Geography of the James (Earth Lodge)

A book is not the same as a river. Sure, The Potomac by Frederick Gutheim, an urban planner and historian, will provide a sense of history and add that depth of understanding to the river itself, but I’ve never seen the Potomac and known I was seeing the Potomac. I don’t have anything to reference from my own experience really. Only childhood memories. So a book can only do so much. I’ve read In River Time and spent a great deal of time at the James River. So any comparison I can do between these two rivers will be pretty unbalanced.

As a side note: It was a major disappointment that I had to miss the trip. Sometimes I think maybe I could’ve gone if I had just toughened up, but then I don’t think that’s true. I probably would’ve had a fever the whole time and had to leave right in the middle. But this trip is a big part of what makes Earth Lodge Earth Lodge. And I’m so jealous of all the pictures of the trip and the inside jokes I don’t understand. But alas, such is life.

From what I’ve gathered, the history of the Potomac and the James is relatively similar. It’s resources and geography were used to settled the surrounding lands, including a now major city adjacent to each respective river. The problems with pollution are also similar, even follow a similar timeline. Getting worse and worse with the development of industry, and them starting to improve in 1972 with the clean water act. Although the pollution problem in the Potomac seems to be more serious, the nitrates and phosphorous in the water in the Chesapeake posing a more serious threat to the whole ecosystem and watershed than the same in the James. Perhaps because more effort has been put into cleaning up the James? Maybe the James is more accessible, used more recreationally than the Potomac? I’m not sure, as the book really only spoke for the history, not the current problems. I only glean this much from class today.

The one experience I have with the Chesapeake that does shape some of these assertions was from when I was little. My aunt used to have a condo by the bay. We would stay there during the summer sometimes. I remember this one time, I was probably about seven, where we went and the water was this unnatural blue-green color. Like that stuff you clean bathrooms with. We weren’t allowed to swim. We went fishing during that trip. I’m not sure where we were, but we had to go home before we caught anything because my older brother spotted a dead carrion bird, which my dad said was a really bad sign, since they eat what’s already died. There were also some dead fish floating in the water by the dock we were using. So suffice it to say, we didn’t fish for long that day. We were never allowed to eat what we caught, even when we did actually catch fish and the water wasn’t green. It was more than a little frustrating to a little kid at a beach.

I think that experience really brings home the downfalls of pollution. That was in about 2002 or so, and I’ve heard the water quality has improved, but that was pretty drastically bad. It’s what makes me think that pollution is a larger problem in the Potomac and Chesapeake than here in the James. Then again, I had never been to the James until last year, so it have conceivably been just as bad. I wish I could’ve gone on the trip this weekend so I could know what exactly is being done to fix and prevent that from happening again. I think the recreational use of the James is a big part of what’s gotten it cleaned up and sustainably taken care of. I hope that the Potomac is used as recreationally, because it’s probably my favorite thing about the James.

I was a little skeptical when I found out that our fall break trip would be to the Washington, D.C. and Annapolis areas.  To be brutally honest, I thought the trip was going to be rather lame in comparison to the trips my friends were taking with their SSIRs to places like the Dominican Republic and California.  If there is anything that this class and our trip have taught me, though, it is that there are so many wonderful things occurring right here (essentially) in our own backyards.  There are so many things to learn about here that have such relevance and importance to our daily lives, and they are often overlooked and taken for granted.

The bonding aspect of this trip is not one I will soon forget. EL love <3

I was pleasantly surprised with the educational quality of the activities and daytrips we participated in through the Chesapeake Bay.  Local foundations such as CBF, I always assumed, were geared at a much younger crowd because I presumed they see a lot more of local elementary, middle, and high school age students than they do students from universities.  However, I think the crews on our trips did a fantastic job at facilitating a level of conversation geared at students our age with the basic background knowledge of watersheds and the Chesapeake Bay area.

Captain Eric relays information about the fish we obtained while using the trawl net.

