Cleaning up the creek

摘要

A North Carolina co-op is working with scientists and state agencies to restore an important wetland. On a warm autumn afternoon, fisheries biologist Preston Pate dons waders and steps off a dock into the shallows of Bogue Sound off the North Carolina coast. Gingerly running a rake over the sandy bottom, he searches for a telltale bump or scrape. When he finds what he's looking for, he pulls up the rake to reveal a plump scallop caught in the tines. Pate repeats the maneuver and, with each drag, catches another scallop or a clam. "This is a phenomenal resource," says Pate, who is director of the state's Division of Marine Fisheries--and a member of Carteret-Craven Electric Co-op. But there's, a Problem. Because of pollution, the clams and scallopsare potentially dangerous for humans to eat. Since 1979, the local shellfish beds have been closed to commercial harvesting.