Today is Blog Action Day, wherefore thousands of blogs will be writing on the same topic.  That topic is the environment, this year, and I feel my previous entry on the subject is more than appropriate to express my thoughts.  Here is, again, for those who missed it he first time.

In our time spent in Alaska, I have been struck by the dichotomy of old and new ideas at work. The people drawn to work here, especially those who have been here year-round, are of the mold most of us would consider "hippie". Walking in the populated portions of this campus and even along the boardwalk across the street will bring you into contact with people who may as well have dropped right out of Woodstock '69. Folk music, long hair, beards, tie-dyed clothing, and various other stereotypical accoutrements abound.

Along with those cliches come the usual causes being fought for by way of the songs being sung and the bumper stickers sported on the backs of so many vehicles. Being in such a spristine wilderness is also the impetus for the most rabid environmentalism I have ever seen.

Yet, before going on, I wish to be clear on a few points, lest my criticism be taken as partisan opposite extreme. I very much consider myself an environmentalist and conservationist. By those terms, I mean that I feel the waters, plants, and animals of our world need to be protected and stewarded in responsible manners. The single caveat to this definition and which also seems to fly in the face of what I have encountered here is that human beings are also a part of this world and not "unnatural" to it in any way.

Yet, being called unnatural is just one of the things I have heard said about humans and our impact on the world around us. A good example of this took place not long after arriving. The Nenana River, which flows practically right outside our door, was still mostly frozen over and made for a beautiful sight. A body of water with sometimes Class 4 rapids was ours to walk upon, the shimmering blue of its solid glacial waters becoming a floor beneath us and our two dogs.

Now, in the middle of the river stands one of many of sandbars, with low scrubby bushes providing shelter for the nests of seagulls, called bugles here. The seagull is a really, really non-endangered species. It is basically a flying rat, feeding and multiplying wherever there might be piles of trash or refuse nearby. They haunt the outdoor eateries of the area and have even been bold enough to land on tables to snatch food right from the plates of unwary tourists. They are annoying, noisy, and a nuisance.

Our walk with the dogs had several of these creatures stirred up. Their nests were nearby and they obviously didn't want two curious pooches getting anywhere close. Thus, they were circling and dive-bombing us every chance they could get. In addition to their screeching calls came another screech from the shoreline where a woman was standing in obvious disapproval that we would dare venture outside of the housing area and onto the river.

"Those birds are nesting out there and you are disturbing them," sounding for all the world like a seagull gifted with human speech.

My first reaction was "so what?" These were not protected species and, quite frankly, I would have rather they not chosen this area to next since I lived nearby and didn't like their noisome ways. We ignored the seagull-lady and continued on our walk, making sure to cover up the fact that one of the dogs had indeed found a nest and sneaked out with an egg.

We heard many other people voice the same concern about the "nesting area" of the bugles, in between complaints about the noise they were making and the swarms of them hovering just outside arm's reach around the outside eating areas.

Another example is that of the dishware used in the employee dining areas. Using familiar plastic cups from what could be anyone's high school memory, there is also the option of choosing to use to-go containers and cups. These disposable items are specially made to be environmentally friendly, decomposing rapidly and without leaving behind bad chemicals for landfills. Yet, to hear the dining room staff tell it, to use such cups was akin to dumping toxic waste into the river itself and kill all the baby moose in the are.

They would much rather us keep the dishroom attendants busy with dirty dishes, not considering the energy use of continually running dish washing machines and ultra-hot water as opposed to utilizing products which WERE DESIGNED to be safely thrown in the garbage.

These and other examples illustrate what I have taken to calling a commonsense approach to conservation. I am a human and part of this world. I can and do take steps to minimize my impact on it insofar as continuing to live out my life as I see fit. Relegating me and other humans into a position of being removed or apart from the world not only speaks of an extremist philosophy, but also an arrogance that we are above nature and the "natural" world.


For a much funnier take on this, I leave you with a video featuring "Save This" by Denis Leary. The video isn't as funny as the song, however, and I will probably try to do it better justice in the future. Enjoy!