The grass will be wet, the ground will feel spongy to the step and there will be spots where water is standing and the central flow area will have a flow today when you reach World Peace Wetland Prairie.
To enjoy the full experience, please wear waterproof boots or shoes you don't mind getting wet.
This is the first time in five years of Earth Day celebrations on WPWP that the seasonal wetland was truly wet. In past years, I had to point out the flow area to suggest people who wanted to plant flowers be sure they didn't put anything that wasn't tolerant of perpetually wet soil and even underground water on its roots in the flow area because it was dry on the surface.
Today, the main flow areas will be apparent.
The sad part is that the flow area has changed in the past couple of years and now has muddy, silt-laden water flowing instead of the absolutely clear water of the past.
Why is that the case?
The Aspen Ridge/Hill Place student-apartment project land was cleared in summer 2005 and silt fences were put up and a nearly complete change of soil on the land began. Silt fences never prevent siltation, they just sort of guide the runoff to the lowest spots and the water undercuts the silt fence and carries its nasty load of fill dirt downstream.
By the winter of 2006, enough impure runoff had entered WPWP to allow algae to bloom in the flow area and the situation has worsened in the past year as Hill Place work began. The result is that the vegetation in the flow area often appears muddy.
The rich black soil is the most significant aspect of WPWP. It makes the magic of wetland.
Siltation will decrease its ability to absorb and cleanse water. And it can fill the flow area and cause it to widen. OR, if the flow is increased by the storm drain routed to the northern edge of WPWP from Rochier Hill, it could wash out and deepen the flow area into a gully.
I hope a lot of interested people show up to see the changing dynamics of site.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Earth Week starts at World Peace Wetland Prairie at 1 p.m. Sunday
Pl,ease click on image to ENLARGE.
Please click on image to ENLARGE view of poster touting upcoming silent auction to benefit Meals on Wheels today
Please click on image to ENLARGE view of poster touting upcoming silent auction to benefit Meals on Wheels.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Lindsley Smith's weekly report from the Arkansas legislature for April 17, 2009
From: LINDSLEY SMITH (lindsleysmith@msn.com)
Sent: Fri 4/17/09 5:09 PM
To:
The 87th General Assembly is in recess, with formal adjournment set for May 1. There were no vetoes during the 88-day session, so the duties on May 1 likely will take only a few minutes. Lawmakers will convene in February for their first budget session as set up by voters last November requiring annual sessions.
From Jan. 12 to April 9, lawmakers introduced 2,285 bills, down from 2,816 for the 2007 regular session and 3,176 in 2005. On April 14, the governor signed House Bill 1555 (dealing with funding high-growth school districts) into law, the last act of the session. It’s now Act 1501, compared to 1,755 acts in 2007 and 2,325 in 2005.
The tobacco-tax increase, the 23-item healthcare package, the cut in the grocery tax, the animal-cruelty law and the implementation of the lottery were among the successful pieces of legislation that gathered much of the attention of the media and public during the session. Those issues and others of statewide and national interest will be addressed in these weekly columns.
For this first column of the interim – the period between sessions – we’ll take a look at some key bills that didn’t pass. Some of those are up for interim study by committees; many likely will be seen again in a future session, in current or amended form. After all, it took at least a decade before legislation cutting the state sales tax on groceries became law.
In setting up a trauma network, lawmakers said it also was important to pass laws to prevent or limit the occurrence of traumatic injuries in the first place. With that in mind, lawmakers approved the mandatory seatbelt law, passed limits on talking on cell phones while driving, and banned texting-while-driving entirely.
Those efforts went only so far, though. A bill to require all motorcyclists to wear helmets was defeated in committee, along with an amended version to apply to motorcyclists under age 25. Also failing in committee was a bill requiring motorcyclists to carry $10,000 in health insurance if they choose not to wear a helmet.
The proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution also failed for the second time in as many sessions, as did a bill to grant in-state tuition to children of undocumented aliens if those children attend an Arkansas high school at least three years.
A state panel that studied the effects of global warming saw much of its package defeated, although its supporters say they’re encouraged by the successes they did have. One of the defeated bills would have required electric utilities to buy at least 2 percent of their annual electricity supplies from a renewable energy producer. One of the group’s better moments was the passage of a bill requiring a 20-percent reduction in energy use in state buildings by 2014 and a 30-percent reduction by 2017.
The state of the economy prevented the passage of several bill aimed at cutting taxes. (In contrast, in the 2007 session, lawmakers passed the biggest tax cut in Arkansas history: $319 million, through cuts in the state sales tax on groceries and on energy consumed by manufacturers, a property-tax reduction and an income-tax deduction.). Coming up short this session were bills granting a “back to school” sales-tax holiday, cutting capital-gains taxes on businesses and cutting the income taxes of active military personnel.
A bill requiring insurance companies to cover the treatment and diagnosis of autism also failed in committee.
An effort to put Arkansas as part of a movement to abolish the Electoral College sparked a flurry of interest, was passed in the House and ultimately died in the Senate.
House and Senate committees will soon begin meeting during the interim to see how state agencies implement the laws enacted during the session and to look at ideas referred for interim study.
Sent: Fri 4/17/09 5:09 PM
To:
The 87th General Assembly is in recess, with formal adjournment set for May 1. There were no vetoes during the 88-day session, so the duties on May 1 likely will take only a few minutes. Lawmakers will convene in February for their first budget session as set up by voters last November requiring annual sessions.
From Jan. 12 to April 9, lawmakers introduced 2,285 bills, down from 2,816 for the 2007 regular session and 3,176 in 2005. On April 14, the governor signed House Bill 1555 (dealing with funding high-growth school districts) into law, the last act of the session. It’s now Act 1501, compared to 1,755 acts in 2007 and 2,325 in 2005.
