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 Backyard Birds - Home entertainment at its best
With nothing but snow followed by more snow, backyard birdwatching provides home entertainment that's hard to beat! So far in my quarter-acre backyard, I've seen 24 different species with nearly 100 individuals at times. Read more...
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 Environment Chapter Update - Preservation or Taxpayer Subsidies for PWC?
The Environment Chapter sets the County’s policies for new development, capital improvement investments and taxpayer-funded fixes. Developers are hard at work lobbying Supervisors and staff for more “flexibility.” Claiming to represent the business community, they say protecting the environment and attracting commercial development are mutually exclusive… we can’t have both. Read more...
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 Draft Land Use Chapter proposes changes to Mid-County development
The current proposal offers developers a density bonus to encourage the “preservation of natural resources.” At first glance, this seems like a fair compromise that gives developers an incentive to protect the environment. However, the devil’s in the details and the proposed text includes a huge loophole – “preservation” areas do not have to be either undeveloped or permanently protected. Read more... |
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 Nokesville Christmas Bird Count
Despite some morning fog, flooded creeks and frozen ponds, it was a beautiful day. Twenty-two people participated and together recorded 85 species and 36,709 individuals. Highlights included Red-headed Woodpeckers in four locations, a Merlin, Loggerhead Shrike and many others. Read more...
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 Public Access to Lake Manassas in 2010?
The Manassas City Council reviewed the status of Lake Manassas in a work session. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) has proposed to acquire public access and build a boat ramp at the lake, using Federal Sport Fish Restoration grant money. Read more...
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 Know what you've got before it's gone
by Cliff Fairweather
Knowing what natural resources a community possesses is a critical step towards protecting them. Two recently identified, globally rare plant communities at Silver Lake are a case in point. Unlike endangered species, rare ecosystems don’t get much legal protection. Read more...
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 Rare plant communities discovered at Silver Lake
It's important to know what's on the ground before planning to develop natural areas, otherwise important resources could be accidentally lost. With this in mind, the Prince William Wildflower Society offered their expertise to survey Silver Lake and, during their preliminary assessment, found two globally rare plant communities at this site - an upland depression wetland and basic oak-hickory forest. Read more...
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