Monday, April 27, 2009

BEN Special : Environmental Passages & Quotes April 2009


"Everybody needs beauty ... places to play in and pray in where Nature may heal and cheer and give strength to the body and soul alike." ~ John Muir


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"Jesus spoke of mustard seeds, fields, vineyards, sheep, birds and trees.  He was not removed or distant from creation.  He was involved in it and saw it as the stage for the world's salvation.  He tells his followers to look to the lilies of the fields - they do not toil or reap but they are more wonderfully clothe than Solomon and all his glory.  He looks to the beauty of creation to teach and show us something about God.


I have walked in some of your yards and gardens,  For the most part we take pride in what we can accomplish in our yards and gardens.  We mix dirt with compost, we wait for the spring to wake our yards up, we talk about tomatoes and we tell close friends that the work in the yard is therapy for us.  The interest we take in our yards provides a sense of pleasure, pride and it ties us to the cycle of creation as we watch plants grow, mature and then die.  Maybe seeing the world as a garden that we are in charge of would be helpful to each of us.


.... God's glory is seen in creation and nothing we do matches the beauty and glory of what God has created.  You know this already.  If you watched a plant grow, water flow down a stream, a flower unfold, a bird feather its nest - you know that God's glory and creation are a wonderful gift.  A gift for us to behold and honor.  What Jesus could be teaching us - that as we see creation - we see God's glory."     ~  Excerpts from a sermon delivered by Rev. Huey Gardner, Rector at St. Mary's on the Highlands, Birmingham, Alabama - April 26, 2009


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The world was in its prime and time rolled on with accustomed regularity.

The tiny streams among the hills and mountains

shouted with joy and the broad rivers wound their wonted course along

the peaceful valleys.  Many a tall oak had grown from the acorn, 

spread its rich foliage to the summer winds, decayed with age,

and mingled with its mother earth. ~ Choctaw tradition, recorded by Charles Lanman, 1856


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"Thousands have lived without love, not one without water." ~ W.H. Auden


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"Something will have gone out of us as a people if we ever let the remaining wilderness be destroyed; if we permit the last virgin forests to be turned into comic books and plastic cigarette cases; if we drive the few remaining members of the wild species into zoos or to extinction; if we pollute the last clear air and dirty the last clean streams and push our paved roads through the last of the silence, so that never again will Americans be free in their own country from the noise, the exhausts, the stinks of human and automotive waste…”  ~ Wallace Stegner from "Wilderness Letter"


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"I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in."   ~ George Washington Carver


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"To me a lush carpet of pine needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious Persian rug."  ~Helen Keller


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"By reading the scriptures I am so renewed that all nature seems renewed around me and with me. The sky seems to be a pure, a cooler blue, the trees a deeper green. The whole world is charged with the glory of God and I feel fire and music under my feet."  ~ Thomas Merton


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"I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything which is natural, which is infinite, which is yes."  ~ e.e. cummings


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"No poem, no painting, no work of man's hand or brain is as marvelous a things as the least of the species of living beings that inhabit the earth.  Each one... is a miracle as far beyond our comprehension as the stars.  We cannot make them, we cannot understand how they were made.  To destroy one... to wipe out  a whole species... for all eternity, is to do so colossal a thing that the mind falters at the thought.  Yet we have done it again and again and again, thoughtlessly, needlessly, wantonly, and cruelly ... many of the species that we have destroyed - or are now destroying - were among the noblest and most beautiful." ~ Herbert Ravenel Sass, Southern Author and Nature Writer


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Like winds and sunsets, wild things were taken for granted until progress began to do away with them.  Now we face the question whether a still higher "standard of living" is worth its cost in things natural, wild and free.  For us of the minority, the opportunity to see geese is more important than television, and the chance to find a pasque-flower is a right as inalienable as free speech." ~ Aldo Leopold


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Spring is nature's way of saying, "Let's party!"  - Robin Williams



Sunday, April 19, 2009

Forever Wild Deadline Approaching - Op-ed in the Birmingham News

In the center - (L to R) E.O. Wilson & Bill Ireland 


After this year - we only have 2-3 legislative sessions left to reauthorize Forever Wild's funding.

