Is this natural?
This adventure story has a beginning but it really doesn’t have an end. I hope you have the stamina to stick with us until it does. If all goes well, that will be NEVER!! The funny question so many ask is, “Why?”. Why do we do what we do? I thought about it while working in the wilds with Kristen yesterday and I think I have some vague idea of how to answer that question finally.
When we started, we began with a sense of purpose. We were going to make a difference. We were going to create beauty from ugly. We were going to be part of the solution – not run from the problem. In other words, we wanted to make the world look more natural by studying what is natural and then using that information (Kristen’s beloved data) to design “nature” after it was destroyed. Not destroyed as is the end of the world!! Destroyed by development, mining, grazing, farming, and a million other things.
Florida Dragline
What happened you ask? Well, we did that. We helped make some beautiful places out of mud. We made a clear flowing stream out of mine tailings. You know what we discovered. What looked like mass destruction sometimes was actually giving us the opportunity to fix something that was already really messed up. All of the times we looked at an old pasture and thought how awful it was that they were going to mine it – we discovered, after much nerdy study, the mining was allowing us to fix a problem that no one knew was there!
You see, there are about a gazillion things that can ruin a landscape. We can’t go into all that now, perhaps we can do a mini series. “Normal” people (cause God knows we aren’t normal anymore) look at the landscape and think it’s cute. IT’S NOT!! It’s severely affected by ditching, clearing, grazing, farming, compaction and those other millions of things. When they mine it – we can come back in and make it pretty! It didn’t feel so bad once we realized we weren’t helping to destroy the land – but, rather, to make it better.
Once we realized that we weren’t the bad guys and that the mining companies weren’t the bad guys, it made what we do much easier every day. Now I look at a dragline with a totally different mindset. It doesn’t make me want to grab a sign and campaign for them not to destroy habitat – that happened 50 years ago!! They will mine it – give us the resources we need to eat – and we can come in and design the world as it should be!
One day, it is our sincere hope, that you and yours will stand next to a flowing creek, remark at how nice it is that they didn’t mine this land, and we will be hiding in the woods (not in a scary way mind you) and smile knowingly – because THEY DID MINE IT!!
Chicks With Ticks 
Well said. Thanks
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Wow! This post is an education for me. You have given me a new slant on environment and conservation and lots of research to do. I have great respect for what you’re doing. Thanks.
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Mining in Florida is a very volatile subject – I have recently done quite a bit of research and found that Florida Mining companies pump millions and millions into land acquisition for conservation and preservation – they are required to restore what was poor to begin with and they must restore to higher standards….it is endless – I will locate a good article and post the link!
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When I read you and ask ‘Why?’ ,it is aimed at me. Why didn’t I think more about my life as a whole and really thing about the impact I might make? You girls should be so proud of what you do and why you do it.
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There are times when we fight our inner tree hugging girly pants…..it seems so destructive! The fact is, it’s going to happen regardless….we like being there are the end to make sure that the new “nature” is the best we can make it for future generations!! It doesn’t hurt to ask “Why” – that is where the journey begins!! Keep in touch – I would love to hear how yours goes!
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Great post – caring for the environment is so much more complex than the simple narratives handed to us by the media and certain environmental groups. (That’s one reason I think it’s a disaster to leave environmental stewardship up to “consumer choice” – I’m all about legislation and policy! But that’s another post for another day.)
Thanks for doing what you do and sharing it with the rest of us.
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We are very happy that we get to see both sides of the coin. We see natural (or as close as it gets) and we see what can be made from nothing. It does something to you after a while and you look at things differently. Makes you want to share more information with more people. If only most people knew what they were looking at when they went to the lake and there were mowed lawns all around that pretty lake! It just changes you! We like Good Solutions not Bad Guy labels.
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Here In England I live down the road from a mine. As the rock is extracted in one area another is being re-planted for nature. Just like your companies over in Florida. It also, because of its railway in the fileds behind us, protects those feilds from being developed into yet onther sprawling housing estate. Sometimes what looks like destruction is actually, long term, doing a lot of good. I love your blog. Keep on keeping on!
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Thanks – I can’t say we hold anyone forever harmless, including ourselves, but I encourage everyone to get an education, go out and see more, learn about what you are looking at – and then make an informed decision.
