Comments parkprotector has made

  • Grandma's Green Home

    Let's see. Grandma is a medical billing clerk in Florida, with an $850,000 home waiting for her in Hilton Head...along with federal and state income taxes on the total fair market value of her willings, annual property taxes on an assessed value of at least $850,000 at 4%, the cost of moving, and the need to find a new job. While I love watching HGTV, I have to ask how could anyone living on the income of a medical billing clerk afford to keep such a home. It seems unfair and, perhaps, downright cruel to offer such a  prize that, when won, is still out of reach.
    On HGTV sets her up in sweet South Carolina digs posted 1 year, 5 months ago 2 Responses

  • Texas sidestep

    Based on a White House press release today calling for increased offshore drilling, it appears the distance McCain has moved from the Bush administration can only be measured in inches.. Maybe he's learning a new dance...the Texas Sidestep (from the movie "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas) from the experts on Pennsylvania Avenue. Make a PC speech that makes everything a priority, then promote a thinly-disguised course of business as usual. Continued crisis management and short-sighted planning have gotten us where we are, but are not going to protect our country's future. On McCain calling for offshore drilling, renewables, and conservation in energy speech posted 1 year, 5 months ago 2 Responses

  • Floodplain Construction

    Unfortunately, developers along the Mississippi are not alone in their preference for money over safety or the best interests of the consumer and the local communities. Here in Sacramento, a city named second most likely to experience a devastating flood after New Orleans, floodplains immediately adjacent to levees are covered with new executive homes, condos, shopping centers, and even Arco Arena. Never mind that these levees don't meet the Corps' current standards for flood protection or that the water table is so high that contractors have to place pumps in the trenches when installing utility lines. But all the blame shouldn't fall on the developers. City and county commissioners and supervisors consistently ignore recommendations from their planning and public works departments that warn against approving residential construction in these areas. And to all those real estate agents and promoters who promise buyers that "the likelihood of flooding is really very small", I would ask..."Would you want your family to live there?".On Fifteen years after the Great Flood of 1993, floodplain development is booming posted 1 year, 8 months ago 3 Responses

  • Farmers Markets

    Why isn't anyone pointing out the value (and potential) of the farmer's market? Most urban areas are ripe for a reliable farmer's market with organic, local, fresh fruits, vegetables, cheese, breads, etc., as well as byproducts such as wool and local crafts. Our area is even looking into a year-round, indoor/outdoor venue that offers the potential for a sustainable income to local farmers and artists. With the cost of fuel and increased interest in all things healthy and green, now is definitely the time for the Grange, Ag Extensions, and other organizations that serve the agricultural community to actively promote all viable alternatives.On Thoughts on the NODPA/Stonyfield debate over organic dairy posted 1 year, 8 months ago 13 Responses

  • Water Woes

    GonzoDon is right on target. Water is taken for granted, especially by those who have always lived at the end of a city water main. No one thinks twice about long showers, filling a swimming pool, or letting the water run down the gutter when cleaning your sidewalk or washing your car. Even those who have lived through water rationing only think of it as a temporary inconvenience...not a lifestyle.

    I live in central California and I see the dry lakes and reservoirs every day. Many in the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys are at 24% of normal and one good snowpack isn't going to solve the problem of too much demand and too little planning. Building permits continue to be issued in water districts that can't even meet current demand and more people are moving to the area every day. But more dams are not being built and recharge areas for the aquifers are being paved over.

    As an environmental planner, I see, first hand, the inability or outright refusal of governments and developers to look beyond the end of their terms or pocketbooks. It is a lethal combination of ignorance, greed, political ambition, and blind faith that "science" will solve all problems. And, unfortunately, most cities, counties, and individuals will only act with 20/20 hindsight after they start pumping mud. On Climate change leading to water shortages in U.S. West, says study posted 1 year, 9 months ago 5 Responses