Northumberland Association for Progressive Stewardship

Northumberland is going to grow. Let’s help it grow with order and beauty.

NAPS News

Fall, 2000 Volume 9, Issue 3

Where Did The Summer Go?

Party Time Is Almost Here

It's time to mark your calendars for our fall social event. Last year we took our first cruise up the beautiful Great Wicomico River. It brought us our biggest turnout in my memory. So why not do it again, but to a different place! The date will be September 23, and our voyage will start from Buzzard's Point Marina aboard the Chesapeake Breeze at 5 PM.

This ship can carry 150 people, has twin diesel engines, and is very stable. We will have a very smooth and slow trip out of Cockrell Creek, passing the sights of Reedville before we head to our secret destination (weather permitting?). There are many interesting creeks to choose from, with a wide variety of homes, as well as historical sights and places of interest.

We will have a catered buffet featuring pulled pork barbecue, grilled chicken, and other delights. This year we will find the barbecue first. We will also have wine, beer, tea and sodas to compliment our usual gourmet fare.

The highlight of the trip will be the presentation of our annual Distinguished Citizen Award. We hope you will all join us in making this a memorable occasion, And feel free to bring guests and prospective members, especially the latter.

As mentioned above we can only accommodate 150 people, which is less than our total membership. In addition we will have the DCA surprise guest and some other notables. Tickets for this event will be issued on a first come ‑ first serve basis. Last year we had 145 people. Reservations made by members will be given first priority.

I urge every member to send in your requests for tickets as soon as possible. Don't delay and be left on the dock. We also have a deadline for ordering our dinner of September 13. No tickets will be issued after this date. We expect to fill the boat, so don't wait too long to respond. You should have received your written notice by now. If you don't have the official letter and want to be sure to be included, tear off your name from this news‑letter, indicate the names and addresses in your party, include their checks made out to NAPS, and send everything to P 0 Box 567 , Heathsville VA 22473. We need the addresses of all guests.

The price is the same as last year $15.00 per person ‑ If we have a full boat we can add another scholarship to the three we awarded this year. Any profit will be added to our scholarship fund, so let's fill up this boat (or is it a ship).

I hope you will join us. If you have any questions, my number is 453‑6625 (fax also).

Directions: From 360 at Lillian to 646, then left on 656 (sign to BUZZARD'S POINT). We can board starting at 4:30 PM. The boat departs the dock at 5:00 PM September 23.

Randolph H Neal – President

********************************************************************************************************************************************

Successful River Cleanup

Cleanup of Indian Creek was a success measured various ways. The two and a half tons of debris removed is one success. Completion of the round of rivers in Northumberland County is another success. The money contributed to pay for the cleanup was another success since there was money available after expenses to use for Northumberland student scholarships. The cooperation between Lancaster County and Northumberland County residents to clean up the river which is the border of the two counties is another success.

On May 27, 2000 NAPS working closely with Northumberland and Lancaster County residents conducted the eighth annual river cleanup concentrating on Indian Creek. Nearly 170 people participated in the cleanup with the base of operations at the Alexandria Police Boys Camp near Kilmarnock. High school students from both counties were a significant part of the crew. Omega Protein again provided a steamer, two purse boats and crews in addition to a monetary contribution. Northern Neck Audubon gave a grant to NAPS for the cleanup. Other organizations, companies and individuals contributed to the fund.

NAPS was honored by the presence of Delegate Albert Pollard and his wife Mariah. Albert gave a talk after the luncheon. Also present were Republican hopefuls for Virginia's First District House of Representatives seat Robert L. Cunningham and Paul C. Jost.

President Randy Neal was master of ceremonies at the luncheon following the cleanup. He thanked the people from the two counties working together. Each participant was presented a tee shirt that represents the value of recycling since the shirts, manufactured by Wellman, Inc., were made with fibers from recycled plastic and recycled cotton fibers. The weather held for the speeches and presentation of the tee shirts. It began to rain only during the taking down of the tents.

