Extreme Environments

Gr 9 Up—Offering broad overviews of topics concerning the world's oceans, this production is composed primarily of stock footage that varies from clear and colorful to gray and grainy. A male narrator with an Australian accent reads a disjointed script with good cheer. The program jumps from what the Australian government is doing to protect the Great Barrier Reef to how private companies in England are working to promote exploration to the technology (remote submarines) used in deep sea locations. Then, the presentation segues into a discussion of whale sharks, the whaling industry in Japan, and coalitions of conservationists in Australia and Baja (CA). The program also touches on threats against sea birds, the environmental dangers of long line fishing, the decline of elephant seals, places where the largest waves can be found, and filmmaker James Cameron's work with deep sea photography. The transitions between topics are awkward and make little sense. There's a lot of information here, but it is all glossed over, making for a choppy presentation.—Geri Diorio, The Ridgefield Library, CT