My group performed two experiments to see how people react when we broke two types of social rules.
For the first experiment, we wore our underwear on the outside of our clothes in the middle of Downtown. We went early in the morning when the business people were walking to work. We hypothesized that some people would be offended and would verbally object to our appearance, and that we would attract a lot of weird looks. What we found was that a lot of people ignored us, and the rest gave us funny looks, and then pretended that we weren't there. Only a few openly recognized our presence. I believe this is partly because there can be a lot of strange people in Downtown, and because it is a lot easie to ignore someone that makes you uncomfortable than to confront the person.
For the second experiment, we painted signs that said things like "Smile," "You're alive," and "It's a beautiful day," and then held the signs up on busy street corners. We expected people to acknowledge us by smiling and waving. At the first corner, a lot of the people that were driving through did smile, wave and honk. At the second corner, however, where the light was red for most of the traffic, almost no one smiled. I believe that the farther away the people were from us (the less amount of "contact" they had with us), the more likely they felt comfortable enough to acknowledge us. But, if there couldn't get away from us, then they felt more comfortable ignoring us.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Saturday, May 2, 2009
No More Pain
Once we understood the drugs we chose to research, we interviewed people who had had experience with drugs, to hear their stories and find out why they did drugs, or why people they knew did drugs. With that information, we then wrote short stories using our interviews as the basis.
Story:
“Mom? Are you awake?”
I reached out for my mother’s hand. I had just seen her mouth tighten, and my heart leapt. She had been asleep since the surgery the night before. That had been a horrible night, knowing that my mom was being cut up so the doctors could perform the surgery that would only probably remove the cancer in her kidneys. It was just my mom and eleven-year-old me, so a nurse had stayed up with me and showed me to the ward where I could sleep.
My mom opened her eyes slightly. Under normal circumstances, I thought she was gorgeous with her long, wavy red hair, gray-blue eyes and slender body (for a mother). At that moment, she was bald and had tubes sticking out of every part of her body, but I still thought she was pretty. She looked over at me, but I could tell that she wasn’t really seeing me. I could tell that whatever was in the IVs was drugging her so much that she could not really recognize her surroundings.
“Ah, she’s awake!” Doctor Storum walked in, followed by one of his nurses. He sat down on the other side of the bed, while the nurse checked all of the monitor machines and IVs. “We have the results of your surgery, Ms. Croll,” he said, grasping my mom’s free hand.
***
It turned out that they had managed to remove all of the kidney cancer, but that they had discovered cancerous cells in her pelvis called Chondrosarcoma. That at least explained why she had been feeling pain in her hip bones, as well as her kidney, but it also meant that she would have to go through chemotherapy. We were finally able to go home after a week in the hospital, but the doctors sent four bottles of pills with us that my mom was to take at various times of the day. It was hard to see my mom in so much pain, and I tried my best to make her as comfortable as possible. I had thought that I was the child, but in that time, my mother became as helpless as a six year old.
***
“Amber, could you bring me the morphine and a glass of water? Oh, and no food this time, I’m not hungry.”
I stood up from the couch where I had been reading my summer reading book for 6th grade, and keeping an eye on my mom. “Sure, mom.” I handed the requested items to her, and she shook two pills into her hand.
“Didn’t the doctor say to only take one of those at a time?” I asked my mom hesitantly. There had been a whole packet of papers with warnings and restrictions regarding my mom’s medications.
“I know, but my hips hurt so much! And Dr. Storum said I should make myself comfortable.”
“Oh… ok… Is there anything else you want me to do?”
***
The school year was fast approaching, and apart from her pain, my mom seemed to be doing better. She was now able to get around the house, which allowed me to prepare for school. When it came, I spent the first few days worrying about whether she could really take care of herself. However, I needn’t have worried much, for she was able to keep the pain down. In fact, she seemed to become herself again over the next few weeks. She cooked our dinners, made phone calls and asked me how school was going.
One evening, as I walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water, I paused to examine my mom’s pill bottles on the counter. One of the bottles was empty (it had previously contained morphine), but there was a full one next to it. Apparently, my mom had needed a refill. I turned away, drinking my water, but then stopped. Didn’t she just get a refill a few days ago? I thought. Maybe that was something else, though... I had recently sat down and read all the way through the papers the doctors had given my mom about her medications. Since then, I had begun to see some of the medications’ side effects in my mother. She was always complaining about her digestion, and she would spend whole days in a short of drowsy state. I hadn’t noticed those things before because the fear of the surgery and bone cancer had been so much greater, but now I was just as paranoid about something going wrong with the drugs.
***
School started, and with it came the usual homework. One Friday night, I took a break from my math homework to watch a show on the Discovery channel. When the commercials came on, I got up to get some ice cream, and I found my mom in the kitchen to taking her nighttime medications. That’s three morphine pills. That definitely more than she is supposed to have!
“Mom?”
“Hm?”
“I don’t think you’re supposed to take that many morphine pills…”
“I’m just trying to function, Amber.”
After that, I kept my concerns to myself. Who was I kidding? I was only eleven, and certainly did not want to cause my mother any more pain. I began to try to distance myself from my mom’s health problems, even though I could not escape them. They weighed heavily on me as I went through my first semester of sixth grade. I began to feel like I spent more time at the hospital than at home. The hardest part of this change, however, was the strain it put on my relationship with my mom. We talked less, partly because I spent my time at home in my room, and partly because my mom seemed to have forgotten how to be a mother. She never asked how school was going, or made sure I did my homework, or really disciplined me at all. She spent most of her time in front of the TV, or in the bathroom, and she had lost a lot of weight.
***
One night, my mom came into my room to tell me that she needed to go to the hospital, and that she didn’t want to leave me home alone, so I needed to come. I grabbed a Harry Potter book before I got up so I would have something to do. When we arrived, I followed my mom into the pharmacy and sat down in one of the chairs. Behind me, my mom began talking to the nurse.
“A refill? Did you bring your bottle with you, Ms. Croll? Ok, hold on, I will be right back.”
Harry didn’t have to do his homework by flashlight anymore; now he could sit in the bright sunshine outside Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlor, finishing his essays with the occasional help for Florean Fortescue himself…
“Ms. Croll? Our records show that you have already had a refill within the last two weeks.”
“I have Chondrosarcoma cancer, and I have been trying to cope, but the pain has been too much for me to function.”
“I could schedule another appointment…”
“No, that’s not necessary… I just need some more medications—”
***
I was silent as we walked back to the car with only the empty morphine bottle in hand. Some of the things my mom had said scared me. It had finally dawned on me that my mom was too dependent (maybe addicted?) to her morphine medication. This was something I could not comprehend; I could not understand why it had happened. And there, in the middle of the parking lot, I fought back the tears that I had refused to let out for months, since we had come home from the surgery. We got into the car in an awkward silence, and I realized that my mom knew I had been listening to the conversation in the pharmacy.