This successful river cleanup completes a round of the rivers of Northumberland County. Special thanks are due to Mike Harwood for his wonderful effort at leading the eight very successful cleanups. Mike has indicated that this is his last year for leading a cleanup. Anyone that would like to try their hand at this work would be most welcome. The work is difficult and requires a great deal of time and knowledge. The first question is: What do we do next year'?

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Education Committee

by Don Pumroy

On June 1st at the Northumberland High School Senior Chapel I was one of many giving out scholarships to talented students. Our NAPS Scholarship winners for the year of 2000 were: Rebekah Cramer, Jennifer Haynie and Sabrina Newton. I congratulated each one, gave her an official letter stating that we will send a $400 check to each student in the near future. Twelve students applied for the Scholarship; this was much greater than last year when only six applied.

The Committee is sad and glad to report that Shirley Haynie, the Guidance Counselor at the High School, is retiring and will not be back next year. We are sad because she is such a competent, friendly, warm person in dealing with everyone and it has always been a pleasure interacting with her: she had been most helpful. And we are glad for her. She certainly has earned here retirement and we wish her the very best of luck.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Lynton S. Land Elected to NAPS Board

At a meeting of the Board of Directors Lynton S. Land was elected to the Board of Directors to fill the position vacated by the resignation of Walter Carper.

Lyn received his B.A. and M.A. from Johns Hopkins University and his Ph.D from Lehigh University with a thesis "Diagenesis of metastable skeletal carbonates." After a Postdoctoral position at California Institute of Technology he started up the Professor of Geological Sciences ladder at Univ. of Texas, Austin in 1968. Along the way he has generated 135 scientific publications.

Lyn's major interests in the Northern Neck include the quantity and quality of groundwater, especially the concentration of nitrate in shallow groundwater and its discharge to tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay, oyster gardening, shoreline erosion control, and all scientifically based Bay‑related issues, especially those with an educational component.

We congratulate and welcome Lynton Land to the Board of Directors.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Delegate Pollard Attends

Nation's River Bass Tournament

by Mike Harwood

On June 9, Virginia House Delegate Albert Pollard participated in the first annual Nation's River Bass Tournament fund raiser in the vicinity of Washington, D.C. The tournament was organized by the Friends of the Potomac and the Alexandria Seaport Foundation in partnership with the National Park Service. The goals of the tournament were to dramatize for the public the incredible progress over the past 20 years in restoring the Potomac River and to encourage greater interest and more active participation in the river‑saving projects.

Each participant and sponsor was hosted by a professional bass Fisherman. Delegate Pollard was sponsored by NAPS and was accompanied by Mike Harwood, past NAPS president. Host ‑ Robert Pearson, from Tyson's Comer, Virginia, a member of the professional bass fishing tour and one of its first minority fisherman, provided his boat, tackle and expertise.

As for the fishing, the NAPS/Northern Neck team finished as third runner‑up out of the 45 boats with 11 pounds, 8 ounces of eligible bass. They claim they caught, several more (one measured in at 14 3/4 inches) that did not reach the 15 inch minimum requirement. Asked about how he enjoyed his day on the Potomac, Delegate Pollard said that: "Some say that a bad day fishing is better than a good day at work. Fortunately, ours was both good fishing and good work. It was a great way to help kids and help the Potomac."

Anyone interested in learning more about the Friends of the Potomac should call Mike Harwood at 580 4801.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************

NAPS, the Name

The following is a letter dated May 16, 2000 from Shirley Smith, one of NAPS founders.

Dear Randy,

First, I would like to say "Thank you" to you and all the Board members for doing such a great job. I especially enjoyed the last newsletter. You asked about changing the name. I really have no strong feelings about it, but I thought I would share with you and the board the background of the present name.

