Though not up to camping speed yet we have managed to get three groups of children out on the river for an Eco-Cruise.  Though very hot, the kids got to see a little bit of wildlife and on the Kids College tour I jumped in the bathtub warm water and found them some mussels to look at. The highlight of the day though seemed to be when I showed them a deer skull lodged in the fork of a tree.  The tree has now grown around the spooky looking artifact and with the rest of its bones scattered around peaked their interest of just how this deer skull came to be in the fork of this tree.  Moonpie knows but she will never tell.  Speaking of mussels the VDGIF released nearly four thousand special concern Eastern Lampmussel and Eastern Pondmussel into the Nottoway a couple of weeks ago.  These were bred from mussels we had gathered on a previous expedition on the river for just that purpose. The mussels were raised at the VDGIF Hatchery in Charles City.  On Wednesday the 11th of August on my way to check the Nottoway at Hercules, I noticed VDOT had crews out along the road (Rt. 671) picking up trash. I just wanted to tell you how great that was to see and I let them know what a good job they were doing at that location.  There is a lot of swamp along there that trash gets in and goes to the river, so VDOT helped me out alot there.  The rivers are in pretty sad shape right now.  Levels are low on the upper rivers and dissolved oxygen levels are also low with bacteria levels high. Fishing, especially for bass though I’m told has been pretty good if you go early or late.  Hopefully we will get some significant rain soon and I’m looking forward to cooler weather this fall.  Now for the bad news, my shoulder surgery has failed, or I have messed it up or something.  A recent MRI shows I have a tear in the shoulder, so it looks like the last 4 months was for nothing. Don’t know what I’m going to do about it yet.  I really do not want to go back through surgery again and I’m really needin’ to go camping on the two rivers we call the Blackwater and Nottoway.

Curtis Newsome was absent so the meeting was conducted by Jeff Turner. He opened by asking that Nancy Turner give the Treasurer’s report for July.

She reported that revenues were $5209.26 (contributions from Isle of Wight Co and the City of Franklin), expenses were $3568.75 (main expense being for payment to Turn 3 for 200 tee shirts). Nancy then went over the revised 2010 budget, pointing out the changes that reflect the drop in the contributions for the Riverkeeper salary. Nancy moved to accept the amended budget, seconded by Anne Parker, and passed.

Jeff then asked Bobby Turner to give the membership report. The group now stands at 139, an addition of 2 new members that came in under a family membership.

Jeff then asked that John Bunch read the minutes from the previous monthly meeting. Following the reading it was noted that two changes were needed – concerning the grist mill topic, changing Chat to Chap and secondly, to note that Jay Randolf represents Southampton Co, not Franklin. Motion was made by Nancy to adopt the minutes (following the changes which will be sent to Jeff), seconded by Jeff, and passed.

The meeting had 6 in attendance and the BOD members present were Nancy Turner, Anne Parker, and Jeff Turner.

The Riverkeeper Report

As presented by Jeff Turner

On 7/15 – Attended the Albemarle-Chowan Watershed Roundtable meeting in Franklin. I showed them a video of the rivers and Rivers’ Day plans were finalized.

On 7/22 – Rivers’ Day was held in Franklin at the new boat ramp. I gave two boat tours. The event was coordinated with Kids College and not an open event which I feel was a mistake. The kids made an attempt at fishing, but no fish were caught. Eric Brittle & I used his electro-shocking equipment to have fish in a live well for the kids to see. Agencies were on hand with informational booths to educate the approximately 40 children that attended. Some of those agencies are listed below:

Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program            Virginia Cooperative Extension

Virginia Dept of Conservation & Recreation                        Virginia Dept of Environmental Quality

Natural Resources Conservation Service                        Virginia Dept of Game & Inland Fisheries

Blackwater/Nottoway Riverkeeper Program                        Virginia Dept of Forestry

Soil & Water Conservation Districts                                    US Army Corps of Engineers

Resource Conservation & Development Councils

On 7/29 – This was the day for the Kids College Cruise. Took six out for a cruise on a very hot day. There was also a trip scheduled for 8/12, but that was cancelled for lack of participation.

On 8/2 – DEQ is giving J.L. Rose Hog Market in Courtland an NOV for unpermitted discharge to a stream. This is hog waste run-off from floor cleaning and runs to a stream that empties into the Nottoway. Outcome will probably be to tie in with Courtland’s sewer line.

On 8/5 – Freezing Deer and I put in at Franklin to test the BNRP Waterstrider as it had not been in the water for over three months. Collected one large bag of trash with the majority of the contents coming from around the boardwalk and the Barretts Landing area. While on the river, noticed an overflowing trashcan at the old IP Boat Landing. Will recommend that it be removed if the company is no longer servicing it.

