WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- One of the most frequently visited parks in North Carolina has improved a prized natural resource.
Grassy Creek, which flows through Pilot Mountain State Park, was severely eroded.
Ken White, vice chair of Resource Institute, a Winston-Salem based nonprofit that restores streams, rivers and wetlands, said they used sustainable river engineering technologies to improve natural stream stability.
He argued keeping streams healthy can help the park and local economy grow by attracting new visitors and keep dedicated patrons coming back.
"To go out and spend a day on the Blue Ridge Parkway and see the throngs of people that are out enjoying the trailheads," White urged. "It really makes you appreciate the fact that what we can do creates that opportunity for all of North Carolinians, or even visitors from other states, to come in here and get out and enjoy the great outdoors."
White added conservation work is especially important in places like Pilot Mountain, which rises 2,000 feet from the North Carolina Piedmont and historically functioned as a navigational landmark. Pilot Mountain State Park conserves almost 4,000 surrounding acres.
Grassy Creek empties into the Yadkin River, the second-largest river basin in the state.
White remarked keeping excess sediment out of the stream means cleaner water for the more than 1.5 million people who rely on the Yadkin for drinking water.
"What we're doing is helping every city, every municipality, every town that's got their straw in the Yadkin River basin," White contended. "They don't have to add additional chemicals to treat the water; their water intakes remain very viable and usable."
Jake Byers, senior water resources engineer for Ecosystem Planning and Restoration, said it's up to government officials and state leaders to support conservation funding for these types of improvements, especially as local budgets feel the strain of the coronavirus recession.
"This project was funded primarily through the North Carolina Clean Water Management Trust Fund," Byers explained. "It's an important source of funding for nonprofits, municipalities, different institutes, to get restoration work done in the state of North Carolina. And we should all be thankful that it exists."
He pointed out conservation work can save local governments money in the long run.
Stream restoration not only keeps sediment and debris out of local waterways that supply drinking water, but can also prevent storm runoffs and damage from flooding.
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Wisconsin ranks 26th in the nation for wind energy, generating far less than neighboring states.
Wisconsin has about 900 megawatts of installed wind capacity, compared to neighbors that produce more than 10,000 megawatts.
Experts say better wind resources in neighboring states and lower solar costs enticing the state to invest in other projects contribute to the lag.
Wisconsin farms are also smaller than those in the Great Plains states, said Sam Dunaiski - executive director of Renew Wisconsin - which he called a unique challenge.
"You can't just put two turbines right next to each other, right?" said Dunaiski. "The atmospheric dynamics requires a little bit more spacing in between turbines - and in order to do that, you know, you need a little bit more land."
But Dunaiski said the state's wind potential is high. Some Wisconsin utilities have already added wind options to their portfolios, and all have set goals to reduce carbon emissions.
At least a handful of wind energy projects are planned for Wisconsin in the coming year.
Another challenge is misinformation - that wind turbines are noisy, negatively affect property values, or pose health risks. Dunaiski said most of those claims are not supported by scientific evidence.
What has been proven, he said, is that wind energy is less harmful to wildlife and the environment than traditional power generation.
"We have the potential here to do our own energy, in our own state," said Dunaiski, "to add great-paying jobs, like wind turbine technicians, to the mix. And we also give landowners kind of a lifeline in this aspect."
He explained that farmers, who have been hit hard economically in recent years, could benefit from gaining an additional income stream by leasing land for these projects.
Dunaiski said building momentum will require more education and training, added transmission - to help get energy from rural areas where it's produced to Wisconsin residents - and advances in technology to help update old equipment and capitalize on current installations.
"As we continue to grow these turbines and make this technology better and more efficient" said Dunaiski, "that wind resource - that lacking wind regime that we have in Wisconsin - becomes less of a problem, and we're able to access what wind resources we do have in our state better."
There are 10 wind projects generating electricity in Wisconsin. The oldest started in 1999 - and the newest, the Red Barn Project, started last year.
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Environmental groups in Arizona say they've faced challenges in advancing environmental protections, and that could now become even harder under a second Trump presidency.
Sandy Bahr, director of the Sierra Club's Grand Canyon Chapter, said during his first presidency, Donald Trump rolled back a number of environmental rules, withdrew from the Paris Agreement and deepened reliance on fossil fuels. She expects Trump to disrupt clean-energy and climate-action progress made under the Biden administration.
"There is a big concern that President-elect Trump will try to reverse full throttle. I don't think he will be able to do that because there will be, at least on some things, enough bipartisan support that he won't be able to just get rid of everything," Bahr explained.
Bahr added while the Inflation Reduction Act will likely be a target for the incoming administration, it is important to remember much of the funds in the legislation have already been allocated to help communities make clean-energy investments.
Bahr said Arizona is already experiencing hotter and longer summers and that could intensify if not addressed, translating to higher energy bills and more deaths each year from the extreme heat.
"The cost of not doing something is much greater than the cost of doing something. Not to mention that clean energy, solar and wind, they're cheaper than fossil fuels. So economically, it just makes sense to do that," she continued.
The transition to clean energy will save the average family up to $7,200 per year in energy costs and another $1,500 per year in health-care costs, according to the Sierra Club.
Bahr says investing in clean energy and climate action goes beyond securing a prosperous future for humans, but encompasses habitat conservation and preservation for species of all kinds.
"One election does not mean that we are not on the right track with what we are asking for. Don't take it as a repudiation of everything that you believe in," she concluded.
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As Minnesotans click the "purchase" button when shopping online for the holidays, they're urged to consider two things: toys from overseas suppliers that don't meet safety standards and how e-commerce affects the environment. In its annual toy safety report, the U.S. Public Interest Research Group says loopholes in shipping enforcement allow too many unsafe and illegal products, including those designed for kids, to flood the market.
Teresa Murray, PIRG's consumer watchdog director, said items shipped in bulk that fall below a certain value threshold often avoid scrutiny from U.S. customs officials, and that means for now, shoppers have to be extra vigilant.
"We've also gotten used to how easy it is to shop online, but when people are shopping online, they just need to be super, super careful. Take a few minutes and figure out where that toy is coming from," she said.
Murray added that there are concerns about some toys containing lead or other toxins or having small parts that easily break off, and added that the good news is, there's a bipartisan tone in Washington, D.C., to address the issue. Meanwhile, sustainability experts warn the massive growth in e-commerce leads to more distribution centers in rural areas, increasing trucking distances and exacerbating carbon emissions.
Another concerning trend in the report is the persistent illegal online sales of recalled toys. Murray said brick-and-mortar retailers are more committed to keeping those items out of circulation. Beyond protecting your family and the environment, she suggests replacing digital purchases with in-person shopping might help the economy, because you're fighting back against counterfeit products.
"Frankly, it hurts U.S. companies and U.S. workers when you have these brands that have built a reputation and somebody - you know, it could be domestic, it could be international - and they're making a product that looks just like yours," she explained.
As for e-commerce waste, Minnesota recently adopted a law that incentivizes producers to scale down their use of packaging that often ends up in landfills. A handful of other states have taken similar steps. And online shopping giants like Amazon have highlighted efforts to phase out packaging elements deemed unfriendly to the environment.
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