Remember

Guest Blog: Trail Surfaces by Camille Lore

2010-05-20T07:25:00.001-04:00

When I attended a week long Department of the Interior Trail Construction and Management class, I learned that even the most rocky, rugged and steep section of the Appalachian Trail at Harper's Ferry could have been built to accommodate users with mobility challenges. Trail construction and planning has certainly changed since the 1960s.

Yes, even this section of trail could be designed so it could be used by someone in a wheelchair.

Photo Credit- Jefferson County Convention and Visitor's Bureau.

A well planned trail demands forethought and careful site evaluation. Today, the Appalachian Trail in West Virginia has obvious erosion and is not accessible to those who have mobility challenges. Of course, when the trail was planned and laid in the early 1900s, there was no National Environmental Policy Act or permits for that matter. There were no bobcats or mini-skids building the trail.

Today, trail layout and design needs to take a holistic approach to the site and its users.

Initially, the trail planners need to consider:

· Who will be using the trail?

· What land features exist?

· What soil types are present?

· What sensitive environmental features are on site?

· When will the trail get most use?

All, trails constructed today should be designed so they are accessible to users who have mobility challenges. With the specifications laid out in publications like the US Forest Service Trail Accessibility Guidelines, a plethora of engineers and landscape architects, there is no reason for any trail to exclude those who are mobility challenged. In the same vein, please don't think that users using mobility devices or child carriers want a perfectly smooth, pristine, boring trail either.

The US Forest Service's standards direct that improved trail surfaces must be “firm and stable” to be considered accessible.

“Firm” is defined as “not noticeably distorted or compressed by the passage of a device that simulates a trail user in a wheelchair. Surface firmness should be determined and documented during the planning process for the seasons for which a trail is managed, under normally occurring weather conditions.”

“Stable” is defined as “not permanently affected by normally occurring weather conditions and able to sustain normal wear and tear caused by the uses for which a trail is managed, between planned maintenance cycles.” Their guidance continues to say that many materials including crushed stone, fines, packed soil and other natural materials can be used to provide a suitable surface for trails.

What is the setting of the trail? Will the trail be over a wetland or forested area? Is the setting more developed or less formal? What is the capacity of the group providing management and maintenance of the trail?

If the proposed trail is going in a small central park with simple vegetation and will only receive light use, is a 4 foot wide asphalt path really the right choice? Is there a budget and staff ready to repair cracks and replace degraded sections of trail, or would something like a crushed limestone path that only needs to be rolled out once a year be more appropriate? In terms of stormwater runoff coefficients, the two are nearly identical if there is no thought given to path shading and management of the velocity and quality of the runoff from the paths. If managed with recessed planting beds, either choice could be managed to provide improved stormwater quality.

Is grass a trail surface?

Grass is approximately 11% pervious. 11% may be less than you thought. However, grass will slow runoff and provide some mechanical filtration of particulates in stormwater. Concrete will not provide the same benefit and will also lead to heated stormwater runoff. Placed in the appropriate areas, grass certainly will adhere to the Forest Service's qualifications of “firm and stable” while providing additional benefits.

Porous paving is working!

The myth that porous paving only works in areas where it is 70 degrees year round and salt isn't needed on sidewalks is just outdated information! Porous paving is (and has been) working in the Philadelphia area for over 20 years. If a municipality is insistent on hard asphalt paths, would it be appropriate to use porous paving and underground infiltration? You bet.

Take a look at this demonstration of porous paving in action:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=848tZUL_rnI&feature=related

There are many options for trail surfaces. As long as they can adhere to the requirement of “firm and stable”, they can take many pleasing shapes and appearances-mulch, porous blocks, crushed stone, packed soil. The old idea of plopping down a plain asphalt path is not only outdated, but also demands more resources in the way of dollars and staff time than some of the more natural, less obtrusive materials. In the age of MS4 permits and requirements to clean up stormwater, more thought should go into trail surfaces than we gave them 20 years ago.

-Camille Lore has worked in municipal government and land use planning for the past 10 years. She is currently a grant writer for MadCityGrants (www.MadCityGrants.com), providing affordable, effective grantwriting for nonprofits in Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Pennsylvania’s New Environmental Regulations

2010-05-19T01:15:00.002-04:00

Yesterday news broke that the Pennsylvania State Environmental Advisory Board passed a new set of regulations for waterways deemed “high quality”. The rigorous standards have been set in advance of any Marcellus Shale drilling in the state, in order to help ameliorate the environmental damage such drilling would create.

Here in Allentown, as we are not on the Marcellus Shale, these regulations also include guidelines for the protection of “high quality” waterways with the use of natural vegetative buffers. This is the part of the new regulation which most directly concerns us.

As it stands, the Lehigh County Conservation District classifies Trout Creek, The Little Lehigh Creek and Cedar Creek as High Quality streams. Which would mean that in our parks, the creeks should be buffered with significant areas of vegetation.

There are no such buffers anywhere in our parks, save a few small places in Trexler Park.

None of this is news to any of you who have been reading my blog for a long time. I have been the town crier of riparian buffers for almost the entirety of my time as the author of Remember. Now, with these new state regulations in place, has the time finally arrived when we will see such buffers implemented throughout or park system?

I certainly hope so.

At Lake Nockamixon

2010-05-18T01:50:00.001-04:00

My initial reaction upon driving into Nockamixon State Park was the resemblance the road and parking lots had to Island Beach State Park in New Jersey. As I drove further into the park I began to recall coming to see Lake Nockamixon as a child.

My close friends remain surprised at my seemingly out of nowhere transition to Nature Man. The truth is that while my dedication, focus and work has recently (as in one year) become focused on Ecological issues; I was brought up at places like Nockamixon.

Growing up, my father took Bucky and I to parks whenever he had a day off. We visited zoos, “reptile lands”, arboretums, gardens, and (of course) parks. I spent the majority of my formative years on day-trips all over Eastern Pennsylvania.

As it stands, the truth is that I have always been somewhat of a Nature Boy whether I recognized it or not. The trips my father took us on, the crayfish he pulled from under stones in the creek, the sowbugs he collected in the backyard, whatever it was – all of it -
has forever left an imprint on me.

Today, as a member of the Allentown EAC, a student of Environmental Science at Muhlenberg College and an activist and advocate for the environment in the Lehigh Valley, I realize I owe it to my Dad.

Thanks Dad.

Global Warming: The tipping point?

2010-05-18T01:33:00.002-04:00

(Image from NASA)

Yesterday, Climateprogress.org released the climate data compiled by NASA for the January-April period of 2010. The data shows that this period was the hottest recorded in 131 years and this recently released data also shows that the last 12 month period of observation, is also the hottest on record.

Today, I want to take a look at some Climate Change skeptic arguments.

1. “It snowed so much last winter, global warming is crap!”

An isolated snowy month, a blizzard, a heat wave or any other short term weather phenomena are not indicative of a long term climate change pattern which is what the concept of Global Warming is dealing with. Every long term climate study shows that the average temperature of the earth is rising and rising at a rate over the last 100 years that is alarming when compared to previous warming periods.

2. “The Earth has warming and cooling cycles, this is just part of the natural process”

This second statement is irrefutably true. As best as science can tell us, the planet has gone through many cycles of warming and cooling. Warming cycles are marked by increased carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere and higher sea levels. Cool cycles show lower atmospheric carbon dioxide and lower sea levels, as polar ice caps and periods of long term glaciations occurred.

Thing is, at least since 1958, atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide are rising at an exponential rate never before seen in the climate record. That increase in carbon dioxide exacerbates the Earth’s natural greenhouse effect, warming the planet. As atmospheric temperatures increase, ocean water temperatures increase and as the water heats up, it expands. This expansion prevents the ocean from absorbing the carbon dioxide it usually does and begins a sequence of events that can destroy the oceanic food chain, interrupt or stop natural ocean currents and melt the polar ice caps at an extremely fast rate.

The exponential increase of atmospheric carbon dioxide has been measured and documented at the Mauna Loa Observatory since 1958.

I could keep listing the various claims from Climate Change deniers but the same answer will result. This phenomenon is real. I am talking real science here folks, not some Al Gore movie or bumper sticker on a Prius. From the disappearance of bees and bats to the death of conifers in the Rocky Mountains, the very real effects of Climate Change are beginning to affect the entire world.

It only gets worse from here readers.

This post is not about the problems that will be caused by Climate Change. The purpose of this post is to highlight an overriding environmental issue that will affect every single one of us in the very near future. At a time when the environment is the lead news story every night due to an unspeakable ecologic tragedy, there has never been a better time to bring the scientific realities of a serious global issue to the forefront of both the national political discussion and the local one.

Today, I am going to write briefly about a local discussion of climate change. Check back tomorrow for a review of the new bill sponsored by John Kerry and Joe Lieberman regarding America’s energy future.

So, what can we do right here in Allentown to fight this global scourge?

First, the little things like turning excess lights off or driving less. Then, eat sustainably and locally so that the oil needed to put food on your table is lessened dramatically. Most importantly, we need to become the best possible stewards of the environment that we control, right now.

Invasive species, watershed health, riparian buffers, tree plantings, etc, etc, are the big issues that we can do something about right here, right now. Addressing these issues on a local level, in tandem with localities across America and hopefully the world will make the biggest and longest lasting change possible.

I have written about all these things many times. We know what we are facing. The time has come to change it.

Check these things out, this is how you make a difference:

Emmaus Farmers Market
Lehigh Valley Food Coop
Heritage Conservancy

That’s just a start, the list could go on.

In Five Days: EAC Tour of the Parkway

2010-05-18T01:28:00.001-04:00

I am really excited about this Sunday.

EAC members David McGuire, Karen Tuerk and myself will be joined by Mike Gilbert the watershed specialist for the city of Allentown.

I really hope to see a lot of folks out.

Come with questions, come to learn!

We will be meeting at the Robin Hood Bridge at 2 PM.

Bring your dogs, bring your families and friends.

FIVE DAYS!

In Six Days: EAC tour of the Parkway

2010-05-17T09:17:00.002-04:00

This Tuesday: Vote for Joe Sestak

2010-05-16T00:05:00.002-04:00

In a first for Remember, I would like to offer the official endorsement of this blog for Congressman Joe Sestak in the Democratic primary against Republican Senator Arlen Specter. As this is a blog focused on the environment, and on environmental issues, I will be endorsing Congressman Sestak based on his progressive initiatives and forward thinking regarding energy policy and the environment.

Vote for Joe on Tuesday.

Specter VS Sestak: On the Issues-

Arlen Specter:

Voted YES on protecting middle-income taxpayers from a national energy tax. (Apr 2009)

Voted YES on requiring full Senate debate and vote on cap-and-trade. (Apr 2009)

Voted NO on tax incentives for energy production and conservation. (Jun 2008)

Voted YES on addressing CO2 emissions without considering India & China. (May 2008)

Voted YES on removing oil & gas exploration subsidies. (Jun 2007)

Voted YES on making oil-producing and exporting cartels illegal. (Jun 2007)

Voted YES on factoring global warming into federal project planning. (May 2007)

Voted NO on disallowing an oil leasing program in Alaska's ANWR. (Nov 2005)

Voted YES on $3.1B for emergency oil assistance for hurricane-hit areas. (Oct 2005)

Voted YES on reducing oil usage by 40% by 2025 (instead of 5%). (Jun 2005)

Voted NO on banning drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Mar 2005)

Voted YES on Bush Administration Energy Policy. (Jul 2003)

Voted YES on targeting 100,000 hydrogen-powered vehicles by 2010. (Jun 2003)

Voted NO on removing consideration of drilling ANWR from budget bill. (Mar 2003)

Voted YES on drilling ANWR on national security grounds. (Apr 2002)

Voted YES on terminating CAFE standards within 15 months. (Mar 2002)

Voted YES on preserving budget for ANWR oil drilling. (Apr 2000)

Voted NO on ending discussion of CAFE fuel efficiency standards. (Sep 1999)

Voted YES on defunding renewable and solar energy. (Jun 1999)

Voted YES on approving a nuclear waste repository. (Apr 1997)

Voted NO on do not require ethanol in gasoline. (Aug 1994)

Keep efficient air conditioner rule to conserve energy. (Mar 2004)

Raise CAFE by a 4% per year until 2018. (Jul 2006)

Rated 50% by CAF, indicating a mixed record on energy independence. (Dec 2006)

Sign on to UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. (Jan 2007)

Open the Outer Continental Shelf for oil & gas leasing. (Jun 2008)

Supports immediate reductions in greenhouse gases. (Sep 1998)

Voted YES on $2 billion more for Cash for Clunkers program. (Aug 2009)
Voted NO on prohibiting eminent domain for use as parks or grazing land. (Dec 2007)
Voted NO on including oil & gas smokestacks in mercury regulations. (Sep 2005)
Voted YES on confirming Gale Norton as Secretary of Interior. (Jan 2001)
Voted NO on more funding for forest roads and fish habitat. (Sep 1999)
Voted NO on transportation demo projects. (Mar 1998)
Voted NO on reducing funds for road-building in National Forests. (Sep 1997)
Voted YES on continuing desert protection in California. (Oct 1994)
Voted YES on requiring EPA risk assessments. (May 1994)
Supports grants for brownfields remediation. (May 2002)
Make EPA into a Cabinet department. (May 2002)
Rated 32% by the LCV, indicating anti-environment votes. (Dec 2003)
Inter-state compact for Great Lakes water resources. (Jul 2008)
Celebrate the recovery of the bald eagle. (Jun 2008)
Strengthen prohibitions against animal fighting. (Jan 2007)
Focus on results, not regulation. (Sep 1998)

JOE SESTAK

Reduce greenhouse emissions & stop global warming. (Dec 2009)
Create an advanced alternative energy research project. (Nov 2006)
Voted YES on enforcing limits on CO2 global warming pollution. (Jun 2009)
Voted YES on tax credits for renewable electricity, with PAYGO offsets. (Sep 2008)
Voted YES on tax incentives for energy production and conservation. (May 2008)
Voted YES on tax incentives for renewable energy. (Feb 2008)
Voted YES on investing in homegrown biofuel. (Aug 2007)
Voted YES on criminalizing oil cartels like OPEC. (May 2007)
Voted YES on removing oil & gas exploration subsidies. (Jan 2007)

Voted YES on $2 billion more for Cash for Clunkers program. (Jul 2009)
Voted YES on protecting free-roaming horses and burros. (Jul 2009)
Voted YES on $9.7B for Amtrak improvements and operation thru 2013. (Jun 2008)
Promote conservation of rare felids & canids. (Mar 2007)
Grants for beach water pollution under Clean Water Act. (Apr 2008)
Strengthen prohibitions against animal fighting. (Jan 2007)
Fund projects for international conservation of cranes. (Jan 2009)

VOTE FOR JOE

Oil Disaster: The Game of Saving Face

2010-05-12T11:38:00.004-04:00

There is little truth to the modern game of politics save the fact that the discussion of politics in this country has much more to do with image than it does with substance. When a politician runs for office, they are likely to say what is needed to get elected. While in office, they are likely to do what it is that is necessary to stay in office.

That is, flash points and hot button topics dominate the world of 24 hour cable news channels. The sexy headline, be it true or not, is likely to be the headline run (FoxNews has made billions doing just that). In truth, the modern American politician plays to the lowest of intellectual desire. When a politician cries “Drill Baby Drill!” from a bully pulpit of nostalgic American imagery, with no grounded economic or scientific data to support their reasoning for oil drilling, a sector of Americans eat it up like candy on Easter Sunday.

They hear things said, like “freedom from Middle Eastern Oil”, and accept such blind dogma as truth. There is no regard to consequences, environmental or otherwise. During the last election cycle, as “Drill Baby Drill!” became the winking catchphrase of a “Maverick” campaign, voters on both sides of the aisle agreed. As of one month ago, the “Hope” campaign having assumed the office of the presidency moved forward on new offshore drilling. Like all politicians, President Obama made this decision because he thinks that an energy future that is free of foreign control is something that all Americans want, and he is right in his assumption. His methods are however, obviously, the wrong ones.

As the oil spill in the Gulf worsens, and the ecological tragedy begins to hit home, the “Drill Baby Drill!” cries have been muted. The President has yet to back off of his call for further drilling, but I imagine he will in the very near future.

A simple Google search will reveal that public support for offshore drilling has hit a record low in America. It would seem that, now the hour has finally come for our federal government to implement a domestic energy policy that is properly attuned to the common sense environmental decision making that will lead to job creation, innovation, and a clean future.

Do not think for a second that the majority of politicians in Washington DC today would have considered such a radical change before the polls hit bottom on drilling. A slightly similar situation developed when gas prices hit close to 5 dollars a few years back. There were genuine discussions on a national level about a new future of clean energy. The American Public demanded it. Gas prices fell, and so did the idea of new energy policy.

Now, this situation in the Gulf of Mexico is only going to worsen in the coming months and the terrible situation caused by it is going to last for decades. This time, in the face of an unparalleled ecological disaster, our politicians will be forced to consider new policy and we need to remind them every single day that that is their only option. The politicians will need to save face, and as callous and as cynical as this all may sound, some real good may come from this current game of politics.

Just today, the senators introducing the new American energy bill, have limited offshore drilling, enabled states to veto drilling expansion and added a stipulation allowing the Department of the Interior to do a full environmental assessment of offshore drilling.

A month ago, that section would have detailed plans to create more wells and rigs. These senators needed to save face, it is an election year after all.

Let’s keep reminding them. Real action needs to be taken and if ever a politician has been good at anything, they are good at saving face.

Senator Bob Casey:
Contact him here (Click on this)
Senator Arlen Specter:
Contact him here (Click on this)

ALSO:

OIL ARMAGEDDON

2010: The International Year of Biodiversity: At Jordan Park

2010-05-11T01:06:00.001-04:00

When I was walking around Jordan Park a few days ago with Doc, I did not know what year it was. Yes, I knew it was 2010 but I had no idea what particular significance 2010 holds. 2010 has been designated by the United Nations as an “International Year of Biodiversity”. A major component of this designation is a study on the state of the world’s ecosystems; the results of which have just been released.

Before I get to that though, let me clarify what the word biodiversity means. The Fifth Edition of Botkin and Keller’s “Environmental Science” defines Biological Diversity as follows”
"Used loosely to mean the variety of life on the Earth, but scientifically typically used to consist of three components: (1) genetic diversity- the total number of genetic characteristics; (2) species diversity; and (3) habitat or ecosystem diversity- the number of kinds of habitats or ecosystems in a given unit area.”

Now, the study commissioned by the UN, concludes the following according to CNN:

”The world's eco-systems are at risk of "rapid degradation and collapse" according to a new United Nations report.
The third Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO-3) published by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) warns that unless "swift, radical and creative action" is taken "massive further loss is increasingly likely."

In other words, the ecosystems of Earth are up the creek without a paddle. The study sites specific examples of areas in extremely dire straits but the results make abundantly clear that nearly every ecosystem on earth is at this very moment, in danger.

So, what exactly does a walk around Jordan Park have to do with a global ecological collapse that would be tantamount to Armageddon? Simply put, everything. At this very moment, in Jordan Park, right here in Allentown Pennsylvania, the entirety of the world’s ecological crisis is in full view.

A long long time ago, the current site of Jordan Park was once a wetland. (Allentown City Council documents from 1976 confirm this) From existing in its natural state Jordan Park has been drained, made into a lake, drained and filled in and made into the park we see today. If my post ended right here, enough ecological issues would be raised to write a thesis. There is however, much more.

