Beechmere Diary

In this meeting with ODNR Mining Division staff and with neighbors that surround the mining site, these are the thoughts that resonate for me.

For a mine like the Joy Hollow mine, permits are needed from ODNR, the EPA, the Army Core of Engineers, and from the County and State Highway departments.

It appears to me that each of these organizations proceeds more or less independently.

This could lead to situations where the mine permit is approved, but environmental, flooding, or transportation issues have not been resolved.

It is also seems evident that at no point is there any organization or process charged with weighing the benefits and costs to the community.

It seems to me that this disconnected process is one that should be challenged, but I don’t know how to best deal with it.

I was glad I came down for the meeting and it was good to see the neighbors who share concerns about the proposed strip mine. I was also impressed with the Division of Mines staff, but I fear nice people can make bad decisions.

I checked the cabin and camp site after the meeting. The pond drain was partially blocked. I cleared the cat tail debris. Obviously, I will need to further modify the drain or get rid of the cat tails.

On this visit, we checked the pond drain to make sure it was flowing and to see if there is any new muskrat activity. Last year, the drain plugged up over winter and this seem to have encouraged the critters to make burrows. At his point, there has not been any new burrowing and the newly extended pond drain seems to be working well.

The 2009 Sycamore planting seems to be doing well. Some of these are now about five feet high and are higher than the surrounding golden rod plants.

The driveway and near the cabin continue to be very wet and soft. There are a number of seeps where water come to the surface.

On this visit, I installed insulation and OSB panels in the kitchen area, ran the water supply and drainpipe for the sink, installed the countertop and sink.

The nights now are long and cold. While the days were in the mid sixties, the nights were in the low thirties. I used the kerosene heater several nights, but only to warm the shed enough to allow several hours of reading.

On Wednesday, over 130 people attended the ODNR “Informal Conference” about the proposed strip mine. About fifty people spoke (including me). All but four opposed the mine.

One of the major issues is the water quality of Sharp’s Fork. Ohio University experts tested the water at the headwaters and at our pasture. The results of these samples show the water quality to be very good and just short of exceptional. There were 21 varieties of fish in our location and fresh water clams.

On this visit, I installed an extension of the pond drainpipe to reduce the chance of it getting plugged up as it did last winter. This will also make it easier to locate the pipe if it does get plugged.

I used the garden tractor trailer to transport the table and chairs to the cabin. The driveway is STILL very soft because of the unusually heavy rains this year.

I gathered three buckets of walnuts and dumped these at the southwest corner of the pasture for the squirrels to plant.

We have many pawpaw groves, but I haven’t seen any fruit for many years. I went into the woods looking for fruiting pawpaws. I didn’t find any, but as there are many young trees, there must be a source of the seeds. I will have to look earlier next year.

On this visit, I completed the north side cabin soffit, installed a new gutter on the shed, installed four floor vents, and constructed side panels for the garden tractor cart.

The trees are starting to show autumn colors and the Yellow Buckeye have already dropped their leaves. I see that the sycamores planted in 2009 along the driveway are now above the Golden Rod. The red maples planted in 2010 in the same area are not yet easily seen. I do see some oaks, but not many.

After this visit, Chris and I finally have the cabin fully enclosed, except for some caulking.

The vine that worried me on the last visit is NOT kudzu. The ODNR Biologist suggests Tick-Trefoil, but it looks more like Hog Peanut (Amphicarpa bracteata) to me. When the seeds appear, we should be able to make a better determination. Whatever the vine is, it is still covering an area with spring wild flowers.

I constructed a trailer that can be pulled with the mower. This will help bring materials and supplies when the driveway is too wet. Unfortunately, the fuel pump on the mower quit, so replacing the pump will be needed on the next visit.

I signed a waver giving an individual from Ohio University access to test the water in Sharp’s Fork as part of the attempt to get ODNR to deny Oxford Mining’s strip mine application.

On this visit, I constructed a new base and shelves for the outhouse sink. The old plastic sink fell apart earlier this year.

I tried to work on the driveway repairing the ruts from earlier visits, but the horse flies and the warm weather quickly discouraged me.

There is a vine growing near the bunkhouse that might be kudzu. I have taken picture to send to the ODNR Biologist to identify. There have been several reportings of kudzu in the area.

I finished installing, caulking, and staining the exterior trim for the corners and where the three levels of siding are joined. This leaves finishing the sofits, the upstairs windows, and the overhanging eaves. I don’t expect to do the eaves this year.

The kitchen area now has an overhead light and one outlet. The only remaining wiring will be in the knee wall upstairs at the front of the cabin.

