Uranium mining, tax cuts, smoking, shopping bags and Israel in today’s letters to the editor.

Pick of the day: Preserve the advisory committee

Incredible wisdom is evident in Nancy Dye’s op-ed, “Long-standing purpose: Protect Mill Mountain,” on Nov. 29. On the same evening, the Mill Mountain Garden Club received the Environmental Stewardship Award from the Roanoke Valley Preservation Foundation for our sustained commitment and work on Mill Mountain.

Our 40-year stewardship of the mountain started when the city asked our club to “do something” with the 2 ½ acres at the top of Mill Mountain. Since then, we have contributed tens of thousands of volunteer hours and dollars to projects on the mountain.

We were awarded the Garden Club of America Zone Conservation Award for our “commitment to the reforestation of Mill Mountain with the American chestnut and for continued care of the wildflower garden” in October 2011.

Roanoke City Council recognizes the work of volunteers, but collectively seems to disregard the level of commitment and proactive planning carried out through the work of the Mill Mountain Advisory Committee. As Dye said, “the continuity of stewardship cannot be overemphasized.”

Council is urged to recognize the efficacy and responsiveness of the advisory committee by making it a standing committee, allowing continued stewardship and planning.

MARTHA ANDERSON

President

Mill Mountain Garden Club

ROANOKE