Besides the concreted stream banks with zero vegetative buffering, the ancient remnants of the age of Jordan Lake remain at their worst acting as a “bridge” across Jordan Creek near the center of the park. Here, the crisis of biodiversity in Jordan Park starts to become readily apparent. By damming the Jordan, and creating a situation in stark contrast to naturally occurring creek conditions, algae growth, sediment, and excess nutrients steep in a slow draining pool of polluted filth for the majority of the year at Jordan Park. By existing in such a state, the necessary organic components of the stream’s food web are eliminated. The number of species drops. The amount of remaining species drops. Algae becomes the single dominant species. Biodiversity is destroyed.

Further on up the stream, a vegetative buffer has been allowed to grow. An idle glance from a passer by would see numerous plants, flowers, grasses etc and in all likelihood, that passerby would not think that biodiversity was a problem in that location. This readers, is the big problem. You see, a dark turbulent water body doesn’t look right to anyone. The green stuff does. One year ago, I would have thought that the buffer at Jordan Park was just fine.

As it turns out, the buffer at Jordan park is full of invasive species. From the seemingly benign creeping buttercup to the terrible huge Japanese Knotweed. (The picture below shows Doc standing in front of the knotweed so you can see just how large it is already in early May)

These invasive species are rapid colonizers that outcompete native plants for the necessary nutrients needed to survive. In doing so, they eliminate native plants and become the dominant species. The plants that are eliminated by the invasives are the primary food sources for native animals, birds, insects and fish. Like algae in the water, as the invasive plants become dominant, biodiversity is destroyed.

Of course, the invasive threat is not just going on in Jordan Park. Invasive plant species have begun to spread throughout many of our parks. Since this is the year of Biodiversity, there is no better time to begin educating folks about invasive species. We can do little to save the Amazonian rainforest here in Allentown. We can however work to begin the necessary changes in our ecosystems to preserve biodiversity.

The Litter Pick Up at Bucky Boyle

2010-05-10T00:36:00.001-04:00

At 11:30, I stood in the parking lot at Bucky Boyle alone and marveled at how cold the wind was. May 9th?, the sky, the air felt like October. I assembled the brooms, dust pans, gloves, pickers, and bags, leaned against my car and waited. Given that it was Mother’s Day, and the weather was not conducive to park clean ups, I thought that no one was coming.

The first arrival was Lauren, a teacher at Sheridan Elementary School. Lauren is very involved in the community in her role as teacher and coach, and she told me that numerous announcements had been made and she expected at least a few people out.

Next, my parents and then C.R. We stood in the cold, at noon, and I didn’t think anyone else was coming. We began cleaning, Dan Poresky joined the fray followed by Dan and Sean. As our small team worked, a large group of neighborhood kids joined us and subsequently dwarfed our numbers.

I want to thank everyone for coming out. Lauren for helping get people out and coming out herself despite the holiday. C.R was fundamentally involved in all aspects of this and made it possible. I want to thank my parents for coming out, Dan and Sean as well. I want to thank Michael Molovinsky for dropping in, and donating some hand wipes.

My greatest thanks and admiration is reserved for the kids who joined us yesterday. These kids ranging in age from second grade to freshman year of high school were bright, funny, energetic and hard working. These kids care about the park and came out on their own accord on a cold Sunday in May to help make the park a better place.

If ever I felt as if my blog had a purpose, yesterday the actions of these dedicated young folks is it.

Although, Hector and Xavier gave me a little schooling as they were Yankees fans and I reminded them that the Phillies happened to be the greatest team in baseball. To which they asked, “What happened last fall, Andrew?” Owned.

As it stands though, my beard remains. Had those amazing kids not shown up, my turnout would have been abysmal. I hope that in the future, for upcoming events (EAC tour of the Parkway May 23rd, Lunch, party, music, education at Cedar Beach with Jaime K on June 6th and more to come… ), seeing as they are not on holidays, that I will see more of my readers and friends show up and participate.

Yesterday, a group of kids spent a day off from school working to make their neighborhood park a better place. They will tell their friends and their parents, and they will remember what they did there each time they visit from now on.

I will remember those kids as well each time I visit Bucky Boyle. They are making a difference. They are building up a community around themselves that over time will be one worth envy. They also have a great and dedicated teacher in Lauren who deserves much acclaim for her efforts. (and yes, you too C…)

Thank you again: Katalina, Heaven, Amanda, Delilah, Thanya, Mary, Xavier, Louis, Hector, Karla, and Xiomara. Dan P, Sean, Danny, Mom and Dad.

One final note, If you are reading this, young man, I have no doubt whatsoever if you keep working like you did yesterday, the University of Texas will be glad to have you as a new star wide out. Good Luck friend.

TODAY!!!!:Bucky Boyle Park –My Beard On the Line

2010-05-08T07:09:00.003-04:00

If you have not seen my youtube video regarding the history of Bucky Boyle Park, in preparation for tomorrow’s litter pick up, then you do not know that I have pledged to shave my beard if 20 people show yp to volunteer.

Now, that twenty people does not include the various volunteers that are coming from Sheridan Elementary. Those people are the same folks who, through a penny saving drive, raised money to rebuild the playground at the park that was burned down last year by some morons.

At the moment, my station wagon is full of gloves, garbage bags, dust pans, brooms and litter pickers. (A huge thank you to Ann Saruman and Christine Carter for that)

I still have my beard.

Tomorrow, you can change that. You can also change a neighborhood park for the better. You can come out for a little while and help make a lasting difference.

The litter clean up starts at noon. Below is the video of the history of Bucky Boyle featuring The Boss and the beard pledge. Further down, a map – in case you need directions.

(Click on the map for details. Its from Chew and 15th to the park)

View Directions to Bucky Boyle Park in a larger map

E Coli Outbreak: Arizona Lettuce

2010-05-07T13:48:00.002-04:00

Last week, I spent an afternoon with my Environmental Science class working on a local farm. The name of the farm is Liberty Gardens and is located just outside of Coopersburg. We were given an incredibly informed tour of the biogeochemical cycles at work in the active compost piles, of the no-till agricultural techniques being used; we were in essence, given a tour of a farm that defies the modern agricultural standard. I was allowed to pick a leaf of arugula, right from the plant and eat it. My lord, did it taste good. For an hour, with my bare hands, I mixed peat, compost, clay, chicken poo (sterilized) and lime. I was covered head to toe in dirt and poo and I stunk something fierce. I felt good.

Last Sunday was opening day for the Emmaus Farmer’s Market. I bought twenty dollars worth of greens that I have been slowly demolishing over the week.

None of these sustainably grown, local, farm grown products left me sickened.

Today, a factory farm in Arizona is responsible for distributing E Coli contaminated lettuce to 23 states. This is not homegrown stuff here folks, this is nutrient deficient, poorly grown mass product. (not produce)

Along with the Oil Armageddon currently developing in the Gulf of Mexico, never has the unsustainable manner in which the modern American lives been more exposed.

What’s next? Another coal mine blast? More coal workers dead? More bees disappearing? Bats dying? Something worse?

This Sunday, go to the Emmaus Farmer’s Market. I’ll be there. Cast your vote for the real future of this country. This is all simply disgusting.

(Note, I realize that some factory farming must occur for all people to be fed. Agricultural practices have to be entirely changed in order to make that farming sustainable. Monopolies like Monsanto need breaking up. 1970’s era farm subsidies must end. Factory farming can be done in an environmentally sensible way. We have eroded more topsoil in the last 70 years than can be created in 1000. Time for a change folks.)

Look for more agriculture posts in the coming weeks.

Also: Oil Armageddon

Oil Armageddon

2010-05-07T12:25:00.001-04:00

The oil is washing ashore now in the Gulf of Mexico as a nearly Michael Bay-esque plan to “cap” the oil leak with a giant petrol condom is being attempted. Regardless, the lasting ecological damage is done. Millions of microorganisms, the foundation of the oceanic food web will die. Thousands upon thousands of insects, fish, crustaceans, birds and other animals will die. The economy of the Gulf states will be hit harder than every before. Restaurants, tourist destinations, fisheries, etc, etc, will close. This is an ecological event with no comparison. Nothing like this has ever happened before (Not even the Exxon Valdez).

Hearing the outrage of people regarding this tragedy across America, is in some cases genuine, and in others, laughable. The Governor of Texas, Rick Perry, widely considered to be the living breathing reincarnation of conservative god Ronnie Reagan blamed the spill on God. Sarah Palin said that this is what our dependency on foreign oil gets us. Mrs. Palin seemed to infer that because the company responsible for this spill was British, that had the company been American, this would not have occurred. I hope Mrs. Palin is made aware that Haliburton was working on the site of the spill in the days and weeks before it happened. She also forgot to chant her “Drill Baby Drill” mantra when speaking publicly regarding this situation.

I have yet to hear President Obama make a national address wherein he changes the energy policy of this country in a manner befitting a responsible and clean future. I don’t think he can even if he wants to. At the end of the great era of Conservation, the American public held tight to the ideals of Pinchot, Muir, and the Roosevelts. After WWII, through the age of the baby boom and into the rise of modern neo-conservatism with the aforementioned conservative god, Ronald Reagan, conservation was lost to corporation and unchecked, unregulated development, often at the expense of the environment.

This oil spill shows us at our absolute worst. It shows a country afraid to make sacrifices for the greater good. It shows a country no longer able to lead the world into a new day of prosperity, innovation, and sustainability.

When no outcome was reached at Copenhagen last December on Carbon Dioxide emission reductions, I could do nothing but sigh. Now, none of us can go to the Gulf Coast and ladle the oil out. We can however, clean up our back yard, right here in Allentown. We can restore, preserve and protect the environment right here. If everyone joined together in every municipality across this country, and sacrificed and worked hard to make this a reality, then the President could get on the TV, turn to the nation and announce the plan we need.

Are we tough enough to do what needs to be done?

As our ecological apocalypse continues, we can only watch the horror unfold.

We can also start making a difference

The Result of Creating Sustainable Parks

2010-05-07T00:16:00.001-04:00

Riparian buffers, No-Mow Zones, Rain Gardens and the like are terms that I have used often in my time as writer of Remember. I have called for a proper re-naturalization where such a process is possible in our parks and in all places in our park system, a re-vegetation to occur to preserve and sustain the local ecosystem.

I have used the words of legends like Muir and Leopold to help drive my point home and perhaps, the language I have used is too rhetorical and a much simpler and smaller point behind all this exists.

As it turns out, there are many points to be made about a truly sustainable park rather than a manicured plot of land tailor made for recreation. It turns out, that there are very important things a sustainable park provides for the community.

The American Planning Association, in tandem with the University of Illinois produced a study concerned with this very topic. Combining the efforts and work of researchers across the country from a variety of disciplines, the study concluded four key points which I will share below.

”1. Time spent in nature immediately adjacent to home helps people to relieve mental fatigue, reducing aggression.

2. Green residential spaces are gathering places where neighbors form social ties that produce stronger, safer neighborhoods.

3. Barren spaces are more frightening to people and are more crime prone than parks landscaped with greenery and open vistas.

4.In order to make the best use of greenery and
open space, it must be positively incorporated into a community's design.”

Food for thought.

Cedar Beach Riparian Buffer ? : May 5th 2010

2010-05-06T00:43:00.001-04:00

Upon initial observation, it would be difficult to determine exactly where the riparian buffer at Cedar Beach is. The scraggly, invasive species dominated area that is currently flagged as a no mowing zone is around 8 feet or less in length.

There are spots where the “buffer” reaches about 12-15 feet around certain groups of willow trees, maples, and river birches. Immediately following those extended growth areas, the buffer is trimmed to 4 feet or less. I suppose this is in an attempt to strike a balance as the buffer concept is relatively new to Allentown park denizens.

If this piddling growth is an attempt to introduce park users to the idea of a buffer before going all out next year, fair enough. Based on observations of a similar “buffer” architecture in the Lehigh Parkway, I would imagine that this is the best we are going to get.

Last October, during the volunteer planting, I assumed that the trees planted about 25 feet from the banks of Cedar Creek were to be the edge of the new buffer zones. While 25 feet is not ideal, (100-300 feet is), it was a marked improvement over nothing at all. Alas, as I said above, with the buffer barely extending eight feet, these trees are outsiders on the lawn. I have placed a meter stick at 25 feet from the creek bank in the picture below. I have also laid behind the meter stick. I am about six feet tall. Behind me, in the back of the shot, you can see the orange flag that designates the current edge of the vegetative barrier.

On one side of the creek, the line of trees we planted exists in an area that is not mowed. It is however immediately sandwiched between two mowed areas, one leading to the same scant eight feet of buffer seen throughout most of the park.

Not that the length of buffer isn’t enough of an issue, the plants inside the buffer are a bigger concern. Many of the plants we installed last October have begun growing, amongst thickets of invasive species. Creeping buttercup and garlic mustard being the pretty ones, Poison Hemlock being the real issue. (And yes, as in Socrates)

i take full consideration of the fact that this is the first year of riparian buffer development at Cedar Beach Parkway and I understand fully that a lot of training and work needs to be done to see the buffer come to a proper future fruition. I would hope that Greg Weitzel has the plans in place to see that such a future occurs. The last we met, Greg told me he was a conservationist and was rather adamant about the fact. I believe this to be the perfect opportunity for Greg to prove it.

Let’s see this buffer reach a minimum length of 25 feet, in all locations with mowed access points at occasional intervals. To create such a buffer would in no way impact the open lawns meant for recreation, dog walking, and relaxation.

Let’s see a team of volunteers trained over this summer to manage invasive species and have them implemented next year to begin to turn the tide and see native species return to Cedar Beach.

I am actively finalizing plans for a restorative “rain garden”. A final plant list has been vetted and now donations must be secured. Once said donations are acquired, I will be submitting a draft planting plan to Greg.

The park staff is incredibly overworked and understaffed, whenever we can and however we are able to, let us see that their work is supplemented by our efforts and our support. Bruce Solt and his boys deserve our thanks, they work hard.

The following was published in 1999 by the University of Georgia in a mass effort to consolidate riparian buffer research and reach a conclusion describing the most effective buffer practices:

“Sediment is the worst pollutant in many streams
and rivers. Scientific research has shown that vegetative buffers are effective at trapping sediment from runoff and at reducing channel erosion. Studies have yielded a range of recommendations for buffer widths; buffers as narrow as 4.6 m (15 ft) have proven fairly effective in the short term, although wider buffers provide greater sediment control, especially on steeper slopes. Long-term studies suggest the need for much wider buffers. It appears that a 30 m (100ft) buffer is sufficiently wide to trap sediments under most circumstances, although buffers should be extended for steeper slopes. An absolute minimum width would be 9 m (30 ft). To be most effective, buffers must extend along all streams, including intermittent and ephemeral channels. Buffers must be augmented by limits on impervious surfaces and strictly enforced on-site sediment controls. Both grassed and forested buffers are effective at trapping sediment, although forested buffers provide other benefits as well.”

The flora of Cedar Beach Parkway: Part One

2010-05-04T00:13:00.001-04:00

(Last Saturday, I had the opportunity to join the Rose Garden Neighborhood Association as a guest on their walk at Cedar Beach. The intent of the walk was to observe the growing flora in the naturalized section of the park behind the Rose Gardens. One member has been working on a botanical inventory and led the walk. I want to thank the RGNA for allowing me to come, learn and now, share some awesome information with the readers of Remember.)

Today, will be the first in a four part series that spotlights the plant life growing in the riparian buffer zone at Cedar Beach Parkway. The remaining three posts will be written in June, October, and December.

Star-of-Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum)
A member of the hyacinth family,this Invasive Species was named after its star like flowering shape. It was probably introduced to America sometime in the 1940’s and like all invasive species is a rapidly reproducing, and easily dominating specimen that is a serious threat to native vegetation.
Link to DCNR page on Star-of-Bethlehem
Thin-leaved Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus)
Come summertime, this native species will display a brilliant yellow flower. For now, in the months of spring development, the future blossom is a distant promise. Check back for part 2 this summer to see the flower.
Link to USDA page on Thin-Leaved Sunflower
Creeping Buttercup (Ranunculus repens)
Another Invasive Species, this yellow flowering plant is considered a ground cover because of its ability to spread rapidly and dominate areas in which it grows. As you can see in the picture below, this plant can mean some serious business.
Link to Wiki Page on Creeping Buttercup

Wintercress ( Barbarea vulgaris)
An Invasive Species, and member of the mustard family, is a biennial that is a native of Europe. Of the various names this plant can go by, I think Wound Rocket is my favorite.
Link to USDA page on Wintercress

Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata)
We’ve seen this character before. This is a highly invasive species that can be seen dominating ecosystems all over the area. This plant is a real pain. This is a plant that like, Japanese Knotweed, Tree of Heaven and Purple Loosetrife, I can easily say, I hate the sight of.
Link to PA DCNR page on Garlic Mustard

Shepherd’s Purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris)
Another Non-Native, but this one has been around long enough to be considered “naturalized” in some places.
Link to Wiki Page on Shepherd’s Purse

Gill-over-the-ground (Glechoma hederacea)
This carpenter bee is sitting on an Invasive Vine, that like the damn Garlic Mustard, is all over the place. It’s common name is rather appropriate, the son of a gun is all over the ground, everywhere.
Link to the Minnesota DCNR page on Gill-over-the-ground

Philadelphia Fleabane (Erigeron Philadelphicus)
Mr. Fleabane is one of the good guys. A delicate, wispy flower that is Native. It gets its name, fleabane, from a supposed odor that is a repellant to fleas.

Silver Maple (Acer Saccharinum)
Another Native, and the only tree on the list today. Whenever I see one of these saplings growing on a creek bank, I actually feel better.

I cheer for thee Silver Maple.

(Thank you C.S for the wonderful tour and amazing information. This post is really hers!)

Special Invitation: Allentown EAC Tour of Lehigh Parkway: May 23rd

2010-05-03T00:04:00.003-04:00

Allentown's Environmental Advisory Council Invites you on a Tour of the Lehigh Parkway.

The event will take place on Sunday May 23rd. The walk begins at 2 PM and ends at 4PM.

This tour will be hosted by EAC members, David McGuire, Karen Tuerk and Andrew Kleiner.

The goal of this event is to provide a snapshot of the environmental and ecological conditions in the Parkway.

There will be opportunities to ask questions.

Please consider attending this hike, it will be a fun, informative afternoon that will serve to highlight the unique ecological features of one of Allentown's grandest parks.

Is this really what it has to take? (Our addiction to Oil)

2010-05-02T09:39:00.005-04:00

The worst man-made natural disaster is expanding its reach of ecological Armageddon as you read this. Scientists and government authorities have begun releasing to the public a “nightmare scenario” where the uncontrolled gush of the oil well manages to get picked up by the Gulf Stream and taken all the way up the East Coast and into the heart of the Atlantic Ocean.

For now, the oil is expected to wash ashore either today or tomorrow. As that occurs, the extent of damage caused to marine animals and birds will begin to become apparent. A scientist is quoted in the New York Daily News this morning saying, “The animals threatened most by the spill are bluefin tuna, sea turtles, brown pelicans, shrimp and sharks.”

Before this oil spill, the Gulf Coast was already in terrible ecological shape. This quote is from Elizabeth Carlisle at Tulane Univeristy:

“ The Gulf of Mexico hypoxic zone is a seasonal phenomena occurring in the northern Gulf of Mexico, from the mouth of the Mississippi River to beyond the Texas border. It is more commonly referred to as the Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone, because oxygen levels within the zone are too low to support marine life. The Dead Zone was first recorded in the early 1970's. It originally occurred every two to three years, but now occurs annually. In the summer of 1999 the Dead Zone reached its peak, encompassing 7,728 square miles.

