dhirschman – Page 5 – Hirschman Water & Environment, LLC

Packera Pursuit

Packera Pursuit

I am being followed. Or, rather, I am following. I keep glancing over my shoulder to see if it is still there. Not because I feel threatened, but because it is cheering me along, whether on foot or bicycle. The subject is Packera aurea, known commonly as golden ragwort or golden groundsel. Packera is unflinchingly cheerful. If you are following Packera, you are likely in a wooded setting on a rocky ridge or a floodplain or maybe a rain garden, and it may be early or late Spring. How fortunate for you!

The 25 Cent Part That Breaks the Million Dollar Machine

14Aprildhirschman

The $0.25 Part That Breaks the Million Dollar Machine

Recently, two seemingly incongruous things happened on the same day. The first was that I turned on my kitchen faucet and water sprayed all over the kitchen. The second was an online presentation that included an academic review of the deficiencies of stormwater practice inlets. Ah ha, I said, the 25 cent part that breaks the million dollar machine!

The Damming of America’s Rivers: Reflections on the Age of the Technocrat

11Januarydhirschman

The Damming of America’s River: Reflections on the Age of the Technocrat

Most of the nation’s rivers and tributaries had. . .been dammed by the late 1960s. . .The mainstreams of the Columbia, Missouri, Mississippi, Colorado, Tennessee, Ohio, and Rio Grande had been nearly fully developed (NRC, 1999, p. 18). To our modern sensibilities, this seems like a crazy fact. What societal forces were in play to allow this to happen?

Giving Back to Your Ecoregion

21Decemberdhirschman

Giving Back to Your Ecoregion

I live in Central Virginia, but also the Northern Piedmont/Piedmont Uplands ecoregion. As much as political boundaries, our ecoregions are responsible for the landscapes, livelihoods, cuisine, recreation, industries, cultures, and storytelling of the places where we live. As such, our ecoregions provide for us and sustain our communities.

The Wisdom of Doctor Dish

27Octoberdhirschman

One of my first jobs out of college in the early 1980s was working as a dishwasher and line cook in a vegetarian restaurant in Durham, NC. The name of the restaurant was SomeThyme. The place was quite a fixture within Durham’s cultural vibe at the time.