“Look, don’t judge me Amber!”
“I… What?”
“I know I haven’t been a good mother. I know I haven’t been a good role model.”
“No mom—”
“I thought I’d deal with the pain. I knew I would start losing control of my actions, and even my needs because of the cancer, but I didn’t know that it would happen before that!” She gripped the steering wheel, and I was afraid of what she might say or do next, but then I noticed that she was crying, and I began to cry too.
“Why? I mean, why did you have to keep taking morphine, more than the doctor’s said you were supposed to?”
“I just wanted to feel better. I just wanted to be happy. You are all I have left, and I didn’t want them to take you away because I couldn’t take care of you. And I knew that you needed me to be able to function. You need me to be your mother, even though I’m no longer capable.” She gasp trying to calm her sobs. “You’re only eleven, and these aren’t your problems—”
“But they are my problems!” I said, wiping my face with my palms. “You’re my mom.”
***
Five years later, my mother died of a cancer related disease. At 34, I still miss her, and I think about her all the time, but for the most part they are happy memories. After that night in the hospital parking lot, she consented to talk to her doctor about her dependency. To help with the pain, my mom began doing some therapy sessions. However, what helped the most, I think was the new tradition we started of reading books to each other and taking turns braiding each other’s hair before we went to bed. In those five years, my mother made up for all of the bad choices she had made after the surgery, and I think she found the happiness she had been seeking from her morphine addiction.
Story:
“Mom? Are you awake?”
I reached out for my mother’s hand. I had just seen her mouth tighten, and my heart leapt. She had been asleep since the surgery the night before. That had been a horrible night, knowing that my mom was being cut up so the doctors could perform the surgery that would only probably remove the cancer in her kidneys. It was just my mom and eleven-year-old me, so a nurse had stayed up with me and showed me to the ward where I could sleep.
My mom opened her eyes slightly. Under normal circumstances, I thought she was gorgeous with her long, wavy red hair, gray-blue eyes and slender body (for a mother). At that moment, she was bald and had tubes sticking out of every part of her body, but I still thought she was pretty. She looked over at me, but I could tell that she wasn’t really seeing me. I could tell that whatever was in the IVs was drugging her so much that she could not really recognize her surroundings.
“Ah, she’s awake!” Doctor Storum walked in, followed by one of his nurses. He sat down on the other side of the bed, while the nurse checked all of the monitor machines and IVs. “We have the results of your surgery, Ms. Croll,” he said, grasping my mom’s free hand.
***
It turned out that they had managed to remove all of the kidney cancer, but that they had discovered cancerous cells in her pelvis called Chondrosarcoma. That at least explained why she had been feeling pain in her hip bones, as well as her kidney, but it also meant that she would have to go through chemotherapy. We were finally able to go home after a week in the hospital, but the doctors sent four bottles of pills with us that my mom was to take at various times of the day. It was hard to see my mom in so much pain, and I tried my best to make her as comfortable as possible. I had thought that I was the child, but in that time, my mother became as helpless as a six year old.
***
“Amber, could you bring me the morphine and a glass of water? Oh, and no food this time, I’m not hungry.”
I stood up from the couch where I had been reading my summer reading book for 6th grade, and keeping an eye on my mom. “Sure, mom.” I handed the requested items to her, and she shook two pills into her hand.
“Didn’t the doctor say to only take one of those at a time?” I asked my mom hesitantly. There had been a whole packet of papers with warnings and restrictions regarding my mom’s medications.
“I know, but my hips hurt so much! And Dr. Storum said I should make myself comfortable.”
“Oh… ok… Is there anything else you want me to do?”
***
The school year was fast approaching, and apart from her pain, my mom seemed to be doing better. She was now able to get around the house, which allowed me to prepare for school. When it came, I spent the first few days worrying about whether she could really take care of herself. However, I needn’t have worried much, for she was able to keep the pain down. In fact, she seemed to become herself again over the next few weeks. She cooked our dinners, made phone calls and asked me how school was going.
One evening, as I walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water, I paused to examine my mom’s pill bottles on the counter. One of the bottles was empty (it had previously contained morphine), but there was a full one next to it. Apparently, my mom had needed a refill. I turned away, drinking my water, but then stopped. Didn’t she just get a refill a few days ago? I thought. Maybe that was something else, though... I had recently sat down and read all the way through the papers the doctors had given my mom about her medications. Since then, I had begun to see some of the medications’ side effects in my mother. She was always complaining about her digestion, and she would spend whole days in a short of drowsy state. I hadn’t noticed those things before because the fear of the surgery and bone cancer had been so much greater, but now I was just as paranoid about something going wrong with the drugs.
***
School started, and with it came the usual homework. One Friday night, I took a break from my math homework to watch a show on the Discovery channel. When the commercials came on, I got up to get some ice cream, and I found my mom in the kitchen to taking her nighttime medications. That’s three morphine pills. That definitely more than she is supposed to have!
“Mom?”
“Hm?”
“I don’t think you’re supposed to take that many morphine pills…”
“I’m just trying to function, Amber.”
After that, I kept my concerns to myself. Who was I kidding? I was only eleven, and certainly did not want to cause my mother any more pain. I began to try to distance myself from my mom’s health problems, even though I could not escape them. They weighed heavily on me as I went through my first semester of sixth grade. I began to feel like I spent more time at the hospital than at home. The hardest part of this change, however, was the strain it put on my relationship with my mom. We talked less, partly because I spent my time at home in my room, and partly because my mom seemed to have forgotten how to be a mother. She never asked how school was going, or made sure I did my homework, or really disciplined me at all. She spent most of her time in front of the TV, or in the bathroom, and she had lost a lot of weight.
***
One night, my mom came into my room to tell me that she needed to go to the hospital, and that she didn’t want to leave me home alone, so I needed to come. I grabbed a Harry Potter book before I got up so I would have something to do. When we arrived, I followed my mom into the pharmacy and sat down in one of the chairs. Behind me, my mom began talking to the nurse.
“A refill? Did you bring your bottle with you, Ms. Croll? Ok, hold on, I will be right back.”
Harry didn’t have to do his homework by flashlight anymore; now he could sit in the bright sunshine outside Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlor, finishing his essays with the occasional help for Florean Fortescue himself…
“Ms. Croll? Our records show that you have already had a refill within the last two weeks.”
“I have Chondrosarcoma cancer, and I have been trying to cope, but the pain has been too much for me to function.”
“I could schedule another appointment…”
“No, that’s not necessary… I just need some more medications—”
***
I was silent as we walked back to the car with only the empty morphine bottle in hand. Some of the things my mom had said scared me. It had finally dawned on me that my mom was too dependent (maybe addicted?) to her morphine medication. This was something I could not comprehend; I could not understand why it had happened. And there, in the middle of the parking lot, I fought back the tears that I had refused to let out for months, since we had come home from the surgery. We got into the car in an awkward silence, and I realized that my mom knew I had been listening to the conversation in the pharmacy.
