sland bird habitat being expanded in South Texas

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Dredging of a South Texas channel will pile up more habitat for birds.

The Corpus Christi Caller-Times (bit.ly/Sj58I3) reported Tuesday that the project is meant to benefit creatures that nest on Causeway Island in Nueces Bay.

About 40,000 cubic yards of dredge spoils from Rincon Channel will be spread over the 3-acre island. The center is being elevated to increase habitat for ground nesting birds.

Expansion of the island involves the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program, Cheniere Energy, the Port of Corpus Christi and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Hundreds of colonial water birds already roost on the island between February and August. The estuary program has erected nesting platforms.


http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505245_162-57519831/island-bird-habitat-being-expanded-in-south-texas/

Restaurant Faces $2000 Fine for Washing Away Bird Poop

A restaurant owner in Corpus Christi, Texas is furious after city officials threatened him with a $2,000 fine for using a garden hose to wash away bird droppings on the sidewalk in front of his business.

“They told me I can’t wash it off because I’m polluting,” said John Webb, general manager of Crawdaddy’s, a family-owned restaurant in downtown. “It’s like they want me to go out of business.”

Webb told Fox News that his troubles began a few days ago when a city official showed up and demanded he stop washing away the bird droppings. The restaurant is just a few blocks from the waterfront on a dead-end street.

“For the last 18 years we’ve just been washing it off with a water hose,” he said. “But a guy from the city came out here and told me if I washed my sidewalk off again I was going to get a fine.”

Continued: http://radio.foxnews.com/toddstarnes/top-stories/restaurant-faces-2000-fine-for-washing-away-bird-poop.html