The iconic bald eagle has for centuries been the emblem of the United States, serving as a symbol of freedom across the globe. The majestic raptor, however, has only just this week been made the official national bird, thanks to an act of Congress signed by President Joe Biden on Tuesday.
The bald eagle, long diminished last century by post-war pesticides, started recovering after a ban on DDT in 1972. The birds were, in fact, considered an endangered species in the U.S. until 1995, and it was later removed from the threatened species list in 2007.
Today, South Carolina’s ACE Basin is a hotspot for nesting eagles, who live where they like to hunt — near slow-moving water filled with fish and smaller waterfowl.
“You’ve got huge development in Charleston and in Beaufort County, and then there’s a stretch between,” David Bishop, The Nature Conservancy’s ACE Basin project director said in a June 2024 article. “The ACE Basin is that space between the people. Eagles need that.”
The bird has long been a cultural symbol, emblazoned on U.S. currency, depicted on stamps and representing sports teams and American clothing brands. The spacecraft that landed on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission was even identified with the bird when Neil Armstong said, “The Eagle has landed.”
The eagle now joins the same ranks as the American bison, which became the national mammal in 2016, and the oak, which has been the national tree since 2004. – Skyler Baldwin
State offers recycling tips for new year
If reducing food waste and recycling the right way are among your New Year’s resolutions, the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services (SCDES) says it has tips that can help.
And the first tip they suggest is also the easiest — downloading their free Recycle Here SC app, which puts everything you need to know about Palmetto State recycling in the palm of your hand. The app was launched in November in conjunction with Palmetto Pride and the S.C. Beverage Association.
“While our web-based tool that provides recycling information has been extremely successful, this new app – which is one of the first of its kind nationwide – will make access to recycling information more convenient, reduce confusion, and lessen contamination of recyclable materials,” said Myra Reece, SCDES Interim Director. “This app will also support South Carolina’s efforts to achieve a goal of recycling 50% of the state’s municipal solid waste by 2030.”
According to SCDES, these additional tips will have the biggest impact on the success of your recycling:
- Make sure you’re recycling right. When items that can’t be recycled turn up in bins, the whole load has to be thrown away. To make that doesn’t happen, learn what goes in which bin by using the new app.
- Make special arrangements for hard-to-handle items. While certain kinds of hazardous waste like lithium-ion batteries can be recycled, they cannot be placed in bins. For assistance with these items, visit SCDES’s webpage about hard-to-manage items or call 1-800-768-7348.
- Keep things clean. Items for recycling should be empty and reasonably clean. No liquids, food or residue belong in the recycling bin.
- Reduce the volume. To support local recycling efforts, take proactive steps to reduce household waste and reuse items when possible.
“We can all take steps to reduce the amount of household waste that’s created,” said SCDES’s Richard Chesley. “Proper recycling and food waste reduction also supports SCDES in its everyday mission of protecting and preserving our state’s air, land water, and coastal resources now and for future generations.”
For more information on local recycling programs, proper recycling tips and food waste reduction, visit des.sc.gov/recycling. – Jack O’Toole
In other recent news
S.C. lawmakers want tougher domestic violence law. South Carolina lawmakers are less than a month away from the new legislative session and some are already looking to strengthen protections for domestic violence victims. One proposed bill would allow courts to place ankle monitors on abusers, alerting victims if their abuser comes within a certain distance of them.
S.C. lawmakers discuss bill that could convict drug dealers for homicide. South Carolina lawmakers are targeting drug dealers in a new bill that could put dealers in prison for homicide, aiming to stop the use and dealing of fentanyl.
S.C. virtual charter school board reaches resolution, lawsuit continues. S.C. Virtual Charter School board members reached an agreement on who would govern the 2,200-student online school, ending a board split that brought accusations of a coup and stretched into the state court system.
Biden commutes sentences of 37 of 40 on death row, but not Roof These three South Carolinians received commutations from President Joe Biden of their death sentences, but will remain in prison for life without the possibility of parole: Brandon Leon Basham and Chadrick Evan Fulks, co-defendants in a 2004 kidnapping and killing; and Brandon Michael Council, sentenced in 2019 in the killing of two bank employees. Not commuted: Dylann Roof, the S.C. man sentenced for killing nine at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston in 2015.
Biden signs anti-hazing law with expanded reporting requirements for SC universities. On Dec. 24, Biden signed a new federal law that expands hazing reporting requirements for South Carolina colleges and universities — including the state’s private schools.
We Can Do Better, South Carolina!