“Look, don’t judge me Amber!”
“I… What?”
“I know I haven’t been a good mother. I know I haven’t been a good role model.”
“No mom—”
“I thought I’d deal with the pain. I knew I would start losing control of my actions, and even my needs because of the cancer, but I didn’t know that it would happen before that!” She gripped the steering wheel, and I was afraid of what she might say or do next, but then I noticed that she was crying, and I began to cry too.
“Why? I mean, why did you have to keep taking morphine, more than the doctor’s said you were supposed to?”
“I just wanted to feel better. I just wanted to be happy. You are all I have left, and I didn’t want them to take you away because I couldn’t take care of you. And I knew that you needed me to be able to function. You need me to be your mother, even though I’m no longer capable.” She gasp trying to calm her sobs. “You’re only eleven, and these aren’t your problems—”
“But they are my problems!” I said, wiping my face with my palms. “You’re my mom.”
***
Five years later, my mother died of a cancer related disease. At 34, I still miss her, and I think about her all the time, but for the most part they are happy memories. After that night in the hospital parking lot, she consented to talk to her doctor about her dependency. To help with the pain, my mom began doing some therapy sessions. However, what helped the most, I think was the new tradition we started of reading books to each other and taking turns braiding each other’s hair before we went to bed. In those five years, my mother made up for all of the bad choices she had made after the surgery, and I think she found the happiness she had been seeking from her morphine addiction.
Morphine
To understand why we do what we do from a sociology perspective, my government class tried to research why people take drugs. To do that, we had to have a thorough understanding of what the drugs we chose are, how they work, and how they effect people. This is my research paper on Morphine.
Paper:
Although the poppy plan looks lovely and innocent, it is the creator of a powerful narcotic analgesic drug called opium. It was first cultivated by humans around 3400 B.C. in Lower Mesopotamia. In the next 2,000 years, it traveled to the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Egyptians (Berger). (At the time, not much was understood about the drug.) Over the centuries, it traveled farther and farther east, ending up in China in 400 A.D. For the most part, it was taken for recreational uses, but in the 1300’s during the Holy Inquisition, it became taboo in Europe. “In the eyes of the Inquisition, anything from the East was linked to the Devil” (“Opium”). However, it was reintroduced to Europe during the Renaissance for medicinal purposes for treating pain, and during the reign of Elizabeth I, it became a highly valued commodity from India. Then, in 1804, morphine, an opiate and a member of the opioid family of drugs, was first isolated from opium by a German physicist named Friedrich Wilhelm Adam Sertürner. He named it morphium after Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams (“Morphine”). Because morphine has been used for medical purposes since its discovery, the risky and potentially unsafe drug as remained on the market, and dependency, one of its side effects, has caused many patients to abuse the drug and become addicted to it.
With the creation of the hypodermic needle in 1853, morphine’s use spread, and it was used to “cure” opium and alcohol addiction, as well as to relieve pain (“Opium”). During the American Civil War, it was used so extensively that more than 400,000 men suffered from “soldier’s disease” (addiction) (“Morphine”). After that, a tax was imposed on morphine for the first time as a means of law enforcement. Following this, the U.S. Congress first passed the Pure Food and Drug Act, which required all food products to be labeled with their contents. This resulted in a considerable decline of opiate sales. It wasn’t until 1923 that “the U.S. Treasury Department's Narcotics Division (the first federal drug agency) ban[ned] all legal narcotics sales” (“Opium”). However, this action also, paradoxically, created the first real illegal morphine trafficking.
Through scientific study, it is now understood that all opioids, including morphine, act on certain receptors in the nervous system. Morphine specifically acts on protein-lipid receptors in the cell membranes called mu. The interaction effectively changes the molecular composition of the cells. This change is then what causes “the spinal cord to decrease the transmission of painful stimuli from body to brain, and its action within the brain itself” (Kestin). Today, pain that is treated with morphine is divided into two categories: persistent pain, and breakthrough pain. Persistent pain, pain that lasts a long time, is treated with long-acting morphine that releases the medication over a twelve hour period, while breakthrough pain, pain that is caused by an increase in an activity, emotion or other medication, is treated with immediate release morphine that becomes effective with 30 minutes of taking it orally and lasts for four hours (Pain). These doses can be taken orally, rectally, under the tongue, on the skin, or injected into the skin, muscles, or veins (Kestin).
Apart from treating pain, morphine has many other side effects. The most dangerous are respiratory repression, sedation and tolerance (Kestin). The first two do not always cause harm themselves, but they have been the cause of many fatal accidents when people taking morphine were unaware of how it affected them (Pain). Other minor side effects include constipation, nausea, and itching (caused by histamine release) (Kestin). Morphine also “relieves fear and anxiety, and produces euphoria,” which is part of the reason why it is so addictive (“Morphine”). The principal cause of morphine addiction, however, is tolerance. The use of morphine, like other addictive drugs, alters the chemical balances in the brain. As the levels of certain chemicals in the drug increase, the amount needed to produce the same effect also intensifies, which in turn creates an ever increasing dependency. Another reason patients feel that they need to increase their dosage is because morphine acts on the brain’s reward system. “The promise of reward is very intense, causing the individual to crave Morphine and to focus his or her activities around the taking of Morphine” (“Morphine”). Because of this active dependency, withdrawal causes severe nausea, sweating, chills and tearing for about three days. The most common method for rehabilitation from an opiate drug is to have the patient gradually switch to another drug that is supposedly less addictive. However, this is rarely successful, and usually results in the patient transferring the addiction to the new drug, and still needing the opiate (“Morphine”).
A large part of morphine’s deadliness is the fact that it is so heavily used for medicinal purposes, and therefore a lot of people have access to it. Also, the dosage is not usually certain and is not always correctly proscribed. These factors, along with the human desire to be happy and comfortable makes morphine a very risky drug to take, and once you start using, it is very hard to stop.
Works Cited
Berger, Jeremy. “History of Heroin, Opium and Morphine Addiction.” Associated Content. 17 June, 2008. Associated Content, Inc. 8 Mar. 2009..
Kestin, Dr. I. “Morphine.” NDA Web Team, Oxford. World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists..
“Morphine.” Narconon. 13 Mar. 2009..
“Morphine.” Pain Management. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. 14 Sept. 2001. 8 Mar., 2009..
“Opium Throughout History.” FRONTLINE. PBS. 13 Mar. 2009..
