FRIENDS OF PAGE VALLEY
DECEMBER 2001
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Song of Earth
I sing of earth
Of the way it smells
Of the way it looks
Of the way it makes you feel
like you can make a difference
Of the way it is being polluted
by people who don’t care
Of the way it makes some people
care
Of the way a child finds it so
interesting
Of the way it makes some people
recycle
Of the way we live on a
wonderful planet
I sing of Beauty
Nikita Copeland, Page County student
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AIR QUALITY FURTHER THREATENED BY NEW POWER PLANTS
Since January 1, 2001, applications have been filed for
31 new power plants in Virginia. These
thirty new plants would be in addition to 31 existing plants, eight of which
are very dirty coal-fired plants, “grandfathered” under the Clean Air Act. This is bad news for Virginia’s air quality
which already has unhealthy high levels of ozone, nitrogen oxide, sulfur
dioxide and mercury.
The Piedmont Environmental Council is working hard to
control the introduction of these new power plants. Even if powered by natural gas, the cumulative effect of these
new plants would be 10,000 more tons of sulfur and nitrogen pollution annually.
Virginia is attractive to out-of-state companies
because its 1998 Deregulation Act permits plants in Virginia to serve
out-of-state customers. Thirty new
power plants would supply enough power for over 15 million new homes in a state
which currently has 3 million homes.
Thus, these power plants are likely to end up serving customers in New
Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York and other states along the eastern seaboard
power grid where customers pay higher rates than in Virginia.
Virginia is also attractive because land, especially in
rural areas, is cheap. Those are the
areas in which companies have sited the majority of new plants. In addition, DEQ reviews each request on an
individual basis. The agency does not
examine the cumulative effects of additional power plants. This makes the permit process easier. Finally, power companies find Virginia
counties easy targets. Companies cite
tax revenue and jobs. Rural counties
find these short-term incentives attractive.
The long-term effects of power lines, trucking, increased pollution and
the effect on people’s lives are overlooked.
Why should we care?
Air pollution travels unseen (except for haze and smog) everywhere and
affects everyone. Haze, caused by
nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide particles which combine with water droplets,
has reduced visibility in the Shenandoah National Park 75% over the past 30
years. Ozone smog in the mountains
causes leaf damage and reduced growth of trees and other plants. Haze and smog affect not only the health of the
park vegetation, it also reduces tourism which impacts the economy of
surrounding communities - like Page County.
Sulfur and nitrate infused water molecules also cause
acid rain. The rate of acid deposition
in Virginia’s mountains is the highest in the country. Some weeks the pH of acid rain falls below
pH 4 - the acidity of orange juice. (pH
7 is neutral). Native trout (and other
fish) in the mountain streams has fallen.
According to Trout Unlimited, 6% of Virginia’s streams are so acidic
today that they support no trout at all.
At current acid rain levels the number of Virginia’s streams incapable
of supporting fish will climb to 35%.
Ozone’s most serious effects are on human health.
Ozone irritates the respiratory system, reduces lung function especially
for those who work or exercise outdoors in the summer, aggravates asthma and
emphysema, and damages the cells lining the lung with long-term effects on
people’s health. Northern Virginia is
the only region in VA which does not meet federal health standards for ozone
pollution. Since 1999, ozone readings
at Big Meadows and at the new monitor in Luray indicate unhealthy levels of
ozone in this area from 6 to 18 days during the summer. Through August 8, 2001
meters in Luray registered 6 days with dangerous ozone levels. Big Meadows registered 8 such days.
Mercury is a toxic pollutant of great concern. Emitted from coal-fired plants, mercury ends
up in streams, lakes and rivers where it poisons fish. From fish, it passes into humans where it is
a powerful neurotoxin, especially dangerous for children and pregnant women.
“Mad as a Hatter”, an old English expression, came about because persons
working in the hat industry and exposed to mercury salts used in the trade
became dizzy, confused and permanently deranged. Currently, there are fish advisories in 40 states! Mercury advisories have been posted on 180
river miles in Virginia, including both forks of the Shenandoah River.
You can learn more about air pollution in Virginia at: www.iwla.org/cleanair/index.htm
Thus, air pollution from the Ohio Valley and that
produced in Virginia does affect all
of us - our health, our trees and plants, our fish and ultimately our economy
and quality of life. We must care. The question is what can we do about it?
