Remembering Captain Planet this Earth Day

Happy Earth Day!

If you are a certain age you are well aware that Smokey the Bear wanted you to help prevent forest fires and Snuff McGruff wanted you to help him “take a bite outta crime.” These were just little cartoon commercials, but they still planted that idea of what you should do to help out.

Growing up there was no better program on television that instilled the idea of taking the time and effort to improve the ecosystem, while still being an action packed show that you and your friends played on the playground, than Captain Planet!

Every episode had a lesson about the necessity of not polluting the earth. When the evil polluting villains became too much for the Planeteers to handle they called on Captain Planet to help save the day.

Looking back this Superman with a green mullet that enforced ecofriendly behavior was a crazy idea for a kid show. Can you imagine hearing that story pitch? There would be a good amount of laughter if I heard it before saying, “wait are you serious?”

It has been many years since I have watched the show Captain Planet, but every Earth Day I think back on the time I spent watching that show, or arguing over who would be Captain Planet and who would be a Planeteer on the playground.

Whether you remember the cartoon or not, take time this Earth Day to be a Planeteer again. Teach the children you love those ecological lessons you learned. Show them the importance of planting a tree, recycling, picking up trash, not leaving the water running and changing out old light bulbs for more energy efficient ones.

 

If you live in Missouri take time this Friday April 25 to come to Jefferson City and celebrate Earth Day! The celebration will be from 10 AM to 2 PM on the State Capitol south lawn. It will be a day of fun and education with exhibits, presentations and crafts!

While you are there, you will learn about the Adopt-A-Highway program, which is in its 27^th year, and how to volunteer to help make Missouri roads cleaner, more attractive and better for the environment.

You will also hear about the annual No MOre Trash! Bash. The Trash Bash encourages folks to avoid littering in the first place and picking up others' trash to help the environment and the wildlife such as birds, fish, turtles and others that can become entangled or otherwise harmed by it.

Peanut the Turtle

One such case is the story of Peanut the Turtle. When a young turtle crawled into a six-pack ring that stayed around her as she grew, the trash deformed her shell into the shape of a peanut. Peanut survived, the ring was removed and she has lived with the Missouri Department of Conservation as their environmental spokesturtle since 1993.

Take time this Earth Day to be a Planeteer again. Educate the young ones in your life on the importance of making the world a better and cleaner place to live and help make stories like Peanut the Turtle's a thing of the past.

Remember, “the power is yours!”

Find out more information on how you can help the environment at:

Adopt-A-Highway - http://www.modot.org/services/community/adoptahighway.htm

No MOre Trash! Bash - http://nomoretrash.org/

Jefferson City Earth Day - https://www.dnr.mo.gov/earthday/

Chorus Calling

Happy Earth Day! In honor of all things green, we're sharing a story from our Northeast District and how they created a habitat to help out the chorus frogs.

Last year, some chorus frogs were attempting to live and reproduce in some shallow swales on the north side of the Northeast District office. The frogs were having a tough time -- since the swales didn't hold water for long, any eggs that were laid were quickly dying as the swales dried.

Last fall, roadside operations staff constructed two small, shallow wetlands in place of the swales. They're designed to hold water into mid- or late summer before drying out. This will allow the frogs to successfully reproduce while preventing predatory aquatic insects from reaching high levels. The frogs have found the wetlands and have been calling loudly during the recent warm weather.

An added benefit? Tracks of deer, opossum, raccoon, turkey and other birds have been noticed around the wetlands, indicating other wildlife are finding them useful.

The chorus frogs will stay in the wetlands for a month or so and then spend the rest of the year in the grass, wildflowers and woods surrounding the wetlands.  

Information contributed by Chris Shulse, Roadside Manager for MoDOT's Northeast District.

Batty for Earth Day

Here is a story I learned of from our Southwest District Office that just screeches to be told this Earth Day:

Once upon a time ... well, ok, in 2004, there was a cave in McDonald County that was becoming popular for curious people - a little too popular, really. The current residents of the cave, such as bats and salamanders, were struggling to survive due to frequent visits from humans. The cave also wasn't considered structurally sound for explorers.

MoDOT heeded the recommendation from the Missouri Department of Conservation to install a gate -- something to keep people out but allow the bats to come and go freely from their home. The gate also allows the natural stream inside to flow as it has for thousands of years.

"The Conservation Department suggested we use angled steel because bats use sonar to navigate their way," said Senior Biological Specialist Alan Leary. "Sound bounces off the angled steel and guides bats through the gate. Rebar, which isn't angled, would affect the sonar, causing the bats to harm themselves trying to get in or out of the gate. They would leave the cave, thus affecting the cave's ecosystem and environment."

Prior to the gate's installation, the highest number of bats reported in the cave was about 25, mostly the Eastern Pipestrelle.

Leary said there were also reports of salamander larvae in the cave that probably would not have lived to adulthood because of the human disturbances.

Here comes the happy ending: In January 2010, Leary visited the cave and saw more than 250 Eastern Pipestrelles and four adult Ozark blind salamanders, also known as grotto salamanders.

"MoDOT normally isn't popular with cavers and spelunkers," Leary said, "but I think installing the gate to save the cave and its animals has mended those relationships. And we always like to do positive things for the environment."

And they lived happily ever after. Happy Earth Day!