President Surprises Corn Farmers with Ethanol Waiver

from CNN:

Washington (CNN)The trade war with China has been particularly painful for American farmers, but a separate issue is currently straining their support for the administration: biofuel.

The leaders of 23 corn grower organizations sent a letter to President Donald Trump on Friday, arguing that his administration's biofuel waivers have reduced demand for their crops.

"Frustration in the countryside is growing," the letter reads.

In August, the Environmental Protection Agency granted 31 waivers to small refineries, temporarily exempting them from biofuel laws. The waivers free refineries from having to blend biofuels like ethanol into their gasoline.

Corn growers immediately voiced their concerns and Trump later tweeted that a "giant" ethanol package was in the works.

"The Farmers are going to be so happy when they see what we are doing for Ethanol," Trump tweeted.

But, a month later, they appear tired of waiting for the details to be finalized. In the letter, growers said that a rising number of ethanol plants are closing or reducing production, costing more than 2,700 jobs. If refineries are using fewer soybeans and corn, it drags down

"Abnormally Dry" continues

When ordering tree seedlings for an Appalachian Regional Commission project the state nursery referred to us as the West Virginia desert.  We're still officially "abnormally dry" in Hampshire County, but there's no substantive moisture in the future.

from Nottingham, MD:



NOTTINGHAM, MD—A significant lack of recent rain, and unusual late season heat, have led to the development of “flash drought” conditions across a large portion of the area.

The National Weather Service says that the short-term dryness and heat have quickly overcome the long- term record wetness the region experienced between April 2018 and the early summer of 2019, and impacts from this short-term dryness are rapidly increasing.

A United States Drought Monitor (USDM) report released on Thursday, September 26, indicates rapidly-deteriorating conditions. Moderate Drought (D1) is now indicated across portions of the

Remove Stiltgrass now!

Stiltgrass has taken over much of Hampshire County unused or recently disturbed land.  It's surprisingly to pull stiltgrass, but it's everywhere.  Pull it or mow it now before seeds form or you'll add another year or two to your fight!

It's not hard to identify after you see it a time or two. The key is that silver vein that runs up the middle of the leaf. This is a non-native invasive plant that's all over the county and, if you have a yard, there's a good chance it's there. The roots aren't deep, so it's easy to pull out of the ground. Here's more good information about stiltgrass and getting rid of it: http://bit.ly/2z6MYbR


  

Agriculture Resources for Teachers

For the new school year from Corteva Agricscience, Dow AgroSciences, Dupont and Pioneer:

Click HERE for the lesson plans and videos for your classroom.

Alliance for the Bay Events

Fellow farmers, river advocates, and others: let me know if you're interested in collaborating concerning the South Branch or my help (or current and former Watershed or Biodiversity grad students) in anything involving the Upper Potomac. I have about six ideas and would enjoy some influencers on identifying shared priorities.  West Virginia is nearly ALWAYS underrepresented at these events.

Jim@WoodHouseResearch.org or Jim@SouthBranchPotomac.org

About allianceforthebay.org

RFP: Poster Session

The Request for Proposals for Posters at the 2019 Chesapeake…

Smithsonian Ginkgo Trees Research

We began growing female Ginkgo trees at the Wood House Farm in 2007 for a USDA researcher when concern for genetic diversity became a concern. Ginkgo trees are the oldest known tree species on Earth and have no close relatives.

The project, "Fossil Atmospheres," is unique in both its scale and level of citizen science involvement. (Rich Barclay)

Modern ginkgo leaves closely resemble fossilized specimens. (Scott Wing)

Citizen scientists can spot ginkgo leaves based on their distinctive fan-shaped appearance. (Rich Barclay)

Urban planners love Ginkgo trees (Ginkgo biloba) almost as much as our (Gleditsia triacanthos), but they only like male Ginkgos.  Nurseries guarantee male Ginkgos through cuttings, which is functionally cloning, and that quickly reduces genetic diversity.

