The Wednesday Wetness

At USA Today Water into whine: Century of problems rage at Lincoln reflecting pool. Remarkably unpartisan

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Redness a bit late, but within reason.

The Wednesday Wetness

WUSA9,  Magnet fishermen recover dozens of electric scooters from the Anacostia River in DC

“How did that get in there? I want to know this," said Cedric Ellis, a Southeast DC resident walking along the Anacostia River Sunday.

"I ran out here a few days ago and I saw these lined up over here," said Zoe Ellis. "There was a bunch of them.”

The scooters and trash were pulled from the water by magnet fishermen Ian White and Kevin Sutliff.

“It's our hobby on the weekends," said White. "We try to go around different waterways all over the state, moving on to different states now, and try to clean up and get stuff out of the water.”

But what is magnet fishing?

“It's a Neodymium magnet," said Sutliff. "We attach it to the rope and throw it in the water and see what we find. It's almost just like regular fishing. You get what you get.”

In late October, they recovered a record haul along the Anacostia River near Nationals Park.

“I didn't expect to see 31 scooters and bikes in two days, let alone an electric shopping cart," said White.

Not to mention guns.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Casual Denim up on time and under budget.

The Wednesday Wetness

USGS on YouTube, Susquehanna River Story — What does the science say about water quality?

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: In The Kitchen up on time and under budget.

The Wednesday Wetness

WTOP, Limited water advisory in effect for parts of Prince George’s County

A heads up for people who live in the Camp Springs area of southern Prince George’s County. WSCC Water is asking customers to limit their water usage to help avoid a Boil Water Advisory and preserve water in case of a fire.

WSCC says crews are currently working to restore water flow to the Camp Springs water tank. The advisory impacts nearly 1,400 customers. Until further notice, customers are asked to stop all outside water use, take shorter showers, limit flushing and the use of washers and dryers.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Sydney Sweeney IS Black Cat up and pining for attention at The Other McCain. 

The Wednesday Wetness

James River Association, Conserve Water at Home Using a Rain Barrel this Spring!

As the old saying goes, “April showers bring May flowers” and what a shame it would be to let all that beautiful April rain simply fall off our roofs when it could be harvested and used for May blooms! Rain barrels are an easy and economical way to water plants and reduce stormwater runoff at home. Did you know that a single rain barrel can harvest hundreds, even thousands of gallons of rainwater annually? It’s true! They can save residents money on water bills and reduce stormwater utility fees in some localities too. If you don’t have a rain barrel and are interested in installing one at home, join us at one of the following rain barrel workshops offered by the James River Association this spring. . . .

The Wombat has Rule Five Sunday: Indoor Lounging up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

 

Some Wednesday Wetness

YaHoo! Is it safe to shower during a thunderstorm?

Were you ever told that you should never to shower during a thunderstorm? Whether or not you’re still following that rule, you may be unaware of the reason behind the warning — or if it’s even legitimate. After all, unless your shower is outdoors, the consequences of sudsing up during a storm may seem fairly minimal, right?

As it turns out, experts say that you should avoid showering during a thunderstorm if possible — and there’s a good reason why. Here’s what you need to know about showering during a thunderstorm, and why you may want to hold off on bathing when you see those dark clouds rolling in.  What’s the issue with bathing during a thunderstorm?

It's not the thunder that's the issue during a storm — it's the lightning, which every thunderstorm produces. You may be thinking: But my shower is indoors and the lightning is outside. That may be true, but electricity can still travel indoors through your plumbing system.

True, but it's not my biggest fear.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Sleeping In ready as usual at The one and only Other McCain.

Wednesday Wetness

PA to Plant 10 Million Trees to Improve Chesapeake Bay Water Quality

The Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership is helping to get Pennsylvania on track for its 2025 Chesapeake Bay pollution reduction goals. So far, the partners have tracked more than 5.9 million trees planted.

Joe Hallinan, manager of the partnership for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, said they plan to distribute 100,000 trees each spring and fall to reach the goal of 10 million new trees in the state by 2025.

