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WVU researcher works to strengthen research and management of public lands recreation | Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design | West Virginia University
by Duane Nichols 26 May '20

26 May '20

https://www.davis.wvu.edu/news/2020/05/21/wvu-researcher-works-to-strengthe… WVU researcher works to strengthen research and management of public lands recreation Thursday, May 21, 2020 DAVIS COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE, NATURAL RESOURCES AND DESIGN If the novel coronavirus crisis has taught us nothing else, it’s the value of public lands and outdoor recreation opportunities. Seeking the balm of the great outdoors, the American people are spilling out onto public roads, trails, forests and parks in great numbers while trying to maintain social distance. According to a West Virginia University researcher, however, national parks and forests are consistently challenged to provide sustainable recreation experiences while adapting to increased public demand. “Outdoor recreation is the most immediate way people connect with public lands; it is so important,” said Steve Selin, professor of recreation, parks and tourism resources in the Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design. “Societal trends and new technologies have changed how people interact with public lands; however, public land management has not kept up with the rapid social change.” A leader on a national initiative to strengthen public lands recreation research and management, Selin is editor of a timely publication that takes an expansive look at current recreation issues and outlines research opportunities that could help managers better connect users to meaningful outdoor experiences. “Igniting the Science of Outdoor Recreation is a challenge, a provocation and suggested direction for all those who want to advance the science and art of sustainable outdoor recreation and tourism on our public lands,” he said. “It amounts to a collective national vision for outdoor recreation management and research.” Published by the U.S. Forest Service Pacific Northwest Station, the report offers a set of 17 papers addressing how changing demands are straining recreation infrastructure, access and resources. The publication and collaborative process that led to it will help federal agencies like the Forest Service and National Park Service with relevant science direction and best management practices to help them keep pace with social changes. “The kinds of recreation the public wants are more diverse than when previous recreation strategies were developed,” Selin said. “By improving understanding of changing public needs, we can be more relevant. And the American public will benefit as these federal agencies prioritize managed outdoor recreation settings and experiences.” To read the publication, download it from the U.S. Forest Service website.

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Thank you for your (LiDAR) Service - Inside Unmanned Systems
by Duane Nichols 24 May '20

24 May '20

https://insideunmannedsystems.com/thank-you-for-your-lidar-service-a-mounta… Thank you for your (LiDAR) Service May 25, 2020 By Abe Peck A Mountain State academic, a retired Marine Corps general and RedTail LiDAR Systems ease the waterway for a wounded warrior retreat RTL-400 point cloud of cabins and Clover Run trout stream. Photo courtesy of RedTail LiDAR Systems. Over Memorial Day weekend, Paul Kinder, Jr., was fishing for walleye on Lake Erie. But our conversation concentrated on other bodies of water and a sanctuary for those who’ve earned special access to enjoy the outdoors. Nestled on 500 acres of private land close by the greenery and mountains of the Monongahela National Forest, the non-profit Patriots 4 (P4) Outdoor Resort in St. George, West Virginia, offers respite to wounded veterans and their families. While other service members and civilians are welcome at the non-profit haven, the resort offers Purple Heart vets free short-term stays in four handicapped-accessible cabins, a tracked wheelchair and a solar-charged, hydraulic-actuated hunting platform. With the assistance of trained guides, differently abled visitors can hunt, and gain easy access to the Clover Run trout stream, as well as to frontage on the Cheat River for kayaking, tubing and the like. Dr. Kinder himself is not a veteran, but as director of the Natural Resource Analysis Center and manager of the Geospatial Analytics Program at West Virginia University he is something of a “connector” for this project. He’s on the board of Patriots 4. He’s used LiDAR for more than a decade. And he and his team of graduate students recently deployed a RedTail LiDAR Systems RTL-400 to aid in a stream bank restoration that improved and documented as-built conditions and ensured safe guest quarters. Trouble in Paradise Dr. Paul Kinder inspects a habitat-enhanced structure at the Patriots 4 facility. Photo courtesy of Paul Kinder/RedTail LiDAR Systems. Patriots4 is the vision of General Randall “Randy” L. West (Ret.), a decorated Marine who is now at once a national security consultant and an ordained lay minister. Kinder: “He said, ‘all those years of combat and never got hurt.’ This was his way to give back.’” The Clover Run trout stream is one of the site’s centerpieces. But over the years, human influence and heavy flooding had eroded its banks and led to severe habitat degradation. Safe access and even one of the cabins were threatened. To renew the site, Patriots 4 tapped a partnership between Kinder’s resource analysis center, the WV Division of Natural Resources and the USDA (the agriculture department) Natural Resource Conservation Service. Kinder’s credentials as a lab scientist, drone operator, and research professor in resource economics and management all fit the project’s profile. “Strangely enough, I got involved with General West and his crew through a congressman that I knew well, who knew that I knew how to hunt and fish,” Kinder recalled. “He asked me if I wanted to go and guide these guys.” Kinder and his family would take canoe trips down the river with wounded vets, but he’d also leverage his professional expertise. “It was serendipitous that I was working for our Department of Natural Resources doing stream restoration across the state. I talked them into going in with P4. It’s been a real win-win.” Cabin located on Clover Run trout stream. Photo courtesy of www.patriotsfour.org. Kinder’s first exposure to LiDAR dates to when he began teaching at West Virginia a dozen years ago. The school had purchased an OpTech back in 2004. “That was a million-dollar [LiDAR] sensor on an airplane. We mapped about 50 percent of West Virginia, the coal fields. It flew all over the country. But it cost us like $70,000 a year just for maintenance. We were like, ‘I can’t do this.’ We sold it, and I just got interested in drones.” In 2013, a Florida-based company helped Kinder put a FLIR camera on a DJI Phantom One. “I was trying to measure stream temperature with thermal imaging.” Send in the Drones Kinder connected with RedTail when the owner of parent company 4D Tech Solutions enlisted him to help commercialize technology licensed from the U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL). “I’m not an engineer but I know what a good system looks like and what it has to do,” Kinder said. 4D Tech Solutions is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned small business, and RedTail president/CEO Brad DeRoos, a Naval Academy grad, was enthusiastic about using his LiDAR system to commemorate military sacrifice. “RedTail’s ability to generate highly accurate and high resolution point clouds…is a great example of the many uses for drone-based LiDAR,” DeRoos said. “We are thrilled to have been a part of this important project.” The Patriots 4 restoration began three years ago. Kinder and teams of his graduate students surveyed in the first year with an initial drone. “Last year we did construction on part of it, and then more surveying.” By August 2019, failing banks had been identified and restored, the jeopardized cabin stabilized, and 22 habitats enhanced with log-rock structures to maintain fish pools and prevent further erosion. This past December, the Clover Run corridor was flown to document the as-built conditions and monitor the stream’s long-term health. Kinder noted technical issues with the initial LiDAR system, so he and his team phased in RedTail’s RTL-400. “Superior, high performance and efficient” in Kinder’s words, the RedTail unit’s microelectromechanical system (MEMS) mirror-based laser scanner produces accuracy by evenly distributing laser points on the ground, moving side to side 400 times per second with a laser pulse rate of up to 400,000 per second and an optimized scan angle of 35 degrees. A single 20-minute flight at 262 feet and 18 miles per hour yielded an accurate, high resolution 3D map. Kinder ticked off the advantages brought by LiDAR, and by the RTL-400 in particular. “Oh, wow: speed, efficiency, accuracy, confidence. The work flow is incredible. We can pop it on a DJI Matrice 600 and in 15 minutes, we’re airborne. And the data processing is smooth.” The change from Kinder’s early days with LiDAR “is really mind-boggling,” he mused. “When we had the man-based airborne system, we were really happy if we could get a shot per square meter on the ground. That was incredible data. Now we’re getting 500.” Meanwhile, rehabilitation continues. “This year, we’re going to finish up the last half-mile of restoration. We’ll do, probably, another 20-some fish habitat enhancement this summer—starting in two weeks, actually.” Annual RedTail overflights will monitor and compare the health of the stream. “Overall,” Kinder concluded, “it’s a labor of love. I wasn’t military but I see a lot of hurt and damaged people come and enjoy the environment. To be able to use this technology to really do a good job, and then blend in young people, learning GPS, learning how to do automated flights with drones, learning how to process that data and analyze it and come up with a restoration plan—there’s just a lot of vectors going on there. It’s a very personal satisfaction.”

