The Rivanna Rambler

November 27, 2008

Walking through the South Fork Rivanna Water Treatment Plant brings a new appreciation for what it takes to turn river water into potable, safe drinking water.

 

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This show originally aired on November 27, 2007 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net.

In late 1620, the God-fearing and intrepid band of Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, first stepped on the outer shores of Cape Cod – close, but not quite there, in their search for a home and religious freedom in the New World.  After an arduous 2-month voyage across the Atlantic, their stores of fresh water – and more importantly, the cider and beer on which most people relied for drink — were precariously low.

It took several forays down the sandy arm of the Cape to find rivers that spilled fresh water … and eventually, when they moved the Mayflower to what is now known as Plymouth Harbor, it was chosen as much for its protection from Cape Cod Bay as for the  fresh water flowing in to it from the Jones River and a “very sweet brook” that flowed beside the landing rock, a brook that William Bradford wrote had as “good water as can be drunk.”  He describe the water as “sweet,” perhaps an adjective hard for us to appreciate in our modern day, unless we remember that by the 1600s, many rivers – and city streets in the Old World – were already fouled by sewage and what we would today call gray-water from bathing and laundering — and were anything but sweet or safe to drink.

For our Thanksgiving gatherings today, perhaps the one thing on the table that costs little in money or time to prepare is the water that fills our drinking glasses. 

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November 20, 2008

One of the oldest living plants on earth, Ginkgo biloba, owes its longevity to its ability to tolerate a wide range of climatic condition.

 

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This show originally aired on November 20, 2007 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net

Occasionally, I get a call from someone – usually my husband – to report a sighting that is noteworthy of investigating for this show.  So last week, when my husband called, asking for the Rivanna Rambler in a whiny, pinched voice, I knew another tip was on its way.

“I want to report a tree,” the voice said.

I pretended it was a crank call.  “What kind of tree?  Who Is this?”

“A tree with leaves falling off of it.”

“What kind of tree?”  Hey, leaves were falling everywhere around town as the cold air and shorter days were finally forcing autumn’s leafy splendor to the ground.

“Gink-go.” The voice said.

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November 13, 2008

A warm day on the river traveling to Rivanna Mills to sample provides opportunity to reflect on the need for both the short and long view of changes in the watershed.

 

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This show originally aired on November 8, 2007 and then again on November 13, 2008 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net.

There is something not altogether right about this day.  Here it is, November 1st, and we should be bundled in fleece and wearing high rubber boots to venture out on the water.  Instead, we’re wearing light rubber wading shoes that sink into the mud as we shove the canoe from the launch into the Rivanna at Hells Bend Farm, striving for a patch of water that will be deep enough to float the boat.  Though the water is a cool 56 degrees, the air temperature is climbing past 65 as the sun arcs into the autumn afternoon.  I’m not sure what doesn’t feel right: is it the air temperature? or the water level? which is still near historic lows in spite of patches of rain we’ve had.

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November 6, 2008

 

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Last week, we learned about the aquatic weed, hydrilla, an herbaceous, perennial freshwater herb originally imported from southeast Asian for aquariums and water gardens – and a plant that has taken over millions of acres of shallow standing and moving water in the United States.  Unfortunately, it has taken root  in our watershed, particularly in the South Fork Rivanna Reservoir, but it has also been found in tributaries like the North Fork as well as the river itself downstream from the reservoir.

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October 30, 2008

 

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This show originally aired on October 30, 2008 on “The Rivanna Rambler,” a weekly public affairs show airing every Thursday at 11:55 a.m. on WTJU 91.1 FM or wtju.net.

I was reading in the paper how Richard Herkowitz, director of the Virginia Film Festival, decided that the subject of aliens could have social, political, as well as entertainment value – and now we are in the midst of the movies about topics that range from immigration to space invasions.  We use the word alien to describe something that is “not from here” and usually with the connotation that it has no business being here.  Many times, we ascribe to aliens the notion that they are “invading,” and thus underscore the menacing potential.

Well, these terms are also used in the biological world.  While an alien species is simply “one not native to an area,” it may become invasive if it is able to out-compete similar but native species.  If it is able to overcome – or even thrive – within the ecological limits provided by other native organisms, the plants, insects, and animals that have evolved together in a healthy balance.

While alien space invaders may be thrilling or scary to contemplate, it is usually much harder for any of us to have a similar reaction about an invasive plant species – like the common reed, Phragmites, that is overwhelming wetlands across the eastern seaboard and changing the visual and ecological character of marshy areas.  Or the Zebra mussel, whose capacity for feeding and filtering has rendered waters from the Great Lakes to the St. Lawrence Seaway stunningly clear, but biologically barren.  Usually, we first become aware of such invasions when they have an economic impact – such as the need to keep water intakes from fowling with Zebra Mussels.

But thanks to the focused attention of the South Rivanna Reservoir Task Force, we now know that we have an aquatic invasion in our watershed. Hydrilla verticillata, commonly known as hydrilla, is forming dense mats of growth along the margins of the reservoir, reducing access to rowing lanes, snagging fishermen’s lures and stopping the strokes of boater’s paddles.

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