Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy

The following article was prepared by Joe Coleman, President of Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy. We need to dispel the inaccuracies being proliferated around this much needed ordinance. This article helps to do that:

For over a year now, Loudoun County has been working on an ordinance to protect our streams by preserving vegetated streamside buffers.

Vegetated streamside buffers, or riparian buffers as they are also know, are strips of grass, shrubs, and ideally trees and shrubs along the banks of rivers and streams. They serve as a buffer between our uses of the land and the water itself, and are the last line of defense for water quality.

To understand how a buffer works imagine drinking a cup of coffee made without a filter or even one with half a filter; think of all the sediment that would end up in your coffee.

Unfortunately, the people opposed to this ordinance are using fear tactics and mistruths in an attempt to derail this effort. They falsely claim that there is no sound science supporting buffers when there are literally hundreds, if not thousands of documents based on extensive scientific research that demonstrate the effectiveness of streamside buffers, and especially forested buffers.

By cherry picking some of these reports, they claim they prove their point of view, when the opposite is true. The opposition claims a streamside buffer ordinance will harm property values and the county’s finances when it has done neither in the 84 Virginia counties that have already adopted the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Ordinance. Seven of those 84 counties have Triple-A bond ratings and most of them received that rating after they adopted the Ordinance.

Obviously, it did not harm their finances or their ability to balance their budgets. Although Loudoun County is not required by law to adopt the ordinance, a 2003 report, Implementation of the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission of the Virginia General Assembly, states (pages 90 – 91) that “hundreds of studies have been done on the impact of vegetative buffer and forest buffers on water quality” and “the hundred-foot buffer zone that is used in the Bay Act is within the typical range that is described as effective in the scientific literature…”

The report goes on to state “the expansion of the program could assist in minimizing nutrient and sediment influxes to waterways …” It is not surprising that one of the country’s fastest growing counties, Loudoun, is the first jurisdiction listed each time expansion of the program to non-Tidewater areas is mentioned.

During the Board of Supervisor’s stakeholders meetings, the opposition found people to represent Homeowners Associations that not only have no lots impacted by the ordinance, but also their “representatives” neither lived there nor had any legal connection with the HOA. Under those circumstances one has to wonder how many valid members of the Homeowners Association were aware this was occurring. Recently their attacks have become more strident and outrageous.

They have personally attacked, named and demanded that county employees who were explaining why the ordinance was valid and important be fired. They are even claiming that these employees will be investigated by the State Attorney General.

It is obvious that they are interested in intimidating those same employees into silence and hope the Board of Supervisors will be swayed by their threats. One can only hope that reasonable people will see the absurdity of this sort of campaign and let their representatives on the Board of Supervisors know how upsetting the outrageous behavior of the opposition is and how important it is that the county adopt the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Ordinance now.

The American Bird Conservancy recently sent out this action alert and we wanted to help spread the word and encourage those who recognize our need for environmental protections to take action:

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a spending bill that eliminates several key bird and wildlife programs, drastically cuts funding for others, and curtails the ability of government agencies to implement environmental regulations.  If passed by the Senate, these destructive funding cuts and policy provisions will harm birds and wildlife, and undo decades of successful conservation efforts in every state.

While we all understand the need for fiscal responsibility in difficult economic times, this should not be used as an excuse to eliminate support for our national treasure: birds and other wildlife.

PROPOSED FOR ELIMINATION:

* State Wildlife Grants, the nation’s core program for preventing birds and wildlife from becoming endangered in every state and territory. Previously funded at $90 million.

*  The North American Wetlands Conservation Act, which provides funding for conservation projects that benefit wetland birds, and had been funded previously at $47.6 million per year.  

* The Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to effectively help wetland restoration under the Clean Water Act.

It’s quick and easy to take action.

This is a really quick two-minute action where YOU can make a difference for Loudoun’s Clean Environment!  And on this snowy day, this is a great excuse for taking a break from shoveling….