The tobacco-tax increase, the 23-item healthcare package, the cut in the grocery tax, the animal-cruelty law and the implementation of the lottery were among the successful pieces of legislation that gathered much of the attention of the media and public during the session. Those issues and others of statewide and national interest will be addressed in these weekly columns.
For this first column of the interim – the period between sessions – we’ll take a look at some key bills that didn’t pass. Some of those are up for interim study by committees; many likely will be seen again in a future session, in current or amended form. After all, it took at least a decade before legislation cutting the state sales tax on groceries became law.
In setting up a trauma network, lawmakers said it also was important to pass laws to prevent or limit the occurrence of traumatic injuries in the first place. With that in mind, lawmakers approved the mandatory seatbelt law, passed limits on talking on cell phones while driving, and banned texting-while-driving entirely.
Those efforts went only so far, though. A bill to require all motorcyclists to wear helmets was defeated in committee, along with an amended version to apply to motorcyclists under age 25. Also failing in committee was a bill requiring motorcyclists to carry $10,000 in health insurance if they choose not to wear a helmet.
The proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution also failed for the second time in as many sessions, as did a bill to grant in-state tuition to children of undocumented aliens if those children attend an Arkansas high school at least three years.
A state panel that studied the effects of global warming saw much of its package defeated, although its supporters say they’re encouraged by the successes they did have. One of the defeated bills would have required electric utilities to buy at least 2 percent of their annual electricity supplies from a renewable energy producer. One of the group’s better moments was the passage of a bill requiring a 20-percent reduction in energy use in state buildings by 2014 and a 30-percent reduction by 2017.
The state of the economy prevented the passage of several bill aimed at cutting taxes. (In contrast, in the 2007 session, lawmakers passed the biggest tax cut in Arkansas history: $319 million, through cuts in the state sales tax on groceries and on energy consumed by manufacturers, a property-tax reduction and an income-tax deduction.). Coming up short this session were bills granting a “back to school” sales-tax holiday, cutting capital-gains taxes on businesses and cutting the income taxes of active military personnel.
A bill requiring insurance companies to cover the treatment and diagnosis of autism also failed in committee.
An effort to put Arkansas as part of a movement to abolish the Electoral College sparked a flurry of interest, was passed in the House and ultimately died in the Senate.
House and Senate committees will soon begin meeting during the interim to see how state agencies implement the laws enacted during the session and to look at ideas referred for interim study.
Brown thrashers may be spotted at World Peace Wetland Prairie during Sunday's Earth Day celebration
Please click on image to Enlarge view of one of the many species of birds feeding and picking nesting sites on World Peace Wetland Prairie on April 17, 2009. The elusive brown thrasher is often able to slip into the thickets before a camera can capture its image. But the attraction of scattered brush piles and the excitement of mating season can make them a bit careless.
Earth Day celebration on April 19, 2009, at World Peace Wetland Prairie
Please click on image to ENLARGE.
Earth Day at World Peace Wetland Prairie from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday April 19, 2009
Members of the Town Branch neighborhood association and the OMNI Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology present the fifth-annual Earth Day celebration with activities for kids and adults. Wildflowers will be planted in the butterfly garden and peace-circle garden on the east portion of the city-owned nature park by children and adult volunteers. Ice-storm damaged limbs will be removed by those who wish to help. Volunteers may dig out fescue grass or remove Japanese honeysuckle that is suppressing native plants in parts of the western 2 acres.
Musicians and poets will be invited to play, sing or read in a pleasant outdoor setting.
Still on the Hill and Emily Kaitz are the headliners.
Several activities for youngsters will be provided by volunteers.
Parking is free from 1 to 5 p.m. at the the Hill Avenue Church of Christ south of the intersection of S. Hill Avenue and Eleventh Street, and street parking is legal in much of the neighborhood.
Everyone is welcome. For details, call 444-6072
or visit http://worldpeacewetlandprairie.blogspot.com
Earth Day at World Peace Wetland Prairie from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday April 19, 2009
Members of the Town Branch neighborhood association and the OMNI Center for Peace, Justice and Ecology present the fifth-annual Earth Day celebration with activities for kids and adults. Wildflowers will be planted in the butterfly garden and peace-circle garden on the east portion of the city-owned nature park by children and adult volunteers. Ice-storm damaged limbs will be removed by those who wish to help. Volunteers may dig out fescue grass or remove Japanese honeysuckle that is suppressing native plants in parts of the western 2 acres.
Musicians and poets will be invited to play, sing or read in a pleasant outdoor setting.
Still on the Hill and Emily Kaitz are the headliners.
Several activities for youngsters will be provided by volunteers.
Parking is free from 1 to 5 p.m. at the the Hill Avenue Church of Christ south of the intersection of S. Hill Avenue and Eleventh Street, and street parking is legal in much of the neighborhood.
Everyone is welcome. For details, call 444-6072
or visit http://worldpeacewetlandprairie.blogspot.com
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Buzzards rest on broken tree on World Peace Wetland Prairie on April 16, 2009
Please click on images to enlarge view of buzzards on World Peace Wetland Prairie on April 16, 2009.
When I spotted these two alighting only 30 feet off the ground, I had to check my own pulse to make sure I wasn't their intended lunch for the day.
When I spotted these two alighting only 30 feet off the ground, I had to check my own pulse to make sure I wasn't their intended lunch for the day.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Don Grimes visits friends on April 15, 2009, in old office at Regional Planning Commission
Please click on image to ENLARGE view of Don Grimes, former city manager of Fayetteville, Arkansas, and former head of the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission in Springdale, Arkansas, on April 15, 2009, while visiting old friends.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
