Happy {belated} Birthday to the woman who changed the course of caring for our earth

It’s natural to take things for granted. We all do it. Every time we flip on a light-switch, we probably don’t thank Thomas Edison. Nor do we thank all of the other people that have helped to benefit our lives. Why would we. We have too many other things to think about to be caught up with this trivia anyways.

However there is one person in particular that I would like to bring to light named Rachel Carson. She helped to change the course of history forever by helping to kindle the environmental movement. While people such as John Muir helped pave the way for this movement, Carson’s book Silent Spring brought the environment back into the public’s mind, and heart. With her book, she showed that the destruction of the environment will eventually come back to harm us.

During an era that started using chemicals to dominate nature, Silent Spring targets pesticide use as a major culprit of environmental destruction. She was the first to take this scientific information and pose this data to the widespread public showing the harmful effects of pesticides. The chemicals created by major companies weren’t as specific as they once thought. Rachel Carson pointed out these chemicals not only kill pests but begin to accumulate and magnify through each trophic level. For example, a bug poisoned by DDT that is eaten by a fish can accumulate a 400-fold increase in concentration of DDT. If this fish is then eaten by a person, this person can develop a 400-fold increase in DDT leading to complications such as cancer.

Carson’s book exposing the harmful environmental and human effects of pesticides like DDT created a public outcry and the ban of DDT which in turn ignited the environmental movement. Thanks to this outstanding woman and her book, she helped to change the course of human history for the better. Hopefully we can continue to use the knowledge that she used to stay on a track of producing organic goods instead of toxic chemicals.

Definitions:

Trophic Level: The position an organism maintains in a food chain. For example predators like eagles, lions, and humans are considered to be at the top while plankton are at the bottom.

DDT: Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane is a synthesized insecticide formulated in WWII for use in areas containing malaria. After the war it became a widespread insecticide before being banned for its environmental impacts.

http://www.biology-pages.info/D/DDTandTrophicLevels.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/23/magazine/how-silent-spring-ignited-the-environmental-movement.html

Blog post written by one of our traveling life enthusiasts, Wyatt Dooley.

Growing up in the village of Mendocino, Wyatt became passionate about the outdoors at an early age. Whether it’s surfing the rugged coastline or soaring through the redwood forest on a mountain bike, he enjoys it all. After graduating from University of California Santa Barbara with an Environmental Science degree, he has been pursuing his childhood goal of traveling the world. As of now Wyatt’s travels have taken him to remote surfing destinations in Panama, the arctic conditions of the North Pole, and the isolation of Baja. Currently he is headed to New Zealand where he plans of exploring the outdoors and working with environmental organizations. Back home when Wyatt’s life isn’t so nomadic, he enjoys playing music and laughing with a few friends.

follow wyatt's travels and adventures @wyattdooley