At this meeting, it is a pure pleasure to hear about some tiny bit of our beleaguered globe in which the environment is improving. In this case, according to Elizabeth Heise of the University of Texas at Brownsville, we have the Texan passion for high school football (the US kind, naturally) to thank.

Bahia Grande means Grand Bay, but the Bahia Grande, which is near the mouth of the Rio Grande on the East coast of Texas, has, since the 1930s, been more like the Desierto Grande—dammed dry and grazed to nothingness. This great expanse of empty land became the source of huge amounts of airborne dust, which reduced visibility on the football field of nearby Port Isabel High School. So, “the largest wetland project is United States history” according to UT Brownsville, was undertaken.

10,000 acres were re-flooded a year ago, and now it is filled with invertebrates, fish, birds, and native plants planted by students. Heise showed a picture of a flamingo that fished there for several weeks this year. She hopes it will return next year, as it brought them an awful lot of good press. Go Port Isabel Tarpons!

At this meeting, it is a pure pleasure to hear about some tiny bit of our beleaguered globe in which the environment is improving. In this case, according to Elizabeth Heise of the University of Texas at Brownsville, we have the Texan passion for high school football (the US kind, naturally) to thank.

Bahia Grande means Grand Bay, but the Bahia Grande, which is near the mouth of the Rio Grande on the East coast of Texas, has, since the 1930s, been more like the Desierto Grande—dammed dry and grazed to nothingness. This great expanse of empty land became the source of huge amounts of airborne dust, which reduced visibility on the football field of nearby Port Isabel High School. So, “the largest wetland project is United States history” according to UT Brownsville, was undertaken.

10,000 acres were re-flooded a year ago, and now it is filled with invertebrates, fish, birds, and native plants planted by students. Heise showed a picture of a flamingo that fished there for several weeks this year. She hopes it will return next year, as it brought them an awful lot of good press. Go Port Isabel Tarpons!