Latest news with #Nutter
Los Angeles Times
4 days ago
- General
- Los Angeles Times
Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve nonprofit awards first college scholarships
Eight high school seniors have received some money to help them get started in college, thanks to a new scholarship provided by Huntington Beach environmental nonprofit Amigos de Bolsa Chica. Amigos presented the scholarships to the students from Long Beach and Orange County-area high schools on May 17. The recipients, their families and guests were then treated to a tour of the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve, as well as the Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach with Dr. Chris Lowe and Amigos volunteer Sam Lopez. Ocean View High senior Alexa Barrera, the oldest daughter in her family and the first to attend college, was among the recipients. Barrera has been active in the Seahawks' college preparatory program, Stepping Up, and served on the stunt cheerleading team this year. She will enroll in the nursing program at Golden West College. The scholarship is named after Bill and Meredyth Stern, according to Amigos de Bolsa Chica President Mel Nutter. Bill Stern, an Amigos board member, died in 2022, and his wife Meredyth subsequently made a $2 million donation in his honor. 'She wanted to honor Bill by providing Amigos with some additional resources for the different things we were doing, including encouraging us to create the scholarship,' Nutter said. 'It's been kind of an exciting ride for us, because of course part of what Amigos de Bolsa Chica is interested in is environmental education. It's a new thing. On the other hand, we anticipate we're going to be doing it from now on out.' The others awarded included Annabelle Kerendian of Lakewood High, Jillene Wetteland of Long Beach Poly High, Fernando Ortega of Santa Ana High, Yayoy Espinoza Soriano of Segerstrom High, Jim Le of Westminster High, Tiffany Nguyen of Garden Grove High and Kristy Huynh of Rancho Alamitos High. Each were selected after Amigos de Bolsa Chica received numerous applications. Nutter said a framed picture has been signed by each recipient and will be sent to Meredyth Stern. He said it was fun meeting and celebrating the high school seniors. 'I had never been to the Shark Lab myself before, and it was really impressive,' Nutter said.
Yahoo
16-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Why U.S. ranchers and farmers are alarmed about Canada's "super pigs"
Near Melfort, Saskatchewan — As the sun sets on the Canadian Prairies, the search begins for one of North America's most destructive animals, a fast-growing population of wild hogs that biologists call "super pigs." Dr. Ryan Brook, a professor in the University of Saskatchewan's College of Agriculture and Resources, has been tracking them for years. He says they're in the search area for sure. "No question," Brook told CBS News. "And like, lots of them, not just two, three, there's a lot of pigs out there. It's kind of mildly alarming just how many pigs there are around us right now." These super pigs have American border states on guard. Experts say they pose a multibillion-dollar threat to the U.S. economy if they ever cross from Canada into the U.S. Brook, one of Canada's leading authorities on super pigs, calls them an "ecological trainwreck." They're crossbreeds — wild boars deliberately bred with domestic pigs. They're big, smart and prolific breeders. And their population is now spreading out of control. "I think there's two challenges in Canada," Brook explains on why they have become so difficult to eradicate. "One is their biology makes them very, very hard to get rid of. They reproduce faster than you can shoot them." They will eat anything to survive, according to Brook. They tear up land and reproduce quickly, with devastating consequences to ranchers and farmers. For Saskatchewan farmers fed up with the damage, Alain Guillet is the man they call. He catches and kills nearly five super pigs a week. "They've eaten that's of value off of it, so he's lost all this," Guillet said as he showed CBS News farmland which was ravaged by the super pigs. "As these populations get bigger and bigger, we're going to see more crop damage," Brook explains. "We're gonna see potential disease spread. These pigs can spread disease to humans, to pets, to wildlife, and to livestock." Americans have reason to worry. Wild pigs already cause around $2.5 billion in damage to U.S. crops every year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And they can be aggressive toward humans. A woman in Texas was killed by wild pigs in 2019. Maggie Nutter, a fourth-generation rancher near Sweetgrass, Montana, keeps a watchful eye out for trespassers. Her ranch is right on the Canadian border. "So here's the border fence in between us and Canada, just an old barbed-wire fence that I repair in the summer," Nutter shows CBS News. "You look at all the billions of dollars of damage that those pigs do down south, and the damage that they're doing up in Canada," Nutter adds. "We can't afford them…It already costs, you know, so much for farm equipment. So much for hay, so much for diesel, we can't afford pigs." Montana has launched a "Squeal on Pigs" campaign, urging anyone who has seen feral swine to alert officials. Brook believes it is not if the super pigs spill over the border, but when. "Well, this is what I've been warning for now into 15 years," Brook said. "And warning anybody who would listen that this is coming." President Trump wants to dismantle the Department of Education. Here's what would be impacted. Doctor calls Trump's vaccine order "theater" because no schools have COVID vaccine mandates Jannik Sinner gets 3-month ban for failing drug tests
CBS News
16-02-2025
- Health
- CBS News
Why U.S. ranchers and farmers are alarmed about Canada's destructive "super pigs"
Near Melfort, Saskatchewan — As the sun sets on the Canadian Prairies, the search begins for one of North America's most destructive animals, a fast-growing population of wild hogs that biologists call "super pigs." Dr. Ryan Brook, a professor in the University of Saskatchewan's College of Agriculture and Resources, has been tracking them for years. He says they're in the search area for sure. "No question," Brook told CBS News. "And like, lots of them, not just two, three, there's a lot of pigs out there. It's kind of mildly alarming just how many pigs there are around us right now." These super pigs have American border states on guard. Experts say they pose a multibillion-dollar threat to the U.S. economy if they ever cross from Canada into the U.S. Brook, one of Canada's leading authorities on super pigs, calls them an "ecological trainwreck." They're crossbreeds — wild boars deliberately bred with domestic pigs. They're big, smart and prolific breeders. And their population is now spreading out of control. "I think there's two challenges in Canada," Brook explains on why they have become so difficult to eradicate. "One is their biology makes them very, very hard to get rid of. They reproduce faster than you can shoot them." They will eat anything to survive, according to Brook. They tear up land and reproduce quickly, with devastating consequences to ranchers and farmers. For Saskatchewan farmers fed up with the damage, Alain Guillet is the man they call. He catches and kills nearly five super pigs a week. "They've eaten that's of value off of it, so he's lost all this," Guillet said as he showed CBS News farmland which was ravaged by the super pigs. "As these populations get bigger and bigger, we're going to see more crop damage," Brook explains. "We're gonna see potential disease spread. These pigs can spread disease to humans, to pets, to wildlife, and to livestock." Americans have reason to worry. Wild pigs already cause around $2.5 billion in damage to U.S. crops every year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And they can be aggressive toward humans. A woman in Texas was killed by wild pigs in 2019. Maggie Nutter, a fourth-generation rancher near Sweetgrass, Montana, keeps a watchful eye out for trespassers. Her ranch is right on the Canadian border. "So here's the border fence in between us and Canada, just an old barbed-wire fence that I repair in the summer," Nutter shows CBS News. "You look at all the billions of dollars of damage that those pigs do down south, and the damage that they're doing up in Canada," Nutter adds. "We can't afford them…It already costs, you know, so much for farm equipment. So much for hay, so much for diesel, we can't afford pigs." Montana has launched a "Squeal on Pigs" campaign, urging anyone who has seen feral swine to alert officials. Brook believes it is not if the super pigs spill over the border, but when. "Well, this is what I've been warning for now into 15 years," Brook said. "And warning anybody who would listen that this is coming."
