Today brings a bit of short-term good news for horseshoe crabs - and a worrisome long-term prognosis.

Volunteers canvassing Maryland's coastal bays this summer counted a record 23,438 of the helmet-shaped crustaceans crawling ashore to spawn on five different beaches. That's the highest tally in nine years of checking by the state Department of Natural Resources and the Maryland Coastal Bays Program.

Horseshoe crabs creep ashore in late spring and early summer to lay eggs and fertlize them in a slow-moving orgy, with one or more males clinging to each larger female. The most action was seen on Skimmer Island, an eroding patch of sand just north of the U.S. 50 bridge in Sinepuxent Bay.

Surveyors report that the ratio of males to each female has gradually been climbing in the past eight years - a good trend for maintaining a diverse gene pool for the longlasting creatures. With more crabs laying more eggs, shorebirds and herons also had more to eat. The surveyors also saw an uptick in royal terns and black skimmers on aptly named Skimmer Island.

Now for the not-so-promising news: new research relayed by the U.S. Geological Survey suggests that the crabs have been in a long decline because the earth's climate has been changing - and that future rises in sea level and water temperatures could dim their prospects even more.

While the recent drop in horseshoe crabs has been blamed on overharvesting them for eel bait, a study published in Molecular Ecology suggests that changes in climate since the last Ice Age have had a hand in altering the number of successfully reproducing crabs seen along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.

What's more, the impacts of climate change to come - rising sea level and water temperature fluctuations - could limit crab distribution and interbreeding. With fewer crabs to mingle, there are fewer genes to mix and blend. And without a rich variety of genes at work, a species may have a harder time adapting to changing surroundings, the scientists said. 

And that could be bad news for struggling shorebirds like the red knot, which feast on the crabs' eggs to refuel for their epic 9,000-mile migrations.  Likewise bad for the endangered Atlantic loggerhead sea turtle, which feeds on the crabs themselves.

"For this reason, the low effective population sizes indicated in the new study give one pause,” said Tim King, a US. Geological Survey scientist and lead author of the study.

(Crabs spawning on Skimmer Island: Photo by Dick Arnold for the Maryland Coastal Bays Program)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 4:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

It looks like all the cars tearing around the Inner Harbor next Labor Day weekend won't be racing just for the checkered flag - some at least will be trying to outdo each other in hybrid and alternative-fueled road rockets.

The American LeMans Series plans to stage a race here the day before Charm City hosts its first IndyCar Grand Prix race, Don Markus reports today in The Baltimore Sun.

An official announcement is planned on Wednesday, but a spokesman for the racing organization confirmed it would be bringing its act here.

Some may wonder how a bunch of cars burning rubber and fuel can be all that "green." But the American LeMans Series, or ALMS, pits race teams against each other not just for speed, but for fuel efficiency.  Cars use one of five alternative fuels or energy sources, and compete for points on fuel efficiency.  As I reported last year, the US import of European Le Mans style racing went "green" in 2008, meeting criteria set by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Energy Department.

Of course, that'll be small comfort to those put out by the disruption of downtown traffic for the racing - or, for that matter, the yearlong street repairs already under way to prepare for the three-day event.   But hey, it's another excuse to give B'more's underused public transportation system a try, right?

(American Le Mans Series' 12 Hours of Sebring race March 20 in Sebring, Fla. Photo by Steve Nesius/Associated Press)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 9:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Many, maybe most, folks picture shining watery vistas, boats and blue crabs when they think of the Chesapeake Bay. Some talented photographers concerned about the environment have been exploring the bay this summer and zooming in on scenes of the bay's resilient beauty - and its distress at the hands of human abuse and neglect.

The International League of Conservation Photographers, in collaboration with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, has been conducting a Bay RAVE since July.  That stands for "rapid assessment visual expedition."  In essence, green-oriented photogs blitz an ecosystem over a short period of time to take its pulse visually and to document the issues or threats facing it. 

Photographers have focused so far on the Anacostia River in Washington, Hampton Roads and the James River in Virginia and eastern Pennsylvania, where acid mine drainage fouls streams that ultimately drain into the bay. They've got a blog, and one Washington photographer, Krista Schlyer, whose pictures on the Anacostia are shown here, has even shot a video explaining her involvement in this RAVE. 