As for the state of the Potomac River itself, there were aspects of it that shocked me in both positive and negative ways.  Overall, the river was in better condition than I thought it was originally.  Although our catch with the trawl net on the Potomac was not exactly the most diverse, it was reassuring to hear that was the least diverse catch captain Eric had seen all year and that the lack of diversity was more than likely a result of the recent weather as opposed to the state of the river.  I was also shocked to learn just how clean the discharge at Blue Plains from the wastewater treatment plant actually is.  They are truly making amazing advances right in D.C. regarding waste management and disposal, and they are providing a model for other waste management facilities to study and replicate.  Something that shocked me negatively, though, was how high the levels of nitrogen are in the Chesapeake Bay.  When I first saw the test results, I thought there must have been something wrong with the testing equipment.  I never would have thought about the agricultural runoff in the area as a contributing factor, especially not while out on the water when there is not a single farm in sight.

The interactive aspect of this trip is what really drove home all of the points for me.  Being able to test the water quality with chemical tests, turbidity tests, and observation and then analyze both quantitative and qualitative data through our organism collection really allowed me to fully grasp the significance of the problems occurring in the Chesapeake Bay watershed as a whole; everything made sense. It was interesting to learn about the restoration techniques that are occurring, and to talk about ways to get the community involved and make them care about their watershed.  These are similar to the problems we discuss concerning the James River watershed, so it was intriguing to hear about what things have or have not worked in another similar watershed area.  An obvious way both watershed areas have made an impact on the impressions of their inhabitants was with the implementation of a report card to “grade” how healthy the rivers in the area actually are.  I honestly never knew such a thing existed for many areas until taking this class, but listening to the director of Camp Wright talk about the condition of the Potomac based on its last report card really demonstrated that the shock value of providing the disturbing hardcore facts in a way that people can easily comprehend is a fantastic way to get people talking about their watershed.

Earth Lodgers analyzing maps and charts of all kinds to better understand our “place.”

While we did learn a great deal about the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and much of this information can be linked back to the James River because of their similarities, it would be interesting to conduct tests similar to those we did on this trip right here on the James.  We have read a great deal about the nutrient levels and pollution as a result of the different forms of runoff and atmospheric deposition, but it would be interesting to conduct our own tests and establish quantitative values.  These numbers could also be obtained through data that has been previously collected and recorded, but nothing quite beats the shock value of seeing a 35+ as a nitrogen level reading.

Earth Lodge does science.

Looking back at my previous blog posts, they bring to mind different childhood memories or stages in my life. In my first post, I discussed how the water in an area connects all the people and animals in far-reaching and unexpected zones.  When I was a little kid my parents called me “Nature Girl.”  Though my house has woods for a backyard, it is only really a 50 foot strip made uninhabitable by a creek running through it and two steep hills. It runs through my neighborhood, and I would journey far (for a child) to explore. Growing up with agriculturalists for parents, I believe it made me closer to them, as we shared an appreciation for the Earth. I made friends with the children of my neighborhood on these adventures.

Going off of a reading in my second blog, I talked about how nature can be found in areas you wouldn’t expect, such as urban lands.  I used to spend all day in our woods, exploring the undeveloped lands of my neighborhood.  I would stare into the creek running through our backyard and try to spot as many creatures as I could.  I loved all animals and bugs did not faze me.  As a child I once kissed a toad; I was always overly optimistic.

Once I hit about middle school the outdoorsy phase in my life was over.  If I went outside I would get mosquito bites, scratches, and find tics on me the next day.  It would be hot, I would sweat, I would have to take a shower, and I would have to change my clothes.  It became more trouble than it was worth.  My schoolwork became more difficult and I was busy doing other, cooler, things.  Maybe I didn’t like being teased for kissing a toad. My parents stopped calling me Nature Girl. Despite a more indoor lifestyle, in high school and college I never lost my appreciation for the Earth. However, this more translated into environmentalism and stopping to smell the flowers, instead of actually experiencing nature.  Just like my third blog, nature was integrated into my life in unknown ways, though like Richmond and many people nowadays, I didn’t appreciate it like I should.

Last year when it came time for me to apply for SSIR and Living-Learning Programs. I started looking into Earth Lodge.  I was looking at other SSIRs additionally, but I knew that at some point, I wanted to do Earth Lodge. Filling out the application, it hit me how little time I actually spent outside.  Then I thought about my past, as nature girl. When I looked back at my previous blog entries, I noticed that all of my entries involved aspects of Nature I had never noticed before. This was all the hidden nature I am finding now as a part of Earth Lodge; nature I was too busy to see before.