Ginkgo has survived three mass extinctions, including the one that killed the dinosaurs. (Rich Barclay)

Smithsonian Scientists Are Using Ginkgo Leaves to Study Climate Change—They Need Your Help

Citizen scientists can submit leaf samples from their hometowns through the end of August

By Meilan Solly

SMITHSONIAN.COM | Aug. 6, 2019, 10:38 a.m.

The next time you venture into the great outdoors, keep an eye out for Ginkgo biloba trees, which can be easily identified by their distinctive fan-shaped leaves. If you find one—and you likely will, as the

Genetically Engineered Chestnut Trees

In coordination with Penn State's School of Forestry and College of Agriculture, we began growing genetically engineered BC1and BC3 generation chestnuts at the Wood House Farm in 2006, just a year after planting about 40 100% American chestnuts (Castanea dentata).  We currently have over 70 chestnuts (representatives of or hybrids of C. dentata and C. mollissima) at different life stages.

from PSMag.com:


Is the genetically engineered chestnut tree an act of ecological restoration or a threat to wild forests?

The day after Earth Day at the New York Botanical Garden was one of those spring stunners when half the city had come out to get their nature fix after a long, gray winter. Couples lolled on the lawns and shot photos of babies beneath blossoming crab apples. Parents pushing strollers past Azalea Garden and up Daffodil Hill eyed me suspiciously as I sidled up to a scraggly bare tree beside the path.

Amid 250 acres of gorgeous organisms, this specimen was the homeliest of the bunch. Twelve feet tall, with spindly gray branches and raw cankers shredding its trunk, it was not likely to be featured in any baby photos that day. Yet I had come all the way from Vermont to see it. The draw for me wasn't looks; it was the fact that the tree was alive at all. Here was a 10-year-old American chestnut, one of the first in a century to make it that long.

The American chestnut has been called the redwood of the East. From Georgia to Maine, up and

Plant and Pest Programs from Next Door

Resources for 
farmers and other ag producers and researchers from neighboring Virginia: the Office of Plant Industry Services protects agricultural and horticultural economic interests by overseeing compliance with a variety of laws.

Click here.

Plant & Pest Programs

• Beekeeping & Apiary Inspection
• Boxwood Blight 
• Coyote Control
• Plant Pathology
• Endangered Species
• Export Certification
• Ginseng
• Industrial Hemp
• Noxious Weeds
• Nursery Inspection
• Plant Pest Survey & Detection

Outdoor Learning is Good for Teachers Too.

An Hour or Two of Outdoor Learning Every Week Increases Teachers’ Job Satisfaction

Science Daily - July 5, 2019 | By Editor | News Round Up

A Swansea University study has revealed how as little as an hour a week of outdoor learning has tremendous benefits for children and also boosts teachers' job satisfaction.

Through interviews and focus groups, researchers explored the views and experiences of pupils and educators at three primary schools in south Wales that had adopted an outdoor learning programme, which entailed teaching the curriculum in the natural environment for at least an hour a week.

New Effort to Protect Rivers from Slaughterhouse Pollution

Public Interest Groups Launch Legal Action to Protect Waterways from Slaughterhouse Pollution

July 2, 2019

EPA’s Failure to Update Wastewater Guidelines is Allowing Contamination of Nation’s Waterways

Betsy Nicholas, Waterkeepers Chesapeake, (202) 423-0504 or betsy@waterkeeperschesapeake.org
Washington, D.C.— Conservation groups today filed a formal notice of intent to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for failing to update slaughterhouse wastewater guidelines as required by the Clean Water Act.

More than 8 billion chickens, 100 million hogs, and 30 million beef cattle are processed each year in more than 5,000 slaughterhouses across the country. An estimated 4,700 of these are currently allowed to discharge processed wastewater directly into waterways or to publicly-owned treatment plants.

“Many of these dirty slaughterhouses contribute to impairments in the waterways where they discharge their pollution,” said Sylvia Lam, Attorney with the Environmental Integrity Project. “The most polluting plants also release far more pollution than the cleanest plants. EPA needs to step in, set stronger national water pollution standards for meat and poultry processing plants, and level the playing field.”

The Clean Water Act requires the EPA to annually review, and potentially strengthen, industry-wide water pollution standards—called effluent limitation guidelines —for slaughterhouses to ensure the

Job openings in flood control dam maintenance

Ticks!

