Day 24 Urainium Tailings in Moab, UT

Today we had two programs about the Urainium Tailings Superfund site in Moab, UT. The first program was a tour of the site. We took a ride in two company vans to look at the different areas of the site. The woman explained that the site was a former uranium processing plant. Melt tailings are what is left over after you process the uranium, and that is what is left here. Massive amounts of water are used in the process, and it leaks into the groundwater, causing contamination. They started the cleanup in 2009 and the estimated end date is 2025 at a cost of $1 billion. There is 16 million tons of tailings to clean up, and they already removed 6 tons. They ship 136 containers per day four times a week, and they're taken to a disposal cell 30 miles away at crescent junction. The cell is 25 miles below hard shale, and a 9 ft cover is placed on top. The trucks are washed before the container can leave the site so that no contamination is on the exterior of the container. I thought that was very interesting, and we got to see the trucks getting washed which was pretty cool. We also got to see the Pacific Union train, and the crane that lifts the containers onto the cars.
We got out of the vans a few times to take a look at the site, and it was extremely hot. We had to wear long pants and short sleeves and it was awful. It was really hard to pay attention; I thought I was going to pass out. While we were outside up on the hill, we could see the mounds of material they were moving and we could also see the evaporation pond they were using as a groundwater system. The woman was telling us that the workers are tested daily for radiation levels and none of them ever come close to the limit. Tait said that we have more exposure to radon where we live in NJ just based on the parent material in NJ. I thought that was extremely interesting, and it really put things into perspective. I also thought it was interesting that people were allowed to take home tailings for their gardens and foundations because that is a similar situation as Libby.
Next stop, we went to talk with Mr. Shenton about the Moab site in more detail. He was a really cool guy, I liked him a lot. He could tell we were all struggling from being out in the heat all morning. He gave a great presentation and tried to keep us engaged. He explained that this area was the richest uranium deposit in the United States, and it was discovered in 1952. There was a big boom from then until the 1980s.
He explained that there are defensive wells that intercept contaminated water before it reaches the Colorado River. There are also engineered barriers. The site will be monitored for the next 200 years, which I thought was interesting. I also thought it was interesting that they were going to make a hiking trail out of one of the maintenance trails and then after it was approved, DOE said it was a security issue and they couldn't do it anymore. I really liked this talk because he made the Superfund site situation in Moab seem like it wasn't so bad. Usually when people hear Superfund and contamination they get scared and they say things like "I would never live there" and "how can people work there". He made it seem like it wasn't so bad, and it was just part of life. He was a great speaker and really got his point across that community involvement and education is important for keeping the success of these cleanup projects. If people don't see the importance and understand the process then we will not make progress. I could tell that he really loved his job and where he lives, and I can really appreciate that. He complimented us for educating ourselves and doing what we love, and told us that will go far and we can do anything. He was a very inspiring man, and it was a great presentation to end our trip with.
After our talk, we went back into Moab and had a family dinner at a Mexican Restaurant. It was really nice to have everybody together, including Tait and Patrick. They got margaritas and I was really happy for them because they deserved it!! We had a really nice time together and recounted some great memories from the trip. After dinner, we went to this really cool place called the Rock Shop. The woman was really eccentric and I talked with her for a while. I bought a couple things for my Mom, including a Jade turtle for good luck and prosperity. I really enjoyed the Rock Shop.

A few of us shopping outside at the Rock Shop!

Afterwards, we drove up to Arches National Park. I was unaware that this hike was going to be as long as it was, and I wish I brought more water! (Tip: Always bring water!!!) We tried to catch the sunset, but it was starting to set already. Liz and I started running to try to catch it. We almost made it, but it was already setting by the time we got up there. It was still breathtaking and beautiful up there. The arches were just amazing. There were a lot more people there than I thought there would be. I was so tired from running up there that it was hard for me to really take it all in. I wish I took more pictures while I was up there but I was just relaxing and reminiscing about our trip. I wish it never had to end; I had the best time of my life. What a great opportunity to learn about our wonderful country and how we do better to preserve and protect it. I learned more during this month than I have my whole four years of college. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity and I'm so glad I was able to take it. The people on this trip really made it special and I made some new friends that I'm sure I'll be connected with for life. What a journey!

