Todd Singleton, UR; The Earth can be mended

Todd Singleton, UR

Several years ago I took a road trip with my grandparents across the U.S. and southwestern parts of Canada to visit the National Parks.  Aside from all the natural beautiful scenic wonders, I could’nt help but notice how man had exploited the earth of its resources.  One the most impactful impressions of this was at Calaveras Big Tree State Park, California, where locals cut down a giant sequoia so that its stump could be used for a dance floor and its trunk could be used as a two lane bowling alley (www.parks.ca.gov).  Another thing that made a lasting impression on me was where miners cut a mountain ridge in half to strip mine for copper.  They destroyed what was once a mountain side and turned it into a "mile high and a mile deep" polluted pit with contaminated water.  This chemical brew leaches out of the mine creating a huge ecological disaster (http://www.mininghistoryassociation.org/Butte1.htm).

             

Berkeley Pit Lake, The Most Deadly Lake in the United States 

Having all this negative imagery in mind, as well as a growing concern for the rapid land development in Florida, I felt as if I could (and should) do something.  My interest peaked when  I read an environmental science article on how researchers and ecological engineers worked to correct polluted phosphorus rich waters in the Everglades.  Their combined data entaled that cattails, which were known for absorbing and thriving in phosphorus rich areas, could be useful if promoted to grow upstream from the Everglades. In addition, the researchers found that not only were cattails effective in abating phosphorus pollution they were also absorbing arsenic and pharmaceuticals and could be used to remediate other contaminated sites. (http://cleantechnica.com/2009/05/16/cattail-army-deployed-to-fight-water-pollution/)

I know this class will help me in my pursuit of a rewarding career and enable me to mend the injuries that mankind's activities have caused.