Surge of Ticks Expected in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic States Due to Wet, Mild Winter

By

Dave Bloom

-

Record setting precipitation combined with mild temperatures this winter are setting the stage for an explosion in the tick population this spring, according to researchers at Rutgers University.

“Ticks, like most small organisms, are very sensitive to dry weather. It kills them,” said Dina M. Fonseca, a Rutgers entomology professor and director of its the Center for Vector Biology. “But we have been experiencing exceptionally wet seasons. It slows down their decline in number. So we could end up for a very large population this year.”

The Northeast and Mid-Atlantic experienced above average precipitation and temperatures during the winter months leading to this spring. According to New Jersey State climatologist David Robinson, the Garden State averaged 64.8 inches of precipitation in 2018 — the wettest year on record — followed by a winter featuring the 13th-most precipitation since 1895.

Ticks are known for spreading a host of diseases like ehrlichiosis, tularemia, and Lyme Disease, but the Lone Star Tick is also known to cause alpha-gal syndrome where one develops an allergy to a sugar found in red meat and in some medications.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides the following advice for preventing tick bites:

:

Before You Go Outdoors

Know where to expect ticks. Ticks live in grassy, brushy, or wooded areas, or even on animals. Spending time outside walking your dog, camping, gardening, or hunting could bring you in close contact with ticks. Many people get ticks in their own yard or neighborhood.

Treat clothing and gear with products containing 0.5% permethrin. Permethrin can be used to treat boots, clothing and camping gear and remain protective through several washings. Alternatively, you can buy permethrin-treated clothing and gear.

Use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registered insect repellents containing DEET, picaridin, IR3535, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus (OLE), para-menthane-diol (PMD), or 2-undecanone. EPA’s helpful search tool can help you find the product that best suits your needs. Always follow product instructions.

• Do not use insect repellent on babies younger than 2 months old.
• Do not use products containing OLE or PMD on children under 3 years old.

Avoid Contact with Ticks

• Avoid wooded and brushy areas with high grass and leaf litter.
• Walk in the center of trails.

After You Come Indoors

Check your clothing for ticks. Ticks may be carried into the house on clothing. Any ticks that are found should be removed. Tumble dry clothes in a dryer on high heat for 10 minutes to kill ticks on dry clothing after you come indoors. If the clothes are damp, additional time may be needed. If the clothes require washing first, hot water is recommended. Cold and medium temperature water will not kill ticks.

Examine gear and pets. Ticks can ride into the home on clothing and pets, then attach to a person later, so carefully examine pets, coats, and daypacks.

Shower soon after being outdoors. Showering within two hours of coming indoors has been shown to reduce your risk of getting Lyme disease and may be effective in reducing the risk of other tickborne diseases. Showering may help wash off unattached ticks and it is a good opportunity to do a tick check.

Check your body for ticks after being outdoors. Conduct a full body check upon return from potentially tick-infested areas, including your own backyard. Use a hand-held or full-length mirror to view all parts of your body. Check these parts of your body and your child’s body for ticks:

• Under the arms
• In and around the ears
• Inside belly button
• Back of the knees
• In and around the hair
• Between the legs
• Around the waist

Sources:

• Mild winter, wet 2018 may cause surge in ticks in NJ, Northeast – NorthJersey.com
• Preventing tick bites – CDC

April Showers - May Flowers, May Showers - Flash Flooding

But while flash floods make the larger South Branch muddy, they don't necessarily result in larger flooding unless the weather system travels North-Northeast along the watershed.  This week we'll likely on see a swollen muddy South Branch.

We're in the clear, but the river will rise

WV Water Resources Concerns

register-herald.com

Water rich, water poor: WVU professor shares his views on the state's most important resource

When bean counters tabulate the profitable natural resources of West Virginia, calculations are made about the coal that is hauled out of the rugged and rural mountain landscape or the natural gas being captured from thousands of wells in increasing volumes. There remains a vast supply of timber, too.