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Cheat River Joins Monongahela River at Pt. Marion (North to the left).
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 14 Apr '20

14 Apr '20

Photo taken at 12:22 pm, during the noon hour, on Saturday, April 11, 2020 by DGN. The Monongahela River is flowing from right to left, from West Virginia. The Cheat River is coming out of the background and under the bridge, Pt. Marion being across and to the right. Notice the obvious interface on the water. The Cheat River is clear and blue. The Monongahela River is contaminated, yellow - brown, with both suspended and dissolved solids. The specific conductivity being reported as 300 microsiemens per centimeter. These are typical conditions sometimes higher. Duane G. Nichols, CLEAR.

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Bald Eagles of Our Area .....
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 19 Mar '20

19 Mar '20

Marjorie Howard, an avid birder since 1995, said she first spotted a bald eagle in Greene County in 2003, while participating in a raptor survey. “It was flying around the Sycamore area,” said Howard. Howard also saw a nest along the road near Point Marion while doing a raptor survey this January. “I spotted two adults, one in the nest and the other on nearby on a tree, as well as two juveniles sitting on the ground on an island in the Cheat River,” she said. Sent from my iPad, DGN

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Living on Earth: Removing Dams in the Ohio River Watershed
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 14 Mar '20

14 Mar '20

http://www.loe.org/shows/segments.html?programID=20-P13-00011&segmentID=5 Removing Dams in the Ohio River Watershed Air Date: Week of March 13, 2020 stream/download this segment as an MP3 file The Summit Street Dam on the Mahoning River. (Photo: Jack Pearce, Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0) Hundreds of thousands of small dams dot the rivers of the United States, and now that many are no longer economically useful, some are being removed in an effort to protect fish and riverine ecosystems. Julie Grant of the Allegheny Front reports on a dam removal project in the Ohio River watershed. Transcript CURWOOD: It’s Living on Earth, I’m Steve Curwood. Hundreds of thousands of small dams dot the rivers of the United States. They were once popular for use in grain mills and industry. And Many are no longer needed by people, but they continue to be a barrier to fish and wildlife. On the Mahoning River in Ohio the community of Lowellville is planning to remove a dam on their river but as Allegheny Front’s Julie Grant reports, not everyone is on board with the plan. GRANT: Growing up in the small Riverfront village of Lowellville, Ohio by the Pennsylvania border, Jim Iudiciani, and he stayed away from the Mahoning river. IUDICIANI: When I was a kid if I went near that river we get smacked because it was so dirty and dangerous. GRANT: Now as mayor of Lowellville, he's been pushing for years to get rid of the old steel industry dam, that crosses the river here, and he says it's coming down this summer. IUDICIANI: On the joking side, they call me the dam mayor and for good reason, finally. GRANT: Just steps from the village downtown Iudiciani and he stands alongside the river where brush has been cleared for heavy equipment needed to remove the dam, a series of eight low concrete piers that point downstream. It will be the first in a regional plan to remove nine dams along the Mahoning River, which crosses into Pennsylvania and joins the Shenango to form the Beaver River. Right now people who canoe and kayak on the Mahoning need to pull their boats out of the water and carry them around the dam. IUDICIANI: Where you see all the whiteness underneath. That's just the hydraulics, which makes it very dangerous. GRANT: Ohio regulators describe these low head dams as drowning machines because canoes and other boats can get trapped in a recirculating current below the dam. Once the Lowellville dam is removed Ludiciani wants his riverfront village to become a hotspot for outdoor recreation. He points out where a new park with space for canoes is planned. He talks about a new restaurant. IUDICIANI: bicycle shop, kayak rental. GRANT: a yoga studio and new living space. IUDICIANI: We're looking at four or five story buildings being built on the river possibly B and Bs and or condos with multi use parking underneath. Yeah, this whole thing is going to be a catalyst for us for development. GRANT: It's a far cry from the region steelmaking days. But even after most steel mills closed and Ohio EPA survey still found the effects of pollution in the river. DYER: They found fish with lesions and tumors on them. The macro invertebrate community was poor. GRANT: That's Stephanie Dyer, environmental program manager for the East Gate Regional Council of governments, the agency leading the Mahoning dam removal project. In the late 1990s, the US Army Corps of Engineers looked into dredging the river to get rid of contaminants especially behind the low head dams. But the Corps never move forward with its river cleanup. Then in the early 2000s in Ohio grant program assisted with dam removals on the nearby Cuyahoga River. The dams are being removed in the hopes of protecting wildlife, revitalizing the riverine ecosystem, and even promoting tourism. (Photo: Jack Pearce, Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0) DYER: And that's when it started to click here at East Gate as well as within the region that we can do this on our own as a local community as a region. GRANT: According to East Gate, Lowellville and the cities of Struthers and Youngstown have secured more than $10 million to remove five dams with funding from the Ohio EPA and a settlement with LTV Corporation. That's about half of what's needed to remove all nine dams. DYER: This river built the valley. And so now it's time we all realized which we're doing is giving back to the river and creating the free flowing state it should be in right now. GRANT: But some communities don't want their dams taken down. ANTHONY: You know what? We just want to be left alone. GRANT: Edward Anthony is a trustee for Warren township a rural area 20 miles up river from Lowellville and home of the Leavittsburg dam. Local fire officials here say if their dam is removed, they won't have the pool of water it creates as a secondary source for emergencies. And health officials worry that without the damn water levels will be too low to dilute sewage from home septic systems. ANTHONY:So it's a grave concern because I think if they proceed with this, they're going to do this and then we're going to be left with a mess. GRANT: Looking down on the Mahoning at water flowing over the Leavittsburg dam resident Mike Arnold points across the river at what used to be in Ohio Edison facility. ARNOLD: That's where the power plant set. GRANT: The concrete dam was built to pool water for the plants but the electric company no longer uses it. ST. CLAIR: Directly behind that dam is 12 feet. GRANT: That's Russell St. Clair, who lives along the river which is almost like a lake behind the dam. ST CLAIR: Just about maybe 400 yards up the river it goes to eight foot. Then it goes to seven foot like behind our house. GRANT: St. Clair and his neighbor's float on pontoon boats and report seeing bald eagles and river otters. His kids and grandkids fish for muskie and perch. ST CLAIR: The river now is better than it's ever been. I mean it is. GRANT: Mike Arnold worries how the dam removal will affect fishing here. ARNOLD: There's nothing for them to eat, the fish will be gone. They can't survive in that kind of water. Lowellville in Northeast Ohio is home to the first dam being removed as a part of this project. (Photo: Stephanie Dyer) GRANT: But in Ohio EPA study in 2006 found that fish communities behind the dam and Leavittsburg and elsewhere along the Mahoning were impaired. And according to East Gate, it's not yet known how the dam removal will change water levels. Ben Lorson wants to calm people's fears. After dams are removed, the same amount of water will still run down the river. LORSON: And that's not going anywhere that'll always be there. GRANT: Lorson is a fish passage biologist with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. He says removing dams is better for fish. LORSON: There's kind of this misconception that you know you're taking the good fishing spot away. When in reality those fish want to go upstream. They're just not able to because the dams in their way. COLLIER: Oftentimes when it comes to aquatic organism passage we like to say if you unbilled it, they will come. GRANT: Jessica Collier is a fish biologist with the US Fish and Wildlife Service. She says one fish in particular that could return to the Ohio by removing dams in the watershed is the lake sturgeon. These behemoth ancient fish can live up to 150 years. They migrate long distances, sometimes hundreds of miles to spawn. The sturgeon is considered endangered in most states throughout its range. They were over fished their habitat was destroyed and their migration paths were blocked by dams. Collier points to the success of a large dam removal project in the Sandusky river that flows into Lake Erie. COLLIER: Within a couple months of dam removal there was a sturgeon that migrated up the river and it was the first time a sturgeon had been seen in that river system in maybe a century. GRANT: And in the Ohio removing dams is bringing back people too according to federal fish biologist Donovan Henry, who coordinates the Ohio River Basin Fish Habitat Partnership. HENRY: And pretty soon you have people kayaking and paddling and canoeing on these rivers has people using the river or making stops along the way to dine and shop so the community in the river start tying together and it does promote economic vitality. GRANT: Standing on the banks of the Mahoning Lowellville Mayor, Jim Iudiciani And he wants that future for his village but looking at the river roll over the dam today, he still sees beauty in it. IUDICIANI: Getting the surreal feeling sad feeling too that now it's coming out we're never going to see this again either, but it needs done. You know CURWOOD: Reporter Julie Grant’s story comes to us courtesy of the Allegheny Front and is part of the series, Good River, produced by seven nonprofit newsrooms in the Ohio Valley. For a link to the series, go to our website, LOE.org. Links Listen to this story on the Allegheny Front website