-       An overflowing trashcan behind Birdsong Peanut Company was seen and reported to have it emptied.

This concluded the Riverkeeper Report

Other Items:

-       Riverkeeper Health – The Rotator Cuff that had recent surgery for repair has become torn again. Will give it some time before deciding if surgery is needed again.

-       New Tee Shirts – These have now been received from Turn 3 Designs & Embroidery. They have the same design as the original BNRP shirts and will be sold for $15 apiece.

-       Clean Rivers Day – Next year’s event is set to take place on 4/2/11. Anne Parker has gathered addresses from 59 organizations to contact for the cleanup effort. Jeff will be soon composing a letter requesting their participation so as to get on their scheduling calendars for the upcoming year.

Floating Dock – Have not heard anything from Franklin concerning acquiring it. And not hearing anything from Dominion concerning the money that was donated for the original ramp addition and

Governor Martin O’Malley today signed a bill into law to strengthen protection of children on Maryland waterways. Under the new law, effective immediately, any child under the age of 13 is required to wear a personal flotation device (PFD) while aboard a vessel that is underway. The law will also require children under the age of 16 to possess a certificate of boating safety education before they can operate a vessel unless they are supervised by an adult or someone 16 or older who has a boating safety certificate, effective Oct. 1.

“As a State, nothing we do is more important than protecting the lives of our children,” said Governor O’Malley. “By raising the age at which a child is required to wear a life vest and improving boating safety education, this legislation will do just that.”

Formerly, any child under the age of seven had to wear a PFD on a recreational boat 21 feet or smaller, unless the boat is moored or anchored or the child is below deck in an enclosed cabin.

“We firmly believe this new legislation will help us prevent boating fatalities,” said DNR Secretary John Griffin. “Even one boating-related death is unacceptable. We are doing everything we can to keep our boaters – and our children – safe.”

The State averages 12 boating related fatalities a year. In 2009, Maryland had 17 boating related fatalities;16 of the victims were not wearing PFDs.

“A life jacket is the single most important piece of safety equipment, but it doesn’t work unless you wear it,” said NRP Superintendent Colonel George Johnson. “This law will provide an added measure of safety for our children boating on Maryland waters. “

Raising the age requirement puts Maryland in line with federal regulations and 34 states, including Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Washington, DC. The federal regulations do not supersede the state, but the National Transportation Safety Board strongly encourages states to update their PFD requirements.

The legislation was supported by the U.S. Coast Guard, National Transportation Safety Board, Safe Kids USA, National Boating Federation, National Safe Boating Council, National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, and the Marine Retailers Association of America.

Extremist libertarianism

By Steve Stewart (Contact) | Tidewater News

Published Saturday, June 12, 2010

I get the libertarian philosophy. I appreciate its core principle. The less that government interferes in the lives of people, the fewer the obstacles to the Declaration of Independence’s promise of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Like many political philosophies, however, libertarianism can be carried too far.

Take, for example, the Virginia General Assembly’s steadfast refusal to adopt common-sense legislation that would require children in boats on inland waters to wear life preservers.

Federal law requires the same in coastal waters, enforced by the Coast Guard.

The bill to extend the requirement to inland waters gets introduced every year in the General Assembly, and every year it gets shot down — much to the chagrin of Blackwater-Nottoway Riverkeeper Jeff Turner, who knows first-hand the need for such a law.

“I see so many dangerous things involving kids and boating on the rivers,” he said. “And though this law will not stop those dangerous practices, at least the irresponsible parents would have to have (personal flotation devices) on the kids.”

State Sen. Fred Quayle, R-Suffolk, agrees. He ushered the bill through the Senate during the most recent regular session and got it passed by a 30-10 vote.

It hit a brick wall in the House after narrowly passing the Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources.

Delegate Albert Pollard, R-Lively, gutted Quayle’s bill with an amendment, after which it was referred to the House Militia Police, Police and Public Safety, where it died. Again.

Turner said he tried to contact Pollard for an explanation but got no response.

I too tried to reach Pollard, whose assistant said she’d give him the message. I haven’t heard back, but the assistant did send me some commentary Pollard wrote in February explaining his position.

His reasoning would make a strict libertarian proud.

“This bill is a ‘nanny-istic’ attempt to replace the common sense of a parent with the collective wisdom of the legislature,” Pollard wrote. He went on to question the potential inconsistency of requiring kids to wear life jackets in boats but not on piers and docks and not when playing in the shallow surf at Virginia Beach.

It saddens me to say, but Pollard has too much faith in the common sense of parents. Most have it. A lot don’t. We read almost daily in the news of parental neglect that results in the death or injury of a child.