As you probably know, the steering committee that established NAPS was composed of Meade Hinton, Mickey Cochran, Gene Paulish, Burris Husman, Mary Lou Butler and myself. We began our meetings in May and by September had drawn up our by‑laws, articles of incorporation, etc. Of course, Meade, Mickey and Gene are now deceased.

The name came about because one day Meade and Mickey were discussing it (this was not a formal meeting and the rest of us were not present) and Meade said one word he had always liked was "stewardship". He felt it embodied the meaning of responsibility for things that were not yours personally and in a way that is what NAPS does‑tries to impart environmental responsibility to our citizens. Mickey said he always liked "progressive" because to him that meant you were moving forward toward better times. The words "Northumberland" and "Association" were natural additions. The steering committee had considerable discussion about the name Northumberland Association for Progressive Stewardship. Some thought it was too long and would not really be understood. Others said the initials gave a connotation of an organization that was asleep at the switch which is certainly far from the truth. In the end, the committee decided to go with the present name.

We considered Northumberland Co. Citizen's Association but Mary Lou said there had been a previous organization by that name that has gone belly up. Their assets went into what she termed the "slush fund" which was controlled by the county power structure. I think this fund is still in existence, but we were never able to get any money from them for any of our projects.

Please remember this was a time when the then Board of Supervisors were riding roughshod over the citizens.. Fifty people could speak against a proposal and then the board would pass it anyway. The impetus behind the organization was to try and have some input into what went on in the county and I believe we have. Ava Lee McKenney was one of our first directors and she arranged for our initial meeting to be at the Historical Society in Heathsville. Tayloe Murphy was speaker. A large crowd attended (the meeting room was full) and we were off and running. The Board of. the Historical Society got very angry with Ava Lee for getting us in the building. Needless to say we have never been back.

As I said, I have no strong feelings about this. If you decide to stay with the present name, perhaps it would be helpful to periodically do a Newsletter article on its meaning.

Shirley Smith

Editors note:

The above letter from Shirley Smith has peeked my interest in the history of NAPS. If anyone would like to add a bit of historical data it would be appreciated. There is a plan developing to print a short history of the organization perhaps in the next newsletter.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Hickory Hollow

The following is from a letter to NN Audubon members.

A wondrous event has occurred in the Northern Neck of Virginia. Hickory Hollow has been saved! This lovely wooded area with its nature trail was scheduled to be destroyed and converted into an industrial park. Because of the protests and efforts of many citizens of Lancaster and Northumberland Counties, the Supervisors of Lancaster County have agreed to allow the Northern Neck Audubon Society (NNAS) to purchase this land.

The chapter has received a grant of $179,012 from the Virginia Land Conservation Fund for this purchase with a proviso that the chapter has to match these funds. In an act unprecedented in the history of the chapter, this matching $179,012 was taken from the capital of our trust fund. In the past, the money spent by the chapter has been limited to the interest derived from this trust. With this interest we have efforts to preserve habitats and protect the Chesapeake Bay and its animals and plants. Included in these efforts have been the Teachers on the Bay program of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Audubon Adventure Kits for local schools, scholarship funds for students performing graduate studies of local plants and animals, support of Caledon Natural Area Preserve and its eagle nesting areas, and support of the purchases of Bush Mill Stream, Hughlett Point and Dameron Marsh Natural Area Preserve.

Because of the purchase of Hickory Hollow our interest income in future years will be drastically reduced and we will not be able to support some of these local environmental efforts. Therefore, we are seeking replenish this fund.

We are asking for your help. Please give as much as you can. Make checks payable to NNAS (HH fund).

If you prefer, plan payments over a three year period. NNAS is a 501(c) (3) non‑profit corporation. All contributions are fully tax deductible. Contributions can be sent to NNAS (HH fund), P.O. Box 991, Kilmarnock, VA 22482.

Thank you for your support of Hickory Hollow.

Tom Teeples, President, Northern Neck Audubon Society.

(Editors note: NAPS was on the receiving end of a grant from NNAS for the recent river cleanup. They deserve our support.)

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Sulfur in Shallow Groundwater

by Lynton Land

Although the chemistry of sulfur is very complex, in nature, sulfur commonly occurs in only two oxidation states.

Full reduced sulfur, called sulfide, is a divalent anion, written S⁼. At the acid pH of Northern Neck groundwater, sulfide is present mostly as dissolved (aqueous) H₂S (hydrogen sulfide).

Fully oxidized sulfur, called sulfate, is also a divalent anion, written S0₄⁼,

Because Earth's atmosphere contains 20% oxygen, water in contact with the atmosphere (rain, river water, sea water) contains only sulfate. In the Northern Neck, sulfate in rain is probably mostly derived from the ocean, as aerosols or "salt spray", although there is certainly a contribution from hydrocarbon combustion, especially diesel fuel and coal from both local and distant sources. As rain percolates into the ground , additional sulfate can be derived by the oxidation of the mineral pyrite, or FeS₂ (there are several other iron sulfide minerals, but pyrite is the primary one). The pyrite is present in the sediments as the result of the following process:

Seawater contains abundant sulfate. If marine sediments contain organic matter when they are deposited, the dissolved oxygen in the interstitial water, or the water within the sediments, is quickly consumed as bacteria oxidize (respire) the organic matter. If the sediments are fine grained (mud or clay) it is very difficult for dissolved oxygen from the water to diffuse down into the sediments to replace the oxygen consumed by the bacteria. The sediment thus becomes anodic (without oxygen). [Note that this also happens in the deep parts of the Chesapeake Bay water column.] Microbes all require oxygen to metabolize, and in the absence of dissolved 0₂ gas, they utilize other sources. Three common sources of oxygen in the sediment are Manganese oxide minerals, Iron oxide minerals, and dissolved sulfate. Different kinds of microbes utilize all these sources, and the result is the reduction of Nth and Fe in Mn‑Feoxide minerals and S in dissolved sulfate. Al three of these reduced ionic species, Fe⁺⁺ , Mn⁺⁺ and S⁼ (as H₂S), are quite soluble, but Mn, Fe-sulfide minerals are very insoluble. Therefore, the reduced species combine quickly to form minerals like pyrite, which is incorporated in the sediments. Pyrite typically gives the sediment a gray/black color, and is more characteristic of fine‑grained, clay‑rich sediments, which also tend to contain abundant organic matter.

If 0₂ bearing rain percolates down through the ground to the water table, and encounters pyrite‑bearing sediments, the dissolved oxygen in the water permits the pyrite to be oxidized. Oxidized (ferric) iron is quite insoluble and forms "rust" (actually a zoo of minerals), giving the sediments a brown/yellow/red color. The oxidation of the sulfur in the pyrite produces sulfate. If the groundwater does not contain dissolved oxygen because the dissolved oxygen was consumed by the bacteria in oxidizing organic matter, then dissolved sulfate is reduced and hydrogen sulfide (H2S or “rotten eggs") forms. This process is quite efficient in acid water, which is typical of the Northern Neck where there is little CaC03 (shell debris) in the sediments to raise the pH.

The oxidation state of the sulfur in our shallow ground water is controlled first and foremost by the abundance of organic matter in the sediments (or in the well!). Respiration of the organic matter consumes dissolved oxygen, which permits hydrogen sulfide to form. Secondary controls are the abundance of pyrite (which could be oxidized and add sulfate to the water) and the abundance of the shell debris in the sediments (high pH favors HS^- and not H₂S). In the absence of good sediment samples (cores, or auger chips), it is very difficult to predict the water quality. Hydrogen sulfide gas will form most efficiently in fine grained, muddy sediments (because they typically contain both pyrite and organic matter), and in sediments which lack shell debris (usually associated with course‑grained , sandy sediments. Hydrogen sulfide cannot coexist with dissolved oxygen in the the water, and thus a simple oxygen analysis might provide a useful test.

A case study: My own well.

I spent the summer of 1996 doing maintenance on our house in Ophelia in preparation for occupancy. The house has a shallow well, three feet in diameter, cased with PVC and properly capped. The house had not been used for several years. The water quality was terrible! The water smelled of hydrogen sulfide (rotten eggs), and abundant iron oxides precipitated from the water on standing. I am sure the water contained no dissolved oxygen, hence the presence of H2S and dissolved iron. On standing in contact with air, the dissolved ferrous iron oxidized and precipitated out as insoluble iron oxides.

With use (especially showers and toilet flushing) the water quality improved. The house was leased for the next year and the tenant told about the problem. The following summer, when I returned for maintenance, the problem had disappeared. We analyzed water samples from both years in my laboratory. Results follow

Cl S04 Fe NO,

1996 10.0 14.6 0.37 bdl

1997 10.6 16.8 bdl 1.5

In 1997 the water contained more sulfates than in 1996, yet it contained no iron (bdl is "below detection limit). Since the water contained more sulfates than chlorides, there must be a source of sulfates other than aerosols from the ocean Of note. nitrates were not present in the 1996 water, but were in the 1997 water. No nitrate is a simple clue to anoxic and H2S prone water!

Suggestion:

Before going to extreme measures. like drilling deep wells, I suggest the shallow wells be vacuumed. By this I mean that the wells be literally emptied and cleaned of any organic matter (including pressure washing slime from the walls of the well). Vacuuming can be accomplished by the same kind of truck that empties septic tanks. If such a truck were dedicated to water wells, it could be emptied nearly anywhere. If a septic pump truck were used. the siphon hose would have to be dedicated solely for use in wells, and the water would need to be emptied at the same place where they dispose of septic tank sludge. Removing all organic matter from the well should quickly result in satisfactory water quality, especially if the well was used regularly and at a typical domestic rate. In case of old stone or block wells, a PVC casing should be installed

For further information on this subject, contact Lynton Land, Director, or the editor.

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Editorial

Perusing a copy of Bay Journal, I find many interesting articles. The lead article for the July‑August issue is about the fact that the Executive Council of the Chesapeake Bay has signed the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement. This agreement includes a plan for limiting sprawl and pledging to set aside one in five acres as permanent open space in the next decade. The Agreement also calls for stepped up efforts to control nutrient and sediment pollution so that the Bay can be removed from the EPA's list of impaired waters by 20 10.

It calls for setting new catch targets for blue crabs by next year to bring the Bay's most valuable fishery back from the brink of over fishing And it seeks an increase in educational efforts to help people throughout the watershed understand their role as stewards, including a commitment that every student has a Bay or stream experience before graduation...

It is satisfying to know that the Governor of Virginia signed the Agreement. There is no penalty for not meeting goals; while the goals of the 1987 agreement were not fully met, there are still the goals ahead.

Another article states that a huge swath of the Chesapeake Bay has been declared off‑limits to crabbers by Virginia as part of an ongoing effort to stabilize the population of the Bays most valuable fishery. The Virginia Marine Resource Commission in June created a 660‑square‑mile deep‑water sanctuary which scientists believe will protect 40% of the Bay’s spawning crabs.

June's issue describes how the Bay grass has rebounded in 1999. Results from annual grass bed survey are one of the Bay Program's most closely watched indicators of the Chesapeake's health because the abundance of submerged aquatic grass (SAV) is closely tied to water quality. There has been a good increase in the amount of SAV but it is nowhere near the extent that existed in earlier times. In wet years the increased flow carries more silt and nutrients that result in reduced light reaching SAV areas and a resultant die‑back. Whereas, in dry years the reduced flow makes the Bay saltier and there is a die‑back of fresh water plants.

The Bay Journal is published by the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay. If you would like to be on the mailing list send your name and address with your request to: Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, 6600 York Road, Suite 100, Baltimore, MD 21212.