Loudoun County has proposed a stream preservation ordinance that will require a buffer of trees and other vegetation to be left alone along stream banks. This buffer is critical to the health of our waterways here locally and all the way to the Chesapeake Bay.

Riparian buffers are the single most effective means of protecting water quality.  Streams guarded by a healthy forested riparian buffer are cleaner, cooler and are more stable than those without buffers.  To read more about riparian buffers, check out our Habitat Herald article. Our position is that a 100′ buffer must be required. This is the minimum needed to be effective.

The two step action is easy:

First, send an email to your county Supervisor asking them to protect our streams.

Second, click over to Chairman Scott York’s blog where he has posted a poll and cast your opinion.

I know the poll is super quick and easy to do, so please do click on it but sending a quick email has so much more impact so I really hope you’ll do both.

We have a right to a clean and healthy environment and while this ordinance will not solve all our environmental issues here in Loudoun, it is a good start.

Please share this posting with others so our voice for a clean and healthy environment is heard. We have a responsibility to future generations to do so.

Read our full action alert here and our position letter to the Board of Supervisors here.

Kenn Kauffman wrote an incredible post on the journey of migratory birds and the impact of windmills – which are taking up the new function of “bird slicers”.

Please take a few minutes to read it here and then consider signing the online petition. 

The post is quite compelling and engaging as he talks about specific birds along the flight path. The photos are amazing: http://nimsoh.blogspot.com/2010/11/long-nights-journey-into-death.html

The Washington Post did a terrific article a few weeks ago on the problems with our water. The discussion has focused on “the Chesapeake Bay”. For most (even in Loudoun), the Chesapeake Bay is a far off place that has nothing to do with our daily lives.

In truth though, what we do here in Loudoun affects the Chesapeake Bay because of run-off and erosion.  Even still, most people still say – “So what? What do I care about the Bay? It doesn’t affect me. I can get drinkable water from my tap. I can eat crabs whenever I want.”  And they’re probably right.

But that’s an illusion and is missing the point.  The real effort behind “cleaning up the Bay” is about restoring the habitat we have here so that water here is safe and plentiful to drink. The Bay is just the indicator of the poor practices we currently engage in.

There is a problem and the sickness that continues to manifest itself is being shown in the health of the waters in the Bay. The Chesapeake Bay is the canary in the coal mine if you will for the sickness that is running through the watershed – through our backyard streams and the Potomac River.

You may not care about the Chesapeake Bay – it’s miles away after all – but you should care about the water that is running through our neighborhoods that we are drinking.  Poor environmental practices come at a cost – to get water clean enough to drink we pay (in our taxes – oh yes we do) for huge systems to sanitize our drinking water. If we could just change our behaviors and take care of our habitat, natural environmental filters would restore water quality.

In the Washington Post article, we are essentially given a dream to ponder (a dream that was actually the reality not too many years ago)…..Imagine what could happen if most of our lawns were replaced with native plants and grasses…

I ask….Imagine what could happen if we placed a higher value on the health of our environment (and ourselves) than on clearing forest and other plant buffers. 

This is an issue that will be addressed sooner or later – either by us today when we can be proactive about it, or by our children in the future, when a tragedy of polluted water forces us to change.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/07/AR2010110705206.html

Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy continues to stay engaged in the discussion around establishing a Streams ordinance for Loudoun.  We participate in stakeholder meetings and continue to advocate for preserving and restoring a healthy natural environment.

Here’s a nice quick video that talks about birds, the need to regain our dark skies and a one-minute action that you can take to help: http://www.whatyoucando.ontheleesh.com/

Natalie Pien contributed the wonderful article below for our next issue of the Habitat Herald.  Due to the timeliness of it, I wanted to be sure to share it with you here. We need to take action now:

Protecting Our Streams

Streams in Loudoun County need protection.  A 2009 study, funded in part by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), of 200 stream sites throughout Loudoun, found that 78% of the stream miles were stressed or severely stressed due to poor water quality. 

