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🌗 It’s Thursday, July 17. Here’s what’s on deck:
- How batteries save millions
- A new climate plan
- Goats pig out on knotweed
But first,
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Vermont Public's biweekly dose of all things environment.
A new version of the American chestnut tree
Before the 1900s, there were some four billion chestnut trees growing in the eastern U.S., including along valleys in Vermont. The rot-resistant trees were used to build homes, furniture, and railroad ties. Their nuts fed wildlife and farmers and were smaller and sweeter than the ones you can buy at a store.
Today, you won’t find any nuts from the American tree for sale. A deadly fungus arrived in New York City in the late 1800s, likely from a nursery stock of imported trees. The blight spread across the U.S. and by the 1950s, the American chestnut tree was declared functionally extinct.
For the past 40 years, scientists have been working to bring the trees back, including in Vermont and New Hampshire. Here’s what they’re up against:
- 🍄The fungus that attacks American chestnut trees is called Cryphonectria parasitica. It’s bright orange and often grows beneath the tree’s bark. It produces an acid that cuts off water and nutrients to the tree, but doesn’t kill the root system.
- 🍂 Spores from the fungus stay in the environment – in the air, the forest floor, and other trees. Today, infected American chestnut trees can grow back shoots, but the trees will die from blight before they can flower and reproduce.
- 🌳 The American Chestnut Foundation has been working to develop blight-resistant trees. For decades, they've bred American chestnut trees with a Chinese species that is naturally resistant to the fungus. With every new generation of trees, they hope to build more blight resistance, but the work is slow going.
- 🌱 If you’re interested in planting hybrid chestnut trees: You can get seeds with “intermediate blight resistance,” through the American Chestnut Foundation membership program.
- 🌾 A genetically modified variety: Researchers at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry have developed of the tree with a gene from wheat. After a lab error, the American Chestnut Foundation pulled support for the project. But the research to create a blight tolerant tree is still ongoing. The USDA is taking public comment about the project until Monday, July 21.
In other news
🔋☀️ Batteries save millions during heat waves: On a hot, humid Tuesday evening in June, demand for electricity in New England reached its highest level since 2013. Small-scale rooftop solar paired with battery storage saved customers across the region at least $8 million that day and likely more, according to a recent analysis. Green Mountain Power said customers in Vermont saved an estimated $3 million.
📃🌱 A new climate action plan: This update includes 250+ recommendations for how Vermont can cut emissions and increase resilience, including training a climate-ready workforce, creating a statewide climate change curriculum, and paying farmers and landowners for carbon sequestration. As federal and state support for climate programs falters, it’s unclear what will become of the plan.
🐐 Goats gobbling invasives: For a second season, conservation commissions in Waitsfield, Warren and Fayston hired a shepherd and her 18 goats to help get rid of invasive Japanese knotweed, alongside efforts from local volunteers and university students. Goats love the plant and will spend all summer eating. Project leaders say the work has helped to change attitudes about removal efforts – more people feel progress is possible.
In your backyard
Get out there
🧪 Head to this science museum after dark: Stop by for an adults-only night at the Montshire Museum in Norwich, where you can buy dinner and drinks. Bring a towel if you want to get wet in their water exhibits. Friday, August 1 at 6 p.m. $20.
🦋 Geek out about moths: Researchers at the Vermont Center for Ecostudies are asking for help documenting moths for the Vermont Moth Atlas. Find, photograph and share your observations between July 19 - 27. There are over 2,000 species in the state.
📖 State hunting and fishing courses: Vermont Fish & Wildlife offers a series of hunting education courses if you’re looking to get a license this fall, or just to learn more about the sport. There are also classes on fly fishing, women in the outdoors, and bowhunting. Offered throughout the state through early October.
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Vermont Public's biweekly dose of all things environment.
Credits: This week’s edition was put together by Lexi Krupp with lots of help from the Vermont Public team, including graphics by Laura Nakasaka. Editing by Stephanie Colombini.
