Chesapeake Bay Foundation faults US Bay Commitment

Chesapeake Bay

“The Chesapeake Bay Foundation says the federal government is falling short in its commitments to clean up the bay. The foundation has been a leading voice in the multi-state, multi-billion-dollar effort to restore the bay by 2025. Partners in the historic restoration include Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, three other states and the District of Columbia.

In a news release, the foundation said its criticism is based on a review of the federal government’s 2014-15 draft milestones, as well as other actions. It concluded that the government is not meeting its commitment to expand forest buffers, limit air pollution and comply with the Clean Water Act when approving permits to reduce stormwater pollution from urban and suburban runoff.”

~Writes the newsleader.com

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Port Royal to get 200-Foot-Long Fishing Pier and Canoe Launch by April

Port Royal

“This little town beside the Rappahannock River plans to have its own 200-foot-long fishing pier by April, said Jim Heimbach, a member of the Port Royal Town Council. The council recently contracted with Northern Neck Marine Construction to build a fishing pier and a soft launch that will allow for putting canoes and kayaks into the river, Heimbach said. ‘The pier will actually be just over 200 feet,’ he noted.”

~Writes The Caroline Progress

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Barge Proposal is a ‘no-go’ in Westmoreland County

Westmoreland County

“At its next regularly scheduled meeting on Nov. 13, the Westmoreland Board of Supervisors will receive a report from the Northern Neck Planning District Commission that will mean the end of a proposal to use barges to transport logs from Maryland to Westmoreland County to be milled at Potomac Supply in Kinsale.

The planning district commission was to have done a feasibility study in two phases. One report to determine whether the barge proposal was an economically viable method of transportation. If pursuit of barge transportation was feasible, then a second report was to have presented a plan for its implementation.”

~Writes Richard Leggitt of The Journal

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Out-of-Date Disaster Plan Reviewed by Beach Council

Town of Colonial Beach

“Colonial Beach Town Council continued to work on the town’s emergency shelter and disaster preparedness plan. Council Member Jim Chiarello brought in Ruth Lovelace, Director of Emergency Management and Safety for the University of Mary Washington. She works with the American Red Cross during large scale emergencies.

Lovelace offered her expertise to help the town update their emergency manual prior to the mandatory Sept. 2014 state deadline. Virginia has certain templates that all localities in the commonwealth must follow for emergency situations. The state is working toward having a unified way to do things during a disaster to make it easier when emergencies strike.”

~Writes The Westmoreland News

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Buckroe Beach replenishment: Cost of sand increases with demand

City of Hampton:

“The sandy beaches lining the Chesapeake Bay are both magnets for tourism and shields against surging storms, making them an integral part of coastal communities. In turn, tax dollars are used to maintain and expand beaches, whether it's through dredging offshore shoals, building rock groins or in some cases, hauling in sand from out of state. Localities forced to buy sand from suppliers — as Hampton had to do to replenish Buckroe Beach in late 2011 — are finding prices for the material have increased dramatically in recent years.

Demand for silica-based sand increased 14 percent in the past year, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The price followed demand, rising to $44.78 per ton, an 82 percent increase from 2005. Generating that demand is the increased use of hydraulic fracturing — often called ‘fracking’ — by energy companies to extract natural gas from underground rock formations, according to the USGS. According to the USGS, nearly 60 percent of the sand consumed throughout the country in 2012 was used for fracking.

In 2013, nearly 26 millions tons of sand was used for hydraulic fracturing, well-packing and cement mixtures. That total almost exceeds the total amount of sand consumed by all industries just five years ago, according to the USGS. The demand associated with hydraulic fracturing has increased so rapidly that new mines have been opened to supply the material. As approval of the fracking process expands, so will the demand for sand.”

~ Writes Robert Brauchle of the Daily Press

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