south carolina

Wild pigs in the U.S.

November 17, 2023 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

In the U.S., there are as many as nine million feral swine living in 38 states. A conservative estimate indicates that they cause about $1.5 billion in property and agricultural damage each year in this country.

Pigs were introduced to the United States centuries ago as a food source, but they quickly established wild populations. Feral domestic pigs bred with purebred Eurasian boar that were introduced for hunting, and these hybridized wild pigs spread across the landscape thanks to their prolific reproductive rates and willingness to eat just about anything.

When wild pigs forage, they upturn roots and soil with their snouts, damaging natural habitats and other animals. A 2021 study found that wild pigs are releasing over five million tons of carbon dioxide annually by uprooting carbon trapped in soil.

As a result, many programs were implemented nationwide to try to reduce populations, usually through lethal methods.

According to new research from the University of Georgia’s Savannah River Ecology Laboratory and Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, recent conservation efforts have proven effective at controlling wild pig populations in the Southeastern U.S. Within 24 months of the start of control efforts in the study area in South Carolina, the research team found a reduction of about 70% in relative abundance of pigs, and a corresponding decline in environmental rooting damage of about 99%.

Wild pigs are basically a human-caused problem, and controlling their populations will require continued cooperation and collaboration.

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Wild pig populations in U.S. can be managed

Wild Pigs And The Environment

Photo, posted January 28, 2013, courtesy of Don and Janet Beasley via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Essential Oils And Organic Crops | Earth Wise

November 6, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Essential oils are concentrated liquids extracted from plants. They are called “essential” in the sense that they contain the essence of the fragrance that is characteristic of the plant. Essential does not mean indispensable or usable by the human body. But despite that fact, essential oils have been used in folk medicine throughout history.

In recent times, essential oils have frequently been used in aromatherapy. Generally speaking, medicinal uses of essential oils are controversial, and, in some cases, they have even been demonstrated to be dangerous.

Research has shown that essential oils have potential as natural pesticides. Recently, the USDA has funded research into the use of essential oils to battle pests and diseases of organic crops.

U.S. organic food sales topped $50 billion in 2018 and fruits, vegetables, and other specialty crops combined make up more than a third of organic sales. In order to meet consumer demand, farmers need ways to battle pests and diseases that often accompany organic crop growth.

A four-year project at the University of Hawaii at Manoa is entitled “Plant Safety, Horticultural Benefits, and Disease Efficacy of Essential Oils for Use in Organically Grown Fruit Crops: From the Farm to the Consumer.” The researchers will work with certified organic producers in Hawaii, Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, and California to evaluate the effectiveness of plant essential oils on major fruit pathogens such as avocado scab, anthracnose fungal disease, and powdery mildew on targeted tropical and temperate fruit crops such as avocado, mango, blueberry, and peach.

The goal is increase orchard productivity of the expanding organic fruit industry.

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Essential oils could keep pests, disease from organic crops

Photo, posted January 6, 2015, courtesy of Abi Porter via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Keeping Charleston Dry | Earth Wise

June 11, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Charleston, South Carolina is visited by millions of tourists each year. The town is a glimpse into the past, showcasing antebellum mansions, row houses, historic African American churches and scenic harbor views from a Civil War-era promenade.

Charleston is also visited more and more by water from rising seas and increasingly powerful storms. The city is essentially drowning in slow motion and may soon face an existential threat to its survival.

Charleston has a harbor and three rivers and water from all these sources leaks in at every bend and curve, fills streets, disrupts businesses, and rushes into homes during storms. Million-dollar antebellum mansions, built on spongy marsh and old tidal creeks, flood repeatedly.

City officials have endorsed a plan by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to wall off the historic downtown with an 8-mile-long seawall that would cost nearly $2 billion. The proposed barricade is just one of many proposed projects to build seawalls, surge gates, levees, and other barriers to defend U.S. coastal cities in an era of rising seas and climate-fueled floods and storms. A proposed flood wall in Miami would cost federal taxpayers $8 billion.

Researchers generally agree that sea levels are likely to rise by at least 3 feet by the end of the century. Some experts believe the rise will be much greater. So, a key question is whether these barriers will actually keep out the water. Critics of many of the proposed solutions contend that they are doomed to fail.

Flooding has caused nearly $1 trillion worth of damage along the East and Gulf coasts over the past 40 years. And things are almost certain to get worse in Charleston and other coastal cities.

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Fortress Charleston: Will Walling Off the City Hold Back the Waters?

Photo, posted October 7, 2015, courtesy of Jeff Turner via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Two Million Solar Installations

July 1, 2019 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Three years ago, we reported that the United States had installed its one millionth solar energy system, a feat that took 40 years to accomplish. Recently, the Solar Energy Industries Association announced that there are now more than 2 million U.S. installations.

Analysts forecast that there will be 3 million installation in 2021 and 4 million in 2023.

California continues to lead the nation in installing solar power. More than 50% of the first million installations were in that state and California accounted for 43% of the second million. Its share is nevertheless slowly dropping with the growth of the residential solar sector that is rapidly diversifying across state markets. Some places have seen extremely rapid growth. In South Carolina, there were barely more than 1,000 cumulative installations in 2016; today, the state is home to more than 18,000 solar systems and expects to add 22,000 more over the next five years.

The five leading states in terms of number of solar installations are California, Arizona, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. Other states recently seeing rapid growth in solar installations are Texas, Utah, Florida, Rhode Island and Maryland. Looking ahead, Illinois is forecast to grow from only 4,000 installations today to nearly 100,000 by 2024. The top ten state markets apart from California expect to add nearly 750,000 installation over the next five years.

The United States is at least the third nation that is home to more than 2 million solar installations. (Australia hit the milestone late least year and Japan actually topped 2 million in September 2014).

According to forecasts from analyst first Wood Mackenzie, by the year 2024, there will be on average one new solar installation every minute.

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The United States surpasses 2 million solar installations

Photo, posted January 11, 2012, courtesy of the Oregon Department of Transportation via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.