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Nuisance and Harmful Algae in the Shenandoah River Watershed What: Lecture presentation with Q&A When: Tuesday, March 14, 7-8pm Where: Wayne Theatre, 521 W Main Street, Waynesboro, VA 22980 Cost: Pay what you will Speakers: Tara L. Wyrick, Regional Water Monitoring and Assessments Manager, Valley Regional Office, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and Morgan Steffen, PhD, Associate Professor, James Madison University, Department of Biology
Our speakers will discuss differences and identification clues between “nuisance” algae and “harmful” algae that occur in rivers of the Shenandoah River watershed. DEQ will review the last six years of nuisance algae monitoring efforts. Dr. Steffen will explore how harmful algal blooms (HABs) are hazardous to humans, pets, and livestock. Both speakers will also discuss how to report suspected algal blooms to authorities for further investigation. To bring you this event, the Wayne Theatre, the Virginia Museum of Natural History and the Center for Coldwaters Restoration are working in conjunction with: Friends of the Middle River Friends of the Shenandoah River This event will also be live-streamed on the Wayne Theatre's Facebook Page and recorded. More info HERE!
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Forming now, a new social paddle network forming that centers on-- but is not limited to--Middle River and other Augusta County rivers! You can join this group at the following website: Essentially, this new paddle group is a list-serve tool for you to connect and build community with other paddlers and talk about whatever you want. Need a paddle partner? Ask! Want to sell your gear? Want to ask about conditions or sections of the river? Want advice? Want to offer a trip others can join? This forum will allow you to communicate with each other via the forum’s platform without having to share your email address publicly with folks you don’t know.
This group is not owned or moderated by Friends of the Middle River, but by private citizens who may or may not have personal links to our nonprofit.
For more instructions on how to get started, read more HERE. | | | Earth Day Staunton & Riverfest
April is a busy month with people itching to get outside and to also attend festivities in the area. You can accomplish both and help FOMR at the same time. Friends of the Middle River is seeking volunteers to staff the tables and help with educational and riverside activities at two upcoming events in April: These are our two largest festival events of the year. Besides our informational and kayak raffle display, we offer hands-on educational activities. Always a lot of fun!
Please consider spending a little time helping FOMR spread our message of stewardship and enjoyment of the Middle River through volunteer action, education, science and outreach, even if you have not done so before! See the volunteer tasks available and sign up HERE! | | | River Insect Monitoring Update The FOMR Benthic Monitoring Program has pretty much returned to normal monitoring after the COVID disruption of 2020-21. In the fall of 2022, scores for four sites were in the “acceptable” range, 3 sites were in the “borderline” range (between “acceptable” and “unacceptable”), and no sites were in the “unacceptable” range. The sites in the upper reaches of the Middle River have consistently been the most impaired. However, over the last two years, there has been a very modest improvement in scores for these sites. It is not clear why and, so far, we have not been able to identify any changes to the watershed which would help explain this. You can see all the program's data HERE.
In the last six years (2017 to 2022), 2022 is the only year in which there have been no sites with “unacceptable” scores (excluding 2018 when there was no fall data due to storms and high water).
It should be noted that during 2020 and 2021 not all sites were sampled due to COVID restrictions and, as noted above, in the fall of 2018 no sites were sampled. This makes the analysis of data from 2017 to 2022 much less robust and more difficult to interpret with confidence. ~ Pete Cooper, Benthic Chair
| | | When a vehicle recently ran off the road along Lewis Creek, a clothes dryer—bright red—got pitched off and tumbled into the creek! Volunteers from FOMR, the Lewis Creek Watershed Advisory Committee and the City of Staunton joined forces to pull it out and get the appliance disposed of properly. Thanks, team! | | | Shout Out to RAP Volunteers!
People will care and protect that to which they have emotional connection. Middle River— being a river with no public access—is difficult to get access to in order to experience her directly. Many local Augusta County residents often have no idea where Middle River even is!
Our River Access Program (RAP) is a network of voluntarily participating landowners who allow FOMR members who are in the program to get access via their private property for putting their boats onto the river and for other activities such as swimming or birdwatching. These incredible landowners get nothing in return for their generous sharing. Besides the volunteer landowners, FOMR uses a small cadre of additional volunteers to coordinate the program, attend to signage, recruit new landowners into the program and troubleshoot problems that arise from the hundreds of people now enjoying the river in ways previously not possible.
We are so grateful for our RAP volunteers! If you have riverfront property and are interested learning more about what it might mean to share it in our program, you can read more HERE and call Kate to start a conversation (540-609-8267). | | Water Temperature Website
There's a useful website available online to get a quick read about general current river water temperatures so you can plan accordingly for your spring paddling. While Augusta County's rivers are not included, you can see the general trend in rivers throughout the Mid-Atlantic region HERE.
Read more about cold water paddling HERE! | | 2023 Virginia Fishing Regulations You can see and download the 2023 Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources fishing regulations via their website HERE. | | Current RAP Booklet Version 6.29.22 New version coming soon! | March
14 Lecture: When Green is Not Good, Wayne Theatre, 521 W Main St., Waynesboro 16-19 Heritage Trout Season Opener at Shenandoah Valley Campground 28 FOMR Board Meeting, 6:30pm, anyone is invited. Email us for info.
April
22 Earth Day Staunton, Gypsy Hill Park, Staunton, 11am-3pm 29 Riverfest, Constitution Park, Waynesboro, 9am-4pm | Friends of the Middle River Email: info@friendsofthemiddleriver.org |
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