Well Managed “Open-Space” Should Not Be Taxed
“Well-managed” farmland and other working “open-spaces” should not be taxed when they provide ecosystem services exceeding the cost of public services for the land.
Rambo Rules In Favor of the Chesapeake Bay Clean Water Blueprint
This is a landmark case for clean water!
Bobby’s Rant on Hydrofracking
Hydro-Fracking for natural gas; it’s very controversial. On the plus side it is reducing our dependence on foreign oil and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions (because it’s cheaper than coal). It’s also making some folks very rich.
Native Plants Can Be Invasive
I finally found a plant that will take over tall fescue – wingstem, but I’m not sure I like it. Let me explain. Both plants are invasive, tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) is a non-native invasive plant; wingstem (Verbesina alternifolia) is a native plant that is invasive.
Planting and Growing a Successful Riparian Forest Buffer
I have been involved with over 500 miles of riparian buffer plantings and have witnessed plenty of failures and successes. I would like to share with you what I believe is the recipe for success, that being TREE CANOPY CLOSURE IN TEN YEARS.
Harpers Ferry – a History Steeped in Irony
I’m standing in the middle of the footbridge across the Potomac River at Harper’s Ferry looking downstream. Beneath me flows the nation’s river that at this point in its journey, drained six million acres of land.
Enthusiasm Gas Tank for Riparian Forest Buffers Refilled at Stroud
I recently attended a “Stream and Buffer Ecology Workshop” at the Stroud Water Research Center in Avondale, Pennsylvania. Stroud is a world-class research facility for fresh water science. This year their “Moorhead Environmental Complex” was awarded a “Platinum LEED” rating, which is the nation’s highest certification for green construction.
“Oh Shenandoah!”
A watershed moment for the Shenandoah River and the Chesapeake Bay occurred on Tuesday the 23rd of April. Ownership of the former Virginia National Golf Course located on the banks of the Shenandoah River in Clark County was handed over to Shenandoah University . Dr. Tracy Fitzsimmons, President of the University said...
In The Chesapeake Bay Watershed, Agriculture is Half Way in Doing Their Part to Restore the Bay.
The Chesapeake Bay Foundation asked me to write several articles about farmers doing their part to improve the soil and water resources on their farms. These articles are designed to showcase how and why, these farmers installed Best Management Practices such as “stream-side fencing” to exclude livestock from streams.
Tree Shelters, Are They Worth It And If So When Should They Be Removed?
Author preparing to plant a “bare-root” hardwood seedling into tall fescue sod. When converting grasslands to forest it has been a common practice to plant bare-root, hardwood tree seedlings directly into the sod. Most recently tree shelters have been used to increase the growth rate and survival of hardwood (not pine)...
