Water vs. Manners

originally published November 7, 2007

The following letter is in response to the person who wrote in last week so offended by the fact that her neighbor knocked on her door at 11:20 p.m. to tell her to turn off her sprinkler. [Letter “Water Wars,” Oct. 24] You are obviously ignorant of the severity of our water crisis here in Athens. As offensive as you feel it was for someone to come over so late on a school night, I find it monumentally more offensive that you (A) would have your sprinklers on at all and (B) would plead ignorance as to shutting them off.

Your letter is rife with arrogance and betrays your philosophy that the individual (you) is superior to the community (Athens and our water crisis). The idea that your sense of etiquette should be held in higher esteem than the fact that Athens will have no water in a few weeks is morally abominable. So, not to offend your sensitivities to such social trespasses, I must say “screw” your holy grail of manners that neighbors should not knock after dark. And “screw” the fact that you are above this sort of harassment because you “live in a nice neighborhood” (only poor folks should be subjected to such acts of indecorum). You obviously have no sense of your place within this community and no loyalty to this great community that you have come to inhabit. Well, welcome to Athens. Now go home.

PS: And to further offend, a word of advice: If it’s yellow let it mellow, if it’s brown flush it down.

Karen Uhlmeyer

Athens

Enviro Ethics

originally published November 7, 2007

The flooding of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina was a natural consequence of channelizing the Mississippi delta and accelerating the erosion of coastal wetlands. Had the wetlands been intact (and had the city not been built largely on drained wetlands) the devastation that followed would have been much less.

The destructive wildfires in California are a natural consequence of suppressing all fires in a system that should be burnt over every two to three years. Controlled burns in this area would clear out dry wood and other fuel and allow any wildfires to be much more easily controlled.

Likewise, the current water shortage in North Georgia is, in my opinion, a natural consequence of unsound development and global climate change. The politicians in Atlanta might be shaking their fists at mussels and people downstream in Alabama and Florida for sucking up “our” water, but this is a situation created by us that was just waiting for the right weather conditions to erupt.

Draining and development of wetlands deprives us of a natural water storage system that would help keep rainfall from moving quickly downstream. Likewise, much of our infrastructure is composed of impervious surfaces that whisk water away as it lands (think parking lots, roads, the roofs of buildings, etc.). Streams are channelized into miniature pipelines. Meanwhile we’ve cut down most of the trees that would slow the descent of rainwater, allowing it to pool and percolate into the ground rather than run off the surface of tidy lawns and into the gutters. We do not have the knowledge to predict adverse weather far in advance. We DO have the knowledge to predict the kind of negative impact caused by development without regard for natural systems. When will we decide that the old models aren’t working and it’s time for something new?

In other words, do we really need to suspend the Endangered Species Act and construct new reservoirs when a little conservation and environmental forethought would allow us to husband the water we are given?

W. Aaron Wilson

Athens

Wrong Flagpole

originally published November 7, 2007

Good morning. I was wondering if you could tell me the name of the ball on top of a flag pole?

Our school is having a contest and these kids are asking can you please help in all my 40 years I thought it was called a ball but apparently there’s a name for it.

Thank you.

Marisol Bracken

Allentown, PA

Gameday Water

originally published November 7, 2007

Okay, here it is. A plan that will allow the football games to continue and our water supply to survive.

First, all ticket holders must be well-informed that Athens citizens have taken our water crisis seriously and we expect visitors to our community to do the same. Also, UGA has made impressive moves to reduce water consumption and has plans to reduce it further in the coming months and even years. As alumni of the University, football fans should respect this and agree to support all measures that will keep our water flowing.

So here’s my list of to-do’s for football weekends:

1. Be sure that all game ticket holders are informed of our water shortage and the steps people must take to assure it keeps flowing to our homes and businesses.
2. Motels, etc. should be required to turn off the water to all rooms for most of the day. Exceptions will be from 6-8 a.m. and 6-8 p.m. Anyone who wants a shower will have to take it during those hours.
3. Motels, etc. should provide two or three gallons of bottled water - the cheap kind in gallon jugs. Any additional water that a visitor believes they need can be purchased locally or brought with them.
4. Motels, etc. should provide a bucket of water for flushing the toilet.
5. Port-a-potties will be available at the stadium and around town. The bathrooms at the stadium will be locked with appropriate signs on the doors explaining why. (The possible exception to this might be for handicapped people - some accommodation should be made for them.)
6. Motels, etc., should provide hand sanitizers in the rooms.
7. People should be encouraged to bring Handi Wipes and hand sanitizers with them.
8. Restaurants should provide hand sanitizers as well, limit the amount of water they give out and use paper containers wherever they can. Many of our local restaurants are already doing this.

These may seem harsh, however, we need to save every drop of water we can. It is the citizens of Athens who will be having their water rationed, not the football fans who breeze into town, use our resources and leave. As long as people are well informed, they should be willing to accept that rationing for guests and locals will happen sooner or later, and that sooner may stave off larger problems in the future.

I have traveled many places in the world where there have been water shortages. One very hot summer in England, we were asked by the B&Bs in which we stayed not to take showers.  It was a minor inconvenience and a request we respected.  I did not hear any complaints - only sympathy for the people who had to live with limited water for weeks to come.  It’s time we all learned to conserve our natural resources.  That means football fans as well as those of us who live here.

Elizabeth Bishop-Martin

Athens