The Loudoun County Water Resources report published findings that bacteria in 63% to 83% of streams sampled between 2005 and 2009 exceeded the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) limits for recreation/swimming.  In 2007, DEQ posted Health Advisories along Broad Run and Goose Creek warning against eating fish due to the presence of PCB’s in fish tissue.

Water pollution occurs when land-use changes from natural forests and meadows to any one of a variety of uses, such as agriculture, residential, commercial, or industrial.  Pollution from these different land uses can be classified as either Point Source pollution or Non-Point Source pollution.  Factories or sewage treatment plants are examples of Point Source pollution because the pollutants discharge from a pipe at a specific point/location on a stream.  Point Source pollution is regulated by EPA’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.

Non-Point Source pollution refers to pollutants that enter a stream not at a specific point through a single pipe, but at multiple points wherever rain water runoff flows overland and enters a stream.  The type of pollutant that enters a stream depends on the particular type of land use.  For example, in residential areas, fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides improperly applied to lawns and gardens can be washed off the land and carried to streams by rain water runoff.  

Agriculture can result in similar types of pollutants and livestock can introduce bacteria and sediment to streams.  Oil, de-icing chemicals, and particles deposited on paved surfaces can end up in streams through runoff.  Unlike Point Source pollution, Non-Point Source pollution is difficult to quantify and regulate and, while not regulated now, it likely will be in the near future.

As land use changes from natural conditions, impervious surfaces such as rooftops and pavement prevent rainwater from soaking into the ground.  Instead, the amount of rain water runoff increases, resulting in stream water velocity increasing to erosive speeds.

Pollution from Non-Point Sources can be effectively reduced by “Mother Nature’s Filters,” otherwise known as Riparian Buffers.  Riparian Buffers are areas of land adjacent to streams that are protected so that trees and other vegetation can grow.  Riparian Buffers have many benefits, including:

• 70% reduction of sediment pollution that can smother aquatic organisms;
• 40% reduction of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers that cause algae blooms and subsequent oxygen depletion;
• decreased rain water runoff velocity to reduce erosion of stream banks;
• decreased volume of rain water runoff by allowing it to soak into the ground;
• habitat and corridors for wildlife;
• organic matter input to streams by leaf litter;
• shade to keep stream water temperature lower and hold more oxygen for aquatic life.

(For a thorough and excellent description of Riparian Buffers, see the Fall issue of the Habitat Herald, Volume XII, Issue 3.)

Currently, Riparian Buffers are not protected in Loudoun County.  Witness the destruction of over 400 trees along the Potomac River on the Trump National Golf Course (Washington Postarticle August 13, 2010).  Riparian Buffers need to be protected to help maintain clean and healthy streams. 

We all need clean water to drink, bathe, grow and prepare our food.  The Chesapeake Bay Protection Ordinance (CBPO) would protect Riparian Buffers in all parts of Loudoun County, agricultural and residential alike (visit Loudoun Clean Streams Coalition at loudounstreams.org to learn more about the ordinance).  On September 21, the Board of Supervisors (BOS) will consider the CBPO.

You are called upon to act on behalf of our current generation and future generations by protecting water resources today.  Put your environmental conscience into action by doing any or all of the following, now:

• contact your supervisor by phone or by e-mail urging a vote to move forward on the CBPO;
• visit the Loudoun Clean Stream Coalition Blog at loudounstreams.org for sample letters to the BOS;
• attend an information session in your area (see Blog for dates);
• attend the BOS Public Input Session on September 20 to speak or show your support (contact Loudoun Clean Streams Coalition for assistance.)
• inform your friends, colleagues, neighbors;
• post a flier (visit http://loudounstreams.org/ for a copy to print) at health food stores, coffee shops, libraries, community centers, doctors’ offices (with permission, of course).
• sign the petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/40/help-protect-Loudoun-streams/

Your help is crucial to ensure that the CBPO moves forward.

There’s been a lot of information in the papers on the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act  - some of it accurate, some of it not.

The Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act is something we need here in Loudoun and we need it now. Over the coming weeks we’ll be posting more information that you can use.

