Celebrate Masonboro Island Sunday, Feb. 21

Come to Celebrate Masonboro, and learn how you can help take care of Masonboro Island! Only five miles southeast of Wilmington, it is an undisturbed barrier island and estuarine system. The island is 8.4 miles long, with almost 90% covered by marsh and tidal flats. Masonboro Island is a protected site in a network called the National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERR). These sites have been established for long-term research, education and stewardship. The photo at left is provided by the North Carolina NERR.

The Carolina Estuarine Reserve Foundation is hosting this celebration for volunteers and others interested in helping protect and promote this amazing site. There will be live music, door prizes, and refreshments. The event will be held Sunday at Katy’s Great Eats, 1054 S. College Road in Wilmington, from 6 to 9 p.m. Donations will be accepted at the door and all proceeds will go to support stewardship projects on the island. See you there?

Win $500 for Your 30-second Green Video

You are invited to send in a video, 30 seconds or less, that shows how you would make the environment better. The catch? Use only 3 words.

Green in 3 is sponsored by Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment. One contest period ends this Friday, February 12th. But there are 3 (of course) periods in all. The deadlines for the last two are March 12th and April 9th. There will be at least 15 First Place winners receiving $500 each. So see Green in 3 for rules and suggestions, and get busy!

See Any Beautiful Birds?

We are thrilled to have a gorgeous blue sky today. The first forsythia blooms are showing, and the first tips of the daffodils are out and growing. Another sign of Spring to come: this weekend is The Great Backyard Bird Count!

This is always a fun event to do with the family, and it's wonderful to do with children. It only takes fifteen minutes of observation to participate. There is a special joy in looking a little closer at nature than usual, and being even more aware of what is around us in our environment. Plus, Cornell University says, "It’s free, fun, and easy—and it helps the birds."

They provide area checklists, and web pages for kids. There are some great photographs in the image gallery, and a photo competition. Scientists use the data submitted to track and study populations of birds. There is always something new; last year I learned about 'irruptions' of birds. So take a clipboard along and check it when you're out for a stomp this weekend, from Friday, February 12 through Monday, February 15.

Expedition with Pat on February 2

Habitat and Wildlife Keepers (HAWK) will meet the host of ETV's Expeditions with Pat on February 2, at 7:00 p.m. in the Matthews Community Center, 100 McDowell Street, Matthews, NC. This free event showcases the Clemson University naturalist and host of the ETV program, Patrick McMillan.

The naturalist will tell us about changes that are happening in plants and animals of the Piedmont. Habitat alterations are moving native species to new regions, so the Carolinas are becoming a home for some new ones. McMillan is the director of the Campbell Museum of Natural History at Clemson University. For more information on this special meeting, call (704) 814-0877, or contact the HAWK site, or HAWKncwf@gmail.com.

Habitat and Wildlife Keepers, HAWK, is a chapter of the North Carolina Wildlife Federation. Great environmental stewards that they are, their members ask us to help recycle items at the HAWK meetings. They plan to reuse, recycle and properly dispose of these things: batteries in sizes A, AA, AAA, C and D; cell phones, eyeglasses, aluminum pull tabs, water and soda bottle twist off caps, inkjet cartridges, compact fluorescent lightbulbs, egg cartons, and wire coat hangers. So come see this interesting naturalist at the meeting, and bring along a few of those things you weren't quite sure how to recycle!

Oyster Roast this Friday

This name is so fun, I have to share it. The Winyah Rivers Foundation is having their annual River Roast South at a place called Hobcaw Barony.

They offer an oyster roast, southern buffet, tea, beer, and wine. Food and drinks are from the Litchfield Beach Fish House and the New South Brewing Company. The annual meeting begins on Friday, January 29th at 5:00 p.m., and the oyster roast and buffet begin at 6:00 p.m.

The fundraiser will help the Waccamaw Riverkeepers protect the rivers of the Winyah Bay watershed. Sounds fun... and tasty. You can get tickets online or by calling Christine Ellis at 843-349-4007. Have a toast to the rivers!

Free Trees on January 22nd

Winter is a great time to plant a few trees, while the roots are dormant. The North Carolina Cooperative Extension office provides two tree giveaways on January 22nd.

The TreeFest is a tree event on January 22 and 23 in Wilimington, NC. More than 12,000 trees will be given away-- up to five seedlings per resident. A $3 donation will help buy trees for next year’s event. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday. The event location is Independence Mall, JC Penney Wing; 3500 Oleander Drive, Wilmington, NC 28403. Contact John Wooldridge for more information at (910) 798-7664.

In Lumberton, NC, you could receive Free Longleaf Pine Seedlings also on January 22nd, from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Bodenhamer Tree Farm will provide up to 25 free seedlings per person at the Cooperative Extension Center located in the O. P. Owens Agriculture Center, Highway 72 West, Lumberton, (first-come, first-served). For more information, please call Everett Davis at (910) 671-3276.

Searching for an image, I found this wonderful set on "Trees I've admired," from Daniela Duncan's Flickr. They are all lovely-- too beautiful to pick one.

Plant a tree, and green the world!

Clemson Gets Grant for Wind Energy Study

Clemson University has been awarded $98 million for research to support wind energy! It is the largest single grant ever received by the university, according to the Clemson Newsroom. The Department of Energy (DOE) is giving Clemson $45 million in federal financing under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Local sources are providing $53 million in matching money.

In this five-year grant, Clemson's Restoration Institute and its partners will test newly developed wind turbines and drive trains, in a facility to be built on the former Navy base in North Charleston. In the short term, the Institute estimates the initiative will create at least 113 temporary jobs associated with construction of the facility and 21 permanent jobs. It also will generate 568 indirect jobs for a total of 852 jobs.

Also, the market for wind energy is increasing in the other nine states along the East Coast. An off-shore wind farm is shown in the photo at left, from the DOE. South Carolina already has GE Energy’s wind turbine plant in Greenville, and port, rail and shipbuilding facilities near Charleston. With this exciting new research program, the state may become a hub for the industry, according to Nick Rigas, director of the Institute’s Renewable Energy focus area. In fact, the DOE estimates that the state could gain 10,000 to 20,000 new jobs related to the wind power industry, over the next 20 years.

“This is a great example of how a research university like Clemson can be a catalyst for economic development,” University President James F. Barker said. “We have expertise in many fields — energy, engineering, sustainability — as well as a track record of successful collaboration between the university and our partners in industry and the public sector." The university’s partners in this project are: the Charleston Naval Complex Redevelopment Authority; the State of South Carolina; the SC Department of Commerce; SC Public Railways; the SC State Ports Authority; and private partners RENK AG, Tony Bakker and James Meadors.

Planning and construction of the facility will begin in the first quarter of 2010 with a targeted operational date in the third quarter of 2012. We applaud the hard work of everyone that made this project a reality!

For more information, contact Nick Rigas or (843) 554-7226, ext. 114.