Hypoxic conditions arise when dissolved oxygen levels in the water fall below two milligrams per liter of water, too low to sustain animal life in the bottom strata of the ocean. The Dead Zone forms each spring as the Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers empty into the Gulf, bringing nutrient rich waters that form a layer of fresh water above the existing salt water. It lasts until late August or September when it is broken up by hurricanes or tropical storms. The nutrients provide favorable conditions for excessive growth of algae that utilize the water’s oxygen supply for respiration and when decomposing. “

It would seem that we have been trying to destroy the waters of the Gulf Coast for years, and now, we have finally done it.

This disaster has occurred because of the sick addiction this country has for oil. For decades, the call for alternative energy has gone without heed from federal and most local governments. The general American public continues to guzzle oil without question en masse and unless gas prices hit 4 bucks a gallon or the entire gulf coast is covered in oil, not many even think to question it.

The closest our national debate ever turns to alternative energy is during election cycles. Inevitably each candidate pledges to “end our addiction to foreign oil.” During the last presidential election one of the flash quotes came from former Alaska governor Sarah Palin. With a wink, she turned to the camera and said “ Drill Baby Drill.”

Mrs. Palin, kindly visit the gulf coast this week and continue a campaign for just that.

No candidate should pledge to “end our addiction to foreign oil.” They should make certain, as active legislators to end our addiction to oil. To consider such a thing, after truly examining the extent to which oil is used in this country, seems absurd. In terms of consumption, nothing we touch, eat or use on a daily basis in America has been clear of the touch of oil somewhere during its development.

Expect more of these disasters folks, and every time we eat at chain restaurants, buy factory farmed produce, shop at big box stores, and drive our cars needlessly we condone the practices that led to the current disaster and the future ones.

Our addiction to oil and the subsequent consequences of it are like the entirety of the United States, smoking a giant cigarette 24 hours a day and expecting to never get lung cancer.

Today, and hopefully from now on (but I doubt it), Americans should see clearly the need for a new era of progressive alternative energy development in this country. Americans should be prepared, to turn excess lights off, drive less, make the minor sacrifices that will lead to a genuine new century of American innovation and prosperity.

So often, you hear politicians speak of the ingenuity of Americans through history. When was the last time we were a country of innovation? Check the tag on your clothes right now, I’ll bet you 10 bucks it wasn’t made here, barely anything is.

Now, consider the jobs created by wind farms in Washington (state), Texas, Oregon, off the coasts in places where even President Obama want to erect more oil wells. Consider the pride that would be felt by an individual going to work at a new job everyday that directly contributes to a healthy planet and a clean and self reliant America.

Alas, such a shift in thinking seems years away. No truly progressive energy legislation is anywhere close to being passed in DC. Until such a time comes, batten down the hatches folks, this stuff is going to keep happening. Don’t forget, it may not be an oil spill, but rising sea levels, increased frequency and severity of weather events, rise in disease occurrence, etc etc etc

This disaster, is this really what it has to take to shake this country out of its oil daze and wake up to the reality of such a destructive mass existence?

Sad thing is, I don’t think it will.

See Also:

The 6 worst case scenarios of the Gulf Coast oil spill
(That article is a doozy)

The Parkway: The Way It Was…

2010-05-02T01:24:00.002-04:00

I have received real criticism from folks worried that the parks they have come to love would be altered in ways that would render them inaccessible. I understand the sentiment. I do not seek to make such a thing a reality.

What I am after is the opportunity to restore the vital ecosystems that have gone endangered over the last thirty years in Allentown’s parks.

I too feel the sting at Cedar Beach with the road cutting through the once great open lawn. I understand and see the value in such a thing, don’t get me wrong.

However, the serious environmental issues in our parks need solving and as it turns out, a while back, things were a lot different.

As far as keeping parks the way they were, I am going to leave you today with a picture sent to me in an envelope anonymously through the mail. It is undated, but based on the text and the attire of the person on the bridge, this one goes waaaaay back.

This is the area that I described in a recent post as needing to be allowed to properly grow! At what point did they start taking it out? Things are so much different now. That doesn’t even look like the Parkway, it looks much closer to how I imagine it should. WOW.

For More on this area and the future of the Parkway:

Read This: Suggestions on the Future of The Parkway

The great bird in the Parkway

2010-05-01T00:11:00.002-04:00

I was squatted down by the spring, trying to identify some plants.

A passerby froze and pointed upwards.

My parents, who were walking with me stopped and looked.

The great bird flew over our heads and turned around behind us,

hunting.

White underneath, bright with the sun, gray on the wings with wide circles,

The great bird flew over our heads and turned around behind us.

"Stop for a second, I want to take your picture. C'mon buddy, just sit on a branch"

The great bird flew over our heads and turned around behind us.

A passerby froze and pointed upwards.

A woman ahead said "Did you see the osprey?"

It was a song I saw swooping, the hum and pulse of an ancient instinct, a drive, two eyes sharpening their gaze to a point. An ear to hear any sound of prey.

The robins and wrens fled.

The great bird flew over our heads and turned around behind us.

"Is that a hawk over there too?"

What could be if they let the grass grow to succession?

The great bird flew overhead and left us.

One Year Later...(Happy Birthday Remember)

2010-04-30T00:34:00.002-04:00

It has been exactly one year since I posted my first "park log". At the time, I had no intention whatsoever about writing a blog about city parks. I knew little of ecology. I was a completely different person.

What a difference a year has made.

I'm going to keep this one short today folks. I thought about this post for a long time, trying to decide what to say, what story to tell. What I have decided on is you.

Thank you for taking this journey with me and it is a journey that is very far from being over.

Funny thing is, I am more excited about Remember's birthday, than my own. Ha.

Thank you for reading.

Another year ahead: Let's go exploring

The Epic Pledge: Bucky Boyle Park

2010-04-29T01:14:00.000-04:00

You'll have to watch the whole video to hear the pledge!

What's up with the Riparian Buffer at The Parkway?

2010-04-28T11:03:00.004-04:00

Today, I am going to talk about something I stumbled upon over the weekend at The Lehigh Parkway, that is appalling. Last week, I wrote about the spring situation on the other side of the pedestrian bridge and the need for proper vegetation to take hold and for mowing to cease, etc…

The problem I want to discuss today involves the “grow zone” and riparian buffer area near the Robin Hood bridge. Let me begin by showing you a picture that I have featured before on here, but in seemingly altered circumstances.

Behind, and all around this sign in full bloom is an invasive species called Garlic Mustard. Like all invasives, it is a fast colonizer that destroys native vegetation and by doing so weakens stream banks and eliminates the food needed by native animals to survive.

The people represented on that sign as the caretakers and developers of that area need to get on these issues as soon as possible.

(Realize that the reality of this situation is the complete contrast of what is written on that sign. Click on it for a close up.)

This entire area is at risk of being overrun, not only by Garlic Mustard but by invasive honeysuckle, invasive ground ivy, and invasive multiflora rose.

Walking through the vegetated area, the difference (even from just last year) is appalling. Invasives are running rampant, creek banks are still eroded, and if you take a look in the Little Lehigh itself, you will see little save a few sucker fish, algae growth and sediment.

It is time to put the wheels in motion to see these issues resolved. Again, having covered two sites now, I have just touched the tip of this ecological iceberg. Still, despite these problems, nature persists.

I am sure the oriole was pissed. We messed his home up. How would you feel if someone came into your house, removed all the furniture, and emptied your pantry?

Original Commenta:

Anonymous said...

This is not just a city issue, but a regional issue. The townships and their failing septic systems put sewage into the streams and rivers when it rains. Rampant over development of the region's farmland into suburban housing has degraded our rivers and our drinking water.

Anonymous said...

The City should address these serious issues before it begins any new programs like the trails plan. No blacktop should be placed in any of the parks. The asphalt at Cedar Creek has changed the nature and scale of that park, and the Rose Garden, from its original intent. The health of the creeks themselves must come first. This is not happening now.

Anonymous said...

Last week someone asked if there are any natural trout left in the Lehigh Valley. We asked a long-time woodsman the same question. His answer, sadly, "no". He mentioned one very large Pennsylvania tributary where fresh trout grow no more than two to three inches because of pollution. That's why the fish hatchery above the Parkway is thriving. It iterally "stocks" the Little Lehigh prior to popular fishing contests.

Responses to Recent Comments

2010-04-28T08:55:00.001-04:00

Anon Said:
“What the heck are those tire tracks doing there? Did someone actually drive through that wet ground? Other questions, can you plant a rain garden at that spot without mechanical loosing of that pounded down soil? How will volunteers remove invasives without access to powerful, appropriate herbicides or specialized equipment? Stream side removal of invasives is not a job for amateurs. It is specialized, difficult work. With 17 jobs lost how will the union feel about using volunteers on such a scale? Buying plants or seed for an area that large will require money, where will that come from? You are doing all this work, where the heck is Friends of the Parks, on spring break?”

First, I cannot speak for Friends of the Allentown Parks but at the moment I know they are working hard to facilitate volunteer/educational programs in the parks and without their work I would not be able to run my litter pickups etc.. I know a lot of my readers would like to see Friends become a powerhouse of advocacy and become more of a Watchdog of the Allentown Parks, perhaps they will. I don’t know. I am glad they are able to coordinate and facilitate volunteer programs considering how hard it has been to do volunteer programs the last few years.

As for my planting; first, the area I will be planting will be done so with donated plants. I am currently working with Edge of the Woods Nursery and other local native plant dealers to secure needed plants. I will be announcing all the details next week. Stay tuned. Regarding the soil compaction: I will find out when I attempt the planting. Of the plants we put in last October, without significant soil aeration, most have survived. It is my hope to install plants with the sort of root system that helps fight such compaction. I have been working with botanists, soil scientists, and other people who are highly qualified for such a project to create an informed plant list.

As for the “grow zone” I suggested; yes, invasive species removal is a very difficult and specialized task. That said, I know for a fact, there are qualified individuals who would volunteer to do such a thing as well as teach others (Including the short staffed parks employees) how to do what needs to be done. After the proper education has been given, and a summer (as in this summer) of tours and demonstrations given, I believe that such a task would not be so impossible. Thing is, what is the alternative? Attempt a “grow zone” with volunteer instruction and maintenance or continue to keep things as they are? Of course, I would like to see the Parks Department on a whole reprioritize and make such an issue priority but for as many people out there who feel like me, I am sure even more don’t want to see anything but mowed lawns in parks. This is a very difficult environment in which ecological restoration that needs to take place is oftentimes ridiculed and considered a waste of time and a violation of park aesthetics.

Bottom Line: Begin the work. Spread information.

Anon Said:
Why isn't your EAC working on these issues? I don't get it

I cannot, and will not comment on EAC matters here on Remember.

Cedar Beach Suggestion/Rain Garden Update

2010-04-27T01:27:00.001-04:00

In the past year, as we all know very well, there have been countless ideas and projections regarding future development at Cedar Beach Parkway. Today, I offer one more.

This idea is different considering the project at the park is nearly completed now. The future of Muhlenberg Lake has begun to loom on the horizon and the paths are all paved.

So, What’s next?

First, a Rain Garden update. By the time you have read this I will have met a botanist at Cedar Beach to review a plant list I have complied based on stormwater management recommendations by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Below are pictures of the site following heavy rain, but not a flood of Cedar Creek. In all likelihood, this water will be standing here for days, maybe a week or two. Our Rain Garden will change this situation.

Now, for those unfamiliar with Rain Gardens, the picture below is an example:

Now, for my Cedar Beach suggestion.

The area of mowed grass behind the mirror ponds between the edge of the paved walkway and the silt fence needs addressing. Take a look at this pictures that I took yesterday afternoon in the rain.

It is quite apparent that this area of grass is flat out begging to be the wetland it is meant to be. I hear often of this area being a floodplain, and it undoubtedly is; however, this floodplain suggests that given the opportunity of growth, a wetland will develop.

Let’s give it that opportunity. It would serve to enhance the visual contrast so often spoken highly of around here regarding the aesthetics of our parks. It would not limit the open expanses of grass so highly valued in our parks. This area cannot be used frequently for grassy recreation because of how frequently it is either underwater or is a great mass of mud.

Let’s see it grow. Let’s see what plants develop and next year, let’s have a team of volunteers ready to remove invasives and keep up maintenance on this area. This is an awesome place to start a program of environmental education, community involvement and most importantly, a place to facilitate compromise.

Let it grow!

Earth Day Event Reminders!

2010-04-22T09:34:00.003-04:00

In addition to the upcoming Remember Events:

Save The Parks: Old Fairgrounds Clean Up
Save The Parks: Bucky Boyle Litter Pick Up

I wanted to share another event that will be happening Saturday morning at the Parkway, hosted by Molovinsky:

Wagon Trail Clean Up

And, in addition a huge clean up in Bethlehem:

Northside Clean Up!

All kinds of events with Wildlands:

Wildlands Conservancy Earth Day Celebration

and for good measure, a big event from Bike Allentown:

Ice Cream Ride

Field Trip to the Lehigh Gap: Life as a Muhlenberg Student (2)

2010-04-22T00:16:00.002-04:00

Monday afternoon my Environmental Science class jammed in our white van and headed up 145 to meet Dan Kunkle at the Lehigh Gap Nature Center.

I had been meaning to visit this location for a long time and I was excited to finally be going. Dan has led an environmental restoration without precedent anywhere in America, right here in the Lehigh Valley. In 1983 the EPA declared parts of Palmerton including the “defoliated side of Blue Mountain” a superfund site for severe zinc pollution. For years, residents of the Lehigh Valley recognized the moonscape these formerly lush deciduous forest hillsides had become for miles around.

The moonscapes are changing. Through an ecological experiment of primary succession using prairie grasses, birch trees, and the few remaining sassafras trees, Dan Kunkle has managed to begin to turn the tide and start the slow restoration of these barren mountainsides, even decomposers are rebounding.

Led by Indiana Jones, er, Dr. Jason Kelsey,

We began our walk alongside the exposed Tuscarora sandstone of the Blue Mountain.

Farther along, restoration sites were visible on both sides of the path

Along the way Dan and Dr. Kelsey explained the ecological creation story that was taking place on this mountainside and it is truly incredible to see it taking place. Dan’s success is paralleled by similar restorative efforts by the National Park Service across the river on the other side of the gap which have been far less successful.

Ancient Roman road building techniques are used to keep the old railroad bed from travelling down the mountainside.

As we rounded the corner, more hiking paths that lead to the top of the mountain above Devil’s pulpit lay enticingly across the moonscape. Unfortunately, on limited time we did not have the chance for further exploration. I will return to the Gap in the coming weeks for more hiking and documentation.

I joined my classmates Mike and Kit on a golf cart for the ride back. Both of them have been on crutches for awhile and needed alternative transportation. Appearances aside, Kit was a reasonably good golf cart driver.

Being able to see the primary succession taking full affect between the leaves of birch trees, the yellow flowers of sassafras and the old exposed centuries of stone is awe inspiring. This area is a must see for any person living in the Valley, if you haven’t yet been there, go!

Dan’s story should serve as the template for future Superfund revitalization as well as any ecological restoration of pollution destroyed environments. I was glad to be there with classmates who over the course of a year of study have become good friends; a great professor and a wonderful guide in Dan.

Suggestions: The Future of Lehigh Parkway (Part 2)

2010-04-21T00:34:00.001-04:00

Let me begin by offering what I consider to be a great potential future compromise. The three issues I believe are considered most important by the city in the planning process of park renovations are:

1. Ability for use and access
2. Scenery
3. Ecological Concerns

Having said that, I am going to call the following area Site 1 and I am going to offer a plan of development that I would think fulfills all three of those considerations. Site One is located to the left of the new pedestrian bridge by the Road Runners House:

This site is a long strip of mowed grass, buffeted by an asphalt road on the right and a stream-side path of compressed gravel on the left. This site is heavily used both by walkers and fishermen.

My first idea regarding the future of this site is the complete elimination of the stream-side path from the edge of the pedestrian bridge to the parking lot. Now, I realize by saying this that I am running the risk of violating the interests of people who are concerned with issues 1 and 2. The compromise goes as follows.
The asphalt road maintains access and usability. It also provides stream vistas and given the availability of said vistas throughout the park, the loss would not be cataclysmic.

Now, onto part 2. That area of grass is home to at least one active and running stream. The water has been running across the gravel pathway for so long that it has eroded itself a channel.

Areas of standing water have expanded around two active electrical units.

Cattails, an invasive wetland species have begun to grow here as have other plant species considered wetland species such as watercress. The grass here is strikingly different and full of vetch and invasive ground ivy. There are very little places in this stretch where one can step without sinking into water.

The ducks know what is up.

This area should become an official “grow zone” immediately. Without the lower path, a real wetland can develop here that, properly maintained would not be a bed of weeds but a beautiful area of vegetative growth analogous to the wetlands in Trexler Park and the area by The Fly Fisherman store on the other end of The Parkway.

I realize this provides an issue of access to the stream. Where the water table remains below the surface of the ground, mowed access points should be created to preserve not only access but the contrasting views of vegetation that are spoken of so highly in regard to the parks.

Assuming, at this point, that my suggestions have been implemented, I believe that what people will find would surprise them. First, not only would access still exist but an entire new beauty would be developed in the Parkway. This new area would serve as a great jumping off point for environmental education and I would go so far as to say it could be a learning lab.

This project would not change the Park in ways that would leave it unrecognizable. It would serve to enhance beauty, create habitat and most importantly, serve to end severe ecological problems.

What would you think of such a plan?

The Future of The Lehigh Parkway: Part 1 (And a New Video!)

2010-04-20T01:32:00.002-04:00

There are many competing ideas that go into the public debate regarding future construction projects in the city of Allentown. Around here, parks are personal. We all know our favorite parks, we know what park we grew up in, we know what park to visit on a first date. Being a citizen of this city makes you an immediate denizen of the park system.

It is because of this, that such fervor develops over specific ideas and implementations. Environmental advocates, like me, want to see specific ecological standards met. Recreationalists want to see the parks open in a way that serves their need for outdoor activity. Bicyclists want places to go to ride openly, joggers places to run. Some folks want to go to the park to see the scenery that has been there to see for as long as they have lived in Allentown.

All of these issues are in some way valid and in many ways backed up by a field of scientific research. Obesity, carbon emissions, watershed health. stress relief; purpose after purpose our parks exist to serve us and the ones that use them the most want to see them cared for.

These competing ideals can be met in a great compromise and over a series of posts for the next few weeks I intend to describe how such a compromise could work. I have chosen to do so in the Lehigh Parkway because, with no master plan on the table and major work needed to be done, a real conversation can begin to make sure that when the time comes, an informed citizenry can make a stand and hopefully, make a difference.

The first post will come in the next few days.

Today, readers I am asking you to leave a comment (and tell your friends to get on here and leave one too) about what you feel the future should hold for the Lehigh Parkway. Consider this post, in essence, to be an open mike of sorts. Don’t hold back, if you read and never comment, today is the day.

Whether you like what has happened at Cedar beach or not, the project has surely taught the city many lessons. Tell me what you think about the Parkway and in a few days, I’ll begin my official discussion right here.

In the meantime, here is a video of Spring in true fruition at South Mountain, The Lehigh Parkway and Cedar Beach, Please, watch and enjoy. I look forward to seeing some good comments.

Cedar Beach Construction 2010: Part 2- Playground, Paved Paths, Buffers and The Great Blue Heron

2010-04-19T01:18:00.001-04:00

The easiest idea missing from the Master Plan for Phase One of Cedar Beach renovations is the common sense environmental decision. That is, don’t pave with impermeable surfaces next to water bodies. Don’t mow grass to creek edges. Don’t do, pretty much everything that is currently being done at Cedar Beach.

