VWC Newsletter - May 1999
VWC Annual Meeting
When:Sunday, June 6th: 10:00 amWhere:1601 Bentivar Farm Rd., Charlottesville - Bess & Jim Murray'sDirections:Proceed north from Charlottesville on US 29 until you cross the South Rivanna River. Turn right on Polo Grounds Road (Rt. 643). Proceed 2 miles until you cross under the railroad. About 200 yds. beyond, turn right on Bentivar Drive, and then immediately left on Bentivar Farm Road. Continue straight ahead for 1 mile to an old brick house.Agenda:
The Jefferson planning staff, under the leadership of Nancy Ross, has been holding two types of meetings. There are meetings held each month at which the public is invited to contribute ideas and to express concerns about the developing plans. So far these have been devoted to roadless areas and wilderness, wildlife, and watersheds and riparian areas. Coming up are sessions on roads (May 20 at Hungry Mother State Park) and timber management (June 24th at the Catawba Moose Lodge). The VWC has been represented at most of these sessions, along with other groups such as the Appalachian Trail Club and the Citizens Task Force. Another set of meetings runs along in parallel. The planning staff meet weekly to hammer out the nuts and bolts of the plan. These meetings are also open to the public, but the VWC does not have the manpower to monitor them all.
What can we expect in the near future? The Jefferson has promised to issue a set of alternative plans this summer, perhaps as early as June. These will, of course, span the spectrum from hands-off management to a single-minded emphasis on timber production. The public will be invited, in a series of meetings, to comment on the alternatives, including one that will be the "preferred alternative". It is at this stage that we should pull out all the stops and fight hard for our interests. We confidently expect that every alternative will have at least some recommendations for wilderness designation, but we need to make sure that our favorite candidates are included. Of course, that will only be the beginning of the road to wilderness designation. From then on we must carry the message to Congress.
Liming St. Mary's River
by Jim Murray
For good or ill, one of the vexed questions that has been troubling the VWC in recent months has been settled. 140 tons of limestone sand have been dumped into the headwaters of the St. Mary's watershed. The St. Mary's Wilderness has been suffering grievously from the effects of acid precipitation over the last few years. The Brown Trout and Rainbow Trout (admittedly not native species) have disappeared, and the native Brook Trout are on the edge. Placing lime in the watershed is a management technique that can, at least temporarily, mitigate the effects of low pH. Conservationists are divided over the wisdom of doing so.
On the positive side, limestone treatment has been shown to provide positive short term effects in a number of test situations. As Bill Damon, Jefferson Forest Supervisor says: "You want to keep all the pieces until a solution to the precipitation problem has been found." However there is a downside. Not only is the treatment invasive of the wilderness, it must be repeated every five to ten years or the situation will be made worse. Raising the pH does not eliminate the aluminum (which is the toxic substance released by acid rain), it merely stabilizes it in a form that is rapidly released should the pH fall again. So in fact an irreversible decision has been taken. It is now up to us to see that the Forest Service lives up to its commitment to persevere in the treatment of St. Mary's River into the foreseeable future.
Remembering Ernie Dickerman
Those of us who gathered last October at the Dickerman farm or at Laurel Fork to celebrate the life of Ernie Dickerman decided that one more tribute needed to be made. We invited many of Ernie's friends and fellow wilderness advocates to offer memories, accounts of old environmental battles, pictures, and thoughts for a memoir in his honor. The response was overwhelming. The accounts are articulate, funny, and inspiring.Through the kindness of the Wilderness Society these pieces are going to see the light of day, and you can expect to get a copy in the near future. We hope that you will recieve new strength and hope for the wilderness campaigns ahead, just as if Ernie were there to exhort you, as always, to more effort than you thought possible.
