Hello River Lovers,
Many interesting things are always happening locally. Here are the upcoming events you should consider attending to improve our area and support your waterways!
Next Month of Events ~
*Friday Night – September 17th 6PM – 2AM – Save Maumee’s PUNK PARTY Fundraiser at Berlin Music Pub 1201 W. Main Street – $5 at the door will open you to a punk party you won’t forget. ALL AGES! but beware, this is a metal show and may have explicit lyrics. Bands include: Twisted Aversion, Rise to Fall, 11M12D, Autovalor and Blood From A Stone – educational material provided and rounding-up the river volunteers for the next day’s event! – The Canoe Clean-Up! PUNK PARTY information here: http://www.facebook.com/search/?post_form_id=06859ba8b863709dad579c2caef614c6&q=friends+of+the+river+fort+wayne&init=quick&sid=0.8046695199651317#!/event.php?eid=144377062268798&ref=ts
AFTER YOU ROCK OUT for the Maumee in the evening .come and CLEAN UP Fort Waynes Rivers in the morning!
*Saturday September 18th 11AM 4PM Save Maumee’s 3rd Annual Canoe Clean-Up, Can YOU Clean-Up ~ all ages ~ rain or shine ~ FREE – FORT WAYNE OUTFITTERS & BIKE DEPOT LOCATION – Cass Street behind The Bean – (off Wells St.) Free canoe rental for participants for the day with a photo I.D.! It will be too late in the season for plantings but never too late in the season for garbage removal and free paddling! Free Canoes with I.D. from Earth Adventure on Main Street & Ft. Wayne Outfitters first come, first serve, reusable water bottles, coffee, snacks and T-Shirts! (the website says Sept 4th but needs an update it IS SEPT 18th! web guy is in Mexico) Let the work for cleaner waterways begin! I will be sending the able-bodied ones to Spy Run Creek it is pretty trashy right there!
*Saturday October 2nd 1 PM 4PM Save Maumee Seed Harvest at Fox Island (date may change due to harvesting availability and best pickin date) We will let you know! We collected 29lbs last year and it was very educational for those wishing to identify local native species and some unwanted ones!
Successful Efforts:
The Upper Maumee Watershed Partnership’s first clean-up made the news in August. Trash in the rivers need to be removed and this was a good start to improvement and restoration efforts! An event that is worked on both sides of the political boundaries of Indiana & Ohio for one goal! Keep it pristine! We received runner-up prize a box of duckie chocolates to the 2nd most SCAN ducks found! We removed almost 200 plastic ducks from the Maumee. Great collaboration of work that day! Thank You UMWP! Keep working toward that watershed management plan! http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20100725/LOCAL/307259918
Success story for our waterways! Phosphorous is prohibited in dishwashing detergent as of July 1, 2010 in http://www.in.gov/portal/news_events/16301.htm
Friends of the Rivers had an extremely fun time at RiverFest on the St. Joseph River and William Wells Day (an interesting historical figure) on the St. Marys. Events included lots of free activities! Pontoon rides, educational material, battle of the bands, canoe races, chainsaw artist, food, beer, wine, crafts, face painting, “Windows of Wells” auction, and so much more! Thank you fellow river advocates! Brining recreation back to the rivers make them even more valuable to our hearts!
Save Maumee Rocks the Field & Camping Fundraiser was Aug. 24th, 2010 = MUCH RAIN! It was an exciting line-up of volunteer bands play! Thank You Entertainers ~ Dan Dickerson and the Harp Condition, Wil Brown, Eddie Gilbert, Mason Dillon, Awkward Silence, Americas’ Finest. We split the proceeds to pay for the port-a-johns and advertizing and Save Maumee made $90 to go toward restoration materials. Thank you Greatful Productions for the sponsorship of the event!