Let’s start with the addition of rocky soil and hay on top of the paved area of buffer planted last October. This is not a common sense environmental decision. This will exacerbate ecological degradation and lead to more maintenance cost in the future.

The widening holes near the large mirror pond have been filled.

A curious mixture of grass seed has been placed haphazardly on top of soil fill in the spaces cleared to make room for the paving of paths near the mirror ponds. This seed mixture has, in places, left a trail as it flows into Cedar Creek. I am pleased to see the spaces filled, but I have reservations about what they have sprayed.

The gouging of the land and paving of the paths continue. New mounds of loose soil and grass stand on one side of asphalt paths while the same new cliffs developed on the other side of Cedar Creek
have appeared here.

What looks to be a new access point into Cedar Beach has been dug up and chalk outlines indicate where the new paving will connect Ott Street to the new asphalt path.

Despite this, there is beauty. Spring is still in season at Cedar Beach; they haven’t yet paved it under.

The red maples, the winterberry and many of the other plants we introduced to Cedar Beach last October have begun growing alongside Cedar Creek.

A Great Blue Heron found refuge in the developing buffer.

An easy beauty, but beauty nonetheless and in such contrast to the recreational bent the new construction at Cedar Beach has taken. Still, despite the fact that this project is now beyond changing, serious environmental questions remain. In addition to what I have documented thus far, I found the red flags which mark the beginnings of the “grow zones” quite curious.

Next to the foot of the pedestrian bridge an area remains designated for mowing despite limiting a buffer zone to an ineffective scant amount of feet. Here, from the base of a nearby tree to the pedestrian bridge, the entire area should be a “grow zone”. The large lawn would remain, the view of the creek would not change dramatically. It is this type of simple environmentally conscious decision that is so sorely lacking from the new construction at Cedar Beach. For instance, why not expand a buffer at the location shown in the picture below at least to the distance of the “silt fence”. It seems common sense to me.

On the other side of Ott Street, the playground’s construction has begun.

I couldn’t help but wonder as I wandered in Cedar Beach this weekend, about how small the park felt. The unnatural black asphalt that now snakes through the grass feels disconcertingly out of place and truly unnatural. If the invitation to the openness of Nature ends up being completely removed by this construction, what exactly are we attempting to get more people to visit?

The issues at Cedar Beach feel endless to me at this moment as do the problems in the Parkway, at Jordan Creek, in Trout Creek Parkway, down at Canal Park, at the East Side Reservoir, on South Mountain, in Trexler Park and so on. Some days, these issues feel insurmountable. Some days the presence of The Great Blue Heron, or a Red Maple leaf serve as reminders as to why they’re worth addressing.

We can’t live without them.

You like poo-water?

2010-04-18T00:04:00.003-04:00

Let me ask you a question readers, if you go to the Parkway, to Cedar Beach, to Trout Creek Parkway, to Jordan Park and really take a look at what is going on around you, can you honestly say to me that fixing the horribly eroded creek banks that are actively felling healthy trees shouldn’t be a priority? Shouldn’t native vegetation be allowed to grow to help deal with excess nitrogen runoff? The EPA thinks so, I linked to Federal guidelines for that very issue yesterday.

I am not on a fringe environmental soapbox here folks. I have seen the Lehigh County Conservation Maps rating our stream health (crappy) and our buffer presence (really crappy). I have done water samples in Cedar Creek and I know many others who have as well. The test I ran at Cedar Creek came back with ridiculously high amounts of coliform bacteria presence and 7 other tests confirmed it.

It was poo-water folks.

Realize, that is what we are talking about here:

Cedar Creek is becoming a nitrogen filled, oxygen barren, biomass empty, fish absent, channel of poo!

Is that the idyllic park vision so often spoken of here in Allentown, you know, the one General Trexler saw in the distance, past the edges of his flat brimmed straw hat?

I don’t freaking think so.

The places for people who want completely manicured vistas designed to look pretty are called gardens.

The places in our parks, with running streams, are active ecosystems that we have endangered.

You want a future of poo-water and drainage ditch canals where streams once flowed? Really?

I fully understand that any future rain garden won’t stop upstream runoff and the many sources of pollution outside the boundaries of the park. I do know, that in whatever space of garden construction, a small difference will be made. That difference, even if it is one butterfly, one bee, one snake, one trout is worth the work. It will help stem the development of a high quality low temperature stream into poo-water.

Drop the nostalgia act folks. Envisioning a candy land of manicured parks where people frolic freely enjoying the distinctions between mowed grass and willow trees is a waste of time. That time wasted, should be spent working to do whatever you can to help turn the tide of environmental ignorance that is widespread here in Allentown and begin the work to try and reverse years of ecological damage in our park system. Understand also, that our parks should have a contrast between open space and "grow zones". I am not advocating the entire re-naturalization of our parks. It is not wilderness, it is a park and people belong in them. Aesthetically, there will still be contrast and no beauty will be lost, only gained.

I would be the last person on this planet to say we should ignore beauty. In fact our lives depend on it.

Riparian buffers 301: (Rain Garden Help Wanted)

2010-04-17T00:20:00.002-04:00

The following appeared in 1993, published under the title “The Role of Riparian Corridors In Maintaining Regional Biodiversity”.this study was published by The Ecological Society of America and was written by: Robert J Naiman, Henri Decamps and Michael Pollock:

Pretty straight forward right?

It becomes increasingly obvious when a little research is done that the benefits of riparian restoration is without limit. Such restoration provides educational opportunities, increased wildlife habitat, increased biomass, creek temperature control, runoff mitigation, scenic vistas, etc etc etc etc, trust me the list could go on and on and on and on.

So, is there a genuine concern for the preservation and restoration of said vegetative corridors hiding behind the vitriol of the last few weeks worth of comments on here? I hope so. This is after all, the real issue. Yes, aesthetics are important. Yes, the appearance of the parks is important. Yes, the history of the parks is important and is something to be preserved.

None of these issues however is as important as the restoration of the riparian corridors in our parks. (And, for the record, riparian is defined as “ related to or living or located on the bank of a natural watercourse.)

I’m not talking about the skinny excuses of buffer zones made up of weeds and invasive plants (Multiflora Rose being the most rampant) in parts of the Parkway nor am I referring to the unmanaged buffer on Cedar Creek behind the mirror ponds that has developed over the last few years or the horrible knotweed dominated creek banks in Trout Creek Parkway.

I am referring to something we have yet seen in our park system although parts of Trexler Park come close.

I want to see some real riparian restoration in the parks with managed buffers that stretch to the maximum amount of feet possible given the location where planting takes place.

I want to see wading birds in Cedar Creek, in the Little Lehigh, in Trout Creek. I want to see fish swimming. I want to see butterflies, bees, snakes, songbirds, hawks; I want to see Nature when I go someplace to see Nature. I don’t want to see grass mowed to the edges of creek edges with eroded edges, little plant life, loosestrife, multiflora rose, Japanese knotweed, I don’t want to see sucker fish dominating sediment filled water dotted with the algae of excessive nitrogen and phosphorus run off.

Do you want to see what I want to see? Why wouldn’t you? I mean honestly, at this point that crucial balance of nature that is preserved by real riparian vegetation and restoration should be the best experience that is possible to be felt in our creek based parks.

Last summer I told a reader to visit a fountain in the mall if they want to experience a controlled, neutered, empty body of water. Such places have no place in our parks.

So, what can we do to change it? It isn’t like any us can magically transform not only the parks themselves but the hearts and minds of stolid Allentonians and city officials. We don’t have any money. To think that this would be easy, would be a happy-ass delusion and would serve to change nothing. This is going to be hard work readers and there is a lot of drudgery to go through before any small success is possible. Here, at step one, a small success is the best we can hope for.

Step One is education readers and as such, I am actively working on a plant list for the first (of what I am hoping are many) rain gardens in our parks. (Here, is the help wanted) If you know anyone who wants to work on setting this first example with me, if they know plants, if they know rain gardens, if they just want to help and learn, if they are in fact you, help me find plant donations, simply, please help.

Leave a comment, leave your name.

Here is Site Zero. This is where the first Remember Rain garden will be.

As details develop, as plans are made, I will share everything with you right here on Remember.

Don’t forget, this isn’t something new folks. The establishment and maintenance of riparian buffer corridors has been recommend guidelines in the state of Pennsylvania since the 1970’s (at least). As much as renovations in the parks are decried by many, the real issue remains that the ecological health of our parks is in a timeless limbo of poor care, study and development. The real issue has to be addressed. Build this rain garden with me.

See Also:
If you click the Riparian Buffer tag under here, there are many posts that document the buffers in our parks, the issues within and many other journeys in vegetation.

300th Post: Guest Blog By Jaime K.

2010-04-16T00:08:00.001-04:00

(Before getting to this post, Thank you for reading and keeping me going. On the way to 400!)

After 299 posts, I figured it was time to turn the blog over to a guest author for the day. Over the next few weeks, there will be a series of occasional guest posts here on Remember that spotlight the work of others beyond the parks, and even beyond the city of Allentown.

These posts are written by “young” people trying to make a difference. We are trying to show the strength of community that has been here all around us even when we chose not to see it. We are making the effort to turn the tide of “brain drain” or whatever else you want to call it. “We are the ones we have been waiting for”

There are a lot of us out there.

Tomorrow, We will Hike South Mountain. Be there at noon. If you need directions, leave a comment or send me an email. Soon, we will clean and restore parks, we will build rain gardens. We will start to make a difference.

Jaime K is a passionate, inspired and inspiring lady who I am very glad to call a friend. Enjoy her words, I did.

HEART OF STEEL by Jaime K

"It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I had all but given up on this town. I moved to the Lehigh Valley for college in 2001, and have lived in Bethlehem for the last five years. I always recognized it's charm and it's potential, but other cities had it together, and I grew more frustrated through the years as it seemed like no matter what, we just couldn't collectively find our way.

I was preparing to apply for jobs in large cities all over the US, when a personal situation helped me realize the value of a second chance. And I thought, before I give up on this place once and for all, I owe it at least that much.

And I can see now, so much of it is about perspective. When you complain that no one is active and there's nothing to do, no one is. There won't be. Then, a few months back, I'd spend my afternoons walking through the various downtowns and notice a wall mural I'd never seen, a restaurant filling the air with delicious scents of food and laughter of conversation, and the people so unique in their character. This was a place to be celebrated. This was a place that earned it's second chance.

The more I looked, the more I found people that followed their passions when everyone they knew said they were crazy. The art students taping sketches to coffee house walls making improvised galleries. The business owners who take time out of their day to cultivate relationships with community members, their bottom line possibility before profit.

Every day I meet people who are passionate about something, and my new project is about celebrating them, and as residents of this city, thus honoring it, too. HEART OF STEELcity is about the persistence to keep pursuing what you love, even if it doesn't fill your bank account, even if people say you're too young to be serious it, even if failure is imminent or success temporary. It's about being brave enough to live your dreams and live your life.

We're not other cities. It's unfair to draw comparisons, because by population alone, we don't have "as much". But that doesn't mean we have less heart. The efforts to revive the excitement for this city, both intimately small and publicly citywide are no less meaningful, no less sincere.

I believe in the blinding bright future of this city, and it will come from the hearts of the residents that work every day to make sure it happens, with hearts of steel.”

Jaime K is author of Save The Kales and HEARTOFSTEELcity

Special Event: June 6th: Cedar Beach Parkway

2010-04-15T01:12:00.002-04:00

In the midst of continued controversy, and what is slowly becoming a very active summer season of volunteer stewardship, I imagine it is incredibly easy to forget that our parks are places of refuge, relaxation, community, connection and true spirit.

After yesterday’s storm of comments and seeming concern, I am looking forward to large turnouts at :

Save The Parks: Litter Pick Up at Bucky Boyle
Save The Parks: Old Fairgrounds Clean Up and Restoration

It is with this in mind that I am incredibly excited to announce that Remember will be joining forces with Save The Kales to present an afternoon of food, fun, sunlight (fingers crossed) and connection.

Save The Kales is a blog written by a foodie, citizen-advocate, and all around awesome lady by the name of Jaime K. Jaime also writes a blog focusing on the strength of community in Bethlehem, called HEART OF STEELcity.

I have rented Pavilion number three and I ask that you please RSVP so Jaime and I know how much food to prepare.

Bring a Frisbee.

Bring a lawn chair.

Most importantly, bring yourself, eat great food, sit back and Remember:

”Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.” Muir

I will be sharing many particular details in the coming weeks, but also consider this a great day to kick back after what I am hoping are two great clean ups and restorations.

There will be a lot fun that afternoon. Get excited, spread the word and also, Save The Kales.

More details to come…. MARK YOUR CALENDAR NOW!

My Meeting with Greg Weitzel (4/9/2010)

2010-04-14T01:16:00.001-04:00

First, the Cedar Beach stuff:

1. Greg stated that the paths that have recently been paved will have their edges contoured beginning this week, so as to remove the cliffs that have developed.

2. Extra paths have been removed, some at the request of Cedar Crest College.

3. Playground construction is beginning and an entire new system of runoff containment has been developed and will be implemented to prevent significant runoff from reaching the stream on account of the playground. I will have more details on this in the coming days/week, my meeting with Greg was unfortunately short due to a doctor’s appointment I had to get to.

4. The ribbon cutting on Cedar Beach Renovations is on schedule.

5. Greg has given me permission to create a large rain garden in an area of Cedar Beach that is frequently inundated with water. I am currently speaking with various experts and master gardeners and developing a plant list and planting plan. I look forward to officially announcing this event and I thank Greg for allowing me to do this.

6. About those paved paths…

Greg told me that prior to the implementation of the asphalt paths, a study was done by LandStudies LLC. (Link to their website) That study revealed through multiple soil samples, that excessive gravel had built up as a result of the paths that had been at Cedar Beach. It was decided that asphalt was the best solution to the problem.

Before I go on, a note:

I do not agree with this decision, environmentally or aesthetically. The paths do not adhere to the guidelines established by the DCNR for sustainable community parks.

That said, I am very pleased that during our meeting Greg gave me a firm commitment to “Grow Zones”, the development of the Cedar Beach riparian corridor, the planting of a large area towards Cedar Crest Boulevard that will be a native meadow (planting this fall), and his permission to build what may turn out to be a large rain garden. Much much much more on that to come…

I hope that Greg recognizes the environmental issues at Cedar Beach and follows through on these commitments.

I can’t help but be suspicious of these commitments given everything that has happened at Cedar Beach in the past year.

However, I’ll keep my eye on it and report on it as I have been and will continue to campaign loudly as a blogger and a citizen to see that the right steps are being taken to deal with the problems not only in Cedar Beach but in the entire park system.

In other Park News:

1. The trees covered in broken asphalt and concrete in the Parkway were not the result of anything done by the Parks Department. I was the first person to bring it to the attention of Greg and as it turns out, given the location, it is public works who is to blame.

2. WPA structures at Irving Park and the WPA stairs from Fountain Park upwards, have had repair work quoted by three companies and the work will be awarded this week. Greg pledged that the stairs will be fixed this year.

3. Volunteers will soon be needed to deal with the Knotweed at Trout Creek Parkway, again, Much Much Much more on that in time.

Before leaving the meeting I reminded Greg that there is a serious environmental task before him that needs serious commitment and as the projects thus far have developed they have only served to exacerbate existing problems.

While I am very excited to hear these things from Greg and support him fully I cannot help but feel as if I may have heard this song before. We will see.

Let me again thank Greg for sharing his time with me, and thank him for the commitment he has made by allowing me the permission to construct new rain gardens.

Let’s see it happen.

Save The Parks: The Work Begins!

2010-04-13T00:12:00.002-04:00

Today, as I announce these first two events, I am proud to say that the time to act has arrived. Each one of you can make a difference by helping out at these events. The time has come to raise a hand to help rather than open a mouth or computer page to complain. In order to begin to curb the “brain drain”, to rebuild the spirit of a city that seems so muted these days - a strong community identity must be redeveloped in earnest.

What better way to do it than by working together to make something special happen?

No one else is going to do it folks – “We are the ones we have been waiting for”

APRIL 25th: Old Fairgrounds

Last October work began in earnest to clean up the litter and re-mulch the flowerbeds in this park. We worked on a strangely warm afternoon and were joined by many neighborhood kids as the day went along. It was a great day for the local community.

As was this case in October, this event has been organized and sponsored by The Friends of The Allentown Parks.

I want to thank the dedicated work that has been done by Friends to not only get this project going but to get the ball rolling on volunteer and community building events across the city.

This time around expect to help by painting equipment, weeding and mulching beds, and removing litter. The event will begin at 1 PM.

Here is the link to the Facebook Event page.

MAY 9^th: Bucky Boyle Park

The arson committed in this park last year was a genuine affront to the spirit of community and change that has been long developing in this neighborhood. There is no better place to keep the spirit of community, of change, of restoration alive than here at Bucky Boyle. It is one of Allentown’s first parks and for years, Riverfront Park was the destination for thousands of Allentonians. Now, within a new neighborhood and in the rusty shadow of former industry, the park is a bright spot in downtown Allentown.

I have organized this Litter Pick Up in coordination with Friends of The Parks, Allentown’s Solid Waste Management (who will be donating gloves, bags and pickers) and the neighborhood organizations that want to see Bucky Boyle remain the bright spot it had been. The event will run from Noon to 3PM and light refreshments will also be offered.

There is an awesome subplot here as well:
“After last fall's arson, students at Sheridan Elementary organized a penny drive and raised over $700 towards the rebuilding of their beloved playground. “

This neighborhood is strong, and will become stronger and it is an honor to help it along the way.

We can and will begin to make a difference.

Here is the link to the Facebook Event Page.

I’m only getting warmed up….

SAVE THE PARKS

This week: Big Posts - Hike On South Mountain

2010-04-12T00:38:00.003-04:00

Some big stuff coming up this week, so keep an eye out.

In the meantime:

THIS SATURDAY

Come out to Allentown's South Mountain Park at NOON for a hike, guided by me.

If you need a ride, or would like to carpool to save gas, let me know.

I will update about the hike again later this week.

Also, become a fan of Remember on Facebook to receive updates and event invitations as well as links to the blog as it gets updated.

Click here to become a fan of Remember on Facebook

Also, I have been trying to figure out where I could post this for a few weeks, so today is the day. Watch this incredible video by an incredible band. The band is Mono, the song title Follow the Map. Utterly fantastic.

The Last Ditch by Austin Clarke

2010-04-10T01:03:00.001-04:00

“ Was it an engineer
Busy over a plan
To bring the city nearer,
Who tore up aquatic plants
with fountain pen, would not let
Inches of rivulet run
Where Spring had set a sil
Of flowerets? I could name
Among those little neighbours
Of mine only a few
Of what our County Council
Considers to be refuse;
Mare’s tail that must have pined
A million years to be pine
Or spruce, young reed and flag
That helped me when spirit flagged.
Duckweed, sagittaria,
Might have spread there by road-tar.
They would have been known to Wordsworth
But what are my words worth now ?
I jingle while men pipe down
Delight and look at the mist in
The southwest, think of the missing.
Beyond the pneumatic drill,
Small things uncurl a damp tendril,
Up there at Piperstown.”

Why do I like this poem?

Clarke’s sense of Nature, compared to Wordsworth’s grand intimations of Nature, had been diminished by “Progress”. Clarke experienced a world that wasn’t Wordsworth’s rustic universe any longer.

There was however the immediate freshness of intimate growing things, neighbors, at the edges - where we renew our vital perceptions.

Goodbye Midnight

2010-04-09T00:56:00.009-04:00

1.