Delicate Arch at Arches National Park

Day 23 Driving to Moab, UT

Last night we stayed in Williams, AZ and got to take a walk on Route 66. We went out to dinner at Route 66 Cafe and sat outside. We ordered the whole menu and had a great time, I really enjoyed myself. We stayed in a nearby hotel and it was so nice to sleep in a bed! Today was a pretty relaxing day; we needed it. We had a lot of driving to do today. I drove the majority of the day, and we put some techno mix on that was an hour and a half long. We were jammin'! It was so much fun. I loved our van, we had such a great time together. I'm going to miss it. We drove through Monument Valley and checked out the cool rock formations. We stopped at a couple places like the Mexican Hat to take pictures. We had a good time just cruising around and sight seeing. It was nice to be able to just relax and not have to use our brains. We were all exhausted from the canyon and we were still trying to get ourselves back together. We were supposed to go to Zion, but since we got stuck in the canyon we had to skip it. Everybody was pretty bummed. I was really excited to see Zion and hike Angels Landing. There was just no way we could make it work, though. Oh well- gives me a reason to come back!

Route 66 Cafe

Feast time!!

Tonight we stayed at a campsite in Moab, and it was beautiful. We were able to see the stars very clearly, and Susan got some great photos. We had a nice campfire and hung out for a while. I ended up getting some weird allergic reaction to something in the sand at the campsite, though, so that wasn't fun.

Day 20, 21, 22 The Grand Canyon Adventure....

Before venturing down into the Grand Canyon, we learned about the Colorado River. There are a number of big projects to store water, including Lake Mead, which is the largest, and Lake Powell, which has been described as "a big fat river". Both reservoirs never reach full capacity, even with heavy precipitation. Baja California and Sonora are supposed to get 1.5 maf of water, but they don't usually get it. There are also environmental issues that contribute to water quality including mining and agriculture. The salinity was so high from fertilizers that they had to build a desalinization plant near mexico to remove some of the salts. Once they put in the plant, they realized that it wasn't that bad anymore. The USGS believes that this is due to a change in geology. Arial deposition and mining are the biggest problem now. There is a uranium mine right next to the river and it is being cleaned up as a Superfund site.
So we got our supplies ready for the Grand Canyon; I bought a hat and we bought some food that didn't need to be prepared like tuna etc. We got ready and tried to go to sleep early the night before. We woke up around 430am and drove to the gate where we could leave the vans. We put on our favorite van jams to get ourselves pumped up. When we got there, we had a quick discussion about how this hike is "not mandatory".... meanwhile none of us knew what we were about to be in for!!!
We started our journey down the canyon, and it was so beautiful during the sunrise. I was really excited to get down there even though I had no clue how long it was going to take and how hard it would be. We reached a small shelter and spring called Santa Maria Springs, and there was a couple resting there. The man was extremely dehydrated and not in good shape at all. Patrick stayed behind to help him. We continued on and shortly thereafter, Katie J slipped and fell. She said she thought she broke her wrist. She was so calm and collected about it that we almost didn't believe her! We decided that she should go back up and get medical attention, so Lucia and Cati went with her back to the top. She was such a trooper; I was so proud of her for hiking out 7 miles with a broken wrist (arm).

Hiking down into the canyon

Check out the moon!