3 Rivers Festival Kids Fest in July was held at IPFW and wow what a response! Lots of interested little ones that learned about your watershed, education included making bracelets that had different colors to represent parts of the water cycle for example; blue represented saltwater in the ocean, green- the rivers, red- CSOs (combined sewer overflows), brown erosion/sedimentation, white fog, light blue freshwater ect They realized that the water we drink today, may be the water that was excreted from dinosaurs a very long time ago!
Save Maumees Earth Day 2010 was an enormous success! Many hard workers out there but 267 people pulled out so much trash you needed to see it for yourself! Planted 100 lbs of native seed, 10 flats of pre-grown plant plugs, over 1,000 willows and other hard-wood trees, planted 300 raspberry bushes and 7 blackberry bushes and removed A TON of rubbish from YOUR waterways! REMOVED FULL SIZED: water heater X2, old steel manual plow, 2 refrigerators, 10 tires, 85 oz can of oil, 25ft. of piping, 15 ft. pipe ect We also had live entertainment by Anthony Garr and The Wilderness, along with a rainbarrel demonstration by Lyle McDermot and Soaring Hawk Bird Rescue education.
Other Important Upcoming Water Education and Events ~
September 11th Hoosier Environmental Council is interested in meeting with Fort Wayne environmentalists and like-minded organizations to further local issues through regional support. Save Maumee will be sitting on a discussion panel for water related issues, but here is the line-up for events at Fort Wayne Outfitters Bike Depot on Cass St. (off Wells St.)
2PM-2:10 Introduction and Welcome,
2:10-2:40 Water Quality, Panel discussion followed by Q&A
2:40-3:20 Clean Energy
3:20- 4 Land Use and Transportation
4:-5:Non-alcoholic Reception sponsored by the Hoosier Environmental Council
5:-7: Biking and Kayaking organized by Fort Wayne Outfitters
*September 11th- Maumee Bay Tour – take a bus to Toledo, Ohio’s Maumee Bay and find out about the sediment load being deposited and removed from your waterways – call Jason Roehrig for interest or reservations (419) 782-8751 – Save Maumee attended the Sept. 1st tour that was very informative and relaxing. It was free and included an example of a neighborhood bio-swale (raingarden type)and showed a new build home with geo-thermal being installed, tour of the S.S. Willis B. Boyer Museum Ship a retired Great Lakes cargo ship, The Sandpiper cruise of the Maumee Bay into Lake Erie with a port authority officer as a guide, and a tour of the Bowing Green Wind Farm Project that provides energy to 1,500 homes with the use of 2 wind turbines! nice day!
*September 25th – Scenic River Canoe Tour and Water Monitoring in Antwerp, OH – Call Jason Roehrig for details or reservations (419) 782-8751
Not So Good News ~
This is footage of the Maumee River where the Maplecrest extension bridge to US 24 is going up and appears to be causing accelerated erosion. Construction permits must include erosion control techniques ESPECIALLY when building on a floodplain! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHIGTQMeHyE
This is the footage that spurred me to write this letter to the editor.
Allen County Commission should be responsible for the actions of the contractors hired to build the Maplecrest extension bridge. Upon inspection of the river areas, there are no erosion control techniques in place (which is part of their building permits). The land is suffocating the stream and all of the wildlife in this area. These facts were brought to the attention of County Commissioner, Nelson Peters, but alas there are more pending issues than a little soil in the water. Part of the problem with our rivers is the fact that even our agents responsible for our natural resources continue to side with big business rather than the interests of the population they represent. Permit parameters are put-in-place for the safety of people. If Allen County continues to turn its back to the rivers and continue to not enforce permits, other areas will follow suit. Stop the erosion NOW County Commission. I have video of the construction of the Maplecrest extension bridge area and the decimation of the Maumee. Erosion and sediment continue to be the #1 problem with our waterways, be part of the solution. Check it out for yourself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHIGTQMeHyE
This is another video the fisherman had uploaded about the litter in the area as well http://www.youtube.com/user/balex222 – beware – he used the F word at the end of the video, although Save Maumee does not endorse this language, his frustration boiled over.
