Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Monday, November 10, 2008
What We Know About The Stream Restoration Project
1) Why is Reston Association pursuing Stream Restoration?
Reston streams are in very bad shape and severe eroding process is evident. Trees and plants are not getting enough water due to drying of streams each summer caused mainly by new commercial and residential development that has changed the natural flow of water into the Glade Preserve. The violent storms, which we are now experiencing, are badly damaging the streambeds and the trees along them, causing a substantial number of trees to fall.
After years of neglect, Reston Association has found a cost-effective way to restore its streams. Reston has established a Watershed Bank that enables real estate developers to buy credits earned by Reston through the restoration of its streams. To date, Reston has banked approximately $12 million of these credits, which developers can purchase for other watershed developments. The Stream Restoration project may save Reston approximately $700,000 every five years by keeping silt and runoff out of Reston’s Lakes. Glade Stream does not run into Reston’s lakes so it does not contribute to that savings.
• QUESTION: What we have not yet determined is Reston’s financial consequences, if these credits are not purchased. Given our nation’s current economic crisis, is the purchase of these credits still viable? If they are not purchased, will the residents of Reston be assessed a special assessment to fund this project?
2) How are residents being informed?
Fairfax County, the Corps of Engineers and Reston Association have been involved in creating this plan for some time, but only selective Reston citizens have been notified. If your property abuts the designated area for restoration, then you will receive a notice but no specific information is included in that notice. In actuality, anyone who uses the paths in Reston will be affected by this project, not just the adjacent property owners. It appears that not all of the information is being shared, such as the actual number of trees being removed. Residents of lower Snakeden, with whom I have spoken, state they are shocked at the amount of tree removal and did not know about the program before the trees were removed. Those that did know of the program stated their belief that they felt they had no reason to be concerned based on the fact that Reston Association has always defended the trees and monitored residents’ tree removal activities with a careful eye. They never suspected that removal of such a wide swath of trees would ever be allowed by RA. Others stated that they were told they could not do anything about it since the program was already approved.
• FACT: Reston Association members are elected to represent the best interests of the residents of Reston, not the Corp of Engineers or Fairfax County. You do have a legitimate voice in this issue, if you care to use it. If you care to use it, do not wait until it is too late. There is no way that vast amounts of tall, hundred year old trees will be restored to their original beauty, once this project is underway.
3) What will the restoration look like?
Reston has decided to return the streams to their original elevation. This method of stream restoration requires substantial tree removal as bulldozers work to achieve the proper elevation. This type of restoration will enable storm water to flood the Glade Valley, which should be very beneficial to the trees and plants that are experiencing ongoing drought conditions. This type of restoration is very expensive and several studies have expressed concern over the merits and effectiveness of this type of restoration.
The contractor doing this work has carte blanche rights to remove whatever trees they see fit as defined by the plan on each side of the stream in order to accomplish the restoration goal. The contractor also has “lumbering rights” for the trees they remove. Wherever you see a silver tag on a tree, that tree may be removed by the contractor since it is in the approved targeted zone, which is marked by orange red flags. A major concern is that the streams project appears to have achieved the status of another of Reston’s award-winning programs, while the trees and wildlife are being treated as the enemy standing in the way of stream restoration. It is important that a well-qualified ombudsman is a viable part of the Glade restoration to ensure that the full ecology is considered before any trees are removed. By having a sanctioned Ombudsman, we will shake out the true benefit of stream restoration versus woodland destruction. No one has been able to tell us how many trees will be removed nor will they answer specific questions such as: will the tree that the owls nest in be removed and what will happen to the owls if the trees are removed?
It is not only the main streams that will be restored, the small feeding ditches that only rarely have water in them are also scheduled for restoration so tree removal will take place along those dry ditches as well. One such dry ditch comes from the Pony Barn picnic pavilion and proceeds to Glade stream next to my home. Even after violet storms this ditch is mostly dry, but the plan calls for extensive excavation and tree removal to day light the ditch by digging up the old paddock area and the sewer system below it. Instead of the level field that is now there, the terrain will drop steeply to approximately fifteen feet below its current level. No consideration has been given to the human uses of this field or to the cost benefit of doing this work. The plan is to cover the whole area in wildflowers (much like the ones that are there now) instead of replacing the trees that will most assuredly be removed. Wildflowers and very small saplings will replace old stands of trees for the most part where 100 year old trees used to stand.