Our campsite

So we continued down the canyon, now as a group of 10. We had spent a lot of time with the dehydrated man and Katie's fall, and it was starting to get hot. Towards the bottom we were all having trouble continuing hiking. Every chance there was a sliver of shade we stopped to sit under it. It was extremely difficult, but finally we made it to our campsite. It was right next to a little stream at the bottom and there was a steep rock face hiding our bags from the stream. This will be important later. We filtered some water and hung out for a bit, then we did a mini hike to go see the Colorado River- the reason for the trip! We got down there and the water was so cold and refreshing. I was awestruck by the size of the river and how fast it was moving. It's amazing to me that a river like that could flow through a desert. I was very impressed and glad to finally see it. We relaxed there for the day, and around 630 we left and walked back to the campsite. Along the way, Cody wasn't feeling well (he fell asleep in the sun). Tait, Billy, and Susan stayed behind with him and they told the rest of us to go ahead because it was going to get dark soon and we didn't have enough flashlights for everyone.
This is when things really started to fall apart. Tait told us to follow the river and it would lead us to our campsite. So we hiked for a while, and we didn't end up seeing it so we kept hiking thinking we were about to run into it any minute. It turns out we passed it because we didn't see our stuff hidden behind the cliff face. We just kept going because we knew it was along the river and we thought we couldn't miss it. After a while, we had a feeling we might be lost. But we just kept thinking, "this must be the long way" and "it's probably right around this bend...". It started to get dark, and we realized that we were in trouble. We were hiking over extreme terrain- huge boulders and waterfalls. Our adrenaline was pumping, and we kept moving. Finally, it was so dark that we had to stop. We didn't have any flashlights and we didn't want to get hurt because then we would really be in trouble. We stopped on top of a huge boulder that had a relatively flat top with some dirt and a tree. We tried our best not to panic. I was so proud of Liz because usually she is the one who gets freaked out. However, she only got upset for a few minutes and then Jess was able to calm her down and she was fine. I was actually freaked out more than anyone because I was sunburned and dehydrated and we had almost no water.
We realized that we would be spending the night when nobody found us by about 12:30 am. We tried to start a fire but we were unsuccessful (thankfully because we would've burnt down the whole canyon!). We tried to just relax and we talked about possible scenarios. We were feeling really bad for Tait and Billy because we knew how worried they would be and that they were probably going through a lot to try to find us. We knew we were okay, but they didn't. We were also worried about Katie J and how they got out of the canyon with her injury. After a while, I was so tired that I didn't have the energy to panic anymore. I was finally able to relax. I looked up at the stars and the sky was so clear, I've never seen so many stars. I sat there, mesmerized, and really thought about a lot of things in my life. It was an important moment for me.
We were worried because we didn't know when we'd be found, but we knew we would be okay in the end. We remained calm, worked as a team, and took care of each other. It was a beautiful thing. It was an amazing life experience that none of us will ever forget. It really taught me a lot about people and myself. I was so proud of us for handling the situation the way we did. We made the right decision to stay where we were and not hike in the dark.
I slept in the dirt with my boot as a pillow. It was extremely humbling to say the least. I think I must have slept on some kind of prickly bush because I had stickers all over me when I woke up. Rob and Jess stayed up talking and watched over us to make sure nothing bit us while we were sleeping. Rob had a scorpion on him and he killed it with a rock. Unfortunately I missed it because I was asleep. I had a dream that there was a burger joint in the middle of the canyon. I thought, "We're saved!! AND burgers!!!" Then I woke up and realized that we were still there and there was no burgers.
We woke up as soon as the sun started to rise at 4am. We decided to slowly and carefully start to hike back towards the way we came. I was so tired and thirsty I could barely function. I thought we might have to stop and wait to be found. Suddenly, Billy and Tait appeared out of the bushes!!! I've never been so happy to see someone in my whole life. They brought us some water and a cliff bar (peanut butter, of course). We took our time and got back to camp safely. Tait decided that we had to stay in the canyon another night because we were all exhausted. Tait and Billy had been looking for us all night and they hardly slept.They were hiking in the dark and rolled their ankles. They went through a lot for us and we were so grateful to have them down there with us. We were so happy to be reunited, and everyone was relieved that we were okay. It was such an intense experience to get seperated like that and then reunite. That day, we followed the shade around the canyon and just tried to rest. We filtered water all day and tried to conserve food because we weren't planning on staying for two days so we didn't have much. Thankfully, Tait and Billy brought extra food. That night, we all took turns filtering our water for the hike out. Billy and I stayed up for a couple hours filtering extra water. We slept by the stream on our sleeping pads and sleeping bags- it was awesome. The next morning, we woke up at 4 am and got ready for the long journey out of the canyon. It was a bit rough at first, especially because we were sore, but once we got moving it was better. However, Rob ended up getting sick because he was dehydrated. It slowed us down quite a bit, and we ended up hiking in the heat. Once we reached Santa Monica Springs, we took a break. We saw a helicopter and I joked around about how that was our ride. Soon I realized that the helicopter was actually for us! A ranger appeared and she asked us if we were all okay. She signaled the helicopter to land; it was an epic moment.

"Shade hopping" in the cayon on day 2

Our "shower" haha

They brought us food and water, which we really needed because we only had one granola bar left between ten people. I don't know what we were thinking, but there's no way we would have made it! We had no idea how treacherous that last two miles was going to be. Those switchbacks in the sun were brutal. It took us almost two hours. BUT WE MADE IT! It was such an amazing feeling to reach the top. What an accomplishment. I was actually considering not going because of my herniated disk in my back. I'm glad I went, though, even though it was rough. I'm glad I was able to have those experiences because it has really shaped me as a person. I will never be the same after that.
I was really glad to see Katie J was okay, even though she broke her arm. She was such a trooper, and so was Liz. I was so proud of everyone. Tait did a great job keeping everyone calm and safe, and Billy also really went out of his way to make sure everyone had what they needed. What a great team and an amazing experience I'll never forget.

