Just in from the Gazette:
Thank you to June Humbolt for lobbying hard to get signage at the Little Falls Branch with fecal bacteria contamination warnings.
Click here to read the Gazette Article (June 8, 2011).
Town Houses Proposed for BETCO Site
The BETCO or Hoyt property is under consideration for a town house development. This is the 1.8 acre parcel occupied by the Brick and Block Company located at the end of Butler Road across the creek paralleling the Little Falls Parkway. The property is currently zoned Light Industrial.
EYA (www.eya.com), a local urban-infill townhouse developer, proposes to redevelop this property with 28 to 32 LEED certified million dollar plus town homes. The developer has also agreed to provide public access to the Capital Crescent Trail. The community will not be gated.
LFWA has been aware of the project from the beginning as EYA has met with representatives from neighborhood and community groups. We have not opposed the proposal as we believe it will be a significant improvement to the watershed compared to current conditions, which are 99 percent pavement. Any new development will be regulated by the new County stormwater permit standards.The new project will also reduce local truck traffic and the associated noise from those trucks.
Assuming the project is approved, LFWA intends on working with Park and Planning to see that the project is as environmentally friendly as possible and conforms to the new stormwater regulations.
LFWA will try to keep everyone up to date about the status of the project by posting information on this web site.
Bridge Over Creek to Parkway
One of the controversial aspects of the EYA proposal is to build a bridge to provide access to the project over the channelized portion of the Little Falls Branch about where the wide turnout spot is located on Little Falls Parkway mid-way between River Road and Massachusetts Avenue. To construct the bridge the developer needs permission (an easement) from the Maryland-National Park and Planning Commission (Park and Planning) because the Little Falls Parkway is Park and Planning property.
Easement Agreement
Park and Planning has agreed to provide an easement; in return EYA has agreed to pay Park and Planning $500,000 for public amenity and watershed improvement projects such as stream restoration; invasive species management program within the Little Falls Stream Valley Park and the Capital Crescent Trail; trail restoration projects along the Capital Crescent Trail; and possibly other projects. Park and Planning has indicated that they will solicit public and neighborhood input on these projects.
Traffic Impact
Many people are concerned about the impact on traffic from this development. The developer and Park and Planning have said that the number of cars and trips that will be associated with the project, compared to the current traffic on Little Falls Parkway, will be very small. They have also pointed out that the project will eliminate the truck traffic going into and out of the BETCO property.
Rezoning
The developer has also petitioned to have the site rezoned from Light Industrial to allow for residential townhouses.
LFWA Day at the Bay Soxs
June 24, 7:00 - Come out for a Night at the Ball Game and support your favorite Bay stewardship group!
We are excited that the Bay Soxs have chosen to support Bay stewardship groups this year by donating a portion of the gate to watershed groups. A fun way to support LFWA and to join neighbors at the ball game. The Bay Soxs will be facing theBinghamton Mets and there will fireworks after the game. And a boy scout camp out. And, as always, kids under 12 get to run the bases!
The Bowie Bay Soxs play at the Prince George's Stadium at 4101 Crain Highway in Bowie.
Visit www.lfwa.org/event/lfwa-day-baysox for instructions on how to order special tickets to benefit LFWA. Don't forget to use the special code FALLS to insure that the proceeds go to LFWA.
Bag Bill Passes!
We did it! Montgomery County Council pass a bag bill today by 8 to 1 vote. Click here for more information. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to get this important piece of legislation for Montgomery County. Once again, Montco is leading the country in environmental measures. (Maybe we'll get a bottle bill passed one day!)
Sarah Morse
Celebrate Earth Day; Support the Bag Bill
Today is Earth Day. What a better way to celebrate than by supporting the Montgomery County Bag Bill? Go to Surfrider.com and send a letter in support of the bill. Never has a five cent fee done so much for the environment!
To put this in perspective....
At the beginning of the month, many of us spent the morning pulling trash out of the creek - over 4 dozen 50-gallon bags worth. A large percentage of the trash was bags - cheap plastic bags that grocery stores and other businesses pass out with every transaction. We found bags from Safeway, Giant, CVS as well as generic "have a nice day" bags. They were stuck in the rocks, festooning the bushes, scattered on the banks.
DC instituted a 5 cent bag fee last year and found that plastic bags litter in the Anacostia River was reduced by over 60 percent. Merchants reported passing out 220 million fewer bags (a savings for them too.) People didn't go broke buying bags as some predicted; instead they adjusted and started bringing their own bags, or sticking the items in their purses, briefcases or pockets. It was amazing how a small fee could change a behavior. Some business simply stopped carrying bags all together. There just wasn't a demand for them any more.
This bill will work in Montgomery County too. Like in DC, this little charge can have a big impact. It will reduce the amount of litter in the environment, thus lowering cleanup costs incurred by the County. Businesses will save money because they don't have to purchase as many bags. Any revenues from the fee will be dedicated to the Water Quality Protection Fund, used for stormwater projects and watershed protection.
So please celebrate Earth Day by sending a letter to the Montgomery County Council members. The Alice Ferguson Foundation has a lot of good information if you need talking points. Surfrider.com has set-up a letter page and Council member email addresses can be found on the Montgomery County Council website.
