The next time you empty a bottle of windshield washer fluid, a gallon of milk or tube of hair gel think of that container’s existence beyond your trash can.
And then look at this website, read about Altered Oceans: Part Four and please be more careful with your plastics.
L.A. Times Altered Oceans site:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/oceans/la-oceans-series,0,7842752.special
The image used for section was taken in
Neurotoxins in algae are killing unprecedented numbers of marine mammals this spring.
A cloud of what has been termed domoic acid can not only gas to death sea life, but can endanger human life also. The catch is the algae, which produce the toxin, are naturally occurring.
However, the algae’s presence has skyrocketed in recent seasons due to human-induced, concentrated pollution and destabilization of natural ecosystems from over harvesting and development.
Marine mammals are directly impacted by domoic acid. Whales, sea lions, birds, and even domestic animals are having seizures and becoming paralyzed when introduced to the toxin via the food chain or from offshore winds that carry the poison into an animal’s respiratory system.
In a Press Telegram article, USC biology professor David Caron said, "This year is through the roof in terms of the amounts of toxins" found at local offshore testing stations.
The article cites, “The highest levels were found at two stations just outside San Pedro's breakwater in the
Caron is talking about
If you see marine mammals acting strangely, call the
Press Telegram article:
http://www.presstelegram.com/search/ci_5761349
L.A. Times article:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-birds27apr27,1,3182490.story
National Geographic article:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/02/0228_060228_manatees_2.html
Updated Press Telegram article:
Blame it on the pipeline, blame it on
An estimated 15 barrels of crude oil leaked out of a Paramount Petroleum oil pipeline near Pier C on 
Imagine dumping 630 gallons of 2 percent milk into the Belmont Plaza Pool, except this was oil; it floats on water and radiates a rainbow sheen that can wreak havoc on all ocean organisms it comes in contact with.
Nearly 340 of these gallons apparently leaked into the Pier C storm drain and 120 gallons flowed into the open water before the pipeline leak was detected and stopped, according to Press Telegram source Coast Guard Lt. P.J. Jacquelin.
It makes since that this was a front page Press Telegram article on Friday. Every oil spill is a dark cloud on the industry of oil and the environment alike. This particular spill was the second in a week – the previous one dumping 210 gallons of diesel fuel into the harbor near San Pedro.
California Department of Fish and Game officials monitored the effect of the spill on nearby wildlife but reported no noticeable harm yet.
Oil drilling is certainly a dangerous, risky endeavor. Mistakes and mishaps are expensive and hazardous, especially when your company is to blame for them.
Press Telegram articles:
http://www.presstelegram.com/search/ci_5761703
The Los Cerritos Wetlands are a hot topic right now in 
articles about the region.
Activists like Pat Towner and Tim Anderson, executive director of the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust for Long Beach and Seal Beach, have stepped up to talk to the public about the importance of wetlands in the world ecosystem.
Current efforts to restore and protect the wetlands from development are challenged daily by businesses and an encroaching population.
Anderson, who spoke during Earth Week at CSULB, explained how the land trust aims to extricate the two power plants within wetland borders, replacing them with solar panels.
With Global Warming and green house gas emissions on every politician’s and environmentalist’s radar right now, this fact is pertinent.
New zoning laws in and around the Los Cerritos Wetlands have alarmed community members like Towner, who have been excluded from the decision-making process. The new laws would allow taller buildings in a region where birds migrate frequently.
In a Press Telegram article regarding recent legislation on the wetlands Towner said, "If we are only allowed to react and not allowed to have any input from the beginning, as residents of this area, we are at a distinct disadvantage.”
Both these articles are worth the read, especially if you’re a
Anderson ended his speech at CSULB with a high note that resonated with many students:
"It's great to have Earth Day and Earth Week, but it's time for Earth life."
Links:
Daily 49er article: http://media.www.daily49er.com/media/storage/paper1042/news/2007/04/26/News/Wetlands.Conservationist.Visits.Cal.State.Long.Beach-2882516.shtml
Press Telegram article:
http://www.presstelegram.com/search/ci_5540614
Los Cerritos Wetland Trust website:
http://www.lcwlandtrust.org/protect.htm
CSULB Environmental Science & Policy Club:
The notion that extracting a certain layer of the earth would cause layers above it to sink escaped the oil companies of the 1930s, when major offshore drilling projects commenced. The city literally sank, in some places, up to 29 feet before the 1950s!
Geographically,
‘Black gold’ was found in Wilmington Oil Field in 
To correct the subsidence problem, engineers designed a water-injection process that would fill the spaces where oil was extracted, and the substantial sinking halted. This introduced only a temporary solution, however. What happens when there’s no more oil to pump, to gain revenue from and pay for the water injections?
In The District Weekly article, local geologist Donald Clarke said, “We really don’t know how much more it [
In 1999, an experimental ‘steam-flooding’ program was instituted, where steam was injected into the sand to try and soak up the oil. The experiment ceased, but subsidence almost immediately began again, and, little by little, parts of
Press Telegram article:
http://www.presstelegram.com/search/ci_5674790
The District Weekly’s article:
April is “Earth Month” according to Heal the Bay, a
Heal the Bay’s mission statement cites the goal of “making
What about
Last night while walking along the beach path, parallel to Ocean Boulevard and Cherry Avenue, I sneered at more garbage and sludge along the water line than I cared to see.
CSULB Oceanography professor Bruce Perry said, "San Pedro Bay is heavily polluted because the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers drain into it and the breakwater prevents the pollution, carried to Long Beach by these rivers, from dissipating."
Heal the Bay efforts are scheduled this month in Compton, the San Fernando Valley, Malibu Creek State Park and the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium – but not in Long Beach. You’ll have to contact Justin Rudd for those efforts. He’s been organizing monthly clean-ups on his Saturday mornings for quite some time.
April 21, 2007, the same day as other annual Earth Day cleanups, Rudd has organized one of many “30-Minute Beach Cleanups.”
He’s been scheduling these events monthly since 1999. In effect, Long Beach has been cleaned roughly 90 times by over 12,000 volunteers since the program’s inception. Great job Rudd!
Get out there and help clean up
For more details:
Heal the Bay: http://www.healthebay.org/news/2007/03_13_earthmonth/
Long Beach Clean up Information: http://www.beachcleanup.org/
Justin Rudd’s Site: http://www.justinrudd.com/about.html
