The Izaak Walton League’s founding mission is leadership in conserving woodlands, wildlife, water, and related natural resources. The Arlington-Fairfax Chapter pursues that through year-round formal and informal work:
- Preserving natural areas for members and the community
- Providing sufficient natural habitat for wildlife
- Ensuring the survival of native plants and animals
- Enhancing chapter property for fishing, camping, and outdoor recreation
- Improving environmental quality and promoting environmental responsibility through education
Conservation work is coordinated with the chapter’s Buildings & Grounds committee to set project priorities, evaluate environmental impact, and stay compliant with applicable regulations. Members with a conservation or environmental science background are encouraged to get involved — contact Conservation Director Fred Bailey at Fred.Bailey@arlingtonfairfax-iwla.org.
Save Our Streams (SOS)
The chapter runs a Virginia Save Our Streams water-monitoring program, part of the national IWLA program founded alongside the League in 1922. Volunteers monitor local waterways for the health of the surrounding watershed. Interested members can email ARLFXSOS@gmail.com, or see the IWLA Save Our Streams and Virginia SOS sites for forms and gear.
Environmental Management System (EMS)
For over 15 years the chapter has run an EMS to keep range operations from harming local water and land. Lime and rock phosphate are applied to the Skeet/Trap shot-fall area to bind lead and prevent it from leaching into surface and groundwater, surface water quality is sampled regularly, and the chapter has run two lead-reclamation projects removing over 500,000 lbs of lead from the environment, alongside a shift to biodegradable targets at Skeet/Trap.
On March 29, 2022 the chapter received a Bronze Medal Governor’s Environmental Excellence Award (Sustainability Program) at the 32nd Annual Virginia Environment Symposium at VMI, in recognition of this work.
Fishing at Gilbert’s Pond
The chapter’s two-acre pond is catch-and-release only. All Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) regulations apply, and the chapter’s Angler (fishing) Club is a good way to get involved — see chapter contacts.
Other conservation efforts
- Virginia Adopt-a-Highway
- Cub Run Stream Valley Park volunteer team
- Northern Virginia Native Plant Program
- Member-maintained food plots, bee hives, and woodland areas
- Scout-led conservation service projects on chapter property
All chapter volunteer opportunities, including conservation projects, are posted through SignUpGenius — sign up to get credit toward your membership service hours, or just to help out.