The giant panda has been seen as an unofficial mascot of china. They live in bamboo forest, which are threatened by china’s rapid population growth and industrialization. The loss of habitat along side with poaching has caused the panda population to decrease. China’s government is stepping in by creating national park. This will not only help pandas but also the people living in and around the new park.

The Giant Panda is in the bear family and are one of the only completely herbivore bear species. They live in bamboo forest in the western most part of China although historically they could be found all over china. Each panda has a large home range, which makes the fact that bamboo forest is on the decline a major problem. There are only 1,864 pandas left in the wild and 300 in captivity. Due to an extremely slow reproductive rate, it makes every panda very important. China strictly controls all of the pandas in captivity and in the wild. Poachers are a big problem due to them having such a volatile population. The introduction of the new 1.5 billion dollar state park will allow the population to grow. The park will be around 5 million acres, which makes it two times the size of Yellowstone. The park will also provide the 170,000 people who inhabit the land new job opportunities. The area now is struck by poverty and theses new jobs act as another driver for the national park. It is going to be built in the Sichuan Province, which allows gene flow throughout the panda population. They are hoping to be finished by 2023.

I believe that this is a huge step in the right direction. This can help not only the pandas but also the people. I know for governments to invest in state parks there are always alternate motives other than conservation. The 170,000 poverty struck people who will have new job opportunities paired turning a poor area into a tourist hotspot, makes it a better investment for the Chinese government. The addition of the new panda territory will be a long-term success in my opinion. The one question I have is how will the park run when there will be a small population of pandas initially. I understand 50 years down the road that it will be a must visit place once a steady population is present.

This all comes with the responsibility we have as people to conserve species that we have affected. The use of national parks is very usefully for governments and people who live around it. I believe with people focusing on lowering their ecological footprint, lowering the population and establishing designated areas to make sure species are safe from extinction are important if we want our kids to see the Earth as we see it today. The use of national parks have been useful in helping endangered species like the bison and the grey wolf, it will be interesting if the giant panda can also be a success story.

Press, The Associated. “China to Build Massive $1.5 Billion Panda Conservation Area.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 8 Mar. 2018, www.nytimes.com/aponline/2018/03/08/world/asia/ap-as-china-panda-conservation.html.

The talk I attended was called Race, place, and the de-gentrification of Nature Conservation in the south. The talk I attended was given by Dr. Drew Lanham. He is a professor at Clemson and studies natural wildlife. He studies also include the integration of race in nature. The talk he gave was a derivative of this connection on race in nature conservation in the south. The talk first started off Dr. Drew Lanham playing the song Mercy Mercy Me by Marvin Gaye. I found this to be a successful tactic to get me, as an audience member, engaged and wanting to know the connection between the song and the what the talk is about. The songs lyrical meaning is on the topic of ecology and what the world use to be compared to what it has become. Dr. Drew Lanham explained how this song was interesting because even when it was written, in 1971, it was evident that the world was changing for the worst concerning nature conservation. He then went on to explain how we as people survive and thrive through water. It was explained that we need water to make it through everyday life whether we realize it or not. He asked the question, “what is your water?” What he meant by this question was is the thing you need to survive and thrive every day. He then brings in the topic of race with water by mentioning that we are all connected to water whatever the past may be. Water was and has been the source of life for every race. He states that we must feel our way through this issue of race, “we must work for the wild things, wild place, and water.” He ended his talk with an excerpt from his book that deals with his personal connection to water. He explains the story of remembering his father gathering water from their fresh spring well. After years past his father fell ill and died. He and his mother had to find a new source of water. The pipe they had to put in place to get the water out of had a worst taste and consistency compared to the fresh water his father had gathered from the well all those years. They no longer had access to the main thing that should’ve been provided to them. Instead, he and his mother were left to uses a unnatural source of water. This is the point in his life that he explained him realizing how important water is and its impact of life. The one thing I learned from this talk was the impact that society has on water. I never realized that what we have going on in our society can largely affect the nature surrounding us. To me, nature and societal interactions was two separate ideas. I found his explanation of the two ideas working together very interesting. He ended his talk with a quote I found very important to remember when connecting society to nature. He said, “think about your ties to water and your policy.”

