Policy on the #NNK

I’m glad people are thinking about going trayless. ’Cause it’s a high-impact way of reducing waste, saving on labor and associated costs, and reducing water and chemical use. Huh? Read Emily Nonko’s The Case of the Vanishing Cafeteria Tray . Writes Nonko: The idea of trayless dining took off at college campuses in the U.S. a little over a decade ago. By 2009, 42 percent of colleges and universities tracked by the Sustainable Endowments Institute had begun curbing the use of trays in their dining halls. Just three years later, 75 percent of the tracked schools had eliminated trays in some or all of their dining facilities. And it gets better: The wave of data following the introduction of trayless dining proved the effort has real impact. An Aramark Higher Education study found that out of 186,000 meals served at 25 colleges and universities over the course of an academic year, trayless days saw a 25 to 30 percent reduction in food waste per person. Switching topics, let’s ...

The Virginia Department of Conservation & Recreation is conducting the 2022 Virginia Outdoors Survey to understand what Virginians do outside. Information collected from this survey will be used to help shape the 2023 Virginia Outdoors Plan. Even if you don’t get outdoors for recreation it’s helpful to hear from you to get a good picture of all Virginians. Your participation in this research is voluntary. However, because you are part of a small sample of Virginians, your individual participation will make the results more accurate, and is greatly appreciated!

National Farmers’ Market Week is August 7-13 and what a great reason to celebrate these robust and high-impact community spaces. In Virginia, farmers market fans can follow the Virginia Farmer’s Market Trail and visit markets on the Northern Neck: Warsaw Community Market (Fridays) Heathsville Farmers Market (third Saturday, April to October) Irvington Farmers Market (first Saturday, April through November) Want to visit more local markets? Head to Deltaville Maritime Museum and Holly Point Nature Park Market Mathews (every Saturday, April through October) Urbanna (second Saturday, May to September) Tappahannock (third Saturday, April to November) As much as people love their local markets here on the Northern Neck, Reasons to be Cheerful explains that markets almost went the way of dinosaurs. The Spectacular Comeback of the American Farmers Market describes the ups and downs and ups again of this community institution, now more than 8,000 stro...

Last week, the State Board for Community Colleges approved flat tuition and fees for SY 2022-23 . This is a boon to families and individuals across the state. This is the fifth year in a row of level funding; state legislators made it possible to hold the line in 2022-23 with $24 million pumped into the system to cover the rising costs including personnel. (See Virginia’s community colleges will keep tuition cost flat for 5th straight year ) But the question for the future remains: How will community colleges remain accessible to the more than 140,000 people who enroll each year, particularly given the value proposition that is shown to the right in a comment on the Virginia sub-reddit ( Virginia’s community colleges will keep tuition cost flat for 5th straight year )? Malcolm Gladwell considered this topic in 2016 in the Revisionist History podcast entitled My Little Hundred Million . Story hero Hank Rowan, a successful businessman in New Jersey, is contrasted with the fun...

The main takeaways of the University of Virginia’s COVID-19 model July 15 weekly update are: Case rates have remained relatively stable over the last few weeks. But test positivity, wastewater surveillance, and hospitalization trends all suggest growth across Virginia. This matches the trends seen in neighboring states. Hospitalizations continue to climb in Maryland, Washington DC, and West Virginia. Seventeen districts are in growth trajectories, with three of these districts surging. Fifty localities are now at “High” community levels. A further sixty are at “Medium” community levels. Residents in these counties should take appropriate preventive measures. The BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants have continued to make in-roads and are now dominant in Virginia. Models project a small rise in cases in the coming weeks. They also show a potential for future growth in the Fall. This will depend on seasonality and the introduction of potential future variants. Each of the four ...

GM’s announcement― GM and Pilot Company to Build Out Coast-to-Coast EV Fast Charging Network ―to build 2,000 EV charging stations across the country should inform VDOT’s plan for the feds. Says the release, To accelerate the widespread adoption of EVs, increase access to charging and help enable long-distance electric travel of people and vehicles across the U.S., GM and Pilot Company (Pilot and Flying J) are collaborating on a national DC fast charging network that will be installed, operated and maintained by EVgo through its eXtend offering. This project demonstrates how public and private entities can come together to build out the nation’s charging infrastructure, particularly along American highways, connecting urban and rural communities, the East and West Coasts and different metropolitan areas. This collaboration is targeting the installation of charging stalls at 50-mile intervals across the U.S. For GM, this development is one more step of its nearly $750 million investm...

FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel's proposal to increase minimum speeds ( read press release ), circulated last week to commission members, proposes to give the public faster broadband service. Rosenworcel writes, “The needs of internet users long ago surpassed the FCC’s 25/3 speed metric, especially during a global health pandemic that moved so much of life online,” said Chairwoman Rosenworcel. “The 25/3 metric isn’t just behind the times, it’s a harmful one because it masks the extent to which low-income neighborhoods and rural communities are being left behind and left offline. That’s why we need to raise the standard for minimum broadband speeds now and while also aiming even higher for the future, because we need to set big goals if we want everyone everywhere to have a fair shot at 21st century success.” But as Ars Technica 's Jon Brodkin points out in FCC chair proposes new US broadband standard of 100Mbps down, 20Mbps up , “The proposal requires a vote, and the comm...

