The Poop Dispute
By Quinn Kelly
The guano islands act of 1856 was an act that declared that all islands that were not occupied yet where the guano (a bird like bat) pooped were property of the US. This was due to a need for easy fertilizer for farms across the US and the poo had other uses such as a material called saltpeter needed for gunpowder.
These acts were presented under the leadership of president James Buchanan, winner of the 1856 election. They were presented to the senate by William H. Seward and were passed by the 34th united states congress. This act was effective August 18, 1856.
Although this act faded as better, more effective fertilizers became widely used and gunpowder fell out of favor. Still the act has endured. Under the the act the US still has control of the following islands presented by wikipedia:
Navassa Island[9] (claimed by Haiti)
Bajo Nuevo Bank[9] (disputed with Colombia)
Serranilla Bank[9] (disputed with Colombia)
Swains Island (part of American Samoa; no evidence that guano was mined. Claimed by Tokelau)
As you can see the vast majority of these islands are disputed over and there would be plenty more with the original 92 islands. This would leave the US with plenty of useless islands and political debates and the question still stands: does the US actually own these islands? We should all think about the fact that just because something seems worthwhile at the time doesn’t mean that the actions we take will be positive for our country forever.
