WildernessU-Georgia

Ever since I was little, I can remember riding my bicycle outside or rollerskating in my cul-de-sac. My parents use to take me camping and fishing while I was still in elementary school. Naturally, as I grew older my fondness for trying different things increased as well. I have hiked in the Grand Canyon and have gone skiing in West Virginia and that is to only name a few. I can only hope to continue to travel and enjoy the outdoors as I get older. Here are my top 5 reasons why I <3 the outdoors.

#5 Relieves stress

Anytime I am hounded with schoolwork or trying to take my mind of my future, I can always count on relaxing outside to help me forget about everyone and everything else. I love running outside during the summer with nothing but the grass, the trees and sweat running down my face. For that hour I don’t have to think about a thing.

#4 It’s (mostly) free

Enjoying the sunshine does not come at a cost. I can walk out my back door and sit on my patio at anytime of the day without having to worry about putting a dent in my wallet. Sure, there are parks and other areas that require some sort of fee, but that usually isn’t very much.

#3 Can enjoy it with anyone

There’s nothing better then chilling in a hammock, listening to good music and having your best friend in the next hammock over. You can chat, gossip or guess what animals the clouds are shaped into. It doesn’t even have to be my best friend it could be a stranger and I still would be perfectly okay.

#2 It’s natural

Grand Canyon. Yellowstone. Niagara Falls. Redwood Forest.

Do I even need to say more? This goes into my #1 reason.

#1  It’s absolutely breathtaking

There are many times I will be walking home on a clear blue day and be in complete awe of my surroundings and my walk home is no Grand Canyon. There are beautiful things out there and I am so happy to be completely surrounded by it on a daily basis. Other than friends and family, I can honestly say there is nothing a person needs other than the great outdoors.

-Jade Thomas is a public relations major at the University of Georgia

Coal ash is a toxic by-product of burning coal from coal fired power plants. Currently there are regulations to protect public health and the environment from the hazardous effects of this by-product. The Senate is voting on a bill that would dismantle these critical public health regulations and open the door to poison entering our air and water. Use this link to tell Senators Chambliss and Isaacson to vote no on S. 1751. People from around the country are calling today, make you voice heard!

http://appvoices.org/coal-ash-call-in-day/ 

ADDITIONAL POINTS (courtesy of Appalachian Voices)

• S.1751 endangers the health and safety of thousands of communities by preventing the EPA from ever revisiting a federal coal ash rule, even if future evidence shows that coal ash poses an even greater threat.
• S.1751 would allow the construction of coal ash dumps that don’t meet current drinking water standards for arsenic, lead and other pollutants.
• S.1751 will cost American jobs: A recent study by a Tufts University senior economist found that strong coal ash regulations, such as those proposed by the EPA in 2010, would generate 28,000 jobs annually.
• Currently, the cheapest method of coal ash disposal is ponds. Coal ash cannot be recycled once it is wet. S.1751 will prevent the recycling of coal ash by permitting the construction of new containment ponds.
• S.1751 fails to address the current threats. The bill will not phase out dangerous coal ash ponds or prevent another tragedy like the 2008 coal ash spill in Tennessee.
• Living near unlined coal ash ponds increases the likelihood of developing cancer to 1 in 50 – 2,000 times greater than acceptable risk levels

Prepare youselves. I guarantee this will be a hot issue for our generation.

Yesterday, The New York Times released an article about the controversy over fracking, “in which water and toxic chemicals are injected at high pressure into the ground to break up rocks and release the gas trapped there.” Fracking    “occurs thousands of feet below drinking-water aquifers.”

There has been one documented case of a U.S. freshwater well being contaminated by hydrolic fracking. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) believes there may be more cases, but these cases have usually “lacked sufficient documentation or involved a type of contamination that was outside the scope of the study.”

If you are more of a visual or audio learner, check out “My World’s On Fire (The Fracking Song),” a creative song on Youtube that helps explain the process:

Although Congress has reached an accord on the debt ceiling, the deal seems put the U.S. on the brink of defaulting on another debt: an environmental one.

“Congress doesn’t deserve to thump its chest for reaching a debt ceiling compromise on a mess it created,” said William H. Meadows, president of The Wilderness Society.

Click here to read more about what this deal means for our wild places.

Yesterday, I had the privilege of celebrating Independence Day by watching fireworks over the Washington Monument from the National Mall in DC.

I know that many other Americans also flocked to National Monuments and National Parks to commemorate America’s birthday.

In late June, The Wilderness Society encouraged people to get outdoors, recreate, and enjoy the lands that belong to all Americans this Fourth of July. It even provided a sampling of treasured places—some with historical ties to Independence Day—to celebrate our country’s freedom. They included Colorado National Monument, Devils Tower National Monument, Gold Butte, and Mule Cannon Wilderness Study Area.

“People might not realize that there are a lot of historical events that have taken place on public lands across the country,” said Nada Culver, director of The Wilderness Society’s BLM Action Center. “These are spectacular places that belong to all of us, and we hope that many families will make their own memories on these lands and develop stories that can be told for generations to come.”

Where did you celebrate the Fourth of July? If you didn’t make it to a national scenic attraction, why wait for a holiday as an excuse to go? Take your next vacation or weekend getaway to one of America’s public landscapes and tell us about your experience!

-Margaret

What an incredible day.

Yesterday was my first day working at The Wilderness Society headquarters in Washington DC, and I have already learned so much.

Arriving shortly before my scheduled starting time, I was able to browse through one of my favorite features of the entire building: a gallery of 75 original Ansel Adams photographs that were recently donated to the society by the Ansel Adams Foundation.

Awestruck, my jaw dropped as the photographs came alive in front of me. In one particular photograph, I could literally see and hear a waterfall crashing into the wild rapids below.  In that moment I knew I was in the right place. Nature’s ability to evoke so much wonder and fear inside me is the very reason that I want to contribute to the mission of protecting it.

Like a little girl being beckoned by her mother to leave a candy or toy store, I was suddenly forced to leave my world of imagination to meet the other interns and begin orientation.

After meeting all of my wonderful co-workers, getting acquainted with the building, and attending a policy meeting, it was time to get down to business.

My work for the day consisted of conducting research, participating in a conference call with The Wilderness Society base in the southeastern region, compiling press clips, and establishing professional goals for the summer.

Some of the most exciting news I learned yesterday is that Bill Meadows, the president of The Wilderness Society in DC, will participate in a live debate on NPR’s The Diane Rehm Show this morning at 11 a.m., discussing the protection and use of  millions of acres of wild lands in the United States.

Living and working in the heart of our nation’s government, I am thrilled to learn more about environmental policy and the ends and outs of protecting America’s wilderness. I am especially excited to be working alongside fellow bulldog and alumnus of the University of Georgia, Christopher Lancette. The professionals at The Wilderness Society offer an abundance of valuable knowledge, and I am grateful for the opportunity to learn from them.

-Margaret Watford

Communications Intern, The Wilderness Society

Former Creative Consultants team member at the University of Georgia

(Ansel Adams gallery photo via http://www.archdaily.com/119481/ansel-adams-gallery-group-goetz-architects/)