(She produced some striking pictures in a similar multimedia project I blogged about before documenting the collateral impact on wildlife migration of the wall erected along the US-Mexico border to deter illegal human immigrants.)

Working with the foundation, the photographers plan to mount an exhibit in September on Capitol Hill in Washington, where they hope their visual media will garner support for passage of new Bay cleanup legislation.  Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin, D-Md, has shepherded his bill out of committee, where it awaits a full Senate debate, possibly this fall.  Farmers oppose his bill, though, as do some environmentalists, who contend it was watered down to win Republican support. The foundation, though, still strongly supports the bill.

More on that later.  Whatever the issues with the legislation, the images you can see here and on the website are compelling visual evidence of the vital but troubled relationship between the bay and the people who live around it. 

(Photos by permission Krista Schlyer)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 9:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Baltimore's Back River is tons cleaner, for now.   A yearlong community cleanup effort has netted 2,000 tires and 170 tons of debris -- including eight massive conduit pipes, Mary Gail Hare reports in The Baltimore Sun.

The pipes, four feet in diameter and weighing hundreds of pounds each, apparently were washed down Herring Run more than three miles from a bridge construction project during a torrential downpour nearly two weeks ago. 

Brian Schilpp, a county teacher who is coordinating the cleanup campaign, sent the above photo of two of them, trapped along with lots of other trash and debris by a boom Baltimore County has strung across the upper reach of the river.

"For people who think a tire can't float, think about the water power that pushed 20-foot-long pipes downstream," Schilpp told Hare.

County officials honored Schilpp and other volunteers, as well as four college students who spent the summer cleaning debris from the river and working to organize the community.  I watched the kids at work one sweltering morning in July, and I can tell you, they earned their minimum wage many times over!  For them, though, it was about more than just the money, but a chance to do some good.

It's a great facelift for one of the most degraded rivers in the Chesapeake Bay, which lately has been showing some signs of life.  But unless something's done to curb the careless littering - and outright dumping - it'll only be a temporary improvement.  Here's hoping this leads to more permanent solutions, and not just another round of trash cleanups.
 

(Photo courtesy Brian Schilpp)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 8:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

If school cafeterias had salad bars, would children be more likely to eat their greens?

According to Whole Foods Market, implementing a salad bar in school is one of the fastest ways to create fresh food access to students. That’s why they’re sponsoring The Great American Salad Bar Project – a nationwide initiative that will provide healthy salad bars to at least one school in the communities surrounding each of their stores in the U.S.

Makes sense, but will kids want to eat salad when things like pizza, French fries, and ice cream are so easily within reach? With American youngsters at greater obesity-related risks than ever before, it may very well be worth finding out. And, since Baltimore’s urban agriculture movement is ostensibly booming, we’ve already got the greens in stock – we just need to get them into our schools.

You can help Whole Foods reach its goal by donating to Baltimore’s Harbor East store or by helping a school of your choice to apply for a grant, which will provide a portable 5-well salad bar, the necessary pan inserts, chilling pads and utensils, and training tools for school personnel. Grant applications will be accepted between September 1, 2010 and November 1, 2010. For more information, visit The Salad Bar Project website.

Image courtesy of Great Kids Farm.

Posted by Christy Zuccarini at 11:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

If you or someone you know are going to Green Mountain College in Vermont this fall, then you have some eco bragging rights. The school was ranked No. 1 in Sierra magazine's 100 cool schools. Scoring 88.6, the college earned notice for getting power from biomass and biogas.

The magazine sent out questionnaires to 900 colleges, asking about energy sources, food, waste management, academics and transportation, among other things. It ranked the 162 schools that responded.

Two Maryland schools that filled out the survey were Goucher College (114) and University of Maryland Baltimore County (156). (Click on the links to read their questionnaires.)

Earlier this month, another Maryland college earned top points on a different green schools ranking. The University of Maryland College Park made the Princeton Review's "2011 Green Rating Honor Roll," meaning it scored a 99 in the rating tallies.

I was impressed by reading about the green initiatives at the various universities on these rankings, but I wonder how much prospective students take that into account when selecting a school. How important are sustainable practices to you? Sound off in the comments.

Posted by Kim Walker at 2:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Going Green
        

Want to know the latest green news as soon as it happens?  Why not sign up for text alerts from The Baltimore Sun?

