By Daniel Gomes ’08

Activities for the students on Wallops Island included beach walks, kayaking, and bird banding. A sign, fitting for the university contingent, caused smiles among the group.

One day shortly after the end of the spring 2007 semester, several faculty members were enjoying lunch and as casual conversations often go, myriad topics were touched. One topic was the 100th anniversary of author Rachel Carson’s birth. And from here an idea was born. The culmination of this idea was the alternative fall break dubbed “The Sea Around Us” and the trip to Wallops Island, Virginia by thirty-eight students, five faculty, and one staff member. The Sea Around Us was designed as a learning experience with a service component. Tying the segments together was Carson and her contributions to the budding conservation movement.

“We wanted to teach people about interconnection, how changing one thing affects others. We really wanted to find ways to get non-science students interested,” said Nicolette Yevich, director of the Women’s Center.

In addition to students from both an Honors capstone and an environmental sociology class taught by Professors Sara Grove and Debra Cornelius, students from other disciplines including accounting, art, biology, business, communication/journalism, criminal justice, earth space science education, English, geoenvironmental, and sociology were represented.

Prior to the trip, students familiarized themselves with Rachel Carson and her works. First stop on the trip was the Baltimore Aquarium where students observed flora and fauna from the sea including sharks, stingrays, and dolphins. It was at the aquarium the group learned about watersheds including the Chesapeake.

Although Shippensburg is some distance from Wallops Island, the Cumberland Valley impacts the Chesapeake Bay and subsequently the Atlantic Ocean. In fact, Shippensburg, located on a drainage divide between the Conodoguinet and the Conococheague, contributes run-off, sediments, and other detritus to both the Susquehanna and the Potomac rivers that empty into the Bay.

Then on to Wallops Island. On their first morning, one group of students went kayaking around the island while the other assisted with the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge Celebration Week activities. Later the two groups switched activities. The Carson celebration, in conjunction with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service, was now official.

Work was next on the agenda. The Assateague Lighthouse was celebrating its 140th anniversary and needed a face lift. It was no small task to polish the monolithic tower and the stairs… stairs… and even more stairs.

The students were rewarded with some beach time before their nightly environmental lecture.

The second day, a few early risers went out bird watching and spotted a great blue heron in the act of gobbling a fish.

“We met an old man there,” student Mandy Happold recalled. “He was tracking birds and cataloging their migrations. It was amazing to see this man attract yellow-butted warblers with an iPod.”

Up next, marsh reconstruction—what many students considered the most difficult but rewarding part of the trip. At first the students found little to pick up. But then they began to find all sorts of things, including nets that seemed inextricable from the mud. They collected so much trash even Michael Dixon, the Fish and Wildlife supervisor was surprised by the amount. Exhausted, covered in mud, the students could see results of their commitment.

“Seeing the impact of what we did that day was a great feeling,” said Kristen Schada.

The abandoned oyster nets led to more discussion about the fishermen who use them. The fishermen, whose living depends on the precarious balance of the Bay’s ecosystem, are a dying breed. In the not so distant past, the question for fishermen was how much seafood they could sell that day. Today, due to a number of factors from the water’s salinity and the protozoan parasite Dermo that is sweeping up from the Gulf of Mexico, the oyster population is being decimated. As a result, fishermen are spending long hours on the water hoping for enough seafood to sell and family seafood shacks are closing.

Getting a first-hand look at a fisherman’s life on the Bay, the Ship contingent spent time on both an oyster boat and a research vessel near Deal Island. In addition to lending a hand to commercial oystermen in hauling in the catch, the group learned how oyster health was surveyed and monitored in the Bay from scientists with the Maryland Shellfish Program aboard their research vessel Miss Kay.

Clockwise: Members of the group take in the view from the lighthouse; the group poses with the abundance of debris they collected; one of the denizens that benefitted from their work; and being out on the bay that was the common denominator to the group’s activities.

Of special interest to the sociology students was the 45-minute boat ride to Smith Island. Arriving in town, students were surprised to learn there was no store on the island. They were fascinated by the routine of depending on the boat captains for delivery of groceries, mail, and other store-bought goods. It explained all the filled bags on the boat. Residents, although enthusiastic about their home, were quick to point out the increasing hardships of living on the island.

The economic effects of the declining oyster population are deeply felt on Smith Island and were apparent to the students. Less income is leading to a decreasing population as residents leave for the mainland and abandon family businesses. It was obvious the fate of the island rests on the future of the oysters.

But with problems come solutions. The final destination was in nearby Franklin County. Through assistant professor Claire Jantz in geography/earth science, the group spent time touring the environmentally-friendly Meyers Brother’s Farm. An essential concern for farms is runoff. This farm uses environmentally beneficial best management practices that helps improve the local water quality and reduce soil and nutrient run off. There is no till-farming, manure is stored and distributed strategically, and nutrient buffers and land contours help maintain runoff control. And, as a friendly reminder, a No Drowning sign was aptly placed next to the manure pit.

Back on campus, a symposium, “Conservation in Action” allowed students to recap their experiences and honor Rachel Carson. This wasn’t the only exposure the group had to tell their story. They participated in a blog throughout the semester (seaaroundusfieldnotes.blogspot.com) through the Rachael Carson Centennial blog and have posted photos from their experience on the web (webspace.ship.edu/h2ofs/alternative_fall_break/gallery.swf). The blog has had visitors from all over the United States and from more than 19 foreign countries.

“This was a great opportunity for us to give back. I can’t think of a more meaningful way I could have spent my break,” Yevich said.

Normally trips and projects of this nature take time to formulate, fund, and finalize. In the case of this alternative fall break, planning quickly shifted to action with financial support from the president, provost, College of Arts & Sciences, and the Division of Student Affairs. Senior Toby Stouffer obtained a $500 contribution from Volvo Road Machinery to support the Honors student participation. Toby remarked, “Many [corporations] are excited to benefit from the PR and exposure from funding environmental projects. We should take advantage of that.”

Lessons learned are also leading to a rejuvenated Student Environmental Action Coalition (SEAC) and their campus project. According to Amanda Harrington, “It was cool to see people from all sorts of academic backgrounds come together. It also gave us motivation to give more time to Burd Run.”

One of the initial faculty members behind the project, Sean Cornell, assistant professor of geography/earth science believes, “Conservation is not a choice anymore—it’s a requirement.”

Daniel Gomes ’08, an English major, was the fall intern for the magazine who will graduate in May.