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Road Salt as a Water Quality Issue
This summary was written by Mark Southerland for the Howard County Environmental Sustainability Board.
We are all familiar with the use of road salt to melt ice and snow from paved roadways in the winter. There are a variety of deicer products, but the vast majority of what is used is common table salt—sodium chloride (Na-Cl). Road salt improves tire adherence to the pavement, greatly increasing vehicle safety, but has adverse effects on property and the environment beyond the road surface.
The types and extent of these adverse effects are becoming clearer through recent (more…)
The River that Caught Fire, 1969 and Today
Excerpted from Saving the Place We Love.
One of the most famous American rivers, from an environmental perspective, is the Cuyahoga, which flows through Akron and Cleveland, Ohio, and (more…)
National Parks Revisited on Their 100th Anniversary
This is the 100th Anniversary of the creation of the National Park Service. What a wonderful bipartisan step that was to institutionalize a process for creating and maintaining national parks throughout the country. They are enjoyed each year by millions of domestic and international visitors. We have been emulated by nearly every other country on earth.
In my second book, Saving the Places we Love, I provide numerous stories on the (more…)
Explore Columbia on Foot in 2016
Here is the CA walking itinerary for 2016. SAVE IT!!! As I did last year, I will be sharing stories of the history, the natural world, and the future of the places we pass. Please note that two of these walks are on Saturdays and the rest are on Thursdays. They all start at 10 am. Last year we had a great turnout for each of the walks. Come walk and meet your neighbors as we all explore Columbia on foot in 10 new and exciting locations. (more…)
BikeHoward and Bike Safety
BikeHoward – A Big Step Forward.
I am very much in favor of BikeHoward – the Bike Plan for the County – being voted on by our county council this Monday. I strongly encourage you to support its approval and implementation. Let your council representative know this weekend of your support as well (councilmail@howardcountymd.gov). More trails and safer ones will help get more people (more…)
800 Trout
February/March is that time of year. That time of year when the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) begins stocking our lakes and streams with thousands of 12 inch rainbow trout. I know this because all of a sudden the fishermen are out in droves. Trying to catch the 800 trout that were dumped into Lake Elkhorn last month. More will be stocked this month.
In Howard County, MDNR stocks Lake Elkhorn with 2000 trout, Centennial Lake with 2500, and they also stock the Patapsco River with (more…)
Million Frogs Calling
Image used by permission from Michael Benard’s Spring Peeper Page
I wonder at times if the suburban area in which I live is more biodiverse today, or less so, relative to the farmland it once was. Has the onslaught of development left our natural green infrastructure – that we depend on for clear water, clean air, and healthy soils – better or worse off than 50 or 100 years ago? Yes habitats have been reshaped a great deal in the last 500 years, but is it possible that we are doing a (more…)
New Post – A Sense of Place
I have spent a good deal of the last 10 years defining and describing A Sense of Place as that concept relates to the village, county, and watershed where I live (see The Chesapeake Watershed). I have also attempted to do it for places that I have visited, worked, and lived (see Saving the Places we Love). It is a daunting task. I hope I have achieved it, in some small measure, or at least inspired others to try to define their community for themselves.
I am now involved in another attempt to do this. This time through community storytelling. The Howard County Conservancy is hosting two events (more…)
Ranger Max Considers Trail Etiquette – Guest Post
Max has been a Volunteer Ranger at Maryland’s Patapsco Valley State Park (PVSP) since he retired back in 2010. He made a personal goal of hiking each major trail in the park for the fun of it and so he could advise park visitors which trail best meets their needs-Easy? Scenic? Bikeable? Peaceful? Accessible?
One of the more frequently asked questions is about trail etiquette, especially when it comes to the encounters between equestrians, mountain bikers, dog walkers? The Rangers’ usual reply involves an understanding of right of way and park rules. We will discuss these one at a time. (more…)
Plant Meadows, Save Bees – Post by Mark Southerland
Everyone knows about the colony collapse disorder affecting honeybees imported from Europe, but few know that Maryland has at least 425 species of native bees ready to pollinate our plants, if we can reverse the loss of native meadows. The United States is home to about 4,000 native bee species, none of which live in hives nor do most sting. As Sam Droege of USGS says, “honeybees are from Mars,” and constitute only 1% of our local bees. Native bees deserve our attention for both ethical and utilitarian reasons. In essence, this native bee fauna is responsible for the wonderful diversity of flowering plants that we enjoy. In essence, the amazing architecture of flowers evolved to attract bees and other pollinators. In addition, many native bees are important pollinators of crops such as (more…)
Saving The Places 