Northern Virginia Regional Commission 2020 Only Rain NVRC Survey
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Jessica Lassetter From: Alexandria eNews <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, June 8, 2020 1:30 PM To: Jessica Lassetter Subject: Observing Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week (June 6-14) Observing Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week (June 6-14) During the annual observance of Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week (June 6-14), Virginians are encouraged to participate in events, activities, and educational programs that increase awareness of the importance of the Chesapeake Bay in their communities. The annual Clean the Bay Day event is cancelled this year, due to COVID-19; the City anticipates scheduling watershed cleanup events as soon as it becomes safe to do so. Still, there are many things you can do to increase awareness of the importance of the Bay this week while following physical distancing guidance. Below is a list of things of some things you can do to help protect the Chesapeake Bay: Know how much fertilizer to use and don’t over fertilize. Or better yet, don’t fertilize at all if it isn’t necessary! Never fertilize or use pesticides if it is going to rain within 24 hours. Fertilizers and pesticides can end up in streams and harm aquatic life. Plant a native tree. Trees use nutrients and can prevent those nutrients from entering our streams. Their roots also hold the soil in place, which helps prevent erosion. Landscape your yard using plants that are native to Alexandria. These plants are adapted to local conditions and, if planted in the right place, need less water and other care. Native plants also support butterflies, birds, bees, and other pollinators. Need ideas of what native plants are right for your yard? Visit plantnovanatives.org to learn more. Use native plants in your rain garden. This helps provide food and shelter for butterflies, bees, and birds. Please visit the City’s stormwater management BMP page for more information, including recorded webinars, about selecting the right BMP for your yard. Pick up after your dog. Pet waste left on the ground gets washed into storm drains or streams by rain. Remember to place the bagged waste in a trash can. Keep our city litter free. Any litter you drop in the street, on the sidewalk, or in a park will likely end up in a local stream and eventually the Chesapeake Bay. Besides looking bad, it harms the environment and wildlife. Report spills in our waterways. If you have any concerns about illicit or illegal discharges originating from improper disposal of items, spills, land disturbing activities, or other potential stormwater pollution concerns, or if you suspect a problem or notice something suspicious (water that is an unusual color, is cloudy, and/or has a strong smell) use Alex311 to report it to the City. Check out the Youth Field Guide and Journal. This resource is available on the City’s "What You Can Do to Protect Water Quality" web page at alexandriava.gov/93347. Educate your family, friends, and neighbors about the importance of protecting our local water resources, the Potomac River, and the Chesapeake Bay. 1 Visit alexandriava.gov/CleanWaterways to find out more about what the City is doing to help protect the Chesapeake Bay, the Potomac River, and our local streams. You are subscribed to the free Alexandria eNews service. Replies to this message will not be received. For correspondence, please use the contact information in the body of the message. To change your subscription choices or unsubscribe from an individual subscription topic, click here to login. To stop receiving all emails from Alexandria eNews, click here to completely unsubscribe. 2 Jessica Lassetter From: Alexandria eNews <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, October 22, 2019 9:33 AM To: Sarah Godfrey Subject: Strawberry Run Stream Restoration Project Public Information Meeting Eco-City Alexandria Clean Waterways: Helping Protect Local Waterways and the Chesapeake Bay Strawberry Run Stream Restoration Project Public Information Meeting Monday, November 4 from 7 to 8 p.m. Douglas MacArthur Elementary School (1101 Janneys Ln.) On Monday, November 4, from 7 to 8 p.m., the City of Alexandria will host a community meeting in the Douglas MacArthur Elementary School library (1101 Janneys Ln, Alexandria, VA 22302 to discuss the Strawberry Run Stream Restoration project. The meeting will include a presentation by the Department of Project Implementation (DPI) and Transportation & Environmental Services (T&ES), followed by a question and answer session. Members of the public interested in learning more about this project are encouraged to attend. The Strawberry Run Stream Restoration project includes approximately 900 linear feet of stream north of Duke Street starting at the pedestrian bridge and continuing north to the culvert under Fort Williams Parkway. Ongoing erosion along the stream banks is impacting the stream ecology, deteriorating water quality, and threatening existing infrastructure. In keeping with the its dedication to improve water quality in