My family has always camped; it is just what we do.  Even this past weekend when most families were taking the time to dress up and go out on the town in the city of Richmond, my family and I spent our time in jeans and sneakers, lounging around a campfire and making s’mores.  Because of the way I was raised and the sheer number of hours I spent outside as a child, I am fully confident in saying that I have a greater appreciation and concern for the outdoors than a lot of other people my age.  My parents did not allow my sisters and I to stay inside and watch television on nice days, and we certainly never owned any video game devices.  We were told to go play outside, and so we did.  We splashed around in the creek behind my house and dug for buried treasure.  We rode our bikes through the woods, pretending we were Native Americans atop our noble steeds, collecting greens and berries for our grass salads for supper.  I would not give this aspect of my childhood up for the world, because it has taught me to see the beauty everywhere in the outdoors, not just in those places that travel brochures deem worth seeing, and it has taught me to seek out the beauty of the outdoors everywhere.  William Cronon alludes to the allure of nature and wilderness in the article “The Trouble with Wilderness; or, Getting Back to the Wrong Nature,” and I easily identified with the individuals that he claims view the wilderness as a “sacred temple.”

Because of my family’s love and appreciation of nature, we also do more to preserve it.  I was the first one of my friends to begin championing the reusable water bottle initiative in my high school because my whole family decided to stop buying water bottles.  I was the only one amongst my friend to sport the wrap-n-mat as opposed to the typical plastic sandwich bags people use every single day (http://www.wrapnmat.com).  As a family, we decided to install solar panels on my house, and I can tell you all about what can and cannot be recycled in the state of New Jersey.  Needless to say, I came into Earth Lodge feeling like a bit of a know-it-all on the topic of conservation and eco-friendly efforts, and I received a huge reality check.

For as much my family does do its part in trying to promote an environmentally conscious way of living, I am learning that it is important to educate yourself and understand why such efforts need to be made in the first place.  Taking something for granted is not something anyone likes to admit, but I must be honest in saying that I think until this point, I took the wilderness for granted a bit.  It is easy to go to national parks and get lost in the beauty and the escape into a more sublime state, but I never really stopped to think about the environments themselves.  I never in a million years would have considered what trees were growing in the park, or why they grow where they do, or about the possible upstream pollution flowing into the breathtaking streams and rivers throughout the park.  These are all things I just aesthetically absorbed and enjoyed, but really did not question.  My sister is an environmental studies major at the University of Delaware, and she is constantly rambling on about the environmental effects of this or that, and while I nod my head and agree, part of me has always just kind of tuned her out.  Being in this class, reading articles about the James River and its surrounding riparian zones and applying some of the broader ideas to additional observations and reflections on other water sources and issues, has spurred an inquisitive side to me that I have never really felt before when it comes to the environment.  Earth Lodge has certainly opened my eyes and infiltrated my life in more ways than I ever thought it would.

I catch myself looking at the different trees and identifying how wide the riparian zone is now when I am down at different portions of the river.  I look at landscaping more now, and think about the astounding amount of pesticides that must be used to keep lawns so artificially green.  I cringe over the fact that these pesticides will undoubtedly flow into the rivers people all over the country love and cherish, and more frightening than that, they will seep into the ground and into our underground water sources as well as contaminate our drinking water.  Just today in my philosophy class we were watching the movie Food, Inc. and a major point that was made about the corporate meatpacking industry was the huge contribution they make to the agricultural run-off that pollutes our country’s water sources.  Not many people in my class probably clung to this revelation like I did.  I am certain the majority of them were focused purely on the gruesome images of the suffering cows, but because of Earth Lodge, I clung to this knowledge, and more crucial than that, I understood the implications.

(One view of the James River taken on our Downtown adventure)

Earth Lodge and the class geography of the James River have given me the resources and knowledge to understand the myriad of factors affecting the James River on a daily basis, but I have also learned how these factors are not issues solely for the James River.  Many of these issues are universal for many rivers all over the United States.  There are too many people who, like my previous self, do not question the health of their local water sources or what they may be doing on a daily basis that has the potential to negatively affect the water sources that need to be preserved.  The aspect of this course that has made me so inquisitive has been the field trips to different portions of the river.  Connecting the things we read about in class to the real-life observations we make when we go on trips is what has cultivated my inquisitive nature and taught me what to search for when observing and trying to understand my surrounding environment.  Previously, I was a passive observer, but now my mind is constantly active with thoughts about the environment and what makes it work in the way it does, whether it be thriving or struggling to survive.  Earth Lodge has completely changed my way of thinking, which was something I never expected from a geography class, but I have been pleasantly surprised, to say the very least.

