Comments/Reactions:
1. Well, that was really a horrifying story. I vaguely remember hearing about this when it was happening, but I didn't realize how awful it was. I am glad that we have the EPA and environmental guidelines to help keep this kind of toxic waste dump from happening now.
2. Thank goodness for the EPA. It does take government regulation to make companies take responsibility for their waste because it costs money and businesses are always trying to make as big of a profit as possible.
3. The environmental movements of the 1970's have had a good effect on our country. Some of the regulations have pushed industries to other countries that don't have as strict of environmental laws and so our US companies are contaminating other countries. Hopefully they will enact laws to stop that in their countries, too.
4. I am glad that the EPA is around. It makes me think that we have some protection from some of the toxins that are produced by industry. We have been given a charge by Heavenly Father to be good stewards of the earth and that includes not contaminating the land and making it uninhabitable.
5. I'm glad the EPA was formed and that they have pretty strict regulations on companies today to try preventing things like this from happening again!
6. I think we should make sure to keep looking to past problems such as this one. We'll definitely learn from our mistakes and create a safer world to live in. I'm glad that the EPA exists--makes me feel a bit safer in my community and like we're trying to PROTECT the beautiful planet we live on, along with the things that live on it.
7. It seems that when people (or companies/groups/whatever, especially when there's profit involved) are left alone without official oversight they don't often make decisions that are smart for the long term, or they don't consider the full effect it might have on people/environment/whatever. It's also good that presently we understand the dangers of chemical contamination more than they seemed to back when.
8. I'm so glad that we have government regulation these days that tries to stop disasters like this happening again--it makes me feel safer, and it's good for the planet. On a side note, I really don't think that covering the toxins at Love Canal makes it safe for people to live there again... Sounds like a recipe for disaster.
9. I hadn't heard about Love Canal before watching this video, but it's kind of scary to think about. Makes me wonder if there could be something secretly wrong with my city, especially because it was such a shock to those who lived in Love Canal. I'm glad that there are professionals working to prevent these sort of problems!
10. What a story. Still, I have to admit that, based on some of the environmental catastrophes that we've seen recently, I'm not as surprised as I wish I was. I mean, just a few years ago there was the BP Oil Spill, which was obviously just awful. I'd love to be more optimistic, but will these sort of things ever stop? Still, I guess it's better than nothing to have the EPA trying to mitigate these problems.
Were you aware that environmental tragedies of this magnitude still exist today?
I knew that we still have big issues--the obvious example that comes to mind is the BP Oil Spill from a few years back. However, that always seemed so far away; I still felt frustrated and worried as I read news reports about the spill, but it didn't seem like an immediate concern to me, as I come from the upper Midwest. The difference between Love Canal and the BP spill is the fact that the Love Canal tragedy was in a random town. It could have been in any city, including my own. I didn't really realize that this sort of latent threat could be lurking in any place, unknown.
In your opinion are environmental hazards something we should be concerned about on a daily basis?
I think it is very important that we aren't complacent about this issues--as the Love Canal tragedy shows us, a disaster can strike basically anywhere. However, we shouldn't be so worried that we become overly cautious and allow excessive regulations to stop us from trying new things/innovations because they could cause a potential threat to the environment. I think a balance between caution and risk-taking is key to society's growth.
Why should we care about something that happened over 30 years ago?
The old adage that we must learn from history is very applicable in this situation. It's important that we look back on old disasters and take away valuable lessons from them. The things we learn from these sorts of situations will allow us to progress in the most efficient and safe ways possible. It would be foolish to disregard something just because it happened to take place a few decades ago because we need to build on our knowledge from the past.
No comments:
Post a Comment