Virginia E-News April 20, 2005

Delegate Plum’s Virginia E-News – April 20, 2005

Announcements

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) of Northern Virginia has launched a new campaign to emphasize that preventing child abuse and neglect is everyone’s responsibility…and that it can be as easy as trying to Do 1 Thing! Doing even one of the following five things can help prevent child abuse and neglect:

Spend more one-on-one time with your kids! Go for a walk or eat dinner together as a family.
Seek support if you’re a parent feeling angry, frustrated or depressed. Attend a parent support group or talk to a trusted friend.
Praise children you know. Tell them how smart, kind or great they are.
Support a stressed-out parent by listening or offering to babysit their children.
Volunteer with a local parenting or children’s program.

For more information, call 703.836.1820 or visit www.scanva.org.

Going the Distance for People with Disabilities – The Patriots’ Cup 8K Corporate Challenge will be held on Sunday, May 1, 2005, on the George Mason University campus. The Patriots’ Cup is the premiere corporate challenge in the Metro Washington Area that benefits The Arc of Northern Virginia, a support and advocacy organization serving people with cognitive, intellectual, and developmental disabilities and their families. For information, call the coordinator at 703.246.9869. For questions about sponsorship, call The Arc at 703.532.3214 x 213.

Volunteers are needed to grow underwater grasses! You can change the water quality in your local river by growing underwater grasses right in your own home. The Chesapeake Bay Foundaiton is holding workshops in Arlington on Thursday, April 28, 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. Attend the workshop where you will be given the instructions, equipment and materials for growing underwater grasses. All you need is a space in your home to hold a f ft. x 3 ft. tub for 8 weeks. After growing the grasses for 8 weeks, you will be able to plant your grasses right into the Potomac River. The cost for the workshop is $25 per “growing unit.” Contact Nina Luxmoore at nluxmoore@cbf.org for details.

Travel Training for Fairfax County’s Senior Citizens – Travel Training on the use of public transportation is available to senior adults of Fairfax County over the age of 65 on a one-on-one basis or as a group. Call the Fairfax County Department of Transportation Senior Programs for more information or to request free training: 703.324.1172 or 703.324.1102 TTY.

The National Directory of Cell Phone Numbers will soon be published, allowing telemarketers access to your cell phone number (and using your cell minutes). Call 888.382.1222 from your cell phone to get on the national Do Not Call list or go to www.donotcall.gov and register online.

Calendar

Wednesday, April 20 10:30 p.m. – Delegate Ken Plum’s Virginia Report on Reston Comcast Channel 28 – “Virginia C.U.R.E.” with Jean Auldridge and Keith DiBlasio.

Saturday, April 23 – 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon – RA Weed Warriors Project – Reston Association is coordinating volunteer efforts to remove and control highly detrimental, invasive plants. Join other volunteers on Saturday, April 23, 2005, at the Wiehle Overpass (North Shore Drive). Volunteers between the ages of 12-14 must be accompanied by an adult. Contact Ha Brock, RA Volunteer Coordinator, at 703.435.7986 or habrock@reston.org for more information.

Saturday, April 23 – 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. – Recycle Electronics Equipment at Northern Virginia Community College, Annandale Campus, 8333 Little River Turnpike. Items accepted include computers, televisions, fax machines, copiers, VCRs, cell phones, scanners, calculators and test equipment. There is a $10 (tax-deductible) charge to dispose of computer monitors; all other items may be disposed of for free. Call 703.385.7995 for more information.

Tuesday, April 26, 7:30 p.m. and Wednesday, April 27, 10:30 p.m. – Delegate Ken Plum’s Virginia Report on Reston Comcast Channel 28 – “RING” with Mary Bogle Malzahn and Robert Goudie of Reston Interfaith.

Saturday, April 30, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. – Reston Association’s Huge Yard Sale at the RA parking lot, 1930 Isaac Newton Square. Rain date is May 1.

May 1-4 – Governor’s Conference on Greenways, Blueways and Trails – Omni Hotel, downtown Richmond. This year’s topic is “Building Active Communities.” For more information, please call 757.229.0507 or email info@bikewalkvirginia.org.

Monday, May 9, 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. – Town Meeting Report on the 2005 General Assembly Session hosted by Delegate Ken Plum and Senator Janet Howell at Reston Regional Library. Pre-registration not required; all are welcome.

Saturday and Sunday, May 21-22 – American Cancer Society Relay for Life at South Lakes High School. If you would like to join a team, call Delegate Ken Plum at 703.758.9733. No physical activity required in the Relay – just a willingness to help raise money for an important cause.

Thursday, June 2, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. – Anniversary Celebration Honoring Delegate Kenneth R. Plum at the historic Smith-Bowman House. Sponsorships and invitations available. Call 703.391.2978.

Commentary

Make Every Day Earth Day
Kenneth R. “Ken” Plum

I had a very educational experience recently along with nearly a hundred other volunteers who participated in the Annual Potomac River Watershed Cleanup in Reston. In about 3 hours on a Saturday morning we picked up approximately 2.9 tons of trash out of Reston’s watersheds. The Reston cleanup is part of a larger Potomac Watershed Cleanup that since 1989 has removed more than 2 million tons of trash. That is trash that otherwise would have ended up in the Potomac River, the source of our drinking water. The theme of the day, “Take Pride in Our Potomac: It Starts in Your Backyard,” says it all. Trash starts out in someone’s hand and in someone’s home or business. We share a responsibility that trash not be misdirected. Litter is an eyesore for our neighborhoods and open spaces and is harmful to the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay where it ultimately ends up if not intercepted.

From now through June 30 there is an emphasis among agencies of state government to clean up litter from roadways as well as waterways and throughout the Commonwealth. One of the most prominent and successful roadside litter control programs in Virginia is the Adopt-a-Highway program. Plenty of roadside space is still available. If you or your business or organization is interested, call 1-800-PRIDE VA or send an e-mail to adoptahighway@virginiadot.org. Reston Association has an Adopt-A-Spot program; call 703-435-7986. To sign up for future watershed cleanups, email Diana@reston.org.

A small tax collected from beverage distributors funds litter control programs in all communities. To find out more about the litter control program in Fairfax County, visit www.cleanfairfaxcouncil.org. Beer cans and bottles are among the most commonly found items along stream banks and roadways. Numerous attempts including bills I introduced years ago to require a deposit on bottles and cans received little support in the General Assembly. Recycling programs are very successful for containers as long as they make it to the recycling bin.

In one of the biggest environmental steps taken in recent years the state legislature appropriated $50 million for Chesapeake Bay cleanup. While most of that money will go to improving sewage treatment facilities that dump into the Bay, a percentage will go to non-point source pollution alleviation. Farmers and suburban lawn growers are the worst offenders in non-point source pollution because excess fertilizer runs off fields and lawns and destroys the ecological balance of the Bay with excess nutrients. Read the directions on the bag and do not over-fertilize.

“They are not making any more land,” is what real estate investors are saying. That means we need to take care of Mother Earth every day just as we do on Earth Day.

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