From the Birmingham News:

A couple years ago, before a meeting of the Downtown Rotary Club in Birmingham, I had the pleasure of meeting  world-renowned biologist and Alabamian E.O. Wilson and the late Bill Ireland, one of Alabama’s greatest conservationists and most generous philanthropists.

Seeing those two incredible people in the same room is something I will always remember.

One of Ireland’s greatest achievements was his tireless effort to pass the Forever Wild Constitutional Amendment  — a law that has saved thousands of acres in Alabama. Throughout the years, every time we would meet, the topic of Forever Wild would come up. Before that Rotary Club meeting, E.O. Wilson mentioned the importance of Forever Wild. Later, when I greeted Bill, he just smiled and shook my hand vigorously in celebration of that great law. It was like he was saying, "We did it!”

As we celebrate Earth Day this Thursday, there is one date in the future that Bill would be focused on:

October 1, 2012.

That is when funding for Forever Wild is scheduled to end. Bill would tell us not to let it lapse.  

Continue Reading at :
http://blog.al.com/birmingham-news-commentary/2009/04/keep_funding_for_forever_wild.html

Thursday, April 09, 2009

BEN - April 9, 2009 #320



Check out Thicket Magazine's new "Green Issue" on newsstands now. Or visit http://www.thicketmag.com


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Visits to Bama Environmental News website ( http://www.BamaNews.com ) in March 2009 - 5445


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Check out recent photos/story updates posted by the Locust Fork Journal about the Roebuck/Watercress darter pond disaster that occurred in Birmingham last fall.

http://blog.locustfork.net/category/environment-news/


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Headwaters: A Journey on Alabama Rivers


Order online this amazing book of 150 photographs from Alabama's "Ansel Adams" Beth Maynor Young. This visually stunning book is complimented by the narration of master storyteller John C. Hall. Order your book today at http://www.kingfishereditions.com - hit the "news" link. Also, check out Beth's schedule of booksignings in the community near you.


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1. New National Public Lands Law to Benefit Alabama - Last week, President Barack Obama signed into law the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act. The new law establishes 2.1 million acres of wilderness in nine states, gives landmark protection to more than a million acres in the Wyoming Range, designates four national conservation areas and establishes one national monument.


In Alabama, the new law established the following:


* Newly adjusted and expanded boundaries for the Little River Canyon National Preserve;

* Creation of the Shoals National Heritage Area;

* Creation of the Chattahoochee Trace National Heritage Area


Each National Heritage Area carries limited financial and technical assistance from the National Park Service.


For additional information about the new Omnibus Public Lands Law, visit http://www.wilderness.org


2. Several Alabama Caves Closed To Stem Wildlife Crisis - According to the Birmingham News, several Alabama caves known to be home to endangered gray bats have been closed by owners and managers as a part of nationwide measures to stem the spread of white-nose syndrome, a wildlife crisis that has killed hundreds of thousands of bats from Vermont to West Virginia.


Anderson Cave in Shelby County, which is owned by the Birmingham Water Works Board and managed by the Southeastern Cave Conservancy has been closed, along with four North Alabama caves managed by Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge Complex - Fern Cave, Sauta Cave, Cave Springs Cave and Key Cave. Sauta Cave in Jackson County is the winter hibernation home to more than 1 million gray bats, the largest population in the world, reported in the News.


The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has called for a voluntary moratorium on all caving activity in states known to be affected by white-nose syndrome, and is asking cavers in other states to not use gear or clothing that has been used in affected states.


Visit - http://www.fws.gov/northeast/white_nose.html for the latest details on this national wildlife crisis.