Alexis Waters-Peterson

  Oil Versus Limestone
As a consumer and a surfer one of the most important products to me is a wetsuit. I don’t buy these regularly but the multitude of different professions and hobbies that require one creates a wide scale demand. This demand creates experimentation with the different materials and chemicals which certainly have their implications on the environment. The most common material used in wetsuits is neoprene.
Neoprene is a synthetic rubber based material which is now being produced on the industrial scale. Neoprene is so popular because it was the first synthetic rubber developed with a unique balance of physical and chemical properties. It has good weather and ozone resistance, aging resistance, low flammability, strength, and adhesion to many substances. For these reasons neoprene can be used in many different areas and has taken over the rubber industry.
As the possibilities of neoprene increase the possibilities of adverse effects to the environment increase. The highest potential for release into the environment lies within the transfer, manufacture, and storage process. The two types of neoprene are limestone neoprene and oil based neoprene. Oil based neoprene is commonly made from polychloroprene rubber chips which are melted and mixed together with carbon black and baked in an oven until it expands to make a foamed rubber. The chips themselves are made from chloroprene monomers which are reacting small molecules. These molecules produce the macromolecules that make up rubber. In the 1960’s limestone neoprene  was developed by Japan’s Yamamoto Corporation to convert calcium carbonate from limestone into chloroprene rubber chips, resulting in limestone neoprene. Limestone neoprene is favorable for several reasons; one being it is much less dense than oil based neoprene. This produces a more impermeable, more durable, more stretchy, lighter weight, and warmer wetsuit.
The most common method used to make neoprene is derived from petroleum. The many implications of this oil based product on the environment include the release of gases and synthetic chemicals into the air. Oil exploration, drilling, and extraction result in crude oil spills that have a direct and noticeable effect on the health the surrounding ecosystem. Both oil based and limestone wetsuits are nonrenewable resources that end up in a landfill somewhere.
The other method which is less commonly used is derived from limestone. The limestone is mined, crushed, and fed into a furnace at extremely high temperatures. This process is energy intensive but significantly reduces dependence on oil based products. A limestone spill is also much easier to clean up then an oil spill. Limestone based wetsuits might slightly reduce environmental impacts for a significant reduction in impact neoprene itself must be replaced by another material. The evaporation of chemicals used in adhesives and solvents must be replaced by a new innovative approach to minimizing environmental footprint.

Have you ever wondered what to do with your prescription bottle/container that has some medication left? The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) periodically hosts National Prescription Drug Take-Back events where collection sites are set up in communities nationwide for safe disposal of prescription drugs. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has developed guidelines to dispose medication responsibly through the Take Back program. If people do not have access to that program, he or she can just throw out unused medications, but there is also a list known as the “flush list” where excess medicines from this list should be flushed for public safety. Product formulations listed on the most current version of the flush list contain the following 13 active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs): buprenorphine, diazepam, fentanyl, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, meperidine, methadone, methylphenidate, morphine, oxycodone, oxymorphone, sodium oxybate, and tapentadol. Characterizing by their effects, the thirteen APIs can be broken down into one benzodiazepine (diazepam), one respiratory and central nervous system stimulant (methylphenidate), one central nervous system agent (sodium oxybate), and the remainder being opioids. Out of all items on the flush list, opioids are dominating the list. Perhaps it has been done so reduce the accidental ingestion by children. We are in the midst of opioid epidemic so quickly disposing excess opioids is highly recommended to avoid non-medical use of opioids by adolescents or accidental ingestion of sodium oxybate by children, which can result in rapid sedation. Pets are also at an elevated risk to these potentially hazardous medicines.

