[CPEO-MEF] Restoration work is order of the day

[CPEO Moderator <cpeo@cpeo.org>]

South Carolina
THE STATE
Restoration work is order of the day
Programs are designed to mend areas damaged by training operations
By Sammy Fretwell
Decmeber 2, 2003

White bands painted on a longleaf pine tree mark it as a nesting site
for red-cockaded woodpeckers, which are on the federal list of
endangered species.

Grassy meadows and native forests are replacing the eroded landscape at
Fort Jackson, a 52,000-acre military base with a history of
environmental damage.

Under federal programs begun in the early 1990s, scientists have worked
quietly to restore the natural world at a fort known nationally for
training America’s soldiers.

So far, environmental programs have tripled the population of rare
woodpeckers, reduced erosion on 100 sites and restored 7,500 acres of
long-leaf pine forests, officials say. The work has been so successful
that both the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Army have
given special awards to Fort Jackson.

On a recent tour, federal biologist Doug Morrow emerged from a forest
and pointed at the result of the army’s work: A rolling meadow stretched
before him.

At one time, the clearing was full of exposed dunes and a few scrubby
pine trees. Heavy rains washed sand down the hillsides and into a
wetland and nearby creek. Today, knee-high grasses planted by the
government have firmed the hills, transforming naked dunes into a scenic
field that fills the horizon.

On many days, the hilly land is full of wild turkeys, quail, songbirds
and rabbits. Turkeys are drawn to the meadow by the abundance of insects
that live in the grasses. Quail and rabbits like the protection the
vegetated field provides.

“In getting this vegetation established, we’re providing habitat for
animals,” said Morrow, an Army wildlife biologist at Fort Jackson. “This
is perfect nesting habitat for a lot of birds and a lot of small
mammals.’’

This article can be viewed at:
http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/news/local/7391896.htm

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