Conversations about Conservation

For this Activity

1. Read a few basic principles that you should follow to protect natural areas.
2. Then answer several questions and read a Park Ranger's responses!

While you enjoy special places like National Park sites, follow these basic principles that also apply to anywhere you go in nature and the outdoors.

• Recreate Responsibly. You want to protect these special places, so make sure that you leave as little of an impact as you can and be safe while you're out exploring. If you visit National Park sites, then follow park rules and call or check the park website for any alerts and announcements.
• During your visit, make sure to Leave No Trace. This means leaving what you find where it's at. Remember to take only pictures and memories.
• Lastly, Pack it in, Pack it out, which means take what you bring with you. This especially includes any trash. You don't want to be a litter bug!

 

Ranger Jeff approves of only taking pictures to protect Florissant Fossil Beds.

NPS Photo / Astrid Garcia

 

Hear from a Park Ranger at Florissant Fossil Beds

For this activity, answer the questions below and read Ranger Jeff's responses!

1. Why do you think it's important to protect rock and fossil resources?

There is an idea called Geologic Heritage that explains why it's important to protect rocks and fossils. All across our National Park System we have geologic features, landforms, and landscapes that are characteristic of our Nation. We preserve them because they are important to our society for a lot of reasons including scientific, beauty, cultural, ecosystem, educational, recreational, tourism, and other values. Geoheritage sites are conserved so that their lessons and beauty will remain as a legacy for future generations.

2. What is a special place to you? Describe it.

One of my favorite spots at Florissant Fossil Beds is just behind the Visitor Center on a short trail called the Ponderosa Loop. There you will find a modern pine tree growing right out of a petrified Redwood tree. It's a great place to sit and think about how much our world has changed and continues to change.

3. How do you help to protect your special place?

My job is to help protect the fossils and rocks by connecting visitors both through their hearts and minds to the important meanings and significances of the rocks, fossills, and history of this area. We call this interpretation. I am able to help people connect by giving programs, leading school tours, working on exhibits, doing social media posts and website work, making videos and in lots of other ways. The idea is that people will care for things that care about. They will only care about things when they understand them and how important they are to everyone.

4. Do you think rocks and fossils everywhere should be protected? Why?

I use fossils everyday when I drive to work - fossil fuels right? I also use rocks and minerals in my tooth paste and I eat them everyday because minerals are in my food. There are parts of rocks in our computers too! So, in our world, we will continue to use rocks and fossils in certain ways and it would be impractical to protect all of them. With that said, many of these rock and fossils that we use are non-renewable, and we can learn to cut down on our use and perhaps use more renewable resources to help minimize our affects on pollution and climate change. There are some places, that have such unique rocks and fossils and land forms, also called geoheritage sites, that our society has decided it is important to protect them.

5. Choose something you use everyday and research how it was made.

I found out that almost 99% of a human body is made up of six elements: oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus. Only about 0.85% is composed of another five elements: potassium, sulfur, sodium, chlorine, and magnesium. All 11 are necessary for life.