Yesterday afternoon, I went to watch the National Geographic documentary screening my friend Emma was hosting, entitled “Great Lakes, Fragile Seas.” National Geographic is always good, so I wasn’t worried about being disappointed. Emma’s dad, Tom, was answering questions afterwards too, and that man’s knowledge knows no bounds when it comes to the Great Lakes (near Traverse City, MI, he manages and teaches at his environmental education program, Inland Seas Education Association).
The movie is actually about twenty years old, but the facts were, for the most part, up to speed with today’s environmental reality. It introduced us to a world of beauty and of horror: lengthy shores and shimmering water turned sour by the staggeringly large amounts of slimy, squirmy sea lampreys, invading the pristine Great Lakes. It also showed the effects of pollution, years after being allegedly taken care of, on birds and their poor, twisted beaks. It was really disturbing, to be honest. Even just looking at small organisms, a certain species of plankton, that’s relatively large, barbed tail apparently feels like swallowing a sword to the poor fish that attempt to consume it. The effects of pollution and of invasive species on the Great Lakes are really astonishing.
It also compared the methods of those native to the swampy marshes on the shores, like a tribe of Native Americans, to the over-industrialized approach of today’s harvesters. They harvest wild rice by whacking at the plant with these sticks, using enough force to let the rice fall into the bottom of the boat, but not so hard as to destroy the entire crop. This respectful method for collecting the rice has allowed the cycle of growth and harvest to continue for decades. I thought the film presented a beautiful way of how traditional methods, that have lasted for years and truly works, have proven, scientific benefits as well.
Another thing I loved about this film was its relation of the culture of those living way up north, surrounding the Great Lakes and how in their given environments, they’ve developed a unique way of living. For example, a small town made a racetrack out of the frozen lake in the winter. It was fantastic and I so want to try.
My thanks go to Tom Kelly, for answering questions pertaining to the current state, an ever-changing predicament, of the Great Lakes. It was an informative and not-too-boring documentary on a very intriguing, relevant issue of today.
For more information on Tom Kelly’s Inland Seas Education Association, see their website: http://www.schoolship.org/
