Frequently Asked Questions

The Red Hills and Gulf Coastal Lowlands bioregions are bounded by winding watersheds of rivers to the east (the Aucilla) and to the west (the Ochlockonee), both of which originate in Georgia and eventually empty into the Gulf of Mexico. The boundary between the 2 bioregions is the Cody Scarp, where the elevation of the land drops from 215 above sea level to less than 100 feet. The Cody Scarp runs east to west just south of the Capitol, at about the latitude of Tram Road.

To the north, the Red Hills penetrate into Georgia, including the plantation lands between Thomasville and Tallahassee, and a significant portion of the native longleaf pine forests remaining in the United States.

The rich red clay soils of the Red Hills support a mosaic of park-like pine forests, expansive natural lakes, and hardwood hammocks. Our bioregions rests atop one of the highest recharge areas of the Florida aquifer, the underground drinking water supply for millions of Florida and Georgia residents.

A bioregion is a distinct geographic area (often defined by a watershed) which encompasses a unique and coherent set of soils, climate, geological underpinnings, native plants and animals, and human culture. A bioregion refers to both geographical terrain, and a terrain of consciousness--to both a place, and the ideas that have developed about how to live in that place.

Ideally, bioregional (and/or watershed) designations should become our primary natural addresses.

You will join together with hundreds of other members of the Red Hills bioregion in an individual pledge that will commit you to:

1.) investigating and deepening your citizenship in the Red Hills ("becoming native to this place"); and
2.) tracking and reducing your personal "ecological footprint."

You will receive a periodic newsletter, an identifying bumper sticker, and the opportunity to join in support groups, classes and field trips with like-minded folks. We hope you'll share some of your experiments in sustainable living on our web site, and in our newsletter, and at our occasional gatherings.

You're right, there is a sustainability problem with some seafood. In fact, according to the United Nations, the vast majority of fish are now overexploited. Some are overfished; their populations are dangerously low and fishing pressure is so great that the animals are captured before their peak in fertility. In other cases, fishing methods destroy non-targeted populations (bycatch) and/or seafloor habitat. In the Gulf of Mexico, bycatch is a major problem. About 35 million red snapper and 13 billion Atlantic croaker -- both considered overfished -- are caught, killed and discarded by shrimp trawlers each year.

Although most U.S. fisheries have been regulated since 1976, stricter limits on catches are needed to allow populations to rebuild. Without them, fisheries will collapse, a fate that has already befallen cod, haddock, and flounder in New England and the once-bountiful Georges Bank. Until U.S. and other governments on a global level protect ocean fish and their habitats, we as consumers hold one of the most powerful tools -- the ability to make informed choices in restaurants and markets.

Most sustainable choices* -- mahi-mahi (dolphin fish), oysters, blue crabs, mullet, dolphin-safe tuna, farmed striped bass, farmed tilapia

What to avoid -- shrimp (due to bycatch), grouper (until their spawning grounds are permanently protected), caviar, swordfish, Atlantic cod, Atlantic sea scallops, black sea bass, farm raised shrimp and salmon, red fish, red snapper, shark, orange roughie

*always request local seafood to avoid impacts associated with transportation

For additional information, see these two websites:
http://www.seafoodchoices.com/seasense/
http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/200001/food.asp

by Jeff Chanton and Susan Cerulean