Impact Journal#1

I watched the movie, "Vanishing Wetlands" (Bullfrog Film)in 1997, directed by Ray Burley, and hosted by the biologist, David Suzuki.
This film talks about the aspect of the wetland in North America in environmental way, and shows how important it is for not only species that are involved in the community but also our industries and living environments. Also at the end, two of major restoring project was interviewed.
Wetland has a reputation of dirty and waisted place that can be used for our industrial activities, and actually its location is perfect for resorts, so in 1997, 80% of wetlands in North America is gone caused by industrial establishments such as building roads, bridges, houses and agricultural field; however, wetlands provide opportunities for million kinds of species for their survival, and its ecosystem to be unique. The submarge condition allows plants to grow under the water and gave species options where to settle. It has marsh grass, nutrious mad, and shallow and clean water that store the energy from the sun. it's perfest place for various species to hatch, nest, and feed. For instance, migrate birds come as their distination or rest of their migration because it's enrich in nutrition and location. It often times becomes forest by expanding the plants and the habitats. In northern Mississippi river in Illinois, the native species are still exist there. It implies that those species are so well adopted to the ecosystem that they didn't have to make themselves better for survival.
Another factor of why marshes have such nutriants is because of the flood that comes annuary. The water from the mountain brings the nutrition. Even though we think flood is a disater that destroy our house and environment, it brings all the benefits for the community along the river. Our protection from the flood with the insight doesn't work everytime. In summer of 1993 in Mississippi river, after heavyly rainy days lasted, the swalen river let the flood drain 28000 cubic meter per second and caused $12billion of damage. The biologists found from their research on the flood. first, the levees which were supposed to protect our "community" was not only destroyed by the pressure and the magnitude of the flood but also made the situation worse to not let the water out. Because it blocked and let the water stay, the flooding lasted longer in the city. Secondary, they found enormous variety of species after the flood which suggested that many species converged when the river become enriched in nutritions by bringing a new layer of soil from the mountain. The stability in wetland is low in Consistency and Inertia but High in Renewal. After the floot came, the same native plant came back soon after as well as the insects and birds. Everytime the flood came, it fostered the habitat change and that allowed more species to live in the biodiversity in Mississippi river area.
However, as I mentioned that 80% of the wetland is gone by 1997 include Mississippi area by functioning the area agriculturally and industrially, the wetland community had been destroyed and led enourmous number of species to their extinction. At one of the marsh area in Coots Paradise at Hamilton bay (Ontario lake in The Great Lake) was the one of places had been eliminated its size and functions as the ecosystem in the community. 15% of reduction was recorded in 1930's, but before that, it was 100% covered with animals, insects and migraters looking for a food and a shelter. But 85% of original plants were gone by 1985. People had been causing by building the city, make it into crop field and industrializing it. In the film, the biologist, Pat Franzer researched the marsh at Coots Paradise and found that because the cemented city roads let the rain and snow to drain so fast that it didn't give a time for the nutrious water to stop at the marsh which was even decreasing. Moreover, some introduced fish like carp from China dominated and eliminated the native species that are important for the community. Franzer's project for getting back the marsh was to collect seeds from the marsh in fall and grows separately at school they get bigger enough to stabilize in the fasted drained water. Her idea was if it gets more stable marsh grasses back, it helps to slow the water to drain as well as restablish the wetland community. In the film, she commented that it would take two or three decades to restore.
So after I watched the film, I searched what happened after 10 years in Coots Paradise. The environmental organization, Royal Botanical Garden (RBG) http://www.rbg.ca undertook Franzer's project started in 2001 and has had good results from it. I only found the report till 2005, but that year, they planted 8000 and recorded some important species such as bigmouth baffalo (non found in 2004), a walleye, grater red horses and golden red horses. Also, 73,519 fish of 34 different species documented, and 5,500 non-native species prevented from entering the marsh. The total nunmer of the carp has been decreasing every year, and also amoung the marsh, they rediscovered slender naiad after 50 years of absent. Others are yellow spotted salamanders, leopard frogs, american toads and green frods, and most of them regulary encountered. In 2006, RBG was the major focus of Environmental Canada at Global Strategy for Plant Conservation.
My response
After we focused on the forest and marine biodiversity at ENVSC class, it was interesting to learn about another kind of habitat, wetland. But it's always the same that every single object involed in the community is important to function the ecosystem. One's waist becomes other's benefit. "Nothing is waisted" as the host of the film, Suzuki was saying. As I think of the sensitiveness of the nature, I get discouraged and ashamed by the unpleasant human activities. Even though most of us feel attached to the nature in some way like having a memory of our childfood exploring, playing and creating with the nature, the way of our society works keep our mind-set away from what should we be doing as a part of nature. I have to deal with my hater of human beings being errogant to work for "being a part of the nature" In other words, just to be logical and think what I should do as I'm a menber of this planet, Earth.