Rising Seas, Sinking Cities, and the Remaking of the Civilized World
080120: every year in february i visit my mom’s hometown of waimea, kauai, where she and dad now have a condo. on the beach. so far we have had no tsunamis or hurricanes to wipe out the town, though the last two hurricanes did some damage. this is nothing compared to the future in this book, for the town is mostly less than two metres above sea level... even in the kindest projected rise it will be gone in hundred years or less...
i also recognize the desire for people who want to stay in low-lying areas, people who want to visit the water, because that is my desire. i have been going to the islands virtually every year of my life. family who have lived there for centuries. this is home. and according to this book and much accepted science, things are going to change irrevocably, so sea-level rise has very personal dimension to me. it is not like i am happy to have fears confirmed. i am angry but must accept my own role as well. i did not know about global climate change as a child... now i do, yet i still live comfortably north american life, still fly to the islands...
forgive me, future. the call of home is still too strong...
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