Breaking news text alerts will keep you abreast of the latest environmental developments. Weather text alerts can keep you posted on heat and air-quality advisories. And there's even a beach forecast alert every Friday through the season.

If you act before midnight Sunday (Aug. 15), you can enter to win a Droid X when you sign up.  But if you miss that deadline, you can still stay in the know by signing up here.

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 7:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maryland health officials are warning people to take precautions if they swim or fish in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries, saying that the summer's heat and the bay's pollution have made water conditions ripe for growth of dangerous vibrio bacteria.

Naturally occurring, vibrio can cause gastrointestinal distress and nasty skin infections — and they can be deadly for people with compromised immune systems, including those with cancer or diabetes.  The bacteria thrive in warmer waters, which we've had with this record-hot summer, and in waters enriched by nutrients, as the Bay is.

There've been 24 cases of vibrio reported in Maryland so far this year. close to the average annual count of 30.  Though none of the cases this year has been fatal, there have been eight hospitalizations, and there've been seven deaths attributed to vibrio since 2007.  Officials note that the season this year is far from over and many cases likely go unreported.

The state health alert was issued this week after the Patuxent Riverkeeper, Fred Tutman, drew media attention to a handfull of cases in Calvert County.  Those cases were first reported by Rona Kobell, a former Sun reporter, on a new blog produced by The Bay Journal.  (Quite a splash for a  new blog!)  The county health officer, who initially pooh-poohed the number of cases there, now apparently plans to post warnings at local beaches.

Officials say bathers and anglers should avoid swallowing water from the bay and its tributaries, and should stay out of the water altogether if they have an open wound.  They urge parents to check their children for cuts and scrapes, and to wash them immediately with soap if water gets near the wound.

They're also warning people not to eat raw oysters, since consumption of raw or poorly cooked shellfish is another way vibrio can enter the body and cause illness. (As a raw-bar addict, I'm not sure I can heed that warning, but certainly do intend to be more inquiring and perhaps choosy about the source of oysters I eat.) 

Microbiologist Rita Colwell, a professor at he University of Maryland, College Park and at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, has studied vibrio for decades. She says a rise in illnesses is not unexpected under the circumstances, but no cause to panic.

"I don't anticipate a large outbreak," she told The Sun's Meredith Cohn. "But people need to take precautions, use common sense."

(Baltimore Sun photo by Barbara Haddock Taylor)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Then there were two. Three days after the Waterfront Partnership towed its patchwork floating wetland to a mooring off the World Trade Center (seen below), the National Aquarium put a second one in the Inner Harbor between Piers 3 & 4.

This one looks a bit different.  The aquarium's is almost kidney shaped and solid, compared with the checkerboard array of the earlier floating wetland. Grasses and plants poke out of a floating bed of plastic mesh that looks a bit like a Brillo pad.

But the intent is the same - to see how these small patches of vegetation might soak up some of the nutrients fouling the water, and provide shelter and living space for fish and other aquatic critters.

The platform of the 200-square-foot wetland was made in Utah, of all places, then shipped in pieces across country. 

Aquarium staff assembled it Wednesday morning and then, with the help of local student volunteers, planted a mix of native salt marsh plants: smooth cordgrass, softstem bulrush, common three-square, seaside goldenrod and hibiscus. 

The porous plastic base will allow water to reach the roots, and conversely let the roots grow down and out to the water, explained David Nemerson, a conservation biologist with the aquarium.

Scientists with the University of Maryland plan to monitor the two wetlands to see what impact they may have on water quality and what kind of aquatic life they support.

"We're already learning things we didn't expect," said Dan Terlizzi, a UM water quality specialist who's based at the Columbus Center nearby.  He said tests of the wetland medium have found it quickly "colonizes" with bacteria, algae, worms and other tiny aquatic creatures.  That unseen life below the surface can soak up as much or more nutrients than the wetland vegetation poking out of the top.

These two wetlands are among the first steps of a campaign launched earlier this year by the Waterfront Partnership to make the harbor swimmable and fishable by 2020. 

That's a tall order, especially for these tiny patches of green. Dissolved oxygen readings in the vicinity have been quite low this summer, making it a stressful environment for fish (though aquarium staff say they still see plenty in the water around their facility.) 

No one thinks these tiny swatches of floating wetlands can make much of a dent.  But advocates say the aim of thes wetlands is to try them out, then seek to expand them assuming they've proven themselves. 