The first time I hung out with my friend Jon Bendas, was during the Philadelphia 76ers playoff run in 2001. Jon came in, sat down on the couch and we began to watch the game. I overheard him mention something about a cat and before I had the chance to warn him, he exclaimed: "The (expletive deleted) bit me!" Jon and I remain good friends despite some political differences. Perhaps Midnight was attempting to warn me...

2.

I don't really remember the girl's name but I know she was a friend of my buddy Eric. He brought her to my house one evening and as a cat lover, she rejoiced when she saw Midnight. He was a big cat, black as the back end of a cave and with two huge gold eyes that can only be described as nearly human. I warned her not to pet him. Despite his beautiful appearance, Midnight had a real temperament about him. he even bit a priest once. All of a sudden, the house filled with shrieks and the girl ran past me headed towards the bathroom. I followed and heard her exclaim "The (expletive deleted) bit me!"

3.

I was in the sixth grade. My mother was running the vacuum when the doorbell rang. As quickly as the door was opened a black blur came running past. I knelt down and looked under the coffee table to see two gold eyes staring back at me. It was a cat. My mother shut the door and turned the vacuum back on. The cat darted out from under the table and headed upstairs. Shortly thereafter, we named him Midnight. he was my first pet.

4,

Midnight was missing for a week. With the time he spent outside we had figured him for dead or lost. It turned out to be otherwise. I heard my neighbor,standing in the yard next door, claiming she had conjured "the evil" in her basement. She could it hear it howling. As a practitioner of Wicca, I imagine she thought this was a bloodcurdling success. I ran outside and told her she had to open up the cellar door. After much protest, she opened the door and out of it, Midnight came flying. She screamed "It's the evil! It's the evil!" I told her it was my cat.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My cell phone rang around 9PM last night. It was my mother. Before I could say hello, she told me that Midnight was dead. I went downstairs, and next to the washer, in the bathroom was his body. It was strange to see such stillness from a cat that never had a still moment in his life. He survived being hit by a car, being locked in the neighbor's basement for a week, he survived almost everything.

Midnight grew up with me. He followed me around often, even in his last old, sad, and increasing hobbled days. He was always a feral cat and his eyes were filled with a real wildness. He would spend nights outside and oftentimes leave me stumbling around my neighbors yards at 2AM in the summer with a bag of food and a flashlight trying to get him home.

My father and I dug a hole and buried my cat. This is the third cat I have buried but the only cat I've ever buried that felt like a friend. Yes, Midnight was a mean cat. He was mean because he never lost his sense of wildness. I envy him for that.

John Bennett never thought he could die, I don't think Gerry did either. Liz and Matt called him Doom Kitty and Matt would run from the sight of him. Midnight used to love begging table scraps and did so at claw-point very often. Matt was particularly bothered by it. He would claw the ankles of friends for no reason as they passed, he would hiss at our other cats unprovoked, he would sit on your lap long enough to lull you into security and leave you saying

"He bit me"

I loved him for it. He was a great animal, and a friend. I'll miss you buddy. I imagine it will take me awhile to stop checking for you while I am eating.

Goodbye Midnight.

Last Night’s City Council Meeting: Save The Parks

2010-04-08T00:20:00.002-04:00

Alright, first things first – The Trail Network Study:

The plan was given the green light by City Council by a vote of 5 to 2. Before you light a torch or grab a pitchfork, a very important and telling amendment was added. Before I get to that though, I want to remind my readers that I have and always have supported this plan.

As long as each plan is up for public debate before any construction takes place.

And,

That the environmental issues plaguing our park system are addressed first or concurrently.

That said, Councilman Donovan introduced an amendment to the resolution that was edited brilliantly by Councilman Schweyer. This amendment guarantees that before any construction takes place, an official public hearing is to take place. Councilman Donovan made it abundantly clear that he was upset over the manner in which the Cedar Beach construction planning process was handled, and he vehemently criticized the work as it currently appears. This amendment is the most important part of the trail plan’s passage.

This ensures that inclusive and rigorous public debate will take place each time a section is passed. Before dismissing this amendment, the first part of the trail plan went for approval last evening. The approval was to happen in order for the city to apply for the grant needed to fund the project.

Greg Weitzel, who supported the idea of public hearings, was immediately reminded by Councilman Schweyer that if the funding is secured, a public hearing will take place before anything else goes on.

Council President Mike D’Amore made it very clear that as a representative body of the voices of the citizens of Allentown, that such things were necessary.

City Council is doing this the right way and I congratulate them for it.

In addition, three grant approvals were passed by City Council last evening that will allow the city to apply for grant funding for a renovation of Stevens Park, an expansion of Jackson Street Park and the creation of a new park on a former PPL parking lot at 9th and Turner. That last park is great news, and will add a sorely needed green space to a highly urbanized area. Both Greg Weitzel and Mike D’Amore were very clear about the necessity of such projects and I very much support it.

I am meeting with Greg Weitzel on Friday and I will hopefully be able to share the master plans for those new park developments on Remember afterwards; I will definitely get as much information as I can and share it with you right away. I certainly have alot of questions, we all do. Feel free to leave me questions and I will try to get them answered during our meeting.

Following the intense debate of the Donovan amendment and the subsequent approval of the Schweyer edit, the public was allowed to speak their opinion regarding the project. I spoke and because of the debate, I had to abandon the previously written statement because a lot of it was covered already.

Flying by the seat of my pants, I told Council that there are serious environmental issues that need immediate attention in all of our parks right away. I told them that before any work can be done on this Trail Plan that these issues need addressing. I mentioned the construction at Cedar Beach and told them that it is environmentally dangerous I reminded them that the situation is dire across the entire system, and that we are in danger of losing our parks permanently. Closing my statement, I extended an invitation to any councilmember to accompany me on a walk in any of our parks so that I could show them what was really going on.

I extend that invitation to Council again today, and I also extend that invitation to anyone who has any kind of questions regarding the parks.

While no new resolution was passed to help achieve my goal of Saving The Parks, it is my belief that last night our City Council took a major step forward in the control of future park developments. Public input is now guaranteed. If this is truly followed through, and I believe it will be, this was a great thing to happen to the public with regards to City Council.

What this amendment also does is makes sure we all stay involved. When these drafts come to hearing we have to get our voices out there and make sure that the right things happen both aesthetically and environmentally. I will post every meeting, hearing or otherwise right here on Remember and if you need a ride, I will find you one. If we stay involved, and join or voices together, we can use these hearings to make sure that the parks are saved from the conditions they are in today.

As I said above, I will be meeting with Greg Weitzel on Friday and expect a full interview regarding Cedar Beach and the entire park system this weekend. (Hopefully including the details of the plans to fix the WPA steps by Fountain Park and in Irving Park. Greg told Molovinsky that the work was to be done this year, we’ll see)

The work is just beginning. We will save the parks.

Before I go, last night I was appointed by City Council to the vacant seat on the Environmental Advisory Committee for the City of Allentown. The vote was 7-0. I want to thank Council for my approval and allowing me this great opportunity to start doing the work needed to be done. Nothing I write on here will ever have anything to do with the EAC, I just wanted to let you folks know. I am very excited and humbled by Council’s words and decision.

Save The Parks.

To the city of Allentown: Save Our Parks

2010-04-06T00:21:00.006-04:00

Please leave a comment with your name below, I will consider it a signature and present this to city council on Wednesday Evening.

To Allentown City Council, Mayor Ed Pawlowski and Greg Weitzel:

Unaddressed environmental issues continue to persist and worsen inside the parks of Allentown. Firmly established guidelines have been dictated as suggested practice by Pennsylvania's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

The specific problems faced in each park need real solutions, and they need them now. I implore you, as leaders of the city of Allentown to begin the process of change that will result in seeing these issues addressed.

No Mow Zones and proper riparian buffer systems need to be expanded and properly maintained starting this summer in all parks in Allentown. Volunteer groups should be established to maintain these areas.

Further construction in the parks of Allentown that does not address the environmental negligence need to be halted until such a time when these issues are corrected permanently.

I request that formal consideration be given to a new park planning process that would see these issues addressed in the immediate future and that the process is conducted entirely with public input and participation.

I hope that all of you care deeply for the park system here in Allentown; the legacy of which you now all control. For years, Allentown has been known as Pennsylvania's Park Place, and in their current state, our parks are not to be proud of.

The far reaching goals of the Trail Network Study, while necessary, can only be implemented when the environmental issues in the parks are corrected. I and other concerned and informed citizens can only support the implementation of that plan after the needed work is completed.

You all have the chance to make a real and lasting difference here in the city of Allentown. You can set the environmental example that should be followed by municipalities across the country.

Seek consultation from scientists and professors at local colleges for ideas and plans. It is my belief that such consultation will come at no cost to the city.

Our parks are at a crossroads, and it is up to you to make sure they end up on the right path.

Save Our Parks.

-Andrew Kleiner

NEW VIDEO FROM CEDAR BEACH- LESSONS LEARNED:

SEE ALSO:
Save Our Parks: The First Step
Save Our Parks: The Call to Action
Save Our Parks: The Long History of Allentown and Environmental Negligence
Save Our Parks: Lehigh Parkway
Cedar Beach Construction 2010: Part One
The Future of Our Parks: Video Post
To Pave or Not to Pave
January Thaw 2: Cedar Beach Parkway (New Paving)
2009: Riparian Buffers
Cedar Beach Update From Greg Weitzel
Planting the Riparian Buffer at Cedar Beach
Cedar Beach Parkway: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly and The WHAT?

Environmental Consciousness - Little Peace Farm

2010-04-05T00:40:00.001-04:00

What bothers me lately, is the idea of balance.

That balance is scientifically described as a “steady-state” where the output of a given system is equal to its input. Nearly any organism or inorganic creation that has an intake and a waste product needs to remain in the “steady-state”, or equilibrium, in order to remain sustainable.

Sustainable has become one of the flash words of the recent “Green” movement and has in turn lost the most significant part of its meaning. That meaning, is, that to be sustainable, a species must not exceed its carrying capacity within a system. Carrying capacity being the population size limits that allow a system to never “run out” of natural resources.

These concepts are the fundamental precepts of Environmental Science and are the true ideal goals of any Environmental Movement. When looking at the creek banks in the Lehigh Parkway, it becomes apparent that the “steady state” of that system is out of whack. Erosion of the banks, loss of biomass, increase in sedimentation, warming water temperatures, etc, are all examples of processes that are rampantly worsening outside of the “steady state”.

The Parkway is a genuine microcosm of the attitude of our entire country. We create more waste than any other species in the history of the planet on a daily basis. Our waste, in some cases, is permanent and in all cases, devastating. There are islands of plastic in our oceans. Small fish eat bits of that plastic and are in turn eaten by larger fish and so forth until ultimately, we are eating it. Scientists are finding plastic inside the bodies of humans that have eaten fish from areas near the plastic continents.

The food we eat at chain restaurants, fast food joints, and big box supermarkets is produced in an unsustainable way. I could go on for pages about the documented Environmental disaster that is factory farming and the modern food industry but I will instead encourage you to watch the trailer I have embedded below. If you have Netflix, the film is available to watch instantly. If not it will air on PBS on April 21st. This is a must see film.

The point of this post is to show that the connectivity observed in nature that preserves the “steady-state” is sadly contradicted by the unsustainable and polluting manner in which the human species currently lives. Everything you do, everything you use, directly affects the Environment around you. The soap you wash yourself with, the chemicals you spray to clean the counters, the gas you use to power your automobile, the steroid injected-hormone laden meat and vegetables you eat –All of it – returns to the Environment and in turn, comes back as genetic defects, cancers, increased parasitism, and a whole host of other completely avoidable, humanly created problems.

That said, I encourage you to check out Little Peace Farms. Here is a link to their website.

The farm is offering CSA’s for 2010 and there are spots still open for the CSA that will be run through the Plaza Growers Market in Allentown this spring and summer. For those that don’t know, like the Emmaus and Easton farmer’s markets, The Plaza Growers Market is a weekly occurrence on Hamilton Street in downtown Allentown during the warm months. The Market spotlights local, sustainably grown food and drink.

Be part of the solution, not the waste. Check out Little Peace Farm, The Plaza Growers Market and Food Inc.

Also, for great ideas on how to cook the wonderful produce offered by places like Little Peace Farm check out

Save the Kales              and
Capri-Not Like The Pants

Those ladies know their stuff.

Spring: Part 2 (Video Post)

2010-04-04T02:45:00.003-04:00

Other Video Posts:

Island Beach State Park
On Location: Cedar Beach Parkway
Our Walks in the Park
Sledding in the Parkway
The Future of Our Parks

South Mountain Preserve: Let’s go Exploring

2010-04-03T01:32:00.002-04:00

“Fresh beauty opens one's eyes wherever it is really seen, but the very abundance and completeness of the common beauty that besets our steps prevents its being absorbed and appreciated. It is a good thing, therefore, to make short excursions now and then to the bottom of the sea among dulse and coral, or up among the clouds on mountain-tops, or in balloons, or even to creep like worms into dark holes and caverns underground, not only to learn something of what is going on in those out-of-the-way places, but to see better what the sun sees on our return to common every-day beauty.”
-John Muir

The faint greening of the shrubbery has been an awful tease. For months, the scenery of winter has dominated every landscape in a monochromatic brown hue. The contrast of which, against sky, snow and cloud is beautiful but the beauty has worn itself thin.

It is time for a change of season. I am ready for the green explosion of leaves and bursts of blossoms. Yesterday, as I walked into South Mountain Preserve for the first time, I knew nothing of what I was to find there. I have delayed this visit for months, being rather afraid to take another series of photographs displaying bare tree after bare tree.

As I entered the Preserve, the undergrowth displayed new green, but alas the trees still remain without leaf. It is now spring however, and the surprise and suspense of a natural chance encounter is heightened in the newly warm air. The first surprise was the discovery that the majority of orange blazed trail had become a stream.

Walking up the side of South Mountain, the second surprised waited in the mountain stream and on its banks. Here, you could count the various shades of green for an hour. Thick vibrant moss grew all over the rocks. Tightly coiled fern fronds rose from the ground and prepared to unfurl, and a few mayapples began their reverse genuflection of life towards the sun.

Higher up the mountainside, nearing the 800 foot mark, the streams were still present.

Here too, were boulders that would appear the long lost sisters of the rocks on Bake Oven Knob. The Knob, on the Kittatinny Ridge marks the northern borders of our Valley, here on the preserve, you stand on the southern. This part of South Mountain at 800 feet is literally half the height of Bake Oven Knob, nevertheless, the Ridge is visible through the trees, over the human heart of Lehigh County.

Looking and walking towards the top of the ridge here with only the sound of rushing water to fill the silence, momentarily you can become lost in nature. The turn of the seasons on the sides of the spring seem to be the very veins in which even we were once formed. Sadly, walking back down the mountain, nearby houses with aluminum siding and plastic windows become visible. A train muted the springs and turned the mountainside noisy. Humanity shakes you from the spell of nature, and you can only hope that soon it will go past and leave you to be lost again.

I grunted in disgust, disappointed. CJ and Abby, my companions on this journey, decided we should take a break. Abby and I climbed on top of an ancient boulder and looked. Again, momentarily, we were able to feel lost.

On my left arm I have a tatoo that is of great significance. The text is missing from my arm, but in the original cell, it says:
”It’s a magical world, Hobbes ol’ buddy, Let’s go exploring.”

Atop the boulder, I rubbed my arm and thought of the tattoo on my skin. I turned my camera off, and put it away. I walked on. I went exploring. I wanted to be surprised, to be lost.

Jacobsburg Environmental Education Center (and the story of my first time…)

2010-04-02T01:39:00.001-04:00

(All photographs in this post were taken by CJ Olsen)
A few hours spent at Jacobsburg and I barely touched the place. After exiting the parking lot, with the Bushkill Creek to our left, we headed forward towards a rather welcoming sign.

As it would turn out, the sign did not lie. I have never walked such a unique and slightly treacherous trail anywhere else in the Lehigh Valley.

With views of Bushkill creek below, the Lehigh Valley’s only old growth forest in Henry’s woods around us, and the Lehigh Gap splitting the Kittatinny Ridge in the distance, the trail seemed designed for wonder.

I heard a sound in the distance. I turned to find the source and saw a chipmunk scurrying down the hill. As I pointed it out to CJ, he exclaimed “And it is chasing a snake. It is chasing a snake. It is chasing a snake.” CJ’s voice did not rise in octave or alter in tone, he seemed almost unsurprised. Then, before us, the snake lay on the trail. The snake should have been grateful for our scaring of the chipmunk, instead, as he reared his head from a tight scaly coil, he seemed pissed.

I am not a herpetologist but I am certain that this particular fellow was not poisonous, he may be a milk snake. Regardless, we offered warnings to passing hikers as we continued along the high trail.

Farther along, we encountered a wild stream and under the rushing water I found beautiful rocks with quartz crystals and shale embedded together.

Eventually, the trail turned from the Hemlock grove into a familiar successional deciduous forest.

From there, we turned and began walking anew trail in the low lying area of the park, near to the Bushkill Creek. The Hemlock groves reappeared and alongside the creek, on the far bank, eons of sedimentary rock were exposed.

Heading from the creek, the trail again reaches a ridge, and here, beyond a safety fence, I was able to sit on the exposed shale and watch the cloudy water of the Bushkill Creek rush below me, down about 150 feet.

CJ and I barely scratched the surface of Jacobsburg, and in our short visit we were treated to a vision of nature not often seen in the Lehigh Valley. Here, old nature thrives. The silence of winter still held strong in bare branches but the signs of spring were everywhere, even in the returning presence of insect life.

As writer of a Nature centric and environmentally conscious blog I have often been called a treehugger, especially by my Republican friends and yes, I am talking about you Jon. Before yesterday however, I had never actually hugged a tree. I have been considering it but I could not find the right one. Things just never worked out for me and the various trees I had pursued. It may have been the beauty of Jacobsburg, or spring coming to life in my surroundings but the time just felt right. Yes readers, I finally hugged a tree.

Into Crystal Cave

2010-04-01T01:39:00.001-04:00

Once you get past the hokey PA Dutch Gift Shop, once you watch the eight minute 1980’s themed introduction video, once you can discern silence from the chatter of children and ill-timed jokes of the tour guide, the magnitude of what you are observing becomes clear.

Millions of years ago, (really try to comprehend that, one of us is lucky to get to eighty years) in an ancient ocean, the “ooze” and sand formed stone. That “ooze” was the organic materials that remained after an organism or other life form died. These stones were pushed together in what geologists call a “mountain building event”. It is from that event, we get our Appalachian mountains, our Tuscarora sandstone and the caves and sinkholes frequently found in this area of Pennsylvania.

The rocks I spoke at length about at Bake Oven Knob are cousins to the rocks in Crystal Cave. Down here though, there is no mass wasting. Here, the rocks are adorned with stalactites and stalagmites. Here, some rocks become flowstones. In the cave, geology has made for itself a cathedral. We worship with our eyes and the wonder in our minds.

With my back to the Cambrian wall, I looked up. Ernie the tour guide pointed out fossilized coral on the ceiling. He said it formed in the Mississippian Ocean. I thought of the sun those fossils once used to create the energy needed to sustain life, and how long its been since those fossils saw it. In all likelihood, they will never see it again.

A primal fear in me sent a slight tremor into my hands when Ralph turned the artificial lights out at the back end of the cave. The darkness was so encompassing it would be hard to believe in light if you stayed down there too long. (Fair enough, Plato.- Forgive me, I couldn’t go a whole cave post without a lame Plato joke)

The year round temperature of 56 degrees in the cave is constant. In a sense, save an earthquake that happened 500,000 years back, the cave itself is constant. Funny thing is, moss grows in the lights people have installed to accommodate tour groups. Flowstones that have been touched by human hands are altered by the oils of our flesh. When two enterprising men stepped the first human foot into the cave in 1871, they began to change something that in some ways had become everlasting.