Paper:
Although the poppy plan looks lovely and innocent, it is the creator of a powerful narcotic analgesic drug called opium. It was first cultivated by humans around 3400 B.C. in Lower Mesopotamia. In the next 2,000 years, it traveled to the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Egyptians (Berger). (At the time, not much was understood about the drug.) Over the centuries, it traveled farther and farther east, ending up in China in 400 A.D. For the most part, it was taken for recreational uses, but in the 1300’s during the Holy Inquisition, it became taboo in Europe. “In the eyes of the Inquisition, anything from the East was linked to the Devil” (“Opium”). However, it was reintroduced to Europe during the Renaissance for medicinal purposes for treating pain, and during the reign of Elizabeth I, it became a highly valued commodity from India. Then, in 1804, morphine, an opiate and a member of the opioid family of drugs, was first isolated from opium by a German physicist named Friedrich Wilhelm Adam Sertürner. He named it morphium after Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams (“Morphine”). Because morphine has been used for medical purposes since its discovery, the risky and potentially unsafe drug as remained on the market, and dependency, one of its side effects, has caused many patients to abuse the drug and become addicted to it.
With the creation of the hypodermic needle in 1853, morphine’s use spread, and it was used to “cure” opium and alcohol addiction, as well as to relieve pain (“Opium”). During the American Civil War, it was used so extensively that more than 400,000 men suffered from “soldier’s disease” (addiction) (“Morphine”). After that, a tax was imposed on morphine for the first time as a means of law enforcement. Following this, the U.S. Congress first passed the Pure Food and Drug Act, which required all food products to be labeled with their contents. This resulted in a considerable decline of opiate sales. It wasn’t until 1923 that “the U.S. Treasury Department's Narcotics Division (the first federal drug agency) ban[ned] all legal narcotics sales” (“Opium”). However, this action also, paradoxically, created the first real illegal morphine trafficking.
Through scientific study, it is now understood that all opioids, including morphine, act on certain receptors in the nervous system. Morphine specifically acts on protein-lipid receptors in the cell membranes called mu. The interaction effectively changes the molecular composition of the cells. This change is then what causes “the spinal cord to decrease the transmission of painful stimuli from body to brain, and its action within the brain itself” (Kestin). Today, pain that is treated with morphine is divided into two categories: persistent pain, and breakthrough pain. Persistent pain, pain that lasts a long time, is treated with long-acting morphine that releases the medication over a twelve hour period, while breakthrough pain, pain that is caused by an increase in an activity, emotion or other medication, is treated with immediate release morphine that becomes effective with 30 minutes of taking it orally and lasts for four hours (Pain). These doses can be taken orally, rectally, under the tongue, on the skin, or injected into the skin, muscles, or veins (Kestin).
Apart from treating pain, morphine has many other side effects. The most dangerous are respiratory repression, sedation and tolerance (Kestin). The first two do not always cause harm themselves, but they have been the cause of many fatal accidents when people taking morphine were unaware of how it affected them (Pain). Other minor side effects include constipation, nausea, and itching (caused by histamine release) (Kestin). Morphine also “relieves fear and anxiety, and produces euphoria,” which is part of the reason why it is so addictive (“Morphine”). The principal cause of morphine addiction, however, is tolerance. The use of morphine, like other addictive drugs, alters the chemical balances in the brain. As the levels of certain chemicals in the drug increase, the amount needed to produce the same effect also intensifies, which in turn creates an ever increasing dependency. Another reason patients feel that they need to increase their dosage is because morphine acts on the brain’s reward system. “The promise of reward is very intense, causing the individual to crave Morphine and to focus his or her activities around the taking of Morphine” (“Morphine”). Because of this active dependency, withdrawal causes severe nausea, sweating, chills and tearing for about three days. The most common method for rehabilitation from an opiate drug is to have the patient gradually switch to another drug that is supposedly less addictive. However, this is rarely successful, and usually results in the patient transferring the addiction to the new drug, and still needing the opiate (“Morphine”).
A large part of morphine’s deadliness is the fact that it is so heavily used for medicinal purposes, and therefore a lot of people have access to it. Also, the dosage is not usually certain and is not always correctly proscribed. These factors, along with the human desire to be happy and comfortable makes morphine a very risky drug to take, and once you start using, it is very hard to stop.
Works Cited
Berger, Jeremy. “History of Heroin, Opium and Morphine Addiction.” Associated Content. 17 June, 2008. Associated Content, Inc. 8 Mar. 2009.
Kestin, Dr. I. “Morphine.” NDA Web Team, Oxford. World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists.
“Morphine.” Narconon. 13 Mar. 2009.
“Morphine.” Pain Management. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. 14 Sept. 2001. 8 Mar., 2009.
“Opium Throughout History.” FRONTLINE. PBS. 13 Mar. 2009.
Salton Sea Lesson Plan
To make sure our research and solutions meant something, my class also had to create some kind of outreach. I decided to write a lesson plan for schools around the Salton Sea so that the local people would know and care what happens to it.
Salton Sea Lesson Plan
Amelia Vance
Location:
In the southeastern corner of California
In Salton Sink, just north of Imperial Valley, in desert area
Salton Sink is a basin between the San Jacinto Fault Zone to the west and the San Andreas Fault Zone to the east
Its surface is at 227ft below sea level
History:
Gulf of California used to extend into Indio California, near Palm Springs
At the time, the Colorado River entered the Gulf where Yuma, Arizona is today
Then silt began to settle at the Colorado River delta and isolated a portion of water where Salton Sea is today, and the Colorado River turned south to follow the new gulf
Without a water source, the lake dried up
Then the Colorado River turned back to the north and recreated the lake (Lake Cahuilla)
Again the lake dried up as the Colorado River turned back to the gulf
In 1905 the Colorado River, on the border between California and Arizona, overflowed a levee into the Salton Sink to form the Salton Sea
Submerged an entire town
Water Content:
Saline lake (salty)
Salt is 44 parts per million, ~500 million tons
Ecosystem:
Fish: by 1951, 34,000 fish of 35 different saltwater species, had been transported from the Gulf of California and planted in the Salton Sea
Pupfish, 2 inch endangered fish
Tilapia fish, mostly native to Africa
Sargo, transplanted for fishing
Gulf croaker, transplanted for fishing
Orange-mouth corvine, also transplanted and feeds off croakers.
Most species did not survive
Algae: comes in blooms, causing the fish to suffer in greater numbers
barnacles
Birds:
Salton Sea is a major stop for migrating birds on the Pacific Flyway, a path birds fly up and down the west coast from Alaska to Patagonia at the southern tip of South America
>400 species, 50 are endangered
Eared Grebes
Brown pelican, endangered
Yuma Clapper Rail, endangered
American white pelican, 30% of population supported there
Scientific Studies:
Water inflow
Agricultural drainage
Studies have found that Salton Sea is possibly the most productive fishery in the world
Salton Sea Scientific Drilling Project
Drilled for cores deep in ground
Fish selenium levels
San Diego State University study
Determined, based on the selenium levels, that it is safe to eat 3 pounds of fish from Salton Sea safely in contrast to the 1986 study which said only 8 ounces
However, the study found arsenic in the fish, so no more than 26 to 46ozs every two weeks
Water Conservation:
Many people take the clean water that comes out of our faucets for granted
The water comes from lakes and rivers that often have to be dammed
Water conservation starts at home
Tips for conserving water:
Turn off faucets and showers when you are not washing or rinsing, such as when you are brushing your teeth, and install low-flow faucets
Take shorter showers
The average toilet uses 3.5 to 5 gallons of water for every flush. Install ultra-low flush toilets that use only 1.6 gallons, or less
Use drought tolerant or native plants in your garden
Letter to Barbara Boxer
In addition to coming up with a solution for better managing resources, my government class also wrote letters to members of Congress to tell them of our concerns and solutions.
