On to different things

It is hard to believe that this semester is already over. These last six weeks have gone by in a heart beat and while it is exciting to be done with my Junior year in college, it is also scary to think that I only have one more year of school before graduating and starting a new chapter of my life. When I look back on this term, I can say that it was the best term I have had so far at EC. I came into this class knowing that we would have to write a blog and create a website but never expected to learn so much from all the outdoor activities we did and from the documentaries we watch in class. 


As I sat by Keuka lake during my last weekend in Elmira and during my first official Memorial Day weekend, I realized that the Southern Tier region is beautiful and full of places to discover. With this class we were able to experience some of the greatness this region has to offer. Many students do not have the chance to experience the great outdoors of the Southern Tiers and do not leave the purple bubble of Elmira College. 

Over my last weekend it was interesting to enjoy the outdoor experiences at the Keuka lake. It had been quite a while since I went kayaking and camping, but I was able to enjoy these activities while there. After a stressful end of the year, it was a calming experience to be able to sleep outdoors. With the sound of the waves putting me to sleep and the chirping of the birds waking me up in the morning, I felt myself becoming one with nature. This is something I could not have experienced on campus at Elmira. Peaceful nights around the camp fire helped me to also appreciate nature while enjoying some smores in great company. 

Coming to an end, I want to thank my teacher, Dr. Maluso, for teaching the class and giving us these experiences that we would not have gotten in other classes. 

Gas Land

During one of our classes we watched the documentary Gasland, which displayed another concerning matter occurring in our environment. This documentary showed the untold stories of many people around the United States affected by the natural gas drilling.

Filmaker Josh Fox, takes us around the United States in order to discover the truth and the dangers of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, the controversial method of extracting natural gas and oil, now occurring in many countries worldwide. Throughout the documentary, Fox traveled to many states to meet people affected by this industry. During his adventure, Fox met with many families, farmers, professors, and scientists and experience first hand the risks and dangers of the so called "safe water". On many occasions during the documentary we saw both Fox and members of the families he visited, set the water running from the tap on fire. 

Many individuals interviewed for the documentary had also been lied to by the gas companies, suffered serious health problems, were now forced to buy water at the grocery store, and were now unable to sell their property due to these issues. On the other hand, the few individuals who were able to reach the gas companies were offered money to keep quiet of the issue or simply turned away.

Although fracking has caused a lot of damage in the environment, it has also brought in a lot of jobs for people. I am not saying that the practice of hydrolic fracking is good, but I am not also for the closing of all the fracking businesses. 

Nothing is perfect in life and there are consequences for everything. Although what natural gas drilling has done is terrible, it never stopped people from using oil, or driving cars and using machines that depend on oil. It is easy to say that we need to change and use different sources of power but those will also have consequences. Instead of completely changing the way we do things, we simply have to look at improvements that can be made in the future. 

For more information in regards to fracking, visit Sandra Steingraber's website. Ms. Steingraber is a female activist who explores the links between human rights and the environment and who is also anti-fracking. She is co-founder of both New Yorkers Against Fracking and Concerned Health Professionals of New York, and serves as Science Advisor to Americans Against Fracking.

The future of dolphins in Japan

On Friday May 22^nd, we watch The Cove, a documentary directed by Louie Psihoyos, which stares a group of activists led by renowned dolphin trainer Ric O’Barry, who infiltrates a cove near Taiji, Japan to expose both a shocking instance of animal abuse and a serious threat to human health. Although I had heard a little bit about the massive slaughter of dolphins in Japan, I was never fully aware of the extent of the Japanese' actions. 

Each year, thousands of dolphins are captured and massacred between September and March in Taiji and the fishermen responsible for the killing of the dolphins are extremely protective of the cove. Trying to avoid being revealed to the world, the Japanese are really secretive of their actions and do not let anyone armed with a camera or recording device of any kind near their property. Throughout the movie, it was shocking to see how many Japanese, from fishermen and members of the town to police officers and the government, take part in protecting the slaughter occurring in the cove in Taiji. 

Throughout the documentary, we see Ric O'Barry, a dolphin activist, team up with other scientists and divers to go on a cover operation to disclose the actions of the Japanese and the activity occurring in the cove. After preparing for months, the crew, armed with multiple cameras, heat detectors, and sound detectors left their hotel rooms in the middle of the night to go accomplish their mission and uncover the truth about the cove. During their mission, they installed hidden cameras in rocks to blend in with the surroundings of the cove and set up audio recording devices in the water in order to hear the sound made by the dolphins during their capture. Towards the end of the documentary, we clearly see and hear what the scientists and divers were afraid of discovering when going on the cover mission in the cove area. With these frightful footages, the scientists are going around the world and using it in order to inform more people of the situation and bring an end to it. 


Although the killing of the dolphins is already cruel enough, the issue does not stop there. The Japanese would use the dolphin meat as a food source to be sold in markets and grocery stores and were hoping to use it for school lunches. Many people that are not aware of the dolphin meat having a high concentration of mercury, would not think anything more than it is just another type of meat being used has a food source. But in fact, the high concentration of mercury in the dolphin meat can have severe negative health side effects on humans and should not be consumed. Throughout the documentary, we see the scientists wonder around grocery stores and pick out packages of whale meat, which they found out later, after analysis, was in fact dolphin meat. The meat of the dolphins killed in the cove was being mislabeled by the fishermen and sold in fish markets and grocery stores to innocent consumers. 

The overall documentary was heartbreaking and difficult to watch. It was unbelievable to see how the dolphins and the whales were depicted positively in the town of Taiji and how the people of Japan were so blinded by the fishermen's cover up. In today's society, we simply need to stop closing our eyes on situations like these in order to create a change in the world. 

If you wish to get involved and help solve this issue simply follow this link. Everyone can help put an end to this issue by getting involved.