With the start of hurricane season, salt marshes are among the natural features playing a critical role in protecting coastal communities by absorbing storm surges, reducing flooding and preventing erosion.

Coastal wetlands with a variety of flora are filled and drained by the tide. On average, salt marshes provide $695,000 of value per square mile from possible damage during storms, according to a University of California-San Diego study.

Heather Nagy, strategic conservation planning coordinator for the North Florida Land Trust, emphasized the critical role these marshes play.

"They can absorb up to 1.5 million gallons of flood water, which is equivalent to about 2.25 Olympic-size swimming pools," Nagy pointed out. "They're truly amazing at what they can do to help observe water, absorb that wave energy, and decrease damage to neighboring communities."

Nagy is part of the South Atlantic Salt Marsh Initiative, which aims to save 1 million acres of salt marsh stretching from the coasts of North Carolina to Florida. Other natural barriers include living shorelines, forests, estuaries and barrier islands, to name a few.

As sea levels rise, salt marshes naturally retreat landward. However, movement can be hindered by natural barriers or human-made structures, like roads and buildings. Nagy noted each state in the South Atlantic Salt Marsh Initiative is forming teams and roadmaps to protect and restore existing salt marshes and conserve migration corridors.

"We're all going to be working together to identify, prioritize and advance salt marsh projects that will help to protect and bolster the resilience of local communities," Nagy emphasized. "And also infrastructure throughout Northeast Florida, through all of those areas of salt marsh."

Studies show areas with intact natural defenses such as dunes, wetlands and marshes experienced less damage than areas where such features had been degraded or removed. Nagy added protecting and strengthening an area's natural defenses is one of the best ways to prepare for storm season.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts.


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Federal data show health care and technology-related jobs are still in high demand but a career in clean energy is now at the top of the list, too, and Wisconsin labor leaders said opportunities are unfolding in the region.

New findings from the Climate Jobs National Resource Center list 82 Wisconsin projects tied to the clean energy transition in the pipeline, which could qualify for tax incentives and key labor standards under the Inflation Reduction Act.

Emily Pritzkow, executive director of the Wisconsin Building Trades Council, said companies behind wind, solar and similar development need to attract workers while adhering to hiring benchmarks.

"Excellent pay, flexibility," Pritzkow pointed out. "And we are rising to meet that."

Labor standards for Inflation Reduction Act projects call for apprenticeships to be offered, so new hires can learn on the job. Pritzkow stressed Wisconsin unions play a big role in carrying out the learning aspect of the hiring boom. There are challenges though, with labor groups noting not enough people are aware of job possibilities and the need for things like affordable housing if a worker has to relocate for their new career.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists wind turbine technicians and solar installers as the fastest growing occupations in the U.S. In amplifying messaging, Pritzkow emphasized they have to overcome long-held beliefs only certain other industries, such as dentistry, routinely offer stable employment.

"I think there maybe are some old ideas about what working in the trades means," Pritzkow observed. "These are not temporary jobs. These are meant to be careers."

She added clean energy projects are helping to fuel record demand for apprenticeships. Earlier this year, four major utilities operating in Wisconsin pledged to hire union workers for development spurred by the Inflation Reduction Act. The Climate Jobs National Resource Center estimates the incentives will lead to more than 42,000 union-scale jobs in Wisconsin.

A volunteer program has caught the attention of West Virginia tourism officials.

The Dolly Sods Wilderness Stewards program has been recognized with a "Spirit of West Virginia Award." The program started as a collaboration in 2021 with West Virginia Highlands Conservancy and the Monongahela National Forest.

Dave Johnston, program coordinator, said volunteers are trained to educate visitors on 'leave no trace' principles, trail cleaning and more.

"Taking inventories of campsites and things like that," Johnston explained. "We're basically serving as eyes and ears for the Forest Service for what's going on in the backcountry."

More than 100 volunteers work to preserve and maintain the more than 17,000-acre area in the Allegheny Mountains. According to the International Journal of Wilderness, more states are turning to volunteer groups to maintain trails and collect data, as dollars for the management of federal lands have decreased.

Johnston added the work is important for sustaining protected lands for future generations, noting wilderness areas are specially designated by Congress to remain as pristine as possible.

"They're the most primitive form of public lands that are set aside for people to enjoy in this country," Johnston emphasized.

According to numbers by the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, an estimated 35,000 people hike and retreat to the Dolly Sods each year.


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One of nature's hardest workers is facing extinction from repeated exposure to a dangerous pesticide.

Scientists conducting CT scans reveal neonicotinoid pesticides or "neonics" attack baby bumblebees' brain development and cause neurological damage like paralysis, shaking or death. Use of the chemical introduced in the 1900s has grown globally.

The policy and action group Environment Illinois wants the worst uses of the products banned and removed from store shelves.

Emily Kowalski, outreach and engagement manager for the group, said the chemical is an ingredient in household products and agricultural or industrial applications.

"Neonic pesticides are used on crops but also can be found in some pesticides that are used in home gardens," Kowalski explained. "And are also increasingly being found on coated-on seeds that are being used for farming."

Kowalski added the neonic-coated seeds can contain extremely high chemical concentrations. The global environmental group Greenpeace indicated fruits, nuts, and vegetables and 70% of human food crops are pollinated by bees.

Eleven states have legislation on the books that prohibits the use of dangerous bee-killing products. Illinois is not one of them. In this year's session, lawmakers discussed the "Birds and Bees Act," which would limit the use of neonic pesticides. Kowalski hopes legislators will do more.

"This is a bill that we're supporting, and we are excited to work with legislators to move it forward," Kowalski emphasized. "From the advocacy community, I know there is a lot of appetite to take action, whether it's in this upcoming legislative session, or in looking at the next few years, making sure that Illinois is the next state to protect our pollinators."

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources has cited habitat loss, mites, competition from nonnative species, and diseases as contributors to a declining bee population.


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