Considering a Dundee Church Chimney

While out and about recently looking at places where Chimney Swifts had been known to roost this time of autumn, a dramatic change was noted at Dundee Presbyterian Church at Happy Hollow Boulevard and Underwood Avenue.

On October 4th, it became apparent that what had been an open chimney was capped by a metal contraption and a flue, which completely prevented any swift access.

In looking at previous records for this place, two years ago 297 swifts used this structure as a night's roost. A few days previous to this record, more than a hundred were also present.

In evaluating the situation further, though the chimney was blocked, there were a couple of swifts which flitted past at dusk, apparently evaluating the condition.

Officials with Dundee Presbyterian Church were subsequently been contacted a few times regarding the situation. They were not aware of what they had caused when they put in new heating boilers. No reply has yet been received on how they will consider the change they have caused.

It is very obvious that the chimney being blocked has meant the loss of a prominent roosting site in the Dundee area, forcing the birds to go elsewhere.

Blocking the chimney and forcing the birds to be "adrift in the wilderness" is basically no different than someone putting plywood on each door of the Dundee Presbyterian Church, keeping them from their celebratory sanctuary.

There is nothing different from that happening in comparison to what they did to their birdly neighbors, the Chimney Swifts. They may have not known about the results of their actions, but they are now aware of how they are influencing the local swifts.

While taking these pictures on October 10th, swifts could be readily heard twittering in the airspace, eating bugs which could otherwise be pesky pests for the human residents. The bugeaters are benefiting the other residents, yet the blocking of a chimney - or complete removal in many instances - is one indication of how they get treated in return.

Church Indifferent

The elders of the Dundee Presbyterian Church were indifferent to the fate of the chimney swifts. Nothing will be done to address the change, according to the operations manager of the church. When the latter gentleman was spoken to, he tried to explain that they had landscaping around the building, but that was cut-off as any greenery has nothing to do with a chimney.

At the church sign, it says at the very top: "All Are Welcome." This is obviously not the case and expresses a view of hypocrisy. If you go along with what we want, then come in, but if you are being of our great world, and use our church to celebrate your existence, and new boilers are needed and the chimney gets block, then you are not welcome.

This is the sign which presents one message, though the truth is otherwise. In the upper background is the capped chimney.

During a second stop at the Dundee Presbyterian Church to contact an official on this matter, the people there were over-bearing, and pompous, trying to insist that I do what they wanted, even trying to be forceful. They kept asking what I wanted, as if it was their business, which it is not.

At the Dundee Presbyterian Church, there could be no information found on how the church has any concern for the environment. Nothing on this topic could be found on their website. There was no bicycle rack at their empty shell of a building, with so-called "elders" which have such a myopic view. On Sundays, adjacent streets are packed with vehicles as the members come to a place now known to not welcome all. And the church is trying to work with the city to get additional parking so more vehicles can take over the streets, according to information read while waiting at the place.

Where are the options for green transportation, such as promoting bicycling or car-pooling?

Elders of the Dundee Presbyterian Church did not consider any options to retain their avian visitors. The church is anything but welcoming and may they suffer the fates due to their action and decision.

The Chimney Swifts should be known and appreciated, but at the Dundee Presbyterian Church, just the opposite happens. Hopefully the birds will be elsewhere and may the bugs and insects they had consumed be left behind to bother the church people.

Car of a member of the Dundee Presbyterian Church blocking the handicap access point along the sidewalk. This is a violation of a city ordinance. The person driving this car was not visibly handicapped. Parking pictures taken Sunday morning October 16, 2011.	Cars of church members parked in the bicycle route along the west portion of Happy Hollow Boulevard. Note how the lane ends. There is a block section along the east side of the Dundee Presbyterian Church where there is no marked lane, probably so the church could have parking.
Another view of the parking situation. The markings in the street seem to indicate there had once been markings for the bicycle route, but they were removed, undoubtedly at the request of someone not wanting the lane there.

Illegal Parking Depicted

Members of the Dundee Presbyterian church continue to show obvious disregard for other people in the community. Upon visiting the church area on October 23rd, the following two instances of vehicles blocking the handicap access for the sidewalks were noted. The two vehicles were also causing an impediment to pedestrians and bicyclists using the sidewalk.

A city of Omaha ordinance prohibits the parking of vehicles either blocking the sidewalk and/or blocking these street level access points along the sidewalks.

Both vehicles shown could have been ticketed by law enforcement officials.

This is another example from October 31, 2011.

Pipeline Projects Impacting Wetlands Require Permits

Projects of various sorts which occur within jurisdictional wetlands within Nebraska require a permit from the U.S. Corps of Engineers and a state agency.

In the case of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline through Nebraska, any impacts to wetlands - including lakes, marshes and meadows - would be regulated by Section 404 provisions of the Clean Water Act, as well as Title 117 regulations defined by the state.