But for Nicolas Zegre, an associate professor of forest hydrology at West Virginia University and the director of the university's Mountain Hydrology Laboratory, the most important and largely overlooked commodity in the state is water.

Zegre is studying the state's water security, how climate change could impact the state's supply and how the state can position itself to benefit from what he believes is its most valuable resource.

On April 1, Zegre presented the media with the work, some findings and future possibilities for the Mountain Hydrology Laboratory at WVU's Academic Media Day in Morgantown.

The hydrology professor said that his lab's work centered on predicting climate in the state and the greater Appalachian region by compiling modeling of climate patterns and possibilities.

***

According to Zegre, the historical temperature range of West Virginia falls between

Hampshire man pleads to EPA crimes

Friday, April 5-7, 15 min ago
MAKING HEADLINES

Hampshire man pleads to EPA crimes


MARTINSBURG — A Springfield man has pled guilty to discharging untreated sewage into the North Branch of the Potomac River.

Timothy Peer, 55, faces 3 years in prison and upwards of $500,000 in fines for charges of falsifying reports, violating his permit, polluting and mail fraud.
Peer admitted in Martinsburg federal court Wednesday that he failed to maintain a treatment plant he owned at Mountainaire Village near Ridgeley and that he falsified quarterly reports.

Visit www.HampshireReview.com or Hampshire Review every day for the latest news of importance here.

White Horse Mountain fundraising

bayjournal.com

Bay Journal

Hugging the slow s-curves of road winding into a mountainous sliver of West Virginia’s Hampshire County, I remembered why they call this portion of the Chesapeake Bay watershed “wild” — and why clean water advocates were desperate to keep it that way.

I was headed to White Horse Mountain, an almost entirely tree-covered heap of rocky hills hugging and draining into the South Branch of the Potomac River. It’s one of the largest undeveloped forestlands remaining in the region, home to rare wildflowers and habitats, hike-worthy vistas and the occasional bobcat or black bear. And it’s only recently been reopened to the public.

Five years ago, the Potomac Conservancy began raising more than $3 million — twice the nonprofit’s annual operating budget — to buy White Horse Mountain and keep its 1,730 acres of hardwood forest, rocky outcroppings and shady streams from being developed into 70 homes. Their fundraising efforts trumpeted the importance of preserving the

It's that time of the year..

Copperheads are common along the South branch. They are generally "shy" and will avoid humans and dogs. But if trapped they may strike to protect themselves, much like adult black snakes. But unlike young black snakes, young (especially very young) copperheads strike at almost anything that moves.

Rivers in WV more vulnerable than in other states

Clean Water Act Revision: Headwater Streams and Wetlands Could Lose Protections – Comment by 4/15

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposal to redefine an important part of the Clean Water Act, which protects headwater streams and wetlands. The rule the Trump Administration is proposing to redefine is called “waters of the United States.” It determines what waterbodies are eligible for protection under the Clean Water Act. Learn more here.

By the EPA’s own estimate, the revision would remove protections for 51% of our nation’s wetlands and 18% of streams, making it easier to pollute, pave over or build on

Water quality bill passes without updated human health criteria

Water quality bill passes without updated human health criteria – The Parthenon


Perry Bennett

West Virginia House delegates enter chambers, Saturday, March 9. 

New proposals concerning water quality and protections will not 

be reviewed until the 2020 legislative session.

West Virginia House delegates enter chambers, Saturday, March 9. New proposals concerning water quality and protections will not be reviewed until the 2020 legislative session.

Advertisement
In 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency recommended West Virginia update 60 of its 94 water quality standards to reduce present toxins and carcinogens, but this weekend, the state legislature passed a bill including none of the recommended protections.

Delegate Evan Hansen (D- Monongalia, 51), minority vice chair of natural resources, said the standards in Senate Bill 163, ultimately determined by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, rely on data from the 1980s.

Hansen proposed an amendment to the bill to re-include the updated protections that were removed, but the amendment failed in a 34-64 vote.

“The reason legislators did not update the standards is because they were lobbied by the West Virginia Manufacturers Association,” Hansen said. “It’s very clear, and the Manufacturers Association was not secretive about it.”