3. LuLu's Homeport to Receive Dauphin Island Sea Lab Award - This year, the Dauphin Island Sea Lab has established the "DISL Seventh Generation Award", an award that will be given annually to the person/organization that embodies the tenets of sustainability, stewardship and pro-active practice in considering our natural resources for the seventh generation


This year's first DISL Seventh Generation Award will be given to Lulu's at Homeport Marina in Gulf Shores. Lulu's will be recognized for their innovative environmental efforts which include the installation of an environmentally friendly windmill, serving only grass-fed, Alabama raised beef in its award-winning restaurant and the incorporation of the rain garden concept into their parking lots which dramatically improves the quality of stormwater runoff into the Intracoastal Waterway.


The award will be presented to Lulu's owner Lucy Buffet and General Manager Johnny Fisher at the Sea Lab's Discovery Day on April 18th.


4) BEN Notes: Ruffner Mountain Conservation Manager Opening, MyGreenBirmingham.com, Bibb County E-cycling + Additional E-cycling Events, University of Alabama Sustainability Events, Earth Day Across Alabama From Auntie Litter to Shoals Earth Day, Spring Concert at Three Caves


Ruffner Mountain Conservation Manager Opening - Ruffner Mountain Nature Center in Birmingham is seeking a Conservation Manager to manage their 1011 acres preserve. Visit http://www.bamanews.com/2009/04/ruffner-mountain-seeking-conservation.html for complete details.


MyGreenBirmingham.com - A wonderful new environmental website aimed at helping citizens find environmental solutions/activities in their community has been launched in Birmingham. Check it out at http://www.mygreenbirmingham.com


Bibb County E-cycling + Additional E-cycling Events - On April 11th there will be a- Bibb County E-Cycling event by the Bibb County Youth Leadership Program & Technical Knock Out in Woodstock, Green Pond and Centreville - 9am to 3pm - Call 205-926-3117 or 205-585-7835/ http://www.technicalko.net


University of Alabama Sustainability Events - Here are two sustainability events at the University of Alabama next week. April 14 - "Environmental Policy and the Problem of Justice" presented by Breena Holland, Lehigh University - 7:30pm at the Biology Auditorium, University of Alabama and April 17 - "Climate Change: Can Mathematics Help Clear the Air?" presented by Chris Jones, University of North Carolina - 1:00pm at Gordon Palmer Hall, University of Alabama. For details visit http://www.as.ua.edu/public/programs/apsacc/index.html


Earth Day Across Alabama From Auntie Litter to Shoals Earth Day - Check out the Earth Lineup:


April 17-18 - STICKS Country Music Festival, Palmer Hill in Auburn - visit http://www.conservationalabama.org for details.


April 18 - Dauphin Island Sea Lab's Discovery Day - Discovery Day 2009 will celebrated at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab this spring on April 18th, 10am-2pm. For details visit http://www.disl.org and hit the "What's New" banner link.


April 18 - Flint River Conservation Association/ 39th Annual Earth Day Event at the Hays Nature Preserve - visit http://www.huntsvillepreserves.com or http://www.flintriverconservation.org


April 18 - Lowndes Citizens United for Action Earth Day - in the Haynesville Town Square - 10am to 2pm - for details contact barbara@wildlaw.org


April 19 - Earth Fest - Tuscaloosa's Annual Earth Day Event on the University of Alabama campus - http://bama.ua.edu/~UAEC/


April 18 - Grow Alabama's Earth Day on the Farm - Blount County - For details, visit http://www.growalabama.com/events.shtml


April 18 - Whole Foods Electronic Recycling Event in Mountain Brook


April 19 - Party for the Planet Earth Day Celebration at the Birmingham Zoo - visit http://www.birminghamzoo.com


April 20 - Electronic Recycling Event at the Jasper, Alabama Mall


April 21-22 - Earth Day Safari at the Montgomery Zoo -http://www.montgomeryzoo.com