These APIs are listed in the flush list due to their severe toxicity and documented poison cases. But a large problem remains: even when flushed as it can remain in and poison our water system and soil. The effect of the existence of these APIs in the environment on human health is not yet fully understood, but researchers are assuming that this has a negative impact on health and are demanding an alternative to flushing these pharmaceutical ingredients.

Recently endocrine  disrupting compounds are also found in the drinking water. And Drinking water which serves or about 28 million people were tested for fifty-one different kinds of drugs  by  Mark J. Benotti, Rebecca A. Trenholm, Brett J. Vanderford, Janie C. Holady, Benjamin D. Stanford and Shane A. Snyder. Water was contaminated with not only different kinds of drugs but also other organic compound which is definitely pose risk for plant or animal  plankton, fish and human as well. Pharmaceutical compond such as atenolol, atrazine, carbamazepine, estrone, gemfibrozil, meprobamate, naproxen, phenytoin, sulfamethoxazole, TCEP, and trimethoprim were found.  Researchers also stated :

“The typical compound concentrations were less than 10 ng/L for these top eleven with an exception for sulfamethoxazole at 12 ng/L, However, TCEP levels at one drinking water treatment plant was detected to be at an absurdly high level of 120 ng/L, showing wide variance in these concentrations. Atenolol, atrazine, DEET, estrone, meprobamate, and trimethoprim can also serve as indicator compounds to represent potential contamination from other pharmaceuticals and EDCs and can gauge the efficacy of treatment processes.”

As mentioned earlier, FDA  suggested guidelines about disposing drugs in household trash. It says to mix the capsule/tablet with cat litter or used ground coffee and put the mixture in a sealed plastic bag. Any personal information on the medication must be scratched off before disposing the original medicine packaging container.

If anyone is interested to know how to dispose drugs, he or she may visit the following link.

https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/BuyingUsingMedicineSafely/EnsuringSafeUseofMedicine/SafeDisposalofMedicines/ucm186187.htm#Flushing

A hot line is available for the consumer to provide information about disposal of drugs .Consumers may directly call 18008829539 to get DEA Office of Diversion Control’s Registration Call Center to reach the drug collector in the surrounding area. Although there is no evidence that the presence of in nature in significant amount and contributing to ecotoxicology, we hope that all our unused medication can be disposed and stored safely in certain areas so that they will not pose any threat to the environment or to the public.

Source:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28787777

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969717313773?via%3Dihub

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/es801845a

There has been what is called a “catastrophe” in a self-governing Palestinian country, called the Gaza Strip. Ever since 1967, there has been an impending problem with the security of their needs in the community. A group called Hamas, which is considered as a terrorist group to countries including the United States, has kept the people of Gaza hostage. The group governs the country, and they have been keeping their hundreds of millions of dollars for international aid, and used it to carry out acts of terrorism. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees was notified in January, that the United States was not contributing their already discussed $65 million towards an installment in aims to help them. This has created a huge problem for the people of Gaza, and they are not able to require basic needs to live. 1.2 million of the residents of the country do not have access to clean water. And for the ones who do have access, almost all of the water is not suitable for drinking. Pollution of sewage and salt has taken over the waters, and it can’t be reversed because the country’s water purifier comes from salt in the seawater. The lack of water that the country is facing, is contributing to increasing fatality and unemployment rates. There have been many cases of diarrhea and other waterborne disease in the area. In response to this issue, there is no one to help, because of the countries circumstances. Due to the shortage of drinking water, hospitals closed down, and doctors have been forced to quit doing surgeries. Population growth is another factor that has been making the country suffer even more, because there are not enough resources to meet the needs of the country. Climate change has increased as well, and the rainfall is consistently decreasing per year. There have been plans proposed to the country, but Gaza cannot upkeep them, because they do not have enough resources such as electricity to run them. It is said that the answer to this crisis is to rebuild a robust sewer and drainage system. It is not a simple solution however, because the country is not able to control their money because of the Hama organization, and the country will not be receiving the expected help from the United States from the United Nations relief efforts. Political and governmental issues also discouraged improvement when President Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capitol of Palestine, because the Palestinian President Abbas wanted to push for Gaza to become independent from Palestine. It is crucial for the country to secure clean water and resources, to stop the fatality rate and to increase the well being of the community. It has not gotten any better in over 50 years, and the country has reached an extremely bad state of affairs. Because of the United States major withdrawal from the UNRWA, the people of Gaza will continue to suffer, and the water crisis will increase. This report relates to our class, because we have discussed the effects of population growth and population.

