Discuss: Environmental Amnesia

I followed Sandra’s lead and looked up the Toxics Release Inventory for my city. Over 27 Coal Companies in my area are allowed to dump “acceptable” amounts of toxins into our water supply! This is absolutely outrageous! We only see the good things that come from mountaintop removal coal mining, such as space for construction of new shopping centers. We rarely look at the bad.

I agree with what Steingraber is talking about. We know alot more about hazardous materials such as lid in our lipstick, and things like that, that are brought into our home. Then they know about what could be right there around them, such as their home being build on a former orchard plantation where pesticides were used for years.

I felt like I knew a lot about our environment, until I read Steingraber’s article. She gave so many great examples, and it’s people like her that inspire me to do more and know more about the place I call home. This inspires me to speak out against the coal companies in my area that dump so much waste.

There is a conspiracy of silence about toxic exposure and what it is doing to us and our children.  Here in Mobile they are calling it the BP flu, because many toxins create flu like symptoms.  For me, it was the aches and pains of a severe flu that never went away.  Twenty five years ago I was seriously injured while teaching when a contractor sprayed a foam roof on the school where I was teaching.  https://sites.google.com/site/nancyswan/toxic-justice-a-true-story/chapter-1

I haft to admit, I dont know anything about superfund or toxic dumpsites. I have three beatiful grand children and after reading this article i want to know more about this subject. how can i find out if there are toxic dump sites in or around my neighborhood? I have big beatiful trees all around my house and I love them. I coulding imagine my place without them. When i was growing up we had old coutry dirt roads to walk in the evenings and I loved it.Now all the roads are paved. Wheres the fun in that?

I definately agree with Steingraber, I think that we all never seem to look at the bigger picture with our environment. We focus on the little things. When a disaster happens we thing “Oh My Gosh” but then in a few weeks we forget about it.

I thought that the article was interesting. The author does make some good points. Although when the author implies about that we are more worried about things like the water bootles, pestcides on our food and things like that I feel that we should be just as worry about things like that. We drink from the water bootles that are contaimed and our children play with the toxic toys. We also eat the food and this could be harmful to our health also along with the “super” fund sites. We have forgot about a lot of things, but we still need to worry about the things that are going to effect our health and our children health.