Written by Alan Webb,
8th grade student at Carmel Middle School
Notes Summary & Plan of Action
Our Resources
Many of earth's resources are used for the growing energy demand of our world. This category includes the fossil fuels, solar, wind, water, nuclear, geothermal, and biomass energy sources we rely on every day. The nonliving resources can be further divided into two main groups of resources; nonrenewable and renewable resources. Nonrenewable resources cannot be replaced by nature. At least, not in a practical amount of time. Once they're gone, they're gone. We put minerals and fossil fuels under this category. Renewable resources include the ones that will continue to be replenished by nature such as water, wood and soil.As Mecklenburg County continues to grow so does our population and our reliance on our resources. The problem is that our resources are not growing along with us. Our nonrenewable resources, and in particular the ones we use for energy, are being consumed more rapidly than ever before. Very soon we will no longer be able to rely on these resources for we will have completely consumed them. But wait, it gets worse. Because of our growing population there is also a greater demand for usable land. Only one third of the earth is land, and nearly 70 percent of that land is not usable for farming. So as the population grows there is more demand for living space and also more demand for farmland, all at the same time! Also, soil takes a very, very long time to be replaced even though it is renewable. It takes up to 1000 years to replaces only 2.5 centimeters of soil that has been lost. Also we are constantly removing trees faster than they regrow for land and economic reasons. Mecklenburg has many streams and creeks and Duke Energy has created several reservoirs on the Catawaba River. Contrary to common belief, Mecklenburg has for some time been a primarily rural area and we must strive to protect our rural resources and open land. We must also become aware of the chemicals and gases we release into the air every day from our factories and automobiles and work to clean up our act.
Mecklenburg County
First I will give you a brief history of Mecklenburg County. Contrary to common belief, Mecklenburg County was mostly rural until the mid 1900's. Before 1740 this land was occupied by the Catawba Indiana Tribe. At that time, however, Scot-Irish settlers came to the area. The area progressed over the next few decades with the people living mainly in log cabins. It was during the Ante-Bellum period when the artisans and skilled workers came to the area. The area became a backwater farming area and for many decades. North Carolina even became known as the Rip-Van-Winkle State for it's incredibly slow progress. After the Civil War, however, the Reconstruction era rebuilt the economy on the cotton gin. With it the agriculture industry grew. Now, in modern times, our economy is booming and we are growing so rapidly that sprawl is becoming an issue in our area. The many rural properties in the area that are our only standing reminders of the past are being threatened by development. Now lets look and see what's being done to help preserve our land and rural properties.
Pollution
Pollution is a very broad topic. Lets start at the very beginning. Pollution can best be defined as the release of substances into the environment that changes the environment for the worse. Pollution can be divided into air, water, and land pollution. From there each category breaks into many types of pollution.
Land
Land pollution is caused from obtaining and using certain energy sources and includes hazardous, radioactive and solid wastes. Hazardous waste caused mainly by factories the produce fuels and petrochemicals from petroleum and obtaining and using energy resources and are defined as the wastes that can harm living things. When these chemicals are not disposed of properly they can seep out into the environment at which point they can become a very serious health concern. Radioactive wastes are the byproduct of producing nuclear energy. Radioactive material can be very dangerous and even deadly to humans and the environment is not properly disposed. The problem is that they have a far longer half-life than it is practical to safely store them. And finally there are the solid wastes from agriculture, commercial and household materials that have become useless or unwanted. The problem is that there isn't enough room to dispose of it all.