• SEE FOR YOURSELF: See the impact of Stream Restoration yourself. Park in the 7-11 parking lot on Soapstone and go behind the cleaners to see the work under construction. The leveled and barren area you will see was, just a short time ago, a lush and beautiful forest of tall trees as thick or even thicker than the Glade preserve. Go across Soapstone and up Snakeden to see what it looks like when work is complete. Draw your own conclusions as to what you want in the Glade preserve, whether or not stream restoration is needed, and, if so, is this is the only way to achieve restoration. Once the trees and other flora are removed and the wildlife has vanished, there will be no going back. Picture your Glade preserve filled with huge gray boulders not unlike those that are placed along roads and highways – rarely seen in a natural setting in Northern Virginia.
4) What can I do to become more informed?
The purpose of this blog is to keep the citizens - the primary stakeholders - of Hunters Woods informed as to the progress and consequences of the Reston Stream Restoration, which will dramatically impact the Glade preserve. As a monitor of the site, I will do my best to provide both sides of the issue. As residents of Reston, I expect you to state your views as frankly as you see them. It is only through informed active citizen participation that we will get the results that we expect. I, for one, would like to have restored streams but only if this can be achieved with a very minimal loss of trees and impact on wildlife. Is that possible? What are your views on Glade Stream Restoration?
• TAKE ACTION:
o Voice your opinion on this blog
o Attend the December 16th Design Review Board Meeting.
o Contact Reston Association. RA has hired Ms. Nicki Foremsky to head up the Stream Restoration project as its watershed supervisor. Ms Foremsky very effectively defends the removal of trees for stream restoration. She can be reached at 703/435-6560 (I have yet to locate anyone representing what Reston calls our “breathing buddies” -- the trees that will be removed).
Reston streams are in very bad shape and severe eroding process is evident. Trees and plants are not getting enough water due to drying of streams each summer caused mainly by new commercial and residential development that has changed the natural flow of water into the Glade Preserve. The violent storms, which we are now experiencing, are badly damaging the streambeds and the trees along them, causing a substantial number of trees to fall.
After years of neglect, Reston Association has found a cost-effective way to restore its streams. Reston has established a Watershed Bank that enables real estate developers to buy credits earned by Reston through the restoration of its streams. To date, Reston has banked approximately $12 million of these credits, which developers can purchase for other watershed developments. The Stream Restoration project may save Reston approximately $700,000 every five years by keeping silt and runoff out of Reston’s Lakes. Glade Stream does not run into Reston’s lakes so it does not contribute to that savings.
• QUESTION: What we have not yet determined is Reston’s financial consequences, if these credits are not purchased. Given our nation’s current economic crisis, is the purchase of these credits still viable? If they are not purchased, will the residents of Reston be assessed a special assessment to fund this project?
2) How are residents being informed?
Fairfax County, the Corps of Engineers and Reston Association have been involved in creating this plan for some time, but only selective Reston citizens have been notified. If your property abuts the designated area for restoration, then you will receive a notice but no specific information is included in that notice. In actuality, anyone who uses the paths in Reston will be affected by this project, not just the adjacent property owners. It appears that not all of the information is being shared, such as the actual number of trees being removed. Residents of lower Snakeden, with whom I have spoken, state they are shocked at the amount of tree removal and did not know about the program before the trees were removed. Those that did know of the program stated their belief that they felt they had no reason to be concerned based on the fact that Reston Association has always defended the trees and monitored residents’ tree removal activities with a careful eye. They never suspected that removal of such a wide swath of trees would ever be allowed by RA. Others stated that they were told they could not do anything about it since the program was already approved.
• FACT: Reston Association members are elected to represent the best interests of the residents of Reston, not the Corp of Engineers or Fairfax County. You do have a legitimate voice in this issue, if you care to use it. If you care to use it, do not wait until it is too late. There is no way that vast amounts of tall, hundred year old trees will be restored to their original beauty, once this project is underway.
3) What will the restoration look like?
Reston has decided to return the streams to their original elevation. This method of stream restoration requires substantial tree removal as bulldozers work to achieve the proper elevation. This type of restoration will enable storm water to flood the Glade Valley, which should be very beneficial to the trees and plants that are experiencing ongoing drought conditions. This type of restoration is very expensive and several studies have expressed concern over the merits and effectiveness of this type of restoration.
