Thursday, January 27, 2011

Photo from World Peace Wetland Prairie appears in Winter 2011 edition of Piedmont Virginian

Please click on image to ENLARGE view of Lonicera sempervirens (native U.S. noninvasive honeysuckle vine). Description of the plant, sadly, appears on the following page of the Piedmont Virginian.





Winter 2011
Cover
Contents Page 1
Contents Page 2
Other Issues: | Autumn 2007 | Winter 2008 | Spring 2008 | Summer 2008 | Autumn 2008 | Winter 2009 | Spring 2009 | Summer 2009 | Autumn 2009 | Winter 2010 | Spring 2010 | Summer 2010 | Autumn 2010 |

Articles from this issue:

There’s not a more perfect place than the Piedmont to have your wedding
A
storybook wedding requires an ideal destination, one with fabulous scenery and attentive service, celebratory cuisine and dream decor.A place where wedding cakes tower and guests dance.Where families make memories.A place where a bride’s whimsy is satisfied and she is pampered to her fingertips.

“Destination weddings allow brides to pull all the details into one package,” says Colt Nutter, executive director at Historic Jordan Springs near Winchester.“Instead of running all over to find a bakery, caterer, florist, musicians, and photographer, a bride can source all of these with one call to a destination such as Jordan Springs,” he said. Read more...
If this urban filmmaker can own his own side of beef, anybody can
I
have to confess, I wasn’t born a country boy.Rather, I grew up in a suburb and have lived in the center of cities.Only in the last few years have I lived in beautiful, rural Madison County.I’m still learning the basics of caring for the critters, fields, and forests that surround our house.Fact is, I’m glad no witnesses were present when I cut down my first tree — it fell into another tree and I had to pull it down with a rope attached to my car. Read more...
Middleburg-based Land Trust of Virginia helps ensure that spectacular properties like Bollingbrook remain that way forever
A
quote from the late Piedmont resident Audrey Windsor Bergner probably says it best: “We take our surroundings so much for granted, wanting to believe that the magnificent Blue Ridge will always remain as background to our lush green valley, that cows will always gently graze on our verdant fields, that corn will always grow green under summer sun, and the sound of the bugle will ever sound its rallying cry across the Piedmont.”

If it’s up to the concerted efforts of the Land Trust of Virginia (LTV) — a nationally accredited non-profit based in Middleburg that protects open space, natural and historic resources — these luscious surroundings will continue to enrich the lives of many now, and for future generations to come.

When private landowners place conservation easements on their properties, which voluntarily limit development, the land remains open for forestry, farming, and other sustainable uses.Currently, the LTV holds and stewards 106 easements, which translates into nearly 11,000 acres of private land in Loudoun, Fauquier, and surrounding counties.

Loudoun County leads the number of acreage with 6,693 acres, followed by Fauquier, 2,300 acres; Greene, 1,179; Madison, 222; both Culpeper and Rappahannock, with 173 each; and Clarke, with 24 acres.

LTV, in the words of its mission statement, “specializes in working directly with private landowners to design easements that protect open space, forests, water quality, bio-diversity, and historic values, while ensuring that farming, forestry, and other compatible uses can continue.” Thanks to the LTV, the Virginia Outdoors Foundation, and other land trusts, Virginia has one of the highest concentrations of privately preserved land in the country.

LTV President Birge Watkins, of Warrenton, and Linda Porter, of Paeonian Springs, one of LTV’s original founders and wholesale tree nursery owner, recently sat down at their office near Middleburg to reflect upon the Trust’s roots.“In the early 1990’s development started to really take-off. Read more...

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Friday, January 7, 2011

Please speak up now: Full disclosure of chemicals used in fracking is open for comment to the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission

To those interested in the natural gas development in Arkansas:

Pittsburgh stands first in the country to have banned the fracking process from their city.  Attending the rally before the vote was Josh Fox giving a spirited speech.  I thought you would be interested to hear the passion he displays even after the long involvement he has had with this project.

Update on Arkansas activity:

Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission - 

Jan. 10th is the cutoff date to make comment requesting full disclosure of all fracking chemicals by CAS identification.  While there have been improvements made to the Oil & Gas Commissions rule on disclosure, it is incomplete by failing to incorporate the Federal standards for proprietary secrecy.  A simple request that they finish to the job of disclosing chemicals for public safety and land owner consideration is in order.  Request that all comments be extended to the commissioners as well.  Use the following information to make comment:

Copy to:  Commissioners - Chad White, Chairman, W. Frank Morledge, Charles Wohlford, Bill Poynter, Mike Davis, Kenneth Williams, William L. Dawkins, Jr., Jerry Langley, and Chris Weiser

Mr. Lawrence C. Bengal, Director
Production and Conservation
Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission
301 Natural Resources Drive, Suite 102
Little Rock, Arkansas 72205

Subject:  Full disclosure of chemical constituents used in natural gas fracking

Issue:  The current B-19 ruling is incomplete in providing limited claims for proprietary formulas.  The best approach would be full disclosure of every constituent by CAS identification, but at minimum the Federal guidelines for trade secrets should be included in the rule in their entirety.  The current wording is incomplete and does not provide how secrecy would be granted or what percentage would be allowed.

Thank you for assisting with this important comment, if you are able to help.  Pass the word.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Old ring still fits after all these years


Please click on image to ENLARGE for easy reading.