Book Response 1: Protecting NJ's Environment

Our class was assigned the book "Protecting New Jersey's Environment" by Thomas Belton. In the first chapter, Thomas Belton gives background on his life. He explains that his brother passed away from leukemia and around the same time that all of this happened in his life, other young people were also being diagnosed with leukemia, in his area. He came from a very populated area in New Jersey. Later during his research, Thomas Belton discovered that other areas of New Jersey were also being affected by these "cancer clusters" which throughout the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s, people were unsure if "cancer clusters" even existed. Eventually, it was proven that "cancer clusters" do exist and that a lot of these are due to the environmental impacts that have been made and affected the planet in a negative manner.

When I first read this chapter, I was immediately shocked by how recently these events have taken place. When a majority of these studies and movements were happening in 1996, that was the year before I was born. That was only 21 years ago. In 2002, families were suing corporations for the damage done to their families. I was 5 years old. That is literally insane. I didn't know that correlations between toxins in the environment and cancer is a recent study. I thought that this was known way before the 2000s.

Also, when I read this chapter, I was immensely shocked by the fact that laws protecting the environment have became more recent. At the same time, I was upset that people didn't treat the planet with respect and care for it. It is our home and it is such a shame that we treated our home so badly. I question why people thought it was okay to dump toxins into large bodies of water. Where did they think it was going to go?

Overall, I really enjoyed the chapter. Share your thoughts down below. What are your opinions on how environmental research as evolved? Do you think we can do more? In what ways are you making environmentally conscious decisions?

Happy Reflecting!