A great resource available right now is the website for Loudoun’s Clean Streams Coalition, of which Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy is a part.  On this website you’ll find information on what the Act means for Loudoun, a history of the Act in Virginia and how it’s been applied in other counties like Fairfax, links to additional resources on streams and buffers, and more.

Additionally, members of our Board of Supervisors and County staff are out and about doing community sessions to hear citizen concerns, debunk myths, and answer citizen questions. 

I encourage you to learn more about this Act. Our streams across Loudoun need help. We’ve been monitoring our local streams for 14 years along with other organizations in Loudoun and we have the data to show that they are in trouble. We also know that preserving and restoring the buffers along streams helps improve water quality and the overall health of our environment.

Given the number of Government buildings in our area, I thought this action alert from the American Bird Conservancy would be especially applicable to us.

From the American Bird Conservancy:

As many as one billion birds, both residents and migrants, die annually in the United States after colliding with buildings. You can help prevent these unnecessary deaths.

A new bill, the Federal Bird-Safe Buildings Act of 2010 (H.R. 4797), calls for each public building constructed, acquired, or altered by the federal government to incorporate, to the maximum extent possible, bird-safe building materials and design features. The legislation would require the government to take similar actions on existing buildings where practicable. This has already been demonstrated to be attainable, as some newer government buildings are already bird-friendly.

This bill will help prevent the deaths of millions of  birds that collide with windows at thousands of federal buildings across the country.

Take action now by sending an email to your Representative asking them to support this bill using American Bird Conservancy’s Action Alert System. The system is fully automated, so all you need to do is enter your details and submit. However, the impact of your action will be greatly increased if you take some extra time to add your personal thoughts and comments.

Never a dull moment when it comes to speaking out for wildlife and especially this environmentally rich little swath of land in Ashburn where the Great Blue Heron Rookery sits. First it was the baseball stadium, now radio towers…..

You may have seen the piece in the newspapers about this controversial application that was submitted to our Loudoun County Planning commission. Here’s a link at Leesburg Today that includes the story and some of the points made by Mike Friedman, Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy Board member, as he spoke before the Planning Commission at their input session.

In addition to speaking at the input session, Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy, working with our partners in the Loudoun County Preservation and Conservation Commission, has submitted a formal letter opposing the towers. We will continue to keep on top of this issue to protect the Great Blue Herons and their habitat.

The key points on our position are below:

1. The proposed construction will require ground disturbing activities with the major floodplain and the clearing of approximately two-acres of existing forest cover. The preservation of the riparian forests and vegetated areas surrounding stream corridors provides the greatest single protection of water quality. The environmental polices of the Revised General Plan do not support the location of the proposed radio towers within a floodplain or the removal of forest cover. The Board of Supervisors has made the improvement of water quality in Loudoun’s rivers as a high priority and is currently considering the adoption of the Chesapeake Bay Option One regulations which clearly would not support this application.
2. The Great Blue Heron rookery extends for 150 feet along the Broad Run. The proposed location for the Towers is far inside of the 700 foot buffer needed. Great Blue Herons will abandon their nests if human activity occurs close to the nests. The preservation of important bird habitats is supported in the Revised General Plan. In addition, the noise from the required backup generator will disturb the Great Blue Herons and the storage of fuel in the floodplain presents an environmental risk.
3. The State Threatened Wood Turtle (as included in the Virginia Wildlife Action Plan) has been documented approximately 2.3 miles from this project. The wood turtle habitat was in close proximity to Cabin Branch, which is a tributary to the Broad Run upstream from this project. Wood turtles typically remain in moist areas within 300-600 feet of a stream. However, wood turtles have been known to travel several kilometers from the stream in which they hibernate. It is possible that wood turtles could reach the area of the proposed radio towers.

Finally, we are disappointed that Loudoun Water has agreed to allow this proposal on their property. Loudoun Water has always been a responsible steward of the environment on their land and in their operations. We find it surprising that Loudoun Water has agreed to this proposal and would hope they might reconsider.