Fairfax County Environmental Excellence Award
Our own Betsy Washington has won the
Fairfax County Environmental Excellence Award this year. This award in
part, is in recognition of her work in conservation landscaping and
watershed protection right here in Lake Barcroft and applauds Lake
Barcroft's RPA gardens and conservation landscaping programs and
educational outreach as models not only for our community, but for all
of Fairfax County. None of this would have been possible without the
support of forward-looking past LBA Board members and the WID who
believed in and supported the conservation landscaping efforts. The nomination/award also mentions the great community spirit and
hundreds of volunteers that worked to make these gardens and outreach
programs a reality. The award especially applauds the Board-approved
LBA Landscape Philosophy and the LBA-WID Tree Replacement program both
developed in conjunction with the visionary George McLennan while he
was M&I Chair. They quote our LBA Landscape Philosophy that states,
"community property will be landscaped to protect the water quality of
the lake by protecting the riparian buffer zones, protecting the urban
forests, by using native plants whenever possible, and by avoiding all
invasive plants". They conclude by stating, "In short, the
landscaping of their (LBA) common areas is a model and inspiration for
the community and beyond to demonstrate watershed-friendly landscaping
policies.
A big thank you to you all for continuing to support the Tree
Replacement program that will help insure that the water quality of
Lake Barcroft and our urban forest continue to thrive beyond our
tenure here in this little bit of paradise. The
official ceremony will be held in September, 2012.
Congratulations Betsy!