I installed the eight foot long ground rod. I read on the internet that, if lucky, you can dig a starter hole and then pour in water. Then you just repetitively raise and lower the rod and continue to add water. I was skeptical, but it worked. Luckily, there were no stones in the way. So, I connected the ground wire to the breaker panel and the ground rod and carefully covered up the rod and the wire. The wiring code calls for this. I guess it is to protect the connection between the wire and the rod.

Now for the fun part. The next morning, I looked at the ground rod, and the hole and the wire were very neatly excavated. It looked as though I had forgotten to fill the hole. So I filled it all back in again. Again, the next morning, it was again as though I had never filled the hole. So, this time, after filling the hole and burying the wire, I thoroughly watered the area and covered it with 2″ x 8″ boards. I assume raccoons.

While the high temperatures were in the 90′s, the real discomfort was the high humidity. It rained briefly on Wednesday and cooled some. Actually, Thursday and Friday were fairly comfortable with light breezes.

The other discomfort was the deer and horse flies. It cuts down on productivity when you work with one arm and hand and flail around with the other to ward off the horse flies. I still got bit behind my left knee right through my jeans. OFF didn’t seem to discourage the critters. They weren’t a problem when I was working on the cabin, but the pond and driveway were challenges. Fortunately, by the next trip, they should be gone.

I found a multiflora bush completely infected with the Rose rosette disease. So, I cut it up into about thirty pieces and spread this around another area that has many multiflora bushes. It would be great if this works to reduce this invasive plant.

Oxford Mining has re-submitted their strip mine application to re-mine the properties immediately north of our woodlands. I fear nothing will stop this now.

I drove down on Friday and returned on Tuesday. I didn’t get stuck or drive off the driveway this trip. I did have to dodge the ruts, though. There had been a big rain on Monday with 1.5 inches of rain and big winds. The only rain this trip was a bit on Monday about 5:00 pm and then Tuesday morning before 9:00 am.The pickup was at the corner, so other than carrying stuff to the pickup, there was no problem. It was in the upper eighties, but the humidity was very high.

Oh, there is no doubt that the walnut tree on the west side of the cabin can hit the cabin in a big wind storm. Only the drip molding is dented a bit at this point.

The mower started right up with out priming or fussing. But, it would not move at all when I let out the clutch. After poking around, I saw that the belt drive between the engine and the transmission had come off one of the pulleys. It was fairly easy to get it back in place. I don’t know why the belt was off. Maybe pushing the mower when still in gear? I moved the mower to a sunny location and put the solar panel in service.

The wiring is done now, except for the kitchen lights and outlets. I put two lights upstairs and two outlets. When we start placing beds and stuff, I may need to add additional outlets.

I did some more checking to see why I had voltage between the ground wire and the neutral (27 volts) and between the ground and the hot lead (30 volts). When I check for shorts, the aren’t any. When I turn off all the breakers and selectively turn each on at a time, I get a voltage of about 4 volts between the neutral and the ground. As I turn on additional breakers, the voltage goes up. For example: one breaker ~ 4 volts, two breakers ~ 8 volts, six breakers ~ 27 volts. I did some research last night and it appears that there is voltage induced in the romex wiring and this voltage would not be evident if the ground wires were actually grounded. While there is voltage, it seems there is little current. I will put in a ground bar on the next trip.

I started digging a trench above the pond to divert water from the areas where the grass did not take. I used the dirt to fill in several of the holes in the dam. I am not sure the holes are from muskrats, but may have been caused by the plugged drain and the higher water level. I need to figure out how to keep the drain clear over winter. There are still three or four more holes to fill.

I put up more trim on the front, east and west sides. It was so humid that caulking that according to the directions on the tube should dry in two hours took much longer.

I met with an ODNR biologist to consider the possibility of converting the portion of the pasture dominated by reed canary grass to a wetlands and the effect this might have on the Eastern Spadefoot toad habitat.

Since a portion of the wetlands would be in the CRP Riparian project area, we would need to get approval from USDA Farm Services.

Soil testing will be needed to determine the best locations for the wetlands.

The biologist strongly advocated removal of the Autumn Olive shrubs in the pasture as these shrubs are starting to produce seeds which will accelerate the invasion.

He also expressed concern that muskrats may be burrowing into the pond dam. In addition, there are many black willow seedlings growing on the dam at the waters edge. Both of these conditions can damage the dam.

Also on this visit, Chris, Olivia and Sophia came to help with the cabin. We installed the fascias on the north and south sides and partially installed the vents and soffits.

I brought a rider mower and Chris and Olivia mowed the driveway and a path down to the pond.

It is still very wet from the incessant rains. It rained Saturday morning and again Sunday evening.