[SusDet Announce] GOP wants to divert Great Lakes water to Red States

Mon May 26 16:48:59 EDT 2008

Republicans announced plans Memorial Day to pump water from the Great Lakes
through pipelines to the states that have shown the greatest loyalty to the
troops since 2001. By default, those end up being red states - who's
citizens voted Republican one or more times in the last eight years - a
heated debate that is quickly evaporating hopes of a less emotional solution
to the water problem. The plan does not include efficiency measures red
states must maintain or a cap on the amount of water that can be pumped and
could actually cause the lakes to run dry affecting shipping as well as
tourism and lives.

Environmentalists in Michigan are alarmed by what they call a theft of
natural resources they have diligently maintained while those same red
states refused to implement water conservation and environmental protection
plans recommended by water and non-profit groups for decades.

"Water welfare is ok when it benefits conservatives. This is no different
than corporate welfare. At least with corporate welfare they could claim
profits would trickle down to the rest of us" said Gillian Mead, board
supervisor of Sanislaus County Michigan.

But trickle down profits is exactly how Republicans are describing the
benefits of their water hijack plan. "Michigan doesn't support the troops,
they are pro union which is why they don't have jobs and they refuse to vote
patriotically or religiously. They don't deserve the water they have.
Besides, they are losing population while Red States are gaining population.
Obviously people want to be Republican and they ought to have water. The
water we get will actually be used to create jobs Michigan can't create
because of greedy unions. Red States want to build bottled water plants, but
we don't have water". That's what senate hound and plan ambassador Luke
Jenkins thinks. Jenkins is part of the consortium of companies led by
PepsiCo and Lennar Homes to divert the water.
Back in Michigan, there are genuine fears - "We don't have enough water as
it is. Our lake levels are dropping in some cases. We're lucky if they stay
stable, but they aren't. What we need are requirements to use waterless
urinals in new construction and waterless lawn programs to start. Many
companies are already familiar with low flow faucets but that's not enough.
We have to be much more radical". Joel MacIntyre of Sustainable Design
Associates isn't the only one who thinks that. Political activist
Stephanie Love also agrees - "this plan is completely irresponsible. A
massive, expensive pipeline to the south so they don't have to conserve.
It's no different than saying we need to invade Iran so we won't have to
drive hybrids. It's just plain stupid."

Love did say that high tension powerlines from south to north full of solar
power does make sense because the south can produce more solar electricity
than it can use. The water relocation program however, simply decrees that
water will be pumped until the lakes are dry. But Love doesn't condede to
trading solar power for water. Conservation is her main agenda. She and
others like Rocky Mountain Institute and Union of Concerned Scientists
claims 70% of all water, energy and materials are wasted by inefficient use.

Republicans who debate and deny that number are trounced as being spoiled
children who cry that they can't get by on a college allowance from their
parents of $5,000 a month. As populations increase, choices are going to
have to be made. Steal water and oil - or use it more efficiently.
Nuclear power could be the answer according to Jenkins. "If we accelerate
the melting of the polar ice caps with nuclear power and pipe that water
south before it melts into the ocean, it's cheaper than desalination and I
can still water my lawn like a normal person" said Jenkins, adding "but
liberals don't think nuclear power is good. They would rather live like
hippies in caves".

The debate over water however is not one that will run out of energy
however. Democrats have proposed a counter measure that seals off the lakes
from states that aren't tapped in now, caps useage from existing tapped
states and calls for radical water conservation well in advance for any new
state that wants to buy the water. And they plan on raising prices for that
water above what is considered normal to motivate conservation.