Air
Then there is air pollution. When fossil fuels are burned, two types of pollution result. Temperature inversions cause the pollutants that usually rise with warm air to become trapped under cooler air, causing smog. Smog can be very harmful to humans and plants. It can irritate the eyes and make breathing difficult. Enough exposure to the chemicals in smog can be deadly.Another area where people least expect pollution is indoors. It is becoming a serious problem. Cigarette smoke, chemicals in air fresheners and cleaners and gases given off from gas appliances, wood burning and kerosene stoves are some of the main contributors to the problem. When buildings are heavily insulated that can also contribute to indoor air pollution by helping prevent the harmful gases and fumes to escape. Obviously this becomes a health risk to those that spend a reasonable amount of time inside their cars, homes, office buildings, stores and even airplanes. When droplets of sulfur and nitrogen oxides are released into the atmosphere from automobiles and factory smokestacks that burn fossil fuels, they combine with water vapor to form nitrogen and sulfuric acids. These are some of the strongest acids known to man. These chemicals can then be blown far from the origin and precipitate. At that point they become harmful to plant life and water sources
Water
Which brings us to our last general area of pollution, water pollution. The acid rain that comes from burning fossil fuels (discussed above) becomes an even more serious issue when it precipitates and enters the water cycle. It kills plants and fish in the immediate area and then, by groundwater and the water cycle, will spread throughout the entire water cycle. But that's not the only way that fossil fuels pollute the water. During strip mining and ocean drilling, they can leak and spill out into the environment. Unfortunately, sometimes oil tankers run aground and spill large amounts of oil into the ocean. Accidents like this can kill many organisms and even close down beaches.Similar problems occur with hazardous wastes, sewage, and runoff from agricultural chemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers, which can alter the growth in lakes for the worse. Sewage and hazardous wastes obviously also pose a serious risk to humans and all animal and plant life if allowed to leak into a water source. The problem with these however is that they are more prone to escape into the environment because they are intended to be used outside, because of leaks in sewage systems or because of " midnight dumping" (the illegal dumping of hazardous wastes).
Another problem most people do not consider is the temperature rise water discharge from nuclear power plants cause in lakes. This temperature change can be devastating to any organisms that need a very specific water temperature to survive. All of these things I have discussed are interconnected. If either land, air or water is polluted all are affected. Any one type of pollution can lead to another and often does.
Conservation
The obvious solution is to use less chemicals, fossil fuels, and land and reuse as much waste as possible. All good ideas, but it's not that simple. Our society today relies heavily on the energy and products from fossil fuels, pesticides and fertilizers for their yards, energy from nuclear power, and well, the list goes on. And at the same time we really on the clean air, fresh usable and drinkable water, and fertile soil that they pollute. It is a complicated issue with nothing less than a complicated solution.
Sprawl
There is first, the issue of the growing demand for usable land. In order to maintain the earth's usable land and accommodate our demand for more farming and living space we must plan and maintain our land very carefully. Mecklenburg County has been a mainly rural county for many years and in order to preserves our open space we need to find a way to let Mecklenburg County continue to thrive and develop without destroying our precious rural resources and open space.
I have done significant research to create several possible design options to better manage our land. I will use the land behind my home that was recently developed with very little respect for the environment. To begin the project they first took the bulldozers and cleared all the area. Leaving only a thin row of trees protecting the creek. Then they proceeded to pack as many homes into the land as possible. Open space design, co-housing, mass transit, student co-ops, urban housing communities, residential land trust and eco-villiages, along with very careful planning are some of the more popular ideas in use today that could have been used to better develop our land. The problem, you see, is quite simple. There is a need for more housing, the economy is good, and developers want to make a buck off of sprawl. In order to make more efficient use of the land you must make it worth the developers' while. Do you really blame them? Open space design seems to be one of our best options to solve this problem. You take a large area of land and plan it carefully to make the best use of the land instead of going right in and chopping everything down. Then you develop only a portion of it with housing. But then the developer has no reason to do this and make less money so you have to make it worth it by adding high density housing in the smaller area and leaving the rest open.
It seems like a perfect plan. SO LET'S GET OUT AND DO IT! Wrong. With all things that seem to good to be true, there is always a catch. For this kind of example to work certain conditions need to be present. First of all, whenever you create higher density housing there is more traffic. Because of its location between two neighborhoods and an apartment complex, it is not in good access to roads and would create a terrible problem with traffic. This example should be combined with a good strong mass transit program to succeed. And you would need people who are willing to give up their manicured lawns and private houses to go live in a group. All people would not enjoy this type of setting. Also, because it is right next to a neighborhood, we don't want to get up every morning to the nice pretty view of a co-housing development. Then there is the fundamental problem that the zoning in the area may simply prohibit high-density housing! The open space design/co-housing mix may be a perfect combination but not in this area.
