Blog - Page 8 of 22 - Getting More on the Ground

Earth Day 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Earth Day 50 This year marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, which officially occurs on April 22. In a normal world, this would be a really big deal and we’d be gearing up for a big celebration—Earth Day helped elevate the importance of protecting our environment in a whole […]

April 16, 2020 Chesapeake Bay, Climate Change, Soil and Water Conservation, Stream Fencing, Swoope Almanac, Watershed restoration 12 Comments

Of Grass, Voles, and Short-eared Owls—Swoope Almanac March 2020

Winter in Swoope The grasslands in Swoope are brown and dormant. Late in the afternoon I stand on our deck with my binoculars and search the wide-open pastures for Short-eared Owls. I can see for several miles north and sweep slowly 180 degrees to the south. First, I spot a […]

March 13, 2020 Birding, Nature, Swoope Almanac, Wildlife 9 Comments

Uplifted Standing In Line at SCOTUS

Note: The text from this post was published in the News-Leader on 2/27/20. I Was In Line All Night, Here’s What Really Happened It was an event of a lifetime—sitting in the courtroom of the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) hearing arguments in the U.S. Forest Service v. […]

February 27, 2020 Atlantic Coast Pipeline 38 Comments

Cattle Exclusion Mandate From Perennial Streams in Virginia

Virginia legislators and its governor are proposing a cattle exclusion mandate from all perennial streams by July 1, 2026. This is a bold move by the Virginia democrats who now control both houses of the general assembly and the governor’s mansion. Virginia Senate bill SB704 and House bill HB1422 have […]

January 31, 2020 Cattle Farming, Chesapeake Bay, Soil and Water Conservation, Stream Fencing, Water Pollution, Watershed restoration 29 Comments

Nanan and Northam—a Dichotomy in Leadership

“If you save your own backyard, then you start to save the world,” wrote the late Winston Nanon, the man who saved the Caroni Swamp and the bird that became the national bird of Trinidad—the Scarlet Ibis. Virginia Paved Over the Nesting Site of 25,000 Migratory Seabirds We have something […]

January 24, 2020 Birding, Nature, Wildlife 4 Comments

Swoope Hope Photos 2019

I take a lot of photos. These are the few that are either really good photos or have lots of meaning—the best photos of 2019. All photos by R. Whitescarver and copyrighted except as noted. The Really Good Swoope Hope Photos Pictures […]

December 29, 2019 Swoope Almanac 32 Comments

Environmental Justice and a Burning Bridge Across the Potomac

Shepherdstown, WV: It used to be part of Virginia before our war against slavery. I’m here, standing on the southern bank of the Potomac River looking at the large windows and columns of the mansion of Ferry Hill Plantation on the northern, Maryland side of the river. I’m mesmerized, staring […]

December 2, 2019 Chesapeake Bay, Environmental Justice 7 Comments

Environmental Racism and Dominion Energy

Environmental Racism: Actions and decisions that result in the disproportionate exposure of people of color to environmental hazards and environmental health burdens. A textbook example of environmental racism has unfolded in Union Hill, Virginia. When Dominion Energy was looking for a site for its Buckingham compressor station the Federal Energy Regulatory […]

October 30, 2019 Atlantic Coast Pipeline, Environmental Justice 21 Comments

Osage Orange From Meriwether Lewis Planted in Swoope

The Osage Orange tree is native west of the Mississippi and is named after the Osage Indian tribe. The fruits look like little green brains and are about the size of an orange. People use the fruits to repel insects in their homes, but there is no scientific evidence to [...]

September 17, 2019 Swoope Almanac, Trees 60 Comments

Environmental Racism and Dominion Energy (JMU 2023)

A textbook example of environmental racism has unfolded in Union Hill, Virginia. When Dominion Energy was looking for a site for its Buckingham compressor station the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and Virginia’s Air Pollution Control Board (APCB) chose the predominately African American community of Union Hill—a community of descendants of freed African slaves.

August 16, 2019 Uncategorized 18 Comments

“There’s often a story about cattle, a little talk of environmental concerns, and a mention of his ‘Princess’ and her collaborative work with him. That’s how conversations go when I get a chance to visit with Bobby. He’s easygoing and always has a great story, but there’s a wealth of shared experience, knowledge, and love of farming and our environment in everything Bobby does. This latest book is just like sitting down and visiting with Bobby. You’ll enjoy every bit of it.”
Emmett W. Hanger Jr.
Virginia Senator