As I walked through the trail I felt like I traveled through time. I have visited Fort Myers Beach in many occasions, but I never knew that there was such a place and that there is nature that has not been impacted by the construction industry. Also Matanzas Preserved is the last maritime oaks hammock in Estero Island. It was at some point a large piece of land that has been destroyed and shrunk the island with the passing of storms and hurricanes’. I also thought that it’s a great place to reflect and get away from the busy tourism area. The boardwalk is a great interpretation of the recycling of products. It makes a great contrast with the environment. It makes the site a lot more enjoyable because it’s so comfortable to walk on it. It creates a bridge between nature and mankind. I didn’t get to experience the crabs walking up and down the trees and all around the vegetation do to the fact that it was very cold and there was a low tide. I did have the pleasure to see some turtles and sword fish. I also have visited the campus trail which is a place filled with nature and it preserves that feeling of undeveloped land innate to the primitive complexion of the Matanzas Preserve. This alienation from technology makes you reflect and think clearly with no interruptions constrained to the modern life we are so caught up in today.
The project Conservation 20/20 is a project stared by the community and Lee County. They were concerned about the rapid development of the land in the area. They decided to take action to protect and preserve natural wildlife habitat, water quality and supply, flooding, and resource-based recreation. To achieve this they are acquiring land that has not been impacting by the industry.
On the other hand I live in Naples, and we don’t have an actual movement to preserve part of what is left of natural land that I know of, but I do know there is a few national parks that are preserved and kept save from the development industry. Using tax dollars for preservation is a great way to invest the money collected from the community. It helps save some nature for future generations to experience and at the same time it makes us aware that there are still some people that care about the great resource left on our world. Also it’s a great investment, using our tax dollars to install cameras to monitor traffic lights and enforce the law. I know enforcing the law is a must, but whatever the resource may be it needs to be utilized in an efficient way to be used by future generation. Technology in today’s world is a must, but technology and innovation won’t give us the fruits of nature.