March 2, 2009
The Honorable Barbara Boxer
112 Hart Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senator Barbara Boxer:
I am writing to express my concern regarding the problematic and possibly severe situation of the Salton Sea just north of the Imperial Valley. The lake, the largest body of water in California and home to hundreds of species of birds and thousands of fish, is quickly shrinking while its salinity is increasing to dangerous levels. This is mostly due to the diversions from Salton Sea and the Colorado River, a major source of water for the lake. Because of these actions, the entire ecosystem that it holds is now in jeopardy.
I have read the reports from the Salton Sea Ecosystem Restoration Program that were submitted in 2007, but I am not entirely satisfied with the proposed solution. It seems to me that those who are involved in choosing the best action to take, the Salton Sea Authority, Department of Fish and Game, Department of Water Resources and others, have made their decisions primarily to satisfy minimum requirements, rather than what is best for Salton Sea. The proposed plan would destroy the lake that was formed over one hundred years ago and create an entirely man-made water system for the purpose of meeting technical requirements: to lower the salinity, save the brine shrimp and improve and monitor the air quality. Instead of a whole lake, there will be concentric circles of small lakes (no more than twelve feet deep) and one larger portion for recreational use. In the middle of the doughnut, there will only be two small lakes, and the rest will be exposed lake bed. This plan, which is now moving into action, was adopted without any intent to preserve the lake as a part of the environment around it, and as the great ecosystem it has become.
I urge you to take a moment, if you have not already done so, to ensure that the officials who have worked so hard to construct this solution consult with the local people and others who have a vested interest in the lake, such as fishermen. Although Salton Sea is relatively young, that does not mean that it is less valued as a part of nature. Indeed, hundreds of species of birds have made it a major stop on the Pacific Flyway, thereby turning it into a crucial part of California’s landscape. Please make sure that this plan only goes forward if the lake cannot be sustained as it is.
Sincerely,
Amelia Vance
2225 Seaside St
San Diego, CA 92107
March 2, 2009
The Honorable Barbara Boxer
112 Hart Senate Office Building
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senator Barbara Boxer:
I am writing to express my concern regarding the problematic and possibly severe situation of the Salton Sea just north of the Imperial Valley. The lake, the largest body of water in California and home to hundreds of species of birds and thousands of fish, is quickly shrinking while its salinity is increasing to dangerous levels. This is mostly due to the diversions from Salton Sea and the Colorado River, a major source of water for the lake. Because of these actions, the entire ecosystem that it holds is now in jeopardy.
I have read the reports from the Salton Sea Ecosystem Restoration Program that were submitted in 2007, but I am not entirely satisfied with the proposed solution. It seems to me that those who are involved in choosing the best action to take, the Salton Sea Authority, Department of Fish and Game, Department of Water Resources and others, have made their decisions primarily to satisfy minimum requirements, rather than what is best for Salton Sea. The proposed plan would destroy the lake that was formed over one hundred years ago and create an entirely man-made water system for the purpose of meeting technical requirements: to lower the salinity, save the brine shrimp and improve and monitor the air quality. Instead of a whole lake, there will be concentric circles of small lakes (no more than twelve feet deep) and one larger portion for recreational use. In the middle of the doughnut, there will only be two small lakes, and the rest will be exposed lake bed. This plan, which is now moving into action, was adopted without any intent to preserve the lake as a part of the environment around it, and as the great ecosystem it has become.
I urge you to take a moment, if you have not already done so, to ensure that the officials who have worked so hard to construct this solution consult with the local people and others who have a vested interest in the lake, such as fishermen. Although Salton Sea is relatively young, that does not mean that it is less valued as a part of nature. Indeed, hundreds of species of birds have made it a major stop on the Pacific Flyway, thereby turning it into a crucial part of California’s landscape. Please make sure that this plan only goes forward if the lake cannot be sustained as it is.
Sincerely,
Amelia Vance
2225 Seaside St
San Diego, CA 92107
Salton Sea Mismanagement and Restoration Plan
For three months, my government class researched mismanaged resources around the world, and came up with our own solutions for how they could be better managed. Here is my paper about the Salton Sea.
Paper:
When Doug Barnum, a U.S. Geological chief scientist said, “It’s on the verge of collapse,” (Almeida) in 2007, he was referring to Salton Sea, the largest lake in California, which is located north of the Imperial Valley. It was created by accident in 1905 when the Colorado River overflowed a series of dams into the Salton Sink which is 228 feet below sea level. Since its formation, “the lake has been a Southern California oasis, rich in wildlife” (Almeida). The saline lake is a major stop on the Pacific Flyway, a route up and down the coast that is flown by more than 100,000 birds. It is also currently supporting over 400 species of birds, about fifty of which are endangered. The lake is now an average of 35 miles long by 15 miles wide, but that may not be true for much longer. Salton Sea relies on agricultural drainage, as well as runoff water from the Colorado River to survive, but with ever more increasing amounts being diverted from the river throughout California and to several other states, that supply is weakening (Almeida). In addition, water is being diverted directly from the lake to San Diego and Los Angeles. At this rate, Salton Sea could lose 60 percent of its volume in just 20 years. Around the world, fresh water is becoming an increasingly needed and valued resource. However, like all natural resources, a line must be drawn somewhere on our usage. If America continues its water use at this rate, there will not be any lakes left in the future, for human use or otherwise. It is therefore important that we take steps to protect the lakes in our country now while we can. For Salton Sea, that means first lessening the amount diverted from it, and then finding a way to reduce the ever increasing salinity while allowing more water to flow into the lake.
Although water shortage can be seen all over California, it is not unique to this region. Around the world, countries have been confronted with decreasing water supplies and the need to keep rivers and lakes full. Dalai Lake on the Dalai Lake National Reserve, the largest fresh water lake in northern China, is also rapidly shrinking due to drought and extreme overuse. The lake “has fallen about 3 meters since 2002, while its area has contracted by more than 500 square kilometers” according to “local authorities” (“North”). “‘If the lake continues to shrink, it may soon disappear” reported Liu Songtao of the Dalai Lake Natural Reserve Administration (“North”). The local government’s first plan for restoration was to pump about 1 billion cubic meters from Hailer Lake each year in Dalai Lake. “However, the project was seen as ineffective by many scientists, since Hailer Lake has also been shrinking in recent years” (“North”). The second attempt is in process right now as the government tries to set regulations on the use of the reserve’s natural resources, especially the water (“North”). Is it possible for these regulations to succeed when demand is so high? That very thing happened fourteen years ago back in California.
