ENVIRONMENT

Less than two weeks after an inspiring visit to Yosemite National Park in California, I found myself back in Crowders Mountain State Park hiking the Kings Pinnacle Trail. I try to visit Crowders at least twice a month, usually hiking that same path. Even after a visit to the spectacular Yosemite, my enjoyment of Crowders […]

The approaching holidays make it a busy time in many offices, but for Kevin Redding’s small staff, this year it’s unusually hectic. That’s because the Piedmont Land Conservancy, where Redding is executive director, is scrambling to close a pile of land-preservation deals before the end of the year. The same is true at other regional […]

On Nov. 11, 1957, a white separatist organization failed in its attempt to destroy Charlotte’s Temple Beth El, now the largest reform congregation in the Carolinas, with dynamite. Last month however, almost 56 years later, the building was finally destroyed – not as a malicious act but as part of Mecklenburg County’s floodplain acquisition program. […]

A new, 4-mile extension of the Uwharrie National Recreation Trail, along with a new trailhead, will be dedicated Dec. 8. The trailhead will be named in honor of Joe Moffitt, the founder and visionary behind the creation of the trail.

In my previous article, I explored how those of us in the South have become estranged from our grasslands. This time, I want to help us get reacquainted with some of our native grasses. Gardeners, ranchers, hunters and birders all have reason to meet these beautiful, practical and productive species. Many gardeners already know the […]

A strong majority of Mecklenburg County residents surveyed said they think there’s solid evidence the Earth has warmed in recent decades. An even larger majority said it’s a somewhat or very serious problem. Yet despite nearly unanimous consensus among climate scientists that global climate change is occurring due to human activity, only about half the […]

Once a myth takes hold in the fertile ground of the South, it often persists with a vengeance. Many people still believe early European settlers arrived to find an unbroken canopy of trees sheltering the Piedmont. According to Reed Noss, author of Forgotten Grasslands of the South, “The lack of awareness of native grasslands in […]

If you’ve been paying any attention to national politics in recent weeks, you’ve surely heard remarks like: Why don’t politicians listen to the people? How can we get through to them? Why can’t government get anything done? But when people say “the government,” what government do they mean? It’s likely they’re thinking of the sclerotic […]

The UNC Charlotte Urban Institute’s online publication, PlanCharlotte.org, has won a $12,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to boost a project that will look at Charlotte’s creeks. The grant from Knight Foundation Fund at Foundation For The Carolinas will pay a researcher in local history who will examine the role […]

Sphingidae is a family of moths that are commonly referred to as hummingbird, sphinx or hawk moths. Some of the largest moths on earth, they have a heavy body and narrow wings. They are agile fliers and have the capability of rapid wing movement that allows them to hover over plants, and even move side […]