The Wave of the Present
By Fred Tutman
Flying is one of many tools available to water quality advocates to monitor our watersheds. It is a tool that is, ironically, also used extensively by those who have different plans for the environment. The building and oil exploration industries, for example, rely heavily on planes and choppers in their work. In fact, in the small rural community where I live, right near the banks of Maryland’s Patuxent River, early morning flyovers from housing developers looking for new places to put homes are so common that my family jokes about whether we live on a farm or at a M*A*S*H unit.

With the explosive growth in private and recreational aviation, it is fitting, proper and more importantly, increasingly practical for Waterkeepers to find innovative ways to use aerial tools to provide advocacy on how things are done at water level.

As a former news producer I have worked in helicopters, winged aircraft and hot air balloons. I have had my share of daredevil pilots who enjoy stalling the plane in a climb to see if “I was fully awake,” or matching air speed to wind speed in a strong headwind to demonstrate how well they can “hover” the plane – hi-jinks guaranteed to make your blood run cold and your stomach try to leave your body.