Mono Lake sits in the shadow of the Eastern Sierras half way up California near the Nevada border. It is an ancient saline lake home to trillions of brine shrimp and alkali flies, as well as millions of birds that stop there on their migratory route (“About”). The lake remained largely untouched until 1941 when Los Angeles began diverting water from its tributary rivers. By 1982, Mono Lake’s volume had been cut in half, exposing its famous tufa towers, structures made of limestone and calcium, while its salinity doubled. The flies began to die in droves, the algae were much less productive and the bird population was in danger, both from decreased food sources and from predators that are now able to cross to a previously isolated island which is used by the birds as a nesting ground. Also, the dried lake bottom exposed silt and other toxic chemicals to be swept into the air, making the air in the Mono Lake Basin a potential violation of the Clean Air Act (Mono). Out of this precarious situation was born the Mono Lake Committee (MLC), founded by David Gaines in 1978. The committee immediately began working on a three part plan (legal, legislative and educational) to protect and restore the Mono Lake Basin. They quickly brought the issue to the courts, charging that the diversions were a violation of the public trust doctrine, which protects lakes large enough to navigate for the use of the public. “In a 1983 precedent-setting decision, the California Supreme Court agreed with the MLC, ruling that the state has an obligation to protect places such as Mono Lake, ‘as far as feasible,’ even if this means a reconsideration of past water allocation decisions” (Mono). These suits continued until 1994, when regulations were final put on Los Angeles regarding the amount of water the city could divert from the area. In addition to protecting Mono Lake, MLC devoted much of its efforts towards helping Los Angeles acquire replacement water sources that were much less vulnerable, as well as obtain federal funding for water recycling and conservation programs. In fact, “despite growth of a million people between 1975 and 2005, LA's water usage (of about 600,000 AF/yr) had not changed” (Mono).
Today, as the Mono Lake Committee celebrates its 30th anniversary, Mono Lake is in full recovery. The bird population is thriving and the water level has risen to only eight feet below the Water Control Resource Board’s target of 6,391 feet above sea level, though how those eight feet will be gained is still a work in progress (Sahagun). Although there is still more that needs to be done to fully restore the lake to its original size and health, Mono Lake’s story is a remarkable victory. Salton Sea, on the other hand, just a few hundred miles from Mono Lake, has so far not been as fortunate. Like Mono Lake, Salton Sea is a home to a unique and significant ecosystem, and like Mono Lake fourteen years ago, its water is being excessively diverted, causing its salinity to rise dangerously. The lake is needed by many locally, including birds, fish, and farmers and is valued by many as a place for boating, fishing, camping and other recreational past times (“Salton”). If the lake is allowed to dry up, millions of fish will die, and about 50 species of endangered birds will suffer, most notably the American white pelican and the eared grebe because the lake supports 90 percent of their populations. Also, like Mono Lake, Salton Sea’s lakebed contains pollutant particles that, when blown into the air, could violate the Clean Air Act. “An estimated 134 square miles of dusty lakebed - an area five times the size of Washington, D.C. - could be exposed to desert winds by 2036 if no action is taken. Imperial County already has the highest childhood asthma hospitalization rate in the state” (Almeida). It is clear that something should be done to restore Salton Sea, but what?
Over the years, several proposals have been made. In 2003, research was done to find the best place for dikes. However, this plan, which was supported by the Salton Sea Authority and included restoring wetlands for bird, deep water for fish, healthy air quality and a way to bring in new water, was heavily scrutinized and does not appear to have gone into action (Salton). In 2007, one plan was made to reduce the lake’s size by sixty percent while putting in forty miles of rock and gravel barriers to keep it contained. This would to continue to allow it to be used by wildlife and humans, while keeping it a manageable size. In addition, irrigation tubes would be added to water the plants so that the ground would stay stable. “Officials say a combination of state and federal funds, along with local taxes, will pay for the restoration. Annual costs will start at $52 million and eventually rise to $125 million” (Almeida). This month, however, a very different idea is being discussed throughout the state. Last Thursday, December 4th, 2008, state officials from the Water Resources and Fish and Game departments gathered in Palm Desert to fill in the residents about this restoration plan. Although the Department of Fish and Game (who, incidentally, had a large hand in the Mono Lake Committee’s success) has made some progress, the work is ongoing and moving slowly (“Speak”). According to one writer for The Desert Sun, the Palm Desert local newspaper, “The plan aims to create 2,400 acres of shallow, saline ponds at the exposed playa bed where the Salton Sea is expected to recede, adding islands and rocky surfaces for the species to use (“Modest”). In 2003, Reclamation published an “Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for a shallow water habitat pilot project” that lays out all of the research done to support this new theory of shallow ponds (“Salton”). However, these ponds will mostly be three feet deep, or less, which will not be able to support any kind of ecosystem and will not add to the area. At the moment, the plan has funds from a bill that is using $47 million from Proposition 84. However, there is a $9 billion plan that will last about seventy years, waiting to be approved by legislators (“Speak”). With the plan concept and the lack of enthusiasm from legislators, it might be concluded that what these officials really want to happen is just to let the lake dry itself up.
The last proposition, which does not seem to have discussed legally yet, is building an aqueducts from the Pacific Ocean to Salton Sea. Water For All is a plan for the construction of public seawater aqueducts, pipelines and canals to distribute seawater from the ocean to arid and drought susceptible regions of the United States [such as the Salton Sink]” (“Water”). This concept proposes that the United States negotiate with Mexico to build a canal from the Gulf of California to Salton Sea, which would be large enough to hold commercial barges and which would generate new water into the lake. As grand as this sounds, there are two issues with this plan. The first is that, although there could be exchange of water between the lake and the canal, salinity would still remain very high. The second is that the construction of a commercial canal could very easily make officials lose sight of initial purpose to build it: to protect the ecosystem that has developed at the lake.
Because there are so many plans that people are attempting to put into action, it appears as though nothing is getting done. The first solution is to assign the responsibility to one group who is much invested and has Salton Sea’s best at heart. This group could them follow the Mono Lake Committee’s example and invest in a legal, legislative and educational plan to ensure that something can be done, and that it has the support to do it. The fact is that there are people out there who are willing to fight for this lake. They just need the assurance that the officials care. As Gary Shuttle, an amateur naturalist, said about Mono Lake when he was interviewed by Louis Sahagun, “‘It’s great to be on the side of creative forces generating new life instead of destroying it… It’s a fantastic example of human beings at their best.’”
Works Cited
Almeida, Christina. “California’s Salton Sea Is Shrinking.” redOrbit. 27 April, 2007. 2002-2008. redOrbit.com..
“Modest plan to aid Salton Sea moves ahead as a much larger one is stalled.” mydesert.com. The Desert Sun. 5 Dec. 2008..