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Cheat Lake Dredging & Water Level
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 13 Mar '20

13 Mar '20

> Subject: Cheat Lake > > Hi all. Lake Lynn’s dredging project at Sunset Marina is complete and we expect Cheat Lake to begin rising over the next couple of days. Please share this news. > > Thanks, > __________________________________________________________________ > > Eagle Creek Renewable Energy > >

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Monongahela National Forest: Here's How You Hunt Ramps | West Virginia Public Broadcasting
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 06 Mar '20

06 Mar '20

https://www.wvpublic.org/post/monongahela-national-forest-heres-how-you-hun… Monongahela National Forest: Here's How You Hunt Ramps Brittany Patterson, West Virginia Public Broadcasting, March 6, 2020 As spring approaches, ramps are popping up across West Virginia. The Monongahela National Forest on Friday released guidelines for harvesting the wild onion. Collecting ramps is allowed in the Monongahela National Forest as long as it's for personal use. According to a U.S. Forest Service press release, individuals can harvest up to two gallons of ramps per person, or about the amount that fits in a plastic grocery bag. Harvesting for a business or commercial use is not allowed. The agency recommends only collecting ramps in patches with more than 100 plants and suggests taking only one-fifth of the plants in large clumps. This ensures the ramp patches can regenerate. Use small forks or hand trowels when digging ramp bulbs rather than large shovels. And after digging up a ramp, cover the bare soil with leaves to prevent invasive species from taking root, the release said. NOTE: The ramp leaves are my favorite part. When a few leaves are removed carefully (with a knife) the plant remains to grow and spread. Ramps multiply very well from one season to the next. DGN P.S. I propose we do some planting of ramps along the Cheat Lake trails and in the Wildlife Viewing Areas. The understory vegetation in these areas is currently meager. Do other plants come to mind? DGN

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WV-DEP hosts public hearing on Saint George Injection Well permit renewal | WBOY.com
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 06 Mar '20

06 Mar '20

https://www.wboy.com/top-stories/dep-hosts-public-hearing-on-saint-george-i… DEP hosts public hearing on Saint George Injection Well permit renewal Allen Clayton, WBOY News 12, March 5, 2020 PARSONS, W.Va. – West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection hosted a public hearing Thursday at the Tucker County Board of Education Auxiliary Gym regarding the Saint George underground injection well site after nearly fifteen hundred citizens signed a petition against allowing it. St. George underground injection well site. Residents were given an opportunity to review the underground injection control permit and ask questions to the DEP officials that were on hand. Pillar Energy, LLC operates a class two underground injection control facility that is currently seeking a permit renewal to inject class two fluids associated with oil and natural gas production. The fracking waste injection well is located along Horseshoe Run just before it enters the Cheat River. “The injection well could fail and the bad water come back up. An old water well is right next to it. So, there are multiple ways that the environment can be affected,” said Judy Rod, a member of Friends of Blackwater Friends of Blackwater stated their concerns were fracking fluid leaking into ground water, heavy traffic on narrow roads, exposure of chemicals and lining of the well that may allow contaminates to leak out. Bridge damaged due to heavy truck traffic. “It’s been there probably since 2003 as an injection site,” said Jeremy Hile, a farmer whose property is adjacent to the Saint George injection site. “There are times there has been a lot of traffic to it. Then you know they’ve used it for injecting a lot, and then, there are times that it’s set and they’ve not done much with it at all. The permit currently has expired and they have not done anything with it for a little while besides haul fluid from the tanks they were storing there. But just have concerns living beside of it that spills, and I’ve asked a question whether at 24,000 and 780 gallons as a potential permit amount that they, I thought, was the amount would be capped but they say there is really no cap on it that they could put down as much as they want to in a days’ time.” Residents did state that fracking fluid is working its way back up to the surface water and having an effect on the surrounding are around the site. DEP officials said the original permit was developed to ensure and protect human health and the environment. Saint George underground injection well meeting. “What we regulate on the well is the pressure that injectate is added to it not a volume,” said Dennis Stottlemyer, Deputy Environmental Advocate for the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection. “The trucks have been going to the well for several years now, we don’t know that there will be an uptick in trucks and our permit boundry is the edge of the site, and the road is monitored by the public service commission and the department of highways. If there is a spill on site, the operator is required to notify us immediately and begin operations to clean-up that spill. The injectates are primarily salt water, very high in chlorides. Of course, you don’t want to come into contact with them, but I would say if you just flushed with water, you would be in good shape. Some of these fluids are monitored for radio activity, radio nuclei and in some cases, there are some very low concentrations of it.” Photograph of the Cheat River near Horseshoe Run in St. George. The permit conditions states that a class two well will be constructed, monitored, operated and tested to help ensure protection of underground sources of drinking water. Residents had 30 days to review and comment on the class two underground injection control draft permits. Original comment period on the underground injection control permit started December 16, 2019 and ended January 15, 2020.

