Some environmentalists believe President Bush’s Homeland Security Act could have some harmful effects on the environment. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
Transcript
Some environmentalists believe President Bush’s Homeland Security Act could have some harmful effects on the environment. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
The National Strategy for Homeland Security is the White House plan to deal with threats of terrorism. Among a number of proposals, the Bush Administration wants to limit access to information about hazardous chemicals at company plants. Alys Campaigne is with the environmental group, the Natural Resources Defense Council. The NRDC notes that industry has long wanted to get rid of laws that required disclosing to the public what chemicals they might handle…
“We’re concerned that the Bush Administration is using the guise of Homeland Security to legislate very sweeping exemptions to corporations under public disclosure laws and to give them unprecedented immunity from laws that are on the books now.”
The NRDC says instead of letting companies keep secrets about chemicals at their sites, the government should conduct vulnerability assessments and work with companies to reduce the hazards at a site. For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.
The City Hall in Chicago is topped
with plants and trees to try to cool things down. The city
is working to reduce the heat island effect caused by so many blacktop roofs and parking lots. Photo by Lester Graham
On the nightly TV news in large cities, the meteorologist sometimes talks about the heat island effect. That’s where all the blacktop roofs and asphalt parking lots soak up the heat and increase the temperature on a hot summer day. One major U.S. city is trying to do something to reduce that effect. To set an example, the mayor decided to start with City Hall. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
Transcript
On the nightly TV news in large cities, the meteorologist sometimes
talks about the heat island effect. That’s where all the blacktop roofs
and asphalt parking lots soak up the heat and increase the temperature
on a hot summer day. One major U.S. city is trying to do something to
reduce that effect. To set an example, the mayor decided to start with
City Hall. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
Standing on the roof, eleven stories up, isn’t really far enough to escape
the noise of the city below. But this rooftop is an escape. It’s a garden, a
big one. There are even trees. Not in pots, but actually planted on… or…
in the roof.
Marcia Jiminez is the Commissioner of the City of Chicago’s Department of Environment. She says Chicago wants building owners to
do what they can to cool the city down… and planting gardens on the
roof is one way to do it. So that’s what the city did on top of City Hall.
“Well, the garden on the rooftop is addressing what we call an urban heat
island problem. By putting the garden with light colored pavers and the
green plants on top of the roof, we’re actually helping to use less energy
inside the building and it actually helps to keep the building cooler.”
Cooling down the building is just the beginning of this garden. Despite
being eleven stories up in the middle of downtown, the roof is alive with
bugs and butterflies.
“Actually birds and all of the insects, many of them, have found their
way up here. We’ve actually put up birdhouses to study what kind of
birds are coming to the rooftop garden. This is a place of
respite as well as a place to feed.”
The whole rooftop has become something of a lab. Scientists research
what animals have made a home here… and they’re monitoring how the
plants are spreading.
Kimberly Worthington worked on the City Hall project to see it go from
the drawing board to rooftop. She says they chose plants for color, form
and for survivability.
“The design that we went with was low maintenance, was what we were
looking for in our plant selection. And the landscape architects that were part of the design team focused on plants that would require less water. And they also wanted to keep as many native plants as possible. So, there are a lot of prairie plants up here.”
The Chicago City Hall rooftop project also reduces rain water runoff. 75-percent of a one-inch rain will be soaked up right here in the garden. That’s good because too much rain overflows sewers into Lake Michigan. If enough buildings in the city had rooftop gardens, stormwater runoff problems would be curtailed a bit.
While the city is touting the environmental benefits of its rooftop garden, in another part of the city a planned rooftop garden is all about people.
Brenda Koverman is with the Schwab Rehabilitation Hospital in Chicago. We’re up on the roof where she’s showing me landscape renderings of how the surrounding area will look once the planting begins. Stone paths, fountains, flower gardens and shrubs.
It’ll look beautiful. And it’ll probably cool things down up here. But Koverman
says this is for the patients who are learning to be mobile after disabling injuries. The hospital hopes that patients in rehabilitation will find the rooftop garden more pleasant and helpful than institutional tile floors and plastic obstacles as they learn to
manuever…
“You know, so, are patients more able to maneuver their wheelchairs in the community? Are patients able to use their hands better so they can cook better at home? Are patients able to stay out of the nursing home and go to their home? So, if we can get any kind of
those outcomes, then it’s a huge success.”
It might be more interested in the patients, but the hospital will still be helping Chicago reduce its heat island effect.