And as we noted here earelier, their greater value may lie in getting visitors to the Inner Harbor to look more closely at the water, to look beyond the trash floating in it and maybe think about the harbor in a different way.

Click here to see more photos of the Aquarium's wetland coming together. 

(Top photo courtesy National Aquarium)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 7:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Chesapeake Bay, News, Urban Issues
        

B'more's green scene has arrived. Grist, the cheeky online journal of environmental news and commentary, has a piece saying Charm City's become a hotbed of urban agriculture.

"Baltimore's urban agriculture movement has quietly taken off in the past couple of years, with the twin forces of sustainability and economic benefits providing the boost," Christine Chenot writes.

She ticks off a list of initiatives, several of which you may already have read about in The Sun.  There's the Virtual Supermarket project, for instance, a partnership between the city and Santoni's supermarket, in which residents without grocery stores nearby can have healthy food delivered to their neighborhood library branch, where they can pay for it with cash, credit card or food stamps.

The Grist story also spotlights Great Kids Farm, the city schools enterprise in Catonsville that teaches kids how to grow their own healthy foods.  Then there's Real Food Farm, (shown at left) the hoop-greenhouse operation at Clifton Park, and the Hamilton Crop Circle, (pictured at top) the northeast Baltimore initiative planting rooftop gardens on restaurants and stores.  And more.

Of course, teaching kids to grow and eat healthy foods is no substitute for learning to read and write.  Nor will fresh veggies alone solve the city's crime and poverty.  But advocates say they sure can't hurt, bringing people together and empowering them.  

(Baltimore Sun photos by Kim Hairston and Lloyd Fox)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 1:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

People living downwind of cement plants like the one outside Baltimore should breathe easier, as the federal government has ordered major reductions in emissions of mercury and other toxic pollutants from them.

The Environmental Protection Agency made final Monday rules for cement kilns, imposing the first mercury pollution limits for existing facilities while tightening emission curbs on new plants.  When fully in force by 2013, the EPA's action should result in a 92 percent reduction nationwide in releases of mercury, a widespread fish contaminant that can damage children's developing brains. 

The rules also should lead to similarly large drops in emissions of harmful fine particles, acid gases and other pollutants, EPA projects.

A Portland cement industry group warned that the pollution limits would require US plants to spend "several billion" dollars collectively on controls and could force some older facilities to close.  But EPA estimates the health benefits far outweigh the costs.

The new rules pose no major problems for Lehigh Cement Co.'s plant in Union Bridge, according to plant manager Kent Martin.  Indeed, the Carroll County plant expects to achieve the new mercury limit a year earlier than EPA requires, he said in an email, because of a pollution-reduction accord the company struck last year with the Maryland Department of the Environment.

The company agreed to slash mercury emissions last year in return for state permission to burn dried fertilizer or pelletized sewage sludge in making its cement.

As for the other pollution reductions, Martin wrote that the Maryland plant is "well positioned" to meet them because it's newer than many other cement facilities and because of the mix of raw materials it uses. 

(2009 Baltimore Sun photo by Jed Kirschbaum)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Good news (for a change). It seems phosphate-free dishwasher detergents are getting better at removing food stuck on plates, dishes and glasses.

Just in time, too, since the old standby dish soaps containing phosphorus have been banned in Maryland and 15 other states, as of July 1.  Phosphorus is out because it stimulates algae growth in water, a major problem in the Chesapeake Bay.

Problem is, though, phosphorus also is a proven dish grime fighter.  When Consumer Reports checked last year, before the bans took effect, phosphate-free detergents tended to do worse than brands containing phosphorus.

In the September issue, the consumer mag still didn't find any phosphate-free brands that did an excellent job overall of cleaning dishes.  But after testing them against food smeared and then microwaved on dishes, the staff did rate seven "very good," which is an improvement over its last evaluation.

Finish had the two highest-rated products this time, with two from Cascade right behind.  But when looking for the best phos-free dish soaps, CR cautions not to shop solely by brand name, as products vary in performance.

You'll have to get the mag to see the full analysis, but here are a few tips:  Bleaches don't seem to matter, though enzymes and the product's physical form do.  The best cleaners were tablets or pacs, while gels trailed in the ratings. 

(Images courtesy Consumer Reports)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 6:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The number of wetlands in Baltimore's Inner Harbor doubled over the weekend, as the Waterfront Partnership installed the first of two small floating marshes.  It was a welcome touch of "good" green in a water body plagued at times by algae blooms. 

