Virginia

State group says Virginia should budget more for invasive species management – The Henrico Citizen

Published

2 years ago

January 9, 2024

State group says Virginia should budget more for invasive species management – The Henrico Citizen

An area in Pony Pasture Park of the James River Park System showing native plant vegetation, including Virginia Creeper, Common Moonseed, Mockernut Hickory seedlings and Virginia Wild Rye. (Meghan McIntyre/Virginia Mercury)

A state group dedicated to dealing with invasive species in Virginia is recommending that the General Assembly include an extra $2.45 million in its next budget to limit the spread of invasive plant and animal species in the commonwealth.

The proposal backed by the Virginia Invasive Species Working Group Wednesday would pay for seven additional state positions to help eradicate and slow the spread of invasive species and development of a statewide coordinated response to problems related to invasives.

The recommendations will now head to the chairs of the House and Senate money and natural resources committees for their consideration.

Invasive species, said Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources Travis Voyles, “are costly to control, reduce productivity within forest and grow faster than native species and spread quickly. So addressing this issue of this magnitude is a long-term effort that must be implemented, in our view, over a period of time.”

The $2.45 million in funding is meant to support the full rollout of Virginia’s Invasive Species Management Plan, a document crafted in 2018 that outlines how state agencies can minimize the economic, environmental and human harms of invasive species.

The working group calls for the funds to be split among the four Virginia agencies primarily impacted by invasive species: the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Department of Forestry, Department of Conservation and Recreation and Department of Wildlife Resources.

Species of special concern include wavy leaf grass, which invades forest floors; spotted lanternflies and two-horned trapa plants, the latter of which are invading ponds in Northern Virginia; black fountain grass, which leaves pastureland unusable by cattle; and zebra and quagga mussels, which attack native mussel species and damage infrastructure.

While DCR biologist Kevin Heffernan said the proposed funding is only a “drop in the bucket” when it comes to dealing with the destruction caused by invasive species, he called it a much-needed start.

Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Matt Lohr similarly called the proposal a “first step” but said “there’s really never going to be enough money to do it all.”

“We wanted to be realistic, because you can spend $20 million a year and probably still not eradicate all these things,” Lohr said.

Heffernan noted the public has become increasingly interested in invasive species in recent years.

“People got to start knowing their parks and their backyards and started asking questions and they’ve been interested in native plants and native pollinators,” he said. “They’re starting to ask questions about those, and what comes up often is invasive species are a threat to all of those.”

Rod Walker and Jim Hurley of the Blue Ridge Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management (PRISM) said a record 70 to 80 people attended one of their workshops on invasive species this year.

“These are people who wanted to be there to make a difference … people from all over the state representing a lot of constituencies,” Walker said.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly attributed a statement about a PRISM invasive species workshop’s attendance to Tom Smith instead of Jim Hurley.

* * *

This article first appeared on Virginia Mercury and is republished here with permission. Virginia Mercury is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Virginia Mercury maintains editorial independence.

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Virginia

Virginia Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 Night results for June 2, 2026

Published

1 hour ago

June 3, 2026

Press Room

Virginia Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 Night results for June 2, 2026

The Virginia Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at June 2, 2026, results for each game:

Mega Millions

Mega Millions drawings take place every week on Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m.

15-26-43-48-60, Mega Ball: 12

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Pick 3

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

Night: 4-5-7, FB: 9

Day: 8-7-6, FB: 5

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Pick 4

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

Night: 7-0-6-5, FB: 8

Day: 1-1-9-0, FB: 1

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Pick 5

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

Night: 2-9-1-0-4, FB: 0

Day: 5-9-4-1-7, FB: 0

Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Cash Pop

Drawing times: Coffee Break 9 a.m.; Lunch Break 12 p.m.; Rush Hour 5 p.m.; Prime Time 9 p.m.; After Hours 11:59 p.m.

Coffee Break: 10

After Hours: 14

Prime Time: 04

Rush Hour: 13

Lunch Break: 06

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Millionaire for Life

Drawing everyday at 11:15 p.m.

16-33-41-50-52, Bonus: 01

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Center for Community Journalism (CCJ) editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Virginia

First boat to Bermuda wins — Virginia man prepares for 753-mile voyage from Annapolis – WTOP News

Published

11 hours ago

June 2, 2026

Press Room

First boat to Bermuda wins — Virginia man prepares for 753-mile voyage from Annapolis – WTOP News

Kevin Sherwood’s boat is one of 21 in this year’s Annapolis to Bermuda Oceans Race, or A2B, which dates back to 1979.

