Environment

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Florida, we have a lionfish problem

Gone Coastal by Alan Peirce, FWC Let’s talk straight. Lionfish are a challenge. Native to the Indian Ocean and South Pacific, these beautiful yet venomous creatures are spreading through our waters like a bad cold. Within their native range, lionfish fit nicely into the natural food web and their populations remain in check. But not in Florida. Our native predatory fish are simply not ordering the new and bizarre-looking menu item, leaving little to control the lionfish population. Initial sightings...

Feral cats and the threat to wildlife

Feral cats are one of the top carriers of rabies By Stan Kirkland, FWC It’s fair to say Americans love their house cats. Although no one knows how many house cats Americans own, it’s in the millions. However, the practice by some of releasing unwanted cats outdoors under a trap-neuter- release (TNR) program is under increased scrutiny as some communities and businesses have banned the practice. Cat advocacy groups say in theory feral cats that are spayed or neutered and...

Seagrove home earns green certification honors

Public invited to open house Nov. 15 Arbor Homes of Seagrove is raising the bar for local home construction standards by being the first project in the Walton County area to achieve a gold-level Florida Water Star certification for water efficiency and a platinum-level green home certification by the Florida Green Building Coalition (FGBC). For many years, builder Rod Joly and his wife, GREEN REALTOR® Michelle Joly, understood the importance of green home features and how to communicate its value...

Choctawhatchee Audubon events for November

November 1: A program titled, “The Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance, Instilling Environmental Stewardship through Monitoring, Education, Research, and Restoration,” will be presented by the Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance’s Director, Julie Terrell, at the November Meeting of the Choctawhatchee Audubon Society. The Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance of Northwest Florida State College (CBA) has been coordinating programs in Okaloosa and Walton counties inculcating watershed stewardship, estuarine education, and restoration of critical habitat in Choctawhatchee Bay. Ms. Terrell will describe CBA’s activities, including monitoring programs, both...

Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance seeking volunteers Oct. 10

Help remove invasive Chinese Tallow trees On October 10, Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance will be removing invasive popcorn trees that were treated with herbicide last fall on Allen Lake in South Walton. The Nature Conservancy will be downing the trees down and cutting them up, and CBA need volunteers to carry the cut-up tree pieces to the road for pick-up. What: Popcorn-tree (Chinese tallow) removal When: Wed., Oct. 10, 2012, beginning 9 a.m. Where: Private property, near Allen Lake RSVP: Required –...