Alabama Coast Archives - Page 12 of 23 -

Seek ‘Til You Find

By Simone Lipscomb | May 16, 2013

Last week I noticed a bit of an oily slick on the Magnolia River. It wasn’t big and I thought perhaps it was fuel/oil that was leaking from boats along the river. Not that I think it’s okay for boats to leak but it happens.

I also noticed a large floating yellow bucket upside down but it was in a particularly snaky-looking area so I left it alone. When it looks safe to remove trash, I’ll do it but if it appears to be nestled a bit too close to potential ‘gator territory or snake homes, I allow it to remain.

Two days ago friends of mine from Asheville came over to paddle. They enjoyed the kayaks and I took a SUP board. It was a lovely morning and perfect day but the slick was now up river where I live. Again, not really a ‘bad’ slick but bothersome.

Then today I went to paddle and smelled a very slight petroleum smell and the oily sheen was still present with even more coverage of the river. I had to explore and see what I could find.

My walking buddy, Felicity, decided that swimming behind me would be fun so I went upriver to encourage her to stay on the beach rather than follow me. In choosing this direction, I discovered the origin of the sheen: A five gallon bucket of hydraulic fluid floating upside down with a rusty cap and side that was slightly split. Same bucket I saw over a week ago down river. It had lodged in a snag of roots. I carefully maneuvered my board close enough to push it out and on to our beach where I dismounted the board and carried it far away from the water.

5 gallon container of hydraulic fluid had been floating and leaking into the river

I was saddened to realize that oily fluid had been leaking into the river and bays for probably weeks. It wasn’t that much…but still. It was a good lesson in seeking the source of a pollution source until it is found. And then taking action to remove it.

Seeing

By Simone Lipscomb | May 14, 2013

Last summer I spent nights sitting under a blanket of black sky twinkling with white stars. The sound of waves lapping on the sand and humid air hugging my skin brought me into the present where I experienced the wonder of nature. Sitting quietly awaiting the birth of sea turtle hatchlings, I was gently guided to recognize and harmonize with the magnificent natural world.

A few miles east, tourists wandered through souvenir shops looking for trinkets with which to remember their vacation. Perhaps few ever understood the biggest treasures could be found sitting on a quiet beach absorbing the peace and magic of the place. While the Gulf of Mexico and beaches affected them, maybe many left never seeing the beauty….the deep beauty…or feeling their connection to it, as part of it.

I wonder if that’s why humans can so easily ignore the plight of our planet. Collectively we see through eyes blinded with superficiality: Nice ocean, nice beach…oh, look a sea gull…wow there’s another tee shirt shop….let’s buy a $20 tee shirt to remember….nice flower….nice tree…too bad they are clearing them…gotta go to work…can’t save everything….oh that’s sad about the dolphins, let’s get a tee shirt with a dolphin on it….could I have extra plastic bags for shells….just put your cigarette butts in the sand they’ll dissolve….recycling takes too much effort….

There are probably many reasons humans ignore their connection to nature. I think we’ve specialized our roles in society and have forgotten that we are entirely connected and dependent on nature for our life.

Disconnect One: A farm half way across the planet grows food for us. A fisherman catches our dinner. We show up at the grocery store and connect to our food sources by perusing the air conditioned aisles. Most of us have no idea what it takes to grow enough food to sustain our own lives.

Disconnect Two: Collectively we have bought into the mindset that more is better. We consume at alarming rates. We feed the corporate mindset that more profit is vital and so resources dwindle at any cost.

Disconnect Three: We are too busy. Our collective pace is out of sync with the timing of the seasons and movement of the Earth. This is strongly connected to the ‘more is better’ mindset. We sacrifice ourselves to feed the ‘profit at any cost’ motto.

This reminds me of The Matrix movies where humans are only used for the energy they produce for machines. They are put into a dream-world of their choosing and exist in their minds in this place while their bodies are used only for what they produce. Sound familiar?