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Sunset Beach Marina on Cheat Lake
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 01 Mar '20

01 Mar '20

Cheat Lake is currently at el. 867-ft. Lake Lynn Generation, LLG (Lake Lynn) will be drawing Cheat Lake down to about elevation 860-ft during the next week or so to accommodate the required dredging at the Sunset Beach Marina public boat launch. If things go as planned, we plan to begin excavating sediments from the boat ramp during the week of March 9. We must complete the work this month and have the lake back at el. 863-ft by April 1. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Note: Normal summer pool height is between 868 and 870_ft above sea level. The new owner of the Lake Lynn Generation is Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, a division of Ontario Hydro of Canada. DGN __________________________________________________________________ Jody Smet, AICP | Director, FERC Licensing and Compliance Eagle Creek Renewable Energy

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OPG acquires Cube Hydro; Cube to Merge with Eagle Creek | Eagle Creek Renewable Energy
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 07 Feb '20

07 Feb '20

https://www.eaglecreekre.com/media/news/opg-acquires-cube-hydro-cube-merge-… OPG acquires Cube Hydro; Cube to Merge with Eagle Creek Ontario Power Generation (OPG) has finalized the acquisition of Cube Hydro Partners and Helix Partners (collectively "Cube Hydro"), an owner and operator of small and medium-sized hydropower facilities located in the northeast and southeast United States, from I Squared Capital, an infrastructure-focused private equity firm. Eagle Creek and Cube Hydro will be combined to form OPG's U.S. hydro platform. "The acquisition of Cube Hydro builds on our 2018 purchase of Eagle Creek Renewable Energy," said Ken Hartwick, OPG President and CEO. "These high quality, clean generation assets provide additional scale to OPG's existing U.S. hydro portfolio." "The Cube Hydro portfolio represents an attractive opportunity to enhance our hydro platform adding a team and assets that are well aligned with OPG's long-term growth strategy in the United States," said Eli Smith, President and CEO of OPG's U.S. hydro platform companies. "Cube Hydro prides itself on safety, compliance, innovation and social responsibility, all of which align closely with Eagle Creek and OPG's core values." Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC acted as a financial advisor and Dentons served as legal counsel to OPG on the acquisition. Centerview Partners acted as financial advisor and Sidley Austin LLP, Troutman Sanders LLP, and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP served as legal counsel to I Squared Capital on this transaction. Key Facts on OPG's U.S. hydro platform: The Cube Hydro purchase adds 19 additional hydroelectric facilities in five states to OPG's hydro platform. This brings the total to 85 hydro generating stations in the United States, representing 619 megawatts of capacity. In addition, the companies own minority interests equivalent to approximately 10 megawatts in thirteen other hydroelectric facilities and two solar facilities in New England. Facilities are located across the United States primarily in the Southeast, New England, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest power markets. Offices are located in New Jersey, Maryland, North Carolina, Wisconsin and Massachusetts. OPG's U.S. hydro platform's environmental profile is well positioned for continued de-carbonization of the electricity industry. Enhanced returns for Ontarians, providing stable cash flows for generations to come, with no impact on electricity bills. The U.S. hydroelectric platform will continue to operate independently as a wholly owned subsidiary of OPG, with its own Board of Directors and management team. Its financial results will be consolidated into OPG's financial results. OPG is the largest electricity generator in the province, providing almost half the power Ontarians rely on every day. It is also one of the most diverse generators in North America with expertise in nuclear, hydro, biomass, solar and gas. NOTE: We are still Lake Lynn Hydro, LLC, but are now part of Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, instead of Cube Hydro. DGN

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Proposed additional Longview Power Plant at Ft. Martin, Monongalia Co., WV
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 06 Feb '20

