Re: [Paddlewise] Quiet Guilt

>> Some scientests are now saying that corals may be
>> largely gone in 25 years
>> due to global
>> warming!!!!  
>
>If we lose coral, it will be due to pollution, not
global warming.

Today I heard on NPR that 2 years ago 10% of the world's 
coral was dead.  It's now 27%!  It's been looked at
      extensively and the overwhelming evidence points to warming.
For example, corals grow producing coral growth rings which
can reflect growing conditions.  Looking at these rings and
counting back thousands of years shows current El Nino's
at twice the historic rates.  These are currently much 
more frequent than ever before.  These are also likely
to be more extreme as well. 
  
>You may take some comfort in that for every scientist
>advocating a concern for global warming, they're is
>another scientist who says there is no such thing 

That is simply not true.  Much has been learned about
the problem in just the last 5 to 10 years and the evidence
really is overwhelming.  The scientests that I have 
heard speak on global warming strongly have refuted 
this equality of proponents.  You will now be hard-
pressed to find a reputable scientist that won't admit 
that it now appears likely that global warming is here.

>>....  Warm currents in
>> 1997 disrupted
>> the food chain resulting in a shift in feeding
>> habits of key preditors
>> which saw the
>> otter as suddenly worth their effort.  Global
>> warming seems to be here and
>> impacting
>> sea kayaking,too.  
>
>That was a short term phenomona.  There is a normal
>variation in short term weather patterns.  It has
>nothing to do with global warming.

When the sea otter were virtually wiped out in SE
Alaska and BC the same thing happened to the kelp
forests.  Dispite our best efforts, these forests
are not back in anywhere near historic levels.  Once 
this ecosytem is disrupted, it will take a long time to
recover (unlikely in several lifetimes).

>> I use a push mower and put in an ecolawn.
>
>What is an ecolawn?

It's a lawn mix developed here at Oregon State.  It
has numerous unobtrusive wild flower seeds mixed in
with grass seed.  It gives a nice texture to a lawn
and requires much less watering. 
http://www.nicholsgardennursery.com/store/dept.asp?dept%5Fid=80&mscssid=W07C
1QJUVSS12MNX000GQ3U2QHX6C2W2

At 02:26 AM 12/9/00 -0800, Tom wrote:
>> kevin_at_yourplanetearth.org wrote:
>> ...I personally feel a lot of guilt
>> > from driving all the time to go kayaking, and I
>> wonder if any others on this
>> > list feel the same way?
>
>Nah, used to when I was young and idealistic. 
>Bothered me alot.  Made me feel bad.  Got over it. 
>Feel better now.  Besides, you have enough guilt for
>both of us, so I don't have to feel any.

I don't like guilt trips.  But, I also don't like sticking
my head in the sand.  To bring this back to seakayaking,
we need to do as much as we feel comfortable doing and 
then do a little more still.  I plan to paddle along reefs
from time to time and hope that they are here for millions
of more years.  Unfortunately, the masses in this country
don't show much will to manage problems until crisis strikes.
And government is always two steps behind the public.
Serious, sensable ecologists have been marginalized by
conservatives and industrial spinmasters.


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