EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE “Geologists in Action”
Aaron W. Johnson, MEM-2783
awj@aipg.org
When I was an undergraduate geology student, I took on a summer job working as an environmental field technician for a local environmental consulting firm. The pay was just above minimum wage, which was fine for summer work. The work was varied and often mundane: background research in the city directories; filling out paperwork for hazardous waste pickup and disposal; cleaning, prepping, and organizing spill mitigation equipment. Those tasks were probably the most common work I did during that summer. Occasionally, we got an interesting call and at those times the job became exciting or even a bit scary.
One such time came when we were sum- moned to the local railyard. Several dam- aged tanker cars were present, each of which contained animal fat that was destined to be shipped to a rendering plant to be processed into some sort of more useable form. (Note: what form was never revealed, but each of us assumed it was to be used to make dog food). The tankers were equipped with heaters to keep the fat from congealing and with pumps to move the warm liquid fat from the tanker to some ultimate storage unit. However, these cars had been damaged in an accident and the heaters and pumps were no longer in working order. Our task was to do a confined entry and remove the now congealed animal fat by hand, shoveling the fat into 55-gallon drums that could be removed via hoist.
We returned the next day, confined entry permit in hand, Tyvek® suits and full-face positive pressure respirators on the truck, ready to enter the tankers and begin shoveling. We suit- ed up, taped all our suit joints and entered the tanker. The fat was between six and 12 inches thick and covered the bottom of the tanker. Our colleagues lowered in the first 55-gallon drum, and we went to work, using large aluminum snow shovels to fill the drum. The fat had the consistence of firm jello, and was prone to slipping and sliding off the shovels. Sometimes a large “clump” would break apart, unbalancing the shovel and causing it to flip or tilt. It was hot, dirty, difficult work.
About 20 minutes into the job, I felt something running down my arm and into my glove. I at first thought it was sweat, but when it began to accumulate in my glove, it felt oily. I asked my co-worker to check my sleeve for tears. He reported none. I began to feel the same thing in my other sleeve and at the knees, and again asked my co-worker if I had any tears in my suit. He reported again, none. We were scheduled for a 15-minute break every 30 minutes, so I waited. At break, I unsuited to find that the animal fat was being absorbed through the suit and was accumulating in my gloves and boots. Apparently, the stretching at the knees and elbows combined with my body heat to make my suit permeable. We called the office and asked if
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they would bring out a heavier-duty suit (my memory says it was Seranex®) and we completed the job with no more leaks. For the next couple of days, I smelled like French fry grease and my elbows and knees were as soft and smooth as a baby’s cheek. Still, it’s not a beauty treatment I would recommend.
I share this story because I recognize that as geologists we do some very interesting things. To highlight those activi- ties, AIPG has started a YouTube series called “Geologists in Action.” These short clips highlight geologists simply being geologists. Why? Because most people don’t really understand the broad variety of tasks that geologists perform as part of our everyday work. Our goal is to create and share a series of short (2-5 minute) videos that show geologists in action, doing what we do every day. I hope each of you will consider creating a short video that highlights what you do and share it with AIPG so that we can share it with the world. Of course, some of you may be doing proprietary work, or may work for a company that is not in a position to allow you to create such a video. That’s understandable, especially in fields where companies may compete for resources or in situations where legal challenges may be involved. The beauty of “Geologists in Action” is that we don’t just have to highlight the things we do for work. Some of us are mineral aficionados with personal mineral collections that rival those at major museums. Others are volunteers with the local stream team, or hobbyists who collect fossils. All of those things are “Geologists in Action.”
I encourage each of you to consider creating a short video. You can record it with your cell phone. It’s not supposed to be a professional quality, broadcast TV ready effort. It simply needs to show a geologist being a geologist. I hope you’ll con- sider putting something together for us.
With all my best wishes for a successful summer, Aaron
www.aipg.org
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