our local streams and the Chesapeake Bay, this restoration proposes use environmentally conscious engineering practices that mimic nature to reconstruct stream banks, encourage native plant growth, improve stream ecology, and moderate/diminish the impact of streamflow during high-precipitation events. The project's main goals include returning Strawberry Run to a more stable condition and restoring the area as an amenity for all to enjoy. To help finance project design and construction, the City received a $800,000 matching grant through the state’s Stormwater Local Assistance Fund (SLAF). The City’s matching amount will be funded through the City’s Stormwater Utility Fee. State and federal mandates require the City to reduce pollution from urban stormwater runoff that enters our local waterways, the Potomac River, and the Chesapeake Bay. In the City’s Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Action Plan, urban stream restoration is identified as an essential pollution reduction strategy for cleaning up the Bay and as part of the Eco-City Alexandria Clean Waterways program. For questions or additional information, contact DPI at 703.746.4045 or T&ES Stormwater Management at 703.746.6499. For additional information about the project, visit the project web page. You are subscribed to the free Alexandria eNews service. Replies to this message will not be received. For correspondence, please use the contact information in the body of the message. To change your subscription choices or unsubscribe from an individual subscription topic, click here to login. To stop receiving all emails from Alexandria eNews, click here to completely unsubscribe. 1 Jessica Lassetter From: Alexandria eNews <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, February 3, 2020 9:30 AM To: Sarah Godfrey Subject: REMINDER: Two Weeks Left to Apply for Stormwater Utility Fee Credits Two Weeks Left to Apply for Stormwater Utility Fee Credits The annual credit application window closes Sunday, February 16, 2020 at midnight. Did you uphold last year’s no fertilizer pledge? Visit alexandriava.gov/Stormwater and apply for credit off your 2020 Stormwater Utility Fees today! Healthy lawns with dense vegetation reduce the chance of nutrient and soil runoff to our waterways. On the flip side, gardeners frequently fertilize too much or too many times. Misapplied fertilizer will wash into streams and waterways and encourage unwanted plant and algae growth in the water. Do you need to fertilize in 2020? Can you pledge to maintain a dense cover of grass or conservation landscaping without using any fertilizers? The best way to tell is to test your soil. Visit soiltest.vt.edu to learn how. You are subscribed to the free Alexandria eNews service. Replies to this message will not be received. For correspondence, please use the contact information in the body of the message. To change your subscription choices or unsubscribe from an individual subscription topic, click here to login. To stop receiving all emails from Alexandria eNews, click here to completely unsubscribe. 1 Created by JLassetterStormwater Powered by MS4 Annual Report PY2 Social Media Examples 22 Items Alexandria T&ES @AlexandriaVATES Great video that talks about how clean water gets to you and what happens when water leaves your home (wastewater). There are 3 entities involved in that process and a 4th if you include the role public can play in keeping waterways clean. Check it out! Alexandria Renew @AlexandriaRenew Water touches everything we do our community. AlexRenew is proud to be a part of One Water Alexandria, with @AlexandriaVAGov & @vaamwater. Providing this critical public health need couldn't be done without the tireless work of our region’s water workers! youtube.com/watch?v=XupJaY… 9:14 PM · Jun 29, 2020 3 See Alexandria T&ES’s other Tweets Alexandria T&ES @AlexandriaVATES RT @NOVA_CWP: Make our clean stream dreams a reality by helping us reduce polluted water runoff. Learn More: bit.ly/2XzwAwH #OnlyR… Home | Clean Water Partners onlyrain.org 2:21 PM · Jun 15, 2020 See Alexandria T&ES’s other Tweets Alexandria T&ES @AlexandriaVATES RT @chesbayprogram: The Chesapeake Bay watershed includes 206 counties covering parts of six states and D.C. Each local community plays a p… 2:18 PM · Jun 15, 2020 See Alexandria T&ES’s other Tweets Alexandria T&ES @AlexandriaVATES Keep our city litter free. Litter dropped in the street, on the sidewalk, or in a park will likely end up in a local stream & eventually the Chesapeake Bay. Looks bad and harms the environment and wildlife. #ChesapeakeBayWeek #BayAwarenessWeek #OneChesapeake #BayInYourBackyard 6:47 PM · Jun 12, 2020 4 See Alexandria T&ES’s other Tweets Alexandria T&ES @AlexandriaVATES Report potential stormwater pollution, someone discharging something illegal, a waterway that is an unusual color, is cloudy, and/or has a strong smell to the City via Alex311: alexandriava.gov/Alex311 Learn about illegal discharges: alexandriava.gov/93348 #BayInYourBackyard 8:35 PM · Jun 11, 2020 1 See Alexandria T&ES’s other Tweets Alexandria T&ES @AlexandriaVATES Pick up after your dog every time, not just during Chesapeake #BayAwarenessWeek.