ENVision, Volume 3, Issue 2, Fall 1997 Page: 3
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EN Vision Fall 1997 Page 3
'Game' teaches about the environment
Environmental Pursuit created as fun alternative to traditional teaching methodsBy JIM DOBBINS
Environmental Affairs Division
Don't be surprised if you hear good-
natured laughter while walking past
TxDOT district and division training
classrooms during the coming year - the
students are participants in TxDOT's
newest training class, "Environmental
Pursuit."
"Environmental Pursuit" was
developed by the staff of ENV's
Communications Section in response to
the department's strategic plan objective
to educate all TxDOT employees about
the environment. Modeled on a class
developed by Motorola, the class breaksthe traditional mold of TxDOT training
and ensures an experience that is both
educational and fun.
The four-hour class consists of
discussions, videotape viewings, and
multiple choice question and answer
sessions covering a broad spectrum of
environmental topics. Topics discussed
during the class include air quality issues,
landfill and garbage disposal problems,
hazardous materials issues, recycling and
water quality.
Classes contain 20 to 25 TxDOT
employees, who are divided into teams of
four or five each. Each team has a marker
on the "Environmental Pursuit" gameboard, which is a map of Texas with all 25
districts shown. A single die is rolled and
the marker is moved the indicated number
of spaces. Questions are read aloud and
are considered by each team, whose
"scribe" then writes the answer that team
consensus feels is correct on a hand held
dry-erase board. Correct answers are
rewarded with either $500 or $1,000 bills
("funny money" of course!). The team
with the most money at the end of the
class wins. But beware, interspersed
across the board are spaces where a
"Chance" card is drawn. Some cards
See GAME, Page 8Pelicans: New nesting area discovered
(Continued from Page 1)
Pharr District, Kim Jenkins and Eddie Sutherland from the
Environmental Affairs Division, and the maintenance crew at the
San Benito Maintenance Office of TxDOT, developed what came
to be known as "The Pelican Patrol."
The Pelican Patrol is a long-term effort to document the
number of mortalities and also to
remove any dead or injured -
pelicans from the causeway. The
removal of the pelicans is A -
performed under special permit
from the USFWS. Dead pelicans
are taken to TxDOT's maintenance
yard in San Benito and USFWS is 4.' .
contacted for disposal of the birds. ' r -
Any injured birds are taken to
either the Gladys Porter Zoo or the
University of Texas - Pan
American where they are allowed
to convalesce until they can be
released. Because it seems that the ,
majority of the mortalities occur
when visibility is low, the patrol
monitors the causeway in the
morning and evening on days when A new Pelican nest in th
northers are predicted, posts a
warning message on each message
sign, and turns on the bridge lighting a half hour before dawn or a
half hour before dusk to increase visibility.
In September 1995, the Pharr District sponsored a research
project called, "Evaluation of Innovative Monitoring Systems for
the Queen Isabella Causeway to Assist in the Preservation of
Endangered Brown Pelicans." TTI representatives Deborah Jasek
and Mark Shafer performed the research. One aspect of the
research was to find an innovative way of predicting weather
changes near the causeway, and to better estimate when to turn
on bridge lights and change the message signs when inclement-"
e
weather is approaching.
Another aspect of the research was to attempt to gain
information needed to down- or de-list the pelican as an
endangered species. The recovery plan calls for an increase in the
number and distribution of nesting colonies. When researchers
reported a high number of pelicans year-round, the potential for a
nesting site in the area became
evident. A site investigation was
made on Aug. 14, 1996. Potential
-4 - sites were noted and plans were
made to revisit these sites in the
- r F spring or summer of 1997. TxDOT
personnel informed TPWD of the
high potential for a nest sight in the
- ~ vicinity and TPWD biologists
- assisted TxDOT in searching the
-y area to the north and the south of
L" ,the causeway for possible pelican
3 nest sites. On May 20, eight active
nests with two to three eggs each,
.* and one inactive nest that contained
no eggs were found on a spoil
island in the Laguna Madre area.
Photo by Deborah Jasek Weeks later 12 young were
Laguna Madre area. recorded at the site.
Before the discovery of this
latest nesting colony, there were
only three currently established nesting colonies reported for
brown pelicans in Texas. These colonies are on Pelican Island in
Corpus Christi Bay, Sundown Island in Matagorda Bay and Little
Pelican Island in Galveston Bay. This newest colony, the Laguna
Madre colony, is the first ever recorded in the immediate vicinity.
This is an exciting time for all concerned and TxDOT plans to
work closely with researchers and resource agencies in an
attempt to help maintain this nesting colony, while, at the same
time, to provide safe and efficient transportation across the Queen
Isabella Causeway.
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Texas. Department of Transportation. ENVision, Volume 3, Issue 2, Fall 1997, periodical, Autumn 1997; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth606838/m1/3/?q=%22%22~1: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.