Pictures Unit 4

LItter shown on a trail in Cherokee Park.

An aluminum can last 200 - 400 years in the ground before it disintegrates.

Simple small wooden signs would provide visual propaganda suggesting that they pick up their own trash.

Litter in Cherokee Park: The Need for Change

Everyday more and more Americans are visiting national parks rediscovering outdoor pursuits that are remarkably valuable to them. In 2004, nearly 277 million recreational visits were recorded by the United States national park system (Haney, 2006). The number of citizens visiting national parks continues to grow every year along with the increase in litter found in the park. The 2005 National Public Lands Day activities report states that 90,000 volunteers removed approximately 380,000 pounds of trash from 800 national parks, wildlife refuges, forests, and waterways sites throughout the nation (NEETF, 2005), an increase of trash from the 285,000 pounds collected throughout 600 national sites in 2004 (NEETF, 2004). These statistics urge Americans to find a call to action to decrease the amount of litter found in national parks each year. A very realistic and effective idea that needs to be implemented is the ‘pack it in, pack it out’ theory, which states visitors must leave the park with whatever trash they entered with. Promoting environmental thinking by having visitors of parks take responsibility for their own trash is a good idea despite the fact that pet and baby waste are often left in the park. Decreasing the amount of litter in parks is essential to the health and well-being of wildlife that call the park home. Litter also obstructs the natural elegance and beauty that park’s visitors often come to enjoy. In this paper I will discuss how implementing a ‘pack it in, pack it out’ theory  in Cherokee Park will decrease the amount of litter in the park and benefit the park’s wildlife well-being as well as increasing the number of visitors to the park.

The qualities of Cherokee Park I hold close to my heart are not uncommon to other park lovers. The same qualities were what Frederick Law Olmsted founded Cherokee Park upon over one-hundred and twenty years ago. Olmsted’s thoughts were made apparent in his creations. The Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy, Inc. shared his views of Cherokee Park stating that, “For a balanced life, Olmsted realized, people need contact with nature. The parks would provide that, green oases that would relieve the stresses that came with close living conditions, poor air quality, lack of peace and solitude. (Frederick Law Olmsted)” This realization has strong integrity when one may find themselves visiting or exploring Cherokee Park. Even a hundred years ago people saw the importance of nature and its diverse offerings in their lives.

The Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy, Inc. notices this needed respect and acts upon it. They continue to help maintain Cherokee Park and its trails with volunteer work as well as ideas for the future. One of their proposals is a one-mile paved circuit. This proposal, similar to a dirt trail in visual surrounding, would give more room for visitors to indulge in the parks true beauty. The proposal states that “The one-mile paved circuit will offer visitor wayside shelters, rustic footbridges over Beargrass Creek, connections to bridle and other trails and signage telling the story of the park.” Citizens as well as tourists who have not had the opportunity to experience the park’s offerings will have one more area than before calling their name. They would be able to see the elegance of Cherokee Park on a more accessible note. This work that is done voluntarily shows just how important nature is to the common person. If they are not able to escape into the backwoods and trails this circuit would allow them to see some of the parks story of a calming natural environment in a more modernized sense. With the help of passing along the word of ‘pack it in, pack it out’ these trails can remain litter free for all to enjoy.

Throughout all of my research I have read the same thoughts that already pierced my mind. Most litter is a result of the teenage generation. As Stephen Houghton suggested in his work, statistics in several studies throughout the world state that teenagers litter the most among other age groups. Although this is a much generalized piece of information it holds great authority in my paper.

                Teenagers do account for much of the litter that is found in Cherokee Park especially at Hogan’s Fountain as well as off in the backwoods of the park. I run on three different dirt trails in the woods at Cherokee Park at least one time a week.  I tend to run at sunset as it is much cooler than mid-day when the sun sits in the sky waiting to scorch any visible bodies. As darkness approaches the population of teenagers greatly outnumbers all other age groups that remain in the park. I discussed this information with the Louisville Olmsted Conservancy’s head of volunteering, Sarah Wolff, and she seemed to already know everything I was telling her. I often see groups of teens wondering off the dirt paths. Sarah enlightened me on the issues of vandalism and drug use that many of these teenagers are responsible for. The Olmsted Parks Conservancy has learned from Louisville Metro Police that many adolescents are found smoking drugs or drinking alcoholic beverages in the woods or on the playground near Hogan’s Fountain. This evidence supports the conclusion that many of these teenagers are responsible for the littering of cigarette boxes and alcoholic containers.

                All of this personal context from both Sarah Wolff and I offers proper insight into my next area of research. I investigated research on teenagers littering habits which most likely is the group that makes up the highest percentage of litter that is picked up in Cherokee Park. Steven Houghton understands that ‘litter is unsightly and annoying’ which motivated him to conduct research on the efficiency of verbal and visual prompts amongst high school students in the cafeteria environment (“Using Verbal Prompts”). Although this scholarly article does not deal with the environment of a park it still offers helpful insight to which means of marketing the ‘pack it in, pack it out’ theory is most effective, specifically for the genre that causes the most litter. Mr. Houghton discovered that a combination of both verbal and visual prompts results in the most significant decrease in litter. Without any prompt there was an average of 7.43 items littered per minute during the allotted time for students to eat lunch in the cafeteria. With visual and verbal prompts introduced the number of items littered per minute was significantly reduced to 2.3 items. This information enlightens one on a specific propaganda that has been proven successful for a teenage audience in the reduction of litter. Implying this method to reach park visitors may drastically impact the reduction of litter in Cherokee Park.