WAVY.com has reported that area code 804 will likely run out of numbers in 2024. This will necessitate a new area code for “portions of Central Virginia and the Northern Neck, including Gloucester County and Mathews County. . .” (Source: “804” area code projected to run out, public comment invited for plan ). The North American Numbering Plan Administrator's proposal is for the Virginia State Corporation Commission to “approve an all-services distributed overlay of a new area code as the form of relief for the 804 area code.” (Source: SCC Ex Parte: In the matter of the Commission's investigation into exhaust relief for the 804 area code (PDF)). Further, According to NANPA, the relief provided by any overlay approach will last approximately 32 years. Under this approach, all existing customers would retain the 804 area code and would not have to change their telephone numbers. The public is invited to comment on the proposal; the deadline for comments is August 17 . Su...

Rappahannock Community College is hosting four “Success Starts Here: Orientation and Registration for New and Returning Students” events in July. Those interested in attending RCC will have a tour, talk with profs, meet students, and enroll, including meeting with financial aid advisors. The events take place at the Warsaw and Glenns campuses. Warsaw: Saturday, July 23, 9:00 am-1:00 pm and Tuesday, July 26, 1:00-7:00 pm Glenns: Wednesday, July 20, 1:00-7:00 pm and Saturday, July 30, 9:00 am-1:00 pm RSVPs are requested. You can reserve a spot online or call (804) 333-6730.

In “Take the EV charging station survey” , we presented the opportunity for the public to participate in a survey about EV charging stations. But as Questions loom as Virginia develops electric vehicle plan points out, the guidance has made clear that the ideal recipients of these funds are the existing gas stations and convenience stores that line every interstate exit in the commonwealth. However, under current regulatory policy, it’s difficult for any of those gas stations to get into the EV charging business without operating at a loss. An additioinal challenge, of course, is that much of Virginia is rural and this round of funding and infrastructure-building does nothing to support areas without interstate highways. As journalist Anna Bryson writes in the Richmond Times-Dispatch article, however, A VDOT spokesperson said the initial plan will be focused on building public direct current fast chargers on the federally designated alternative fuel corridors in order to meet...

The Town of Warsaw is hiring a Director of Tourism and Small Business Development . Applications are under review and the position will remain open until Monday, August 1, 2022. Warsaw is updating it's comp plan and seeks input from residents, business owners, and other stakeholders via the Warsaw Comp Plan survey . The town is eliciting thoughts about the future growth and development of the town. The survey closes July 31, so hurry! The Town Council meets Thursday, July 14 at 6:00 pm. For info about the meeting, contact Clerk of Counci Julia Blackley-Rice at (804) 333-3737.

The Virginia Department of Transportation is conducting a survey to inform the state's proposal to the federal government (Department of Transportation and US Department of Energy) regarding the installation of public electric vehicle charging stations. If you have comments, participate in the survey immediately ; the state's plan is due to the feds August 1. The work is being funded via the national bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act . According to the survey introduction, “Under the requirements of the NEVI Program, the initial phase of public charging stations will be located along Virginia's federally-designated Alternative Fuel Corridors (I-64, I-66, I-81, I-85, I-95, and I-270) to provide convenient and accessible charging to support the growing EV market in Virginia.” Want to learn more about EVs and infrastructure? Here are some resources: Virginia's federally-designated Alternative Fuel Corridors National Electric Vehicle Infrastru...

Water—as in rivers, creeks, and the Chesapeake Bay—matters on the Northern Neck. Unfortunately, too many of our waterways are dirty. DEQ's latest assessment of water quality is out and the Department of Environmental Quality is holding a public webinar summarizing the Draft 2022 Water Quality Assessment Integrated Report Wednesday, July 13 from 10:00 am - Noon. The public is encouraged to participate. Register for the webinar . During the webinar, DEQ will take questions about the report and will publish the questions and answers in a “FAQ” document on the IR web page after the event. The Integrated Report, referred to as the IR, is required by the U.S. Clean Water Act and the Virginia Water Quality Monitoring, Information and Restoration Act . According to the 2022 IR report's executive summary (PDF), A primary objective of the IR is to determine whether Virginia’s waters support the six designated uses established by Virginia’s Water Quality Standards – namely, aquat...

The Northern Neck Soil & Water Conservation District (NNSWCD) is seeking a permanent, full-time Marketing & Outreach Specialist . The overarching responsibility of this position is to promote the stewardship of natural resources through leadership, education, and technical assistance within Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, and Westmoreland Counties. The salary range is $35,000 - $55,000 based on qualifications, plus excellent benefits including health insurance, VRS, as well as paid leave. Submit cover letter, resume, and NNSWCD Employment Application by 4:30 pmn August 12, 2022. Image credit: Mohamed Hassan on Pixabay