The TLC finally posted some pictures of the Irvin Learning Farm featuring the tipi, but they are not from the raising. Instead, the pictures are from an open house they had this past Saturday. In any case, they give a feel for what the place looks like right now:
Tags: conservation, farm, pictures, volunteer
The 20th annual conference of the North Carolina Association of FloodPlain Managers (NCAFPM) meets between Sunday, May 3rd and Wednesday, May 6th in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina. The conference is an opportunity to get up to date on any changes to the National Flood Insurance Program, especially as it pertains to North Carolina, which is one of the few states to manage program implementation itself instead of FEMA. The program is highly dependent upon accurate and up-to-date mapping of flood risks, which is where I have usually been involved. In areas of repetitive and/or catastrophic loss, it is also highly dependent upon mitigation, which I have also dabbled in. Of course, the conference is also a chance to network, so, if you’re going, I hope to see you there!
Tags: conference, floodplain, NCAFPM
The Teen Career Academy is coming to the end of session and, therefore, trying to graduate a number of students near the end of the GED program. As a result, there has been some reshuffling. I am now assigned to two students, Alrinez and Matthew, who are about to take the math test. My schedule has been reduced to Tuesdays, but I will be meeting with both students and reviewing their weakest areas with them until they have passed the exam.
Today was a workday at the Triangle Land Conservancy’s Flower Hill Nature Preserve near the Johnston and Nash County border. A gravel parking area was just recently installed and we were doing some clean up. Specifically, we spread mulch to stabilize loose soils and we cleared out trees that were felled during construction. Additionally, we cleared a path for a new segment of trail that is to connect existing segments to the parking area. Though I may not make it, there are also workdays scheduled for Monday and Tuesday. The results of all this effort will be shown off during the Flower Hill Celebration and Rhodo Ramble, which takes place on Saturday May 2nd from 10am to noon. It is called the Rhodo Ramble because Flower Hill is home to an isolated population of native rhododendron. Like the white pines of White Pines Nature Preserve in Chatham County, these rhododendron would normally be at home somewhere closer to the mountains or the foothills.
Tags: conservation, rhododendron, volunteer
I had earlier promised to post pictures from my adventures raising a tipi at the Irvin Learning Farm. I checked for them today, and they have yet to be posted by the TLC. However, I did notice some pictures from an earlier outing to their White Pines Nature Preserve in Chatham County. On February 27th, we were collecting white pine seedlings. These seedlings were to be taken to a nursery where they would grow into saplings that would have a better chance at survival. These saplings will later be replanted on the nature preserve. The reason the TLC protects the White Pines Nature Preserve is that it is an isolated population of trees that would normally only naturally occur further west in the mountains. This activity of collecting and replanting seedlings is meant to insure the future of this unique population. Anyway, here are the pictures from TLC:
Tags: conservation, pictures, seedling, volunteer, white pines
I happened upon this gem last night. It is an episode of the PBS news magazine Frontline. It is a summary of what problems face our waters today. Primary examples of current threats include nutrients, endocrine disruptors, and PCBs.
Nutrients largely enter our waters from wastewater discharge and stormwater runoff contaminated with fertilizer and agricultural byproducts. However, combustion byproducts found in automobile emissions also contain nutrients and find their way into open water in significant amounts. These nutrients cause an explosion of microbial growth, which can reduce dissolved oxygen and kill everything that depends on it in the water, such as fish. In fact, the problem has gotten so bad that oceanic dead zones have spread across the world. One of the most famous occurs in the Gulf of Mexico around the Mississippi River delta. It is in order to stop these occurrences that stormwater best management practices (BMPs) are required as part of most urban development, but agriculture is still largely unregulated.
Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that mimic hormones in the body. They are used for this reason in drugs to treat certain conditions. It also happens to be that certain industrial products happen to have this property. A good example is bisphenol a (BPA), which is found in various plastics. It happens to be used in many drink containers and, for this reason, public pressure has forced many baby bottle makers to go BPA-free. The fear in this case is that boys will be femenized, possibly to the point of having fertility problems. When endocrine disruptors make it into the wild, it has been known to make organisms that are genetically of one sex to develop as the other. As far as I know, there is no current regulation of endocrine disruptors in our water (drinking, waste, or natural).
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are an example of a kind of toxic and possibly carcinogenic chemical that is also very persistent as they do not readily degrade. PCBs are usually associated with old electrical facilities. Because they are so persistent, PCBs can accumulate over time in animals from both what they eat and their surroundings. Exposure can get worse from generation to generation as the PCBs can be passed from mother to baby. The effect is that an entire population could potentially be killed by PCBs. I have actually had the occasion to work on the design of road crossings of a stream contaminated by PCBs. It was necessary to span the stream so as not to disturb it and potentially release any PCBs that might be contained in the soils and sediment. The site has been designated a superfund site, though no cleanup has yet occurred.
If you watch the following video, it will take you through the history and the process by which Chesapeake Bay, Puget Sound, and other waters have been contaminated. It will also document the effects this has had on the ecosystem and some of the efforts that have been made to mitigate them. One obvious take-home message is: be careful where you fish. Another one might be to be careful what you drink.
Tags: documentary, PBS, pollution, water
The other place I have been volunteering is the Triangle Land Conservancy (TLC). One of the ways that I have been doing this is as part of the Conservation Corps, which meets every Thursday at the Irvin Learning Farm. The farm is an 1880′s homestead that is being developed as a model farm to demonstrate traditional and sustainable farming techniques as well as for an after-school and summer environmental education camp for kids. Recent activity at the farm has been related to the construction of a tipi that is to be used as part of the camp. For the past few weeks, we made poles for the tipi from red cedar found on the farm, from which we stripped the bark. Today, we raised the tipi and wrapped it in a canvas cover. The cover is plain right now, but an artist has agreed to paint it. The raising was covered by TLC publicists, so I expect to post pictures in the future.
Tags: conservation, farm, tipi, volunteer
Civil Engineering Magazine – Letter to the Editor
I have attached a letter to the editor of Civil Engineering magazine, which is published by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). It was published in the February 2008 edition. The magazine had recently published two articles that had gotten my attention. The first was an article regarding recovery in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and the second was an article summarizing a proposal for new educational standards for civil engineers. In the attached letter, I propose new flood damage prevention standards in New Orleans taking into account the limitations of levees. I also propose how the educational standards could be complemented by new licensure standards.
Tags: ASCE, civil engineering
This week is Spring Break at the Teen Career Academy. This means that I have some extra time on my hands at the beginning of this week as I will not have any tutoring to do. Hopefully the weather will cooperate and I can do some things outside, but this is looking to be unlikely.
Since having been let go as part of the downsizing at The John R. McAdams Company, I have been volunteering for a couple of organizations. One of these is the Durham Literacy Center. I have been tutoring from Monday to Wednesday for the Teen Career Academy that meets at the John Avery Boys and Girls Club. It is a GED program for teens that have dropped out of high school. So far, I have been tutoring math. My first student, Richard, took the exam last Thursday, so I have switched to a new student, Marcus. We have started off near the beginning with fractions. The subject will end with algebra and geometry, at which point Marcus should also take the GED math exam.
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