Why
is this news?
Ok…
stay with me… I know, it’s the Grand Canyon and all. I get the
importance and significance. That’s not what I mean.
A
recap first.
The
Grand Canyon is in trouble. And the National Parks Conservation
Association wants us to know about it. Now… right off the bat…
I think it’s pretty fair to say that when the “National Parks
Conservation Association” is telling you about a study that says
the future and beauty of a national park is in grave danger, you
should consider the source. I’m not saying they’re wrong… just
that they might have a set of pom-poms ready and a seat picked
out on one specific side as the big debate approaches.
To
paraphrase the article, threats from outside the park: air pollution
and water pollution (such as from mining operations up river).
And inside the park: site specific tours (air pollution and noise
from planes overhead).
Now…
when you consider all sorts of things, I really wonder why the
noting of the Grand Canyon itself is so important.
- Haven’t
we seen articles about how water supplies are being destroyed
or at least compromised by waste and tainted runoff in all
sorts of places? Sure we have. (There are those great ones
where they talk about the fields of corn, where the corn is
being grown for more efficient and environmentally friendly
fuel options, and yet the agriculture is causing runoffs into
water. And then there are the ones where the bottled water
actually has drugs in it from runoff. Beautiful.)
- Haven’t
we seen the garbage patches in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans…
or the tires dumped to create artificial reefs?
- Haven’t
we seen planes, trains and automobiles create all sorts of
environmental havoc in big cities?
I
mean… let’s control the list and stop here, because it could go
on forever. But wastewater, air pollution and noise… oh my! Seems
to me that Grand Canyon or not, this is hardly a new road folks.
And
yet, I decided to read the full article. And… the cynic in me
wavered. (Just a little bit.)
Apparently
this report mentions how funding for the parks has led to neglect,
such as poorly maintained roads and trails. Also, that the lack
of funding has made it difficult to properly staff the parks.
The
report goes on to talk about how changes along the Colorado River
have hit the canyon area… with specifics about native wildlife,
erosion concerns, and climate changes that aren’t being attributed
to global warming.
Have
I read the actual report? No, I haven’t. But I have to say… as
someone that likes to ask questions when people start raising
the alarms… with a reading of information from an article, this
one has me impressed. There seem to be specifics… and not specifics
that say it hasn’t been this warm in 5,000 years, must be the
cars we drive.
I’ve
said it before and I’ll say it again… we can all treat the planet
better. Clean up our trash… at least try to recycle… make some
small efforts. And in this case, it does seem that many considerations
are being thrown out the window, and a direct line of cause and
effect is being established. People and companies are behaving
in a way that damages the area.
And
that may just be worthy of our attention. (Well… ok… it is worthy
of our attention. But this might not be an opportunistic rant
delivered with slides of polar bears.)