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I feel honoured to have a chance to mingle with minds that brew such a wonderful piece.Thank you for this chance.
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Thank you. I am glad you enjoy the writing here. Please come back soon!
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Thanks for visiting my Blog. As I am not a woman, I hope you don’t mind me visiting yours to say I like what you’re doing here! One minor quibble though: Even if reinstatement can be achieved to such a level that it is hard to differentiate untouched landscapes from restored ones, in the case of coal at least, we have got to decide to leave the stuff in the ground (along with all the Tar Sands and deepwater Oil). We have alternatives, and the time is well overdue that we started using them. Hopefully, I am preaching to the converted but, if not, try reading James Hansen’s book, Storms of my Grandchildren: It’s mostly about something even more nerdy than fluvial geomorphology, namely palaeoclimatology!
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Wow – firstly, we have many male readers and followers and think of them fondly. As for palaeoclimatology – wow – I thought we were nerds! I subscribe to the theory that we are all responsible for limiting our footprint here. There is a way we can live in harmony with the earth. Each thing in it’s own time will come. It may begin with disaster. Without fire there is no phoenix. I just hope we can do our little part to make the inevitable have a better outcome. As a single unit – we each have to make the choice to stop supporting those that are digging deeper – also supporting science so that alternatives can be had sooner rather than later.My current place in the world, however, is to do better what has been done poorly in the past so that our water resources are better protected and cleaner. I applaud those that play a larger role and support those that fight the bigger fight. You are welcome here – I hope you find something of value or something to entertain you. I will read Storms of my Grandchildren!
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My dissertation for my first degree (in Geology) included what must be one of the longest words in the English language, namely palaeoenvironmental? 25 years later, I’m trying to avoid such dense language. Back then we were all worrying about WW3 and the effects of a nuclear winter. I think one of our biggest problems today is that people assume climate change will result in a similarly drastic reduction in the global human population and a radical backward step in our cultural/technological sophistication. Unfortunately, once all the feedback mechanisms (such as permafrost melting and sea ice disappearing) are fully active, the rate of change will accelerate way beyond our capacity to stop, reduce, or even adapt to it: The 7,000 years of climate and sea level stability that made agriculture, urbanisation, civilisation, and modernity possible will be a thing of the past. This is the message of Hansen’s book. However, it is not all doom and gloom! In 2009, he thought we have still time to stop it happening (but not much). In 2011, the International Energy Agency made it clear that they agree with him (“Delaying action is a false economy: for every $1 of investment in cleaner technology that is avoided in the power sector before 2020, an additional $4.30 would need to be spent after 2020 to compensate for the increased emissions”). Remarkably, both seem to have been ignored by the World’s politicians.
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Hard to believe Martin – but this was almost too much for my poor brain to read after a long day in the wilds!!! I agree about it not all being gloom and doom. We are not the first to witness global warming/freezing – I am a child of the 60’s and I remember doing a paper on the New Ice Age coming! I believe that we humans are animals. It’s just that simple to me. Destructive – yes, deviant – yes – but at the end of the day still animals….our populations will eventually be controlled, the earth will make sure of that! I also believe that things will, can and should change….we can’t all live forever – ask the dinosaurs (well – technically you can’t but just imagine that you can). I think it will all work out perfectly!
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Thanks for following my blog. I appreciate the support.
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Thanks for posting this. It’s been interesting to read your post and the comments, and get a new perspective on conservation. I completely respect that you work hard to minimize the long-term damage done by mining. But I admit I have some trouble with the idea that the damage can simply be un-done by trying to recreate what was there before. It doesn’t necessarily address all of the pollution produced during mining, or in some cases the impacts on Indigenous peoples, for example. Putting a cast on a broken bone to help it heal is a great thing, but if it’s necessary because somebody purposefully broke the person’s arm…well, that’s not so good. Again, I don’t mean to minimize what you do – we’re lucky to have dedicated people like you who will get down and dirty for the good of the planet! And you’re right – labeling “bad guys” isn’t really helpful. I am speaking in general terms and I’m sure it’s simplistic to speak about “mining” like all mines and mining companies are the same. Anyway, thanks for this – you’ve got me interested in learning about what’s possible these days.
