Community Planning

Denitrifying Bioreaders: An Emerging Best Management Practice to Improve Water Quality

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 14:25:00 -0400

Denitrification Management

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 11:28:00 -0400

Managing Liability

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 09:43:00 -0500

MANAGING LEGAL LIABILITY SERIES: Sources of Insurance

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 09:43:00 -0500

MANAGING LEGAL LIABILITY SERIES: Workers' Compensation & Vendor Liability for Farmers' Market Owners and Operators

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 09:43:00 -0400

Community Engagement: Successes in Virginia Communities

Fri, 12 Oct 2012 09:43:00 -0400

How Do Stream Buffers Reduce the Offsite Impact of Pollution?

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 11:28:00 -0400

MANAGING LEGAL LIABILITY SERIES: Virginia Attorneys: Members of the American Agricultural Law Association

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 09:43:00 -0400

MANAGING LEGAL LIABILITY SERIES: Questions to Ask when compairing insurance coverage

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 09:43:00 -0400

MANAGING LEGAL LIABILITY SERIES: Conducting the Liability Assessment

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 09:43:00 -0400

MANAGING LEGAL LIABILITY SERIES: Insurance Factsheet

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 09:43:00 -0400

MANAGING LEGAL LIABILITY SERIES: How Much Liability Insurance Coverage Should I Have?

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 09:43:00 -0400

Urban Stormwater: Terms and Definitions

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 08:53:48 -0400

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 5: Vegetated Roofs

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 08:53:48 -0400

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 14: Wet Ponds

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 08:53:48 -0400

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 4: Soil Restoration

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 08:53:48 -0400

NONPROFIT BOARD LEADERSHIP: Understanding the Role of a Board Member

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 09:43:19 -0500

You have decided to say yes and accept the invitation to serve on the board of directors for a nonprofit
organization. You have the knowledge and experience to be a great board member. But, you also have
served on numerous nonprofit boards and realized that your past commitments have ranged from being
heavily involved in the organization’s work to avoiding the meetings. As you prepare for this new role,
you wonder what organizational differences made you drift in your commitment or created the stronger
connection resulting in either fulfilling or neglecting board member duties.

FACILITATION SERIES: The Dynamics of Group Decision Making

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 12:39:14 -0500

Facilitators use a variety of tools to guide
groups in the decision-making process.
Depending on the maturity of the group and
the defined goals, facilitators may begin by
discussing the values the group holds and
building the common ground on which
decisions will be based. Many times,
groups are “fuzzy” on what they want to
accomplish and need to spend time
discussing what the end result should be.
To begin this conversation on the vision, a
facilitator might ask “if this were perfect,
what would it look like?” With a clear vision,
the group begins the process of generating
ideas, narrowing down the ideas into a list
of priorities, and finally developing a plan for
implementation that includes accountability
measures.

FACILITATION SERIES: Facilitating Group Discussions Generating & Narrowing Ideas and Planning for Implementation

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 12:39:14 -0500

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 2: Sheet Flow to Open Space

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 08:53:48 -0500

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 7: Permeable Pavement

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 08:53:48 -0500

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 8: Infiltration Practices

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 08:53:48 -0500

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 15: Extended Detention Ponds

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 08:53:48 -0500

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 10: Dry Swale

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 14:36:32 -0500

A dry swale (DS) is a shallow, gently sloping channel with broad, vegetated, side slopes. Water flow is slowed by a series of check dams (see figure 1). A DS provides temporary storage, filtration, and infiltration of stormwater runoff. Dry swales function similarly to bioretention, and are comparable to wet swales; however, unlike a wet swale, a DS should remain dry during periods of no rainfall. A DS is an engineered best management practice (BMP) that is designed to reduce pollution through runoff reduction and pollutant removal and is part of a site’s stormwater treatment practice.

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 12: Filtering Practices

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 14:36:32 -0500

A stormwater filtering practice (FP) treats stormwater runoff by passing it through an engineered filter media consisting of either sand, gravel, organic matter, and/or a proprietary manufactured product, collecting it in an underdrain, and then discharging the effluent to a stormwater conveyance system.

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 3: Grass Channels

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 09:12:13 -0500

Facilitation Series: The Things Facilitators Say . . .

