Rachel Carson: The Power Of One

After listening to a Moms Clean Air Force webinar, it struck me that protecting the air our kids breathe can seem so overwhelming that one might feel powerless against the onslaught of information. I am reminded that one individual can, and did, change our nation's pollution history. Rachel Carson used her extensive scientific knowledge, her prolific writing skills, and her love of nature, to make citizens aware of the dangerous chemicals in our air. She not only cleaned up a pollution problem, she led the way for the EPA to clean up the air for the future.

Rachel Carson's groundbreaking book, Silent Spring called for a ban on the chemical DDT, and other harmful pesticides. She provided scientific evidence of the devastating effects these chemicals had on living things - changing the way we viewed pollution forever.

Carson was already a renowned nature author and marine biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service when she heard from a friend on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, about large bird kills that had occurred as the result of DDT sprayings. To no avail, Carson tried to gain the interest of a magazine to publish her findings about the incident. Then she decided to go ahead and tackle writing a book about the issue.

In Carson's meticulous prose, Silent Spring describes how chemicals enter the food chain and accumulate in the fatty tissue of the bodies of humans and animals - causing cancer and genetic damage. Carson's conclusion was that DDT and other pesticides had irrevocably harmed birds and animals. She also presented an alarming statement that the pesticide had contaminated the entire world's food supply. In the most evocative chapter, "A Fable for Tomorrow," depicts an American town where all life "from fish to birds to apple blossoms to human children had been silenced by the insidious effects of DDT."

In the early 1960's, The New Yorker picked up the story. Ater the release of the article, claims by chemical companies and terrified readers attacked Carson's words: "If man were to faithfully follow the teachings of Miss Carson, we would return to the Dark Ages, and the insects and diseases and vermin would once again inherit the earth." ~ American Cyanamid Chemical Company

Much to the chemical company's dismay, and because of Carson's findings, DDT was eventually banned. Many believe Carson was one of the inspirations behind the formation of the EPA: "There is no question that Silent Spring prompted the Federal Government to take action against water and air pollution - as well as against the misuse of chemicals - several years before it otherwise might have moved." ~ from a government natural resources expert after Carson's death

Rachel Carson's message still resonates strong today. Let the legacy of Silent Spring serve as an awareness wake-up call: All living creatures are vulnerable - the littlest ones have the most to lose.

“One way to open your eyes is to ask yourself, what if I had never seen this before? What if I knew I would never see it again?" ~ Rachel Carson

I highly recommend reading Silent Spring. One summer, my family visited the Rachel Carson Wildlife Refuge in Maine. It is a beautiful vacation spot, and an idyllic environment to view the habitats of coastal creatures. The tidal salt marsh is particularly fun for hands-on exploration. Teaching the powerful message that each and every one of us can clean up the air is a gift worth sharing with our kids.

Main Photo: Chris-Lamprianidis via Deviantart

Graduation Shakes Deep Environmental Roots

As my youngest child graduated college last weekend, I sat sandwiched between my mother and daughter while my husband's camera clicked away. A sea of black caps with pink tassels faced the stage with heightened expectancy. Speaker after speaker approached the podium to impart pearls of wisdom to the graduates. They spoke of fueling passions, finding patience, proceeding with integrity, working hard, accepting failure, and being kind, grateful, humble and ethical. Each speaker concluded by noting the future belongs to the graduates.

I observed the young guys with their freshly shaved faces, and the flatly straightened hair of the young women, as they sat tall, cell phones in hand. They looked like the lungs of the planet - soaking it all in.

These children have experienced so many of nature's gifts: days at the beach digging for buried treasure, astonishing rainbows to paint, spring flowers to pick, trees to climb, bugs to catch, strawberries to gather, birds to feed, and stars to wish upon.

As parents, many of us have been fighting to protect the environment since before our kids were born. We've educated ourselves, and our children. We made sure they grew up with Earth Day, and learned about the issues of conservation, pollution and climate change. We taught them that our planet comes with a simple set of instructions:

Take care of the water, land, and air.

Even those of us who have given our children deep ecological roots, somewhere along the line these simple instructions have been misplaced...

WATER POLLUTION has come about because of the dumping of chemical, biological and physical matter into the oceans, rivers, and streams. This has polluted our waterways and degraded the quality of life for people and wildlife who depend upon clean water. We discharge into U.S. waters 1.2 trillion gallons of sewage, storm water and industrial waste every year.

LAND POLLUTION has eroded the Earth’s natural surface. Industrial, commercial, domestic and agricultural activities have caused the land to lose 24 billion tons of topsoil each year. Some energy practices disrupt natural fault lines, pollute drinking water and accelerate climate change.

AIR POLLUTION is produced from energyemissions that accumulate and spew hazardous substances, harming humans and other living things. Every year, 335,000 Americans die of lung cancer. Air pollution is both physically damaging and costly.

When my family left the graduation ceremony, both my kids were "dying" for coffee (they had gotten up at the ungodly hour of 7AM). With the same urgency of "needing" ice cream as young children, they ran to get their caffeine fix. I noticed the blackboard on the wall of the cafe read:

"Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet." ~ Bob Marley

I hope the planet-saving roots that anchored so many of these young college graduates to fertile ground will not be shook to the core by greed, politics and apathy. The future is theirs and they are going to need to get very, very wet.

Credit: Jorge Mayet, Saatchi Gallery via Garden Design

Mercury Mama's Sweet Dream

Many moons ago, when I was a young pregnant teacher, I taught in a private school that was housed in an old Victorian building. The brick building had many charming features such as fireplaces, ornate moldings and glittering chandeliers in the classrooms. It also had bookcases high up to the ceiling. In my classroom - the Language Arts room, the top shelves held vintage children's books, some rare first edition classics. The Social Studies classroom had ancient yellowing maps that dangled down from the upper shelves. On the tippy top shelf of the Science room, far out of reach from small hands, stood vintage glass beakers with unidentified liquids from years before when the building had been a doctor’s office.

One bright spring day, I poked my 7-month belly into the Science room to lunch with a fellow teacher. A few kids joined us to show off a cool stick they found in the woods by the playground. The stick looked just like a boomerang. They were raring to fling it, and had come to ask for permission. Before an explanation on why it would not be appropriate to set the stick into flight, one of the children impulsively flung it. The stick hit the top shelf broadside, sending the antique beakers and their contents smashing down. There was glass and liquid everywhere.

Within minutes, the other teacher, kids and I were whisked off to the hospital. An administrator had called when he caught wind of what happened. I had never been a patient in a hospital, let alone set foot in a screaming ambulance. The kids needed me not to freak out, so I stayed relatively calm. Until…

In a composed manner, the EMT explained the seriousness of the situation to the children. That was the exact moment my blissful, uneventful pregnancy got derailed. In my 29 year-old panicked pregnant state, I heard one of the doctors say we need to watch her for poisoning:

"Mercury and a motherlode of other chemicals could have been lurking in those beakers."

"MERCURY! Isn’t that the stuff in glass thermometers that you weren’t supposed bite down hard on and break?"

“Yes, there are three kinds…for a pregnant woman, mercury can be especially damaging.”

3 Types Of Mercury

1. Elemental mercury is found in thermometers. The inhalation of fumes from this type of mercury is highly toxic. Mercury can cause significant amounts of neurological damage to babies and children.

2. Mercury salts come from industrial emissions. Breathing or ingesting mercury salts can harm the kidneys.

3. Organic mercury is what leaches into the food chain. Water can become polluted during the manufacturing of certain types of energy production. The mercury can accumulate in shellfish and fish. Organic mercury acts similarly to elemental mercury.

Yikes! Is your heart racing as fast as mine right now? I’m calming myself so I can tell you the rest of the story…

After hours of blood and urine testing and a full ER exam, I was given the green light and told to go home and watch for any unusual symptoms. UNUSUAL SYMPTOMS! With pregnancy dreams hopped up on overdrive, even unprovoked, every possible baby horror was passing through my sleep state. Now ALL of my dreams became punctuated with a capital “M” for MERCURY.

This is the first time I’ve told this story in the 25 years since my daughter was born. We were lucky - there were no “unusual symptoms”. As I am about to celebrate my beautiful, healthy daughter’s birthday (she was born on Mother’s Day weekend), those dreams are coming back to me. Did politicians think when they sided with corporate energy lobbyists to block limits on mercury pollution that we moms wouldn't notice? Let's prove them sorely wrong, and stand up for our kids by protecting the Clean Air Act.

Here's the rub: No matter how old our children become, there are things we can protect them from and things we can't (wayward boomerangs). Mercury spewing into the bodies of pregnant women and children, and accumulating in our food chain, we must stop.

What do I want for my children this Mother's Day? Oh, that's simple: Sweet Clean Air Dreams.

This post is part of the MCAF Blog Carnival: A Mother's Day Gift. We invite you to join the Carnival and tell us what you want to give your kids for Mother's Day.

The "Fab 3": Photographers Make The Posts

I want to share the work of three amazing photographers that allow me to post their images on Econesting.

Did you know that Annie Leibovitz lives right near me? Well, she does, and I've had the privilege of gracing Annie's home a few years ago when I picked my daughter up from babysitting her kids. Annie is not one of the "Fab 3" photographers you'll find here. To be truthful, I didn't ask her. Do you think she would have said yes? I hate rejection, so instead I asked these equally talented photographers. I believe they capture moments in time with just the right perspective and composition. Here is an introduction to the "Fab 3" photographers of Econesting:

Ben Scott

Ben Scott is a multi-talented Boston-based graphic designer, photographer and mixed-media artist. I'm sure if you asked him what he would rather be doing more than anything else, he would answer "Fly Fishing". We're glad Ben really loves his camera too. You must check out Ben's images of his hometown, Martha's Vineyard. Ben is also my daughter's boyfriend, so I guess he couldn't say no when I asked him if I could use his photos. Website: Ben Ross Scott

Juliet Harrison

Juliet Harrison is a newish friend that seems like an oldish friend. We started meeting once a week with a few other unbelievably talented women for a "Creative Breakfast". Juliet and I discovered our husbands are colleagues, and now we are all bonded by friendship. When Juliet told me she was a black and white equine photographer, I had no idea what she was talking about. Was there really such a thing? Well, Juliet has many photography books to her credit, and now I know so much more about horses, as she shares their beauty through the eye of her lens. Website: Juliet Harrison Photography

Jen Kiaba

Jen Kiaba is another friend I met at our amped up caffeine and creativity-charged breakfast. Jen is young, beautiful and so, so talented. She's the ultimate portrait photographer. Already a professional at 26, Jen is going places. I had so much appreciation and trust in Jen's work after viewing her portfolio, that I convinced the editor of Where Women Create magazine to have Jen shoot my six-page spread. You all saw that, right? Jen's so good, that my portrait picture didn't even need a photoshopped facelift. Amazing. Website: Jen Kiaba Photography

Main image: Jen Kiaba Photography

Not A Scientist…

I am not a scientist. I am not a politician. I am a mom. I am a teacher. I am a writer. I am an environmentalist. I want to protect my family. I care about the planet. When I became increasingly concerned about the food my family eats, the oceans we swim in, the cars we drive and the air we breathe, it became a personal choice to share and engage my readers in a dialogue about creating a lifestyle that supports our environment.

Joining the Moms Clean Air Force has opened up my eyes wider to the issue of clean air. But, just because I consider something vastly important, doesn’t mean I expect you to jump on the bandwagon. I wish you would, but I know creating clean air is not like selling a basket of locally-grown organic vegetables. People get that. They know those fresh goodies will nourish their bodies. They understand how being a locavore will nourish their souls. The message of saving the Clean Air Act is a complex and seemingly abstract problem with scientific theories, historical data, cost analysis and politics.

Just like we need to nourish our bodies and souls with good, clean food and create vibrant communities by shopping local, we need clean air to secure our health.

So let me repeat: I am not a scientist. I knew the Clean Air Act, administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the States, has saved thousands of lives and hundreds of millions of cases of respiratory and cardiovascular disease. But, I'm a bit of a wimp when it comes to reading about babies dying and cancer rates. My biggest fear about joining the Moms Clean Air Force was that I would have to sort through stacks and stacks of reports, regulations, cost anaylsis and really nasty health studies that would leave me glazed over and paralyzed with fear. Although I am a teacher, I am a visual learner like my right-sided brain kids. Scientific technical reading rarely engages my interest for too long.

The exact opposite happened. I do believe informed decisions come from knowledge. I found a nifty tool from the Union of Concerned Scientists that helps embrace the stats. This "ticker" "shows the increase in cumulative net benefits as a result of the Clean Air Act since 1970. The source data for this calculation comes from two EPA reports."

It is scary to imagine that the Clean Air Act is under constant threat. Whether you are a scientist or not, there is one thing we all need to understand - clean air is something we have controlled and lessened...and we all have the power to be part of the solution to continue to preserve clean air.