According to a conversation with a representative of the Corps on October 7, TransCanada has not applied for a permit in Nebraska.

A permit would be required, the agency representative said.

The KXL pipeline corridor would go through numerous wetlands - especially in western and southern Holt County - based upon known details of its route.

A typical permit process includes an application which defines the acres of wetlands being impacted by a project, what mitigation will occur, a monitoring plan to ensure the created wetlands are suitably replaced the "lost" wetlands.

Nationwide permits can be issued. An individual permit process can also be utilized by the regulatory agency. this type of permit normally includes a 15-30 day period where the public can provide pertinent comments regarding many criteria for a thorough evaluation.

A permit would be required for each state through which the pipeline would pass, the Corps' representative indicted during the phone conversation.

In the case of Title 117 regulations in Nebraska, any mitigation efforts for "isolated wetlands" would be voluntary and not legally enforceable as there is no pertinent legal statute, according to a representative of the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality.

Legal mandates in other plains states is not known.

The review process for a particular Corps permit review may extend for many months, due to the requirements which must be fulfilled before any work can be done.

Flooded Corn-fields Ephemeral Habitat on Missouri River Flats

What is typically corn fields south of Bellevue was flooded in late summer and early autumn of 2011, the year of the great Missouri River flood. Standing water were wetlands utilized by various species of birds as the conditions were suitable for them to reside and feed.

It wasn't until mid-September that any bird use features were determined for the flat land along the east and west sides of Harlan Lewis Drive. This area is on the north side of the Big Papillion Creek. On the south side of the creek are the well-known La Platte Bottoms, a locale which has not been accessible for months due government-enforced road closures.

When the aberrant wetlands were first noted, there was an extensive amount of standing water being used by different sorts of fowl. It was early in the autumnal migration season. Blue-winged Teal were the most prevalent this day, along with numbers of swallows and a few other unusual species such as the Yellow-headed Blackbird.

There were just a few subsequent visits reported for this place. Overall there were 27 species denoted as indicated by a summary of available records contributed by a two or three area bird-watchers and as determined from personal visits. Other observers are known to have also visited the locale, but their observations were not reported.

Common Name	9/17/2011	9/28/2011	10/1/2011	10/5/2011
Wood Duck	- -	- -	- -	8
Gadwall	2	- -	- -	- -
Mallard	26	- -	- -	2
Blue-winged Teal	235	- -	- -	7
Northern Shoveler	- -	- -	50	8
Northern Pintail	- -	- -	3	- -
Pied-billed Grebe	6	- -	3	- -
Great Blue Heron	5	1	- -	- -
Osprey	- -	- -	- -	2
American Golden-Plover	- -	45	- -	- -
Killdeer	8	- -	65	55
Lesser Yellowlegs	- -	10	2	- -
Pectoral Sandpiper	30	11	3	- -
Stilt Sandpiper	- -	2	2	- -
Long-billed Dowitcher	- -	15	- -	- -
Franklin's Gull	1	- -	- -	- -
Ring-billed Gull	1	- -	- -	- -
Belted Kingfisher	1	- -	- -	- -
Northern Rough-winged Swallow	100	- -	- -	- -
Barn Swallow	100	400	200	40
Marsh Wren	- -	- -	1	- -
American Robin	- -	- -	- -	35
European Starling	- -	- -	- -	350
Red-winged Blackbird	100	- -	- -	20
Yellow-headed Blackbird	6	- -	2	- -
Common Grackle	- -	- -	- -	100
Brown-headed Cowbird	30	- -	- -	- -

These records indicate the avian use of ephemeral habitat resulting from flood conditions at lowlands along the Missouri River in eastern Nebraska.

On the last visit noted, a rapidly shrinking extent of standing water remained. There was a large extent of barren and dry ground. The influence of the flood waters was rapidly diminishing. Killdeer were still abundant. Few waterfowl were about and their numbers was dramatically exceeded by the swarming starlings and grackles.

The highlight of an evening visit was two Osprey. One carried a fish as it looked for a handy spot to eat an evening's meal. A second Osprey was still looking for a fish of some sort stranded among the few bits of remaining water.

There will be plenty of frogs left without any water in the pending days as the unsually dry and warm weather conditions continue.

There is little if any information to report on how flood waters created conditions suitable elsewhere which may have been used by migratory birds. The impact of the great flood has been a tragedy for many people along the river, yet it should also be noted that other results of the situation can also be considered. The riverine flows unsurpassed in the past few years have provided a variety of habitat in many places for Missouri River birdlife, perhaps representing the situation once prevalent when the river was not channelized.

Stormwater Project Underway at Elmwood Park

Work has started on the stormwater project being done at Elmwood Park. The primary focus now is repairing where the water empties into Wood Creek.