Day 19 Solar One

Today we drove to check out Solar One, the solar concentration facility. It was hotter than hell, and we had to wear pants, short sleeves, and shoes. We stood outside to take a look at the mirrors, and I thought I was going to die. It was really cool to be able to see the array, though; it was massive! It takes up 400+ acres and has 125 panels, producing 75.5 MW.  The facility cost $260 million to build, and they needed a power purchase agreement. The array uses the sun to heat synthetic oil to heat water that turns to steam and turns the turbines. This is a super heated system that uses high pressure and low pressure turbines. It is much more efficient than PV. However, the advantage to PV is that there are no moving parts. I thought it was interesting that the concentrated solar is able to run one hour after the solar day is over due to the excessive heat.
There are a few environmental problems here Solar One. Dust storms and monsoon season creates problems because it can bend and break the mirrors. Lightening can also present problems for the facility. Wildlife is sometimes a problem, and they had to follow procedure for desert tortoise because they are endangered and protected in the area.
The Solar One facility was really awesome. It was bigger than I expected- the scale of the project just blew my mind. I didn't realize how large the collectors were, either. When we got up close, I was in awe. I loved when Marc (our guide) made Mannie (technical guy) move the one row towards us so that we could see it in action. That was my favorite part. He explained how it worked and why they tilted it to follow the sun. I learned that they don't constantly move, which is what I imagined. Instead, they move about every hour. Inside the control room, we talked about a number of things. I was very impressed by the computer programs they had. I was also surprised to learn that they have dust devil problems about 3 times a week. I really enjoyed this tour. (I just wish it wasn't so damn hot!) Now we are off to the Grand Canyon!

Day 18 Las Vegas

Today we drove to Las Vegas! It was an extremely long 8 hour ride. A lot of people slept, but I was driving part of the time. It was tough because most people were able to work on their journal and catch up on some work while we were driving, but I was not able to do that. I enjoyed driving though, it was fun. Once we arrived, we took a hike on Spring Mountain with botanist Jennifer. There was more vegetation on the mountain than in  the valley. There are 24-36 endemic species, mostly in higher elevations. There are avalanches here that cause natural disturbance and rejuvenate the aspens, allowing things to grow. There are very little mature aspen here; most are associated with avalanche chutes so they are young and small. This area is not considered suitable for logging and was officially noted to never be used for logging purposes. However, they do thin out the forest around the houses in the valley because it reduces the fuel for fires.
I really enjoyed this hike a lot. I was nice to have Jenn guide our hike to the top. She pointed out all of the endemic species along the way and explained their importance. I thought it was very interesting that people became confused about the native thistle being a noxious weed and tried to remove it. I thought it was really great  that they're being proactive about educating people now. I also thought it was interesting that the Charleston Flower didn't need protection because they have natural protection from their location on the edge of the mountain. Jenn was very knowledgeable and I also enjoyed the pace of our hike.
After our hike, we drove into Las Vegas. We could see it from afar, it was like an oasis in the middle of the desert. We stayed at Circus Circus, which wasn't that great but it didn't matter- We're in LAS VEGAS! We cruised around and checked out the strip and then Jess and I grabbed a sandwich before bed. "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas."