Many of the pollutants meant to be controlled by the standards are carcinogens, Hansen said, so while the state’s cancer rate may not directly increase, it is likely to at least remain higher than it should be

Upper Potomac Riverkeeper - Downstream movie event

Join PRKN President Nancy Stoner and Friends of Cabin John Creek for their featured EcoMovie 2019 Keeping the Potomac: The Politics of Water showcasing our work protecting the Potomac watershed. 

Nancy will be joined by the film’s producer, Elizabeth Herzfeldt-Kamprath, on Sunday, March 17, from 3 – 5 pm at the Clara Barton Community Center, 7425 Macarthur Blvd, Cabin John, MD 20818. 

Jennifer Jones: Cacapon and Lost Rivers Land Trust

Cacapon and Lost Rivers Land Trust, Inc.
March 7

From the new Executive Director Jennifer Jones:

It is with much gratitude that I greet you as the new Executive Director of the Cacapon and Lost Rivers Land Trust.

The words “Land” and “Trust” will be my guiding stars. As a Land Trust our job is to preserve as much of the natural land and heritage of the Cacapon River watershed as possible. We can only do that we if have the trust of the landowners that live here and others who understand the urgency and importance of our work.

I’ve had the privilege of working with landowners all over the country and just over the ridge in Virginia. I’ve listened to them talk about their struggle to hold onto their land and engage the next generation. And, I’ve heard them talk about how their land defines their sense of place and their identity.

It’s a love for the land -- and all the challenges that come with it -- that brings me here, to be in service to you, to earn your trust and to help conserve this unique and vital resource.

The Cacapon watershed is one of the most ecologically-beneficial tributaries to the Chesapeake Bay because of its water quality, filtered clean by the forested landscapes that surround it and graced by a vast array of wildlife and plants. This is a landscape held together by generations of farmers who

Water of the Potomac

Could a reservoir on the South Branch be part of the future plan for sustainable water availability (and flood control) downstream?

The Potomac Basin- Is the Water Adequate?

Elizabeth Ward

The Potomac River is 383-miles long and contains 14,670 square miles that makes up the Potomac Basin. The largest portion of the Potomac basin is in Virginia -5,723 square miles; while Maryland contains 3,818 square miles, West Virginia-3,490 miles, Pennsylvania -1,570 square miles, and 69 square miles that constitute the District of Columbia. The Potomac basin is made up of wetlands, streams, rivers, reservoirs, lakes, and the Potomac estuary.

The Potomac River, its tributaries, and the associated groundwater resources are vital to the region, it is the source of drinking water for the over 6,000,000 people in the Washington Metropolitan area. The Potomac River is the main supply of water for WSSC and the Washington Aqueduct and the major source of water for Loudoun Water and Fairfax Water. The Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB) manages the allocation of the Potomac River waters in time of drought or low flow, but also conducts studies on pollution, emerging contaminants and other water problems; from water supply adequacy, population growth patterns, to climate change impact on

A nice Potomac photo from 100 miles downstream

February 1, 2019 - Potomac at Great Falls (Virginia side).

Criticism of WV DEP over Water Quality

From the Register-Herald

Citizens, advocates criticize DEP for failing to defend water quality standards

By Erin Beck Register-Herald Reporter
Jan 17, 2019

CHARLESTON — About 30 people turned out for a public listening session Thursday at the Department of Environmental Protection, with most criticizing the DEP for recently opting not to defend its own proposal to update water quality standards.

After the federal Environmental Protection Agency recommended West Virginia update standards for amounts of pollutants allowed in West Virginia rivers and streams in 2015, the DEP released last year its proposal to update about 60 of those standards.

For about two-thirds of the standards, less pollution would have been permitted in West Virginia waterways. For about one-third, more pollution would have been allowed.

But in late November, at the request of the West Virginia Manufacturers Association, the state lawmakers who were members of a joint rule-making committee decided to leave the standards the way they are instead, at levels enacted in the 1980s.

Thursday, the DEP held a public meeting at its Kanawha City office on those standards. The rule-making committee's decision, as well as the DEP's decision not to defend its own proposal before the