Lederer, Edith M. “UN Gets Report on What Palestinians Say Is Gaza Catastrophe.” CTVNews, 15 Feb. 2018, www.ctvnews.ca/world/un-gets-report-on-what-palestinians-say-is-gaza-catastrophe-1.3804086.

Schmale, Matthias. “Restoring U.S. Aid Crucial to Avoid a Water Catastrophe in Gaza.” – Global Issues, 21 Mar. 2018, www.globalissues.org/news/2018/03/21/24040.

In an article publish by reputable news source The Guardian on Monday, reporter Gabrielle Canon discusses the controversy surrounding the opening of a “hidden Starbucks” in Yosemite National Park. Canon describes that outside of the typical urban feel of the Starbucks, consumers and park visitors can hear the beautiful, natural sounds of Yosemite falls. Despite any signage for the new Starbucks location, park visitors have managed to find the 27,000-franchise strong coffee shop. While many people are outraged at the installation of a commercial coffee giant, other park visitors have enjoyed a hot coffee or tea during their cold or rainy visit to Yosemite.

David Freireich, who is a spokesperson for Yosemite Hospitality, the group that works to provide upgrades for “concessions and facilities” at the national park, described to Canon that his group was responding to park visitor requests for a facility such as Starbucks, and that it is the responsibility of Yosemite Hospitality to meet visitor needs and requests. He described that the installation of the Starbucks was part of a recent and ongoing upgrade project to the infrastructure of Yosemite, which includes concessions options and availability. According to Freireich, these updates were long overdue.

Photo taken from the article.

Photo taken from the article.

In response to the planned opening of the Starbucks, former Yosemite National Park tour guide Freddy Brewster organized a petition to try and stop it from happening. He was able to gather more than 25,000 signatures on his petition. While the opening of the Starbucks still happened as planned, Brewster and his colleagues are still working tirelessly to protect the purity of Yosemite and to prevent any more infrastructure and commercial changes to the National Park.

I thought this article was very interesting, and it relates to many of the topics that we have been discussing in our class this semester. The opening of a Starbucks franchise in Yosemite National Park represents the challenge between government (which includes big business) and the environment. As Brewster mentioned in the article, “The government is increasingly dependent on major corporations. Time and time again.”. This serves as another example of big business infiltrating the preservation and purity of there natural settings we are so fortunate to have in the United States, such as Yosemite. Furthermore, when looking at the chain of consumption, pollution will be brought into the national park as deliveries come to the Starbucks, bringing coffee, processed foods and syrups, and coffee cups. These coffee cups are not recyclable, and contribute to the disposal arrow of the linear chain. More trash is introduced into the park, resulting in the ultimate degradation of the natural setting, even if not intentional by consumers and park visitors. Many people do not see how the small action of getting a coffee at Starbucks contributes to the pollution and degradation of the environment.

Thinking about the nutrition lecture that we had in class today, the Yosemite Hospitality group could have decided upon a healthier alternative to have in the national park rather than a Starbucks. Starbucks sells many processed, fat and sugar heavy food products that can lead to the development of chronic disease. In a national park where visitors come to experience nature and get exercise, healthier foods, such as whole, plant based foods, should be those offered to park visitors.

If the Yosemite Hospitality group still found it necessary to have a coffee shop as part of the concessions offerings at the park, they could have instead chose a local coffee business, that would have then contributed to the stimulation and sustainability of the local economy.

I believe that this battle between big business and the environment will be one that continues to cause problems and controversy until everyone realizes the importance of conserving the beautiful natural world.