First, we need to support those in neighboring counties
who are working to stop the construction of new power plants in their areas,
areas such as Warren, Loudoun, Fauquier and Prince William Counties to our
north, Smyth, Wythe and Henry, counties to the southwest and Buckingham,
Cumberland, Fluvanna and Louisa Counties to the southeast. For more information on these new power
plants you can click onto www.pecva.org/power plants. Because Virginia’s DEQ does not study the
cumulative impact of these power plants, our elected officials need to hear
from you. Please contact Allen
Louderback (1131 Old Farms Road, Luray, VA 22835, Tel. 743-6553) and Governor
-Elect Mark Warner (P.O. Box 1194, Richmond, VA 23218).
At the federal level, S.556 (the Clean Power Act of
2001) is an encouraging bill currently under consideration by the Senate
Environment and Public Works Committee.
James Jeffords of Vermont, a long-time proponent of clean air, chairs
this committee. This bill seeks to
limit four pollutants by 2007; sulfur and nitrogen by 75% from 1997 levels and
mercury by 90% from 1999 levels. The
bill seeks to reduce carbon dioxide (the “greenhouse” gas) to 1990 power plant
emission levels. Specifically, it
eliminates the exemption granted to coal-fired power plants “grandfathered”
under the Clean Air Act.
There are 8 “grandfathered” plants in Virginia. These plants were “grandfathered” because it
was believed (wrongly) that they would be phased out of service. The oldest was constructed in 1944, the
youngest in 1958. These eight plants
are responsible for at least 85% of the sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide
emissions in Virginia and 33% of all mercury emissions. These plants would have to be retrofitted
with mechanisms to clean their emissions, or closed.
To express your support for this legislation you can
e-mail Sen. Jim Jeffords guest@epw.senate.gov . You may also write to
him at the Environment and Public Works
Committee, 410 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510-6175. Senator John Warner is a ranking member of
this committee. He may be contacted at
his office by e-mail at www.senator@warner.senate.gov/contact/contactme.htm,
by letter at 225 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510, or by
telephone at 202-224-2023. When the
bill goes before the Senate for a vote in the Spring of 2002, you should
contact George Allen and urge him to support the bill. He may be contacted by e-mail at http://allen.senate.gov/email.html,
by letter at the Russell Senate Office Building, Room 204, Washington, DC
20510, or by telephone at 202-224-4024.
In the meantime you may follow the progress of this
legislation by e-mailing Jeremy Kranowitz at the Isaak Walton League, jkranowitz@iwla.org
You may sign a petition supporting this legislation by email at www.iwla.org/cleanair/petition.html
.
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FRIENDS MEMBERSHIP
Membership dues for 2001-2002 are due now. Membership
dues and donations are tax deductible. FRIENDS
relies on your financial support to keep abreast of issues, to take action when
necessary, and to keep you informed.
Please return the white sheet inserted in this Newsletter with your
membership dues for 2001-2002.
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The fate of the BATTLE CREEK Landfill
Area newspapers have kept the public well informed of
developments at both Stanley and Battle Creek Landfills in terms of
environmental and financial problems at both sites and of the progress of
citizen lawsuits filed against Page County and Tellurian. The ramifications of the pending buyout of
Tellurian by Environmental Waste Services (EWS) have been documented in detail.
"FRIENDS" thanks the news media for this
because much of the supervisors’ work in the past year has been behind closed
doors. Diligent research and many
Freedom of Information requests have been required to bring important landfill
facts into the "sunshine". As
a result of published information, group meetings and educational forums, Page
County citizens are informed citizens.
They understand the current landfill situation. They overwhelmingly reject the deal offered
to the supervisors by Tellurian and EWS that will bring 1500 tons of trash per
day to the Battle Creek regional
landfill and convert it to a mega-landfill.
To no avail the supervisors have received petitions
signed by over 4200 county residents, dozens of personal letters, and detailed
studies offering solutions and documenting the pitfalls of the new
contract. None of these were even
acknowledged. Many are asking:
WHY was the pre-prepared resolution to sign the
contract agreed to so abruptly by Nora Belle Comer, Elaine Mayberry and Robert
Good after a closed session on October 4th with no members of the public
present and so many questions unanswered? (Allen Cubbage abstained and Gerald
Cubbage was the lone “no” vote); and,
WHY did four supervisors go back on their word after
promising that no contract would be signed without first releasing it to the
public for adequate study and a public presentation which would allow for
citizen input? They lied, and in doing
so compromised their ability to govern.
"What can we do?" As a starting point, Friends of Page Valley is joining other
groups in a lawsuit against the county that challenges the supervisors’ failure
to refer the landfill issue to the Planning Commission for review because the
new contract calls for conditions out of compliance with the Comprehensive Plan
adopted June 17, 2001. From the
beginning, many in the county questioned why the Page County Planning
Commission and the public were left out of the process. The Planning Commission could study county-run
landfills in Virginia, call for traffic impact studies, and hold public
hearings. The Board of Supervisors
should have utilized the Planning Commissioners whose job it is to research and
plan for our community.