06 Feb '20

> Subject: Proposed additional Longview Power Plant at Ft. Martin, Monongalia Co. > > > MON VALLEY CLEAN AIR COALITION, Monongalia County, WV > NOTE: The following 13 items were submitted to the Monongalia County Commission > at the regular weekly meeting on Wednesday, February 5, 2020 by Duane Nichols > > 1. The WV Public Service Commission held a Public Hearing on the proposed Longview II power plant this past Thursday in Charleston. Public comment was limited to only 2 minutes. The local newspaper indicated that Duane Nichols of Maidsville spoke about the traffic flows on WV Route 53 thru the Ft. Martin community. > > 2. Duane Nichols is from Stewartstown, but was speaking for many residents of Maidsville. Actually, Stewartstown, Bakers Ridge, Pt. Marion and other areas are downwind of the two coal fired plants and gets more than their share of the pollution. Now a third plant is proposed but is not needed. > > 3. The lawyer for Longview stated to the Public Service Commission that the “non-binding term sheet,” which is the financial arrangement of a PILOT agreement from the Monongalia County Commission, is actually a binding document; that it is official and formal and commits the County to the project. Since I was not aware of when or where the Mon. Commission had approved this project, I was in a state of shock. > > 4.Since last Thursday, I have learned more about the traffic in Maidsville and on the Ft. Martin hill. Listen to this: there are approx. 300 diesel coal trucks per day hauling Pennsylvania coal up the hill to Longview I; --- there are special diesel trucks hauling Longview I flyash down the hill and off to a remote facility, often after dark and perhaps during the night; --- next, there are diesel trucks hauling First Energy flyash from the Ft. Martin power plant down to the old Humphrey mine site off WV Route 100; --- next there is employee traffic for the power plants, --- delivery trucks for the power plants, ---and then resident traffic and school buses. (Now much more is being proposed.) > > 5. This Commission is planning to permit hundreds of vehicles MORE for Longview II construction employees AND the large scale movement of heavy power plant equipment. The Longview CFO told the Public Service Commission that some traffic could be from the north if the Shannopin dock at the mouth of Dunkard Creek is utilized. In my opinion, this is unlikely. So the traffic issues are much much greater than we ever were aware. I believe the residents of the Ft. Martin community deserve more consideration than they have been given. > > 6. Residents of the Ft. Martin community have complained to the WV DOH, to the WV PSC, to the State Police, and indeed to this Commission. Yet, these challenges keep getting worse. The residents of Ft. Martin can actually “feel” and hear the truck vibrations inside their homes. And, driving on Routes 53 and 100 is quite dangerous.(All this traffic is adding to the air pollution.) > > 7. Longview submitted the following two items to the Public Service Commission on January 17, 2020 regarding the public roads: PROPOSED CONDITION 8. “Applicant and their contractors and subcontractors, shall not block roads by changing shifts or heavy haul while school buses are scheduled to be on the roads within 1 mile of the site.” PROPOSED CONDITION 13. “Applicants will consult with the DOH on the advisability and feasibility of constructing a right turn lane on the CR 53 approach to the Project site.” This is a puzzle because the project site is to the left. Further, right turns are almost always of no concern since they do not cross on-coming traffic. [These are the only traffic control items proposed.] > > 8. NEW TOPIC. Longview submitted application materials to the WV-PSC on September 12, 2019. Included in Exhibit 2 on page 17, the last paragraph reads as follows: “To the east, along the new entrance road to the CCGT Facility, the foundation of a homestead farm house will be preserved when the access road is constructed through this area. In addition, one of the storm water management ponds located near the farm house foundation will be converted to a recreational pond. This area will be developed with the addition of a pavilion with picnic tables, a walking trail, and baseball/softball field. Signage will be added for the walking trail. The new Project Park will be considered as part of the CCGT Facility operational footprint. The Project Park will be open for both Company and community functions and events at times approved by the Company. The homestead ruins will be preserved and identified by signage. Trees and shrubs will be planted around the pavilion and along the walking trail.” However, these proposals are absent from the Proposed Conditions of Exhibit JLK-3 submitted on January 17, 2020. > > 9. Consider the existing Ft. Martin Grade School, an old structure on Route 53. It is locked tight, probably has not been opened for 20 years. What are the plans for this school building? Can we consider moving it to a location where it could safely be appreciated, perhaps the Mason-Dixon Park. There it could be looked after by responsible people. > > 10. The existing Longview I coal conveyor could be relocated to the Ft. Martin hill, and with cooperation from First Energy, could be used to transfer coal from the River up to the Longview I power plant. Cooperation among the power companies over there would be necessary. This County Commission would serve the county well by facilitating cooperation among the parties. > > 11. Regarding the coal-fired 1400 MW Ft. Martin power plant. Coal arrives by railroad cars but the ash is conveyed up the hill to Route 53. It is then trucked down the hill and onto Route 100 where it is dumped onto the old Humphrey mine property, if I am correct. Now this is very near the Monongahela River, so the surface runoff and groundwater leachate can ultimately flow to the River. We should insist that this ash be disposed up top as originally planned, somewhere on top of the hill or in Pennsylvania. This would remove some of the trucks and dust on the Ft. Martin hill. > > 12. Dust from the trucks gets on the roadway and dries, then the traffic suspends it into the air as an aerosol where some of it settles out in yards and on the homes of the residents. Some residents keep boots available for walking in the muck at their mail-boxes. > > 13. Many letters have been received at the PSC raising issues with a PILOT agreement. The PSC is not forwarding these to Monongalia County. And, I doubt seriously that the County Commission is giving them any consideration. PILOT agreements are quasi-legal, not having a firm foundation in law. So, any PILOT agreement should be prepared, negotiated and approved only with the full and open participation of the pubic citizens. (Further, an alternative site should be chosen or better yet, limit the project to an alternative energy project of solar cells.) > > > Duane G. Nichols, MVCAC Coordinator, 330 Dream Catcher Circle, Stewartstown, WV 26508 > Date: February 5, 2020. Nichols330(a)gmail.com; 304-216-5535. > > >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> > RE: W.V. PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION: Case 19-0890-E-CS-CN, Longview Power II. > Note: This Case will be open for comment until February 24th. Early comments are needed particularly with regard to whether the Ft. Martin site is right for another power plant. This new plant will generate some 4 million tons per year of greenhouse gases, adding to over 10 million already. > > A proposed agreement for property taxes in place of routine taxes, called a Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT), has been prepared by the Monongalia County Commission and submitted to Longview Power, LLC, for their consideration. This was done without the participation of the citizens of the county. A study and report of PILOT agreements in general and this one in particular has been completed by the WV Center on Budget and Policy, as shown here: > > "PILOT Agreements Cost State Millions in Tax Revenue: An In-Depth Look at Longview Power Plant" - West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy, Ted Boettner, October 15, 2019 > > https://wvpolicy.org/pilot-agreements-cost-state-millions-in-tax-revenue-an… > > A. Letters of Information, Support or Protest can be mailed to: Ms. Connie Graley, Executive Secretary, WV Public Service Commission, 201 Brooks Street, Charleston, WV 25301. Specify the Case Number and Title: Case 19-0890-E-CS-CN, Longview Power II. > > B. Comments Can Be Filed Electronically directly to the WV-PSC: Go to: WV Public Service Commission, choose “Submit a Comment,” choose “Formal Case,” enter the case number; click on the case number, enter the requested information and your comment. Or, try the following link that may take you to this same screen: > > > http://www.psc.state.wv.us/Scripts/OnlineComments/formalComments.cfm?CaseID… > > > C. Comments May be Submitted Electronically to the Monongalia County Commission: > > https://monongaliacounty.gov/contact_us/index.php >

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2020 E-Day a Success!
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 01 Feb '20

01 Feb '20

2020 E-Day a Success! WVECJanuary 31, 2020Newsletter articleComments It was standing room only with more than 24 organizations turning out to fill the upper Rotunda on Tuesday! It was a great day of citizen lobbying on our legislative priorities with a focus on clean drinking water. We were so thankful to have Tracy Danzey join us from the Eastern Panhandle, along with over a dozen other environmental advocates representing the Eastern Panhandle Sierra Club, Green Coalition, and Jefferson County Foundation. Watch Tracy and Karan on Tuesday’s episode of the Legislature Today. Delegate Evan Hansen gives a great recap of environmental legislation he is working on in the program as well. After our noon rally, we trouped over to the House Health Committee’s office and asked Chairman Hill to put the Clean Drinking Water Act(HB 4542) on his committee’s agenda. Petitions opposed to a bad water bill, HB 4079, were delivered on the House floor by Delegate Mike Pushkin. If you couldn’t join us, watch Tracy’s inspiring words during our rally on our Facebook page. Or listen to Tracy and WVEC president Linda Frame on Hoppy Kercheval’s radio show. That evening we raised over $800 for the WVEC at our annual GREEN Jam at the Empty Glass. https://wvecouncil.org/2020-e-day-a-success/

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e-WV | Forks of Cheat
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 24 Jan '20

