FloridaTreeHugger

My father, Roy Hendry, has always been someone I longed to emulate. His strong moral fiber and deep sense of family and compassion are values I’ve yet to see equaled in anyone (probably explains why I’m not married, lol). But the one thing about him that I admire the most, he doesn’t even realize he does - and that’s his consideration for the creatures with whom he shares this planet. When I was a little girl and my parents would take me with them when they went diving off their boat in the Florida Keys, I would watch as my father would float above the reef, taking extra care not to disturb anything - unless it was to pick up some other careless diver’s trash. If he was diving for lobster or fishing, he would take only what our family needed to eat, and then dispatch the critters in the most humane way possible. “We have to take care of the ocean, Keri,” he would say, “And she will take care of us.” All of my life I have watched as my dad would be extra cautious to leave as little a footprint on Mother Nature as possible. The following story illustrates this point clearly:

Last night Dad was a few minutes late meeting me at a restaurant for dinner. When he sat down, he explained his tardiness. “I was leaving the driveway and I saw a chicken snake in the road,” he said. (For those of you who don’t know, chicken snakes are great creatures to have in your yard as they eat bugs) “I didn’t want it to get run over, so I stopped, went back to the garage, and got a hoe. I picked him up with the hoe and set him in the yard.”

At this point, I am beaming at my father, and he has no idea why!

I found this on American Forest’s web-site. It’s pretty interesting!  : )

Florida ranks second in the nation for most national champion trees within its borders with 86 of the 733 record-holders on the 2008-2009 National Register of Big Trees. Florida slipped from the top spot after more than 90 of its previous title-holders were dropped from the list, the majority of which had died.

The biennial Register, which lists the largest known trees of 826 species, is maintained by American Forests, the nation’s oldest conservation group and sponsored by The Davey Tree Expert Company.

Read the rest of “Florida Ranks 2nd On List of Big Trees” »

This morning I briefly interviewed Lee County Commissoner Ray Judah on the Florida legislature’s tentative agreement to continue to fund the Florida Forever program. While the agreement must be affirmed by the Budget Conference before we are completely out of the woods, Commissioner Judah feels confident that we will receive the funding and he explained to me how important the Florida Forever program is to the citizens of this area.

Read the rest of “Lee County Commissioner Ray Judah Talks About the Importance of the Florida Forever Program” »

Since this article was published in the Sand Paper, House budget negotiators have agreed to include $300 million to continue the state’s environmental land buying program, but, as of today,  Everglades restoration continues to be a point of contention as the two sides haggle it out. People need to continue to contact their legislators and express their desire that this very important funding not be left out.

 Most Southwest Florida residents overwhelmingly consider that their natural environment is important to their quality of life and believe that “the needs of not only people, but also wildlife must be the arbiters of growth and development decisions” according to a recent survey released by the Florida Audubon Society. This survey is especially relevant considering that the Florida House of Representatives is preparing to cut all funding for Everglades funding and the Florida Forever program for their 2008-2009 budget.

Read the rest of “Despite Public Support, Environmental Funding in Danger of Being Lost” »

After a story I wrote in The Island Sand Paper concerning mangrove cutting, one of our readers drew my attention to more mangroves that have been cut further south in the Little Estero Island Critical Wildlife Area.  I headed down and met with Don Cady and his wife Joan, who showed me what amounted to nothing less than wholesale slaughter of some of the mangroves along the 8000-8100 block of Estero Boulevard.

Read the rest of “Illegal Mangrove Cutting on Fort Myers Beach” »

“Fortune is not satisfied with inflicting one calamity” - Publilius Syrus - a Roman slave from the 1^st century

BCE

On Thursday evening, in my capacity as a reporter for the Island Sand Paper, I had the privilege of attending a lecture given by coral reef scientist Dr. Andrew C. Baker. Dr. Baker holds a PhD in Marine Biology and is currently an assistant professor at the University of Miami. He was recently awarded the 2008 Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation for his work in helping to protect corals against climate change. During his lecture Thursday at the NCH Healthcare System in Naples, Dr. Baker shared his latest research exploring innovative new ways to help corals adapt to increases in temperature and carbon dioxide in the world’s oceans. Dr. Baker’s friendly manner and ease of delivery made the fascinating subject matter easy to understand and the packed audience at the Garden of Hope and Courage all learned a great deal about corals and how Baker’s breakthrough research just may save them.

Read the rest of “Coral Reefs Could Adapt to Rising Ocean Temperatures” »

On April 22, 1970, 20 million people across America celebrated the first Earth Day. It was a time when cities were buried under their own smog and polluted rivers caught fire. Now Earth Day is celebrated annually around the globe. Through the combined efforts of the U.S. government, grassroots organizations, and citizens, what started as a day of national environmental recognition has evolved into a world-wide campaign to protect our global environment.

Read the rest of “Earth Day 2008″ »