Mono Lake. Mono Lake Committee. 2008..
“North China’s largest fresh water lake shrinking.” China.org.cn. China.org.cn..
Sahagun, Louis. “A Mono Lake Success Story.” Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. 24 July, 2008..
“Salton Sea Restoration.” Reclamation: Lower Colorado Region. U.S. Department of the Interior. Dec. 208. <>.
Salton Sea Restorations: Ten Years of Progress. Salton Sea Authority. 2006..
“Speak Up On Salton Sea.” mydesert.com. The Desert Sun. 2 Dec. 2008..
“Water.” American Energy Independence..
Paper:
When Doug Barnum, a U.S. Geological chief scientist said, “It’s on the verge of collapse,” (Almeida) in 2007, he was referring to Salton Sea, the largest lake in California, which is located north of the Imperial Valley. It was created by accident in 1905 when the Colorado River overflowed a series of dams into the Salton Sink which is 228 feet below sea level. Since its formation, “the lake has been a Southern California oasis, rich in wildlife” (Almeida). The saline lake is a major stop on the Pacific Flyway, a route up and down the coast that is flown by more than 100,000 birds. It is also currently supporting over 400 species of birds, about fifty of which are endangered. The lake is now an average of 35 miles long by 15 miles wide, but that may not be true for much longer. Salton Sea relies on agricultural drainage, as well as runoff water from the Colorado River to survive, but with ever more increasing amounts being diverted from the river throughout California and to several other states, that supply is weakening (Almeida). In addition, water is being diverted directly from the lake to San Diego and Los Angeles. At this rate, Salton Sea could lose 60 percent of its volume in just 20 years. Around the world, fresh water is becoming an increasingly needed and valued resource. However, like all natural resources, a line must be drawn somewhere on our usage. If America continues its water use at this rate, there will not be any lakes left in the future, for human use or otherwise. It is therefore important that we take steps to protect the lakes in our country now while we can. For Salton Sea, that means first lessening the amount diverted from it, and then finding a way to reduce the ever increasing salinity while allowing more water to flow into the lake.
Although water shortage can be seen all over California, it is not unique to this region. Around the world, countries have been confronted with decreasing water supplies and the need to keep rivers and lakes full. Dalai Lake on the Dalai Lake National Reserve, the largest fresh water lake in northern China, is also rapidly shrinking due to drought and extreme overuse. The lake “has fallen about 3 meters since 2002, while its area has contracted by more than 500 square kilometers” according to “local authorities” (“North”). “‘If the lake continues to shrink, it may soon disappear” reported Liu Songtao of the Dalai Lake Natural Reserve Administration (“North”). The local government’s first plan for restoration was to pump about 1 billion cubic meters from Hailer Lake each year in Dalai Lake. “However, the project was seen as ineffective by many scientists, since Hailer Lake has also been shrinking in recent years” (“North”). The second attempt is in process right now as the government tries to set regulations on the use of the reserve’s natural resources, especially the water (“North”). Is it possible for these regulations to succeed when demand is so high? That very thing happened fourteen years ago back in California.
Mono Lake sits in the shadow of the Eastern Sierras half way up California near the Nevada border. It is an ancient saline lake home to trillions of brine shrimp and alkali flies, as well as millions of birds that stop there on their migratory route (“About”). The lake remained largely untouched until 1941 when Los Angeles began diverting water from its tributary rivers. By 1982, Mono Lake’s volume had been cut in half, exposing its famous tufa towers, structures made of limestone and calcium, while its salinity doubled. The flies began to die in droves, the algae were much less productive and the bird population was in danger, both from decreased food sources and from predators that are now able to cross to a previously isolated island which is used by the birds as a nesting ground. Also, the dried lake bottom exposed silt and other toxic chemicals to be swept into the air, making the air in the Mono Lake Basin a potential violation of the Clean Air Act (Mono). Out of this precarious situation was born the Mono Lake Committee (MLC), founded by David Gaines in 1978. The committee immediately began working on a three part plan (legal, legislative and educational) to protect and restore the Mono Lake Basin. They quickly brought the issue to the courts, charging that the diversions were a violation of the public trust doctrine, which protects lakes large enough to navigate for the use of the public. “In a 1983 precedent-setting decision, the California Supreme Court agreed with the MLC, ruling that the state has an obligation to protect places such as Mono Lake, ‘as far as feasible,’ even if this means a reconsideration of past water allocation decisions” (Mono). These suits continued until 1994, when regulations were final put on Los Angeles regarding the amount of water the city could divert from the area. In addition to protecting Mono Lake, MLC devoted much of its efforts towards helping Los Angeles acquire replacement water sources that were much less vulnerable, as well as obtain federal funding for water recycling and conservation programs. In fact, “despite growth of a million people between 1975 and 2005, LA's water usage (of about 600,000 AF/yr) had not changed” (Mono).
Today, as the Mono Lake Committee celebrates its 30th anniversary, Mono Lake is in full recovery. The bird population is thriving and the water level has risen to only eight feet below the Water Control Resource Board’s target of 6,391 feet above sea level, though how those eight feet will be gained is still a work in progress (Sahagun). Although there is still more that needs to be done to fully restore the lake to its original size and health, Mono Lake’s story is a remarkable victory. Salton Sea, on the other hand, just a few hundred miles from Mono Lake, has so far not been as fortunate. Like Mono Lake, Salton Sea is a home to a unique and significant ecosystem, and like Mono Lake fourteen years ago, its water is being excessively diverted, causing its salinity to rise dangerously. The lake is needed by many locally, including birds, fish, and farmers and is valued by many as a place for boating, fishing, camping and other recreational past times (“Salton”). If the lake is allowed to dry up, millions of fish will die, and about 50 species of endangered birds will suffer, most notably the American white pelican and the eared grebe because the lake supports 90 percent of their populations. Also, like Mono Lake, Salton Sea’s lakebed contains pollutant particles that, when blown into the air, could violate the Clean Air Act. “An estimated 134 square miles of dusty lakebed - an area five times the size of Washington, D.C. - could be exposed to desert winds by 2036 if no action is taken. Imperial County already has the highest childhood asthma hospitalization rate in the state” (Almeida). It is clear that something should be done to restore Salton Sea, but what?