They worked with more than 300 direct partners in distributing about 500,000 native trees and shrubs in 2023. He expects through other resources to see even more trees planted.

“Beyond just distributing trees, we also work on education, community outreach, and resources,” Hallinan explained. “Many of our partners have other grants funding sources and places that they’re getting additional trees that are helping us reach that goal of 10 million.”

He added the Foundation’s restoration team prioritizes projects in vital “riparian zones,” the buffer zones between land and water. The partners work directly with landowners and community groups to plant trees along rivers, streams and shorelines, and in urban neighborhoods.

Hallinan noted the bay watershed is 64,000 square miles. Its health depends on having cleaner rivers and streams, and Lancaster County and south-central Pennsylvania stand out as crucial areas for action. He added trees reduce the amount of polluted runoff, which in turn reduces erosion and flooding, and results in cleaner water.

“Trees help the water infiltrate into our groundwater reservoirs, and therefore, the runoff events are less severe,” Hallinan pointed out. “And we also know that trees use nitrogen to grow. And that’s one of our other, what we consider [to be] a pollutant when it’s in a high volume. Every plant needs that to grow.”

The Wombat has Rule 5 Monday: Happy Lee-Jackson Day! up at The Other McCain.

The Wednesday Wetness

13 News Now: Blockage causes sewage to spill into creek in Chesapeake

A blockage on Christmas Eve led sewage to spill into stormwater drainage structures connected to Newton Creek, a tributary of the Elizabeth River, in Chesapeake.

In a news release sent Monday afternoon, HRSD, a regional wastewater treatment servicer, said crews worked to unclog a pipeline after receiving reports of overflowing sewage near Great Bridge Boulevard and Neal Street. Officials said the blockage was cleared and the spill contained in the early hours of December 25.

Using vacuum tanker trucks, crews worked to remove the blockage and sewage that had already overflowed. To prevent any further overflow, they installed a bypass. Officials said the overflow and subsequent effort to fix the blockage did not impact traffic or HRSD services.

HRSD estimates approximately 2,500 gallons of sewage had been spilled. Cleanup of the main area of the spill has been cleared, while work continues for cleanup of the remaining minor areas.

I'm pleasantly surprised that it's not Baltimore. But, being the Elizabeth River, one of the three known hotspots for pollution in the Bay, it may have actually been cleaner after the sewage spill.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Happy New Year! ready at The Other McCain.

The Wednesday Wetness

The Baltimore Banner, In stunning last-minute move, Baltimore task force forgoes vote on new water authority "The Baltimore Regional Water Governance Task Force ended its three-hour meeting by asking its consultant to go back to the drawing board and consider amending the city and county’s utility service agreement."

In the final minutes of the Baltimore Regional Water Governance Task Force’s penultimate meeting Thursday night — expected to end with a vote proposing study of a final option to reform Baltimore’s water and sewer system — task force members decided too many questions surrounding the financial impact of a quasi-public authority remain unanswered.

“Before I came to this meeting today, I must admit I thought I was hook, line and sinker set on” recommending a politically appointed water authority, said task force member Carla Reid, former general manager of Maryland’s largest water utility, WSSC.

But, with unresolved questions surrounding debt refinancing, the fate of city-owned water infrastructure assets and workers’ pensions, and whether low-income Baltimore-area residents would be plunged into high-rising water bills, Reid said, “it gives me pause.”

Reid’s comments came shortly after task force member Patrick Moran, president of an American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union council, said the governance model the task force was prepared to vote on — a politically appointed authority composed of directors and a rate-setting board — seemed to be the privatized system that Baltimore comptroller and task force Chairman Bill Henry, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott and Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. said they didn’t want.

Henry clarified that his position was “that we would not recommend leasing it out to a for-profit entity,” rather than a quasi-public authority.

“I’ll admit,” he added: “It’s the splitting of a hair. But it’s an important hair to split.”

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Face Time up at The Other McCain.