Sure, in a few million years as continental drift takes our North American plate elsewhere and crashes us into another plate, Crystal Cave may be no more. To us, for now, with our limited sense of perception, this cave seems infinite. With the same wonder we view the lights in the night sky, which are themselves shadows of former events, we can look with wonder in the caves of the earth. Be it a hardened wave of a long dead ocean or a 300 year old calcite buildup, we can be amazed at the closest thing to eternity we are likely to ever experience.

I hope that thought isn’t lost in the knick knacks of the gift shop or in the giggles of children seeing figures in the rocks. Beyond the perception of the infinite, the cave provides for us one other important insight. Like Crystal Cave, we too will one day be buried underground. We will become part of the same earth that we currently visit as a tourist destination. With every footstep into the depths we are at once surrounded by the seemingly endless and our obvious endings. Especially when Ernie turns the lights off.

A day in my life as a Muhlenberg Student @ Raker Reserve

2010-03-30T00:48:00.003-04:00

Trust me, I count my lucky stars everyday when I walk to campus and go to class. After spending three years in dire financial straits and sickness, each day I spend as a Muhlenberg student is a genuine gift and I try to make certain that I love every second of it.

The education I am receiving at Muhlenberg is incredible. Nearly every subject covered in every class I have taken since becoming a Muhlenberg student has been directly applicable to the world outside of campus. My education has made me a much better environmental blogger and has afforded me the needed learning and experience to offer a genuine and informed voice regarding the environmental issues the Lehigh Valley is facing.

Yesterday, my Environmental Science class headed to the Conrad W Raker Reserve. The reserve is described on Muhlenberg’s website as: “The Conrad W. Raker Biological Field Station and Wildlife Sanctuary, a 40-acre wooded tract situated 15 miles north of the campus, in Germansville, PA, is used by biology classes for field study. A section of Jordan Creek within the preserve provides added opportunity for aquatic biology studies. Students and staff also conduct research on varied aspects of plant and animal biology.” This reserve is not open to the public. It exists solely for study and observation for the science department at the college.

My class is taught by Dr.Jason Kelsey.

I consider myself extremely fortunate to be taught by a man as informed and knowledgeable as Dr. Kelsey. He is a man I afford the highest respect to and his education has helped me make Remember better.

In addition to Dr. Kelsey, we were joined on our field trip by Dr. David Mcguire. Some of you may know Doc from his work at all levels of local government, his work on Allentown’s EAC and his work for the local chapter of The Sierra Club which I coincidentally finally just joined myself. You should join to, click here to check out the website. If you join now you can get an awesome John Muir rucksack.

Doc is another man who I am lucky to know. The conversations I have shared with him, and the journeys we have taken together into the wild places of the Lehigh Valley have been some of the most intellectually refreshing trips of my life. I have an incredible amount of respect for Dr. McGuire, and he more than deserves it.
(Amanda took that one, as I am obviously in it)

We began our journey into the Raker Reserve with the intention of conducting an environmental survey of the area for the hypothetical creation of a strip mall in an open space of land at the heart of the Reserve.

Around our feet, we were able to see an incredible variety of habitats. Near to the creek were wetlands, farther up the forest grew slightly thicker and bore the tell-tale sings of a recent succesional deciduous forest. In addition, meadows preserved for research, offered another large swath of habitat for observation.

My classmates tromped around the forest scribbling observations on notebook paper. Dr. Kelsey pointed out some fantastic fungus and suspected lichen population on the bark of a tree.

Spring was awakening all across the Reserve.

At the top of a ridge, the boundaries of the Reserve are buffeted by farmland. The nearby town of Germansville (apparently pronounced gur-mansville not ger-mansville), is a typical, bucolic country town with actual farmers still farming!

We made our way back down towards the Jordan Creek, following an incredibly slippery and almost steep slope. Initially my classmate Chelsea was less than keen to attempt the journey. Eventually, she found another route and joined us creekside.

Dr. Kelsey continued informing us about the complexities of the things we were viewing as we began to head back to the van.

We found a dead groundhog. Kit poked it with a stick to see if it was in fact dead.

Amanda was really interested in dissecting it. (Or she was masking mourning with biology)

A year ago, I was most likely beginning my usual closing shift at the worst job I have had yet in my life. Today, I was able to step into a 40 acre piece of wilderness and learn from two of the smartest men I have known with a group of engaged and engaging scientists-in- training that I am glad to call colleagues.

Things certainly have changed folks, I can’t even begin to grasp how greatly.

April 17th: Hike on South Mountain

2010-03-29T01:04:00.003-04:00

I feel like I announced 2010’s first gathering months ago but the date is drawing near. I wanted to remind everyone to come, invite friends and family and bring your cameras. I would love to post pictures you take on the blog.

It should be a really fantastic day and a great way for all of us who love the remaining wild places in Allentown to come together and celebrate biodiversity and history. I want to organize carpools for those who don’t have a ride (I’m looking at you Muhlenberg students) and anyone who would like to save some gas and spare some pollution.

Again, there is an event page on Facebook. Click Here.

Also, become a fan of Remember on Facebook for daily updates of the blog and event information. This is just the beginning folks, I’m looking forward to an active and wild summer.

I hope to see you on the 17th.

(I’ll be posting one more update close to the day of the event, I’ll include directions, meeting spot, etc… Stay Tuned!)

Spring-Part One: Cedar Beach Gardens (Major Contrasts)

2010-03-28T02:37:00.002-04:00

I must confess the difficulty which this post gave me. At present, the season of spring has begun to unleash itself across the parks in Allentown and in a short time, spring will become summer. Before that happens though, we are in for a beautiful ride.

Thing is, there are some serious environmental hazards occurring down at Cedar Beach right now. We have discussed the paving already, and we know it isn’t good. There is more going on.

First, the “silt fence” has been breached by water. The breach occurred two weeks ago during a high water event that fell short of an all out flood.

Deep ruts in the wet soil and barren patches of grass have developed along the “silt fence”. I hope that given the proclivity of high water events in this area, that a now mow zone is implemented from the buffer’s edge (the present location of the “silt fence”) to the edge of the paved path by the mirror ponds. It is a common sense decision and will provide increased habitat for an already developing wildlife population.

A pile of gravel and excess construction materials lies right next to the drainage stream from the mirror ponds. This is in direct violation of all kinds of environmental guidelines including the DCNR’s and the LCCD’s.

The dried remains of sediment in run off are present on the new asphalt paths.

So, you must now see my dilemma because at the same moment in time when such problems exist the massive renewal and birth of spring is occurring. The entirety of nature becomes picturesque, and everything feels familiar again. The voice of the new season sounds in an ear like a memory refreshed; it is a conversation you’d always knew you would have again but waited for it impatiently through the long cold months.

As the season deepens, every step outside feels closer to home.

An endless serenade of change, of beginnings, of the moment a chest tightens when it becomes too full of breath and then, the chest relaxes as it heaves carbon dioxide from your body.

Relief.

Check out the video below, it is the first in a series I will be doing highlighting spring as it matures in the coming weeks. There are some good pictures of birds in the video, thanks new camera.

From the Archives: Picture Post

2010-03-27T01:58:00.001-04:00

Some pictures I haven’t had the chance to post and have wanted to.

A story: The Parkway to Trexler Park

2010-03-25T02:08:00.002-04:00

Yesterday, I went to document a situation that has developed near the pedestrian bridge in the Parkway. Truthfully, I have no idea what the intent of this project was nor do I know who is responsible for it. I do know that it looks terrible, will dramatically increase erosion and will eventually kill the trees buried under the loose concrete fill.

Walking back to the car, I genuinely felt dejected. The parks in the city of Allentown mean a great deal to me and have without question, been one of the most inspiring things I have encountered in my 26 years of life.

As of late, I have felt enlivened by the possibility of spearheading volunteer projects that I see as the beginning of a real albeit slow change in our parks. Yesterday, that spirit fell slightly sullen on the sickeningly eroded banks of the Little Lehigh Creek.

I wanted to go to Jordan Park to take some new photography for a Save the Parks: Jordan Park post I have been intent on doing but I honestly couldn’t stomach it. I told Chris, who was driving, to skip Jordan Park and go to the lot of the Home Depot in Whitehall.

I wanted to see the creek here because a long time ago, around the time I was in eighth grade, I used to bowl at Jordan Lanes. After my youth league ended I would walk down to the “waterfall” and take pictures using my parent’s camera.

The pictures I took as a child are affixed to a poster board in my bedroom that my mother assembled back then so that the shots could be preserved. I look at the pictures everyday. The park here, maintained by the municipality of Whitehall was horrid. Litter was present in a greater display of diversity than plant life was. It was simply disgusting.

Man, was I bummed.

Later yesterday evening, I stopped in the lot of Trexler Park. Chris had gotten for himself a brand new fancy pants $600 dollar camera and he wanted to experiment with night photography.

What a feeling it is to stare into the infinite without the ability to comprehend it being of a finite mind. I stood and stared at the sky as every human as done for thousands of years. These stares into the night sky have elicited countless reactions from humans across the ages. Some created gods, others mystical beings that are outlined by the orbs of light we recognize as stars. Some people looked to see nothing. Some people looked to see exactly what they wanted to when they turned their heads to an eyeful of eternity.

Beyond the light pollution, we can ruin nothing. There are no islands sinking into the sea of space on account of the poor decisions of an arrogant species. There are no eroded creek banks. The entropy developing as the galaxies unfurl themselves across the fabric of universe is more civilized than we are.

The consideration of the night sky, of the universe, leaves the true observer in humbled silence.

It reaffirms the wealth of spirit that is required for an inspiration and in turn it reminded me of the value of one plant that wasn’t planted before I came along.

Last night, at Trexler Park, the truest meaning of a city park came to fruition through me and now, I tell you about it. I found my needed refuge. I found my missing inspiration. It’s why I want to save them. It’s why I want you to save them to.

For Chris

Save Our Parks: The First Step

2010-03-24T00:14:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, I posted ideas. Today, I am going to offer a strategy for moving forward.

The strategy I am proposing is a simple one. It is to take one step at a time, and those steps will be small steps. The point is that we will be walking and after 30 years of standing still, a crawl would be better than nothing.

I make no assumptions regarding an epic sea change of idealism in the minds of every citizen of Allentown. I do not expect the construction at Cedar Beach to stop. I do however expect to plant a seed. It may be one, it may be a few. I expect to begin the growth of a rain garden in the Parkway. I expect to announce plans regarding that project in the coming days.

That’s it, that is our first step.

You cannot change the world in moments readers, and I certainly do not intend to. I do mean to begin the long haul of slow progress and hard fought gains. I expect to encounter adversaries, road blocks and unending difficulties.

For now, I am focusing on a rain garden.

When the rain garden is planted, I will think about the next step.

I am asking all of you, whether you agree with me all the time or not, if you care about the future of the parks in Allentown, please take this step with me. Even a small step can make a noise that everyone can hear.

Help me begin beginning and maybe, as one anonymous commenter suggested yesterday, one day the big ideas and big plans can be the next step.

Today, as Frank said yesterday, as CJ said yesterday, as Katie said, as Bucky said, “Go for it.”

We’re going. Come along. Give up a few hours of your time for this first project when I have the details ready. We’re going to go out there on days when it is hot or cold, on days you’d rather watch a baseball game or football game, on days when you would rather take it easy because easy is hard to come by, I am asking you to help me do the work that can and will begin to make a difference. In the end, in a world of competing intentions, let these intentions be priority. The city has to back us up on this before we can move forward as well. The work is about to begin.

I have emailed Greg Weitzel to ask about the feasibility of performing this first project. I’ll post a response when i get one.

Seed by seed,
Save the Parks.

“Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other.” –Abraham Lincoln

Save Our Parks: The Call to Action

2010-03-23T00:21:00.002-04:00

I have spent the last few days detailing, and describing at length the extent to which environmental issues exist in our parks and in the Lehigh Parkway in particular. The issues are clear. It is the solutions that remain murky, and today I will be focusing on those.
The pictures accompanying this post were taken at the time of the Vernal Equinox on South Mountain and in Canal Park. I have chosen to include these pictures because despite the environmental negligence in our parks, there is still an extraordinary amount of beauty that remains. It is that beauty that needs to be preserved and expanded in the immediate future.

I have received a lot of comments regarding the monetary issues that environmental remediation would bring to the pockets of folks living in the city of Allentown. This is a legitimate and serious concern, but it is my belief that with community outreach and a little outside of the box thinking, some projects can happen at no cost to the taxpayer and can set the ball rolling.

First, an outreach to existing community organizations like the Allentown Garden Club should begin. These folks can tackle numerous small scale projects, like rain gardens around storm drains. I am sure small amounts of plant donations can be secured from local nurseries (native, appropriate plants by the way). I would like to see Friends of the Parks really spearhead that sort of activity.

Second, it is time for the city of Allentown to reach out to the science departments at Muhlenberg and Cedar Crest College. I know for a fact, considering that I am an Environmental Science major at Muhlenberg College, that students are itching to be able to make a difference. The parks can use that difference. These students can do the sort of environmental survey work that would typically cost the city a lot of money, for free. I will be attempting to spearhead some efforts along these lines in the near future.

Getting organizations like the Boys and Girls Clubs, local boy scout and girl scout troops and The West and East Side youth centers involved in these kinds of projects can reconnect an entire new generation of Allentonians, to the parks, the history of the parks and of the city and most importantly, establish a real bond with nature.

Using only these examples, it becomes crystal clear how easy it is to get the ball rolling as soon as people are willing to push it. I’m pushing it folks and I will continue to do so until such a time when there are no environmental issues left in our open spaces.

The Mayor, Greg Weitzel and City Council have the opportunity to get the ball rolling as well and if they show the leadership skills to begin the real work of building a better future, change can be achieved. The city needs to be behind every potential project 100%.

Let’s do it. Let’s get involved. Let us rebuild the community spirit of the city of Allentown and in doing so, revitalize the park system and begin to set right the last three decades of environmental wrongs that are currently begging for help.

I’m on it. I’ll be on it. Get on it with me.

“Society speaks and all men listen, mountains speak and wise men listen” – John Muir

Save the Parks.

If anyone has any suggestions or ideas, PLEASE comment!

Save Our Parks: The Long History of Allentown and Environmental Negligence

2010-03-22T00:06:00.001-04:00

On Saturday I posted a piece referencing what turns out to be legitimately terrible conditions in the exalted Lehigh Parkway. As it turns out, a park so often lauded as the standard of standards in the grandest city park system in the state of Pennsylvania is a complete mess.

During my visit and a subsequent further exploration on Sunday, I had the chance to speak with an elderly fisherman as well as a man named Ted who told me stories of the Parkway during the height of hippiedom. Both of these men lamented the current conditions that the Parkway finds itself in. The fly-fisherman said he had been coming there for decades. He watches the banks of the creek erode further by the season, says unless they release, “ There aren’t much fish to catch in here anymore.”

So, why now? Why after eighty years should the parks department suddenly up and change the maintenance strategy they have successfully employed since the inception of the park system? Are the parks going to suddenly just up and disappear into ruin?

To address these frequently asked questions, let me first say that the proof as always is usually found in the pudding. The pictures accompanying this post were taken yesterday afternoon. Each picture shows the effect of the long history of environmental negligence in the park system. The pictures(taken in the Parkway) show eroded banks, dead and dying trees, exposed roots, the effects of soil compaction, etc. etc. etc.

The reason this has become such a prescient issue is due to an increase of runoff over the last few decades from paved suburbs. The Parkway and most city parks are at low points in the city of Allentown. The forests and vegetation that once surrounded the city have been replaced by asphalt and development. In turn, run off (once absorbed into the soil by the now missing vegetation) has increased in our parks during high water events which have also increased for the same reason.

The problems will not resolve themselves. As time goes by, if things continue as they are, the problems will worsen.

These problems were not just recently recognized readers. On Saturday, I mentioned the existence of an E.P.A commissioned study of Allentown’s waterways that called attention to what were dire circumstances in 1998. As it turns out, a little research can go a heck of a long way back. I have found two documents that show a history of scientific ignorance and environmental negligence that surprised and disappointed me.

The first study, done by the Bureau of Environmental Planning-Department of Environmental Resources – Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is titled “Environmental Concerns in Local Floodplain Management”. The study was published in APRIL 1979!

While I would love to retype all fifty pages of the study on here, in the interest of saving you and me all that time, I will share a key passage and a picture.

-“Floodplain vegetation can:
-trap sediment from upland surface run-off
-stabilize stream banks thereby retarding soil erosion
-provide fish and wildlife habitat”

The study continues by going into great detail about how to accomplish such feats on a municipal level. So, 1979!?
This study means that the environmental issues in our parks would not currently exist had the guidelines published therein been adhered to 31 years ago.

The existence of such a study also means that every mayoral administration, city council, park director, recreation director and so on has been acting directly against the accepted scientific guidelines established by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for three decades.

Mayor Pawlowski, Parks and Recreation Director Greg Weitzel, and current City Council members did not create these problems, nor are they responsible for increased upstream development. They are however, as our current officials, the inheritors of the problems and in turn are responsible for the remediation of them.

It is a tough job to take and it is a tough solution to reach. As of this posting, the guidelines from as long ago as 31 years and as recently as last year by the DCNR are not being met. Current construction projects and future projects are not designed to meet said goals and in some cases run the risk of perpetuating or furthering the issues in our park system designed to be combated by said guidelines.

The Mayor, Mr. Weitzel and City Council must see these decade old standards met, as soon as possible. To do otherwise would continue the long history of environmental negligence in the city of Allentown and in turn would put our park system in danger of changes that it will never recover from.

Check back tomorrow for the results of the second study I discovered, this time, from 1981 and a look at the conditions of the waterway in Fountain Park. The tip of the iceberg is getting a little bigger, so are the issues.

Save the Parks.

*All photographs taken by Bryan Kleiner

Related Posts:

Save our Parks: Lehigh Parkway
Cedar Beach Construction 2010: Part One

Save Our Parks: Lehigh Parkway

2010-03-20T01:19:00.020-04:00

Sometimes, you really do not see the forest for the trees. In the Parkway, you don’t see the stream because of them. When one enters the Lehigh Parkway, they have made an intentional and deliberate slip from the urban setting of Allentown into the realm of nature. The Parkway is legitimately majestic and instantaneously impressive and awe inspiring. It is a wonder what awe can do. In the case of the Lehigh Parkway, it has blinded me to the real circumstances going on.

For as long as I have written Remember, I have ascribed the maintenance, setting, and feel of the Parkway as the ideal here in Allentown. In doing so, I have unfortunately allowed myself to write while seemingly asleep. The Parkway I wrote about turns out in reality to be only a place in dreams. It is certainly not the ideal park. It isn’t even close to it.

I have contended numerous times that people in Allentown ignore the problems in Trout Creek Parkway and Jordan Park while fighting against the construction projects at Cedar Beach. The environmental problems in those two parks are serious and need real fixing. As it turns out, upon closer inspection, I can now include the Lehigh Parkway in the same category. (and Canal Park, and South Mountain and, well, you get the idea…)

Let me begin discussing the issues at the Lehigh Parkway by stating that the current buffer rating the main stretch of stream in the park has earned is a 2 out of a possible 10. Nearly every tree is compromised alongside the Little Lehigh and the creek bank itself is eroded into cliff like structures that bear only the signs of a compromised ecosystem.

