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Conservation group tries to block development of Chesapeake's Stumpy Lake

The Virginia Court of Appeals will allow the Chesapeake Bay Foundation to challenge a state permit for construction of a residential and commercial development in Chesapeake. At issue is a Virginia State Water Control Board permit for development at Stumpy Lake.

A Richmond judge had ruled that the group lacked standing to appeal the permit decision because none of its individual members participated in the public comment process. The appeals court said Tuesday that no such showing is required. The case will now be heard by the the lower court.

Homeowners will generally benefit from development, which spurs economic growth. A robust economy translates to a healthy real estate market and rising home values.

Richmond homeowners learning to reduce polluted runoff

The Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay is working with the Reedy Creek Coalition, a grass-roots group in Richmond, to help homeowners in the creek's watershed to reduce polluted runoff from their properties.

Volunteers are performing audits of homes in and around the watershed that feeds Reedy Creek, which is one of the five biggest tributaries of the James in Richmond. Homeowners are given concrete suggestions -- such as breaking up clay or adding strategic beds of plants -- that can help them reduce runoff and keep polluted water out of the waterways.

Reducing runoff helps keep flooding and erosion in check, and can help prevent expensive water damage.

Read more in the Richmond Times-Dispatch....

Posted on Wednesday, July 7, 2010 - 8:54pm

Piles of tires dwindling across Virginia

Hundreds of piles of tires -- totalling millions of tires -- have been slowly disappearing as Virginia officials undertake a state-wide cleanup effort. The cleanup started in 1993, and there are now about 130 piles remaining, containing some two million tires.

Heaped tires pose an environmental hazard and can negatively impact area homeowners. The tires can harbor disease-carrying mosquitoes and are also highly flammable. (In the 1980s, a tire fire in Frederick County burned for nine months and became a 17-year Superfund site.)

Read more in the Lynchburg News & Advance....

Posted on Monday, June 28, 2010 - 3:42pm

Loudoun County's controversial Chesapeake Bay Preservation Ordinance on hold until September

Strong opposition to the proposed adoption of the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Ordinance convinced the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors to delay a decision about adopting the ordinance and continue discussions in September. In the meantime, members of the board will hold community meetings in an effort to gauge public sentiment on the proposed ordinance.

The extra time will also allow homeowners to educate themselves and their neighbors about the bill, which would place onerous restrictions on how property owners could use and improve their land.

"These regulations are confusing, they are cumbersome to landowners and they will be costly to implement," Ashburn resident Candace Strother said. "And what often happens with government run amok, these regulations may not even do what they purport, which is to keep the water clean."

Read more in Leesburg Today....
Read more about the flawed ordinance here....

Scheduled public meetings:

Tuesday, June 22, 2010, 6:30 p.m., Mercer Middle School (Hosted by Dulles Supervisor Stevens Miller)
Thursday, July 29th, 7 p.m., at a location to be announced (Hosted by Potomac Supervisor Andrea McGimsey)

Posted on Friday, June 18, 2010 - 11:24am

York County to keep Wetlands Board

York County supervisors voted to retain local control of land use on its shorelines, defeating a proposal to disband the local Wetlands Board. Some residents had supported disbanding the agency and ceding its decision-making powers to the Virginia Marine Resources Commission.

A majority of residents attending Tuesday's board meeting supported keeping local control of land-use decisions.

Homeowners have a strong interest in how local land use decisions are made. Speaking up at county board meetings can be an effective way of making your voice heard.

York County wetlands board may be dismissed

The York County Board of Supervisors may dissolve its wetlands board, giving control of waterfront development to the Virginia Marine Resources Commission.

The seven-member wetlands board, appointed by county supervisors, guides land use along low-lying areas of the Chesapeake Bay. Homeowners must first consult with the board before building structures near the water. The board is unpopular with some residents, who say it's hostile and abusive to homeowners.

The Board of Supervisors will decide whether to disband the wetlands board on Tuesday, in the board room of York Hall, at 6:00 p.m.

EPA to impose tougher standards on development

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation have agreed on tougher regulation in an effort to speed up cleanup of the Bay.

the agreement sets deadlines and requirements for state and federal officials to cap the amount of pollution entering the Bay from farms, building sites, and city storm systems. Pollution must then be reduced and kept at safe levels - even with ongoing community growth and development.

Under the settlement, failure to meet specific targets or timelines could result in the loss of federal grants, or the EPA stepping in and rejecting permits for new development projects.

Home values can be negatively affected by restricted development -- higher property values generally follow growth. Homes near the Bay may see a bump in value as the Bay's health improves, possibly making the area more attractive to buyers.

Nonprofits help clean up Spotsylvania County

Spotsylvania homeowners will soon notice cleaner roadways as the county's Litter-a-Thon program kicks off April 3rd. Every Saturday in April, nonprofit groups will gather hundreds of bags of litter to raise money -- each bag is worth $4.

Clara Mills, an environmental coordinator for the county, says the program is very successful. "There are hundreds of bags that get picked up, and it is kind of a win-win because the nonprofit groups get a chance to make money while they remove litter."

The money paid to the groups comes from a litter prevention and recycling grant.

Lakeside homeowners in Botetourt County to lose lake

Rainbow Forest Lake -- a pretty, manmade, 12-acre body of water near Troutville -- will be drained because funds cannot be found to bring its dam up to code. State and county officials are sympathetic but say that they are not responsible for the needed upgrades. Rainbow Forest Lake residents are upset, fearing that their property values will be drained with the lake.

Read the story at The Roanoke Times....

Posted on Tuesday, March 23, 2010 - 4:04pm

York county to allow small wind turbines

YORK — The Board of Supervisors of York County amended the county's zoning ordinance to allow the use of small wind systems. The systems can now be used to generate electricity, thus offsetting utility costs.

The ammended ordinance allows homeowners to install wind turbines up to 40 feet tall. Homeowner association covenants forbidding the use of the turbines must still be respected.