Leave No Trace Halloween

One of my favorite aspects of life in Antarctica is the Antarctic Treaty—a deeply inspiring example of many countries coming together to commit to decommodification (the continent cannot be used for commercial purposes) and environmental conservation. An important element of that stewardship is the concept of “leave no trace.” 

The extremely cold, dry air in Antarctica means most things (like this thousand-plus year old seal mummy in the Dry Valleys) decompose very very slowly. Which makes it all the more important to leave no trace while there.

If you spend time in other wildernesses or protected areas, you are likely familiar with this concept of packing out one’s own waste and any other debris. In Antarctica, we commit so deeply to this concept that when we are off-station, we collect our urine in a “pee bottle” while we are out. Pee bottles are typically repurposed Nalgene drinking bottles (carefully labeled with the letter P to avoid any disturbing mix-ups) If we are in the field, the pee bottles are then emptied into a large barrel back at camp and ultimately transported by helicopter to station, and the put on a vessel back to the United States for proper sewage treatment. If we are just out on a day trip from the research station, we keep the bottle with us and empty it in the bathroom at the end of the day. They are then sanitized and re-used.

from left: Andrew Thurber as a scuba diving "down line" with flashers, Rob Robbins as an Anglerfish, Paola Santiago as Cody the Penguin from Surf's Up, Dexter Davis as an Ice Type Pokemon, me (Lily Simonson) as a pee bottle, Lauren Liggan as an Antarctic dragonfish

Another important Antarctic tradition is creatively putting together Halloween costumes with whatever spare parts and trash are lying around. I love the spirit of innovation that thrives at McMurdo, where you can’t just pop over to the Halloween store or order something online if you want a costume. 

So for Halloween this year, I wanted to pay tribute to both the Antarctic commitment to environmental stewardship, and the tradition of crafty innovation by making a pee bottle costume out of whatever I could find lying around the recycle dumpsters on station. So using cardboard, found rope, and a clear trash bag, (plus some blue paint from my makeshift studio) I cobbled together a pee bottle costume… and voila! Happy (belated) halloween!