,Fork,,Water,Supply,,Wetlands lmiddleton@embarqmail.com no No