A Social issue my project is touching on involves Death Valley. Death Valley is the one of the hottest places on Earth. This past year they had a record amount of rainfall which resulted in an abundance of floral growth. This sudden growth of flowers has attracted many visitors who want to come and see this rare occurrence with their own eyes. Twenty different types of wild and vibrant desert flowers have bloomed this year; this is also a record high.
Aside from all of the scientific research I did I also found a very interesting and close to home example of how volcanos and flowers mesh together. After the eruption of Mt. St. Helens thirty-five years ago that destroyed the area surrounding it and caused a landslide which locals thought would take years to recover. Out of the devastation began to emerged a new ecosystem. It challenged what scientists previously knew about the ability of landscapes to recover after a disaster. Slowly species began to slowly emerge. Ants would scurry around the ground. Fallen trees made home for insects and gophers dug through the ash. Some species did manage to survive and they were called biological legacies. Congress than passed the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Movement which created 110,000 acre areas where scientists had the rare chance to sit back and watch nature begin again. Old ecosystems where entirely wiped out which resulted in new plants to grow and different insects, birds and small mammals to be able to create a new home. Many of the scientists that worked along side this project would all agree that overall the areas hit by the blast are doing fine. They are more diverse and species are richer than they were before even though not much recovery has happened from the years 2000-2010. 