The letters do not have to be long or persuasive. A simple "I support the bag fee. Please vote for this." is fine.
Happy Earth Day to Everyone,
Sarah Morse
Creek Cleaned; Thank You Everyone!
Sorry, we have no pictures (need to remember to find volunteer photographer), but we had a quality turn out on Saturday for the Annual Creek Sweep. Over 50 bags of trash and recyclables were pulled from the creek as well as a ladder, a shovel, plastic flower pots, various clothing, four cell phones and more! Visit the Alice Ferguson website to get a report on how the other sites did.
Thank you especially to Jackie's Girl Scout troop, the Cub Scout Bears from Wood Acres ES and the group from Stone Ridge. These kids were enthusiastic cleaners!
We won't have another big clean-up until next year, but if you are interested in cleaning the creek, send us an email at stormwater@LFWA.org and we can direct you to the worst spots and arrange for bags, gloves and pick-up. We also have a once a month creek clean-up between Mass Ave and River Road on Little Falls Parkway. Visit our website at www.LFWA.org/events for details.
And if you are reading this and have any pictures that we could post, please let me know! A picture tells a thousand words.
Thanks for thinking about the environment,
Sarah Morse
Bullis LAX Defeats Trash: 27 - 0
25 members of the Bullis Lacrosse team tackled the Little Falls Stream Valley park behind the Sumner Shopping Plaza and came out with 27 bags of trash and recycling! The trash put up a good fight, but the Bullis boys proved tougher. In a rigorous match in which the boys had to scale the steep slopes of the creek valley, wrestle tires and fencing from the stream and fight vines and branches, the team emerged 90 muddy minutes later with 27 bags of discarded plastic bags, cups, carry-out containers, cans and bottles. 8 bags were dedicated just to recyclables! For bonus points, they also retrieved two tires, one piece of fencing, one wooden table, one wooden palette and miscellaneous scrap metal.
The trash pick-up was Coach Bobby Pollicino's annual team service project. Good job boys and thank you to Coach Pollicino for thinking of the environment.
LFWA is Available to Lead Group Service Projects
If you would like to organize a service project for your team, office group, civic associate, let us know. We can do trash pick-ups or invasive weed removals. We also have storm drains that need labeling. We supply all the materials; you just need to bring the people.
Together we can make a difference.
Sarah Morse
MD Bag Bill Needs Your Help Today
Last Saturday, 16 volunteers cleaned up Little Falls Parkway. Along with 6 bags of plastic bottles, they picked up hundreds of bags blow out of garbage trucks or just thrown out of car windows. The problem is not as great in DC as they have a bag tax. When you buy something a District grocery store or any store, they are required to ask if you want a bag. If you do, it cost 5 cents. Just this little tax has reduced the number of bags found in the Anacostia by 40 percent.
In Maryland, we have a Bag fee bill in Annapolis now. If you are a MD resident, please contact your representative TODAY (click on representative) and ask them to support the Clean the Streams and Beautify the Bay Act of 2011. This important bill will reduce the number of bags we find in our cleanups AND the money collected will go to Chesapeake Bay Trust to support environmental education and restoration.
If the link above doesn't work, go to http://action.surfrider.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=2257
There is a form ready for you to send.
Sarah Morse
Co-President, Little Falls Watershed Alliance
Volunteers Remove 10 Bags of Trash From Little Falls Parkway
We had a beautiful day Saturday while we were out cleaning up the Little Falls Stream Valley Park. Sixteen volunteer
s collected enough to fill ten extra large bags with recyclable and regular trash. Several large metal items, including a large highway guardrail, were also found and dragged out.
LFWA wants to especially thank the sixth graders, from Westland Middle School and North Chevy Chase, and their moms, who worked so diligently to bring the Parkway and park back to a cleaner state. Their enthusiasm and efforts are very much appreciated. And we can't forget our regular volunteers, Patty and Pat Garvey.
When you all walk in the park or drive along Little Falls Parkway, please take a minute (or second when driving) to notice how much cleaner the area is.
Thank to everyone,
Suzanne Richman
LFWA Heroes
I was watching one of those action movies the other night and thinking about what it takes to be a hero. Since I don't quite have the body type for jumping fences and scaling buildings and I'm never going to rescue people from the deep jungle, what could I do? The answer came from my kids - "keep doing what you're doing. You are a hero." A tree saved, a creek cleaned - this is also the work of heroes.
At LFWA, we see heroes every day. Saturday, we had a crew out on Little Falls Parkway, cleaning the creek and the roadway between River Road and Mass ave. Thank you Dan Dozier and volunteers for coming out. Little by little, we are keeping trash out of the creek, the Potomac and the Bay.
And we also had a group at Norwood Park saving trees from strangling honey suckle and porcelain berry vines. They also removed a lot of bush honey suckle and multi-flora rose. The trees are happy. Thank you so much to Doug Jimenez and the Interested Gentlemen of Lamda Theta Phi, Latin Fraternity Inc at the University of Maryland for setting this up. Doug and his fraternity brothers brought a group of high school students connected with I.D.E.N.T.I.T.Y. They worked hard and got a lot done. Check out our pictures on Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/lfwa/sets/. Select the 2011 Vine Removal in Norwood Park set.
Thank you to all our volunteer heroes. Together we are making a difference, one tree, one creek at a time.