Go Green

By John Sutter

Here are some environment/conservation/nature stories you may have missed in recent days.

1. Lesser prairie chickens could be pushed onto the endangered species list because of wind farms in western Oklahoma. The funny little birds (be sure to watch some videos of the birds before you form an opinion on them) are terrified of anything that’s tall — and see wind turbines as hide-outs for their predators, like eagles. Some of my colleagues joked that maybe the birds just need a good counseling session. It’s not that their habitat is necessarily disappearing, it’s just that their skittishness keeps wind-developed land off limits.

2. Black bears are making their way further into the forests of northeast Oklahoma. Could be a problem because more people live in northeast Oklahoma (and they’re filing more complaints) than in southeast Oklahoma, where the bears have lived for a longer period of time. More from the Nature Conservancy.

3 and 4. New developments in efforts to get chicken manure out of northeast Oklahoma, where it’s thought to cause substantial water pollution: a feces factory, of sorts, plans to turn the chicken waste into liquid fertilizer and fuel; and a program to truck the waste out of the region is stirring controversy, as some fear pollution woes will be spread across the state.

5. Locavores — or proponents of local and sustainable foods — are gaining force in Oklahoma. Interestingly, though, farmers, farmers market organizers and the head of the Oklahoma Food Cooperative say there’s not nearly enough local food to meet increasing demand.

As a response to some of you who have taken issue with my portrayal of Sailor Orchard, I want you to know that I  found the peach orchard to be one of the most entertaining stops on a recent local farm tour (see video below). The host was a real character, and if I took some of his peaches home, I would have had a story to tell when I shared them with friends or family. That, I felt, was the point local foods advocates were trying to make — that meeting farmers is memorable, and it adds something to the eating experience. Mr. Mearkle is a former sailor, and a fun, outspoken one at that.