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About Applegater. (Jacksonville, OR) 2008-current | View Entire Issue (May 1, 2014)
Applegater Spring 2014 9 DIRTY FINGERNAILS AND ALL Heavy metal is not music to my ears by SIOUx ROGERS Wow, I f o u n d a n e w w o rd : phytoremediation. Well, obviously only a new word to me as it is not new to the plants doing all the work nor to the industry studying this unique phenomenon. “Phytoremediation (from Ancient Greek phyto, meaning ‘plant,’ and Latin remedium, meaning ‘restoring balance’) describes the treatment of environmental problems (bioremediation) through the use of plants that mitigate the environmental problem without the need to excavate the contaminant material and dispose of it elsewhere.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Phytoremediation) It seems that plants have a secret society for harvesting heavy metals. There are several words used for this plant process. One is hyperaccumulators. If you don’t understand this word, check out your garage, or your “mess” drawer or your clothes closet. Can you relate to the word hyperaccumulator now? Do you realize that while industry is spending millions of dollars to de-weed and “perfectise” every green living space, the toxins that are added during this process are just making way for more weeds? Weeds become immune to toxins, just as bacteria become resistant to antibiotics. While you are spraying toxins on the plants to get rid of them, you are actually damaging the soil. If left alone, some plants will—at no extra charge—remove toxins from your soil and make it healthier. Spraying with toxins is very short-sighted and not the solution. In the long run, it is Plants have removed as much as 95 the problem. percent of toxic contaminants in as little Below are some of these hard-working as 24 hours. Subsequently, Helianthus was toxic-accumulator plants, now used planted on a Styrofoam raft at one end worldwide to clean up the mess we humans of a contaminated pond near Chernobyl have created. and in 12 days the cesium concentrations • “Thlaspi caerulescens, Alpine Pennycress within its roots were reportedly 8,000 and also known as Alpine Pennygrass, is a times that of the water, while the strontium flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae. concentrations were 2,000 times that of It is found in the Western United States, the water. Scandinavia, and Europe” (http:// • The Chinese brake fern (Pteris vittata en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thlaspi_caerulescens). L.) and related species are being studied Pennycress is a slow toxic avenger for as a possible way to remove arsenic from soil remediation but gets the job done. water and soil. Remediating arsenic- Each plant used for the purpose of toxic contaminated soil and groundwater using accumulation does so at its individual rate. currently available engineering methods is • Brassica juncea and Brassica carinata costly and difficult. The ability of brake ferns are both in the to hyperaccumulate Alpine Pennycress helps clean toxic residue. a r s e n i c i n t h e i r mustard family. In laboratory tests fronds has led to with metals loaded the development onto artificial soil of environmentally (a mix of sand and friendly and cost- vermiculite), these effective remediation plants appear to be of arsenic- the best at removing contaminated sites. large quantities of • Aquatic plants, chromium, lead, of which there are copper and nickel. several species, • Helianthus sp., a have the uncanny type of sunflower, capacity to locate is currently used heavy metals in by a New Jersey water and then company to help remove these metals clear toxic residue via their roots. I from Chernobyl. would like to think Gen Y Worldview Yoga is for every body by JESSE HART Though the popularity of yoga is growing rapidly in the western world, many people have applied only a western concept to a more universal spiritual and scientific practice. I am happy to be able to explain to my community the truth behind this ancient practice and why every human being should at least be familiar with its basic concept. After all, yoga in its fundamental sense is the practice of being comfortable in human form. What is yoga? This ancient spiritual science offers a direct means of stilling the natural turbulence of thoughts and restlessness of body that prevent us from knowing what and where we truly are. Translated, yoga means “union”: of the individual consciousness or soul with the Universal Consciousness or Spirit (aka, your connection of yourself to your creator). Though many people think of yoga only as physical exercises—the “asanas” or postures that have gained widespread popularity in recent decades—these are actually only a superficial aspect of this profound practice of unfolding the infinite potentials of the human body, mind and soul. Yes, yoga will help with flexibility, but the practice will also assist in an increase of balance and strength, both physically and mentally. Simply put, yoga is meditation and a workout combined into one. Is yoga the right choice for you? Short answer: Yes. Long answer: Absolutely positively definitely yes. Get up and go for it right now. It will be the best choice you ever made! Yoga is for all—the young and old, big and small, male and female, flexible and stiff (especially the stiff ). Human beings perceive the world outside the body in the eternal moment of now. Our sense of what is happening around us and how we define things is in relation to the experience of our life thus far. It may seem counterintuitive, but what happens within our internal selves creates the perception (reality) of the external and never the other way around. When we lose touch with our inner self—our thoughts, feelings, internal organs, muscles and bone structure— we are allowing the health of the mind and body to lessen. When we are out of harmony internally, the external world follows suit. In yoga we learn to create a new, healthy and enjoyable pattern of awareness. Right now, this may seem like quite a feat and perhaps you are many steps away from that goal, but in yoga we understand the truth and discipline of taking the first step, which, as it turns out, is the only step that we ever take, consciously or unconsciously, every moment of our lives. Learning new techniques to assist our consciousness will open up new possibilities in your life that you doubt or deem impossible. What can I do to start? You may not know it but you have already started. Perhaps during heightened stress or anxiety you reminded yourself to “breathe.” Perhaps you suffered a physical injury and took a moment to massage or stretch the afflicted area. Though breathing and stretching are good for trauma, with some guided practice one can learn how to get greater benefit from these actions. Most of us are given lessons to learn to drive the vehicle that is our car, but few are given lessons to drive the vehicle that is our body. To keep the body alive and well, we know to provide the bare necessities of food and water, but preceding this sustenance are the most needed commodities for life: breath and movement (with a sense of calm, yet energetic purpose). All living this is as easy as sucking up an ice cream soda via a straw, but alas, not so. Some examples of these aquatic Sioux Rogers plants are water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms), pennywort (Hydrocotyle umbellata L.) and duckweed (Lemna minor L.). • The roots of Indian mustard are effective in the removal of cadium, chromium, copper, nickle, lead, zinc, uranium, cesium and strontium 90 from hydroponic solutions. An excellent reference for additional information is http://www.mhhe.com/ biosci/pae/botany/botany_map/articles. Phytoextraction by any plant, including aquatic species, is a sophisticated process. For our purposes, all we need to know is that it happens and is being further developed and utilized. The obvious next questions are: what happens to toxin-laden plants after they have done their job and how do we dispose of them? The literature is not unilaterally decisive about a one- size-fits-all solution. The good news is that even though heavy metals are detrimental to soil and are ingested by humans in an overabundance, they have a positive usage in other applications. To offset the cost of the process of utilizing, monitoring, harvesting and disposing of phytomediation plants, the heavy metals can be extracted and re-used. Dirty Fingernails and All Sioux Rogers • 541-846-7736 mumearth2@yahoo.com The author practicing what he preaches. creatures, from humans to animals, insects and plants, need what is called in yoga “prana” or “life-force” brought into the body through our breath. Our internal organs, respiratory and circulatory systems move and operate on their own, but we either learn how to assist them or let our functionings go the route of least resistance. I sincerely implore you to avoid the latter. Every cell in your body will thank you for the compassion. Blissfully, I have recently come to find great comfort in discovering that a path to happiness, balance and connection with nature/universe/God/energy is not difficult. Discovering euphoria is as easy as learning to consistently practice the art of observing, stretching, balancing and allowing. Jesse Hart • 541-221-1080 empathinity@gmail.com