The James River Park System, it is exactly that, a SYSTEM. Driving the narrow back roads to gain access to the Wetlands, was an experience in and of itself because many of us had never been there and simply thought that TLB was lost. Never had I been to this entry point on the James River. We pulled up in our 16 passenger van under the canopy of trees. We were greeted with new smells and sights, while walking into the park entrance. It is simply incredible the new things you can learn about your local community once you open your eyes and explore further than just the popular local areas.

I have been to Pony Pasture and Huguenot Flat Water, but the Wetlands was a new adventure for me. As we walked down the dirt path, the sunlight made its way through the trees and illuminated the path for us. We continued walking down this beautiful path and had momentary stops along the way to look around us. While stopped we discussed the various different types of borders, as well as, what a wetland actually is and what constitutes land as “wetland.” Talking about the ways, people try to get around building on wetlands, brought me instantly back to my Environmental Law and Policy class. During the course of the semester, we talked about different environmental laws and how they are used to protect the land. To many of us, protecting the environment is a no brainer- we would not have joined Earth Lodge (I do not think) if we did not respect the land in some way. But there are people out there who do not understand. Their views are plainly anthropocentric and/ or they simply have never had any exposure to the local beauty. People travel to experience “natural beauty”. For these people, I believe there is some sort of disconnect between their local environment and themselves. There is a link that is missing.

For me, this link was created back in the spring 2011. It was my freshman spring and I was in an environmental chemistry class learning about how pollutants enter the lake and calculating their residence times. It was hard to believe the types of impacts our every days life have on the environment we adore. After transferring, I decided to pursue my love of the environment and my passion to protect it. Through field trips during my environmental studies classes, I have been able to develop place identity with the city of Richmond, the river and the surround landscapes. I appreciate the beauty and feel connected with the land. This connection allows me to care, and this connection leads me to want to do my part in protecting these areas for future peoples. But had I not had this place identity created for Richmond, I might not care. I might not know anything about the access points to the James River, the trees that thrive in a riparian zone, and the effects of impervious surfaces and urban heat islands. The link that is missing in most people is place identity. To develop place identity, people have to experience the area around them. They need to walk the lands, see the organisms, and be one with the nature around them. This feeling is something that cannot be taken away. This feeling creates internal connections to that place, those smells, and those sights.

Sitting on the edge of the River at the Wetlands, was like any other experience I had ever had on the James River. The fog was rolling down the stream following the river. The sun was reflecting off the water and there was silence. This hydrologic system has been running for years. It is an interconnected system, meaning the water from the impervious surfaces of urban development run off to the wetlands, and riparian zone where it is filtered before hitting the river. This system is powerful and simply incredible, but we have influenced the river. Over time, we have changed the health, the flow and the overall ecosystem that encompasses the river. It is something that I am not proud of and I want to try to change. I believe that we can mimic this sturdy river system by creating connections amongst ourselves to join together to protect our river. I would like to be able to share the same joy of the river with future people. How can we connect with this river system to make it even stronger, more powerful and have an even higher function?

This question is the type of question that is always lingering in my head. How can you get anyone to do anything? Today’s class discussion on In River Time, that I facilitated, left me feeling hopeful. We need to target people of all ages. There is no set way to target everyone with one sign, or one tour, or one event. I believe there needs to be categories. Like anything, there will always be individuals that don’t fit perfectly into them and there will always be people that simply will refuse to care about the environment around them. But the more people that support the system, the stronger it will be. I believe that this mentality works on a small scale, such as the Westhampton lake or the James River, but it also works on a larger scale, like the Chesapeake Bay. Each person has value similar to every part of an ecosystem. The more organisms there are the more function the system has within it. The James River is a SYSTEM that people need to become more connected with.

“Scarlet oak?”
“It’s definitely not a white oak. Look at the bark.”
“Yeah, these leaves are definitely the same. And it’s the same as those other four.”