Day 17 Pyramid Lake & Lake Tahoe

We drove from Portland to Nevada, and we stopped to check out Pyramid Lake. This is one of two piluvial lakes in the country. There is only input, no surface output. Water only leaves through evaporation. It was formed by glaciation, and it used to be at a much higher level. Pyramid Lake is considered a paleolake, meaning it was not formed under the current hydrological conditions. There are springs beneath the lake that deposit calcium, which form "tufas" that look like little islands in the lake. (They used to be underwater!) Pyramid lake was really cool looking, especially on such a foggy weird day outside.
Next we drove to Lake Tahoe. It's raining! Apparently this is very unusual. I think we must have brought the rain with us. Too bad, I was looking forward to checking out the scenery. (We're sitting at an outside bar, by the way, to have a class lol.)
Lake Tahoe is extremely large and extremely deep, which is very unique and makes it a great opportunity for research. It is 1700 ft deep, and it is the deepest crater lake in the Sierras. Lake Tahoe is known for its remarkable clarity; it measured roughly 100 ft in the 1960's. During the 1960's to 1970's, development in Tahoe and it became very popular. The water quality at the lake started to go down and tension started because the wealthier people who lived here kept it clean and the working class people didn't.
The state line between California and Nevada rests in the center of Lake Tahoe, which makes it hard to manage. The Tahoe Regional Planning Authority (TRPA) managed the Tahoe basin in 1969, and they started to notice excess nutrients and an alarming decline in clarity. California was also concerned because they had lots of houses on their side of the lake. Nevada didn't seem to care are much because they were more focused on casinos and offroading. The TRPA made restrictions on development to preserve space so that water could percolate down into the ground instead of running off into the lake. This caused uproar because it significantly reduces property values and some were even restricted to 1% of their property. The TRPA also started a moratory of no development in the basin for two years (1990s) to do research and find solutions.The TRPA stepped in about jetskis and compromised on only allowing jetskis in certain places and certain times, and they have to be a 4-stroke.
The Lake Tahoe watershed management plan identified sources of impairments, what you need to reduce them and a timeline for reduction. The watershed management plan also has an educational component as well as milestones and a monitoring plan. This watershed management plan cost $10 million, which is extraordinary. Through the watershed management plan, they came up with a maximum amount of each impairment that is allowed in the waterbody. This is called a total daily maximum load (TMDL). There are 4000 TMDLs, and the biggest impairment is clarity. Lake Tahoe has the highest standard for clarity, at 97 feet. Currently, the clarity depth is about 67 ft. One of the biggest contributors is actually sediment deposited from the air, which was surprising to me. I really wish that it wasn't raining because I was really looking forward to seeing Lake Tahoe. I hope I get to come back some day! After our talk, we drove up to the town square and had a couple hours to do what we wanted. We did a little shopping and then had an appetizer at the Fire and Ice Bar. Then a few of us went to Harrah's to go gamble. I learned (kind of) how to play craps with Lucia and I won $10! It was a good day. Tonight we are staying in the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, NV. The hotel was absolutely beautiful. It had a casino, too. We went in the pool and the hot tub first, of course. It was a great night. (Pictures coming soon)

Day 16 Portland, OR

This morning we had a lecture with Patrick about urban planning. I was surprised to learn that NYC is actually the most efficient city. It is not what comes to mind, but it makes sense! There is a good mixture of business and residences, and everything is so close together and you don't have to drive. This is the idea of smart growth, which is what sustainable urban planning is trying to focus on. It is also called "new urbanism", and Portland is a great example. The idea is that lifestyle changes aren't enough to live in a sustainable way. "We can't buy our way into being sustainable" is a great quote I picked up on. We need infrastructure change, and that's what new urbanism is all about.
So far we have spread ourselves across the landscape in an inefficient way, and our land use and zoning makes it so things are far apart. This means more driving, more land, and more energy use. We have become a wasteful, energy dependent nation, and we need to get away from that. By allowing mixed use zoning, we can combine factories and businesses with residential areas, which lets people walk to work or to the store. Transit oriented development also would let people live and work where there is mass transit. Developing brownfields is also helpful because it uses land that isn't being developed upon or is being inefficiently used.
Another great idea Patrick introduced is setting an urban growth boundary, which basically says, "we're not going to develop beyond this point". This makes it so that towns have to work with the land they've got, for example they change an old factory into small shops etc. Another great idea Patrick mentioned is creating incentives so that the "right" thing to do is the more desirable thing to do, and the "wrong" thing to do is harder and less desirable.
We talked about Portland and how they have a hub with "fingers" that connect to suburbs through rail etc. They also have mixed urban areas that are designed so you can live in the city or nearby without a car. Portland also has many green trees and green roofs, along with storm water parks that let water infiltrate and be treated by plants instead of running off the street.

Talking about the parks in Portland

I really loved Portland!! We took a walking tour and I liked the way they had the residential mixed with businesses and parks. Portland is able to control sprawl because they have an urban growth boundary that was made in the 1970's. As a result, they have many re-purposed buildings and they use what they have better. I was impressed by the light rail and the fact that it had the right of way priority. We walked around for a while and talked about all of the features the city had. I loved the idea of the functional urban wetland in the park because it reduces the amount of nutrients and pollutants in the water. It also looks beautiful and gives people a place to enjoy. I was surprised and happy to learn that there are no pesticides used in Portland. There were lots of trees lining the streets that help improve air quality and reduce thermal pollution.We stopped by a building that used to be a brewery that is now a LEED platinum building. I really enjoyed our time in Portland and I could see myself living there in one of those nice re-purposed apartments!

Beautiful re-purposed apartments from an old factory

Happy people walking their dogs!

Tonight we camped at a KOA and there was a guy who was riding his bike and fell off and hurt himself! He started crying out and telling us we have to call his wife because he broke his collar bone. He ended up riding away on his bike saying that he was going to his Mom's. It was pretty crazy. Then it ended up raining that night into the morning (but they had free coffee in the morning and that made it all better!)