Choate’s first special program of the year, a screening of Al Gore’s movie, “An Inconvenient Truth,” pinpoints the devastating effects of climate change and the things one can do to help prevent them. By watching Al Gore’s film, Choate students learned several ways to protect both the local and global environment. But what we should really ask ourselves is: are we, as a student body, doing enough to protect the environment of our campus?
Many of us are aware that on November 1, the board of trustees will decide whether or not to approve the construction of a golf course on Choate campus. However, not everyone knows that if approved, the plans will call for the destruction of our very own Paddock Farm. This lot has become a place that is indispensable to Choate. It contains unbelievable historical meaning and has come a long way. At one point, Paddock Farm was a dumpsite, a place where the Choate population would carelessly toss its junk. After eighteen years of combined teacher and student labor, Paddock Farm has become what Biology teacher Ian Morris describes as an “ecologically valuable oasis of mixed woodland, pastureland and wetlands.” This “oasis” contains twelve apple trees, several beautiful gardens, and one bountiful vegetable patch. Paddock Farm is a pesticide-free home which invites a vast range of animal species, including red tail hawks, frogs, foxes, and monarch butterflies. A few of our tagged Monarchs have even made the long journey from Wallingford to Mexico and back!
One of the greatest parts of Choate is its ability to become a comfortable home to many. Despite its diversity, Choate is still able to have the feel of a small community. Part of living in a community is celebrating the achievements its members have attained. Instead of celebrating the eighteen years of hard work, building the golf course will block an important path for migrating animals, limit biodiversity, and potentially harm the town’s environment and waterways with hazardous chemicals. Before the plans progress much further, it is up to us, the students, to let our voices be heard.
