Adopt-a-stream, Vol. 6, no. 3 (May/June 1999)

GEORGIA
Adopt-A-Stream
Volume 6, Number 3, May / June 1999
Edie Ringel, Editor

National Wetlands Month

Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division

May is national wetlands month and a great time to learn more about this precious ecosystem. Wetlands perform many valuable functions that are necessary to keep our environment healthy. They provide a diverse habitat, purify water, provide flood control, produce oxygen, and much, much more. Wetlands take on many different forms. They occur on every continent except Antarctica and in practically every climate. They range from coastal saltwater marshes to inland freshwater swamps. Generally, wetlands are classified into five groups: marine, estuarine, lacustrine, riverine, and palustrine, depending on their location and the species that inhabit them. Marine wetlands are saltwater wetlands that occur along the coast. Estuarine wetlands are located where freshwater and saltwater mix. Lacustrine wetlands occur near lakes while riverine occur near rivers and streams. The most prevalent type of wetland in Georgia is palustrine. Palustrine wetlands, which are non-tidal freshwater wetlands dominated by trees, account for approximately 95% of Georgia's wetlands.

To learn more about wetlands attend the Community Watershed Workshop on May 11 and the Adopt-A-Wetland workshop on May 22. Contact Michele Droszcz at 404-675-1636 to sign up for the AAW workshop.

We've Moved!
Georgia Adopt-A-Stream has moved. Please make a note of our new address and phone numbers.
Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Environmental Protection Division 4420 International Parkway, Suite 101 Atlanta, GA 30354 Harold Harbert - 404-675-1639 Michele Droszcz - 404-675-1636 Edie Ringel - 404-675-1643 Fax - 404-675-6245 harold_harbert@mail.dnr.state.ga.us michele_droszcz@mail.dnr.state.ga.us

Community Watershed Workshop: Wetlands
The next community watershed workshop will be held from 6:30 - 8:00 pm on Tuesday, May 11 at the North Decatur Presbyterian Church. Because May is National Wetlands Month, the workshop will highlight this extraordinary ecosystem. Speakers will focus on the importance of wetlands and what you can do to help protect them. Also learn about the South Peachtree Creek Nature Preserve, a wetland being protected right in Decatur. Refreshments will be served. For more information please contact Edie Ringel at 404-675-1643.

1999 Erosion and Sediment Control Courses
There are openings for the Fundamentals of Erosion and Sediment Control course being offered May 18-20 on Jekyll Island. The course aims to build a solid working knowledge of erosion and sedimentation processes and practices. Topics discussed during the course include interpretation of State law as it relates to erosion and sediment control Best Management Practices, State agencies and County officials involved, the NPDES permitting process and more.
This course, which is sponsored by Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission and UGA Center for Continuing Education, costs $120. For more information and an application contact Joyce Fleeman at 706-542-2101 or fleemanj@gactr.uga.edu.
Baldwin County Wetlands Project
The Regional Training Center (RTC) at Georgia College and State University (GC&SU) has begun developing a wetlands demonstration project at the Baldwin Seed Orchard just south of Milledgeville. The RTC, in partnership with the Georgia Forestry Commission, will use areas within the Seed Orchard to establish a wetlands walk. Dr. Harriett Whipple from the Department of Biology at GC&SU is helping coordinate the project along with Sylbie Yon, the RTC director, and Jason Rich, a graduate student at the University. The walk will consist of activities adapted from the Aquatic Wild and Project WET curricula and will also include postings describing the vegetation, soil and water characteristics of the wetlands, uplands and transition areas. When completed in early fall, local educators, government officials, and environmentalists will be invited to an open house. The walk will be open to anyone interested in learning more about a wetlands. For more information contact Sylbie Yon at 706-485-9243.

Atlanta's Stream Clean Up Efforts Going Strong
The City of Atlanta has begun an aggressive stream clean up and public awareness campaign aimed at keeping Atlanta area streams clean. Since December the City has been conducting clean ups in six creeks throughout Atlanta. These include Proctor Creek, Intrenchment Creek, South River, Utoy Creek, Tanyard Creek and Clear Creek. So far the city has completed work on Proctor Creek, South River and Intrenchment Creek and has removed over 410 tons of debris. The debris included 68.2 tons of tires to be recycled, 119 tons of scrap metal to be recycled and 223 tons of trash including toys, mattresses and household garbage.
In order to ensure that streams do not return to their previous state after the clean up, the City has also launched a public awareness campaign. This program includes a school program centered around Captain Clean Stream whose motto reads; "When litter is dropped, it doesn't stop, it ends up in our streams," as well as a 24 hour hotline through which citizens can report illegal dumping
To report illegal dumping in the City of Atlanta call 404-330-6238 ext-4.
The Georgia Lake Society Update
The Georgia Lake Society will be hosting the Southeast Lake Management Conference scheduled for March 2000. If interested in participating in the planning process contact Marty Williams at 404-681-6356
To get involved in the Adopt-A-Lake program contact Mary Mayhew, Division of Science & Technology, Gainesville College at 770-718-3811 or Dr. Karen Porter, Institute of Ecology, 706542-3337