Sam and I casually discuss the type of trees we see on campus as we walk between classes. This can become a common scene the last few weeks as we, along with all our other classmates, eagerly try to learn the differences and similarities between native Virginia trees. We have definitely learned a lot about the James River watershed and local ecology already, but some ideas have really stuck for me.

As a freshman at UR last year, I thought I knew a little bit about the James River, gathering bits from upperclassmen who spent time on the river, occasionally reading about events on the river, and the short trip we took to Belle Isle as part of Roadmap to Success. I realize now that I really didn’t know much at all about the river and that the only way I’ve been able to really learn and begin to understand this powerful body of water is through hands-on, experiential learning.

Through the Geography of the James River Watershed class, I’ve had a handful of opportunities to engage with the river and its watershed, sometimes including a lesson from Dr. Lookingbill and other times completely by myself. The fusion of relevant readings and journals based on the river with visits to various sections of the James has provided a unique learning opportunity to understand what the literature describes beyond text on a page. When the “In River Time” chapters describe the rapids in the river or the canal that was built in Richmond, I understand the extent of impact that these things had on the river and the development of Richmond because I was able to see the rapids, canal, and other parts of the river first hand.

Geography of the James River students along the river near the Wetlands

Some of the concepts of geography that we first learned about are space and scale. Understanding the history and geography of a place requires these viewpoints to envision a historic event or physical feature. Standing along the canal walk in downtown Richmond, I could imagine the large cargo ships that were pulled along the water. I could picture early explorers fighting the rapids in dugout canoes or small boats where the city of Richmond now stands. And I can understand that the Fall Line served as a geographic boundary between two prominent Native American tribes: the Powhatans and Monacans. This extra level of understanding beyond text would not be possible from spending all of our class time inside the physical classroom.

Reflecting back on the topics we’ve covered in class and the articles we’ve read, one concept that has really resonated with me is the Awareness-Appraisal Model. This concept arose from a study based on the James River and nearby Upham Brook watersheds that compared the awareness an individual has for their own watershed and the likeliness of that individual to be willing to protect or restore their watershed.

I feel like I’m proof of this concept because I have taken so much more ownership of the river in just the last month or so. I haven’t even visited half of the access points along the river, but I already want to protect it because I know a lot about the river. I even feel compelled to share my love for the river with others: this past weekend I took my father and pet rabbit on a bike ride down to Pony Pasture rapids to show them the beautiful spot along the James. While we were there, I told my dad a little bit about where we were and what I’ve learned about the river so far this semester. We talked to some locals and a few people who were just visiting a friend in town. One girl explained that her friend lives nearby and “had to show us this spot!”. I feel like this kind of appreciation for a water body only comes from awareness and knowledge of the area.

My pet rabbit, Oliver, contemplating the James River

Between spending time in Richmond this past summer and these past few weeks of class, I consider myself a citizen of Richmond now. I feel like it’s become my home as I become more involved on campus and in the city. I can point a classmate in the direction of Belle Isle, name some of the major areas of the James River Park System, and tell someone how many miles it is to bike to Pony Pasture from campus (about 4 each way, a little hilly but mostly scenic, in case you were wondering). As part of my role as a resident of Richmond, I feel like its my job to share the pride I have for the city and spread awareness of the James river, both its state of health and the limitless recreational uses of it.

I look forward to the many lessons I can learn about the river and the watershed in general. I also look forward to applying some of the general ecology concepts we have learned to other watersheds, namely the Potomac River watershed. Some concepts are universal when applied to rivers, like the fact that once a waterbody is depleted, for most intensive purposes, it’s depleted for good. This can be applied to lowering water tables in Virginia as well as far away in Africa (an article about the Omo River watershed relating to a speaker who working first hand to protect her local water body). The concepts of riparian zones and the drawbacks of dams apply to all rivers. But a more personal concept is the idea that, in the words of Dr. Lookingbill, water bodies can bring you back in touch with nature and recenter you, no matter what river it is.

I understand now that though I may know more about the river than the average Richmond citizen, there is still so much more to learn about the James River: its long, deep history; the experiences one can have with it; and the resources we can gather from it. And I believe that by taking pride in this feature of my home and consistently engaging with it, I can always learn more and continue to protect it.