Did you know the efforts Staunton has already taken to protect and improve our water supply? Here is a partial list of what has been accomplished during the past few years:
Landowners in Poague Run (a tributary to Lewis Creek) are investing time and money to improve water quality so it will sustain trout.
Landscapers and volunteers in Gypsy Hill Park along Gum Spring Run have planted many trees to stem soil erosion and shade the stream.
The EPA is considering new options to clean up coal gasification residue in downtown Staunton.
The City of Staunton appointed a Lewis Creek Watershed Advisory Committee to assist them with the management of Lewis Creek.
Our children have released trout raised in their classrooms into a tributary of Lewis Creek.
CSX and adjoining landowners have spent a considerable sum of money cleaning up Buttermilk Spring Branch (another tributary of Lewis Creek.)
Citizens have celebrated the improvements made to Lewis Creek at the annual Earth Day celebration at Sunspots.
Volunteers from a local churches and students from Mary Baldwin College have periodically cleaned trash out of Lewis Creek and done important conservation work along Asylum Creek.
Mary Baldwin College students frequently sample water from Lewis Creek for bacteria and report results to the City.
The City of Staunton has revised stormwater ordinances to help improve water quality and reduce flooding.
The Augusta Garden Club has invested time and money into Lewis Creek watershed educational signs in Gypsy Hill Park.
The Conservation Riparian Easement Project on Bells Lane has become an outdoor lab for the community to learn about best practices along watersheds.
Bessie Weller Elementary School’s now have a green lab along Asylum Creek.
The Natural Resource Conservation Service approved funding for a 7-acre conversion of fescue grass to native flower and grasses on the Mary Baldwin College campus, thereby reducing runoff and increasing habitat for birds.
More than 500 Eastern White Pine were planted this spring on the MBC campus to green the area and act as a sponge.
The Belle Grae Growing Center and Staunton Green 2020 have undertaken efforts to educate citizens about water conservation issues and how to reduce run off, such as rain barrel workshops.
Storm drain signage in Staunton has been funded by WQIA.
There’s now an annual watershed awards ceremony to acknowledge water quality improvement projects in the city.
I’ll add that private citizens have created riparian easements on private land, too
These efforts show a local commitment to clean water. It proves Staunton citizens can commit to hard work to ensure a brighter tomorrow for all its residents. We’re asking everyone to step up and get involved to reduce our carbon by 20% by 2020 while creating green jobs at the same time. Please sign our petition to establish the City of Staunton’s Green Task Force. Thank you!
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