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We can only do our part. I can’t stop mining in the course of my job. My job is to make the best of the land that is left. Mining pumps millions into conservation, preservation and enhancing land in Florida. Floridians should actually know more about what GOOD things mining does. We are going to mine! Period! Yes, there is pollution but I bet you use electricity to write this, drove a vehicle today, and used running water from a municipality – lets stay real. I sleep well at night. We aren’t trying to make it all disappear by making it look like what was there – we are simply using the science to build something much better than a damn ditch! I take this all pretty seriously. This is what I do to feed my family. Mining helps me feed my family in oh so many ways and yours too. I am not quite sure what pollution you are speaking of. Mining companies are under the watchful eye as it relates to discharges. I have not heard of Florida indigenous people being relocated. I don’t think of restoration as a cast – it is like landscaping your lawn after the developer builds your house….he’s gonna build it – why not leave it crappy fake, disturbed soil? No one wants that! Our job is very simple – we create streams that function properly in the landscape left after mining. We don’t run mining companies, we don’t stop pollution (directly), we don’t scare people off their land – we build, enhance, or protect streams!! I like doing it – it makes a positive difference. Sorry to go on but I am very passionate about the effects of our science. I do believe more could be done – surely!! I hope I am still here to see more done….that would be a true privilege. I am glad you visit. I hope you continue to stop in! I love your input and encourage more people to express their side – it’s what makes this world work!!
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Katherine,
Your comment focuses on one aspect of mine earlier (although I may not have explained myself as well as you do), regarding the question of restoration of a mined site.
If I had taken the time to explain myself better, I would have alluded to Robert E. Goodin’s Green Political Theory (1992), which includes a very intriguing discussion on the subject of “Naturalness as a Source of Value” (pages 30 – 40), in which he asks such questions as “What’s wrong with plastic trees?” (e.g. in a shopping mall) and, in the context of art or furniture, what’s wrong with fakes or reproductions if they are indistinguishable from originals? Would the Mona Lisa hanging in the Louvre in Paris be any less magnificent as a piece of artwork if it could be proven that Leonardo Da Vinci did not actually paint it?
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Interesting post! Thanks. I actually don’t consider our sites “fakes” rather they are new landscapes with natural inspirations and science to back them up – they have a better chance of being successful and we will get a better outcome.
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CWT, Please forgive my ignorance of the wider context of what you do! I did not mean to criticise any of it (and neither did Goodin)! Indeed, prior to doing an MA in Environmental Politics, I had spend the best part of 20 years investigating and cleaning-up contaminated land sites, and doing EIAs on all sorts of mining sites; including very elaborate restoration proposals. Some of which were and are – like yours no doubt – an improvement on what was there before.
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No offense taken. We understand that not everyone understands restoration. We all wish, and in a perfect world would have, there were no need to dig deeper for resources. We do and we will though. We have access and abilities that allow more in-depth study to give us the designs that more closely mimic nature. If we can continue to creep closer and closer we might find better functions and forms. We won’t stop mining altogether. We will make the aftermath a better place. We know, from our extensive study, that not all is what it seems. Most people look at a small clear creek and think it’s beautiful….we know better! There are days that I believe ignorance may be bliss! The Knowing addresses that feeling that we know too much to just see what is there – we see what was there, what happened, what is wrong, what it could be, and it complicates every landscape! I think we are all on the same team – we just wear different jerseys! I thank you for your valuable position and input – it takes a village man!
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Hi Martin,
Sounds a bit like Benjamin’s ‘Art in the Age of Mechanical Production’ – a piece of writing that has been lovingly adopted by anti-capitalist hippies for decades! Here we open a whole new can of academic worms about the definition of “nature” and what authentic nature really is, and it’s difficult to define. Is a forest designed and planted by humans less “natural” than a forest that came to be over hundreds of years? And why do we care if they look exactly the same anyway? I tend to be a bit cynical about our abilities as humans to design, manufacture and execute “nature” in a short time when it took the earth many millennia to perfect it the first time. But on the other hand, that’s no reason not to do what we can within our own lifetimes, as these wonderfully passionate women are doing!
