ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, December 11, 1995 TAG: 9512120010
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 6 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: The Green Scene
SOURCE: CATHRYN MCCUE
The U.S. Forest Service recently announced it will require a full-scale environmental impact study of the state's proposal to four-lane U.S. 58 through the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area.
In seeking public comments last year, the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests staff received about 1,000 comments from people near and far - 73 percent of whom opposed extending 58 through the recreation area. The agency also received six petitions with 4,000 signatures.
Forest supervisor Bill Damon said that once the Virginia Department of Transportation schedules construction on that section of road in its six-year plan, he would initiate the environmental impact statement, including a formal scoping process. The study could take about three or four years to complete, and would determine whether the federal government would allow the state to cross the Mount Rogers area.
The Forest Service initially outlined 33 major concerns, including the destruction of the popular Hurricane Campground, the impact on the Appalachian Trail, water quality, scenic views, threatened and endangered species and other natural resources, and the effect on nearby private property values. The forest also noted that ``the economic and social benefits do not outweigh the economic, social and environmental costs.''
VDOT is currently four-laning 58 in sections from the eastern shore to the western tip of Virginia - chiefly as an economic development project.
Nonprofit gets sustainable grant
The Clinch Powell Sustainable Development Initiative, based in Abingdon, received a $25,000 grant last month from the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation.
The non-profit organization works with local businesses in the upper east Tennessee and far Southwest Virginia area to develop ecologically sound, economically profitable projects such as horse-logging, solar-powered kiln drying for wood, wood manufacturing and various agricultural initiatives.
The grant boosts the organization's total to $122,000 in grants this fall, from the Appalachian Regional Commission, the U.S. Forest Service, the Virginia Environmental Endowment, and Virginia's Center on Rural Development.
For more information about the Clinch Powell project, call (540) 623-1121.
O Tannenbaum
After the lights come off the tree and the bulbs go back into the box, DON'T burn that Christmas tree in the fireplace. That's the first tip from The National Christmas Tree Association. Burning pines and firs and other evergreens can build up creosote in the flu and chimney. (And besides, if everyone in your community did that, you'd all probably violate half a dozen pollution laws.)
Better to clip the branches for mulch or compost, stick it out in the yard as a bird feeder with orange slices, suet and bird seed, sink it in the pond as a refuge and feeding area for fish, or take up woodcarving and start with the tree trunk.
To choose the freshest Christmas trees, the association recommends gently pulling on a branch with thumb and forefinger to see if any needles come loose, and checking the ground around the tree to see if excess needles have dropped off.
Once it is purchased, keep the tree on the porch or an unheated garage until you bring it inside. Cut about half an inch off the base before putting it in the stand, and ALWAYS keep it watered. A tree will absorb up to a gallon of water in the first 24 hours.
Have a Merry!
More land for preserve
The Nature Conservancy has purchased 425 acres on the Clinch River in Scott County to add to its Clinch Valley Bioreserve project.
The new land is one of the most important sites for freshwater mussels in Virginia, harboring five endangered mussels with names like (you gotta love these) Appalachian monkeyface, birdwing pearlymussel and shiny pigtoe.
The conservancy's Virginia chapter, based in Charlottesville, bought the site from CSX railroad, bringing to seven the number of preserves that make up the Clinch Valley Bioreserve. The region contains some of the richest diversity of aquatic life in Virginia, and perhaps the world. Mussels are sensitive to enviornmental degradation and are therefore considered an ``indicator species'' of a stream's overall health.
The conservancy plans to refurbish Rikemo Lodge, a hunting lodge built on the property by the railroad in 1969, to use as a conference center beginning next year. In addition, 300 acres of farmland in the floodplain will remain in active production, once a plan to preserve water quality is developed in conjunction with the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Each year, The Nature Conservancy promotes memberships as Christmas gifts with programs like ``Adopt-a-Bison'' for the Tallgrass Prairie preserve in Oklahoma, and ``Adopt-an-Acre'' of tropical rainforest in Latin America.
For a gift that's closer to home, Rob Riordan, the conservancy's development coordinator for Virginia, says donations in a loved one's name can be made to the group with a note requesting the money be put into a specific stewardship account, such as the Clinch Valley Bioreserve or the Bottom Creek Gorge and Falls Ridge preserves in Montgomery County. Call (804) 295-6106 for more information.
LENGTH: Medium: 95 linesby CNB