1) Bon Secour Wildlife Refuge Gets Boost From Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions
2) Community Foundation Awards Nearly $100,000 To Assist Conservation Efforts
3) BP Amoco Dedicates Wetlands Project In Decatur
4) Discovering Alabama's Doug Phillips Given Leadership Award
5) Pepper Place Farmers Market Offers Fresh Organic Fruits and Vegetables
6) Basic Water Quality Training Course Set for July 22nd
7) "Traveling the Trace" The Times Daily Explores A Southern Treasure

BEN Notes:

Don't forget to celebrate "Southern Rivers" on July 20th in Birmingham. The fundraiser and auction (my wife Kathy is donating a stained glass piece made from river and beach glass) will support river photography in the South. For more info contact the Alabama Rivers Alliance at 205-322-6395.

The Cahaba River Wildlife Refuge Bill Passed the U.S. House last week. Many thanks to Reps. Spencer Bachus and Bob Riley. The bill now goes to the U.S. Senate.

New! Calling all environmental organizations who would like to get their scheduled events and activities published in BEN. We are asking groups to send us information on their scheduled events by August 10th, so we can publish a Fall Calendar. Submit events and activities to pkbyington@aol.com. Do not send files. If you have any questions, call 205-226-7739. - PB.

1. Bon Secour Wildlife Refuge Gets Boost From Alabama Senator Sessions - According to the Mobile Register, thanks to some late night work by U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions, Baldwin County's Bon Secour Wildlife Refuge is likely to get $1 million of federal money to buy nearby private land threatened by development.

The amendment which was attached to the Interior Department spending bill will provide an appropriation that can help the refuge purchase 800-odd acres of the Pilot Town Tract and 100 acres of an area called the Vet's Village. The Pilot Town tract has become a center of controversy in recent months because developers have announced plans to build a multi-story condominium on 90 acres of the tract. The undeveloped portion of Vets Village is considered one of the best remaining habitats for the endangered Alabama beach mouse. Officials at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service who will be given responsibility to purchase these tracts will only be able to purchase land from willing sellers within these areas.

Wendy Allen, director of land Protection for the Nature Conservancy in Alabama was quoted in the Mobile Register, stating Sessions "is a real hero today." She also said U.S. Rep. Sonny Callahan helped push the appropriation through the House.

2. Community Foundation Awards Nearly $100,000 To Assist Conservation Efforts - This past June, the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham awarded $97,500 in environmentally focused grants from the Unrestricted and Field of Interest Funds. The Community Foundation supported the following organizations and initiatives:

Alabama Wildlife Rehabilitation Center - $10,000 for its 2000 Educational Development Campaign.

Birmingham Botanical Society - $20,000 for enhancement of existing educational programs.

Cahaba River Society - $30,000 for a comprehensive Planning Process for the upper Cahaba watershed.

Ruffner Mountain Nature Center -$15,000 for support of the development of a Physical Master Plan in accordance with the Board's strategic plan.

Southern Environmental Center - $15,000 for its Regional Environmental Program

WRATT Foundation - $7,500 for pollution prevention and waste reduction activities for printing businesses in the 5 county Greater Birmingham area.

The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham is dedicated to making the 5 county area (Jefferson, Shelby, Walker, Blount, and St.Clair) a better place for this generation and those to come by promoting philanthropy and making grants in support of arts and culture, education, the environment, health, human services and for public and society benefit. The Community Foundation is truly making a positive impact on behalf of Alabama's environment. For information on how to establish a fund at The Community Foundation or to receive guidelines for grant applications to The Community Foundation, contact them at 205-328-8641 or e-mail - cfgb@bellsouth.net

3. BP Amoco Dedicates Wetlands Project In Decatur - Here is a successful public/private partnership that has been launched in North Alabama. On June 26th, BP Amoco's Decatur Alabama chemical facility, dedicated a new wetlands restoration project and announced a partnership with the City of Decatur to create a new environmental education center.

The 16 acre restoration project, which was dedicated inside the facility's 530 acre wildlife habitat area, was part of the Environmental Protection Agency's Five Star Restoration Program from which BP Amoco received a $10,000 grant. Per the Five Star guidelines BP Amoco partnered with Johnson, Bates and Legg Civil Contractors, Decatur Youth Services, Alabama Department of Corrections-Work Release and the Natural Resources Service to create the 16 acres of wetlands. In addition to managing the project, BP Amoco also contributed an additional $19,000 to make the project a reality.

In addition to the wetlands project, BP Amoco and the city of Decatur School System will be constructing an environmental learning center. BP Amoco will build the center and provide utilities. The school system will then staff the center with two-full time science teachers and provide in-depth, interactive environmental education to students throughout the city of Decatur system. The center should be up and running by January.

For more information about this project, contact Health and Safety Manager Dan McCoy at 256-340-5256.

4. Discovering Alabama's Doug Phillips Given Leadership Award - Dr. Doug Phillips, host of Discovering Alabama, the highly rated Alabama Public Television Series, received this year's Alabama Association of Convention and Visitor Bureau's Leadership Award. The award was presented during the 2000 Alabama Tourism partnership Governor's Conference awards banquet held in Tuscaloosa.

For more than 15 years Doug has been raising environmental awareness about Alabama's wildlands. It is great to see him receive some well deserved recognition.

5. Pepper Place Farmers Market Offers Fresh Organic Fruits and Vegetables - Where can you find "fresh," "off the vine," summer vegetables in Alabama?

Try - The Pepper Place Farmer's Market every Saturday 7 a.m. until noon.

The brainchild of Cathy Crenshaw, the market is located at Pepper Place in Birmingham at 2829 2nd Avenue South. The market features Alabama musicians playing from nine until noon, special food demonstrations by local chefs, and breakfast and breads provided by Continental Bakery. In recent weeks, three Alabama organic growers have been marketing their produce. This "can't
miss" weekly market will run through the end of September.

6. Basic Water Quality Training Course Set for July 22nd - As part of an exciting partnership with Alabama Water Watch (AWW), the Storm Water Management Authority (SWMA) in Jefferson County will sponsor a Basic Water Quality Training Course on Saturday, July 22 at 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. SWMA will also host a Basic Re-certification Course from 9 to 12 that morning.

The Saturday program/course is open to people interested in water sampling and testing techniques for temperature, turbidity, pH, dissolved oxygen, total alkalinity and total hardness. If you care about the water quality in a local stream or lake, this training course will give you the opportunity to become certified in water quality testing. For more information about the July 22nd event call Fred Guarino or Hana Burwinkle at 205-325-1440. To learn more about SWMA or AWW visit their websites at: http://www.swma.com or http://www.auburn.edu/aww

7. "Traveling the Trace" The Times Daily Explores A Southern Treasure - The Natchez Trace politely "touches" the outer edges of Northwest Alabama like a gentleman straightening out his collar. Dennis Sherer, outdoor writer for the Times Daily in Florence, Alabama has written a wonderfully vivid series of stories and memories about the Trace. Titled "Traveling the Trace" the week-long series can be found by visiting http://www.timesdaily.com/special/TRACE/default.html

Please share BEN with friends and fellow conservationists. If you have any questions or comments about this publication, contact Pat Byington, the author and publisher of BEN at 205-226-7739 or pkbyington@aol.com To receive back issues of BEN, please go to our website at: http://www.BamaNews.com