FRIENDS also will continue to promote the idea of a
county-run landfill. Contrary to the
private waste industry’s point of view that counties should not be in the trash
business, other experts maintain strongly that counties should be in control of their own landfills and the waste streams
that fill them, particularly if they hold the permit. The goals of private waste companies and counties are
different. The goal of the county is to
get rid of trash in a fiscally sound, environmentally safe manner and to
prolong the life of the landfill. The
goal of trash companies is profit; find trash, haul it and dump it in a
landfill. Their focus is on volume and
because waste companies fill landfills quickly, finding landfills is their big
problem.
Americans generate tremendous amounts of trash,
particularly in heavily populated areas.
Rural areas, such as Page County, are targeted by private waste
companies as recipients for urban waste and subjected to the "hard
sell". Perhaps the sales pitch was
hard to resist, but supervisors Comer, Allen Cubbage, Good and Mayberry can
still withdraw from this contract, listen to their constituents and be part of
a long-term solution, not the creators of future problems.
FRIENDS will continue to form coalitions with
environmental groups working on landfill issues in neighboring counties and on
legislation filed at the state and federal levels. In addition, FRIENDS will continue to seek help from appropriate
government agencies.
The fight against the mega-landfill has served as a
great unifying force in Page County .
That's the one bright spot in an otherwise shameful episode in county
government. FRIENDS thanks all those
who wrote letters, came out to meetings, circulated petitions, researched the
issues, and contributed money for newspaper and radio ads. Clearly, many, many people care deeply about
this county.
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Cartoon goes here
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CURRENT TOPICS OF INTEREST
Route 340 Projects: Scenic
340 Project reports that their biggest challenge this year has been
participating in the Citizen's Advisory Committee appointed by Commonwealth
Transportation Board Commissioner Olivia (Libby) Welsh to review VDOT's plans
for new bridges at Overall, Compton, and Jeremy's Run, and also plans to build
four lanes south of Front Royal past Skyline Caverns. Members Fred Andreae, Eileen Brennan, Jim Guy, Peabody Sours and
Harry Heard met twice a month for the last six months and digested a truly
staggering amount of VDOT information.
On August 22nd, The Scenic 340 Project sponsored a
presentation by transportation consultant Fred Jaskiewicz. In spite of the Citizen’s Advisory
Committee’s last minute decision to move Jaskiewicz’s presentation from the
larger Bentonville Fire Hall to the much smaller VDOT conference room in Luray,
60-70 local residents attended along with 12 Committee members, VDOT staff and
Commissioner Libby Welsh.
Unfortunately, because they couldn’t squeeze into the room, 20-30
residents left. Jaskiewicz presented a
two-lane concept that would improve road safety, handle the projected traffic,
and respect the natural contours of the terrain.
Despite continuing conflict and polarization between
committee members (all from Page County) who support four lanes and Scenic 340
Committee members plus Warren County Supervisor Ben Weddle who all advocate a
safer two lane road, the final report is being written and will become part of
the permanent record. The report will
include minority views on the three bridge projects and on the Caverns section
of 340.
The solutions in the report supported by the majority
are not ideal. Despite the fact that
the scope of the bridge projects has been reduced, the proposed new bridges
will still be massive and their new footprint will cause unnecessary damage to
the surrounding landscape. This is
particularly true for the bridge at Overall.
However, the work has saved houses, introduced aesthetic design and
landscaping into the mix, and lessened environmental impact. On the Caverns section, Scenic 340 members
continue to work for an improved two lane road in this Warren County section of
Route 340 - the same position taken by the Warren County Supervisors.
Prior to construction, VDOT will hold public hearings
on each of the design proposals. Stay
tuned.
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On the Blue Ridge
“Indeed my experience in different parts of America
convince me that these mountains are the Eden of the United States...”
Thomas
Jefferson, 1797
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Comprehensive Plan: On
June 12, 2001, after almost four years of public meetings with county groups
and citizens and several drafts, the Planning Commission and Board of
Supervisors approved the “Comprehensive Plan: 2010”. Many people worked very hard on this project and each one
deserves thanks from the county.
But the work is not over. As part of its duty to plan for our community, the Planning
Commission, with or without the help of a planning consultant, must now review
the zoning codes to ensure their compatibility with the goals and objectives of
the newly adopted plan.
