Saving Lands and Lakes Takes Work

By Luan Madani


          "Saving a Swamp and Other Landmark Campaigns" is a very interesting yet crucially important writing on the aspect of saving environmental sites. Frankly, living in the United States we as American citizens tend to think of our land when we think of environmental issues at all. However, all over the world there is land that is severely in need of attention. We are not the only culprits of degrading land and taking advantage of the Earth and what it has to offer. With knowledge of information such as provided in "Saving a Swamp," we can raise awareness and take the necessary steps to save what we have now and preserve for the future.
          In Vernon, New Jersey, there are many lakes and streams. It is also the home of Wawayanda State Park, where visitors from all across the tri-state area come every spring and summer. In the Highland Lakes lake community in Vernon, Lake Wanda is a large lake that sits next to the five lakes that make up the lake community. Over the years, Lake Wanda has deteriorated due to lack of maintenance. There have been many movements within the community to help clean up the lake; however, none of them materialized.
          A few years ago, the community wanted to drain the lake; however, environmental advocates opposed that as they thought it would destroy any wildlife in the lake. While it is good to see people gather together to help with causes such as these, sometimes they go without resolution. As of today, the lake is still there; however, the lake is still in need of maintenance. To my knowledge, there is no word on any resolution to clean up the lake.
          The usual problem is that many people that live in the area do not know the condition of the lake. They can obviously see that it is contaminated, however, they do not know the extent of contamination. Also, people just simply do not care about the lake. This is unfortunate for obvious reasons and people should pay more attention to issues such as these because it ultimately affects the land that they live on. As younger generations grow older, it is my feeling that these issues are becoming forgotten.
          "Saving a Swamp" is a good look into these issues and how it can be changed if we just take the time to care of the lands that we live on. In my opinion, if we are to restore and preserve our lands, the value will increase and quality of life will be better. It will take rigorous work from environmentalists and citizens but I feel that our environmental goals are not completely out of reach.