Guest Author - Violette DeSantis

Conservation can mean many things. Some people believe in conserving our natural resources or in preventing harm to wildlife. Other individuals work hard to restore and preserve our history and works of art. Here are some of the most important areas in conservation from both land and sea.

On land the conservation movement is meant to protect plants, animals and their habitats. Conservation in these areas can be called habitat conservation and wildlife management. Generally this is where our government has bought land and set it aside for protection.

Marine conservation is the practice to protect and preserve ecosystems in our oceans and seas. We might protect marine life by regulating fishing or protecting the shores and lands around our oceans and waterways.

When people want to conserve the earth’s natural resources two of the most important topics that we hear about today have to do with energy conservation and water conservation. Sometimes we refer to energy and water conservation using the broader term called environmentalism.

Beyond environmentalism there are issues of conservation that include preserving art, architecture and archaeological sites. We actively try to preserve these things for the future because it is one way we can learn about our history.

Museums are available to help us conserve art, objects that need to be stored and protected. Architectural conservation more commonly refers to immovable objects like buildings. It is how we preserve historical materials like stone, brick, wood, metal and glass. Most cities have important structures that have been around since their beginnings. Old structures on battlegrounds or where one of the Presidents of the United States of America may have stayed find a place in the architectural movement.

Archaeological site conservation is how we preserve a place where prehistoric, historic or contemporary activity is preserved. Pompeii is an example of an archaeological site we try to conserve. Having been discovered along with another city in Italy that was buried during a volcano eruption, it has been the source for much information about how people lived in Roman times.

Maritime archaeology means the site is under water. This conservation protects ancient monuments, like shipwrecks or cities now under water. According to Northern Maritime Research there are over 100,000 North American shipwrecks in a span of 400 years. Governing bodies in many countries protect these sites by creating special laws regarding locating shipwrecks and treasure hunting. The discovery and disturbance of shipwrecks and other maritime sites can effect the environment.

Conservation is important. There are many areas of study and careers available in conservation and environmentalism. It is necessary to protect the environment and our history from acts of nature and acts of vandalism by the hands of man.