Watershed Management in DeKalb County

By Ginna Tiernan, DeKalb County Parks and Recreation, Natural Resource Manager

The DeKalb County Parks and Recreation Department's Watershed Management Program has two years of funding from a Section 319(h) FY97 Grant. Grant milestones include restoration of riparian buffers, stream bank stabilization, establishment of an Adopt-A-Stream program, and the development and distribution of environmental education materials.

The Federal grant provided for the hiring of a full time Environmental Project Coordinator. Since January of 1998 this position has been filled by Nicole Vachon. During this time partnerships with the Atlanta Outward Bound Center's EcoWatch AmeriCorps program and the Southeast Waters AmeriCorps program have been developed.

Vachon serves on the Education

Committee for the Peavine

Watershed and co-facilitates

quarterly watershed workshops with Georgia Adopt-A-Stream, Upper Chattahoochee

Nicole Vachon demonstrates stream bank stabilization techniques

RiverKeeper, Peavine Watershed Alliance, Fulton County, Gwinnett

County, and the City of Atlanta.

Recently, Vachon has begun working in coordination with the DeKalb County Public Works Department's Water Conservation Specialists and the DeKalb County Board of Education to present water related environmental education programs to elementary and middle school students in DeKalb County.

For more information about DeKalb County watershed management efforts Students from McNair High School and DeKalb County Adopt-A-Stream call 404-508-7602.
conduct biological monitoring
Community Watershed Project Addresses TMDLs

The Georgia Center for Law in the Public Interest has developed a community watershed project on the North Oconee River near Athens to address Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs), the maximum amount of pollution a water body can assimilate without violating water quality standards. The project, which is intended to serve as a state and national model, incorporates data collection processes adapted from the Adopt-A-Stream program. The first step in the program, known as the River Rendezvous, consists of a day-long assessment of water quality. At the last River Rendezvous, which was held on April 24, members of the community conducted visual surveys adapted from Adopt-A-Stream models through which they evaluated water appearance, odor, algae presence, land use in close proximity to the stream, vegetation, bank erosion, siltation, and the presence of trash. Their results will be used to encourage government, business, the University of Georgia, conservation organizations, and citizens to work together to improve water quality. For more information contact Beth Fraser at 706-546-9008. Adopt-A-Stream Calendar of Events

The following are trainings and workshops which educate citizens about wetland and stream monitoring. In 1999 we are placing more emphasis on providing Train-The-Trainer workshops. Note that one day chemical and biological recertification workshops will be offered quarterly. If you are a trainer who will be conducting a workshop, tell us about it and we'll include it in the next newsletter. Please call early to register. Space is limited!

What

When

Where

To Register

Biological Train-The-Trainer

May 8

Fernbank Science Ctr.

404-675-1636

Level I / Chemical Workshop

May 8

Paideia School

404-508-7603

Adopt-A-Lake Training

May 15

GA SW State Univ.

912-931-2253

Biological Workshop

May 15

Cochran Mill Nature Ctr.

404-730-8006

Biological Workshop

May 15

Paideia School

404-508-7603

Adopt-A-Lake Training

May 22

State Univ. of West GA 770-836-4540

Adopt-A-Wetland Workshop

May 22

Newman Wetland Center

404-675-1636

Level I / Chemical Workshop

May 22

TBA (Fulton County)

404-730-8006

Adopt-A-Lake Introduction

May 25

Lake Oconee HOA

770-427-8794

Adopt-A-Lake Training

May 25

Oxbow Meadows (Columbus) 706-687-4090

Biological Workshop

June 5

TBA (Fulton County)

404-730-8006

Biological Workshop

June 12

Davidson Arabia

404-508-7602

Level I / Chemical Workshop

June 19

TBA (Fulton County)

404-730-8006

Bio. & Chem. Recertification Wksp. June 26

Dunwoody Nature Center

404-675-1636

Level I Chemical Workshop

June 26

Forty Oaks Nature Preserve 404-508-7602

Biological Workshop

June 26

TBA (Fulton County)

404-730-8006

Don't forget, Georgia Adopt-A-Stream requires that you must get recertified every year so that your data is QA/QC! Sign up for a workshop now!

The Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Newsletter is published six times per year. For more information about the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream program or to contribute to the newsletter, call or write to:
Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Environmental Protection Division 4220 International Parkway, Suite 101 Atlanta, GA 30354 404-675-1639

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