COASTAL 



TIDINGS 



Birders Flock to Wings Over Water 



rrowl Pea Island 

 for a rare glimpse of a 

 Western Tanager. 

 Canoe the blackwater 

 swamps of the Alligator 

 River National Wildlife 

 Refuge. 



Perhaps climbing 

 Jockey's Ridge or 

 howling at red wolves is more to your liking. 

 If you're a naturalist, you're sure to find 

 something to suit you at the third annual 

 Wngs Over Water festival. This "Celebra- 

 tion ofWIdlife & Wildlands in Eastern 

 N.C." is coming up Nov. 5-7. Register now 

 for a wealth of nature-based opportunities. 



In addition to bird-watching, hiking 

 and paddling events, Wings Over Water will 

 host workshops on bird banding and plant 



identification, seminars 

 on local wildlife, and 

 an outdoor festival 

 featuring vendors, artists 

 and activities for kids. 



"This is a family 

 thing," saysjack 

 Thigpen, North Carolina 

 Sea Grant's coastal 

 recreation and tourism specialist. There 

 are lots of activities for beginning birders 

 and naturalists, as well as for long-time 

 bird-watchers. 



For more information or a registration 

 form, contact the Wngs Over Water staff 

 at P.O. Box 1 808, Manteo, NC 27954, or 

 e-mail wow@outer-banks.com. Check the 

 Web at www.northeast-nc.com/wings. 



— R.W.S. 



Crab Compost Fills Garden, Not Landfill 



Sweet and delicate, blue crab meat is 

 delectable to diners and profitable for North 

 Carolina seafood processors. 



But edible morsels account for only 20 

 percent of a live crab's weight. Patty Buck of 

 Mattamuskeet Seafood Inc., like other pro- 

 cessors, faced high landfill bills for disposal 

 of leftover shells. 



Buck thought composting the shells 

 into mulch was better, economically and 

 environmentally. A state Fishery Resource 

 Grant helped prove her right. 



With $7,000 granted in 1994, Buck 

 fine-tuned a demonstration project she had 

 developed with Hyde County soil and water 

 conservation agents. Her system mixes 

 shells, other crab waste, cooking water and 

 lumberyard wood scraps. 



Composting has saved the Swan Quar- 

 ter processor at least $10,000 annually in 

 landfill fees, plus has environmental benefits. 



"It is a much more environmentally 

 friendly way to dispose of my waste," Buck 

 says. 



Composting has become standard at 

 Mattamuskeet Seafood. "We still use it every 

 day when we are operating," Buck says. 

 "We have never had a problem with it." 



The 400 gallons of cooking water used 



daily had been another disposal headache. 

 The water, about 40 percent organic matter, 

 now is dripped onto compost to foster micro- 

 organisms and speed the composting pro- 

 cess. Previously, Buck's conventional septic 

 field needed frequent replacement. 



Buck nurtures her rose garden and com 

 and soybean crops with the mulch, and 

 shares it with friends. Trial use by 

 Weyerhaeuser Co. tree farms also proved 

 satisfactory. Researchers have found no 

 problems from runoff and consider the 

 composting concept promising for other pro- 

 cessors. 



Buck credits the Fishery Resource 

 Grant for allowing her to refine her methods. 

 Technical support came from North Carolina 

 Sea Grant; Robert Rubin, an NC State Uni- 

 versity biological and agricultural engineer- 

 ing professor; Michael Smith of Smith Septic 

 Systems; and Ted Lyon of the N.C. Division 

 of Waste Management. 



A similar project is expected soon in 

 Pasquotank County. 



For more information on the Fishery 

 Resource Grant Program, administered by 

 North Carolina Sea Grant, call Bob Hines, 

 Sea Grant fisheries agent, at 252/2474007. 



—J.A.P. 



Students Debate 

 Coastal Issues 



North Carolina 

 students look toward the 21st 

 century, they face many 

 decisions about the coastal 

 environment — from the quality 

 of the state's water system to 

 the future of beach structures 

 threatened by inlet migration. 



Using desktop 

 videoconferencing, middle 

 school students and teachers 

 from Cabarrus County, Rocky 

 Mount, Raleigh and 

 Hillsborough joined Shaw 

 University education students in 

 debating these issues during 

 spring semester. 



Led by North Carolina Sea 

 Grant marine education 

 specialist Lundie Spence, the 

 electronic town meeting on 

 "Environmentally Endangered 

 Sites" was part of Teachers 

 Connect, a micro-Web site of 

 the North Carolina Department 

 of Public Instruction. 



'This was a very worth- 

 while program," says Spence. 

 "All of us had fun expressing 

 opinions and thoughts about 

 North Carolina's public trust 

 rights regarding the beach and 

 the moving of the Cape 

 Hatteras lighthouse." 



To find out more about 

 Teachers Connect, e-mail 

 tconnect@hotmail.com or visit the 

 Web site: www.ofps.dpi.state.nc. 

 us/OFPS/tc/ forums.htm. 



—AC. 



COASTWATCH 



