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Email Announcements We Are Receiving Today: See What’s Going On Around The Community

1) Quilt Meeting on Feb. 6

The Mountain Laurel Quilt Guild will hold its monthly meeting on Thursday, Feb. 6 at 1:30 p.m. We meet in the conference room on the second floor of the Senior Center on Poplar Grove Connector in Boone. Our program will be “Cool Tools.” Miss Myrtle from the Myrtle Beach Quilt Club will demonstrate some new and interesting things to make quilting easier. Join the fun and add new items to your collection of tools. Call Dolores at 265-6148 if you have any questions. 

2) Sri Sri Yoga Class on Jan. 24-Jan. 26

The Art of Living Retreat Center, a wellness and meditation  venue in Boone, will host Sri Sri Yoga Friday, Jan. 24-Sunday, Jan. 26. Sri Sri Yoga is a ten hour workshop spread over three days, uniting the body, breath and mind in a joyful experience. A combination of gentle and vigorous series of asanas is taught for the well being of the body, while an equal emphasis is placed on techniques for nurturing the mind and spirit. With Sri Sri Yoga’s multidimensional routine combining yoga postures, breathing techniques, yogic knowledge and meditation, students gain a complete take home practice. It is suitable for beginners as well as experienced yoga practitioners. Through te practices taught in the workshop, participants can lose weight and be cured on chronic diseases such as insomnia, asthma, diabetes, hypertension and migraine. For more information or to register, call 1-800-392-6870.

3) Yadkin Riverkeeper Annual Meeting and Public Forum Held Jan. 27

Yadkin Riverkeeper and Catawba College Center for the Environment will host a public forum on Monday, Jan.27 at Catawba College Center for the Environment located at 2300 W. Innes Street in Salisbury to discuss a variety of pollution sources impacting water quality in High Rock Lake and the Yadkin River. Please join us for a reception and annual meeting beginning at 5:30 p.m. followed by the public forum. Your participation is encouraged during the question and answer session. Dr. JoAnn Burkholder, Professor of Applied Aquatic Ecology at NC State University will address the environmental effects of nutrient pollution and the science behind nutrient management to improve water quality in High Rock Lake. Donna Lisenby, Global Coal Campaign Coordinator for Waterkeeper Alliance will address the impact of coal ash on High Rock Lake and surrounding areas. Dean Naujoks, Yadkin Riverkeeper, will provide an update on Tomasville sewage spills and present PCB analysis conducted by Dr. Peter de Fur, Virginia Tech University. High Rock Lake has been identified by the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) as failing to support its designated uses of recreation, aquatic life and water supply because of elevated levels of turbidity, chlorophyll-a, and pH since 2004. Under the Clean Water Act, NCDENR is responsible for identifying and developing a schedule to meet pollutant limits to improve water quality. NCDENR, Division of Water Quality (DWQ), has been mandated to develop a comprehensive Nutrient Management Strategy (NMS) to address pollution sources impacting water quality to help improve the conditions of the river, including High Rock Lake. A recent report presented to the NC Environmental Management Commission described High Rock Lake as “one of the most eutrophic lakes in North Carolina…with mild to severe algae blooms, with blue-greens dominant in summer.”  When algal blooms occur, it decreases the dissolved oxygen content in the lake to levels so low that many fish and aquatic insects cannot survive. Exposure to the blue-green algae and their toxins can pose serious risks to humans, pets, livestock, wildlife and cause fish kills.  Exposure may occur by ingestion, dermal contact, and inhalation. THINK OUTSIDE THE SINK: THREATS TO HIGH ROCK LAKE AND THE YADKIN RIVER is the third in a series of seven forums that are made possible from a generous grant from Wells Fargo and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.  THINK OUTSIDE THE SINK is designed to inform citizens about new rules and regulations the state is currently developing that will improve water quality in the Yadkin River and require cooperation from municipalities and industries in the Yadkin River basin. More than 730,000 people in the Triad region depend on the Yadkin River for drinking water. Citizen participation in the stakeholder process is vitally important for developing an effective plan for improving water quality. NC Riverkeepers Demand Clean Up of Duke Energy’s Coal Ash Pollution: Earlier this month, Yadkin Riverkeeper joined 6 other local conservation groups to participate in state court enforcement actions against Duke Energy’s illegal coal ash pollution throughout North Carolina.  The motion was filed by Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) on behalf of groups dedicated to protecting public waters across North Carolina.“Duke Energy’s coal ash pollution is threatening rivers, lakes, and drinking water in the Yadkin Pee Dee River Basin and all across North Carolina. With DENR’s declared mission of ‘customer service’ to its polluter permittees, groups like ours, that are dedicated to protecting our lakes and rivers for recreation and drinking water, need a voice in this process,” said Yadkin Riverkeeper Dean Naujoks.