It’s Wednesday morning, February 12, and all over Charlottesville—in fact, up and down much of the East Coast—residents are making storm preparations, snapping up groceries and rock salt by the ton. While the storm—dubbed “Pax” by the Weather Channel and “Snochi” by the Olympic-minded Twitterverse—is a Nor’easter created by converging air masses in a low […]
Environment
Fox news: After possible rabies exposure, Southwood bite victims face costly treatment
There were no bugles, hounds, or riders in red coats, but the fox hunt that took place at the Southwood Mobile Home Park on Friday, January 31, was high stakes nonetheless for three people who now require rabies prevention treatment, and it didn’t end well for a fox, who was killed in cinematic fashion later […]
Winter garden blues: Waiting out cold weather in the veggie patch
Winters in Virginia sure can be fickle. Last winter it was so warm that the ground barely froze, and I had clients harvesting tomatoes well into December. And then March hit, with sleety, slushy snow and cold temps, and my spring gardens couldn’t be planted until April—compare that with planting spinach on February 22 several […]
Recycling news: Albemarle balks at privatizing trash service—again
Albemarle County threw out a plan to privatize trash and recycling disposal last week in the wake of fierce opposition from residents, revving up the argument over who should handle solid waste in the region—the county or private contractors. A proposal agreed upon by the previous Board of [...]
Local nonprofit teams with volunteers to bring aid to West Virginia
A week after a chemical spill in West Virginia left 300,000 people without running water, a group of Charlottesvillians are holding a water drive and plan to truck it over the state line starting on Thursday, January 16. “It’s a crisis,” said Ian Babcock, founder of the new nonprofit Catalyst [...]
Got green game? Local companies cut costs, impacts in Better Business Challenge
Charlottesville’s second Better Business Challenge, a year-long sustainability competition for local companies, wraps up in May, but founder Teri Kent wants business owners to know there’s still plenty of time to get onboard—and save a lot. Kent, creator of local environmental blog Better World [...]
Rivanna Master Naturalists gear up for 2014 training
Starting in February, two dozen locals will give their Tuesday nights over to the study of rocks, plants, and birds—and together will pledge to devote nearly 1,000 hours annually to environmental study and education. They’ll be 2014’s class of Rivanna Master Naturalists, the newest members of a [...]
Once-rejected Arrowhead Farm set to become county nature preserve
Albemarle County officials have accepted a 410-acre land gift they initially rejected, approving a plan to partner with a local nonprofit that will maintain the new southern Albemarle park as a nature preserve and a site to release rehabilitated wildlife. “We’re very, very pleased that the land [...]
Ask Betty: Going green, staying warm
Teri Kent runs Charlottesville’s Better World Betty, a non-profit organization and online resource for locals looking to shrink their impact on the environment. Every month, Betty—Kent’s ’50s-housewife-meets-earth-goddess alter ego—answers the most burning eco- questions from our readers about [...]
Changing the climate: How one Charlottesville foundation has altered how we talk about research
It’s just after 6am Eastern Standard Time on a Wednesday in early December, and about a dozen journalists, environmental scientists, and educators from four time zones are popping in and out of an AOL chat room. There’s some small talk about the weather in Bozeman, Montana and Montevideo, [...]
Surge of joy: On Mountain View Street, happiness is a high power bill
Got holiday lights? It’s that time of year, and, according to Dominion Virginia Power, simply lighting a Christmas tree can tack as much as $10 onto a power bill for the holiday season. Jeff Norford’s holiday season power bill jumps a bit more than that. Indeed, perhaps no one in [...]
Oh, deer: November the deadliest month for road run-ins
Love is in the air for white-tailed deer this month. Unfortunately for humans, there’s nothing romantic about a smashed car, and deer-vehicle collisions soar in November as the randy animals roam through woods, over fields, and into roadways during the peak of their mating season, which [...]
Green happenings: Charlottesville environmental news and events
Each week, C-VILLE’s Green Scene page takes a look at local environmental news. The section’s bulletin board has information on local green events and keeps you up to date on statewide happenings. Got an event or a tip you’d like to see here and in the paper? Write us at news@c-ville.com. Fall [...]
Now’s the time to weigh in on Dominion’s energy plan for Virginia
Cale Jaffe is the Director of the Virginia Office of the Southern Environmental Law Center, a nonprofit leveraging the power of the law to protect the environment of the Southeast. www.southernenvironment.org. Both President Obama and Governor McDonnell have highlighted “all-of-the-above” [...]
Trump Winery neighbors remain unconvinced that a golf course is a good idea
The battle over a protected plot of county land continues. Last week, international business mogul Donald Trump’s 29-year-old son Eric visited Charlottesville to address a roomful of curious and concerned county residents. Against the backdrop of the Trump Winery tasting room, the younger Trump [...]
Thanks, but no thanks: Albemarle County officials turn down 400 acres of pristine land
On his 78th birthday last week, Montgomery “Bird” Woods led a four-wheeler tour of some of the 410-acre Red Hill property he explored as a boy and is spending his retirement enjoying with his partner, Jose Lambert. “This was a loading dock for apples,” Woods said, pointing out a tumble of rocks [...]
Council hears first reading of ordinance to protect city trees
They’re the city’s oldest citizens. Within their thick bark and internal rings that map the years, the city’s heritage trees carry a record of history. Now a city board is leading the charge to have special trees in the community protected forever to allow future generations to enjoy them as [...]
Charlottesville Area Tree Stewards holds its first fall sapling sale
The Charlottesville Area Tree Stewards have a message for you: Plant trees in the fall. They also have everything you need to get that done. The volunteer group, known as CATS, is launching its first-ever autumn tree sales, offering hundreds of hardwoods at rock-bottom prices at the October 12 [...]
Green happenings: Charlottesville environmental news and events
Each week, C-VILLE’s Green Scene page takes a look at local environmental news. The section’s bulletin board has information on local green events and keeps you up to date on statewide happenings. Got an event or a tip you’d like to see here and in the paper? Write us at news@c-ville.com. [...]
County candidates agree stormwater is a green priority
At a forum sponsored last week by 15 local environmental organizations, the eight candidates vying for four empty seats on the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors fielded questions about their environmental priorities. While candidates’ party affiliations were evident as they talked about [...]
Vanishing act: Conservationists make the case for saving Albemarle County’s rare and threatened habitats
It’s a warm, early fall day, and Lonnie Murray and I are preparing for a scramble. We’re in a remote hollow in far southwest Albemarle County at the invitation of the landowner to explore a granite outcrop that nearly a decade ago was listed as one of the county’s top biodiversity hotspots. [...]
Long-abandoned Blue Ridge Tunnel could partially reopen within six months
After a dozen years of planning, VDOT has awarded Nelson County $750,000 to begin restoring what was once the world’s greatest railroad engineering effort: The Claudius Crozet Blue Ridge Tunnel. “When it was built, it was the longest tunnel in the nation, and the longest mountain tunnel in the [...]
Ask Betty: Less in the landfill
Teri Kent runs Charlottesville’s Better World Betty, a non-profit organization and online resource for locals looking to shrink their impact on the environment. Every month, Betty —Kent’s ’50s-housewife-meets-earth-goddess alter ego—answers the most burning eco-questions from our readers about [...]