There aren’t very many of these projects in the city, so it’s hard to say whether the rooftop gardens could cool things down all that much. But Environment Commissioner Marcia Jiminez says all you have to do is go up on the roof on a hot day. City Hall sits right next to the County Building. In fact they look like the same building. But not from the roof. Only one side is garden.
“In last summer in 2001 on the hottest day, while it was about a hundred degrees on the city hall side, it was 165 on the opposite end of the building where’s there’s a blacktop roof.”
Even if you’re not interested in planting a garden on your roof, the city still requires some effort to cool things down. City ordinance calls for light colored material when a roof is replaced. And parking lots have to plant some trees before they can get a permit to resurface. Rooftop gardens aren’t mandated… but city officials say they’re learning first
hand that it’s a much better use of space in the city.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.
It’s no secret that the Great Lakes are cleaner than they were 25 years ago. But some of the wildlife that’s rebounded because of the cleaner water is causing some problems for people who live near the lakes. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Paul Cox explains:
Transcript
It’s no secret that the Great Lakes are cleaner than they were 25
years ago. But some of the wildlife that’s rebounded because of the
cleaner water is causing some problems for people who live near the
lakes. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Paul Cox explains:
(sound of waves and seagulls)
It won’t be long before a sleeping multitude awakes in the Great Lakes.
Millions of mayfly larvae have been burrowed in the muddy bottom of the
lakes. Soon, they will rise, take wing and fly off in search of a mate.
Often, they end up on shore. There they get on everything.
Breck Coombs has seen them invade the car dealership he manages in
Port Clinton, Ohio on Lake Erie.
“I have bugs all over the whole building. It’s almost like you’ve got to
have a second set of clothes when you come into work a lot of times.
You sit down and they make a big mess on your clothing. It’s pretty bad.”
During mayfly season his workers have to wash every car in the lot every
day so the bugs and their droppings don’t mar the paint.
The mayor in Port Clinton is Tom Brown. He says since the mayfly has
been increasing in population the insect has caused some bizarre
events. The way he describes it, it sounds as though it’s like living in an
Alfred Hitchcock thriller. He remembers once getting hit by the bugs
while he was at a drum and bugle corps competition.
“We were watching the show and all of a sudden I looked to the sky
and I saw a black cloud. The mayflies came onto the field, they began to
swarm. I was covered with mayflies from head to toe.”
Aside from the mess they make, the mayflies are – for the most part –
harmless. Fred Snyder is an aquatic biologist with the Ohio State
University Extension Service. He says the mayfly is a bug with no bite.
“Mayflies do not have working mouths. This is a mouthless insect. It has no stinger.”
But Snyder says the mayfly is still something of a nuisance because they
don’t smell very good.
“One evening just coming back into town I noticed a very,
very disagreeable smell. The place stunk. Sort of like dead fish, but
different. But very strong.”
And… the sheer numbers of the mayflies are a problem because the
insects not only fly by the millions, they die by the millions.
Mayor Brown says when that happens… the dead bugs can be a bit of a
hazard.
“When they were heavy we had signs on the streets: ‘Slippery, mayfly hatch.’
And there were a couple of accidents from people sliding around on those mayflies.”
As you might imagine… millions of smelly, messy and dead mayflies are
bad news for any town… but especially so in a tourist town such as Port
Clinton.
But biologist Fred Snyder say the mayflies are also good news. The huge
mayfly population means the lake is environmentally healthier.
“Mayflies have a high need for oxygen. So when you find
good numbers it tells you that the oxygen level in the water is very
good.”
It’s not always been that way. Pollution in the lake took its toll. Oxygen
levels dropped. And the mayflies almost disappeared by the 1950’s.
Dr. Carl Richards, with the Minnesota Sea Grant program, says the
presence of organisms such as the mayfly can be a better indicator of
the lake’s health than testing for polluting chemicals.
“It’s often very expensive and difficult to measure chemicals.
And the ultimate reason we’re interested in chemicals is because of
the organisms. It’s the fish, the birds and the plants we’re concerned
about. So the idea is if the fish and the birds and the plants are
healthy, then the environment must be healthy.”
And a recent federal grant will help scientists look further into the
connection between the health of organisms such as mayflies and the
environmental state of the Great Lakes.
Lake Erie near Port Clinton is not the only example of rebound in the
mayfly population. There’s also been a sharp mayfly population increase
in the waters immediately near Erie, Pennsylvania.
