MISSION 2008: Saving the Galapagos

My name is Amanda Morris, and I am a member of Team Iguanas in a course called Mission 2008 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  The purpose of the class is to create a strategy for preserving the marine and terrestrial ecoysystems on the Galapagos Islands by designing a system of environmental sensors, balancing the needs of the growing human population with the needs of the environment, and choosing an effective system of governance that would be sensitive to the Galapagos' longterm health.  

The team has divided into three sub-groups to address each of these three issues.  I am in the group that is working on designing an ideal human settlement for the islands.  The major problems facing the current towns are rapid population growth and lack of wastewater treatment, renewable energy resources, and water supply.  Other areas in which the towns can be improved are providing more environmental education and establishing less pollutant forms of transportation.

I am currently working on a plan to improve the water supply and wastewater disposal systems in Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz.  As of now, possible solutions to manage waste are to install septic tanks in all the households or to construct a sewer system and carry wastewater to a Solar Aquatics System treatment plant.  For a much more detailed report, visit My Research Log.

My Research Log