Shaw flight protects environment Published April 13, 2006 By Tarsha Storey 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. -- Work for some Shaw members consists of sitting at a desk working on a computer all day, Monday through Friday. For members of the 20th Civil Engineer Squadron Environmental Flight’s natural and cultural resources team, their work can consist of anything from conducting wetland, wildlife and endangered species studies and surveys to controlled burning. The team works in their office and out on the 12,500 acres of Shaw’s Poinsett Range Complex. The natural and cultural resources team has a number of projects in progress at the base and range at any given time, said Terry Madewell, 20th CES, natural and cultural resources manager. Mr. Madewell said his staff is a group of highly professional natural resources specialists. “Our job is to support the mission by a variety of means. One, for example, is to see what affect the mission has on the local environment at Poinsett Range Complex. We measure the positive and negative effects through our ecosystem monitoring efforts,” said Ronnie June, 20th CES wildlife biologist. “This enables us to track environmental trends when they first begin. The goal of the monitoring is identify a problem early on, then resolve it before it can create a mission impact,” he said. The immense data for all the range natural and cultural resources is stored and managed in a Geographic Information Storage system, said Doug Mayes, 20th CES GIS specialist. Mr. Mayes said he or other staff members spend considerable time at the range collecting data to update the system. This data helps keep track of all the environmental aspects of any particular site on the range. “If leadership wanted to create a new target, for example, we would come out here and map the site with our equipment. Immediately, because of the data we have collected, we can download and analyze all of the environmental aspects of that specific site because of the GIS,” said Mr. Mayes. The GIS keeps track of the cavity trees of one of the ranges’ residents, the red-cockaded woodpecker. Julie Hovis, 20th CES endangered species biologist, said she is responsible for the habitat management of the RCWs. The woodpecker is currently on the endangered species list. Through proper habitat management at the range, the population is increasing. Ms. Hovis said more RCWs at the range actually creates a positive impact on mission flexibility. A key factor to RCW habitat management is forest management. Doug Back, 20th CES forester, said the forestry program not only helps make the RCW habitat better by encouraging the growth of the bird’s favorite tree, the long-leaf pine, but it also helps to reduce the number of damaged trees. The RCW is not the range’s only resident. In the range’s wetlands, Mr. June is responsible for land condition analysis and habitat monitoring of the range’s other inhabitants. Mr. June said he conducts population surveys for deer, lizards, quail, frogs and other animals who call the range home. Population surveys are an important factor when it comes to determining the short and long term effects the mission is having on the range environment. Management of the wildlife and forestry habitat is much more than simply letting the land sit. During prescribed times during the winter, the Natural and Cultural Resources team is also responsible for conducting controlled burns. These burns are a crucial part of RCW management but also reduce wild-fire fuel, improve the forest habitat and help the several wildlife species including, deer, quail and turkey, said Mr. June. Maintaining the habitat of the range also includes restoring and maintaining a historical site, the Rosemary Firetower and House, two structures on the range that are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, said David Davis, 20th CES, natural and cultural resources planner. Because of their proactive mission support and technical work on the range, the Shaw Natural Resources team was recently selected to receive the Air Combat Command Natural Resources Team Award for 2004-2005, said Mr. Madewell. The actual award will be presented in February, 2006 at the Environmental Symposium In Pittsburg, Pa. “The natural and cultural resources staff at Shaw has a real passion for their work and it reflects in their commitment to the natural and cultural resources programs and to mission support. They are proactive, mission oriented and they realize what we do has a big impact on the mission,” said Mr. Madewell.