As Jamie Smith Hopkins reported in The Baltimore Sun, a batch of 11 rectangular floats holding lush-looking grasses got towed Sunday from their assembly point at the Living Classrooms Foundation to their mooring by the World Trade Center.  The frames got their bouyancy from discarded plastic bottles collected from the harbor and stuffed into mesh tubes by student volunteers. 

Aiding in the design and plantings was Biohabitats Inc. The project was funded with air-pollution settlement funds provided by the Baltimore Harbor Waterkeeper.

Another floating wetland, this one put together by the National Aquarium, is to take up position  Wednesday. The only other wetland in the Inner Harbor is similarly tiny, a strip of vegetation along the Lancaster Street shoreline at the Living Classrooms Foundation.

Though too small to do much for improving the harbor's water quality, scientists will monitor the floating wetlands over the next year or so to see how they fare.   If they survive and seem to be soaking up at least some of the nutrients feeding the harbor's algae blooms, they're likely to spawn other floating wetlands. 

In the meantime, they're great conversation starters for discussing the harbor's water-quality problems and the partnership's ambitious goal of making the harbor swimmable by 2020.  Stop by and check them out.

(Baltimore Sun photos by Algerina Perna)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 10:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Since its inception, the Chesapeake Bay Trust has been working hard to promote public awareness and public participation in the protection and restoration of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributary rivers and streams. Now you can help too by entering their Hooray for the Bay! Contest, running through September 15, 2010.

To participate, simply complete this entry form and send your “Why I Love the Bay Message.” Or you can text “BAYPLATE” to 24587. Finally, as part of their efforts to raise awareness, the Trust has planted 100 Chesapeake Bay factoid signs in parks, schools, and community centers around Maryland. If you see one of these signs, photograph it and send your picture to contest@baytrust.org.

With three easy ways to enter, there’s no excuse not to. What’s more, the first 100 entrants will win a free Treasure the Chesapeake license plate. All participants are entered to win a grand prize of $2,500 cash. The grand prize winner will be chosen by a panel of judges who will select the best “Why I Love the Bay” message, based on originality, creativity, relevancy, and amusement factor – so make your message a great one! Winners will be posted on the Chesapeake Bay Trust website at www.bayplate.org before November 15, 2010.

For more information, including official rules and conditions, visit www.bayplate.org/contest.html.

Posted by Christy Zuccarini at 2:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

This summer's blistering heat apparently has left no corner of Maryland untouched, even the coolest one.  A two-week fish kill at Deep Creek Lake is being linked to unusually warm water temperatures stressing the fish, making them vulnerable to infection.

Though the die-off appears to be weather-related, I reported in The Baltimore Sun today (Aug. 6) that it's prompting some residents and others to suggest it's time to take a closer look at how the lake is faring as more vacation and retirement homes pop up along its 65-mile shoreline, and more boats crowd onto its 3,900 acres of water. 

Even those most worried say they still love the place, but are concerned it may be starting to show some wear and tear from too much love.

Friends of Deep Creek Lake has organized a forum from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday (Aug. 7) at Garrett 8 Cinemas on US 219.

Scientists are expected to be on hand to discuss plans to do a "report card" on the lake, similar to the ones done annually for the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. There's also supposed to be a discussion of submerged aquatic grasses in the lake, of possibly dredging some shallow coves and of how much the lake's water is affected by phosphorus from farm and lawn fertilizer, soil erosion and other sources.

What's your take on the lake?  When was the last time you were there?   

(Baltimore Sun photos by Barbara Haddock Taylor)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 10:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

You know school's just around the corner when crayon manufacturers start sending you press releases. Green beanies off to Katie Gerczynski, a 2nd-grader from Glen Burnie, who was chosen by Crayola to be part of its "Green Team," seen above.

Katie and nine others were tapped from among all the kids who entered Crayola's "How I Dream in Green" coloring contest last spring. Entrants were asked to draw their vision for making their homes, schools or communities greener.  Her offering was called "How I Can Make the Earth Smile."

The crayon maker honored Katie and the other kids this week by summoning them to its Easton, PA headquarters, where they were on hand for a dedication of the company's new 15-acre solar array. Crayola says the 26,000 panels should provide enough power to make 1 billion of the 3 billion crayons it produces annually. What about when the sun's not shining? Color me blue then.