Racetrack up-date: In
order to accommodate Jeff Vaughn’s request to build a racetrack on land zoned
agricultural, the Planning Commission initially considered amending the zoning
code to add a new special use category for agriculturally zoned land; “Motor Vehicle Racetracks and Motor Sports Facilities”. In July, however, Richard Futch, a
commissioner from District 5 (Shenandoah area), proposed essentially the same
amendment, this time, for commercial zones.
All was tabled until the Board of Supervisors approved hiring a planning
consultant.
In the meantime, Mr. Vaughn changed his
proposal from a racetrack to accommodate 8,000 people to one which would
accommodate 4,000 people Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights every weekend from
April to October. Vaughn’s newest proposal (11/1/01) includes a 150,000 square
foot facility to be used for assembling such things as drive and braking
systems produced at his KVK Precision Specialties operation in Shenandoah. Under this proposal, the racetrack would be
used during the week to test his equipment on electronic vehicles and on the
weekend for races.
Vaughn’s proposals continue to have
far-reaching economic environmental, social and land-use consequences which
need careful analysis. Beyond analyzing
whether this concept is compatible with the “Comprehensive Plan: 2010”, the
Planning Commission needs to study the positive and negative financial impacts
and do an independent traffic impact analysis.
At what point do the still-to-be-analyzed financial benefits of the
proposed project outweigh the economic and environmental impact on nearly 100 homes
and farms in the area and the economic costs for road improvements, traffic and
crowd control? The study needs to
assess noise as well as air pollution potentials.
These studies should be completed before the Zoning Code is
amended. The amendments are solely to
accommodate Vaughn’s proposals.
But, they will apply to the whole county.
Finally, does the Zoning Code offer any real protection
to land zoned agricultural if commercial-industrial use proposals requiring
rezoning and zoning code amendments take precedence without careful
consideration of their long-range implications?
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The Wasp
Where the ripe pears droop
heavily
The yellow wasp hums loud and
long
His hot and drowsy autumn song:
A yellow flame he seems to be,
When darting suddenly from high
He lights where fallen peaches
lie:
Yellow and black, this tiny
thing
A tiger-soul on elfin wings
William
Sharp, 1856-1905
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Earth Day Celebration 2001 and Planning for 2002; Thanks to many volunteers, many
generous merchants and the Page News & Courier, Earth Day 2001 was a great
success, in spite of awful weather. The
Town of Stanley had the Hawksbill Recreation Park in tip-top condition. Many Page County students wrote poems and
made posters celebrating the earth.
Great music, great games, and great entertainment carried the day.
Believe it or not, planning is underway for Earth Day
2002. Anyone wishing to help (many
will, we hope), should contact Carol Wallbridge at 743-2120 or Jennifer Orenic
at 742-7943. Given the success last
year, the event should be the best ever in 2002, especially if the weather
cooperates!
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Earth Day
Today’s Earth Day
The Day we celebrate earth
With beautiful trees and grass
We celebrate this day with
happiness
Happiness that we can live on
this beautiful earth.
J.D. Blankenship, Page County student
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Water Quality
Water Quality Advisory
Committee
: On August 14, 2001, the Board of
Supervisors passed a resolution authorizing the Water Quality Advisory
Committee to apply for grants to fund land use surveys on one or more streams
with high levels of pollution to determine the sources and develop possible
corrective action. In addition, the
Board requested the committee to explore with the Page County Health Department
and the Virginia Department of Health available assistance with sanitary
surveys and corrective actions in areas with likely septic system problems.
The Committee has met once since August 15th but was
unable to take any action because a quorum of members was not present. At this time Chairman Gerald Dovel is
contacting members to determine who wishes to continue serving, and who wants
to be replaced.
As reported in the March Newsletter several streams
contain high levels of fecal coliform - Hawksbill Creek, Pass Run, Mill Creek,
Jeremy’s Run, Honey Run, Line Run and Stony Run. Some of these streams show
repeated fecal coliform readings above 1000 bacteria colonies/100 ml. It has been nearly a year since these
findings have been confirmed. The
committee needs to get back to work and start dealing with these problems.
Shenandoah River
Basin Project: On June 21st members of several groups
working to improve water quality learned of a new project which will provide
financial and technical assistance to local groups throughout the Shenandoah
River Basin area. FRIENDS members Joy
Sours, Pam Davidson, Jennifer Orenic, and Natalie Zuckerman attended along with
Charlie Hoke and Charles Newton from the Water Quality Advisory Committee.
The Shenandoah watershed drains a large section of
Virginia west of the Blue Ridge. The
Project’s advocate believe that this area’s beautiful natural resources,
significant agricultural industry, dense animal population and industrial sites
require careful management. The basic
tenant of the project is that appropriate local management will allow continued
economic development and protection of the resources that residents and
tourists in the valley cherish.