Those pictures demonstrate the scenes not usually associated with the Lehigh Parkway. Trees on creek banks destined only for death. It is a mess folks, and I have just scratched the surface. Take a look at the picture below, it shows a hollowed out dead willow tree that was planted at the same time as the others alongside the creek farther downstream. The difference here is that, this tree was not hydroponic and certainly couldn’t be planted in mid air above water. The bank on which this tree once lived has long been washed away as sediment.

Why hasn’t the thin patch of grass here on this side of the creek been turned into a proper riparian buffer? The DCNR guidelines say it should. With access points mowed and maintained for fly fishermen, this should have been done years ago.

In 1998 a study of our watershed was commissioned by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The study was done by The Cadmus Group and the findings of the twelve year old document are hard to believe when applied to the current circumstances in our park system. According to this study, nearly every waterway in our parks is comprised. All of our creeks need immediate attention. Remember, this is twelve years ago. The study concluded that the city of Allentown needs to begin dramatically reducing the sediment load of our streams. They offered the following nine strategies to help achieve that goal:
“1. Fit the activity to the soil, climate and terrain.
2. Minimize the area and duration of soil disturbance.
3. Protect denuded soils.
4. Maximize vegetative cover.
5. Maximize infiltration.
6. Manage slopes to prevent flow concentration.
7. Prepare drainage ways to handle concentrated flows.
8. Trap sediment before it leaves site.
9. Protect and preserve vegetation in natural riparian buffers.”

What do you imagine has been the result of another negligent decade of poor environmental practice? More money will be required to fix the problem, and the problem itself is far worse now. A trusted source on the Parkway has informed me that in the last ten years the creek has widened at least three feet. The water is shallower, warmer, with less biomass and more turbidity.

Walking across the pedestrian bridge, I was surprised to see running water on the path considering it had not rained in days. As it would turn out, a natural spring, once filled in during the administration of Mayor Heydt and reemerged and in turn been dug back out and fenced in with orange construction fencing. Electrical supplies for Lights in the Parkway are perilously close to the standing water.

This entire area of the Parkway should be wetlands, not open space. A perfectly healthy tree fell here a few days back for no reason other than poor soil conditions. The closer I looked at the Parkway, the more ridiculous the state of the ecosystem began to appear.

The path on the way back towards Robin Hood is an abomination. It is literally hanging above the creek on one side and exposed completely to eroded hillside on the other. Where it has fallen in to the creek, large amounts of gravel and rock have been poured in as some sort of engineering solution from environmental hell. This path should not exist. The hillside needs to be restored. This entire side of the Parkway is one heavy rain event away from a mudslide that none of us will soon forget.

Here, in another low lying swath of open grass, a perfect setting for a naturally occurring wetland goes to waste.

A storm water drainage pipe offers an excellent opportunity for a rain garden. None present.

With every glance, another problem became glaringly apparent. Trout Creek Parkway and Jordan Park are not alone in disgrace readers. Our grandest park is on the edge of environmental ruin and if something is not done soon, the cost of future calamity will be astronomical. The current issues in the park become all the more dire when new wells seem certain to be arriving in Macungie and agricultural/ upstream run off only increases.

We have been warned as early as 1998 and probably earlier. Nothing has been done. The fledgling no mow zones growing in places down there are band-aids on bullet wounds. Currently, as our parks lie in these unforgivable states, ongoing construction is happening at Cedar Beach that will (and is) leading only to further environmental degradation. It is time to wake up folks. I sure did yesterday as I walked around the Parkway.

The trails plan must be implemented only after the issues are addressed. If I had my way, and the damage had not been inflicted upon Cedar beach, I would like to see all park improvement/construction projects halted until such a time when the environmental issues described in this post were remedied. As it stands, it is my opinion that the glaring environmental issues in every single park in the city of Allentown be attended to and fixed before any further park or trail construction anywhere within city limits. These environmental restoration projects need to be conducted by specialists in creek bank restoration, soil science, environmental toxicology, freshwater ecology, and riparian buffer science. The time for action is now. The best possible solution offered by current leading research needs to be implemented yesterday.

This situation is bad. These pictures prove it. Twelve years of studies prove it. These conditions should not exist. All of us need to do something to make these changes happen. I am afraid that if we fail to achieve such a goal, even our Parkway will become a green desert and we will lose the greatest thing our city offers us: our park system.

I’m awake readers. Shake the sleep out of your eyes and join me.

Save the parks.

Is our future in the Whitehall Parkway?

2010-03-19T00:08:00.009-04:00

The feeling I developed sitting on Bake Oven Knob the night before was even more pronounced in the gullies of the Whitehall Parkway the next day.

The slowly deteriorating ruins of early cement plants litter the park around what was once a quarry. Here, the “bedrock” of our Lehigh Valley community was formed. The “Life after People” vibe was unmistakable. In this park, what gave rise to a century of industrial expansion, is literally crumbling to dust on a developing forest floor. What was most interesting was in the exposed rock that was once a wall. Clearly visible here was the same quartzite I stood on at Bake Oven Knob the day before. The 430 million year old Silurian rock had unsurprisingly survived.

It would be a heck of a thing to be able to speak to the rock. I would imagine hearing something along the lines of “ Man, I miss the beach… Stupid continental drift.. and seriously, a mine? Look who won.”

By the time I had reached the quarry floor, two days of reminders regarding the brevity of human existence bore themselves through me as frustration. I am studying waste and the fate of pollutants at school right now and am amazed how much we screw up our surroundings with the amount of waste we produce. In the 430 million years that quartzite has existed, it has never seen such a destructive, wasteful force - and the majority of said destruction has occurred in a mere 150 years!

It is this quartzite, the mountains that hold us in our valley, and the fragmented forests that surround us that ease the frustration. It is these simple escapes that rectify the mind, that remind us of the permanence of our surroundings. If we do not remember our insignificance, we cannot value that permanence. A plastic island floating in the Pacific speaks volumes to the hubris our species is currently suffering from. The same hubris exists in the chain restaurant, the big box store, in most of what we call “conveniences of modern life.”

Surely, they do make things easy for us, but does the convenient manner in which our species lives makes it easier for the planet? Not at all! In the Whitehall Parkway, the conveniences on which we now depend have their roots in ruin. The ecosystem which our progress as a species has abandoned has taken back its reins. We get to watch it happen.

The scene in the Whitehall Parkway is ultimately the fate of all human construction and development. We hasten its arrival with pollution and waste. Our unbalanced world can only leave us as ruins. And what will be left? Quartzite. Perhaps, we should be more focused on preserving the environment around us if only to secure our best legacy. That legacy should be one of stewardship and preservation not our pop culture , certainly not our war and savagery, most definitely not our pollution and waste.

In the bottom of Whitehall Parkway, I encourage you to go and take a look at our eventual ending. We need to consider our legacy as a species. Such a legacy is manifested daily by the manner in which we tend to the last open areas we remain blessed with. At this moment, in the city of Allentown our open areas need better tending to. Paving projects will be left the way the ruins at Whitehall Parkway are. Invasive species and algal infestations are a plague in our open spaces. We need to leave something better than waste before we go.

“A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.” – Aldo Leopold

On Ancient Rock: Bake Oven Knob (and a clean up?)

2010-03-18T00:33:00.019-04:00

We reached the parking lot at the top of the mountain with the sun beginning to set.

It is incredible how one class (Environmental Geology) can change your perspective on something so drastically. I have never been so fascinated by what I was walking on before here at the Knob. I knew I was standing on Silurian era Tuscarora quartzite. This rock is between 400 and 430 million years old and formed somewhere on the shores of the ancient Iapetus Ocean.

The fading sunlight glinted on the quartz in the rocks as I walked the Appalachian Trail, completely mystified. In the age of smartphones and planned obsolesce, in is quite a thing to be standing on something so old and comparably everlasting.

The path grows rockier until reaching the outcrop that at about 1600 feet is the tallest point in Lehigh County. No matter the amount of visits I take here, the view will always be breathtaking. In a glimpse, the entirety of what I call home, the Lehigh Valley is visible. Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton all shrunk by the mountains around them.

Here, on the outcrop, my friends and I intended on waiting for nightfall. I had never been to Bake Oven Knob at night. As we took our seats and waited for the show to begin, a large group of what appeared to be teenagers arrived on the outcrop. In the silence of the ancient mountain, the conversation seemed loud, out of place, irreverent. They spoke of alcohol, drug use, stupidity. I could hear an owl in the distance. I think I even heard a coyote. I couldn’t be sure though, mostly I heard the teenagers.

Looking around, on the Silurian quartzite were countless shards of broken green beer bottle glass, empty cigarette packs, plastic water bottles, empty bags of junk food; human waste. The incredibly unbalanced and unsustainable existence that most of our species lives never seemed so out of place, so wrong, as it did on these rocks.

Bryan, Amanda and CJ joined me on the north lookout, seeking the quiet that the mountain usually offers. Here, with our eyes fixed to the beginnings of the Pocono Mountains we watched the light of day shrink across the sky, behind a distant wind farm and eventually to an orange glow just about the distant mountaintops with night erasing its luminescence seemingly by miles, between eye blinks.

Just as the ancient silence once again became noticeable, a bumbling individual asked me if I desired a shot. I declined. I was heading back over to the southern look out to see the human world turn its lights on against the dark sky. The kids had circled themselves around a fire and were surprisingly quiet now. As twilight ended, the stars appeared en masse. Orion, The Big Dipper, a New Moon, planets, distant galaxies; the infinite universe became visible and standing on this quartzite looking to the heavens, my spit of time had its insignificance reaffirmed.

I could hear the cry of a coyote now, clearly. Night had taken over completely, and Bryan Amanda CJ and I needed to head back to the parking lot right away. We were very well prepared and my brother, an Eagle Scout, made sure we had a flashlight.

Actually, we were in the complete opposite situation and we slowly walked back the rocky and now extremely treacherous path very gingerly, hoping to avoid a quartzite smash to the skull. The stars were bright though, through the trees. I kept my eye to them, rather than focusing on the stupidity I was engaged in.

Bake Oven Knob is an incredible and unique treasure for all of us living here in the Valley and for the countless number of hikers that pass through our neck of the woods during their journey on the Appalachian Trail. The Knob should not be in the mess it is in. I propose that in the month of May, as the second event sponsored by Remember in 2010, we carpool on up there and do a litter pick-up.

Who’s in?

I’ll announce a date next month if I can get a large enough group interested. Let’s do it!

In Search of Spring 3: West Park

2010-03-17T00:01:00.011-04:00

I went to Allentown’s first park yesterday in hopes to find some semblance of spring. It was the kind of warm March day that causes people to flee outside as if some human hibernation period has suddenly ended.

West Park was full of people, dogs and this guy:

Our Grand Arboretum had yet to bud.

The grass had begun to green in places.

I was happy to be walking on such a warm afternoon. The forecast ahead calls for some serious warmth, I imagine by this time next week, this searches will be much more fruitful.

For now, the tulips and daffodils are good enough.

Night on Muhlenberg Lake

2010-03-16T00:06:00.005-04:00

Uncle Frank and I watched CJ squat and stare at the camera while he waited eight seconds for it to take the picture.Uncle Frank held a cigarette like a laser pointer in a lecture hall as he spoke of aesthetic. CJ struggled to find a place to set his camera to get a good picture. Uncle Frank lamented the missing tripod he had acquired sometime during the sixties in a haze of boxing, Dylan, and New Direction paperbacks.

I thought of how unlikely this all was. Standing outside, no snow to be seen, after such a long cold and brutal winter; the air smelled of life for the first time in months. On the water, light shapes distorted by current, duck paddles.

How thankful I was to be standing with Uncle Frank and CJ without freezing. CJ said “check this one out”. Uncle Frank pointed out the curve of the sidewalk, the possible capture of an image.

I thought of nights to come. I watched thick shadows float and quack, a male duck chasing another male trying to steal his female.

* All photographs by Christian Olsen

Sustain-A-Ball 2010

2010-03-16T00:01:00.002-04:00

Awesome event coming up for people to check out in Allentown. I will most certainly be there and I hope anyone who reads Remember regularly would consider attending.

The following information is copied from the EAC's Sustain-A-Ball homepage which you can reach by clicking here.

You can buy tickets on that site. Do it.

ALLENTOWN EAC
ENVIRONMENTAL ADVISORY COUNCIL
SUSTAIN-a-BALL

"Celebrating Efforts to Protect the Lehigh Valley‘s Natural Resources"
The Allentown Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) invites you to its first Sustain-a-Ball,
Saturday, April 10 at the Allentown Brew Works from 6pm to 9 PM.

The Sustain-a-Ball is both a fundraiser and a celebration of past and present Lehigh Valley initiatives to protect and sustain Allentown’s natural resources. The evening will feature live music, dancing and the Brew Work’s wonderful hors d'oeuvres and dessert. Attire is dressy casual to fun formal.

The event will begin in the spirit of renewal with a solo dance, (re)birth, choreographed by Allentown-based choreographer Sarah Carlson and performed by Christine Michener to an original guitar score by Michael London. The dance literally blossoms from the ground up.

A brief program and slide show will highlight many of Allentown's green initiatives
CACLV Executive Director, Alan Jennings will MC the event, followed by dancing to Tavern Tan.

Proceeds from the Sustain-a-Ball will be used by the EAC in their efforts to protect the
City of Allentown’s environmental resources.
Tickets to the Sustain-a-Ball are $25 per person. Students $15.00."

Cedar Beach Construction 2010: Part One

2010-03-15T00:51:00.013-04:00

The paths have yet to be paved in the park and on the Sunday afternoon I visited, there were no bulldozers or construction workers present. There was however, a wide gash of overturned stone and packed gravel where the former path used to be. In many places, this future ribbon of asphalt was brimming with ankle deep water.

It would appear that the philosophy adopted by the parks department at this phase of construction is one of slash and burn. The park is simply torn up, end to end, in a mess that will end with a black topped path that flies in the face of the recommendations of the 2006 Master Plan for Parks and Recreation as well as the current guidelines established by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Both of which discourage to the point of warning, the implementation of “non permeable” surfaces in parks.

These particular developments are personally disheartening and frustrating to see. Being a vocal supporter of the Cedar Beach renovation plans last summer has left me here with egg on my face. I never signed up for the destruction that is occurring.

I want to see our parks improved. My idea of improvement is that of re-naturalization and restoration of ecological health. Those two fundamental principles should be the guiding factors in any park construction or planning process. At Cedar Beach Parkway, in March of 2010, those two principles are being abandoned. In a low lying flood plain, more paving only means more trouble. The grass at Cedar Beach on Sunday was inundated with liquid. This is a frequent condition at Cedar Beach which will increase in severity with more paved surfaces.

Cedar Beach will be turned into the recreational park of at the expense of nature. What little we have left of nature in our urban settings should be preserved and expanded at every opportunity, not destroyed for an idea of progress. There is no progress in our parks that can be beyond nature.

This construction affirms my belief that you, me and anyone else who cares about these parks going forward needs to be as actively and vocally involved as possible. Invasive plant removal at Trout Creek Parkway, creek bank restoration at Jordan Park, and any other environmental project that needs doing in our parks cannot be accomplished with hot asphalt and bulldozers.

Nature needs to be the centerpiece of our parks, not the afterthought.

Let me also state clearly, that I am not a cheerleader for Greg Weitzel nor am I a drone of Mike Molovinsky. I remain firmly on the side of Nature and as such, I state plainly and clearly that what has happened at Cedar Beach Parkway is inexcusable.

I do believe that Mr. Weitzel genuinely cares for Allentown’s park system and is trying to make what are needed improvements. It is the planning and information gathering process that needs help. We need to make sure this does not become a pattern in our parks.

Cedar Beach Parkway once existed as a quiet invitation to nature close to the urban heart of Allentown. The willow trees reached from the creek to take you in, to bring you to a place closer to where the animal spirit inside all of us belongs. Adding riparian vegetation and natural meadow ecosystems would serve only to enhance the natural aesthetic that the park has now lost. What is being created is a lawn, crisscrossed by angular lines that occur nowhere in nature. What once was an ambient escape into a world that we are losing, will be replaced by what will undoubtedly by a noisy setting for scenic path with no opportunity to sense the wonder of the world beyond ourselves.

We need more quiet invitations. Without them, we will remain a lost species with skewed priorities. We will be stewards of a destruction that we should be relentlessly attempting to prevent.

“God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches, and a thousand tempests and floods. But he cannot save them from fools.” – John Muir

See Also: The Future of Our Parks

South Mountain Survey

2010-03-14T11:09:00.003-04:00

After the storm broke out last summer over the possible timber harvesting of South Mountain by the city of Allentown, I was invited to attend a tour of South Mountain with the man from CC Forestry Services. Also attending that humid afternoon were members of the local Sierra Club Chapter, Allentown's Environmental Action Committee, foresters from the DCNR, and Allentown's head forester.

At that time, the result of the survey concluded that South Mountain had too many trees of similar age, growing too close together. The surveyor said that due to these conditions, a fire, fungus, or invasive pest could wipe out the tree population in a rapid fashion. The surveyor also indicated that because of the canopy on South Mountain, a large forest floor population of spicebush limits the biodiversity of the forest and prevents further succession from occurring by blocking access to soil, nutrients and sunlight needed for developing plants to grow. The surveyor said that the seed bank was impressive but present conditions do not allow for its development.

I was told that day that certain, selected numbers of trees should be removed to avoid these issues. To my understanding, that was the result of the survey. I have the documentation that says these things from that tour. It was to my understanding that the surveyor was to prepare a final report and present a plan to City Council.

That has not yet happened.

Imagine my surprise when the Morning Call ran a story this morning about the city withholding information about this project. This makes no sense to me. Why would city officials keep the results of this survey under wraps?

The results of this survey were contested by the EAC and questioned by the DCNR. Leaving South Mountain that afternoon, I was not sold on the results and I still have many questions regarding the environmental sensibility of the results of said survey.

They city cannot move forward with anything from that survey until it is both made public and made available to others, who are qualified to do reconnoitering of their own to determine the validity of the results.

If this survey is being kept under wraps because the city intends to move forward on its conclusions rapidly, without considering public input, that is unacceptable.

Put the survey out there folks. Get second, third, and fourth opinions from others who will give those opinions without costing the taxpayers in Allentown another 7,500 dollars. Trust me, I know some people who will.

In the meantime, why the secrecy? There should be nothing to hide, unless of course.. well... Let's hope not.

Coincidentally, I decided to hold a meet-up hike in April because of the information I have from this survey. Come out that day, I will be talking about it and the issues facing South Mountain from a scientific perspective (which is the most valuable perspective the city has regarding future park development, and the one they need listen to most)

Check out the hike info here:

Hike on South Mountain

Fox News comes to Allentown (and guess what happened)

2010-03-13T00:33:00.003-05:00

I shouldn’t have expected anything else from Fox News and Sean Hannity. Last evening, Allentown was grossly misrepresented and used to further the fringe conservative narrative promoted by the network and Mr. Hannity.

Allentown was number 75 of Mr. Hannity’s list of the “102 worst ways the President's stimulus bill is wasting your money.” They led into the piece with a “BIKE BONANZA” label sprawled across the screen. The reporter stood downtown, and warned the viewers of the program that “"105,000 of your money on bicycles and bike racks and striped bike lanes on streets". She then stated that the “project was not yet underway.”

So, what was Fox News reporting on then?

Ah, apparently they have Weitzel on record saying the stimulus money will be used this year. They do not however say how Mr. Weitzel intended to spend the money, where the money was being spent, etc.. They implied with no proof or documentation, that the stimulus money received by Allentown was being used only to create a bicycle Mecca.

