Marc Reisner
Viking Penguin Incorporated.
Reviewed by Max Casebeau CEEI Director
<www.ceei-climate.org>
(THE GOVT AGENCIES THAT DELIVERED THE WATER TO MAKE THE WEST GROW . .
WERE SET UP BY PRESIDENTS TEDDIE AND FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT.
PERHAPS A NEWER
EDITION SHOULD BE RETITLED.?HOW TO SAVE THE PLANET?(a detailed account
of what to do and not do to preserve the USA Canada and
ELSEWHERE/)
Baring aliens landing with a magic wand, author Marc Reisner
has managed
to write a book twenty years ahead of it's time, (twenty years ago) .
In it, he describes the beginnings ,
the middle, and the end of public water policy gone amok, and in need of
fixing and re energizing. He also included a civil engineering plan that
would probably make the west, the central and the eastern part of the
The Bureau of Reclamation and the Corps or Engineers are included as the
shiftyest govt agencies in
Wash DC, (for the last 100 years). It
documents every big deal, big dam that was ever built. It dissects those
participants that allowed the
includes the
it describes how water policy was developed from mythological basis to a
dollar and sense to perpetuate a water policy whether it cost $50 a or
$350 Dollars an acre foot, the final price was always the same, $3.50 an
acre foot. (The taxpayers always picked up their balance). UNFORTUNATELY
IT LEFT OUT MUCH OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE LIKE THE destruction of
wetlands, the fisheries, in the
THE ROCKIES.
Specifically and unintentionally left out was the mention of climate
change and what to do about it.(It wasn't a problem
then). At the end of
the book it talks about NAWAPA , THE NORTH AMERICAN
WATER AND POWER
ALLOCATION. ( it turns out that Parsons Engineering of
Pasadena
California a civil engineering company was responsible. (The owner set
up a non- profit to keep this breath taking idea alive. It turns out
that nearly every country now has an ambious water
reclamation plan).
Its no secret that the entire western
notion that BIG hydro electric dams, or small dams and tiny dams were
what the west needed to develop. For the last 100 years there wasn't a
politician, rancher, farmer, or auto dealer, doctor or lawyer or
publisher, or banker, that wasn't for it. Now that the west
has been in
drought, as well as been on fire in LA county and in
animals as well as livestock are in trouble, all solutions "are on the
table ".
It seems that NAWAPA grandiose water plans to move millions of acre feet
south from British Columbia and Alaska to Canada, the Great lakes,
the Mississippi the states of Washington and Oregon to be transferred
via tunnels and aqueducts to California, Mexico. are
feasible. It will
produce its own power to move most of the water and then some.
Included are all of those seven plains states that have been pumping
ground water (Ogallala aquifer) for the past 100 years to produce farm
surpluses from ?the nations bread basket?.The Canadians still need
income, and they may need NAWAPA water too.
not a steady income).
The NAWAPA. MAYBE USEFUL IN THE
FUTURE. given that it was conceived
before climate change was an acceptable word and since we don’t know what
the planet has in store for us, we might as well have a plan that we can
be either for or against. at least we might get a
planet out of the deal.
It is very possible that energy users will have to change their ways
too. ( energy bills would only cost 1/2 as much. if we
all learned now
how to conserve., (use household aux solar panels and 12 volt systems as
well.).
If past is prolog then a few more comments about what should be in the
next
shouldn’t and should do.
If it takes 50,000 gallons of water to produce 1 lb of beef, maybe we
should learn to eat beans for protein instead. The world will get warmer
and the water supply is becoming an iffy question. ask
the Gov Perdue of
supply, and are like the west, in drought too.)
If truth be known Oct. 16 2007, was the day that 48 states were
officially in drought ALL AT
ONCE. (Check out the U.S. Drought Monitor. this
is the 8th year of
western drought).
Maybe a prioritized NAWAPA would make sense. First we need to go back to
school and relearn how to grow crops (drip irrigation). Get into home
solar energy, and up date our thinking about using light bulbs that pay
for them selves. That might reduce our immediate needs for more power.
Then combine the Corp of Engineers or the Bureau of Reclamation to TAKE
OUT unnecessary DAMS WHERE THE CHANCES for reestablishing the salmon and
wetlands for wild life and birds, and fisheries are good. (
Instead of
taking, its time to start putting).
As for the existing dams and the silt and salt problems, there are
dredging companies that would gladly send a proposal using electricity
to pump out all the silt you want. Sell this resulting top soil (less
salt) goes to all the local nurseries. In other words plant your own
food in your back yard and stop complaining. At least you have a planet
to live on. and fresh safe food and a healthier life
style.
This NAWAPA might stop this insane era of perpetuating California Corp
farmer millionaires, California corporation billion airs, politicians,
and voters that are never satisfied (at the expense of everyone else.)
As Reisner says: "Some time in the future
maybe in my life time, the
American West will go back to the future, than forward to the past".
Now if you substitute climate change for the future drought. You get the
idea.
( at the moment the Blackrock Dam in eastern
proposed/ Reason
water shortage the city of
evaporator / condenser).
________________________________________________________
Sources? Hundreds of footnotes.
Praise : from Thousands of educated readers.
Unfortunately author Marc Reisner died of cancer in 2000.
schematic of the NAWAPA proposal available from <ceei@cox.net>
_______________________________________________