Over the next three years, technical assistance and
small grants from a $95,000 fund will be made available to local groups through
the Isaak Walton League, The River Network and the Canaan Valley
Institute. The purpose of the project
is to help community based organizations in the following ways to:
(1) Develop sustainable organizations;
(2) Effectively communicate to citizens the need to
protect the watershed;
(3) Expand and improve stream water quality monitoring
and data use; and,
(4) Implement riparian restoration activities.
Joy Sours, Charles Newton and Charlie Hoke attended a
second meeting in Woodstock called Benchmarking for Success which was focused
on building a community of river and watershed organizations in the Shenandoah
Basin watershed. Participants received
a workbook outlining steps organizations can take to improve their
effectiveness. The topics included fundraising
& resources, public communications & alliances, and vision &
planning.
FRIENDS plans to invite representatives from the
Shenandoah Basin Project to one of its meetings next Spring to discuss how
FRIENDS could improve its effectiveness and participate in this endeavor.
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Save the Shenandoah River
Cody is my name
Pollution is not a game
I save a river
I’m a giver
Don’t kill fish
That’s my wish
I’ve saved a frog
I bathe it in a bog
W. Cody Martin, Page County
student
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Tree Plantings Free of Charge: The Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Virginia Watershed
Education Program is actively seeking landowners who have property along
tributaries within the Bay watershed in need of forest buffers. Native tree plantings are done free of
charge and in cooperation with the landowners.
Through their fully funded program, the Chesapeake Bay
Foundation hopes to increase forest buffer protection of susceptible lands
along waterways which drain into the Chesapeake Bay. The way it works is that after they understand the landowners
needs, students and teachers are instructed and supplied with the tools and
trees to plant buffer zones on stream banks.
Anyone interested in finding out more about this
program should contact Patrick Calvert, 1501 Greenleaf Lane, Charlottesville,
VA 22903, telephone: (804) 971-6957, e-mail: pcalvert@savethebay.cbf.org.
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Don’t cut down trees
It won’t please me.
It makes me mad
that animals die.
People cut down trees
and only leave leaves.
Animals are deceived
Because you are cutting down
their trees!
Jonathan Cubbage, Page County student
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Roadside Litter:
Roadside
litter is a terrible problem throughout Page County. For example, along a 1 mile section of Hawksbill Drive, FRIENDS
members can pick up as much as 14 huge bags of trash every four months. Roadside litter is especially visible in the
Spring and Fall. In February and again
in July suggestions on how to address this problem were made to County
Administrator BeLer. The suggestions
were:
First, run an article in the Supervisors Newsletter
about how trashy the county roads look with an appeal to people to not toss
trash out of their cars and to speak with their children about the importance
of making the county look good. Second,
ask state and county police to enforce
the litter laws - i.e. arrest people when they see them throw cups, bottles,
paper, etc. out of their cars. Third,
fill the Litter Control position which is funded through a grant.”
As noted in two
Page News and Courier Articles in May, tourism is big business in Page
County. According to these articles
tourists are drawn here by the Shenandoah River, George Washington National
Park, Shenandoah National Park and Skyline Drive, the Blue Ridge Mountains,
Luray Caverns and the simple desire for a weekend in the country. Television crews from TNN came to
photograph, the diverse terrain, Virginia redbud and juniper bush bloom,
fishing and turkey hunting. All of this
translates into income for cabin owners, restaurants, river and hunting
outfitters and shops.
Sheriff Presgraves says he has stepped up litter law
enforcement. He also assigns prison
crews to litter pick-up. Unfortunately,
however, to date no mention of the problem has appeared in the Supervisors Newsletter
and the litter control position remains unfilled. It is unfortunate that the county government does not appreciate
the economic benefit of keeping the county clean. It would also benefit all of us who live here.
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HAPPY
HOLIDAYS
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CALENDAR OF MEETINGS AND EVENTS
PLANNING COMMISSION - 1st Monday of every month -
7:00 PM, Circuit Court Room,
County Court House.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS - 2nd Tuesday of every month -
6:00 PM, General District Court Room, County Court House
FRIENDS OF PAGE VALLEY - The last Thursday of every
month - 7:00 PM, Supervisor’s Meeting Room, Page County Court House. Next regular meeting January 31, 2002.
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If you enjoyed this Newsletter,
please pass it along to a friend.
If YOU have a concern about
matters in which FRIENDS has an
interest, please call Barbara
Coulter at 778-5378 or Joy Sours at 743-3240.
Visit the FRIENDS OF PAGE VALLEY website at www.infostat.com/friends