There's a book called "The Elephant in the Living Room" that
suggests that American's addiction to automobiles is like a dead ,
rotting elephant in the living room that is nearly impossible to ignore,
but nobody has the courage to talk about...I would just like to bring up
as a topic , a big piece of that taboo subject - Global Warming.
As the January temperatures here in Minneapolis climb back into the
'30's and 40's , and the thin crust of ice on our Chain of Lakes melts
away , we can no longer be in denial about Climate Change and our part
in creating the problem. We are burning more and more fossil fuels ,
creating more and more CO2 and other greenhouse gasses. Burning a gallon
of gasoline creates 19.6 lbs. of CO2 , using this computer for an hour
creates .64 lb of CO2.
I've heard people say that warmer than usual temperatures in January
is a good change...but will they welcome above average temperatures in
July? For some people who prize comfort and convenience above all , not
having to shovel snow is wonderful ...but the lack of precipitation ,
if it continues may turn their lawns and gardens brown in the Spring.
Global Warming is unlikely to cause any serious problems here in
Minneapolis in the near future. Like the proverbial frog in the frying
pan we will adjust to the slowly changing climate until it's too
late...but in other parts of the world , the heat is being turned up
very quickly...In the Pacific island nation of Tuvalu , the rise in sea
level has intensified storms and caused salt water intrusion into their
drinking water , killing crops and coconut trees....last year , the
entire nation of Tuvalu , ten thousand people asked New Zealand and
Australia to accept them as environmental refugees (www.tuvalu.f2s.com).
And what is the Minneapolis response to Global Warming? We are
financing the building of parking ramps and widening roads...encouraging
the use of more fossil fuel burning cars. From the perspective of
Tuvalans (and future generations of Minnesotans) it doesn't look too
good...to put it mildly.
I would like to see the City of Minneapolis become a leader in the
reduction of greenhouse gas emissions...I would like to see a moratorium
on the building of infrastructure for cars and the money saved invested
in making the city more pedestrian friendly (plowing sidewalks for
instance) housing and mass transit.
-Avidor
Kingfield
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