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DC-area man hopes to race from Annapolis to Bermuda by boat

The boat that Kevin Sherwood of Springfield, Virginia, bought is still in dry dock as he makes final repairs and preparations ahead of the whole reason he bought the “Bay Retriever” in the first place.

If all goes as planned, he’ll get it in the water Wednesday, and starting at noon on Friday, he’ll be heading south down the Chesapeake Bay on a 753-mile voyage to Bermuda.

Sherwood’s boat is one of 21 in this year’s Annapolis to Bermuda Oceans Race, or A2B, which dates back to 1979. He’ll be joined by a crew of four others in a race he said is among the most challenging on the East Coast.

“I bought this boat in 2022 specifically for the Bermuda race,” Sherwood said. “Since I bought this, everything we’ve done has been prepping for it.

“Plenty of sailors never leave the Chesapeake. It’s very different when we’re dealing with ocean waves, ocean weather, all kinds of different conditions. So, the boat really needs to be set up for it.”

The bay, being both relatively shallow and surrounded by land, can make for ideal sailing; if something still goes wrong, help isn’t far away.

Heading out in the blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean to an island more than 600 miles off the coast can present more difficult circumstances. Yet, if you go on the race’s website, you’ll see a long list of people hoping to get picked up by a boat to help take part.

“We’re out of rescue range for a portion of the trip. They’ll ask a passing freighter to come help you if you have a problem,” Sherwood said. “We are on our own out there.”

Some boats will have full galleys available to help cook meals for the crew. But Sherwood’s vessel, being smaller, has been stocking up on food and water from the grocery store.

He and the crew will take turns sailing and resting in the cabin down below. A “leak loss” — imagine a hammock, more or less — will catch anyone if the boat leans one way while they’re sleeping, lest they fall to the floor.

Of course, that assumes they’ll have strong winds and waves. Sherwood, who has done this race twice before, said that’s not always the case.

“My first Bermuda race, we had plenty of nothing going on,” he said. For two days, the winds were so calm Sherwood’s team was “barely making two knots.”

Two years ago, he saw more clouds than stars and sun, and waves were running 12-15 feet high.

“The last couple of races we haven’t seen many sunsets because of clouds, fog, rain, that sort of thing,” Sherwood said. “But when you are out there all alone and just the stars, it’s incredibly detached. There’s really nowhere left in the country to get this isolated.”

Of course, having access to Starlink means there is some connection out on the water — though, if you’re on duty, you’re too focused to care. If you’re not, you’re probably resting.

“There’s definitely parts I’m going to hate,” he said. “There’s parts I’m going to be asking myself, ‘Why am I doing this? Why am I here?’ But it’s just such an awesome team sport. When I go off watch, I’m trusting the other guys to keep sailing, keep racing, to keep us safe, to keep the boat moving fast. We get to detach from the world.”

Starting at noon on Friday, Kevin Sherwood will be sailing down the Chesapeake Bay on a 753-mile voyage to Bermuda.
(WTOP/John Domen)

WTOP/John Domen

a man in blue polo smiles at the camera from viewer's left of a sailboat. — Fairfax County resident Kevin Sherwood’s boat is one of 21 in this year’s Annapolis to Bermuda Oceans Race, or A2B.
(WTOP/John Domen)

a man in a blue polo stands beneath a large sailboat

For how long is anyone’s guess. Weather and winds will determine the time it takes to get there.

“If conditions are amazing, we’ll get in on Tuesday,” he said. “If conditions are great, Wednesday. If they’re average, Thursday, and if they’re terrible, Friday.”

Those following from home can track Sherwood and everyone else in the race online. Whenever he arrives, he said workers on the docks will have a “Dark n’ Stormy” — one of Bermuda’s national drinks — waiting for them.

He’ll also be hoping to be handed a trophy he can sail back with, but that’s not the most important thing right now.

“There’s a point of pride just for completing this; 753 miles of ocean sailing is a big deal,” he said.

“So, yeah, I mean, I want to do well, but my first goal is just to make it back here safely in two and a half weeks. My next goal is to make it to Bermuda safely. Then my third goal is to finish well and get a podium finish again.”

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