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In a recent flap over
environmental science textbooks, the conservative Texas state schoolbook
board refused to accept the text of one publisher until the following
statement relative to global warming was added: “In the past, the earth has been much warmer than it is now. So
does it really matter if the world gets warmer?” This, of course, is quite consonant with the view held
by that state’s First Citizen, George W. Bush. After unilaterally debunking
the Kyoto Protocol, which called on
nations to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, President Bush dismissed out of
hand the report of his own Environmental Protection Agency. This report
maintained that changes in the climate were bound to have a tremendously
destructive effect on our environment in the future. He had read the report
of the “bureaucrats,” he said rather snidely, and proceeded to relax
regulations that apply to coal-fired power plants, as well as automotive
emission standards set in place by the Clinton administration. What we must do,
declared Bush, is adapt to future climate changes and rejoice in the fact
that our winter heating bills will be lower. Or, as the Lycos Internet News
Service headline succinctly put it:
BUSH TO EARTH: DROP DEAD! Needless to say, the Earth will not drop dead, though
her inhabitants may well do just that, if they continue their rampage of
uncontrolled pollution. Try asking the people of India if it matters if the world
gets warmer. India recently lost thousands of its citizens to temperatures
between 120 and 130 degrees. Or ask those out West who lost their homes to
blazes abetted by temperatures exceeding 100 degrees. Of course it matters. And it matters to us too. It matters that we go days on end with temperatures near
100, that our vegetation turns a sickly brown and that we are reduced to
praying for a hurricane in order to replenish our water supplies. It matters that the projected loss in the Waller Mill
reservoir may well total 30 inches by October, and this even with normal
rainfall in the coming months. It matters that Williamsburg residents now
will pay a 50 cent surcharge per 1000 gallons of water so that the city can
purchase water from Newport News, and that James City may soon have to ban
all outside watering. And it matters that local farmers are worried that
their irrigation ponds will run dry and that their crops will burn up in the
fields. The fact is that we all have to bite the bullet and come
to the realization that we do not have an inexhaustible supply of water.
According to James City supervisor John McGlennon, there has been a greater
increase in the average daily use of water in the summer than the growth in
population would warrant. Much of this has to do with the introduction of
automatic irrigation systems and a constant search for the perfect lawn. As a
result of these and other drought related pressures on the system, the
pumping facilities in the county simply cannot keep up with the demand. Hence
the need for restrictions and recovery times and, in the near future,
purchasing water from Newport News. The question on the minds of many, of course, is why we
proceed apace with development, if we don’t have the water capabilities to
meet our present demands. The answer is that some projects, like the U.S.
Home development in Lightfoot, are indeed being put on hold until the permits
for a water treatment plant are granted by the state or the approval of the
King William reservoir provides additional water. Yet to some that begs the question. In fact, it’s not
unlike the idea of constructing wider highways to handle more vehicles. Just
as there’s no reason to believe that congestion in Hampton Roads will be
alleviated by widening route 64 – i.e., more lanes, more vehicles – so
there’s no reason to believe that increased water capacity will not soon be
drained by increased development. In all probability, high heat and drought conditions in
the summer will come to be the norm in our area, and, as President Bush said,
we might as well get used to it. And we probably should get used to the fact
that warmer winters create excellent growth conditions not only for ticks and
other bugs, but for plant viruses as well.
Though it may well be too late to reverse some of these
destructive trends, we all
should set our sights a bit lower
when it comes to water usage. Limit irrigation; forget the perfect lawn, and
conserve our resources with the view in mind that we simply cannot take them
for granted any longer. Does it matter that the world is getting warmer? You bet
it does. And unless harmful emissions and our extravagant use of resources
are curbed, it may matter more than you think. |
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lewleadbeater.com Copyright 2002 All Rights Reserved
email: LWL@lewleadbeater.com |
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