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:35:54 -0500

There are times when a facilitator pauses a group in its discussion to allow the group to reflect
on what has happened, start a discussion, clarify an issue, evaluate its progress, or encourage
participation from all members. During these moments, the right statement or question will help
transition the group to a new thought process. A facilitator’s goal is to guide the group through
the process for accomplishing the defined task while maintaining a good rapport with the group.

Best Management Practice Fact Sheet 11: Wet Swale

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 08:53:37 -0500

A wet swale (WS) is an engineered, best management practice (BMP) arranged in a straight line that is designed to reduce stormwater pollution. A WS consists of a shallow, gently sloping channel with broad, vegetated, side slopes and slow flows

Understanding Virginia’s Planning Commissions

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 09:41:13 -0500

Virginia Master Naturalist

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 13:42:00 -0400

Preparing for an Emergency: The Smart Thing to Do

Thu, 26 May 2011 08:24:34 -0400

Preparing for emergencies is not new. Your grandparents probably have extra supplies, such as: soap and shampoo in the bathroom closets, onions and potatoes stored in the basement, and canned goods on pantry shelves in their home. They understood the value of having a little extra on hand in case of emergencies.

Foundations for a Successful Farmers Market

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 09:25:58 -0400

Starting a farmers market is a challenging task with numerous issues to be tackled and activities to sequence. While generating a customer and vendor base is clearly fundamental to the successful establishment of a farmers market, there are also key administrative foundations that should be established if the market is to get off on the right foot and have long-term viability.

Extension Leadership Councils: Planning for Success

Thu, 25 Mar 2010 11:39:35 -0400

An Extension Leadership Council (ELC) is a key ingredient for success in developing, implementing, and evaluating Extension programs that serve the local community. This publication offers practical guidelines and resources for successfully engaging a local ELC. Contents include council responsibilities, criteria for membership, a sample position description, focus topics for regular meetings, and a template for meeting agendas.

Powell River Project - Stabilizing Reclaimed Mines to Support Buildings and Development

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:36:19 -0500

Land-use constraints hinder economic activity in the Virginia coalfield region; the lack of flat land hinders infrastructure construction, industrial recruitment, and business development. Reclaimed coal mines are widely discussed as potential development sites, but modern reclamation rarely prepares mined areas for building-support purposes. This publication describes mine-stabilization procedures that can be employed for developing reclaimed mine areas for building construction.

This publication outlines general concepts and guidelines. Parties seeking to construct buildings on any mined area should engage the services of a professional engineer.

Powell River Project - Reclaiming Mined Lands as Industrial Sites

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 09:50:53 -0500

With the decline of coal-mining jobs in Virginia’s coalfields, availability of local employment in high-wage industries is a major concern. One factor that hinders high-wage manufacturing industries from locating in the coalfield region is a shortage of suitable industrial sites. In some cases, coal surface mines can create sites suitable for industry as a post-mining land use while meeting all Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) requirements.

The Virginia GIS County Data Series

Fri, 01 May 2009 01:00:00 -0400

The Virginia GIS (geographic information system) County Data Series is part of an effort by the Virginia Geospatial Extension Program to facilitate increased awareness of and access to geospatial products and services by educators, local governments, state agencies, and other entities. This extensive collection of GIS data provides some of the most up-to-date and accurate framework data available.

Value, Benefits, and Costs of Urban Trees

Fri, 01 May 2009 01:00:00 -0400

Urban Forestry Issues

Fri, 01 May 2009 01:00:00 -0400

The U.S. population has grown increasingly urban each decade, from 28 percent in 1910 to 80 percent in 2000 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2002). In the Chesapeake watershed alone, residential development is predicted to consume 800,000 acres between 2003 and 2030, nearly 90 percent of it replacing farmland (Boesch and Greer, 2003). As urban communities grow larger and faster than ever before, natural resource management in these areas becomes crucial for achieving sustainable development and maintaining and enhancing the quality of life and the environment.

Assessing Community Needs for Child Care

Fri, 01 May 2009 01:00:00 -0400

The need for child care has been documented nationally through state and national efforts, publications, and demographic studies by public, private, and federal agencies and organizations that serve the interests of children and families.