Blue-green algae releases a toxin called microcystin. The levels of this toxin in Lake Erie are 60 times what the World Health Organization recommends, said Jeff Reutter, director of the Ohio Sea Grant College Program and Stone Laboratory at The Ohio State University.
Great Lakes Beaches rank in the bottom 2/3rds of 30 states ranked: Too Bad eh? The Great Lakes contain the largest accessible fresh water source on Earth and coveted by the world! http://greatlakesecho.org/2010/08/26/report-ranks-the-water-quality-of-great-lakes-beaches-poorly/
Recently in July, the Upper White River Watershed Alliance, IUPUI Center for Earth and Environmental Science, and Tippecanoe Watershed Foundation launched a project called Clear Choices, Clean Water to demonstrate how proper lawn care is related to clean water. Demonstrate your commitment to clean water in Indiana by signing the pledge to be phosphorus-free and joining the IWF team at http://www.indianawildlife.org/phosphorus.htm
So how do WE fix this?
Use phosphorus-free lawn fertilizer for mature lawns. Improving our lawn care techniques will enhance water quality around the state. People often unknowingly add excess nutrients to their lawns that runoff into lakes, rivers, and streams; thereby encouraging algal blooms. As the blooms grow, the algae deprive other aquatic organisms of oxygen and produce dangerous toxins that can harm pets and humans. Please make sure that middle number on your fertilizer bag is zero. If you use a commercial service, ask them NOT to apply the phosphorus application. In our household I mix our campfire ashes into our compost. Phosphorous is naturally occurring in burnt wood. Dont like flies and bugs on your compost pile? Put the ashes from your campfire on the compost pile. A fly will dig through a foot of soil to get to their destination (like poop or a rotting banana) to lay eggs but a fly will not dig through 1 inch of ash!
Drop by Drop – Conservation of water and explanations as to why septic systems need to be eliminated and many other topics: http://www.wfyi.org/dropbydrop.asp
EPA Coal-Ash Sites in the USA – a Google Map from the Coal Ash storage sites. There is no such thing as Clean Coal, just like there is no such thing as a healthy cigarette! Scrubbers are simply a filter at the top of the smoke-stack, those scrubbers that help air quality decimate our land and water (through ash disposal and high water usage and pollution). Renewable energy should be a top priority of current and future legislation.
Let us not forget the coal ash spill in Tennessee. Kingston Fossil Plant had the largest industrial spill in history, until BP poked a hole into the ocean floor. ENFORCEMENT of current law should be on the lips of every consumer.
Newsweek coverage here: http://www.newsweek.com/2009/07/17/toxic-tsunami.html
New York Times here: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/27/us/27sludge.html
2010 report from the Center of Biological Diversity http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/publications/earth/newsletter-summer-2010.pdf
New Guidelines May Soften IDEM Enforcement The laws are in place, but what good are laws without enforcement? http://www.post-trib.com/news/2625480,new-joestguidance0822.article
Dog boiled alive after jumping into mint farm discharge we need to hold companies and government entities responsible this farm did have previous citations, so how does this happen?: http://www.post-trib.com/news/2597068,mintaccident-814.article
Tell President Obama to include rivers and streams in conservation here: https://secure2.convio.net/amr/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&page=UserAction&id=1203&autologin=true&sub_src=body1&JServSessionIdr004=29lq0oqin3.app244a
Sincerely dedicated to your health and the health of your rivers,
Mrs. Abigail King (previously Frost)
Save Maumee Grassroots Organization Founder
Master Naturalist
Watershed Expert
Website: https://savemaumee.org/
Blog: http://blog.savemaumee.org/
Email: abby@savemaumee.org
MySpace Save Maumee http://www.myspace.com/savemaumee
Twitter user name: https://twitter.com/savemaumee
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/savemaumee
A Greener Indiana: http://www.agreenerindiana.com/profile/AbigailFrost
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/savemaumeeabigailfrost