24 Jan '20

https://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/2031 Forks of Cheat The area of West Virginia known as the Forks of Cheat lies between the Monongahela and Cheat rivers, including Stewartstown and the surrounding area in the northeast corner of Monongalia County and neighboring Pennsylvania. The name is confusing, in that it refers to the river fork created where the Cheat joins the Monongahela, rather than the place where the Cheat River itself forks into its tributaries. That is many miles upstream, at Parsons. The Forks of Cheat has long been used as a regional name. An 1883 Monongalia County history says that the early settlers called all of the county’s Union District west of Cheat River the Forks of Cheat. One of the earliest settlers was William Stewart, for whom Stewartstown was named. Irish-born, he came to the area in 1770. The Forks-of-Cheat Baptist Church has had four buildings on the same site and is believed to have the longest continuous history of any church in West Virginia. The church was established in 1775. The Forks area was traversed by a major Indian trail, and early white settlers endured the frequent hazard of Indian raids. Settler John Evans, in a letter of April 18, 1778, reported recent attacks in which Indians had killed and captured ten people ‘‘above the mouth of the Cheat River,’’ stolen horses, and burned a fort. A grandmother and three granddaughters were among those carried away. Stories such as this one were common. Agriculture was the economic mainstay of the forks in the 19th century. The area also participated in the early iron industry of the region. Coal mining and natural gas were important in the 20th century. The construction of the Cheat Lake dam and hydroelectric station provided work in the 1920s, and recreational activities associated with the lake help shape the character of the area today. U.S. 119 bisects Forks of Cheat on its way from Morgantown to Point Marion, Pennsylvania. The Mason-Dixon Line crosses the Forks of Cheat, separating West Virginia from Pennsylvania. This Article was written by Hallie Chillag Dunlap Last Revised on July 26, 2012 Cite This Article Dunlap, Hallie Chillag "Forks of Cheat." e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia. 26 July 2012. Web. 24 January 2020.

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All parties should study report on PILOT deals
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 18 Jan '20

18 Jan '20

Letter to Editor: All parties should study report on PILOT deals >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Letter to the Editor, Morgantown Dominion Post, Submitted January 16, 2020 Mon County is Losing Millions in Tax Revenue, Exposed to Power Plant Emissions An in-depth look at the PILOT agreement for the Longview Power plant that is now operating has been performed by Ted Boettner, Director of the WV Center on Budget & Policy. This was published to their web-site on October 15, 2019. PILOT is the “payment in lieu of taxes” agreement approved by the Monongalia County Commission back in 2003. According to the analysis, the tax abatement (taxes not collected) is estimated at $457 million over 30 years. The proposed new Longview II power plant tax abatement that might be approved by the Monongalia County Commission, would forgive $217 million over 30 years. Thus, the total tax abatement for Longview according to Boettner is $674 million. Everyone should read and study the document on the web-site of the West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy as it covers PILOT agreements in general. It is about 10 pages long. And, this document contains eight (8) guidelines or “best practices” that can help increase transparency, reduce waste, and ensure a more democratic process in the abatement process. The Monongalia County Sheriff, the School Board and the County Commission should study and use the facts and information in the above referenced document if approving another PILOT agreement, in the best interest of the public health and welfare. This is the reference: “PILOT Agreements Cost State Millions in Tax Revenue: An In-Depth Look at Longview Power Plant,” Ted Boettner, October 15, 2019. The source is: https://wvpolicy.org/pilot-agreements-cost-state-millions-in-tax-revenue-an… The Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition is concerned about putting another large power plant where so many will be affected, the Ft. Martin community, Maidsville, Star City, Stewartstown, Cheat Lake area, Pt. Marion, etc. Already we have over 300 diesel trucks per day on the Ft. Martin hill. The location of University High School and all the health care facilities of Mon General Hospital and the WVU Hospital system are downwind and subject to concerns especially during adverse weather conditions as thermal inversions in the atmosphere. My information is that the proposed new Longview II power plant will have emissions of over 10 tons per year of “hazardous air pollutants” (HAPs), 200 tons per year of fine particulate matter (PM), 500 tons per year of “volatile organic compounds” (VOCs), and 4 million tons per year of greenhouse gases, based upon data from the WV Department of Environmental Protection. All this would add to the even greater emissions from the existing Longview I and Ft. Martin coal fired power plants. We don’t want over 35 thousand residents and 35 thousand students to be exposed to these conditions. Duane G. Nichols, Stewartstown, WV 26508 > A truncated or edited version appears today in the Morgantown Dominion Post, as letters are limited to 300 words. > SEE ATTACHMENT > >

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Opinion | How to Stop Freaking Out and Tackle Climate Change - The New York Times
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 17 Jan '20

17 Jan '20

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/10/opinion/sunday/how-to-help-climate-chang…

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THE PEOPLES PHARMACY N.P.R. National Public Radio
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 11 Jan '20

11 Jan '20

DECEMBER 5, 2019 — Show 1191: What Are Your Favorite Home Remedies? For centuries, people have been using home remedies as their first treatment for common ailments. With easy access to over-the-counter drugs, though, people have turned away from home remedies in the last several decades. There are still plenty of inexpensive options that work well, however. Which are your favorite home remedies? Apple Cider Vinegar: One ever-popular remedy, apple cider vinegar, starred in a mid-20th century book, Folk Medicine: A Vermont Doctor's Guide to Good Health. In it, Dr. Jarvis promoted the use of apple cider vinegar and honey. Although he was perhaps the most enthusiastic proponent of this remedy, he learned about it from his patients. They, in turn, had learned about it from their parents and grandparents. The use of apple cider vinegar as a home treatment for a range of ills can be traced back to colonial times in New England. Although most doctors have not embraced vinegar of any sort, many people still maintain that it can be helpful. We talk with Rosemary Gladstar, an herbalist and author of Fire Cider!: 101 Zesty Recipes for Health-Boosting Remedies Made with Apple Cider Vinegar. In it, she describes multiple uses of apple cider vinegar, especially in combination with hot peppers (fire cider). These strong flavors may not be for everyone, but some people swear by fire cider. How do they use it? What Are Your Favorite Home Remedies? We'd like to hear about your favorite home remedies, whether you are using an herbal tea to soothe indigestion or have found a creative use for a drugstore product. (Lots of people tell us they put Vicks VapoRub on the soles of their feet to calm a nighttime cough. We first heard about this unorthodox use from a listener more than a decade ago.) Call In Your Questions and Stories: After you listen to Rosemary Gladstar, we invite you to tell us about your favorite home remedies. Joe and Terry will respond. Our lines are open for your questions and comments this week. Call 888-472-3366 between 7 and 8 am EDT on Saturday, December 7, 2019. You can also reach us by email: radio(a)peoplespharmacy.com. This Week's Guest: Rosemary Gladstar is a star figure in the field of modern herbalism, internationally renowned for her technical knowledge and stewardship in the global herbalist community. She has been learning, teaching and writing about herbs for over 40 years and is the author of eleven books. Her work includes Herbs for Common Ailments, Medicinal Herbs, a Beginners Guide, Herbal Healing for Women, Rosemary Gladstar's Herbal Recipes for Vibrant Health, and The Science and Art of Herbalism, an extensive in depth home study course. She is the Founding President of United Plant Savers, former director of The New England Women's Herbal Conference and founder and past director of the International Herb Symposium. Her newest book is Fire Cider!: 101 Zesty Recipes for Health-Boosting Remedies Made with Apple Cider Vinegar The photograph of Rosemary Gladstar is by Jason Houston. Listen to the Podcast: The podcast of this program will be available the Monday after the broadcast date. The show can be streamed online from this site and podcasts can be downloaded for free. CDs may be purchased at any time after broadcast for $9.99. Buy the CD Download the mp3. https://www.npr.org/podcasts/381444414/the-people-s-pharmacy-radio-program LISTEN· 56:33 PLAYLIST

