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Chasing The Ivory-Billed Woodpecker | Earth Wise

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The ivory-billed woodpecker is or was the largest woodpecker in the United States. The last unassailable sighting of the bird was in 1944.  Since then, there have various reports of glimpses of the bird or of hearing its distinctive sounds.  But there has not been anything resembling proof that the bird still exists.

Despite this, the ivory-billed woodpecker has been legally protected under the Endangered Species Act.  There has been a proposal to end that protection and formally declare the species extinct.  Because of the controversy surrounding the bird, a final ruling on its status has been repeatedly delayed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Very recently, a peer-reviewed study in the journal Ecology and Evolution makes the case that the ivory-billed woodpecker still exists and that it is premature to declare it extinct.  The study cites visual encounters by expert observers, audio recordings, tree-damage, and rather grainy video evidence.  The authors claim that there is intermittent but repeated presence of birds that at least look and behave like ivory-billed woodpeckers.

One might ask:  why does it matter whether this bird is declared extinct or not?  The answer is that there are limited federal funds for conservation efforts, and they should be spent on saving genuinely endangered species and habitats.  The authors of the new study say that removing federal protection would be bad for any remaining ivory bills, which may be living in some swampy old-growth forests in Louisiana.  Other scientists consider conservation resources expended on the ivory-billed woodpecker to be chasing a ghost.

As is the case for several other notorious objects, one really clear photograph of an ivory-billed woodpecker could solve a long-standing mystery.

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A Vanished Bird Might Live On, or Not. The Video Is Grainy

Photo, posted October 19, 2014, courtesy of James St. John via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Lab-Grown Meat Is Legal | Earth Wise

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We’ve heard more and more about laboratory meat.  Other names for it are cultured meat, cultivated meat, or test tube meat.  Whatever name ends up sticking, the idea is to take living cells from animals and grow them in a controlled laboratory environment to produce a meat product that doesn’t involve the slaughter of any animals.  Supporters say cultured meat is more efficient and environmentally friendly than traditional livestock.  Livestock agriculture is one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, uses vast amounts of land, and consumes much of the world’s fresh water.

Years ago, we reported on a company called Memphis Meats, which was one of a number of companies developing techniques for harvesting cells from animal tissues and using them to grow edible flesh in bioreactors.

Recently, that company – now called Upside Foods – has become the first company to receive FDA approval declaring their meat product to be safe for human consumption.  The USDA still needs to give its approval and it may be a little while longer before Upside’s first chicken products will end up in supermarkets.  There are more than 150 cultivated meat companies around the world backed by billions of dollars in investments.  The FDA is in ongoing discussions with multiple firms in the business.

Upside Foods, based in the San Francisco Bay area, is planning to market chicken, beef meatballs, and duck in the near future.  Other companies are working on seafood products.  Up until now, Singapore has been the only country in which lab-grown meat products are legally sold to consumers.  With this landmark FDA ruling, that is all about to change.

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US declares lab-grown meat safe to eat in ‘groundbreaking’ move

Photo, posted April 15, 2008, courtesy of Andrew Otto via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A Victory For Clean Water | Earth Wise

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Many of the nation’s environmental laws are under siege from the current administration, but a recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court has solidified the Clean Water Act’s place as one of the country’s most effective environmental laws.

The case in question was about whether a wastewater treatment plant in Maui has been violating the Clean Water Act by polluting the ocean indirectly through groundwater.  Since the 1980s, the Lahaina wastewater treatment facility has been discharging millions of gallons of treated sewage each day into groundwater that reaches the waters off of Kahekili Beach, which is a popular snorkeling spot.   Groundwater, like any water beneath the land’s surface, can flow into major waterways such as rivers, streams, and, in this case, the ocean. 

In 2012, the nonprofit Earthjustice sued Maui county on behalf of four Maui community groups. Over the years, the Hawaii district court and the 9th Circuit appeals court ruled in favor of Earthjustice.  Last year, Maui County successfully petitioned the U.S. Supreme court to hear the case, which could have endangered the Clean Water Act.

On April 23, by a 6-3 vote, the court ruled that point source discharges to navigable waters through groundwater are regulated by the Clean Water Act when the addition of pollutants through groundwater is the functional equivalent of a direct discharge into navigable waters.

With this ruling, the Court rejected the Trump administration’s polluter-friendly position in the clearest of terms.  According to the opinion, written by Justice Breyer, the Court could not see how Congress could have intended to create such a large and obvious loophole in one of the key innovations of the Clean Water Act.  This is a victory for clean water.

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The Clean Water Case of the Century

Photo, posted June 30, 2018, courtesy of Kirt Edblom via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

WAMC Northeast Public Radio

WAMC/Northeast Public Radio is a regional public radio network serving parts of seven northeastern states (more...)