It’s not only good news for the mayflies. It’s good news for fish too.
Some fish feed on the mayfly larvae. So, with more mayflies, there’s
more food for fish.
But, people still have to deal with the annual mayfly onslaught. In
places such as Port Clinton, that means trying to find ways to reduce the
invasion. One thing the city does is turn off streetlights and ask
residents to turn off as many exterior lights as possible in hopes of
attracting fewer bugs during the peak season.
The mayflies that do make it ashore and die are picked up with street
sweepers and composted. In fact, the city got a grant to build the only
licensed landfill in the U.S. for mayflies. There, they compost the
carcasses. Biologist Fred Snyder cooked up the recipe.
“It’s basically sawdust that is mixed about two to one with the
mayflies that are picked up by the street sweepers and brought to
the composting site.”
After several months the mayfly compost is used for gardens and lawns
all over town.
(sound of waves)
Now, Mayor Brown is trying to convince the townspeople to look beyond
the nuisance factor and embrace the mayfly as the standard-bearer for a
cleaner lake.
“We even came up with a theme: Come to Port Clinton where
your dreams may fly.”
It might not offer much comfort to those afflicted by the annual mayfly
invasion… but hey, it’s catchy.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Paul Cox.
The Asian longhorned beetle, native to China, is a serious threat to hardwood trees in the U.S. So far, populations of the beetle have been confined to Chicago and New York. Foresters are concerned that more non-native species will be introduced through expanded global trade. Photo courtesy of USDA-APHIS.
Forests in the Midwest may be under siege from exotic species more often in the future… partly because of international trade. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Rebecca Williams explains:
Transcript
Forests in the Midwest may be under siege from exotic species more often in the future… partly because of international trade. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Rebecca Williams reports:
The Asian longhorned beetle is native to China.
The beetle caught a ride to the U.S. in the wooden packing material of
imported goods. So far, the beetle has been found in New York and
Chicago.
Once a tree is infested with beetles, the best way to stop the beetles from spreading is to destroy the tree.
A National Academy of Sciences study predicts that threats to native species will increase as trade opens up between the U.S. and China. The authors say that China may become a new “donor region” for species that could become invasive.
Entomologist Deborah McCullough is an author of the study.
“You can kind of visualize this whole complex of insects and weeds and plant pathogens in Asia that haven’t had a pathway, they haven’t had a route to be brought to the country yet… and we really don’t know what all could end up coming in.”
Dr. McCullough says because China’s range of climates and plant life are similar to that of the U.S., many species that make it over here have a chance to become established.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Rebecca Williams.
This grizzly at the St Louis Zoo
is displayed in an exhibit that mimics its
natural habitat. A whole industry has emerged to
manufacture these exhibits.
At your local zoo – if you can suspend disbelief for a moment – you might find yourself in the middle of a tropical rainforest. Or a dusty African plain, watching the animals in their natural habitat. Of course, those wild settings are merely a façade. Clever construction techniques covering up concrete cages. In the second of a two-part series, the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports… the thought and planning behind the displays can be nearly as intricate as nature itself:
A herbicide is being found lingering in grass clippings and causing compost to damage gardens. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
A $5,000 reward is being offered to anyone who finds a tiny, parasitic worm in the U.S. that kills leaf-eating slugs. The gray garden slug is notorious for destroying crops and ornamental plants in the Midwest. Researchers at Ohio State University have been looking for the worm that eats the slugs. So far, they’ve examined thousands of slugs sent to them in the mail … but they haven’t been able to find the worm. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Natalie Walston reports:
Transcript
A five thousand dollar reward is being offered to anyone who finds a tiny, parasitic worm in the United States that kills leaf-eating slugs. The gray garden slug is notorious for destroying crops and ornamental plants in the Midwest. Researchers at Ohio State University have been looking for the worm that eats the slugs. So far, they’ve examined thousands of slugs sent to them in the mail, but they haven’t been able to find the worm. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Natalie Walston reports.
(Natural sound of guinea hens)
The Kingwood Center in Mansfield, Ohio is made up of 50 acres of well-tended English gardens. Paved trails lead through rows of perennials and peonies, around fountains and a duck pond. Hundreds of hostas grow beneath shade trees, but the plants leaves have holes chewed through them. John Makely is Kingwood’s head gardener. He says the conventional methods to kill the slugs eating his hostas are out of the question here.