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Saving the Environment, Saving the Earth ....
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 09 Jan '20

09 Jan '20

CLIMATE-BLOW-RADICAL ENVIRONMENTALISM-9JanY2K20 NEW YORK TIMES JANUARY 9, 2020 My Journey to Radical Environmentalism It’s never too late to take action aimed at protecting our planet. By Charles M. Blow, NYT, Opinion Columnist, Jan. 8, 2020 • I can’t quite remember the moment when I became radicalized about protecting the environment and the planet, but it happened last year. That’s late in life, I know. At 49 years old, it is very possible and even likely that I have more years behind me than in front of me, but that is when it happened. Before that, I didn’t do more than was required by law. I have lived in New York City since 1994. Mandatory recycling was phased in citywide by 1997. So, I recycled what was required. Five years ago, when my last two children went away to college, I got rid of my car, but not for environmental reasons. I just didn’t need it anymore, and it was expensive to maintain. But something happened to me last year. Maybe it was Greta Thunberg’s advocacy, and hearing her impassioned United Nations speech in which she blasted world leaders, saying: “You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words. And yet I’m one of the lucky ones. People are suffering. People are dying; entire ecosystems are collapsing. We are in the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth. How dare you!” Maybe it was watching Bill Nye the Science Guy set a globe ablaze during an F-word-laced tirade in which he yelled in exasperation for people to grow up because the planet is on fire. Maybe it was the unending drumbeat of warning from scientists that climate change is accelerating at a rate faster than they expected and we are nearing a point of no return. Maybe it was the fact that my last two kids graduated from college last year, and for the first time I saw all my children as independent adults going out into the world, and I wanted to become a better custodian of the planet for their sakes. The thing that I remember most, though, was neither ofthese specifically, although they may well have been background factors. The fact that stuck with me came from Googling how long it takes for plastic bags to decompose. The answer is that we don’t know. Some estimate it could take 500 years, others say a thousand. There is an easy-to-understand obsceneness for me in using a bag for 10 minutes, from a store to my home, and the possibility that it will remain on the planet for a thousand years. I immediately bought reusable shopping bags, stopped buying plastic storage bags, bought biodegradable garbage bags, and found places that would recycle the few plastic bags I had. But the whole thing made me think about how heavy my carbon footprint and environmental impact are now, and how different that was from the way I grew up. As a child, my family had a tiny environmental impact, in part because we were poor. Most of our food came from our own property: no shipment emission, no packaging, no pesticides. The yard was full of fruit and nut trees: a few pecan trees, a few crab apple trees, a fig tree, a peach tree and blackberries growing near the fence line. My mother planted two truck patch gardens where we grew corn, leafy greens, potatoes, tomatoes, okra and melons. We raised our own food animals for protein, each year buying a couple of hogs and a cow. We had almost no food waste. We ate most of what my mother made, and as a home economics teacher, she was a genius at turning leftovers into new meals. What could not be eaten was separated into two groups: What the dogs could safely eat and what would go to slop the hogs. What we did buy from stores was not so heavily packaged as much food is today. We bought eggs and sweet potatoes mostly wholesale, in cases or crates. On the few occasions that we bought eggs in plastic foam containers, my mother saved them, bound them together with yarn, and made trash cans out of them. Furthermore, if something she bought came in a plastic container, it became storage, a form of poor people’s Tupperware. Poor people were the original recyclers before recycling was the norm. Waste was for the wealthy. For that reason we had little trash. When I thought about that in the context of the outrageous amount of trash my family and I now produce, I felt ashamed. So I decided to not only reduce my trash production, but also to dramatically reduce my first use of even things that can be recycled. Not only does the production of those products in the first instance consume energy, recycling them also uses energy. Beyond that, you cannot be assured that what you put on the curb to be recycled actually will be. As The New York Times reported in May 2018: “In recent months, in fact, thousands of tons of material left curbside for recycling in dozens of American cities and towns — including several in Oregon — have gone to landfills.” I have tried to take more steps to reduce my carbon footprint. I ride mass transportation more often. I stopped consuming red meat. (The carbon footprint for beef and pork are obscene.) I buy more fruit and vegetables at the local farmers’ market. I compost. I’ve changed all lighting in my house to LEDs and lowered my thermostat. One thing that I haven’t figured out how to avoid is air travel, mostly because I’m active on the speaking circuit. But I am looking into buying carbon offsets for that travel. None of this is to position myself as a perfect example of an environmentalist, but rather to demonstrate to people like me who read this column that it is never too late to start trying, that every small effort matters, and that you can do it in communities of late-reformers like me. I know there are probably many more things I can do to help the environment, (I hope you all will share some in the comments of this column for all to see), and I will continue my research to find more of them. It seems to me that environmentalism involves not only the changes we personally make, but also proselytizing, getting more people to join us. My journey to radical environmentalism is not complete. To the contrary, it’s just beginning. I think that the only way to prevent the radical alteration of our planet is to commit to a radical alteration of our own behavior. Charles Blow joined The Times in 1994 and became an Opinion columnist in 2008. He is also a television commentator and writes often about politics, social justice and vulnerable communities. @CharlesMBlow • Facebook URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/08/opinion/radical-environmentalism.html

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The Forks of the Cheat River....... flooding does happen!
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 05 Jan '20

