Policy on the #NNK

The Northern Neck Soil and Water Conservation District will elect directors at the November 2023 general election. Two representatives each from Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, and Westmoreland Counties serve on the board. One rep from Lancaster and one from Westmoreland have informed the organization’s director that they will not be running for re-election. Directors are not paid. Since the last election, the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act (CFDA) has come into play. Given the complex nature of the CFDA, local Registrars of Voters will be at the NNSWCD Office Wednesday, April 12 at 5:00 pm to meet with individuals seeking election/re-election to the Northern Neck SWCD Board. Anyone interested in running should contact Kathy Clarke, NNSWCD District Operations Manager by phone, (804) 313-9102, x101, or email .

Read or listen (to the summary) to ODU researchers are building a digital version of Hampton Roads to simulate the area’s flooding future . It’s super interesting and what’s learned will surely have an impact on the Northern Neck and Middle Peninsula in the years to come.

The 2023 hurricane season starts June 1 and in anticipation, here’s when we can expect some predictions: December 2022 : Tropical Storm Risk (TSR), a British company making predictions since 2000, “anticipates a season with activity below the 1991-2020 30-year norm level.” ( Extended Range Forecast for North Atlantic Hurricane Activity in 2023 (PDF)) April 6, 2023 : Tropical Storm Risk will issue their first forecast update for the 2023 North Atlantic hurricane season May 2023 : NOAA will issue their Atlantic Basin cyclone prediction in May April 2023 : NC State Univerity typically issues their predictions in late April April 2023 : Colorodo State University Tropical Weather and Climate Research will publish their prediction in early- to mid-April

On Tuesday, April 25 (10:00 am-4:00 pm), the FDA will host a virtual public meeting on Patient-Focused Drug Development for Long COVID to hear from those experiencing Long COVID. The event is a chance to share symptoms and experiences with the disease and interactions with the health care system. People will also have the opportunity to talk about clinical trials and their conditions for participation. Register for the online event . Comments may be submitted online and via snail mail (Dockets Management Staff (HFA-305), Food and Drug Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852). The meeting will be conducted with live translation in both English and Spanish.

If photography and nature are your thing, two content deadlines loom: The Virginia Water Center’s 2023 Virginia Waters Photo Contest for all Virginia college and university students (April 1) and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s 2023 Save the Bay Photo Contest (March 31).

The White House seeks comments on the first U.S. National Nature Assessment (NNA); comments are due March 31 . According to the notice in the Federal Register , Nature is important in its own right and provides value to the lives of all Americans. The Office of Science and Technology Policy, on behalf of the United States Global Change Research Program, requests input from the public to help shape the first U.S. National Nature Assessment. The goal of the assessment is to assess and track the state of the nation’s natural resources, services, and uses in a changing climate. What should it include? What questions should it help answer? Submit comments by March 31. The NNA will adhere to seven principles so that the assessment is “authoritative, credible, timely, and concise; fully compliant with relevant laws and policies; policy relevant but not policy prescriptive; transparent, accurate and reproducible with well-documented methods; inclusive; use-inspired ; and accessible to t...

The Northumberland County Board of Supervisors is holding a hearing Thursday, March 9 at 7:00 pm on three items (one was tabled March 8 at the request of the applicant), one of which is a conditional use application for a mobile/manufactured home park. Philip J. Haynie, III has applied for a conditional use permit to allow a mobile/manufactured home park (PDF) on Whays Creek Road in Reedville, property zoned R-2, Residential Waterfront. The new information: According to Philip Marston, the project involves four mobile homes.

The agenda for the March 9 Northumberland County supervisors hearing has been updated. Item 4, the luxury rehab facility, has been tabled at the request of the applicant: 4. TABLED TO THE REGULAR MEETING ON APRIL 13, 2023 : Request by Most Reverend Michael F. Burbidge, owner, and The New Y-Capp, Inc., applicant, to allow a health care facility (Luxury Residential Treatment Center) on property zoned R-2, Residential Waterfront. The property is shown as Tax Map Parcel # 51-(1)-135 and is located at 355 Ditchley Road. The request to table came a day after the applicant submitted additional information on the project . The supplemental info provides some useful information such as daily staffing and the number of patients. But what stood out was the attitude as shown below. Yesterday, I (as a county resident and not blogger) submitted comments to the supes, county administrator, and zoning director about the applications. About...

The Northumberland County Board of Supervisors is holding a hearing Thursday, March 9 at 7:00 pm on four items: two utility-grade solar farms , conditional use application for a mobile/manufactured home park, and conditional use application to allow a health care facility. The public is encouraged to attend. Philip J. Haynie, III has applied for a conditional use permit to allow a mobile/manufactured home park (PDF) on Whays Creek Road in Reedville, property zoned R-2, Residential Waterfront. The entire parcel is 48.59 acres and all but one acre is being used for farming. The application proposes to use a portion of the parcel for a mobile home community with two parking spots for each home and at least one light for every three homes. The application does not detail the number of mobile/manufactured homes proposed for the site, only the plan that fencing will separate the housing development from structures currently on the property (a house, grain bin, shed, etc.) ( see PRN 267...

NOAA Fisheries is seeking public comment on the four-page draft National Seafood Strategy (PDF). Thursday, March 16 is the last day to submit comments. Submit comments online or via email . If you choose to submit online, you may write comments in the form or upload a document. In addition, NOAA is holding a virtual listening session Thursday, March 9 at 5:00 pm (Dial in: 888-552-9483, Passcode: 765-8451). According to NOAA Fisheries Releases Draft National Seafood Strategy, Requests Public Input , the strategy underscores NOAA’s strong commitment to seafood sector resilience. It aligns with the Biden-Harris Administration's goals for economic recovery, environmental sustainability, and climate resilience. Further, the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health points to the need for increased seafood consumption in the United States, which this strategy aims to address. The strategy also responds to the unprecedented challenges facing the U.S. seafood...

On March 9 , the Northumberland County supervisors will hold public hearings on two utility-scale solar farms. The hearings begin at 7:00 pm. ( Agenda and hearing documents ) The first solar farm is on Old Glebe Point Rd (Tax Map Parcel #36-(1)-63), off of Jessie Dupont Memorial Hwy (State Route 200). The 45-acre parcel is owned by Steven W. Jett. Old Glebe Point, LLC has applied for a Conditional Use Permit to allow a utility-scale solar energy facility on the property which zoned A-1. Read the Old Glebe Point Rd application (PDF). The second is on Folly Rd (Tax Map Parcel #27-(1)-304 and 304A), off of Northumberland Hwy (US Route 360). The 37-acre parcel is owned by Steven W. Jett. 200 Folly, LLC has applied for a Conditional Use Permit to allow a utility-scale solar energy facility on the property which zoned A-1, Agriculture. Read the Folly Rd application (PDF). Rob Hickox, Land Delivery Project Manager at SGC Power (which is part of Pivot Energy ), answered a number of ...