The guest lecturer who spoke last Thursday, Joseph Alexiou, was very informative in sharing his extensive knowledge in the history of the Gowanus Canal. I felt that he spoke with great passion and enthusiasm as he ventured through the timeline. He spoke about the different ethnicities that had immigrated there and more. One particular topic that had peaked my interest was the conservation and the cleanup of the pollution in the Gowanus Canal and the area that surrounds it. The other topics were interesting as well such as the industrialization and gentrification, however conserving a safe and clean environment strikes the most interest from me. I believe in conservation and creating an environment to make the world a safer and cleaner place.

During the lecture, Joseph spoke about how the earliest residents in the area would pollute the canal with all sorts of garbage. In addition, the sewer system was also created so that all of the waste from each home would go straight to the canal. I can see from their perspective how it would be acceptable back then to pollute the area as they didn’t have the knowledge about how harmful it really is unlike the knowledge we have today. It truly is repulsive thinking about living around a place like that and not taking action. If I lived in those conditions I would probably move or if I’m unable to, I would take action such as writing a letter to the mayor as well as research what I can do, as a resident to further improve the area.

There should also be more vegetation in that area to help provide more oxygen and more fresh air to the life that surrounds it such as more plants aiding to the benefit to the environment. This would be excluding anything deemed eatable because there are still toxins in the water, soil and possibly in the air. Joseph mentioned a wide list of contaminants in the Gowanus that had accumulated over the years. There’s lead, hydrocarbons, mercury, copper, and more. It evens ranks as one of the top contaminates waterways in the nation. It’s really intriguing and gross at the same time. The sewage waste is heavily affecting the canal. Add the rainwater into the mix and there’s overflow. I can only imagine what it’s like living under the harsh conditions they experience with all that filth running in their neighborhood especially from back then.

I am very optimistic about the future of the Gowanus Canal. I believe that it will improve now that the city’s been taking action with Superfund to clean up the area as much as possible. I know it will take a couple of decades of cleaning, millions of dollars, and a lot of manpower but I’m looking forward to seeing the positive changes towards the rejuvenation of the Gowanus Canal.