Next, to tug at the heart strings and remind everyone watching that President Obama is someone to be feared due to devious plans, Robert Romancheck showed up walking in Cedar Beach Parkway. Fox News actually aired Mr. Romancheck’s comment, which was “that bikes will be racing down bike paths and hitting kids.” What? Are you kidding me? This is not a news story, this has to be a complete opinion piece designed to be inflammatory and politically driven. That is, unless they air a counter to this to show the good this plan might do. They are “Fair and Balanced” right?

Nope.

Molovinsky followed with his frequently posted and undocumented figures of 1 to 2% of Allentonians using the bike trails and no one else. He assured the reporter that the plan would do nothing to benefit the local economy. I’m glad Mr. Molovinsky is privy to the visions of psychics and is capable of divination because there is no way he has any idea whatsoever what is going to happen if this plan is ever implemented and neither do I. I support this plan, because I am hopeful of positive affects but I am not 100% sure of them because I can’t see the future.

Fox News apparently strolled around Allentown and saw “plenty of trails”. No they did not. They videotaped from a van on Seventh Street, met Molovinsky near the parking lot at Robin Hood and took ten feet of footsteps into Cedar Beach to obtain the images they needed to further the agenda they were presenting. They then showed a bike rack in front of Bike Line on Tilghman Street and commented on the frequency of “empty bike racks” across the city.

IT IS THE MIDDLE OF WINTER FOX NEWS. THERE IS SNOW ON THE GROUND. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

It didn’t end there. Sean Hannity himself ended the clip stating that global warming was fiction as fact.

See Also:

My address to City Council Regarding Trails

Vote for the Bethlehem Skatepark

2010-03-12T09:55:00.003-05:00

An ambitious, wonderful and restorative project that will help continue to change the image of the Lehigh Valley is underway in the city of Bethlehem and it can use your help to make sure it comes to complete fruition.

This project needs to happen to the maximum degree it can, by voting for it on the Pepsi refresh page, we can make sure it gets the funding needed.

For info on the project check out: Homebase 610 You will find schematics of the park plans, and other information.

As of this posting, this project is ranked 8th on the Pepsi Refresh Everything page. Let's change that.

VOTE: Pepsi Refresh Project: Bethlehem Skateplaza

First Meet-Up of 2010!

2010-03-12T00:45:00.002-05:00

As the days pass later each evening and the afternoons grow warmer, spring has genuinely begun to manifest slowly across the Lehigh Valley. It is in that spirit, that I am super stoked to announce the first Remember Meet-Up of 2010.

Last summer, I had the opportunity to take a tour of South Mountain Reservoir guided by the DCNR, Allentown’s arborist and an independent forester. It is my intention to spread that wealth of knowledge with you readers in person.

So, the first meeting will take place on South Mountain. We will be going for a hike up to the old pavilion site, taking a look at the lake, and examining the biodiversity of the mountain as spring explodes. This is going to be great; I really hope you can make it out.

The date for the event will be Saturday April 17th.

I wanted to offer a month’s notice so everyone who wants to make it out can. If you have any questions or suggestions leave a comment. I will be setting up a Facebook event page which you can reach here, and if you haven’t yet, please become a fan of Remember on Facebook.

So pumped for this!

Updates will come as the date draws near.

Island Beach State Park: Part 2 (Video Post)

2010-03-11T00:29:00.001-05:00

Check out part one if you missed it: IBSP Part One

Island Beach State Park NJ (Part One)

2010-03-10T08:29:00.021-05:00

The entrance to the park appears suddenly in the middle of a typical Jersey Shore town.

Island Beach State Park is just south of Seaside Heights, and is literally just at the end of a neighborhood full of beach houses and the usual Jersey Shore pizza and French fry restaurants.

It costs five dollars to enter the park, and once you’re in, the beach towns feel a world away. For ten miles, a road lies on the spine of a barrier island with the Atlantic Ocean on the left and Barnegat Bay on the right. Alongside the road at various locations are trails, beach access points, interpretative centers, and kayak access areas. We made our first stop about a mile into the park.

The trail, mostly made of sand, cuts through what is called the “northern natural area”. The goal of this area of the park is to maintain a “relatively undisturbed” coastal ecosystem. It became rapidly apparent what a coastal ecosystem was with each step down the sandy trail.

Here, with the salt spray of the Atlantic coupled with wind driven sand, a unique ecosystem is created that is absent the woody deciduous growth that is typical for this particular geographic location. In its place, dense thickets of American Holly, Pitch Pine, Bayberry, Red Cedar and greenbrier form a unique and as described on a park sign “impenetrable barrier”. Throughout this area of the park, some salt and tidal marshes exist as well, due to how close the water table is to the surface of the land; on account of this, wetland plants like Shadbush, blueberry and Red Maple are also found in abundance.

Walking through this vegetation, I felt adrift in my senses. The March air was warm, but the wind from the waters felt cool and smelled of salt. I stopped to smell the air often. If it were not for the feel and smell of the air, in this thick barrier vegetation, you would never know how close you stood to Barnegat Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. That is, until the path opened through the vegetation and the deep blue of the bay became visible at the end.

I knew nothing of Barnegat Bay before yesterday. As it turns out, Barnegat Bay is famous both for extensive environmental restoration programs as well as some cultural references. E.B White used Barnegat Bay as the setting in his short story, “The Family that Dwelt Apart”. Frankie Valli name checked the bay in a song as well. It is the environmental restoration however, that make the Bay a real destination.

Both volunteer and federal programs have existed for many years to clean up and restore Barnegat Bay to pristine, natural conditions. From the NJ DEP: “In March 1995, Governor Christine Todd Whitman submitted an application to the US EPA to have the Barnegat Bay/Little Egg Harbor estuarine system included in the National Estuary Program (NEP) to be recognized as an “estuary of national significance.” The program was established by Congress under the 1987 Clean Water Act to identify, restore, and protect nationally significant estuaries of the United States.” That story continues until the present, and you can read about it here. There are many volunteer organizations. Save Barnegat Bay, Reclam the Bay, the Nitrogen Pollution Action Project and others work tirelessly to turn the tide against eutrophication and pollution. Check out this video by the folks at Reclam the Bay to see what they do, it is pretty awesome:

I walked alongside Barnegat Bay as wonder shocked as I felt walking down the trail through the incredible coastal ecosystem. I did not want to stop looking, smelling, or feeling my surroundings. I could have stayed alongside that Bay for days. I had to go though, the Atlantic Ocean beckoned. I hadn’t seen it in fifteen years and now, it was barely a mile in front of me. I couldn’t wait any longer.

(Part 2 tomorrow, with more pictures, stories and a video)

In Search of Spring 2: Jordan Creek Parkway

2010-03-08T08:33:00.006-05:00

The only noise-
woodpecker heartbeats thumping across the valley, stuck in winter.
I turned my head to see the bird, saw nothing.

Walking along the floodplain,
scattered snow still frozen in shade,
I strained to hear small things rustling.

Exposed shale, sandstone,
likely an ancient seabed; sediment and centuries.

The valley cut by Jordan creek,
sunlight melts the soil soft,
bicycle tracks in traveled directions.
I wanted to feel lost.

I walked, hilltop to hilltop,
and waited, for spring to show.
Then, in a hole,
green leaves.

I walked, in the cold,
with nothing beyond that.

Sunday Reading

2010-03-07T08:27:00.002-05:00

The worsening pollution in America's waters

Rulings restrict clean water act, foiling E.P.A

Fun times with Ken Salazar

No Endangered status for plains bird

Goodbye tigers?

Fretting about the last of the World's biggest cats

The assault on science and reason continues

Darwin foes add warming to targets

Don't worry. (It's opposite day)

Massive methane melt off Siberia

The continent of plastic has a sister

Huge garbage patch found in Atlantic Too

This week, featuring Senator Bob Casey:
Casey introduces bill to green urban areas
Wind Farms in PA

Scientists fight back
"No change whatsoever" in scientists' conviction that climate change is occurring

Passings

2010-03-07T00:04:00.001-05:00

I started the day at Canal Park with my Uncle David. David is 66 years old and grew up in Allentown before joining the Air Force in the sixties and eventually ending up in Nashville Tennessee. David wanted to see what was left of the A+B, the old textile mills and the train stations along the American Parkway.

David told me he remembered the old bridge over the Lehigh before the flood took it out in the fifties.

Watching my uncle look around, I was genuinely jealous of what he was able to see when he looked at the same things I was viewing. He remembers Allentown as the manufacturing and textile hub that I have never experienced.

We headed over to what I remember being called the B+G Train Station, and what was last known as Bananas when in business. The old station has been closed for awhile now, following a series of criminal activities. I hope it doesn’t end up the way of the Neuweiler Brewery.

David headed towards the creek, trying to find a ruin left of the other train station that used to exist there. David and I found only homeless people who were rather unhappy to see us. I noticed David hesitated when he walked. I hadn’t seen him do that before.

Heading home, I listened to David tell me stories of Allentown in the fifties and sixties. The day was warming quickly and the early cold evaporated into what felt like the first genuine beginning of spring. I wasn’t the only one who noticed. Spring fever had hit facebook. The first status update I saw came from my friend Erica who wanted to go to a park and play Frisbee. The updates continued. I intended to get to the park, but my car broke down and plans changed.

In the evening, my uncle and the rest of my family headed to an annual St. Patrick’s Day extravaganza held by close family friends. The night started off well, with warm and wonderfully excessive servings of corned beef and cabbage. Beer flowed freely, and soon tongues followed. I sat and listened to my parents, my uncle, and the Ryan girls talk about their collective pasts.

One of the Ryan girls told us that she was retiring after 25 years working for the Allentown School District. She said that things had changed to the point where she no longer recognized the place that had been a second home for a quarter of a century. Her eyes filled, and she suddenly looked old, I asked her for her age. She told me she was 62.

I thought of the woman or man that she replaced 25 years ago. I wondered if that person, upon retiring, said what she was saying to me at the table. I wondered if she was as afraid for the future, as afraid of the change around her. I wondered if she thought everything was going to hell in a handbasket too.

The conversation turned quickly to the way things used to be. I heard details of neighborhoods in downtown Allentown full of houses with unlocked doors, of people coming and going all as friends, of dinners shared, marriages attended, funerals mourned in tandem. .

I heard about everyone who was missing. The people they said should be there, the ones buried in chemotherapy, the ground or unfortunate circumstances. With every name, their eyes grew wetter.

Going outside, at the back end of the parking lot a baseball field’s snowcover was melting with the sunset.

The season was beginning its passing.

What will we miss, in the weeks to come, the years that will pass; the faces lost to time or death, I don’t know. My uncle is forty years my elder. I can’t imagine what observations I may share with a nephew forty years from today and I wonder if what I have now will be viewed with rose tinted glasses, glorified. For now, it all seems half the existence that my parent’s generation had, and I feel genuinely sad for missing it.

In Search of Spring: Lehigh Parkway

2010-03-05T02:18:00.007-05:00

I was being too optimistic.

Meteorological spring began on the first. Something about the air felt warmer, maybe not but still, the breeze felt like warmth promised.

I headed to the back end of the Parkway, across from the fish hatchery.

I scanned creek side, trying to see any sign of new life.

Found nothing.

Walking up into the woods, the path was lost to the old snow of our long winter.

I gave up on the top of the hill, looking at the creek. It was just too early; I needed to wait a couple more weeks.

To my left, on the side of the path, there on the monochromatic forest floor was a tuft of green. My observation had been wrong. Wild onion grass, I broke a blade and felt life run onto my hand. I could smell the pungent aroma.

Like buying a red car and suddenly noticing an increase in other red cars on the road, the onion was everywhere.

The wind was still cold. Had it not been for the sun, I would have felt much more like winter, still cold. Onion grass is my harbinger. S.O.S spring, I’ll be keeping an eye out for you. For now, the forest is silent. Footsteps are thunder between tree trunks, and all of it, the journey of winter, all of it, alone.

Presidental Reunion

2010-03-04T02:08:00.003-05:00

Hello readers, a funny video today because I am socked full of schoolwork the week before Spring Break, so enjoy.

New posts about Bob Casey and green initiatives, and searching for spring in the Parkway, tomorrow.

Enjoy the vid.

Funny or Die's Presidential Reunion from Will Ferrell

My Address to City Council: Regarding Trails

2010-03-03T01:50:00.001-05:00

Being an almost exclusively local park blogger for almost a year now, I hope that I haven’t surprised you with my recent posts on national climate issues. The weight of the decision the Senate makes regarding the upcoming Climate Bill is enormous, and the results of passing real change inducing legislation will shake the world in a positive way. I can’t help but feel compelled to post on such a landmark moment for America.

This bill is also rather indicative of our local political scene as well as our local environmental awareness. The inaction of our federal government for decades on climate issues can be seen here in the streets of Allentown. The invasive species issue is not new, neither is the issue of watershed health. It is only now, as some parks in Allentown have nearly degraded to a point of environmental abandonment is concern being raised and plans drafted to address these issues.

Nationally, the entire country is exactly where we are. The zeitgeist of modern America currently, for the most part, ignores, denies or refutes the reality of a changing climate be it man-made or not. Our climate is changing, and the affects of this change are unpredictable and in all likelihood, disastrous for humanity as a species.

Here at home, on the rust of our industrial past, Allentown Pennsylvania has the opportunity to ignore that increasing sentiment of ignorance and begin to turn the tide against poor environmental practices on a local level. Accomplishing such a goal can be dismissed as far-fetched, too lofty, or and I hear this quite often, too dreamy.

Recently, councilman Peter Schweyer called upon Allentown’s City Council to adopt such a vision, to help give Allentown and Allentonians a greater purpose. Such a purpose would put our eyes on the future and turn them from the Rockwellian images of Hess’ and Hamilton Boulevard in 1954 that so often seem to dominate the planning process of our city. The empty warehouses, the Neuweiler beer plant and the countless properties of blight in our downtown are testament to such a nostalgic focus.

Turning towards our future, in thought, spirit and action can and will change Allentown in substance and soul. Approving a plan that will encouraging walking and bicycling will help us get there. Building urban and community gardens across our downtown will help us get there. Refocusing our parks to serve as environmentally healthy classrooms that will expose a generation of children to the breath stealing wonder of nature will help us get there. Those kids will grow up in a world they expect to see that nature is valued. Those kids will have the sort of legacy that at best, is what we want to leave them after we are gone.

It doesn’t stop there. Allentown can, rather should, begin refocusing, block by block on infrastructure, livability, and environmental awareness. This is how new jobs get created. Trying to return our city to some dream of days gone by will lead us nowhere but further into degradation.

Support the Plaza Growers Market every week during the summer.
Plant a vegetable garden in your yard.
Do not eat at chain restaurants, eat locally.
Buy from Farmer’s Markets.

This list goes on and on. This is not advanced calculus. This is intelligent; common sense decision making that benefits everyone both immediately and in the long run. The things I just listed are the first steps we need to take individually.

Tonight, city council will vote to approve the trail network plan and it is in my opinion that this is the first step our local government needs to take. .

Setting this example locally and successfully as has been done in other municipalities all across our country; we will set the stage for a federal government that in the future would need not debate the merit of a sweeping climate reform.

They would know, based on what has happened all across the country, that it is just common sense and to do otherwise would be foolish.

Once our eyes are opened here at home, we can open the eyes of America and in turn, open the eyes the world.

Music For Action: Climate Change

2010-03-01T01:21:00.003-05:00

(I was going to begin this blog post with a link to a recent Morning Call poll about “belief” in Climate Change. As the Morning Call is a newspaper, I expect to receive news and statistics without a bias from them. When I loaded the article in my browser, a large “Kick Harry Reid Out of Office” banner was displayed. I will not link to that article on account of the political ad shown with it, nor will I mention the poll.)

It snowed a lot this winter folks.

A couple stupid emails got sent and subsequently exposed.

The talking heads on Fox News and inside their Tea Party are ringing the conspiracy bells across every corner of America trying to alert the country to the elaborate liberal hoax that they knew has always existed.

Well, today I am going to ignore that rampant stupidity and instead offer a few questions to my readers before getting to an awesome awareness and involvement raising promotion.

Go with me for a second readers…

Let us assume that the notion that the human race is causing the earth to get warmer is in fact, bullpucky. Having established this, answer the following questions:

1. Do you want the atmosphere to be full of chemical pollutants that have been proven harmful to humans and in some cases carcinogenic?

2. Do you want the lakes, rivers and streams of America to be acidic in nature, devoid of life, full of parasitic bacteria and chemical/industrial waste and run-off?

3. Do you want the food you eat to be steroid and hormone filled? In addition, do you desire to continue to support agricultural practices that magnify the scenarios envisioned in questions 1 and 2?

4. Do you want the remaining open spaces in this country sacrificed to practices that will magnify the scenarios envisioned in questions 1 and 2?

5. Do you want to continue living in an unsustainable fashion that has directly affected and threatened parts of our food chain with never before seen parasites and fungi?

6. Do you want an economy of the future based on imported fossil fuels that are running out, or do you want an American economy leading the world in alternative energy and massive green job creation?

I could continue, but I think my point has become explicitly clear. Even if Global Warming is a liberal hoax (and really, what the hell would the point of that be?), the issues affecting the livability of Earth do not change.

In that spirit, the Senate is considering passing a new bipartisan (Thank you Senator Graham, R South Carolina) Climate Bill that will begin the process President Obama has envisioned will lead us out of the fossil fuel-imported economy of the Reagan/Bush eras and bring us into a cleaner, greener, future that will provide thousands of Americans with American jobs. Some Senators remain on the fence, and it is my opinion that in an election year, they are more likely to listen to their constituents than usual. Now is the time to send a letter, an email or make a phone call to get this thing passed.

To provide further incentive for involvement, a group of musicians has banded together to offer a free CD entitled “The Best of Bonaroo”, that you can download once you have emailed your senator through their website.

Do not fret hipster friends, the tracklist has more than jam band hippy stuff, check it out:
1. Wilco - Bull Black Nova
2. Pearl Jam - Animal
3. Jack Johnson - Inaudible Melodies
4. Dave Matthews Band - Pantala Naga Pampa >> Rapunzel
5. Death Cab for Cutie - Cath...
6. Ani DiFranco - Fuel
7. Phish - Kill Devil Falls
8. Gov't Mule - Banks of the Deep End
9. O.A.R. - Delicate Few
10. moe. - Not Coming Down
11. Raphael Saadiq - 100 Yard Dash
12. Bob Weir & RatDog - Throwing Stones
13. Disco Biscuts - And the Ladies...
14. The Decemberists - The Wanting Comes in Waves/Repaid
15. My Morning Jacket - Oh! Sweet Nuthin'
16. Guster - Happier
17. Phil Lesh and Friends - Box of Rain

The website for the CD and email is: www.musicforaction.org

DO IT!!

Please share this post with others, or just share the link to the site. Spread the word folks.

Sunday Reading

2010-02-28T00:58:00.002-05:00

Must Read: Op-Ed NY Times- We Can't Wish Away Climate Change - Al Gore

We Can't Wish Away Climate Change

Antarctica Falling Apart

Huge iceberg breaks free

Bye Bye Coral Reefs

AAAS: Coral Reefs could disappear by the end of the century

E-Waste

E-Waste surging in developing countries

Behind Closed Doors

What Exactly are Lieberman, Kerry, and Graham cooking up for climate?

DCNR:

More state forests open for drilling

Sierra Club:

Don't drill in the park

Lights in the Parkway (NSFW)

2010-02-28T00:39:00.001-05:00

A video taken back in December on a journey through Lights in The Parkway featuring an interesting commentary track. (Beware of some foul language.)

Saturday Guest Blog (sort of): Barack Obama

2010-02-27T09:23:00.002-05:00

I am tired, and midterms are approaching. I'll let the President take this one: