TRASH!

I had the opportunity to visit Lee county's Waste to Energy facility.  Prior to take this course, I had NO IDEA that our county had such a thing!  Recently, I had heard about how Sweden supposedly has to import trash because they have burned through so much of their own to produce energy.  I also had some mixed feelings about trash incineration as renewable energy since lots of bad stuff goes into the garbage and setting it on fire seems like a bad idea (holy fumes, Batman!) BUT, I did learn a lot during this visit and feel a little differently.

Unrelated, but still a funny trash meme.

First of all, if it did not smell so horrible (seriously, I wanted to barf the entire time we were anywhere near the trash compactor area), I would want to be the person operating the giant claw they used to pick up trash after it was dumped off by trucks in order to move it into the incinerator.  It's like one of those claw games you see in arcade except your prize is TRASH.  Well, the end result is actually much needed energy!  I think they said that one facility generates enough power for 30,000 homes in Lee County, if I am not mistaken. 

IT'S THE CLAW!!!!!!

I didn't take anymore pictures because I was a bit distracted by the smell (I have a sense of smell like a bloodhound, so it was a bit much for me). 

The biggest question I had after leaving the facility was WHY aren't there more of these facilities here? I feel like if the community were better educated on what is going on here, that the funds to build more of these facilities would become available.

Borrowed this photo from the Vester Marine Station Facebook page 

   I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Vester Marine Station in May. It is part of FGCU’s Marine and Environmental Science research program, and it is located near Bonita Springs.  I got to canoe for the first time in ages with some of my classmates through the waterways surrounding the research station. It was really cool to be able to explore the area from the water, and really experience our surroundings.  There was a dolphin in the water and several aquatic birds.  I found it the most fascinating to learn about the mangroves, and be able to see them up close without getting tangled up in them.  I did not understand their function before this trip, but from what I gathered, they are like a giant filter system.  I also felt like canoeing with other students was a good way to practice team work since none of us really wanted to fall into the water, and that would definitely happen if we didn’t work together.  Even though I was completely exhausted afterwards due to my health, I was happy to have the opportunity to explore one of our waterways via canoe with other students. 

            While visiting, I was thinking about the reading Knowledge Extinction, when it talked about the oil rig that sank in the Gulf of Mexico, pumping oil 5,000 feet under the sea. What reminded me of this while I was rowing in the canoe were the mangroves.  The article mentioned that oil spill poisoned the mangrove forests, and I could not help but think about that while I looked at all of the mangroves.  It also reminded me about how too often, an environmental disaster will be forgotten because the government will say that things are under control and that everything will go back to normal when it will never go back to “normal.”  We experienced this here in Southwest Florida with the “red tide” issues last summer.  The algae bloomed killed our sea creatures, and our waterways were like a toxic mess. It still has not gone back to normal, and it may not ever go back to normal so long as fertilizers and pollutants are entering our waterways. 

            This trip was good reminder of how important it is that we take more measures to keep pollutants out of our waterways, because not only are we destroying the environment and will soon be at the point of no return, it will affect our economy because no one will want to visit our beaches. So many people in our community work jobs that thrive off of tourism, so an environmental crisis would most certainly lead to an economic crisis.