In the late 60's/early 70s I remember watching underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau's television program called "The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau." On his show he introduced us to a myriad of sea life as tiny as plankton to the more popular species of sharks, whales, dolphins along with sunken treasure, coral reefs and once seaworthy vessels that were scattered at the bottom of the ocean. I remember him saying that at the rate we are polluting our oceans it's just a matter of time before the land winds up the same way: uninhabitable. Oh sure over the years we would sometimes poke fun of the "Save the Whales" mantra. Maybe not as much as those "Baby on Board" stickers but you catch my drift. Now here it is years after the death of Cousteau and it seems like much of what he talked about has come to pass only now some of us refer to it as "Global Warming." 
Climate change is inevitable and one continent alone cannot change what other continents are not doing to help slow the process. When I attended last month's "Conversation with Climate" symposium as part of the annul event known as Earth Day I asked several speakers what can you possibly do now to change what has already been set in motion for decades? After reading 
and seeing how China pollutes their atmosphere (remember the Beijing Olympics anyone?) and being in the oil producing countries of Kuwait and Iraq why should they care if Westerners are going on the war path about Global Warming and their need to be so Green? The buzz words lately seem to be 'environmentally friendly,' 'reducing one's carbon foot print' and being part of the 'sustainability patrol.' Easy fodder .jpg)
for jokes but lately have been trying to keep an open mind. Late last month Tahoe was home base for the non-profit organization known as the Undersea Voyager Project .They're a non profit organization with emphasis on research and undersea exploration. They are currently on a five-year expedition to study the Earth's oceans, of which only 1% of the water column and 3% of the ocean floor have been explored. Prior to that mission though they are here in Lake Tahoe through the end of the month to dive the blue depths and conduct a series of environmental evaluations. Think of it as the precursor to a much larger body of water. Heading the team of explorers/scientists is UVP captain and CEO, Scott Cassell (pictured here in the orange jumpsuit with sunglasses). "Our mission is to learn more about Lake Tahoe's health so its beauty can be preserved for future generations. If we can't save Lake Tahoe, how can we save the world's oceans?" He's very passionate about his work. I had him as a guest on my show and he in turn invited me to take a ride in one of their mini subs. In addition to exploring the depths of Lake Tahoe they also have been conducting dives over at nearby Fallen Leaf Lake to explore an ancient submerged forest. That's where I joined up with Capt. Casell and his team.
I thought this might be a good opportunity to do a follow-up with Cassell and to see how their experiments have been going. Sitting in this mini sub (called the Catalina) was pretty surreal and it felt like you were in a convertible. The bubble is made of this acrylic material and is so clear you feel as if you are right there with the fishes. I was also hoping to see if there were any bodies from the mob days as I know Fredo is in Tahoe. I'll make those chats available on the website soon. It would be nice to keep Tahoe's pristine water clear for future generations so I believe what the UVP team is doing is very important and hopefully they'll gain some insight not just on our lakes up here but continues to be of benefit when they resume exploring our oceans as well. If only Cousteau were alive today to witness what is happening. I wonder what he would think of Cassell and the UVP? (photos by Nancy). Be sure to donate to visit the website of the Undersea Voyager Project and make a donation to keep them going: http://underseavoyager.org
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