I watched a report that illustrated how difficult doing the right thing can be. As soon as I find the link I'll post it. What impressed me was how journalists presented it in a very objective way. I will briefly summarize:
Small adjoining villages in Portugal are having a drought problem. Local farmers are blaming the tourists of the "big resort, who are stealing their water".
The big resort is relatively small with a big pool for the tourists. In an effort to conserve water, they stopped watering the grounds, which are yellow and dry.
Many locals have a backyard mini farm where they grow their own veggies and have some livestock for their own consumption but can no longer do so due to drought.
Another smaller resort has chosen to go the recycled eco self-sustaining way. They offer small apartments, a rainwater pond, all timber was recycled and it's self sustained.
Then came an increasing number of wildfires which are blamed on a eucalyptus plantation up the mountain (highly flammable), which almost destroyed the village. The timber used to build the ecofriendly apartments scorched from the heat.
But the income from the resorts allowed the village to hire two full time staff to work on fire prevention in the forests. The pools became an evacuation point during the worst of it.
Find the problem. Implement the solution. Create another problem. Start all over.
It is circular and ironic that the income from these hated tourists allowed these villages to survive. It also showed how complicated this type of problem solving can be, as well as showing that even self-sustaining villages will need assistance from the government after all in order to thrive despite climate change.
I think drought reshapes human habitation more than anything. Whole cities have been abandoned all over the world throughout history due to drought. Human development without regard to the climate, changing or not, and the water tables is a recipe for disaster. Why oh why do they continue to develop the desert areas in the West in this country. I guess these communities will be abandoned in the not too distant future. Critical mass and all.
ReplyDeleteCodex: This is portugal. Great for growing food until now. Where are people going to go? Many reasons that people leave, but wanted to make the point that even eco friendly is sometimes just greenwashing.
ReplyDeleteLiving in Metro Phoenix, our whole Metropolis shouldn't even exist, especially at the growth rate, it may have to not exist in the very near future due to Water shortages and burgeoning population on a fragile Ecosystem. I'd seen Portugal was under very bad drought and a documentary did mention the Eucalyptus planting being problematic, they planted a lot of them in Arizona too, but they're not as invasive here as Portugal it seems. Climate Change is Global so everywhere will have to eventually come up with some viable solutions, where else can we go?
ReplyDeleteCodex: From a moral pov you're probably right. But many people live in areas that are about to become very difficult. Public service needs to step in. Which documentary did you watch, might have been the same one.
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