City Watch – Politics. Perspectives. Participation.
by PHYLLIS M DAUGHERTY
CLIMATE CHANGE NOT AN EXCUSE FOR INACTION
Climate change is a normal part of evolution but has become the most-recent politically correct term for inaction and to dismiss responsibility but is highly conducive to obtaining grants and/or a bigger budget for more studies.
Studies regarding nature must relate to reality and the assimilation of noted variances in improving life or protecting it, because—in reality–we have little control over the evolution of the universe.
“Climate change” also cannot excuse failure to have all emergency response systems at peak efficiency 24-hours a day on the islands to protect both residents and visitors.
The reported availability of only three fire units and 65 emergency responders during the current massive Maui tragedy is unforgivable.
CNN reported on August 13, “On Maui, the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, there are 80 outdoor sirens to alert residents to tsunamis and other natural disasters. They sat silent as people fled for their lives.”
“In fact, the state’s vaunted integrated outdoor siren warning system – the largest in the world, with about 400 alarms – was not activated during the fires,” according to Hawaii Emergency Management Agency spokesperson Adam Weintraub.
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Thousands of feral pigs—which are not native to Hawaii–populate the islands, dig up the soil, allowing invasive highly combustible growth to kill native plants and create dry brush conditions that flourish and are ignored.
This is not a new issue, but one that has been easy to ignore because there is little interest in feral pigs/wild boars; however, the government’s lack of preparation and excusing its failure to respond and attributing the losses in property and lives to “climate change” must stop when there is evidence of gross human error and the need to manage an important problem.
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