Nashville is blessed with a wonderful system  of Parks and Recreation facilities.  In part,  this legacy  can be attributed to  wise civic leaders and to philanthropy of families such as the Lea’s, Warner’s,  Frist’s and so on.  On the other hand, we  have had a succession of outstanding professional  leaders at the Board of Parks and … Continue reading "Interview With TRPA Fellow Tommy Lynch"

Today we interview Sunny Fleming, Geographic Information Specialist with the Tennessee Division of State Parks.  Sunny and I talk about  how the Parks are utilizing “Avenza Maps” and GEO-PFD maps of the parks to provide the State Park Visitor  a whole new way of carrying around a map!  We also discuss the  Bioblitz which is … Continue reading "Enhancing the Visitor Experience, New Technology and State Park Maps, Interview with Sunny Fleming GIS Coordinator"

Recent reporting by The Nashville Tennessean alleges some rather serious, some would say disgraceful, problems at our State of Tennessee Disability Determination Office.  Many of the problems are well know to those who are required to deal with the Agency on a day to day basis.  Some are new.  The news reporting has created a bit … Continue reading "Need For Reform of the Tennessee Disability Determination Office, Interview With Attorney William Benjamin"

A new Conservation activist organization is getting off the ground here in Nashville: The Nashville Tree Task Force.  This group is committed to  being a watchdog for  Nashville’s existing trees, and to advocacy for increased tree canopy, and healthier trees.  Leading the charge is Jim Gregory.  Today we sit down with Jim and hear about his … Continue reading "The Nashville Tree Task Force, Interview with Jim Gregory"

The Tennessee State Museum has recently opened a monumental new building on the Bicentennial Mall,  just North of the State Capital in Nashville.  I sat down with Jim Hoobler,  Senior Curator of Art and Architecture at the Museum to talk about the history of the Museum and the development of the new building.

The American Chestnut Tree (Castanea Dentata) is a case study for what can go very wrong when an exotic pest gets loose.  In the early part of the 20th Century a fungal pest (Chestnut blight) decimated the once prominent tree, with long lasting effects on our landscape and wildlife.   Today scientists are making significant progress in … Continue reading "The American Chestnut Tree, Hope for Recovery, Interview with Forester Tim Phelps"

Today we talk with Jeff Barrie, Chief Operations Officer of the Tennessee Environmental Council.    Jeff gives us an update of their  continuing and massive  effort on tree planting across the State.  We also discuss their new project having to do with Composting certain household waste products.

Historically, before Prohibition, Tennessee had a significant agricultural  industry involved in the production of grapes and wine.  More recently, starting in the mid 1970’s,  a new era of grape and  wine production is developing.  Today we have 65 or so wineries.  Tennessee has a challenging environment for grape growing due to high heat and humidity.  … Continue reading "Wine and Grape Growing Industry in Tennessee, Adam Acampora"

There has been a lot of reporting these days about Water Quality.  The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation warns of consuming fish in certain Tennessee rivers.  Reports of accumulated plastic trash in one Tennessee stream in the Chattanooga area are quite alarming.   However, we have made great progress in improving water quality.  Today, we … Continue reading "Update on Water Quality, Interview with Dr. Matt Heard"

Tennessee in about to embark upon the process of development of a new Comprehensive Plan for Parks and Recreation.  Today we talk with Anne Marshall, Senior Adviser at the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation  about that planning process. TN 2020 Status Review and Update 2015-2020 final