cfrw.us Blog

Those of you interested in learning more about the connections between cement kilns and mercury emissions will want to read a new report out by Earthjustice, “Cementing a Toxic Legacy.” In addition to the report, the Earthjustice website contains a wealth of additional information on cement kilns. The report is here.

The report is in 6 parts that are easily downloaded.

Walk for Water
We are appropriately concerned about our local water situation, in near drought conditions as we are, but we might consider the increasing water crisis the world over. Ivan Dimitrov (UNA Intern) reports on an event March 22 in New York
A one-mile Walk for Water at Riverside Park, a Water Resources Fair at the American Museum of Natural History and panel discussions on water issues facing the global community. The events, co-organized by UNICEF, are part of a worldwide campaign to commemorate United Nations World Water Day. The theme for 2008 is Water and Sanitation: a reminder that 2.6 billion people worldwide live without proper sanitation facilities, and most of them are children dying of preventable diseases.
World Water Day is celebrated to highlight the importance of clean water for health purposes as well as the need to protect water resources. Each year, there is a different theme spearheaded by a different UN organization. In 2005, the UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs launched the Water for Life Decade 2005-2015. UNESCO coordinated activities on Water and Culture in 2006, and last year FAO drew attention to Coping with Water Scarcity.
History has shown that great civilization have risen where water supplies have been plentiful. The importance of clean abundant water supplies cannot be overemphasized. In contrast, the detrimental effects of polluted water can be seen in the diseases and deaths.
Water Partners, a US-based nonprofit committed to providing safe drinking water and sanitation to people in developing countries, points out that for most of us, it’s a short walk to the faucet in the kitchen, or bottled water in the refrigerator. But for one in six people on Earth, getting safe water each day is no easy task. According to the organization, in some parts of the world, every day women and children have to walk for hours to get fresh water, which takes time and energy, and can also be dangerous women risk getting raped. And the water they get is usually dirty.
Check the UNA link: www.unausa.org

Audrey Albrecht

Cape Fear River Watch officially welcomed aboard their new Resource Development Coordinator last week – Kemp Burdette. The Resource Development Coordinator position is part of the NC Conservation Network Rainmaker Program for the 6 eastern NC Riverkeeper programs. Kemp is spending much of his first few weeks in Raleigh training at NCCN with his counterparts from the New, Neuse, Catawba, Pamlico-Tar and Haw Riversheds, but will be fully ensconced at River Watch soon.

Kemp is a native Wilmingtonian – born on the banks of the Cape Fear and raised fishing and boating its waters. He’s a graduate of New Hanover High School where he played soccer and ran cross country (Go Wildcats!) and of UNCW where he double majored in History and Geology. Though he’s called the Cape Fear home all of his life, he’s seen a bit of the world. In addition to being stationed in the Far East for 4 years as a US Navy Rescue Swimmer, Kemp spent a year in Nicaragua as an “Agricultural Extensionist” with the Peace Corps and traveled around Newfoundland for a year visiting remote fishing outposts as a Fulbright Scholar studying maritime history.

Since returning to Wilmington Kemp has completed the Duke University Certificate in Nonprofit Management and begun work on a Master’s Degree in Public Administration at UNCW while working for Habitat for Humanity for the past three years. Many of you may already be familiar with him from the work he did organizing May’s Sturgeon Creek “Day on the River.” He knows his way around the regional nonprofit scene.

One of Kemp’s first and biggest challenges will be to tackle CFRW’s somewhat-less-than-complete membership database. That’s going to mean . . . renewal letters. If you haven’t paid any CFRW membership dues since you entered the drawing to win a hybrid car in 2006 – it’s time to renew. Kemp has set some lofty goals for CFRW membership and that’s going to mean keeping old members and recruiting new ones. So if you have any ideas or suggestions for how he might accomplish this, or you’d like to be neighborly and welcome him aboard, or if you just want to razz the new guy, drop Kemp an e-mail. And if you see him walking up the street, have your checkbook ready.

What does an environmentalist do on his day off? Cleans up the environment, apparently.

CFRW Program Director Joe Abbate stepped away from the river over the 4th of July weekend to concentrate on his other job: running nature tours in the Intracoastal Waterway, around Wrightsville Beach, and on Masonboro Island aboard his 28′ customized beach catamaran: M/V Shamrock. But with thousands of patriotic revelers gathering on uninhabited Masonboro and hundreds of boats rafting up in the channel behind the island, the area was left a little lot worse for wear.

A few phone calls were made and an informal clean-up was mounted on the morning of the 5th. Joe and 7 friends headed out to Masonboro and commenced bagging and loading. And bagging. And loading. And on and on. By mid-morning Shamrock was fully loaded and it was time to return to the dock.

One of Joe’s phone calls had gone to Clif Cash and James Shelton of Green Coast Recycling (who have helped out on CFRW clean-ups and are also active in the efforts to save Island Creek from Titan Cement.) In addition to barrels, bags and their own hard-working selves, Clif and James brought their recycling truck to meet Shamrock at the dock. They filled it. To the very top.

The crew bagged, loaded, shipped, and transferred an estimated 1,500 lbs of beach trash by 11:00am. And by 11:30 Joe was back on Shamrock leading visitors on a nature tour of (a cleaner) Masonboro Island.

And how was your 4th of July weekend?

From our friends at the North Carolina Conservation Network

Near the end of every state legislative session, environmental advocates must block attempts to sneak anti-environment bills through the legislature at the last minute. This year will be no different.

This week a new anti-environment bill appeared in the state Senate: H822. This legislation would weaken the 13-year-old set back requirements for hog houses, allowing them to be re-built too close to neighboring homes and businesses.

H822 appears headed on a fast track to the Senate floor with little to no debate. Ammonia emissions and odors from hog houses have been shown to represent a public health risk to community members – especially to children who live or play nearby.

Under current law, hog producers must get the approval of their neighbors to rebuild or modify farm structures if they cannot meet the legal set back requirements. H822 would remove that requirement and allow construction or repair without notifying neighbors. H822 is a threat to the public health of people living near hog farms – we need your help to stop it before it goes any further.

Tell your legislators and the Governor to oppose H822!