2007.02.12: February 12, 2007: Headlines: Figures: COS - Congo Kinsasha: Global Warming: Environment: Decatur Daily: Laura Axelrod says: Mike Tidwell’s book, “The Ravaging Tide,” forecasts grim future
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2007.02.12: February 12, 2007: Headlines: Figures: COS - Congo Kinsasha: Global Warming: Environment: Decatur Daily: Laura Axelrod says: Mike Tidwell’s book, “The Ravaging Tide,” forecasts grim future
Laura Axelrod says: Mike Tidwell’s book, “The Ravaging Tide,” forecasts grim future
An area as poor as New Orleans needed funds to pay for the engineering projects that would’ve staved off the disaster in the making. The money never arrived. This vignette is a running theme in Tidwell’s book. Manmade environmental damage in the form of disappearing wetlands is only part of the story. Coastal cities, such as New York, Miami and Baltimore, are vulnerable to damage comparable to New Orleans. Melting icecaps, already in evidence, are causing the sea to rise. Warmer ocean temperatures already are creating hurricanes of unusual strength. Author Mike Tidwell, founder of the Chesapeake Climate Action Committee, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Congo Kinshasa.
Laura Axelrod says: Mike Tidwell’s book, “The Ravaging Tide,” forecasts grim future
‘Tide’ forecasts grim future
By Laura Axelrod
Special to THE DAILY
New Orleans wasn’t always a fishbowl. Mike Tidwell’s book, “The Ravaging Tide,” tells us that the human influence on nature has brought Earth to the brink of disaster. Evidence of our impending doom was a hurricane called Katrina. Can we pull ourselves back from the precipice?
Katrina wasn’t the cause of the New Orleans disaster, of course. It began when the early French settlers dammed the Mississippi River.
Normally, shrinking soil would be replenished through flooding. The levees prevented it from happening. As a result, Tidwell says, Louisiana loses 50 acres each day to the Gulf of Mexico.
It was common knowledge in 1999, when Cajun shrimpers first told Tidwell about the problem.
Indeed, locals were keenly aware of the dangerous landscape and requested help from Washington.
An area as poor as New Orleans needed funds to pay for the engineering projects that would’ve staved off the disaster in the making. The money never arrived.
This vignette is a running theme in Tidwell’s book. Manmade environmental damage in the form of disappearing wetlands is only part of the story. Coastal cities, such as New York, Miami and Baltimore, are vulnerable to damage comparable to New Orleans. Melting icecaps, already in evidence, are causing the sea to rise. Warmer ocean temperatures already are creating hurricanes of unusual strength.
If the cold facts don’t get the reader’s attention, Tidwell has sprinkled anecdotal evidence throughout the book.
A warmer Alaska creates problems for a tiny Inupiat village that has no words for wildlife migrating towards them.
In 2005, 70 million acres of ice melted in the Artic Ocean and a large number of polar bears drowned.
A farmer reconsiders his livelihood in the face of unseasonable and unpredictable weather.
Dialogue with reader
This book is a dialogue between the author and the reader. Tidwell anticipates arguments with an articulate rebuttal.
Don’t believe global warming exists? Look at the bizarre weather patterns. Just plain skeptical about apocalyptic thinking? Read about Easter Island, a society that committed environmental suicide.
The parallels between our current situation and the self-inflicted end of the Polynesian island are astonishing.
If you are waiting for the federal government to take action, you’ll be waiting a long time.
Laced between evidence of our impending demise, Tidwell laments the lack of response by the federal government.
It’s as if the fossil fuel lobby had some kind of hold over politicians. The only solution is through individual action, and there’s plenty to do.
Tidwell’s solutions range from switching to an energy efficient refrigerator to installing a corn stove.
The ideas won’t seem radical, especially to those living in rural areas. Most importantly, his solutions will ultimately save the reader money.
The conversational tone and tightly structured arguments make this book an easy read, and a highly disturbing one. Whether you’re looking to save the Earth or just a few dollars, this book will guide you in the right direction.
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Headlines: February, 2007; RPCV Mike Tidwell (Congo Kinshasa); Figures; Global Warming; Environment; Maryland
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Story Source: Decatur Daily
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Figures; COS - Congo Kinsasha; Global Warming; Environment
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