Over the years, several proposals have been made. In 2003, research was done to find the best place for dikes. However, this plan, which was supported by the Salton Sea Authority and included restoring wetlands for bird, deep water for fish, healthy air quality and a way to bring in new water, was heavily scrutinized and does not appear to have gone into action (Salton). In 2007, one plan was made to reduce the lake’s size by sixty percent while putting in forty miles of rock and gravel barriers to keep it contained. This would to continue to allow it to be used by wildlife and humans, while keeping it a manageable size. In addition, irrigation tubes would be added to water the plants so that the ground would stay stable. “Officials say a combination of state and federal funds, along with local taxes, will pay for the restoration. Annual costs will start at $52 million and eventually rise to $125 million” (Almeida). This month, however, a very different idea is being discussed throughout the state. Last Thursday, December 4th, 2008, state officials from the Water Resources and Fish and Game departments gathered in Palm Desert to fill in the residents about this restoration plan. Although the Department of Fish and Game (who, incidentally, had a large hand in the Mono Lake Committee’s success) has made some progress, the work is ongoing and moving slowly (“Speak”). According to one writer for The Desert Sun, the Palm Desert local newspaper, “The plan aims to create 2,400 acres of shallow, saline ponds at the exposed playa bed where the Salton Sea is expected to recede, adding islands and rocky surfaces for the species to use (“Modest”). In 2003, Reclamation published an “Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for a shallow water habitat pilot project” that lays out all of the research done to support this new theory of shallow ponds (“Salton”). However, these ponds will mostly be three feet deep, or less, which will not be able to support any kind of ecosystem and will not add to the area. At the moment, the plan has funds from a bill that is using $47 million from Proposition 84. However, there is a $9 billion plan that will last about seventy years, waiting to be approved by legislators (“Speak”). With the plan concept and the lack of enthusiasm from legislators, it might be concluded that what these officials really want to happen is just to let the lake dry itself up.
The last proposition, which does not seem to have discussed legally yet, is building an aqueducts from the Pacific Ocean to Salton Sea. Water For All is a plan for the construction of public seawater aqueducts, pipelines and canals to distribute seawater from the ocean to arid and drought susceptible regions of the United States [such as the Salton Sink]” (“Water”). This concept proposes that the United States negotiate with Mexico to build a canal from the Gulf of California to Salton Sea, which would be large enough to hold commercial barges and which would generate new water into the lake. As grand as this sounds, there are two issues with this plan. The first is that, although there could be exchange of water between the lake and the canal, salinity would still remain very high. The second is that the construction of a commercial canal could very easily make officials lose sight of initial purpose to build it: to protect the ecosystem that has developed at the lake.
Because there are so many plans that people are attempting to put into action, it appears as though nothing is getting done. The first solution is to assign the responsibility to one group who is much invested and has Salton Sea’s best at heart. This group could them follow the Mono Lake Committee’s example and invest in a legal, legislative and educational plan to ensure that something can be done, and that it has the support to do it. The fact is that there are people out there who are willing to fight for this lake. They just need the assurance that the officials care. As Gary Shuttle, an amateur naturalist, said about Mono Lake when he was interviewed by Louis Sahagun, “‘It’s great to be on the side of creative forces generating new life instead of destroying it… It’s a fantastic example of human beings at their best.’”
Works Cited
Almeida, Christina. “California’s Salton Sea Is Shrinking.” redOrbit. 27 April, 2007. 2002-2008. redOrbit.com.
“Modest plan to aid Salton Sea moves ahead as a much larger one is stalled.” mydesert.com. The Desert Sun. 5 Dec. 2008.
Mono Lake. Mono Lake Committee. 2008.
“North China’s largest fresh water lake shrinking.” China.org.cn. China.org.cn.
Sahagun, Louis. “A Mono Lake Success Story.” Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. 24 July, 2008.
“Salton Sea Restoration.” Reclamation: Lower Colorado Region. U.S. Department of the Interior. Dec. 208. <>.
Salton Sea Restorations: Ten Years of Progress. Salton Sea Authority. 2006.
“Speak Up On Salton Sea.” mydesert.com. The Desert Sun. 2 Dec. 2008.
“Water.” American Energy Independence.
Salton Sea Abstract
Here is a summary of my research and conclusions about the mismanagement of the Salton Sea by our government.
Abstract
Just north of the Imperial Valley in California is the Salton Sea, a lake that was formed in 1905 when a part of the Colorado River overflowed into the Salton Sink. Since then, the lake has become an oasis and a home to hundreds of species of birds and thousands of fish. It is also a major stop on the Pacific Flyway, a migratory route up and down the coast that is flown by more than 100,000 birds. However, this enormously beneficial ecosystem is rapidly shrinking. Salton Sea relies on agricultural drainage, as well as runoff water from the Colorado River to survive, but with ever more increasing amounts being diverted from the river throughout California and to several other states, it could lose 60 percent of its volume in just 20 years, which in turn would dangerously increase its salinity. The lake is relied on locally by birds, fish, and farmers and is valued by many as a place for boating, fishing, camping and other recreational past times. If the lake is allowed to dry up, millions of fish will die, and about 50 species of endangered birds will suffer, most notably the American white pelican and the eared grebe because the lake supports 90 percent of their populations. Also, Salton Sea’s lakebed contains pollutant particles that, when blown into the air, could violate the Clean Air Act. The proposed solution, put together by the Salton Sea Ecosystem Restoration Program that is headed by the Salton Sea Authority, is to recreate the lake into concentric circles that form a doughnut shape. Each section will be separated by rock and gravel and the middle will be nothing but exposed toxic lake bed that will be monitored. It seems that little or no thought was put towards preserving the lake as a part of the environment around it, and as the great ecosystem it has become. What the Salton Sea Ecosystem Restoration Program is doing is not restoration, but reconstruction. Enough of the natural lakes in the United States are struggling to maintain their volume and ecosystems without being destroyed and recreated as well.
Abstract
Just north of the Imperial Valley in California is the Salton Sea, a lake that was formed in 1905 when a part of the Colorado River overflowed into the Salton Sink. Since then, the lake has become an oasis and a home to hundreds of species of birds and thousands of fish. It is also a major stop on the Pacific Flyway, a migratory route up and down the coast that is flown by more than 100,000 birds. However, this enormously beneficial ecosystem is rapidly shrinking. Salton Sea relies on agricultural drainage, as well as runoff water from the Colorado River to survive, but with ever more increasing amounts being diverted from the river throughout California and to several other states, it could lose 60 percent of its volume in just 20 years, which in turn would dangerously increase its salinity. The lake is relied on locally by birds, fish, and farmers and is valued by many as a place for boating, fishing, camping and other recreational past times. If the lake is allowed to dry up, millions of fish will die, and about 50 species of endangered birds will suffer, most notably the American white pelican and the eared grebe because the lake supports 90 percent of their populations. Also, Salton Sea’s lakebed contains pollutant particles that, when blown into the air, could violate the Clean Air Act. The proposed solution, put together by the Salton Sea Ecosystem Restoration Program that is headed by the Salton Sea Authority, is to recreate the lake into concentric circles that form a doughnut shape. Each section will be separated by rock and gravel and the middle will be nothing but exposed toxic lake bed that will be monitored. It seems that little or no thought was put towards preserving the lake as a part of the environment around it, and as the great ecosystem it has become. What the Salton Sea Ecosystem Restoration Program is doing is not restoration, but reconstruction. Enough of the natural lakes in the United States are struggling to maintain their volume and ecosystems without being destroyed and recreated as well.
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