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News
Norfolk District educates public on way ahead for Lynnhaven River restoration
May 5, 2009
Brittany Brown
Norfolk District Public Affairs Office
NORFOLK, Va. — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District, will provide the public a snapshot of what lies ahead for the Lynnhaven River at the 2009 Lynnhaven River Symposium.
Hosted by Lynnhaven River NOW, a local non-profit organization, the symposium is May 11, noon to 6 p.m., at Cape Henry Collegiate School's Dreyfus Auditorium in Virginia Beach, Va.
The symposium, which is free and open to the public, will highlight current scientific research and projects planned and underway to restore the Lynnhaven River.
Mark Mansfield, economist and chief of Planning and Policy Branch here will provide information on what lies ahead for native oyster restoration in the Lynnhaven River. The Lynnhaven River is considered a prime spot for oyster restoration because it is a trap estuary with high salinity, had historically high populations of native oysters and has considerably higher oyster recruitment today than many other sites in the Chesapeake Bay. As part of the district's native oyster restoration efforts, Norfolk District is building acres of new sanctuary oyster reefs in the Lynnhaven River. The reefs are constructed of fossilized oyster shell dredged from the James River. Building on the 30-plus acres of oyster reefs constructed in 2007, the Norfolk District constructed an additional 22 acres of new sanctuary oyster reefs in Broad Bay and Linkhorn Bay in 2008. Lynnhaven River NOW will organize additional seeding of reefs this summer.
Karin Dridge, a geographer with the Geospatial Section here will show attendees what the Lynnhaven River looked like in 1937. Using dated photos provided by the city of Virginia Beach, Dridge will compare 1937 aerial imagery with 2005 imagery. Geographic Information Systems, better known as GIS, allows Dridge to convert the dated photos into a digital format using a process called "georeferencing." The digitizing process, which averages one hour per photo, provides a way to compare imagery by viewing physical changes or trends or establishing historical land use.
Gregory Steele, a civil engineer in the Policy and Plans Branch will report on a relatively new joint endeavor of the city of Virginia Beach and Norfolk District to improve water quality, environmental restoration and protection of the Lynnhaven River. As cost-sharing partners of the Corps' Lynnhaven River Basin Ecosystem Restoration Study, Virginia Beach and Norfolk District identified six possible measures to address problems in the Lynnhaven River, as reported in Lynnhaven River NOW's 2008 State of the River Report. The report, which looks at 16 factors and grades each of them on a scale of A to F, concluded that the Lynnhaven River slightly worsened ecologically because of increased nutrient pollution and a net loss of wetlands.
In addition to Norfolk District, organizations participating in the symposium include the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Virginia Coastal Energy Research Consortium, city of Norfolk, Virginia Department of Health, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, city of Virginia Beach and the Governor's Commission on Climate Change.
While the symposium is free and open to the public, attendees are asked to pre-register so organizers can ensure adequate refreshments and printed materials are on hand. To register, call the Lynnhaven River NOW office at 757-962-5398, or email Laura Baity at lbaity@lynnhaven2007.com. For more information on the 2009 Lynnhaven River Symposium, visit http://www.lynnhavenrivernow.org.