But even activists admit it will be hard to get that law passed in
Michigan due to "vote poisoning" from local water bottlers like PepsiCo and
Coca Cola who operate bottled beverage plants in Michigan who allegedly use
the tactic to influence local voters to vote for those who protect employer
interests thereby taking advatage of Michigan's bad economy and desperation.
They even claim that Michigan could become a red state once the last union
strongholds are reduced and locals don't see a need for Democratic party
protection. At that point, the water diversion program will be guaranteed.
Love continued: "If we don't pass laws pre-empting water theft of our lakes
or at least requiring radical conservation to be implemented by those states
who want to buy our water for a price BEFORE we sell it to them, we will
die. Period. The waste we are commiting now cannot be sustained. Radical
water conservation is the only answer and the good news is it doesn't have
to impact the quality of life we already have. Trendy green buildings have
already proved that you can live beautifully and save money and resources at
the same time. Nobody is going to have to live in a cave."

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: YERT <YERT at mail.vresp.com>
Date: Mon, May 26, 2008 at 7:54 AM
Subject: [YERT] YERTpod26: Gambling on Water in Nevada
To: ecadvocate at gmail.com

Dear YERTians,

Water is one of those topics that keeps surfacing on this trip. But unlike a
spring, we appear to be seeing the *fall* of water availability across the
country. With explosive growth in Las Vegas and equally explosive shrinkage
in Lake Mead (Vegas' water supply), the stage is set for interesting times
ahead - especially as Vegas begins trying to tap into other Nevada water
basins.

Just click here or the picture below to watch "YERTpod26: Gambling on Water
in Nevada"<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/49ce9983cf/post_id=942827#SignTop>
[image: Yp26-WaterNV]<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/da083aa4f2/post_id=942827#SignTop>

We went to the source… of the water… with Dan Greenlee, a field scientist
for the USDA's "SNOTEL<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/28482f5224>"
program. SNOTEL stands for "SNOwpack TELemetry," which is basically a system
of sensors at "over 660 remote sites in mountain snowpack zones" in the
Western United States and Alaska. This system gives scientists and policy
makers a pretty good prediction of water supplies for the coming year.

Then we rolled on to Las Vegas—a city with perhaps *the most* sensitivity to
the water supply. We all know that growing fast in a desert can be a recipe
for trouble, but Doug Bennett, Southern Nevada Water
Authority<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/e0403e0566>Conservation
Manager (we met him in Las Vegas), is working hard to put his
city on a path towards destruction… of lawns! That's right, one trick up his
water conservation sleeve is a $1.50 payment for every square foot of lawn
that residents destroy.

And, of course, we sat down with Elvis at the Viva Las Vegas Wedding Chapel
to discuss the finer points of water conservation.

In the Flow,

Ben, Mark, and Julie (and Erika)

Your YERT Team

team at yert.com

P.S. Breadcrumbs! For more information about the topics in this video, check
out the links below…

   - - SNOTEL<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/13a0eb4168>:
   From their website, The US Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources
   Conservation Service "operates and maintains an extensive, automated system
   designed to collect snowpack and related climatic data in the Western United
   States and Alaska. This system… operates over 660 remote sites in mountain
   snowpack zones."
   - - Southern Nevada Water
Authority<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/96d4f4bb7f>:
   This organization is essentially waging war against water scarcity, using a
   barrage of innovative programs including the "Water Smart Landscapes
   Rebate<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/c34cebc814>,"
   which, according to their website, pays $1.50 for "every square foot of lawn
   converted to water-smart landscaping." We even saw dedicated "lawn
   demolition" companies when we drove through town. Cool.
   - - We've tried a few composting toilets during YERT, and they really
   don't smell! And heck, why would you want to put poop into fresh drinking
   water anyway? For more information, check out the "scoop" on
wikipedia<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/5aac1dbce1>,
   and you can also watch our video "YERTpod24: Non-Invasive Ways to do
   Holidays in Hawaii<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/4d33e18511/post_id=787475#SignTop>"
   that describes the composting toilet in service at the Lova Lava
Land<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?MediaChangingMediaLL/007134e0c4/66cde0c3e2/c334f3a48e>eco-resort.

YERTYERTYERTYERTYERTYERTYERTYERTYERTYERTYERTYERTYERT

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