At some point individuals break out of their bondage and begin to see life as it really is in The Matrix. It’s not easy and they struggle but the reward is awareness, consciousness…awakening.

Our fate is determined by our choices…every day choices…by what we choose to notice, to give our attention to as that is what will multiply and blossom in our lives.

The birds are singing. My garden is growing…slowly, ever so slowly. The river is flowing. I breathe in slowly…I exhale slowly. My bare feet feel the warm soil. The leaves of the trees softly rustle in the breeze. Nature embraces me as its own. This, to me, is peace. This is a small beginning in learning to see beyond….

Shady Deals on Alabama Coast

By Simone Lipscomb | May 9, 2013

*Gulf State Park shoreline is one of the last undeveloped places between Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.*

It shouldn’t surprise me. I used to work for the State of Alabama in Gulf State Park and witnessed first-hand the rape of our coast at the whim of politicians. So when I found out that much of the $85.5 million from the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) funds from BP are going to build a lodge and meeting facility I didn’t faint…isn’t this how Alabama politicians work it?

*Walls of concrete and glass broken by undeveloped shoreline in Gulf State Park.*

Never mind that the convention center has been in the plans for years since the old one was destroyed by…what was it…Ivan? Long before the oil spill occurred and people started figuring out how to use natural resource restoration funding to build more developments on the coasts…and thus destroy the very thing the funds are supposed to restore.

Louisiana, the most hard-hit state from the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill is using $340 million to restore four barrier islands and create two fisheries laboratories. That makes total sense. Imagine….using money designated to restore the natural resources to actually RESTORE NATURAL RESOURCES! What a concept! Bravo Louisiana.

Hard to believe that money designated for natural resource restoration is going to be used for CONSTRUCTION of a convention center on the beach. This photograph was taken at Gulf State Park Pier during the spill in 2010

But back to Governor Bentley of Alabama. He said that the first money Alabama will spend for the convention center will address the loss of human use from the oil spill. That’s some mighty smooth pretzel logic there governor.

“In addition to its catastrophic impact on local fishermen and tourism, the BP oil spill dealt a severe blow to our pristine beaches and sensitive environmental areas,” said U.S. Representative Jo Bonner, R-Alabama. So the way to restore our Alabama pristine beaches and sensitive environmental areas is to destroy them through the construction process. Of course. That’s makes sense…said no one ever.

The second project in Alabama will use $2.3 million in Mobile County to restore oyster beds over 300 acres. The third project will spend $5 million in Baldwin County to create an oyster breakwater and living shoreline in Weeks Bay. Both of these projects make total sense in that they utilize funds designated for N A T U R A L R E S O U R C E R E S T O R A T I O N. The old saying, throw the dog a bone, seems applicable perhaps. Of the $92.8 million Alabama is receiving, 92% goes to construction projects in Gulf State Park. Development. Oysters in Mobile County get 2% and oysters in Weeks Bay get 5%. So 7% of this ‘natural resource restoration’ funding goes to doing what its supposed to do.

But back to project number one. Thrown into the mix of the $85.5 million is an environmental research and educational facility (sort of like the one Auburn University was already planning on building here???), trail construction and an interpretive center. I didn’t hear of trails in the park being damaged by the oil spill…did you? Nor did the old convention center get destroyed by the oil spill.

I completely support environmental education but the funds are supposed to restore the natural resources that were damaged during the oil spill. Can the governor and his cronies read? Can someone find them a dictionary? My BS radar is beeping when words like environmental and education are grouped with a huge convention center construction project.

While tourism is at the highest numbers ever in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach over the past two years, politics remains the same in this state…my home state…where shady deals continue to thrive. Storm clouds loom over this news and Governor Bentley only adds to the abuse of our coastline…unless you put money and development over natural resources. Then bravo gubner.

Feeling Helpless? Here’s an Idea

By Simone Lipscomb | May 7, 2013

It has been a rough 24 hours with really disastrous news for wildlife coming in from near and far. It is difficult to know how to stay informed and stay sane. But turning away and refusing to be informed isn’t an option. If everyone did that we would be in a bigger mess.