                Implementing the “pack it in, pack it out” theory when entering Cherokee Park will benefit the community and park visitors in many ways. In order to familiarize people who have not heard of this clean way of using parks, the motto needs to be advertised. To maximize the effectiveness of this slogan it is best that this is done through both visual and verbal propaganda as Houghton discovered in his studies. A cheap and efficient way of promoting visitors to pick up after themselves is to place signs near the most popular picnic areas and trail sites. This strategy is argued against by Steven Plappert. Plappert, an avid hiker, writes in his blog that posting unnecessary trail signs takes away from the nature of parks. Although he does not specifically discuss signs that would encourage visitors to pack out their own trash, he does state that “no form of advertisement should be placed on any tree (Plappert)”. However, a one-foot wooden sign is much less likely to obstruct a person’s view of nature than a cigarette butt nearby that may shatter a person’s mood. Also, that same wooden sign would replace many of the rusted bulky tin trash cans that do not fit in the environment in the first place. I do agree with Plappert in that unnecessary distractions should be kept out of nature’s eyes, however, a small sign with the words “pack it in, pack it out” will do a lot more good than it would harm for visitors.

                Another opposing argue is introduced by Don Tryon, who mentions in his editorial, “Leave-A-Trace”, that Americans need to face the ugly reality that expecting people to pick up their own trash is not going to happen. Tyron further argues that instead of wasting time and money on programs such as Leave No Trace who implement a ‘pack it in, pack it out’ mentality in outdoor recreational activities, we should look at more practical options that do work. Such options include the clever placement of trash receptacles throughout our parks. Although this is an effective idea that Tryon points out, we must recognize the high costs to upkeep each trash receptacle in our parks. This is especially relevant at this time when our economy is at its lowest it’s been in years and our government’s number one priority is most likely not our public parks.

                As mentioned above litter does not only affect human experiences with nature and the outdoors but it also affects the wildlife that lives within that environment. The Kamenny Kruh Stone Circle restates this crucial aspect of littering specifically in saying, “Litter can harm or kill wildlife. Plastic litter can choke or suffocate birds and marine life. Carelessly discarded containers can trap small mammals” (Cislo 9). This is just another reason that supports the proposal to have signs throughout Cherokee Park supporting the ‘pack it in, pack it out’ motto. Garbage cans have been around Cherokee Park since I can remember. Although these trash receptacles help with litter they do not put any type of stress on the individual visitor to pick their own trash. Implementing the ‘pack it in, pack it out’ motto would make individuals feel more responsible for their own actions in littering.

There are many stories that are shared through Cherokee Park and many stories that are yet to be created. My personal enjoyments as well as Sarah Wolff’s adventures in Cherokee Park as a teenager show only two perspectives of the elegance and vast array of activities the park holds. In order to keep Cherokee Park a vital resource for visitors far and near we must learn from the research that is presented to us and execute a plan of action that will help reduce litter within the park. As mentioned in the introduction, we do not want Cherokee Park to be a part of the 380,000 pounds of trash that was removed from parks by volunteers in 2005. We need to enforce this ‘pack it in, pack it out’ motto, placing signs on trailheads as well as throughout the park offering the visual propaganda that has been proven successful in Mr. Houghton’s studies. Successfully implementing the ‘pack it in, pack it out’ motto in Cherokee Park will help reduce the amount trash littered in the park and will better the well-being of the park’s wildlife as well as allowing its visitors to enjoy their experience in the utmost clean and natural environment. 

Work Cited:

Houghton, Stephen. "Using verbal and visual prompts to control littering in high schools." Educational Studies (03055698) 19.4 (1993): 247. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 1 Aug. 2011.

Ben Lawhon, et al. "Conviction of the Heart: Implementing Leave-No-Trace Principles in Outdoor Recreation." JOPERD: The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 79.7 (2008): 29-34. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 2 Aug. 2011.

Pack it in, Pack it Out. United Four Wheel Drive Associations. N.D. N.P. July 28, 2011.  <http://www.ufwda.org/education/pack-it-in-pack-it-out/>

Tryon, Don. “Leave-A-Trace Page.” Purcell Trench Manufacturing Company. September 2007. N.P. July 29, 2011. < http://www.purcelltrench.com/leaveatrace.htm>

“Frederick Law Olmsted.” Frederick Law Olmsted Parks. N.D. N.P. June 29, 2011. <http://www.olmstedparks.org/about/frederick-law-olmsted/>

Pack it in pack it out sign. Pack it in pack it out. N.D. July 27,2011. <http://www.propertysigns.com/signs/pack-in-pack-out-trash-sign/sku-k-7834.aspx>

Brown, Byron. Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy. The Buffalo Olmsted Park System: Plan for the 21st Century. “The Olmsted City.”  The Urban Design Project. N.D. July 26, 2011.