Officers:
PRESIDENT: Jim Murray, 1601 Bentivar Farm Rd., Charlottesville, VA 22901 (804) 973-6693
VICE PRES: Elizabeth Murray, same
TREASURER: Juliana Simpson, 11 E Monmouth, Winchester, VA 22603 (540) 662-7043
SECRETARY: Lynn Cameron, 5653 Beards Ford Rd., Mt. Crawford, VA 22841 (540) 234-6273
When:Sunday, June 6th: 10:00 amWhere:1601 Bentivar Farm Rd., Charlottesville - Bess & Jim Murray'sDirections:Proceed north from Charlottesville on US 29 until you cross the South Rivanna River. Turn right on Polo Grounds Road (Rt. 643). Proceed 2 miles until you cross under the railroad. About 200 yds. beyond, turn right on Bentivar Drive, and then immediately left on Bentivar Farm Road. Continue straight ahead for 1 mile to an old brick house.Agenda:
- Jefferson National Forest Plan
- Wildernes Campaign 1999
- Election of Officers
The Jefferson planning staff, under the leadership of Nancy Ross, has been holding two types of meetings. There are meetings held each month at which the public is invited to contribute ideas and to express concerns about the developing plans. So far these have been devoted to roadless areas and wilderness, wildlife, and watersheds and riparian areas. Coming up are sessions on roads (May 20 at Hungry Mother State Park) and timber management (June 24th at the Catawba Moose Lodge). The VWC has been represented at most of these sessions, along with other groups such as the Appalachian Trail Club and the Citizens Task Force. Another set of meetings runs along in parallel. The planning staff meet weekly to hammer out the nuts and bolts of the plan. These meetings are also open to the public, but the VWC does not have the manpower to monitor them all.
What can we expect in the near future? The Jefferson has promised to issue a set of alternative plans this summer, perhaps as early as June. These will, of course, span the spectrum from hands-off management to a single-minded emphasis on timber production. The public will be invited, in a series of meetings, to comment on the alternatives, including one that will be the "preferred alternative". It is at this stage that we should pull out all the stops and fight hard for our interests. We confidently expect that every alternative will have at least some recommendations for wilderness designation, but we need to make sure that our favorite candidates are included. Of course, that will only be the beginning of the road to wilderness designation. From then on we must carry the message to Congress.
Liming St. Mary's River
by Jim Murray
For good or ill, one of the vexed questions that has been troubling the VWC in recent months has been settled. 140 tons of limestone sand have been dumped into the headwaters of the St. Mary's watershed. The St. Mary's Wilderness has been suffering grievously from the effects of acid precipitation over the last few years. The Brown Trout and Rainbow Trout (admittedly not native species) have disappeared, and the native Brook Trout are on the edge. Placing lime in the watershed is a management technique that can, at least temporarily, mitigate the effects of low pH. Conservationists are divided over the wisdom of doing so.
On the positive side, limestone treatment has been shown to provide positive short term effects in a number of test situations. As Bill Damon, Jefferson Forest Supervisor says: "You want to keep all the pieces until a solution to the precipitation problem has been found." However there is a downside. Not only is the treatment invasive of the wilderness, it must be repeated every five to ten years or the situation will be made worse. Raising the pH does not eliminate the aluminum (which is the toxic substance released by acid rain), it merely stabilizes it in a form that is rapidly released should the pH fall again. So in fact an irreversible decision has been taken. It is now up to us to see that the Forest Service lives up to its commitment to persevere in the treatment of St. Mary's River into the foreseeable future.
Remembering Ernie Dickerman
Those of us who gathered last October at the Dickerman farm or at Laurel Fork to celebrate the life of Ernie Dickerman decided that one more tribute needed to be made. We invited many of Ernie's friends and fellow wilderness advocates to offer memories, accounts of old environmental battles, pictures, and thoughts for a memoir in his honor. The response was overwhelming. The accounts are articulate, funny, and inspiring.Through the kindness of the Wilderness Society these pieces are going to see the light of day, and you can expect to get a copy in the near future. We hope that you will recieve new strength and hope for the wilderness campaigns ahead, just as if Ernie were there to exhort you, as always, to more effort than you thought possible.
Officers:
PRESIDENT: Jim Murray, 1601 Bentivar Farm Rd., Charlottesville, VA 22901 (804) 973-6693
VICE PRES: Elizabeth Murray, same
TREASURER: Juliana Simpson, 11 E Monmouth, Winchester, VA 22603 (540) 662-7043
SECRETARY: Lynn Cameron, 5653 Beards Ford Rd., Mt. Crawford, VA 22841 (540) 234-6273