A fur that’s politically correct and even ecology-friendly to wear? Is such a thing possible?
Nutria is the animal most often mistaken for beaver. They are aquatic mammals who eat grasses and dig holes and produce large litters several times a year. They were ostensibly brought in from South America, where they were native, intended to feed a hungry fur trade industry that mostly petered out. Nutria means ‘otter’ in spanish,so it was a smart way to sell the fur – but they are very different creatures. Now people hate nutria. I have even heard them classified as a ‘negative keystone species’ because of their impact on the watershed. Lucky for us since environmentalists tell us they are bad, this article brings the good news that we are welcome to kill them and use their fur!
Oscar de la Renta, Michael Kors, Patrik Ervell and Gilles Mendel are among the designers who might be described as nuts for nutria fur. … the Coastwide Nutria Control Program was introduced in 2002. Managed by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and funded with federal dollars, the program is currently paying $5 for each nutria tail turned in to the program, enabling coastal trappers — many of them survivors of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita — to make a living.
Isn’t that nice? Hurricane victims (and gulf coast survivors) can make money trapping rodents and you can wear them! Apparently nutria are all the rage in China. And, since synthetic fur is a petroleum product, this is better for the planet!
Lots of coastal trappers are earning money through the Coastwide Nutria Control Program,” Edmond Mouton, biologist and program manager for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, told TODAYshow.com. “We took in about 300,000 tails in the years before Katrina and Rita. Post Katrina and Rita, it dropped a bit because of the impact of the storms, but this is a fairly resilient group of people. In the past year, they set a record of 445,963 tails.After the state takes the tail, the trappers can then sell the pelts for additional income. “A lot of the fur is shipped to China and used in the Russian and Eastern European markets to make hats and coats — medium-price type garments,” Mouton explained. “They get $1 to $1.50, sometimes $2 per pelt, depending on the quality.”
Just in case all that didn’t make you feel good enough about wearing fur, there’s Keith Kaplan (newly appointed head of the we-love-fur club) (FICA) to tell us that wearing nutria is good for the environment. Trapping helps animals! Just look at Maryland! Ever since those darned bunny-huggers outlawed trapping beaver the evil critters have eaten all their trees. Now people want trees back and want trapping back! One can only rejoice that this evil menace will soon be off the waterways for good. Look at this horrific footage if you dare!
On the local (non-sarcastic) front, Worth A Dam’s artists FRO and Randy presented at the school board last night and were well received. The mural looks excellent on display and FRO sends the following summary;
Randy and I took turns talking about the “slides” and had a good – enthusiastic presentation. We expressed our knowledge of the keystone and the importance of the Beaver as a Keystone species. We also expressed the importance of educating our children; who now seem to be educating the Martinez mucky mucks and have changed the hearts and minds of some important city figures. Strange what we can learn from the younger generation. F