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Wow….I guess my response would be thank you – we are very passionate. Secondly, we take our designs from nature – not from some grader//ditch design guide. So, though we can’t simulate 100 years of forest instantly (although I think there are methods by which we can do better), we can’t simulate geology very well, we do what we can and we do it better every time. That’s our goal. Better, better, better – the best is always pristine nature – unfortunately you find less of that each day. We study and document what we find in the pristine world and use those as guidelines as closely as we can for our works. Is it 100% – no and we don’t expect it to be. I do know that it’s better that 50 years ago, 20 years ago, and even 2 years ago – progress is being made. I love being part of that science.!!!!!
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Thank you for visiting my blog, through which I have now discovered yours! Excellent article, so engaging. Keep in touch! Cheers.
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I just like the valuable info you provide in your articles. I’ll bookmark your blog and test once more right here regularly. I’m somewhat certain I will learn a lot of new stuff right right here! Best of luck for the next!
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Thanks for publishing on your site! I would love to get the message out that it isn’t always clear who the “Bad Guy” is in environmental issues. Nature is a very complex system and we have found that Mother Nature, herself, is sometimes the worst culprit. I would love to teach the world how to look at the landscape with my eyes. It wouldn’t be that difficult and it isn’t rocket science…in fact, to most it would probably come quite easily….hmmmm – thanks for understanding!
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In my almost 40 years as a conservationist, I have come to realize that nature is neither good nor bad – it just is. We humans get into trouble when we don’t understand the consequences of our natural resource management decisions. When some action is taken that disturbs nature, the entire natural system will change – often times in ways beyond our comprehension or ability to monitor. It’s the old “butterfly in Brazil causing a change in the path of a hurricane in Florida” routine. Seemingly innocuous decisions can have catatrohpic consequesnces.
From a global perspective, population growth is the most menacing problem facing humanity and, therefore, anything that promotes or facilitates that population growth is adding to that problem. If your goal is to identify the “bad guy”, to me it’s population growth and all those not only responsible for it but also preventing the identification of it: the naysayers. Regardless of whether we can go back and “fix” the gravel pit to mimic a natural landscape or not, there are a myriad of natural systems associated with that pre-gravel pit condition that have been destroyed and may take many years – millenia, even, when it comes to soil formation – to recover. Even if the rehabilitated gravel pit resembles a natural landscape, what about all the pollution injected into that landscape that is not “fixed”; e.g., air pollution by the drag line and the increased air pollution facilitated by more roads or more houses or more strip malls?
Don’t get me wrong, we need folks like you (and me, too) who will bring back some semblance of a natural condition to the raw gravel pits of the world but do we actually need another gravel pit in the first place? We humans have exceeded our “carrying capacity” in many areas of our world in terms of air quality, water quality and quantity, soil quality and quantity, and quality of life. If you look at most prey/predator relationships and you’ll notice a continouos cycle of an increase in the prey population followed by a concomitant increase in the predator population until the prey population crashes which, in turn leads to a rapid decline in the predator population. We here in the West use the jack rabbit/coyote relationship as an example of just such a cycle.
In my analogy. we humans are the predators and the natural resources of the world is the prey. Eventually, the prey population is going to crash and we humans will suffer for it.
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Fortunately or unfortunately (being a little humorous here to keep it light) I can’t do much about the population tally! I did my bit for procreation and kept my limit low. We do like being there when the inevitable happens to make sure that it gets “fixed” as best we can. There are breakthroughs in restoration every day. My dream would be for a mining company to fund a study to make greater strides in SUCCESSFUL restoration. Of course, this will be a brave move but certainly a popular one. I actually can’t believe it hasn’t been done on a large scale.
We are fortunate to work with some forward thinking clients who make good attempts at allowing us to use better methods and create demonstration projects. Other than a large – long term study, this has helped us understand what works and what doesn’t. My wish list includes such things as using root wads to mimic the lost canopy’s roots structure for stability, and other silly little things that we nerdy girls dream of.
My point is that we are not here to label a Bad Guy – we are here to do our best to make it better. Mining has and will happen on a global scale. My mother’s advice will work best here – it’s not how you react but how you respond!!
Thanks for sharing. I would be very interested in hearing more about what you do!
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