Luckily, there is another option. In this case you the option is available to make use of the land, use less of the land and make the same amount or money by shaping the housing around an amenity of some sort to raise the land value. Therefore, you sell fewer lots for more money and have less demand on the roads. The amenities in the center can range from a small park to a golf course. If the economy is good, there will be people looking to pay more for housing around the amenities will leaving the park or what not in the center to nature. Isn't that clever?
Now, you see, we have made everyone happy and even helped save the environment. There is still the problem of getting these new people to work and soccer practice and back home every day. The problem in Charlotte is getting people to give up their sacred cars for a bus, or rail. It is not an easy problem to solve but we cannot simply keep adding more roads or we will end up like Atlanta. We give the people incentive to give up that trusty old car and ride the bus. The key is incentive. As long as it is easier and less expensive to drive the car, they will.
One more option that is always available is a land trust or easement. The idea of a land trust is to give the owner of the land tax incentive to sell the land to someone who will forever protect it from development. In an easement the owner may sell the land anyone so long that the new owner complies with the easement which would say which parts of the land may never be built on.
Land
In addition to urban programs it is necessary that we get make the best use of farmland. To do so methods such as a crop rotation, contour plowing and strip cropping to prevent depletion or making to land useless after only a short time and wind breakers and terracing to prevent wind and water erosion. Also, irrigation can be used to make more usable farmland.In addition to these methods to make the best use of our land, land reclamation can be used to restore land that has been lost to strip mining. It is important that all of these things be used cooperatively to manage our land better to keep the natural balance that we have disturbed.
Waste Management
Along with the greater need for land, a growing population has more trash. From solid waste to hazardous waste it is a big problem. Unfortunately there are not very many solutions. Sanity landfills are used to help better dispose of many hazardous wastes and there are many recycling programs for certain materials and especially for construction and demolition waste. Radioactive waste is another problem that has no practical solution from the ones that exist, such as shooting rockets to the moon or deep-sea barrels. All you can do is hide them away safely and hope for a solution soon. In addition to better waste management programs, it is essential to educate the public to make the best use of their materials and use less.
Air
Most of the pollution in the atmosphere is from the burning of fossil fuels in factories and automobiles. There have been many improvements in technology that have come a long way in the fight against air pollution. More efficient cars and scrubber devices in factories have helped to reduce the output of harmful sulfur and nitrogen oxides. Indoor pollution can only be corrected by cooperation in the public to be smart about products used indoors and gas appliances, emphasize smoking bans, and the rest is up to technology to improve ventilation, gas appliances and insulation to reduce the number of harmful chemicals in the household.
Water
This is another problem that is a difficult issue to solve. The problem this time is not so much finding a solution but implementing it. All of the other problems facing our environment contribute to water pollution. Acid rain (discussed above), poor waste management, and growing demands on land all put pressure on our water sources, and pretty much all for the same reason. Any wastes not stored properly and agricultural and industrial runoff of hazardous chemicals can leek into the water system and become a threat to the environment. Chemical and oil spills, oil-drilling operations, sewage leaks and strip mining all contribute to the problem. Part of the problem from industrial chemicals is illegal dumping (see midnight dumping above). The only way to solve these issues are strong law enforcement and ever-improving cleanup technology.Also, related to growth and development, a greater need for land has caused developers to build far to close to rivers, lakes, and streams causing a higher and more dangerous flood line and causing them to become more polluted (for obvious reasons). Government officials have found a solution to this problem by inforcing a law that requires a buffer of forest of a certain width between the water and homes.
It is necessary for all people to be educated about this very broad topic and take action. Even the little things in the home to save electricity and water, such as washing the car less and turning down the thermostat will help. But it will also require massive support by the government and developers to balance our land use, and conserve our resources wisely for future generation.