(Photo courtesy Crayola)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 9:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Chesapeake Stories: Hunter Harris from Chesapeake Bay Program on Vimeo

It's hard to get a grasp of how much the Chesapeake Bay watershed has changed over time, especially from the ground. But aerial photographer Hunter Harris of Easton has documented it as only the birds see it.

Harris, owner of Aloft Aerial Photography, talks about his work and what he's seen from above in this short video filmed by Matt Rath of the Chesapeake Bay Program.   You can get an idea from his pictures, when posted alongside historical shots of the same area, how much the bay landscape has changed - more houses, of course, but also more trees, in some places at least.

The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels also has a video on its website about an exhibit of Harris' photos that it had on display last year.

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 9:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Tired of your gas-hog lawn mower? If you move fast, you can trade it in next weekend at Camden Yards for a battery-powered electric grass cutter.

In a "special arrangement" with the Maryland Department of the Environment and Clean Air Partners, Marylanders can buy a deeply discounted Neuton lawn mower.  You could save up to $324 on a 19-inch bagger-mulcher job that lists for $499.

If you bite, you'll do your small bit to reduce summer smog, as the old mowers get scrapped and recycled.  Gas mowers account for 5 percent of all air pollution in the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates.  And an hour of mowing with one produces as much smog-forming pollution as driving 350 miles. 

This green mower may not appeal to all lawn lickers, though.  The Neuton CE 6.4 got a so-so review from Consumer Reports.  Ease of use and handling were pluses, but bagging and mulching "only fair."  CR also found the battery on its tested model only lasted 45 minutes - not suitable for a big yard.  There are other cordless electric mowers CR rated more highly, made by the usual major mower manufacturers.  But then again, you probably won't be able to find one new at the prices offered under this deal.

To get in on the "great mower exchange," participants need to register online, then bring their old gas mower (and the $$) to Camden Yards Lot C on Saturday, Aug. 14 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.  The company's only selling 1,000 of its mowers, so it's first come first served. 

(Neuton photo) 

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 6:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Last year it was a wandering manatee playing peekaboo in the Chesapeake Bay. This year, a Baltimore teen-ager hooks a caiman in the Patapsco. I know it's been hot enough lately to make a Floridian feel right at home, but really, is this weird, or what?

Erick Hammack Jr., 16, of Pumphrey, told the Sun's Frank Roylance he snagged the 2 1/2 to 3 foot caiman - a cousin of the alligator - on a line baited with chicken wing. The critter turned up in a pond off Belle Grove Road in Patapsco Valley State Park.

Climate scientists have predicted Maryland could eventually warm up enough to rival Daytona for hosting spring break. But this wayward tropical reptile has a more mundane reason for showing up here, most likely. Even though alligators and caimans are illegal to have as pets in Maryland, people bring them in anyway, it seems.  Authorities say they find one or two in the wild practically every year, released (also illegally) after the owner decides the it's grown too big or nasty to keep.

At least it wasn't another snakehead, the toothy Asian fish that sparked a media frenzy several summers ago.

(Photo by Thea Hammack)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Maryland's green building gurus have gone suburban. The state chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council has moved its headquarters from a tiny office in downtown Baltimore to more spacious, ultra-green digs in Hunt Valley.

A gaggle of green building enthusiasts and Baltimore County officials gathered yesterday at the entrance to Schilling Green to cut a green ribbon celebrating the council's move into what long ago had been a spice warehouse.   It's been transformed into one of the first office buildings in the Baltimore area to achieve a platinum Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, rating - the highest level given by the national green building council. 

The three-story glass and brick palace boasts a green roof over the entrance, solar panels on top, energy-saving glass and insulation and waterless urinals, among other things.  Plus, there are a bunch of parking spaces near the entrance reserved for hybrid vehicles.

Why move from the city?  And what signal does that send to Baltimore's fledgling green building initiative?

"We wanted a space that was larger where we could do events, including educational programs," Stuart Kaplow, chair of the Maryland chapter and a local real estate attorney, explained in an email. 

They also wanted to be in a LEED-certified building.  While there are 500 of them in the state, Kaplow said, there are very few with offices for rent in the Baltimore area.  So when the Maryland chapter's leadership learned that Merritt Properties was aiming for platinum LEED certification on an overhaul of one of its old 1970s era office buildings in Hunt Valley, they jumped at it. 

