Federation Blog

Good Afternoon,

There were three locations of higher that the allowable concentration of bacteria (104cfu/100ml). These creeks are Warehouse Creek, Almshouse Creek, and Church Creek. Glen Isle has been preventing the Canada Geese by stringing CD's in the area to prevent the geese from landing, must be working because for the past two weeks the counts have been good. Congratulations to them!!

To me, the bog at Edgewater Elementary is a welcome break from the development that surrounds it.  As soon as you step into the bog, the traffic seems to fade away as you notice more and more birds happily chirping in the trees.  Closer to the pond, you can see butterfly and dragon flies zipping from flower to flower. And once you are in the bog (thank goodness for waders!) you can see minnows, tadpoles, and frogs.  The bog is anything but an eye sore; it’s an opportunity to see how the land should look.  Not only does the bog provide habitat for an abundance of wildlife, it also treats stormwater by filtering and cooling it before it reaches Warehouse Creek.  Garbage that gets trapped in the bog would otherwise end up in tidewater and eventually the Chesapeake Bay.

A few weeks ago, Patch.com published an article debating weather the bog is an eyesore or resource.  We wanted to highlight the importance of the bog and help make it less of an eyesore, so we organized a bog cleanup for the school.  Thanks to Mrs. Dennin’s 4^th grade class and a few dedicated volunteers, we were able to beautify the bog!

I was afraid that the heat might discourage the students, but boy was I wrong.  The kids were so excited to be outside and clean the bog that most ran into the bog without even pausing to grab their trash bags.  Working in teams, alongside our wonderful SRF volunteers, the students quickly picked up as much trash as they could carry.  One boy ran past his teacher and I yelled, “This is the best day ever!”  Another student exclaimed, “This is so much fun!  I never realized the bog was so big!”  One adorable student, came up to me and very seriously asked, “How can I get a job like yours?  I want to work in bogs every day.”  The students had such a great time – I hope we can continue working with the school to keep the bog beautiful!

The above resutls are from Wednesday May 18, 2011 Bacteria sampling. The concentration for Enterococci is not to be above 104 cfu/100ml (colony forming units). Due to the heavy rain events this past week a couple of site were well above the allowable limit.

If you would like more information on Operation Clearwater or would like you community to be sampled please contact our office at 410-224-3802.

---Diana

The South River Federation's Riverkeeper Tidal Water Quality montoring is in mid-season currently.  Some of you may have see us out there sampling the water quality.  I have been ask many questions about when and where we sample.  I have provided a GIS map of our current tidal stations.  I have 7 main stem stations, then 14 stations in each of the tidal creeks.  

EPA Unveils Chesapeake Bay Restoration Strategy

 The Chesapeake Bay Restoration Strategy is now out as presented by Lisa Jackson (EPA administrator) yesterday.  She stated that only thing needed is money and resources.

I would like to include Three more things:

1)  The absolute old fashion American CAN DO.  With out the can do/will do we will not have anything.

2 ) Much better enforcement,  marinas have put large piers/bulkhead/and pilings into the South River and have only received a 43,000.00 fine, and they did not have to take out the structures that were installed.  So, in reality the company folded the fine into the cost of doing the construction.  The State and Federal agencies need to not only have greater fines but mandate that these structures be removed! 

3)  I would also like to include more education on the true causes of the destruction of the Chesapeake Bay and the South River.  I speak beyond the choir quite often and have learned that most adults really do not know what stormwater runoff it,  they do not know how fertilizer can harm the Bay/River,  they do not realize how poor the infrastructure of our septic and sewer systems is.  I see very well educated folks over-fertilize their lawns in order to get the Crayola crayon green color, instead of managing their lawns in a River-friendly way.

http://wjz.com/local/Bay.foundation.epa.2.1689773.html

Much of the top of Warehouse Creek is now a mudflat at low tide, but believe it or not, it got its name because it was once a local hub of commerce.  Agricultural products were brought up from south county and delivered to the warehouses along the creek where deepwater vessels loaded up and carried the goods to points north and elsewhere. 

 A friend of the Federation with family roots that go back several hundred years in the region passed along this anecdote about Warehouse Creek:

 Aunt Adelaide the last of the family to own the whole Ivy Neck told my father that she would ride in a horse and buggy under the bow sprits of the big boats. That would mean where the water treatment plant (pumping station) on the edge of Mayo Road is, was the edge of the original creek and the largest of the boats could sail all the way to the end. - Allen Calhoun (2009)

 Given the ages of those involved, this account likely describes the situation in the early 20th century.