Plastic, a useful product that’s part of our everyday lives, is taking its toll on our environment and our health, as guest columnist Kathleen Rogers explains.
Commentary
Sam’s Field Notes: Sandhill Cranes
Our Sam Bland shares his adventures trying to catch a glimpse of a pair of sandhill cranes that made a stop in Beaufort during their fall migration to the wintering grounds in Florida.
The Black Boxes Around Environmental Bills
As Sunshine Week draws to a close, CRO’s legislative reporter Kirk Ross shares his experience in covering the oft-cloaked legislative process in the N.C. General Assembly.
Newspaper Archives: The Turpentine State
North Carolina historian David Cecelski discusses how the British press covered North Carolina in the 18th and 19th centuries, and their focus on the vital products of its vast pine forests.
The Birth of NC’s Coastal Wildlife Refuges
Historian David Cecelski came across in the Denver Public Library a collection of letters and maps from the 1930s that provide insight into the origins of some of the state’s coastal wildlife refuges.
Sam’s Field Notes: The Balloon Problem
Balloon releases at concerts, games, weddings and other events have … well, ballooned in popularity but, as Sam Bland explains, coastal wildlife often suffers when they’re sent skyward, whether intentionally or not.
Sam’s Field Notes: Bats Get A Bum Rap
They’re the stuff of ghost stories and Halloween scares, but bats are not the blind, blood-sucking demons they’ve been made out to be. However, they are in trouble.
Sam’s Field Notes: National Estuaries Week
Our Sam Bland writes about the importance of estuaries in celebration of National Estuaries Week, Sept. 16-23, a time set aside to raise awareness and appreciation of our coastal natural heritage.
Guest Column: Cooper’s Missed Opportunity
David McGowan, director of the N.C. Petroleum Council, says Gov. Roy Cooper’s decision to oppose seismic research and offshore drilling was a missed opportunity to play a constructive role in the debate.
Sam’s Field Notes: Coquina Clams
Our naturalist, Sam Bland, recently enjoyed a late-afternoon walk on the beach in search of his favorite critters, the coquina clams, 1-inch, colorful, wedge-shaped mollusks found at water’s edge.
James Barrie Gaskill, Friend of Our Coast
James Barrie Gaskill of Ocracoke, an educator, commercial fisherman, family man and advocate for a healthy North Carolina coast, died Wednesday at 74.
Business View: ‘No Good Reason For Drilling’
Guest columnist Tom Kies of the Carteret County Chamber of Commerce and the Business Alliance to Protect the Atlantic Coast challenges the reasons given for drilling off North Carolina’s coast.
NC Missing at New York’s Billion Oyster Party
Guest columnist Tom Looney recently attended a celebration of oysters in New York, noting North Carolina’s absence despite being ideally positioned to compete in the growing shellfish aquaculture market.
Sam’s Field Notes: Baby Bald Eagles
Our naturalist Sam Bland recently spent a day in a kayak near Oriental, watching as young bald eagles learned to spread their wings and fly.
Commentary: Collective Amnesia on Bag Ban
While some folks may not recall, business owners with much at stake in the Outer Banks’ environmental health remember why the plastic bag ban was enacted, as columnist Jared Lloyd reminds us.
Sam’s Field Notes: Diversity of Carolina Crabs
A crabby disposition may not be so great, but crab diversity on the North Carolina coast, which is home to a large number of different crustaceans, is a positive sign.