April 19 - Earthbound's Earthfest - to benefit the Black Warrior Riverkeeper - from 1:00pm to Sundown at the Bessie Estelle Park near the UAB campus - call 205-458-0095 for details


April 22 - 18th Annual Auntie Litter Parade and Celebration - Birmingham -http://www.auntielitter.org


April 23 - Earth Day at Samford University - visit http://www.samford.edu/earthday/


April 25 - Earth Day Mobile Bay 2009 - 19th Annual Mobile Bay Earth Day - 10:00am to 7:00pm - Fairhope Pier Park, Fairhope, Alabama - http://www.earthdaymobilebay.org


April 25 - Shoals Earth Day and Earth Month - April 25th, 11:00 to 6:00 at Wilson Park in Florence, Alabama - Visit http://www.shoalsearthday.com or contact NancyMuseSea@aol.com or 256-767-2909.


April 25 - "A view from the Earth" 3rd Annual Earth Day Celebration in Collinsville, Alabama - visit http://www.dreamfieldproduction.net or call 256-844-8235


April 25 - Earth Day at Bellingrath Gardens in Mobile with Mobile Baykeeper - 9:00AM to 3:00PM - for details visit http://www.bellingrath.org/earth-day.html


April 25 - Wildlaw Presents Earth Day in Tuskegee National Forest at the Taska Recreation Center - 11am to 1pm - details, barbara@wildlaw.org or http://www.wildlaw.org


April 25 - Five Mile Creek Greenway Volunteer Event - for details visit http://www.cawaco.org/fivemilecreek/


April 26 - Earth Day at the Gardens - 12th Annual Earth Day at the Gardens - Birmingham Botanical Gardens - http://www.bbgardens.org



Spring Concert at Three Caves - The Land Trust of Huntsville and North Alabama will be holding the annual Spring Concert at Three Caves "An evening of hit music, stories & laughter under the stars" - on May 15th, 6:30pm Free shuttle leaves from Huntsville hospital - for detail contact the Land Trust of Huntsville and North Alabama at http://www.landtrust-hsv.org


Wednesday, April 08, 2009

BEN 2009 Events Calendar - April Update



Below is the latest BEN 2009 Event Calendar.

Schedules - Visit these websites to access up to date calendar of events in your community:

Environmental Education Centers: Museums, Zoos and Gardens

Dauphin Island Sea Lab - 
http://www.disl.org
Friends of Locust Fork River -http://www.flfr.org
Weeks Bay Foundation - http://www.weeksbay.org/calendar.htm
Huntsville Botanical Garden - http://hsvbg.org/events.htm
Landmark Park in Dothan - http://www.landmarkpark.org
Birmingham Botanical Gardens - http://www.bbgardens.org
Ruffner Mountain Nature Center - http://www.ruffnermountain.org
Dauphin Island Sea - http://www.disl.org
McWane Center - http://www.mcwane.org
Burrtitt in the Mountain - http://www.burrittonthemountain.com
Alabama Museum of Natural History - http://amnh.ua.edu/events.html

Environmental Education Hikes, Outings, Tours, Clean-ups, Tree Plantings

Freshwater Land Trust - http://www.freshwaterlandtrust.org
Fresh Air Family - http://www.freshairfamily.org
Jones Valley Urban Farm - http://www.jvuf.org
Alabama Chapter of the Sierra Club - http://alabama.sierraclub.org
Alabama Hiking Trail Society - http://www.hikealabama.org
Land Trust of Huntsville and North Alabama - http://www.landtrust-hsv.org
Shoals Earth Month - http://www.shoalsearthday.com
Alabama Power's Renew Our Rivers -http://www.alabamapower.com/lakes/schedule.asp
Alabama Wildlife Federation/Alabama Nature Center -http://www.alabamawildlife.org
Alabama Coastal Foundation - http://www.joinacf.org
Alabama Wildlife Center - http://www.awrc.org