The contractor doing this work has carte blanche rights to remove whatever trees they see fit as defined by the plan on each side of the stream in order to accomplish the restoration goal. The contractor also has “lumbering rights” for the trees they remove. Wherever you see a silver tag on a tree, that tree may be removed by the contractor since it is in the approved targeted zone, which is marked by orange red flags. A major concern is that the streams project appears to have achieved the status of another of Reston’s award-winning programs, while the trees and wildlife are being treated as the enemy standing in the way of stream restoration. It is important that a well-qualified ombudsman is a viable part of the Glade restoration to ensure that the full ecology is considered before any trees are removed. By having a sanctioned Ombudsman, we will shake out the true benefit of stream restoration versus woodland destruction. No one has been able to tell us how many trees will be removed nor will they answer specific questions such as: will the tree that the owls nest in be removed and what will happen to the owls if the trees are removed?
It is not only the main streams that will be restored, the small feeding ditches that only rarely have water in them are also scheduled for restoration so tree removal will take place along those dry ditches as well. One such dry ditch comes from the Pony Barn picnic pavilion and proceeds to Glade stream next to my home. Even after violet storms this ditch is mostly dry, but the plan calls for extensive excavation and tree removal to day light the ditch by digging up the old paddock area and the sewer system below it. Instead of the level field that is now there, the terrain will drop steeply to approximately fifteen feet below its current level. No consideration has been given to the human uses of this field or to the cost benefit of doing this work. The plan is to cover the whole area in wildflowers (much like the ones that are there now) instead of replacing the trees that will most assuredly be removed. Wildflowers and very small saplings will replace old stands of trees for the most part where 100 year old trees used to stand.
• SEE FOR YOURSELF: See the impact of Stream Restoration yourself. Park in the 7-11 parking lot on Soapstone and go behind the cleaners to see the work under construction. The leveled and barren area you will see was, just a short time ago, a lush and beautiful forest of tall trees as thick or even thicker than the Glade preserve. Go across Soapstone and up Snakeden to see what it looks like when work is complete. Draw your own conclusions as to what you want in the Glade preserve, whether or not stream restoration is needed, and, if so, is this is the only way to achieve restoration. Once the trees and other flora are removed and the wildlife has vanished, there will be no going back. Picture your Glade preserve filled with huge gray boulders not unlike those that are placed along roads and highways – rarely seen in a natural setting in Northern Virginia.
4) What can I do to become more informed?
The purpose of this blog is to keep the citizens - the primary stakeholders - of Hunters Woods informed as to the progress and consequences of the Reston Stream Restoration, which will dramatically impact the Glade preserve. As a monitor of the site, I will do my best to provide both sides of the issue. As residents of Reston, I expect you to state your views as frankly as you see them. It is only through informed active citizen participation that we will get the results that we expect. I, for one, would like to have restored streams but only if this can be achieved with a very minimal loss of trees and impact on wildlife. Is that possible? What are your views on Glade Stream Restoration?
• TAKE ACTION:
o Voice your opinion on this blog
o Attend the December 16th Design Review Board Meeting.
o Contact Reston Association. RA has hired Ms. Nicki Foremsky to head up the Stream Restoration project as its watershed supervisor. Ms Foremsky very effectively defends the removal of trees for stream restoration. She can be reached at 703/435-6560 (I have yet to locate anyone representing what Reston calls our “breathing buddies” -- the trees that will be removed).
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Share your views on Glade Stream Restoration
The purpose of this Blog is to keep the citizens of Hunters Woods, Reston informed as to the progress and consequences of the Reston Stream Restoration, which will impact the Glade preserve. As a monitor of the site, I will do my best to provide both sides of the issue. As residents of Reston, I fully expect you to state your views as frankly and professionally as you see them. It is only through an informed citizen participation will we maintain the quality of life that is unique to Reston. I for one would like to restore streams, but I want to do so with limited impact on the trees and wildlife. Is that possible, what are your views on Glade Stream Restoration?
Dec 16th Design Review Meeting
Reston Association Design Review Board will meet on Tuesday, December 16th at 7:00 to review stream restoration plans for the Glade Preserve west of Colts Neck Road. We encourage everyone to attend this meeting, which will be held at the Reston Association.
Main Office:
Reston Association
1930 Isaac Newton Square
Reston, VA 20190-5093
(703) 435-6530
What questions would you want addressed at this critical meeting?
Main Office:
Reston Association
1930 Isaac Newton Square
Reston, VA 20190-5093
(703) 435-6530
What questions would you want addressed at this critical meeting?
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