If an adult chooses not to wear a life jacket — or a seat belt or a motorcycle helmet — that’s one thing. He is old enough to weigh the risks and make a decision. It’s his life. An 8-year-old kid isn’t equipped to make that decision. When a reckless parent doesn’t see fit to take a simple step that will save a kid from drowning, I have no problem with the state saying he must.

Libertarian instincts aside, I disagree with Pollard. The collective wisdom of society does occasionally trump the not-so-common sense of an individual. In such cases, there oughta be a law.

The minutes were read, motion made by Anne Parker to adopt, seconded by Nancy Turner, and passed with no changes. Jeff asked Nancy for the treasurer’s report for April. She reported that revenues were $400.00 (dues for memberships and atlas sales income), expenses were $1296.08. Nancy then gave the membership report in Bobby Turner’s absence. The group now stands at 124, an addition of 3 members from the previous month. The meeting had 6 in attendance (low number due in part due to the strong storm that had just rolled through) and BOD members present were Nancy Turner, Anne Parker, and Jeff Turner. The Riverkeeper Report As presented by Jeff Turner On 4/17 – The Zuni Reunion Day, sponsored by the Zuni Ruritan Club, was held. BNRP had an info table manned by Curtis Newsome and his son, Wyatt. Interested parties were lured to the info table by live music played by Curtis and Wyatt and BNRP literature was handed out to those listeners. The Blackwater and Beyond Event, sponsored by The Franklin Garden Club, was held at the Zuni Pine Barrens. Anne Parker chaired this event and also managed a BNRP info table. There were two tours into the Pine Barrens with a very good turnout. Discovered that Delegate Albert Pollard was responsible for the PFD Bill being pigeon-holed. He represents the 99th District that’s located near Richmond. I am working towards a story that is planned to run in newspapers in his area and ours. I am also working to secure TV coverage, but am first waiting to hear comments from him for an explanation before moving forward. On 4/20 – Held discussions with City of Norfolk contractors concerning the removal of the overhead pipe line at Burdette. I informed them of NOAA grants available for removal of fish restricting structures such as the log jams and the pipe that is causing the jams at the Burdette Pumping Station. Maybe they can apply for the grants and remove both pipelines. On 4/23 – I was placed in the hospital today (Friday) for shoulder surgery and not released until the following Monday. On 4/24 – Clean Rivers Day 2010. There were 147 volunteers who collected and removed 4,135# of trash. This was the lowest total weight we’ve had so far, but not the lowest volunteer count (100 in 2005). The Franklin Garden Club came in first with the most collected weight. This was the first year that CRD was held without The Riverkeeper. Dean Wagonbach stepped in to fill in for Jeff and for that was awarded a year’s membership to the group. On 5/11 – Sent public comment to DEQ regarding Neblett’s Mill Run TMDL (total max daily load). This is a large tributary to the Nottoway north of Homeville. It’s listed as impaired for fecal coliform and E. coli bacteria. The model is listing only a single failed septic system out of the stated 16 in that drainage. Yet the contractors doing the TMDL study say DNA testing shows that 42% of the bacteria originates from humans. This concluded the Riverkeeper Report Other Items: - The purchase of new T-shirts – The group is out of T-shirts to sell and looking to get shirts printed with a similar design that the original shirts had. Slated to cost ~$1700. Curtis and Sherri (BOD members) had voted to go with this decision and after some general discussion, Anne and Nancy (BOD) voted yes also. - The purchase of an Epson Moviemate projector – The In-focus donated from IP has served the group well, but with presenting to larger audiences and having to supply a sound system while giving these presentations, along with other support equipment, the purchase of this projector would enable the user to have a stand-alone device. This projector has 4 built-in speakers, an internal DVD player, can be projected onto a large sized-wall, very easy to operate, and is much better equipped to give presentations in a large room. Curtis and Sherri had voted yes to this purchase prior to the meeting and Nancy and Anne voted yes following its discussion. - Concerning CRD, Anne brought up that with Easter and Earth Day landing on the same weekend in 2011, and in order to have good participation from other area groups, another weekend should be found for CRD. Anne also said that this rescheduling should soon be decided upon so those groups can get it on their schedules which they make up far in advance. - Sean Maconaghy reported for Ashland concerning their remediation project, they are dewatering the lagoon and having to deal with stabilizing a thin sludge layer. So far 8800 tons of stabilized sludge have been removed and that stabilization should be completed the 1st or 2nd week in June. The project should be completed in mid-summer. Also, completed a 2nd toxicity test for the year which uses water fleas as the testing subject. The water fleas survived, but did not reproduce as per requirements of the test and this had to be reported in the test results. High COD was the culprit and an investigation is being performed to narrow down the cause for the elevated COD. - John Bunch mentioned that the mill will be losing another 350 employees this upcoming Friday (5/14). Also, mentioned that IP would be having another release season in the upcoming winter months.