“The problem that we have here with slug bait is that we do have birds roaming around, peacocks and guinea hens that roam around freely. They sort of grouse, browse I should say, the grounds and we would be afraid that they would pick up some of those pellets and poison them.”
Slug bait consists of a poison that can harm more than its intended target. But right now, it’s the only commercial method available to control slugs. So, now there’s a big push by large, commercial nurseries to find a chemical-free way to kill the gray garden slugs that eat ornamental plants. Ohio State University researcher, Pavinder Grewal says there’s a major economic reason to find a good control method.
“Last year we had a lot of rain here when the corn was emerging. And there have been several fields in Ohio that were totally wiped out by the slugs. Basically zero corn production in some fields.”
Grewal has found a natural slug killer. It’s a tiny parasitic worm, known as a nematode. It is native to England and parts of several countries in South America. Farmers and gardeners in those countries buy them in bulk in powder form and sprinkle the worms on their fields. Scientists think the worm will work in this country as well. But if the worm is imported, it must first undergo years of testing to make sure it will not harm native plants and animals.
“We don’t see any problem because some of the tests that we have performed with the nematode…we find it to be pretty safe to non-target organisms. And, we find that this nematode does not infect all slugs.”
To prove this to the federal government could be difficult. Grewal is looking for the worm, in the United States he took out an ad in various publications. He studies more than twenty thousand slugs, but has yet to find the worm he’s looking for. Now he’s sending people off to remote areas of the country to find it. He hopes to be successful because it could take years of testing before the worms can be brought into this country. For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Natalie Walston.
More than 1,300 U.S. and Canadian scientists are asking the Canadian government to strengthen proposed legislation that would protect endangered species. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly explains:
Transcript
More than 13 hundred U.S. and Canadian scientists are asking the Canadian government to strengthen proposed legislation that would protect endangered species. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly reports.
Right now, endangered species in Canada have no federal protection. The new Species at Risk Act would make it illegal for people to kill the 3 hundred 80 plants and animals considered at risk. But unlike the American law, the proposal does not guarantee that the land or waters in which these animals live will be protected from development. University of Ottawa biology professor David Currie says that’s led to a protest among scientists.
“Virtually all of the studies that have been done on the reasons why species become endangered or go extinct have shown that at least some aspect of habitat loss is involved and in many of the most dramatic cases of extinction, species’ habitats have been simply been entirely wiped out.”
The government’s environment committee will consider amendments to the bill in October. For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Karen Kelly.
A disease that’s destroying trees is spreading through parts of the Great Lakes region. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:
Transcript
A disease that’s destroying trees is spreading through parts of the Great Lakes Region. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports.
Beech bark disease has been damaging beech trees in eastern Canada and New England for a century. The disease has been creeping westward across the upper sections of U.S. since then. Last year Beech bark disease was discovered in the upper peninsula of Michigan. The disease is caused by two pests. First an insect called the wooly beech scale attacks the tree and open wounds. Then a fungus enters the bark, killing the trees. Often the beech trees are knocked over by high winds because of the damage done to them. Not all beech trees succumb to the disease. Scientists are now studying trees that appear resistant to beech bark disease, and they’re also looking for natural predators of the scale insect or the fungus that damages beeches. In the meantime, forest officials are cutting down beeches damaged by the disease. Before the trees fall down on someone unexpectedly.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.
Some winemakers are battling a disease called "black goo." It’s caused
by a fungus that leaves infected grape vines stunted and weak. As the
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson reports, no one’s sure
where the disease is coming from, or where it might turn up:
Transcript
Some winemakers are battling a disease called “black goo.” It’s caused by a fungus that leaves infected grape vines stunted and weak. As teh Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson reports, no one’s sure where the disease is coming from, or where it might turn up:
Black goo has claimed an estimated nine-thousand acres of vines in California. That’s only about one percent of the state’s vineyards. But so far, there’s no cure; the only thing growers can do is rip up the vines and replant.
Ironically, some think the ever-growing popularity of California wines may be contributing to the problem.
“In other years, some of the weaker vines would have been thrown away.”
Wayne Wilcox is a professor of plant pathology with Cornell University.
“One of the prevailing theories is that this disease – the fungi that are causing it – are preying on some of these weaker vines.”
Wilcox says there have been a couple of isolated reports of black goo outside of California, including one case in New York. But he says Great Lakes winemakers shouldn’t panic. Instead, Wilcox advises them to examine vines carefully and reject any that look weak.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Wendy Nelson.