Of special concern is the large number of manatee and pelican deaths happening in the south. Over 600 manatees have died in the first four months of this year. The Gulf-side manatee deaths are being blamed on red tide, an algae bloom that is toxic to fish, marine mammals and sometimes humans. The cause is generally fertilizers being washed into the waterways after heavy rains and causing this toxic bloom. It is a neurotoxin and deadly to manatees and other wildlife who ingest it. Humans who eat shellfish or fish contaminated with it can also become seriously ill. Manatee deaths on the east coast of Florida in Indian River Lagoon have reached over 100 and there is no known cause for their deaths.

Brown pelican deaths in the Indian River Lagoon have reached high numbers and now they are reported on the North Carolina Coast as well. Lots of sad news indeed.

I have researched these events today and explored deaths of dolphins and other species during the past year. In Peru last year nearly 900 dolphins washed ashore with apparent sonar injuries. Sonar injuries occur in marine mammals from LFA sonar like the US Navy uses and sonar blasts used by oil companies in off-shore oil exploration.

It felt like a puzzle being pieced together. Everything pointed back to human-created environmental issues. Over-fertilizing lawns and golf courses, using technology that kills, boat strikes. As a member of the human species–sometimes with deep shame for our collective treatment of wildlife and wild places–I decided to take action and made a donation to Save the Manatee. This club helps manatees recover from injuries and is a clearing house for information on manatees. I joined and gave an extra donation for emergency treatment of manatees.

I needed to feel as if I was doing something besides sitting at my desk, researching, reading and sharing about these tragedies. So I took action. And every time I volunteer for Share the Beach, or the Sea Turtle Stranding Network, or the Alabama Marine Mammal Stranding Network I take action to help.

Likewise, I refrain from using chemical fertilizers on my lawn and garden. I don’t use pesticides inside or outside my home and support local and organic farmers. There are many practices that make a direct difference in our world. The effort required isn’t that much and the pay-off is positive change and community-building. TOGETHER we can create a safer, healthier planet.

Requiem for the Pelicans

By Simone Lipscomb | May 6, 2013

I just read that nine pelicans at Gulf State Park Pier were found dead this weekend. Park officials suspect someone poisoned them or killed them. There is an ongoing battle between fishermen that like to feed fish scraps to the pelicans and those that are aggressive and act violently toward them.

This past winter I spent two days on the pier and witnessed both behaviors. Sweet, gentle fishermen would feed them scraps and talk to them as though they were friends.

I saw a male teenager take his fishing rod and rake it on pelicans sitting on the rail and deck…laughing as he did it. And the pelicans were sleeping at the time. The next day I witnessed an adult male violently spray them at close range with a water hose and when I asked him to stop because he was spraying me…and I was sitting around the corner….he came around the corner and very aggressively cursed me out.

I reported both incidences of aggression and pier officials knew the teens and reprimanded them. The adult I reported but after he left the pier. He was one of the angriest, aggressive men I’ve ever met. Being on the receiving end of his vile energy was scary and very unpleasant. I could easily imagine him beating his wife or children….I had never witnessed that kind of violence directed at animals or me. And over birds pooping on the pier deck. SERIOUSLY!!

So I have no doubt that some manner of evil was done to these brown pelicans. They live in the Gulf and fish in their home. For humans to enter their home, make pets of them and then kill them is so insane I hardly know what to do with my feelings….anger, grief….disbelief that humans progressively move toward the two extremes of darkness and light.

These birds were friends to many humans who loved them and respected them. I sit at my desk weeping not only for these birds but for all wildlife who die needlessly and violently at the hands of humans steeped in darkness. Times such as this make me wonder if collective, conscious awakening will ever happen….and I tend to be positive and upbeat. But right now….right now my heart is broken.

The photographs are from the two days I spent with the pelicans on Gulf State Park Pier.

If you happened to be on the pier and know anything about this incident please contact the park ranger at Gulf State Park at 251-948-7275