Water is a part of our environment and if the last 100 years have shown us anything, they have proven that water cannot be completely contained by human-made structures. Perhaps we have gotten a b.t ahead of ourselves in our engineering. I recently read a story that stated the Mississippi is 1/3 of its width and several feet higher than it was before the lock-dam-and levee systems currently in use were constructed some 100 years ago plus more recent modifications. That is a lot of water to change that drastically.
So what is my problem? Well, my understanding of human history gives the majority of wins to nature – not humankind. Constraining a river like the Mississippi to those parameters gives me images of the first 30 minutes of any disaster flick. Everyone lives around the source of the disaster thinking they are in harmony with it and that nature has been conquered. The people in the movie then get an immersion re-education (no pun intended) starting at 28-40 minutes into the film. See “When Time Ran Out” trailer.
Now- we have levee breaks, catastrophic flooding, sewer backups, failed infrastructure, and basements filling with water. How do we stop this?
Here are some things we can do at home:
- Make sure there is plant-life growing everywhere you can.
- Install a rain-barrel to divert some rainwater out of our sewage system and use that water to irrigate your yard or garden.
- Daylight-drain your gutter downspout. I say this with some caution- not near the house. Drain it into the yard several feet from the house and make sure the ground doesn’t slope back toward the house.
- Reduce artificial irrigation whenever possible. The more saturated your soil, the more likely it will not take much water in rainstorms and that water will be diverted into your basement or into the sewage system (back to the river).
- Avoid unecessary water use (use water-saver appliances and make sure the DW or washing machine is FULL when you use it).
- Install a vegetative (or green) roof. This does not mean you have to do it all at once! Put ONE plant on your roof and see if it is something you can keep up with. Then expand!
Here are some things we can do locally/regionally:
- Encourage that new buildings be required to use sustainable building practices.
- Encourage others in the responsible use of water.
- Meet with local leaders to discuss ways to return the watershed to more traditional levels.
Here are some things we can do nationally:
- Stop building in flood plains
- Stop thinking levees will prevent flooding (you know who you are STL County Engineers!) See Gumbo Flats…I mean, Chesterfield Valley.
- Encourage vertical living and responsible land use.
- Stop beating up on the Core of Engineers for doing what they were asked to by the People! Work to solve the lock-dam-levee problems.
- Spend money to improve infrastructure. Yes- I said spend money. Probably tax money. Probably tax money from NEW taxes. This is how we built the infrastructure in the first place. It is now out of date and must be renovated.
- Stop looking for who’s to blame and start fixing the problems.
The only way we are going to get ahead of our problems is with action. Do it nationally, do it locally, do it at your house. Every little bit is a step in the right direction.