For all its green-ness, the building can easily be missed in the soul-less suburban office park in which it's located.  Scott Horst, at right, a senior vice president with the U.S. Green Building Council, couldn't help pointing out the nondescript buildings nearby and a landscape that was more asphalt than grass or trees.  County Executive Jim Smith, on hand to join in the festivities, defended the Hunt Valley development surrounding Schilling Green, noting that in the 1970s, "we just didn't have your vision and the understanding we needed."

But it is a redevelopment.  And it's accessible by transit, three-tenths of a mile from a light-rail stop (though the streetscape might be more pedestrian friendly).   Mary Pulcinella, the green building chapter's programs director, said she hoped to commute there from her Hampden home by light rail and possible bike.  That certainly helps - I've seen too many LEED certified buildings in the boonies that are unreachable on foot or by bus or rail. 

With its move, Kaplow said the green building chapter's 22-member board intended no slight to Baltimore city, which last year adopted a mandatory green-building law, though has yet to publish the standards needed to carry out the law.  But board members did discuss making their move a statement about their interest in Baltimore County, which offers property tax incentives for green commercial buildings. 

Kaplow called Baltimore County "a place that is not always friendly to green," noting that the County Council shelved a vote Monday night that would have allowed construction of wind turbines there. "We would like to work with folks in the county," he added.

Maybe they can work with Baltimore County and others on reducing the storm-water pollution from "green" buildings.  I asked Josh Asbury, Merritt's project manager, what the company had done to curb runoff from its parking lot, and he said they'd just given it a new coat of asphalt.  Is this what county officials meant when they complained last winter that the state's new storm-water pollution control regulations needed to be made more flexible to allow redevelopment?

(Photos courtesy Baltlimore County)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 6:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (9)
        

With an attempt expected this week to permanently plug the BP drilling rig oil leak, scientists report that the zone of low-oxygen water that forms off the Louisiana coast every summer is one of the largest ever measured.

More than 7,700 square miles - an area roughly the size of Massachusetts - has too little oxygen to on the bottom to support fishing or shrimping, according to a release today by the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium and Louisiana State University.

A larger than usual hypoxic zone had been predicted this year from nutrient pollution washing into the Gulf from the Mississippi River watershed. But researchers were unsure what if any impact the massive oil leak might have.

Instead of the usual continuous band of low-oxygen water along the coast, scientists found a patchwork this summer.  They attributed the pattern to tropical storms stirring the water and mixing in oxygen.

Nancy Rabalais, executive director of the marine consortium and chief scientist aboard the research vessel Pelican that sampled the northern Gulf waters, said low-oxygen waters were mapped all the way west to Galveston, Texas. She said the total hypoxic zone might actually have been the largest ever, had scientists had time to fully map it.

(Hypoxic zone map by LUMCON)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 9:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Speaking of young people doing good green work, 305 of them "graduated" last week from Maryland's Civic Justice Corps, after five weeks of park restoration work, team building and learning about the natural world.

Five-member crews did trail maintenance, tree planting, beach cleanups and other restoration work at Gunpowder, Patapsco Valley, North Point, Assateague, Seneca Creek and Susquehanna state parks, plus Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary.  It wasn't all chores, as they also got time to hike, camp, canoe and do some artwork.

The program, an offshoot of the Maryland Conservation Corps, provides paid summer work and learning opportunities for at-risk youths from Baltimore city and elsewhere.  Now in its third year, it's nearly tripled in size.  The Sun's outdoors writer, Candus Thomson, highlighted their work recently in a nice feature story. 

(Baltimore Sun photo by Candus Thomson)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 9:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Some Harford County high school students are learning firsthand about green homes - by building them.

The Sun's Dennis Hockman reported over the weekend that students at Harford Technical High School have been teaming up with Harford Habitat for Humanity and local volunteers to build modular homes that meet standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Last year, the fourth in which the students have been working with Habitat to build homes for needy families, they put up one that met the USGBC's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification for homes.  For the home they're building this year, they started out aiming for gold certification.  But with help from local businesses and the donation of solar panels, they now hope to achieve the highest possible rating, platinum.

(Photo by Matt Button, The Aegis)

Posted by Tim Wheeler at 9:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)