Tree removal is underway where the bioretention gardens are to be placed in the swale on the east end of the southern portion of the golf course.

The stormwater drain is being replaced at the lower extent of the project. The hill is to be reestablished. There will be 84 tons of large rock riprap placed where the water empties into the creek.

The errant tree limbs shown in the creek were being removed by construction personnel during a site visit on October 5th.

This work is being done for $8.1 million, as financed by the City of Omaha.

West Table Playa Wetlands Pictorial

Scattered among the agland of western Custer county, there are many small playa wetlands which provide ephemeral habitat for migratory birds. The usefulness of these places varies upon precipitation, with ample water during wet times and no water when it is dry and hot, causing the water to dissipate.

Recent weather in central Nebraska has been notably warmer than usual, with no precipitation for weeks. The playa wetlands have been shrinking, and there are few places with remaining water.

The following images pictorially convey the condition of some of the recognized playas.

August Views

These photographs are courtesy of Ed and Maxine Wehling, local residents.

Cool Playa

Griffiths Playa

Johnson Playa

Overnight Playa

Wehling Playa East

Wehling Playa South

Wehling Playa West

October Views

During a morning outing on October 2nd, these pictures were taken of a couple of the playas visited.

Hostick Playa

Cemetery Playa

Wetland Extent

This image indicates the extent of wetlands in an area west of Merna, as designated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Disc Golf Course Project and Hummel Park

The following information was received from the Omaha Metro Disc Golf Association member Aaron Martin in response to the previously reported ruination of resources at Hummel Park. The email reply is presented as received to convey that the group is also not pleased with what was done.

..."the OMDGA had nothing to do with the spray painting on trees. In fact, the membership was disgusted by it and went as far as publicly offering a cash reward for information on who it may have been. Unfortunately we never got any information but I assure you that we would make an example of the vandal if we did.

"As for littering - the OMDGA is comprised of hard working volunteers whom have a lot of respect for Omaha parks, it's associated neighborhoods, and it's patrons. The disc golf course is on the trail system and, from time to time, our volunteers pick up trash and bring it back to where it is easier to load later. And frankly, we don’t discriminate. That is, it makes no difference who left the trash, we want it out of there. Further more, all club members are law abiding citizens, and do not participate in illicit activity.

When it comes to the trails, tees, and erosion: this course was designed around the already installed trail system of Hummel. It's also important to know that we are not finished with this course and have a lot of work to do yet before considering it playable. Our plans include tackling any erosion problems or potential erosion problems on all fronts. We want this course to be not only environmentally conscious but safe and sound.

On a finished course we see much more positive effects from disc golf as you can see in the document attached. It is important to understand, however, that some of what we are describing as a problem is backwash from something very positive – community enthusiasm. As indicated above, we just need to work our way through this transition. The OMDGA is aware of the problem and we are working diligently to bring this project to completion. We believe that tee signs, directional signs, TRASH CANS, and proper tees are the ultimate solution.

The concerns outlined really boil down to two things: transition and increased usage. Erosion, trash, vandalism may well seem to increase during the transition stages. Construction sites are often less than pleasing in appearance (i.e. the work in the day camp area). However, we have a clear, and positive goal and the fact is this is good for the park. We are bringing young people back to the use of city parks for wholesome recreation. In turn, the increased traffic will detour crime and creates a safer more positive environment.

I'd like to close with an invitation to anyone whom would like to give suggestions on how to best partner with all activities, and patrons at Hummel Park."

Cedar Removal Considerations on Sandhills Highways

During a recent trip through the sandhills, notes were kept on the situation regarding cedar trees along the some highways in the region. There were some places where there were no errant cedars. These locales presented a wonderful vista, which truly represented a sea of grass.

The following areas were otherwise, and details were provided to staff at the Nebraska Department of Roads so they can know of the problem and put sufficient effort into the task to get rid of the cedar trees.

• along Highway 91 from Highway 2 at Dunning to Brewster; this was the worse condition of a roadside noted
• Highway 97 north of Mullen, especially from the village to the county line
• Highway 83 north of Thedford; most of the unwanted trees are to the southern extent, as upon getting into Cherry county there are only a few which mar the view. The grassland along this stretch is mostly tree of trees and by removing the relatively few trees present, this would create a wonderful vista of the grass scape.
• Highway 2 west of Broken Bow; especially to Merna and Anselmo

Also, along Highway 20 from Cody to Merriman, there is perhaps one cedar tree along the highway that needs to still be removed. It would be gone now except a large enough saw was not available to remove it. Two other smaller cedars were recently cut to achieve the goal of having no invasive cedar trees.

In 2004, the Nebraska Department of Roads initiated a program to remove cedar trees in this region. There are some obvious successes for this effort, but the work needs to be actively continued.