Implementing a Call to Action to Benefit Park Visitors

According to waste management researchers at Mount Field National Park, (location) (talk more about the previous litter and connect it to Louisville) (Make us care with my own voice) litter in the park has decreased by twenty percent in only one year. (cite) This decrease in litter is a result of the park discarding their trash receptacles and implementing a new call to action for visitors, ‘pack it in, pack it out’, which states visitors must leave the park with whatever trash they entered with. Promoting environmental thinking by having visitors of parks take responsibility for their own trash is a good idea despite the fact that pet and baby waste are often left in the park. Decreasing the amount of litter in parks is essential to the health and well-being of wildlife that call the park home. Litter also obstructs the natural elegance and beauty that park’s visitors often come to enjoy. In this paper I will discuss how implementing a ‘pack it in, pack it out’ theory in Cherokee Park will decrease the amount of litter in the park and benefit the park’s wildlife as well as visitors…

Thesis Statement and Citation

Thesis Statement:

In order for everyone to be able to enjoy the full offerings of Cherokee Park we must fight the litter that destructs the elegance of the park. In order to do so we should campaign a ‘pack it in, pack it out’ system of dealing with trash in order to promote environmental thinking for visitors and keep these visitors from littering in the park, taking away from the beauty of Cherokee Park for other guests.

Citations:

Ben Lawhon, et al. "Conviction of the Heart: Implementing Leave-No-Trace Principles in Outdoor Recreation." JOPERD: The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 79.7 (2008): 29-34. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 22 July 2011.

Brown, Terry J., Sam H. Ham, and Michael Hughes. "Picking up litter: an application of theory-based communication to influence tourist behaviour in protected areas." Journal of Sustainable Tourism 18.7 (2010): 879-900. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 22 July 2011.

Daerr, Elizabeth G. "C&O Canal Has Trash-free Policy." National Parks 73.11/12 (1999): 14-15. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 22 July 2011.

"Seattle Parks Revisit Recycling Initiative." Parks & Recreation 41.10 (2006): 27. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 22 July 2011.

Blog Post

1. One way that he mixed academic and non-academic language that stood out most clearly to me was his quotes of 'hillbilly', 'hoods', and 'clean-cut'. I thought this was very effective because it tied in to what those genres of people are recognized as in society. They were relevant also to the audience the author was writing for. He also did a good job on defining the term 'hillbilly' if it were to be unclear or unheard of by his audience.
2. I thought a mediocre display of mixing the two languages could be seen when he takes the phrase, 'dig the intellectual bit' from Elvis and uses it in his text.  He did not really expand of what Elvis meant by that rather assuming the audience was to know. Well maybe my brain isn't on or something but I thought it was unclear. I think he could have kept the non-academic language and used it effectively. I think it wasn't effective though because he did not elaborate on what 'digging the intellectual bit' meant in context to his writing.

Unit 4 "ain't so/is not" exercise 2

 The toxicity of pollution from the city and immoral bandwagon stereotypes poison me. I ridden these burderns through each breathe I take on my trail and every bead of sweat that rolls off my face. My mind untangles itself from thoughts of the outside world. My skin begins to perspire as I fight the blinding rays of sun that find cracks between the flexing leaves in the olive canopy above. There is no real sense of time as I trek further and further. My body exhausts in the intense heat and strenuous trail I hike.Often I find a soft and inviting tree trunk to stop and rest upon. Sarah Wolff voiced the mutual relationship she also shares with the park through volunteering.  ....

                Not only is litter very harmful to the wildlife and environment in the park but it also takes away from the beauty and elegance of the park. Would you want to hike into the backwoods of a park finding beer bottles and cigarette packaging upon every other tree trunk? This litter often makes the park an ugly sight. The cleanliness of Cherokee Park will also relay a message of the community. A dirty and litter filled park will not portray the same message that a clean park will. Most importantly to me, the litter takes away from the natural aspect of the park. When I go to the park to escape the realities of our hectic society I do not want manufacture packaging sitting beside a tree reminding me of the city.

"As a Result" Q and A'

I rely a little too much on pointing terms I think. I need to be more careful when I am using them because some of my subjects get lost in the pronouns making the sentence a little confusing for the reader. If I reword or restate the subject in the sentence I can help clarify my meaning for the reader. I don't think I rely enough on transitioning words so to speak. I think that I do transcend somewhat okay from the previous paragraph or previous thoughts. I think that I need to use more of the words for transcending in my transitions. That will make the transition even more clear and smoother.

One of my paragraphs I start three sentences in a row with My. I definitely need to change this. One reason is because it is repetitive and does not have any variety to those three sentences in the paragraph. After reading the paragraph I realize it sounds bad. I need to move the words in the sentence around or look for another way of using 'my'.

It would hurt to 'repeat myself with a difference' a little bit more as well. If I can add some more variety of the way I transcend ideas and thoughts it will make my paper more effective. I can do this by using synonyms and antonyms of words that I need to repeat and also enhance details where needed.