Camps/Environmental Education Centers
Coastal Wonders - Environmental Education Programs at Beckwith -http://www.coastalwonders.org
Sumatanga Camp and Conference -http://www.sumatanga.org/env-education.php
Southern Environmental Center - http://www.myecoscapes.com

Special Fundraisers
Alabama Wildlife Federation (Wild Game Cook-Offs) -http://www.alabamawildlife.org/eventscalendar

State & Federal Events and Tours

Department of Conservation's Special Programs -
http://www.outdooralabama.com/Programs/
Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge Tours -http://www.fws.gov/bonsecour/wintertours.html

Television Schedule

Discovering Alabama - 
http://www.aptv.org/Schedule/nolaschedule.asp?NOLA1=DSAL

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February - June - Land Trust of Huntsville and North Alabama's Spring Burst Hikes - Visit http://www.landtrust-hsv.org/events for the schedule.

WRATT Emission's Testing Schedule - The Waste Reduction the Technology Transfer Foundation has released their 2009 auto emissions testing schedule in jefferson and Shelby counties. Check out the schedule athttp://www.alabamacleanair.com/testing.html


Shoals Environmental Alliance Spring Nature Outings Schedule - The Shoals Environmental Alliance has released their 2009 Spring Nature Outings Schedule. Visit their website at http://shoalsenvironalliance.netfirms.com for details.


Camp Winnastaska Summer Teacher Workshops - http://www.winnteacher.org


Birmingham Canoe Club Workshops - http://www.birminghamcanoeclub.org/index_files/index1.html


April 11 - Bibb County E-Cycling by the Bibb County Youth Leadership Program & Technical Knock Out in Woodstock, Green Pond and Centreville - 9am to 3pm - Call 205-926-3117 or 205-585-7835/ http://www.technicalko.net

.April 14- "Road Kills on Battleship Parkway and the new Alabama Red-bellied Turtle Fence" presented by Dr. David Nelson, University of South Alabama 7:30 at 5 Rivers Delta Resource Center

April 14 - "Environmental Policy and the Problem of Justice" presented by Breena Holland, Lehigh University - 7:30pm at the Biology Auditorium, University of Alabama - http://www.as.ua.edu/public/programs/apsacc/index.html

April 17 - "Climate Change: Can Mathematics Help Clear the Air?" presented by Chris Jones, University of North Carolina - 1:00pm at Gordon Palmer Hall, University of Alabama

April 17-18 - STICKS Country Music Festival, Palmer Hill in Auburn - visithttp://www.conservationalabama.org for details.

April 18 - Dauphin Island Sea Lab's Discovery Day - Discovery Day 2009 will celebrated at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab this spring on April 18th, 10am-2pm . For details visit http://www.disl.org and hit the "What's New" banner link.

April 18 - Flint River Conservation Association/ 39th Annual Earth Day Event at the Hays Nature Preserve - visit http://www.huntsvillepreserves.com or  http://www.flintriverconservation.org

April 18 - Lowndes Citizens United for Action Earth Day - in the Haynesville Town Square - 10am to 2pm - for details contact barbara@wildlaw.org

April 19 - Earth Fest - Tuscaloosa's Annual Earth Day Event on the University of Alabama campus - http://bama.ua.edu/~UAEC/

April 18 - Grow Alabama's Earth Day on the Farm - Blount County - For details, visit http://www.growalabama.com/events.shtml

April 18 - Whole Foods Electronic Recycling Event in Mountain Brook

April 19 - Party for the Planet Earth Day Celebration at the Birmingham Zoo - visithttp://www.birminghamzoo.com

April 20 - Electronic Recycling Event at the Jasper, Alabama Mall

April 21-22 - Earth Day Safari at the Montgomery Zoo -http://www.montgomeryzoo.com

April 19 - Earthbound's Earthfest - to benefit the Black Warrior Riverkeeper - from 1:00pm to Sundown at the Bessie Estelle Park near the UAB campus - call 205-458-0095 for details

