Segment 206

Canyon mysteries, ailing alligators, “lights, camera, photosynthesis”, wild horses

State(s) featured in this episode: Florida/ Georgia/ Oregon/ Wisconsin

Canyon Mysteries: A canyon can be an inspiring classroom, whether you are eight or 80. The stories behind two Georgia canyons could not be any different: Cloudland Canyon in the north is a natural wonder. But Providence Canyon in the southwest is now a tourist destination, in spite of the way earlier residents abused the land. Both intriguing stories come from Georgia Public Broadcasting.

Ailing Alligators: It’s hard to imagine many threats that alligators can’t handle. But in one Florida lake, chemical pollution is devastating these big reptiles with genetic birth defects. A disease sleuth is trying to get to the bottom of this bio-medical mystery, and his findings could help humans as well. We’ll take you to Lake Apopka in Central Florida for some daring scientific discovery.

Lights, Camera, Photosynthesis: Ready for your close-up? Some crops in Wisconsin are getting more than their 15 minutes of fame. As they sprout, hundreds of corn plants will have thousands of photos taken, to help researchers learn precisely how they grow. Researchers can track the function of specific genes, with the goal of creating hardier plants that can stay healthy in harsh conditions.

Wild Horses: There’s a romantic notion of wild mustangs, running free across the American West. The reality is more complicated. Horses are long-lived and don’t have many natural predators, so their populations can quickly get out of control. Adopting one of these magnificent animals can change the lives of horses, and humans. In eastern Oregon and across the West, a lot of animals are looking for loving homes. Find out what’s happening to protect them as well as the other wildlife in this beautiful landscape.

Related Segments

Segment 807

Under the Magnuson-Stevens Act, commercial fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico use individual fishing quotas to manage red snapper catches sustainably and with far less risk.

State(s) featured in this episode: Florida /  Mississippi /  Texas
Segment 703

Forest plantations in Florida are managed with prescribed fires that benefit wildlife and the owner’s bottom line.

State(s) featured in this episode: Florida
Segment 806

On the Continental Divide in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, residents support a plan to create new wilderness and wildlife conservation areas, including the nation’s first national historic landscape to honor veterans of the Second World War. In southern Utah, the remote and untamed Escalante River faces a major threat from invasive plants as it winds through spectacular redrock canyons; volunteers chop their way through choking stands of Russian olive to unblock the river and keep it wild and free. A training program in Georgia educates teachers in a new approach to science teaching called 3-D Science – getting teachers and students outside to observe their own surroundings and letting kids’ natural curiosity lead them to learn more.

State(s) featured in this episode: Colorado /  Georgia /  Utah
Segment 801

Commercial fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico are now using individual fishing quotas to manage their catches of red snapper, a fish population that has made a remarkable recovery after years of overfishing. With federal government support, landowners in Pennsylvania are managing their forests for diversity, providing better habitat for declining species of songbirds like the golden-winged warbler. In Georgia, a program on Lake Lanier for school kids teaches them the importance of water quality.

State(s) featured in this episode: Georgia /  Louisiana /  Pennsylvania
Segment 704

A farmer in southwestern Iowa has a mission to develop his farm as an example to others, using no-till seeding, multi-crop and pasture rotation, minimal fertilizing, and runoff filtering to keep the nutrients in his soil and prevent runoff. The backlog of deferred maintenance in national parks is a growing problem that needs Congress to act: we see the need for urgent maintenance and repairs at the Grand Canyon, the National Mall, and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic Site in Atlanta. Rafting down the river through the Rio Grande Del Norte National Monument.

State(s) featured in this episode: Arizona /  California /  Georgia /  Iowa /  New Mexico /  Washington D.C.
Segment 703

Private landowners in Pennsylvania work with government support to provide critical forest habitat for threatened populations of bats. Along the Meramec River near St. Louis, residents try to break the costly cycle of flooding, cleaning up and re-building by adopting more natural solutions to flood mitigation. Managing forest plantations in Florida, landowners use prescribed fires to reintroduce a natural process that results in healthier ecosystems for wildlife as well as better forest and ranching operations.

State(s) featured in this episode: Florida /  Missouri /  Pennsylvania
Segment 604

Wild and clear rivers, a rugged landscape, and one of the rarest plants on earth drive conservationists in Oregon to call for protection against looming mining threats.

State(s) featured in this episode: Oregon
Segment 604

In southern Oregon, a little-known wilderness called Kalmiopsis is a source of clear water for downstream communities and a core for surrounding wildlands that conservationists want to protect from and mining. Changes in cropland management in Kansas can make a big difference for the survival of bobwhite quail and other wild species. Gunnison County in Colorado offers stunning mountain scenery, thriving agriculture, and outdoor recreation – and residents there support more wilderness protection for public lands including wilderness and special management areas. Following lead contamination of the water supply in Flint, Michigan, scientists in North Carolina reveal another dangerous chemical making its way through water pipes to thousands of homes.

State(s) featured in this episode: Colorado /  Kansas /  North Carolina /  Oregon
Segment 504

A widely based coalition of local interest groups campaigns for permanent protection of forests, watersheds and wildlife habitat in a critical northern Montana landscape. Small-scale farmers in Montana learn how to grow crops organically with helpful support from advisers with the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Crop dusters commonly spray a toxic brew of pesticides on farmworkers in the fields, and the impact on the environment and the health of many people in Lake Apopka, Florida is obvious (co-produced with Earthjustice).

State(s) featured in this episode: Florida /  Montana
Segment 404

A pulp mill in Georgia has discharged effluent into a mighty river for decades, and critics accuse both the company and state authorities of neglect.

State(s) featured in this episode: Georgia