The Wednesday Wetness

Pennsylvania DEP, DEP Releases Draft 2024 Pennsylvania Integrated Water Quality Report

DEP submits the Integrated Water Quality Report to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the public every two years, as required by the federal Clean Water Act of 1972. Pennsylvania waters are assessed for one or more of four uses—drinking water, fish consumption, aquatic life, and recreational use—and determined to be supporting or impaired. A waterway is classified as “impaired” when it is not meeting water quality standards.

The interactive map in the “2022 to 2024 Changes” section makes it easy for Pennsylvanians to see whether their local lake or stream is supporting or impaired and whether this reflects a change in status over the past two years. With one click, users can see the details on which use (or uses) DEP assessed the waterway for. If it is impaired, they can see both the cause and the source.

For the 2024 report, DEP expanded assessment of waterways, with 7,566 stream miles and 103,777 public lake acres newly assessed or reassessed for a use. The 2024 report also shows water quality restoration, noting that since 2004, approximately 967 miles of streams and 28,727 acres of public lakes have been restored. A color-coded interactive map shows which waterways have been restored for which uses and when.

 The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: One Last Glimpse Of Bikini up at The Other McCain.

The Wednesday Wetness

At the Baltimore Banner, Is Maryland ‘squandering’ its groundwater supply? Officials, experts say no.

A recent investigation from The New York Times, using data from across the country, found the United States is “squandering” its vast supply of groundwater by using it too quickly. The investigation focuses on areas including the Southwest, parts of Texas and California and, perhaps unexpectedly, Maryland. Monitoring wells show the water level is dropping across Maryland. The water is getting further away from the surface, meaning there’s less water underground than there used to be.

About 75% of the monitoring wells around Maryland have seen water levels drop over the last 40 years, some by as much as 100 feet, according to the Times investigation.

One area of the state seems to be of particular concern: rapidly growing Charles County.

“Most of the water we’re pulling out of the ground is thousands of years old,” Jason Groth, the county’s deputy director of planning and growth management, told The Times. He said the county would be out of groundwater within the decade.

The wells in our water system are monitored by USGS on a regular basis, every few years, and show little decline in height over the years. If, per chance, the two aquifers the we do draw on, the Nanjemoy and the Aquia (200-300 ft deep), were to dry up, we would have to sink wells to the Patapsco Aquifer, about 1000 feet deep. While that would be very expensive, it would probably solve the problem in the long run. 

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Cowgirl Style up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

The Wednesday Wetness

The Wombat has Rule 5 Monday: Public Benefactors up and awaiting your digital delight.

The Wednesday Wetness

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Late Night With Bri Teresi up on time at The Other McCain.

The Wednesday Wetness

Some Wednesday Wetness

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Yanet Garcia up on time and under budget.

The Wednesday Wetness

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Marine LeCourt  up on time and under budget.

The Wednesday Wetness

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Eugenie Bouchard up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

No Sweat!

Also, no life: NYPo, Fitness influencer dies after botched operation to fix constant sweating

A popular Mexican fitfluencer and bodybuilder tragically died July 7 after apparently undergoing a botched operation to remedy her profuse perspiration.


Odalis Santos Mena, 23 — who regularly uploaded pics of her ripped physique to her 147,000 Instagram followers — was reportedly recruited by the SkinPiel clinic in Guadalajara to promote a breakthrough antiperspirant treatment called MiraDry.

The procedure purportedly combated excess underarm sweat by using heat energy to remove sweat glands, thereby mitigating body odor and even reducing armpit hair. 

However, the endorsement stunt went horrifically awry when she suffered cardiac arrest after being anesthetized. Mena died shortly thereafter, when the clinic’s employees were unable to revive her via CPR.

Enamored of the so-called antiperspirant panacea, Mena had reportedly promoted MiraDry on social media with assurances that the “no sweat” treatment was safe and effective.

It sounds like a reaction to the anesthesia, which would not necessarily reflect negatively on the efficacy of the operation. Nevertheless, I will be content to sweat rather than go to a clinic in Guadalajara for the operation.

The wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Rumiko Manbagi  up at The Other McCain on time and under budget.

Your Wednesday Wetness

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Alina Becker ready and waiting at The Other McCain.

Your Wednesday Wetness

 

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Julie Strain, RIP ready for your digital amusement.