April 22 - 18th Annual Auntie Litter Parade and Celebration - Birmingham -
http://www.auntielitter.org

April 23 - Earth Day at Samford University - visithttp://www.samford.edu/earthday/

April 25 - Earth Day Mobile Bay 2009 - 19th Annual Mobile Bay Earth Day - 10:00am to 7:00pm - Fairhope Pier Park, Fairhope, Alabama -
http://www.earthdaymobilebay.org

April 25 - Shoals Earth Day and Earth Month - April 25th, 11:00 to 6:00 at Wilson Park in Florence, Alabama - Visit 
http://www.shoalsearthday.com or contact NancyMuseSea@aol.com or 256-767-2909.

April 25 - "A view from the Earth" 3rd Annual Earth Day Celebration in Collinsville, Alabama - visit http://www.dreamfieldproduction.net or call 256-844-8235

April 25 - Earth Day at Bellingrath Gardens in Mobile with Mobile Baykeeper - 9:00AM to 3:00PM - for details visit http://www.bellingrath.org/earth-day.html

April 25 - Wildlaw Presents Earth Day in Tuskegee National Forest at the Taska Recreation Center - 11am to 1pm - details, barbara@wildlaw.org orhttp://www.wildlaw.org

April 26 - Earth Day at the Gardens - 12th Annual Earth Day at the Gardens - Birmingham Botanical Gardens - 
http://www.bbgardens.org

April 28 - Coastal Kids Quiz in Daphne, Alabama - Contact the Alabama Coastal Foundation for details at 251-990-6002.

May 2- Outdoor Alabama Expo 2009 - The Department of Conservation will be holding the 2009 Outdoor Alabama Expo, 9:00 to 5:00 at Oak Mountain State Park.

May 2 - Learn to be an Oyster Gardener - The Mobile Bay Oyster Gardening Program will be holding Oyster Gardening workshops on April 18th - 10:00am, at the Alabama Gulf Coast Convention and Visitor Bureau in Orange Beach and May 2nd - 10:00am at the Auburn Shellfish Laboratory on Dauphin Island. Contact PJ Waters at 251-438-5690 for details and to reserve a seat.

May - June - Cahaba River Society will hold canoe trip each weekend to view the Cahaba lilies - contact them at http://www.cahabariversociety.org for details.

May 7-10 - 32nd Annual Audubon Mountain Workshop - Mentone, Alabama -http://www.birminghamaudubon.org

May 13-14 - 5th Annual State of Our Watershed Conference at the Betty Carol Graham technology Center, Central Alabama Community College, Alexander City, Alabama - for conference info, visit 
http://www.twp.auburn.edu

May 15 - Spring Concert at Three Caves "An evening of hit music, stories & laughter under the stars" - 6:30pm Free shuttle leaves from Huntsville hospital - for detail contact the Land Trust of Huntsville and North Alabama at 

May 16 - Friends of the Calera Library -"May Day Market  Rummage and Recycling Day

May 30 - Spring Hill Medical Grandman Triathlon - Event benefiting Mobile Baykeeper - Visit Mobile Baykeeper at 
http://www.mobilebaykeeper.org for details

May 30 - The Cahaba Lily Festival in West Blocton, Alabama -
http://www.cahabalily.com

June 11-13 - Paddle Alabama at Coosa Weiss Lake - for details, visithttp://www.alabamascenicrivertrail.com

June 23-25 and July 13-16 - Alabama Forestry Foundation's Teacher's Conservation Workshops - visit 
http://www.alaforestry.org

July 28-29 - Take Pride Statewide Conference 2009 -http://www.auntielitter.org/takepridestatewide.html

September 25-26 - Green Coast 2009 - Pensacola, Florida - 251-928-2309 -
http://www.smartcoast.org

November 7-8 - Paddle Alabama at Claiborne Dam , Alabama River - for detailshttp://www.alabamascenicrivertrail.com