05 Jan '20

HERE IS THE CLASSICAL DESCRIPTION ..... The five forks of the Cheat (Blackwater River, Shavers, Dry, Glady, and Laurel Forks) are all well-known coldwater fisheries that support healthy fish populations. These major headwater tributaries join to form the Cheat River near Parsons, West Virginia. HERE IS THE MODERN DESCRIPTION ....... The Black Fork flows for its entire length of four miles in Tucker County. It is formed at the town of Hendricks by the confluence of the Dry Fork and the Blackwater River, and flows generally northwestwardly through Hambleton to Parsons, where it joins the Shavers Fork to form the Cheat River. ################################################## http://wvmetronews.com/2019/07/01/preston-county-flash-flooding-brought-rap… Preston County: Flash flooding brought rapid rise of Cheat River (July 1, 2019) The southern part of Preston County reported the most flooding. KINGWOOD, W.Va. — The rate at which the Cheat River rose Sunday following Saturday night flash flooding is being compared to the tragic flood of 1985. “It was pretty low initially in the morning and it rose very rapidly. Actually it rose more rapidly than we’ve ever seen it, other than the ’85 flood,” Preston County Office of Emergency Services Assistant Director Justin Wolfe said. There were 21 swift-water rescues Sunday along the Cheat, including 19 people in one campground, Wolfe said. “They were all in one spot where they were isolated off with the Cheat River on one side and other small stream that flows around,” he said. Two other people were rescued by a Maryland State Police helicopter from an island in the Cheat. “It was too dangerous for the swift-water teams with fast current and debris that was coming down the river so we had to contact them to airlift two,” Wolfe said. Preston is one of five counties that are under a state of emergency from Gov. Jim Justice. The heavy rain began at about 10 p.m. Saturday. As much as five inches fell in some locations over a very short period of time. Preston County Commissioner Samantha Stone said there’s some significant road damage. “Some roads, our major roads, like (U.S. Route) 50 sheets of asphalt just lifted off the road,” Stone said. “The water was coming down off the hills and mountains whichever way it could find and all of the debris it brought with it really damages a lot of the roadways.” Most of the significant flooding was in southern Preston County.

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Lake Lynn JAM Slides_12-12-2019.pdf
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 02 Jan '20

02 Jan '20

Attached please find the presentation from the Cheat Lake relicensing meeting of December 12th. NOTE on Slide 7, the next date for input is February 10th. NOTE ...... TRADITIONAL LICENSING PROCESS (TLP) OVERVIEW • Applicant files NOI, PAD, request to use TLP, and newspaper notice (8/29/2019) • FERC approves use of TLP (10/17/2019) • Applicant conducts joint agency/public meeting and site visit (12/12/2019) • Resource agencies, tribes, and stakeholders provide written comments and recommend resource studies (2/10/20)

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Plastic Pollution, Our Oceans, Our Future on Vimeo
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 29 Dec '19

29 Dec '19

Plastic Pollution, Our Oceans, Our Future on Vimeo As Hawaii contemplates joining over 60 locations in the Unites States in banning the sale and distribution of single-use polystyrene ("Styrofoam"), 17 students from Hawaii examine the impact of plastic pollution on their beaches and envision a sustainable future for the world's oceans. https://vimeo.com/178666619

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Mon Wharf remains closed as cold prevents flood cleanup | TribLIVE.com
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 20 Dec '19

20 Dec '19

https://triblive.com/local/pittsburgh-allegheny/mon-wharf-remains-closed-as… Mon Wharf remains closed as cold prevents flood cleanup Article by Brian C. Rittmeyer, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, December 20, 2019 Pittsburgh commuters who use the Mon Wharf will have to find another place to park Friday. The wharf will remain closed Friday, the Pittsburgh parking authority announced. The wharf flooded after heavy rain that fell over the Monongahela and Cheat river basins earlier this week. “Although the river has receded from its crest of 19.8 feet, the flooding has left debris and mud behind, particularly in the drive lanes and middle/lower parking areas,” the authority said in an announcement. Cleanup has been prevented because much of the mud and silt has frozen, the authority said. Cleanup efforts will start Friday afternoon and continue into the weekend, when temperatures are forecast to rise above freezing. The authority said it will try to open part of the wharf for use Monday. In the meantime, additional parking is available at the First Avenue garage and Second Avenue plaza.

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Ecotourism could be an answer ......... but questions remain!
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 18 Dec '19

18 Dec '19

Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving visiting fragile, rare, pristine, and relatively undisturbed natural areas, intended as a low-impact and often small scale alternative to standard commercial mass tourism. It means responsible travel to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds for ecological conservation, to directly benefit the economic development and political empowerment of local communities, or to foster respect for different cultures and for human rights. Since the 1980s, ecotourism has been considered a critical endeavor by environmentalists, so that future generations may experience destinations relatively untouched by human intervention. Several university programs use this description as the working definition of ecotourism. Generally, ecotourism deals with interaction with biotic components of the natural environments. Ecotourism focuses on socially responsible travel, personal growth, and environmental sustainability. Ecotourism typically involves travel to destinations where flora, fauna, and cultural heritage are the primary attractions. Ecotourism is intended to offer tourists an insight into the impact of human beings on the environment and to foster a greater appreciation of our natural habitats. Responsible ecotourism programs include those that minimize the negative aspects of conventional tourism on the environment and enhance the cultural integrity of local people. Therefore, in addition to evaluating environmental and cultural factors, an integral part of ecotourism is the promotion of recycling, energy efficiency, water conservation, and creation of economic opportunities for local communities. For these reasons, ecotourism often appeals to advocates of environmental and social responsibility. Many consider the term "ecotourism", like "sustainable tourism", an oxymoron. Like most forms of tourism, ecotourism generally depends on air transportation, which contributes to global climate change. Additionally, "the overall effect of sustainable tourism is negative where like ecotourism philanthropic aspirations mask hard-nosed immediate self-interest."

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The 20 Best Places to Live in West Virginia
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 17 Dec '19

17 Dec '19

https://moneyinc.com/best-places-to-live-in-west-virginia/ This is actually funny. None of these locations compare to the quality of locations near most of the major cities of the United States, in my opinion. What about the outstanding mountain regions in Tucker County? Consider this as a low key excursion thru a somewhat backward (yet scenic) State. DGN

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Stand up for threatened and endangered wildlife | Opinion | timeswv.com
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 17 Dec '19

17 Dec '19

https://www.timeswv.com/opinion/stand-up-for-threatened-and-endangered-wild… Stand up for threatened and endangered wildlife Letter to Times West Virginian, Fairmont, WV, Dec 15, 2019 West Virginia is home to many endangered or threatened wildlife species, such as aquatic brook trout, the illusive Northern flying squirrel, newly reintroduced elk herds, and many avian species. As our modern world continues to expand, it is necessary for us to protect the habitats and migration corridors of the wildlife that makes West Virginia wild. There are many programs that provide protections to these species, but one especially needs our attention and support now. The Land and Water Conservation Fund was created 50 years ago to balance the negative effects of offshore oil and gas drilling on marine ecosystems. Royalties from this sector are directed to funding public lands projects. In West Virginia, $6.4 million have been directly dedicated to 10 Wildlife Management Areas including Cheat Canyon WMA. Another $219 million has funded large habitat areas and migration corridors at places like the Monongahela National Forest, Spruce Knob and Chief Logan State Park. The Land and Water Conservation Fund received permanent authorization earlier this year thanks to the W.Va. delegation in Congress. Now it needs full and permanently-dedicated funding. I urge all West Virginians to ask our Congressional members to say yes to permanent funding in the upcoming vote in the House and Senate. This program is vital to protecting healthy habitats for the beloved wildlife that also call the Mountain State home. Karen Yarnell, Fairmont, WV

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Great Lakes Profile - Vivid Maps
by Duane Nichols via CLEAR 16 Dec '19

16 Dec '19

The maximum summer pool height for Cheat Lake is 870 feet above sea level ... https://www.vividmaps.com/2017/01/great-lakes-profile.html

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