Chesapeake Bay Journal

Perhaps someday soon the word "bridge" in Virginia's Natural Bridge will be purely figurative, or will at least refer only to foot traffic. If two state departments (transportation and conservation/recreation) have their way, U.S. Route 11, the two-lane highway that crosses the natural limestone arch in Virginia's aptly named Rockbridge County, will be rerouted to prevent further wear and tear on the stone arch. A 2018 geological study of the popular sightseeing attraction (o...nce owned by Thomas Jefferson) showed that while the roadway above remains safe, there are cracks and air pockets in the rock below, as well as some precarious boulders, all of which could pose a threat to hikers on the trail below. The commonwealth's Department of Conservation and Recreation is inviting public input on its rerouting plan until Nov. 21. Here are the details, including DCR contact info, by staff writer Jeremy Cox: See more

Who doesn't love a waterfall? How 'bout 21 of them all in a single state park? Combine that with spectacular fall colors and ... well, what are you waiting for? Get thee to Ricketts Glen State Park in Pennsylvania, about 20 miles west-northwest of Wilkes-Barre. Here's staff-writer Ad Crable's write up from his recent adventure there.

Bring back the beavers! That's the watchword these days from Bay Journal columnist Tom Horton, dean of Chesapeake Bay writers. Beavers are the original master engineers of the Bay watershed, slowing down and spreading out the flow of water as gravity pulls it to the Bay. We need them more than ever now, with stormwater runoff being the estuary's most pressing affliction. Here, from our October issue, is Tom's latest paean to Castor canadensis:

Soul Fire Farm, Mighty Thundercloud Edible Forest.... They're not just evocative names for small organic farms; they represent what might be called the Farming While Black movement. That, in fact, is the title of a book on the subject, written by a New York state farmer as a guide for people of color looking to get a start in organic farming and employing techniques practiced by their ancestors for countless centuries in Africa. Here's staff writer Jeremy Cox's short video from his visit with Eastern Shore farmer Thelonius Cook, founder of the aforementioned Mighty Thundercloud Edible Forest. (To read Jeremy's full article on the subject, click here: https://tinyurl.com/farmingwhileblack)

Switchgrass. Could it be the next cash crop, the next source of biofuel? Maybe so if investors and policymakers get behind it. In the meantime, however, good old panicum virgatum has long since proven its value as a carbon-hungry cover crop and as a pollution- and erosion-controlling streamside buffer. Click here (https://tinyurl.com/SwitchGrassCrable) for staff writer Ad Crable's October issue report on some very promising recent studies of this multitasking native grass. ( : . , 3.0)

Stream restoration is a good thing, right? It's a no-brainer, isn't it, to re-engineer suburban streams so that they slow down and absorb nutrient- and sediment-laden stormwater, keeping it out of the Bay?... Well, not *necessarily*, some environmental scientists and activists are now saying especially if it means taking down century-old trees and otherwise rearranging nature, however ineffective it may have become in helping us solve our stormwater problems. Others say the... earth-moving and bulldozing approach, disruptive as it may be at first, is worthwhile in the long run. Here's senior writer Tim Wheeler's report on the emerging debate: Chesapeake Bay Foundation Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay Chesapeake Conservancy Chesapeake Bay Magazine

Could the entire Chesapeake region become a national park? No, at least not literally not lock, stock and barrel as one giant federally owned territory. But how about a *network* of natural, cultural and historic areas that would collectively be a national park? It's an idea that has been batted around for decades, and the Chesapeake Gateways Network is *sort of* the same idea, though it's more of a confederation of independent sites, not a unit of the National Park Service, which requires an act of Congress. But the latter is once again on the table in a new campaign to create a Chesapeake National Recreation Area under the park service. Here, from our October issue, is a deep dive from staff writer Whitney Pipkin: National Park Service Chesapeake Bay National Park Foundation

Not to worry, says the Maryland Department of the Environment, which tested the water and oysters for "forever chemicals" near the Patuxent Naval Air Station in St. Mary's County. Levels of PFAS (per and polyfluoroalkyl substances) were very low, according to their tests, and presented "no level of concern." But some environmental activists aren't buying it, pointing out that previous tests came to a different conclusion and that the state's threshold for unsafe PFAS levels ...is not strict enough. Here's a full report from our October issue, by senior writer Tim Wheeler: Oyster Recovery Partnership Chesapeake Bay Foundation Clean Water Action Maryland Clean Water Action

Scooterpalooza? No, it's not convention for the electric scooter industry it was a playfully named cleanup project by the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology and the National Aquarium to remove discarded scooters and bicycles from Baltimore's Inner Harbor. The haul? 18 scooters, five bicycles and one skateboard. The scientists were pleased, if not surprised, at how quickly the scuttled human artifacts became miniature artificial reefs, quickly crusted over with barnacles and mussels and bryozoans (yeah, we had to look that up too; they're tiny invertebrates that form colonies on hard surfaces.) Here, with some nice underwater fish footage, is IMET's YouTube video about it.

So, yeah, we're gonna brag a little more about good ol' Dave Harp, the Bay Journal's hard-working, sharp-eyed, Bay-savvy staff photographer. His stellar work has graced the Bay Journal's pages for well over a decade and now the best of his best is on display in a special year-long exhibit at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels. The COVID-conscious exhibit, : . , is free with a general admission ticket to the museum. Dave is also hosting a series of Zoom talks about his work the final two scheduled for Nov. 4 and Dec. 9. (to register, go to cbmm.org/HarpArtistSeries.) Here, from our October issue, is managing editor Lara Lutz's profile of Dave. Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum

Interesting cultural/historical project getting under way a partnership of watershed states, the National Park Service and other organizations to document and map out important African-African cultural and historical sites around the Bay watershed. Here's the skinny from National Parks Traveler: @ https://www.nationalparkstraveler.org//african-american-hi

Is it a northern puffer or a striped burrfish?... Okay, the stripes kind of give it away, but what are the other similarities and differences between the two Chesapeake fish that fend off predators by inflating themselves? Copy and design editor Kathleen Gaskell gives us the answers, and the usual quiz, in the September issue "Chesapeake Challenge."

Yes, swimming season is firmly behind us, or most of us. But if you've got your dry suit out and ready to go, or your fishing gear or if you're Scandinavian here's the latest look at swimming and fishing safety in the Baltimore's Inner and Northwest harbors. The "Healthy Harbor" campaign begun 10 years ago by city leaders aimed to make the harbor fishable and swimmable by 2020. But, as senior writer Tim Wheeler tells us, we're not *quite* there yet.

The lessons of COVID-19 are many. Here's one you might not have considered, courtesy of Tom Horton in his September "Chesapeake Born" column: