Muddy flow from Fayetteville National Cemetery wetland dig site to Town Branch of the West Fork of the White River on Monday morning, May 17, 2010

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE. Series below starts by showing a butterfly in the wooded wetland that still exists north of the National Cemetery property but also is targeted for addition to the National Cemetery if the sale-barn property isn't added instead. Preparing the hilltop portion of the sale-barn property on the east side of the cemetery would be much easier and much less environmentally destructive than continuing to dredge and fill wetland for gravesites. Sadly, the soil, both rich, dark, prairie topsoil and the clay beneath it that was dug out of the pictured area is being stored on the surface of the north portion of the sale-barn property. The temporary dirt-storage area has been leased by the Department of Veterans' Affairs or its contractors for this use. That land was pasture for cattle being held for livestock auctions until 2009. And it is seasonal wetland that historically displayed all the characteristic vegetation of typical prairie in this area. The dirt is being stored down to the overflow, riparian area of the Tanglewood Branch, which joins Spout Spring Branch only 200 yards to the east.

Above: yellow butterfly in wooded wetland area north of Fayetteville National Cemetery. Photo made this morning in the wooded area to the left side of the photo below.

Above: water being pumped from wetland dug out for future gravesites on Monday, May 17, 2010. Heavy rain previous two days left several feet of muddy water standing in the hole, which is serving as a stormwater detention pond while land about 200 feet to the southeast is being prepared for crypts.

Above: View downstream from 11th Street Bridge over Town Branch shows silt-laden water headed for Beaver Lake.



Above: Muddy water from National Cemetery northside wetland dig flows from pipe under Hill Avenue and directly from under 11th Street and is dumped into Town Branch on the downstream (south side).

Above: Upstream (north side of 11th Street bridge over Town Branch of the West Fork of the White River) showing clear flow a day after heavy rain.

Above: Topsoil and clay dug out of wetland 300 yards to the west to make way for additional National Cemetery gravesites is being stored on top of wetland along the Tanglewood Branch, which runs southeast along the edge of the Washington County Livestock Auction barn land in south Fayetteville, Arkansas.