Too much cement is not helpful in flooding
I can't help but feel horrible for Houston and SE Texas. It reminds me so much of Hurricane Andrew. The difference seems to be the flooding. Other than coastal areas, I don't remember so much flooding. Our problem was more wind damage.
I know so many people don't believe in global warming being a man-made issue. But there is a very apparent issue that is man-made and that is the cementing in of wetlands, or even front lawns and in the long run, all this over-development will hurt us in Coconut Grove and South Florida.
I hear on the news that one reason Houston is so flooded is because they don't have any zoning laws. There is so much more cement due to development and land that would have absorbed the water is now cemented over. In New Orleans, they have developed and built on wetlands. There is land that needs to be clear. Everywhere, including Miami.
In Houston, you can have a house next to an oil rig, next to a skyscraper next to a farm. There is too much cement where there should be land, which would absorb the excess water.
One answer to the flooding in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, would have been to reclaim the wetlands and relocate those who were displaced, rather than rebuild right in the same place. One day, insurance companies are not going to be able to afford all these disasters. And that should be something South Floridians think about.
We are being cemented over.
When these new homes go up in Coconut Grove and cover 80% of the lot, removing trees and covering so much of the land, will that be a threat if we are hit with a massive hurricane and lots of rain? There is now more cement on these lots than there were in the past. So where water would have been absorbed, there is no place for it to go now.
Just a thought.
I know so many people don't believe in global warming being a man-made issue. But there is a very apparent issue that is man-made and that is the cementing in of wetlands, or even front lawns and in the long run, all this over-development will hurt us in Coconut Grove and South Florida.
I hear on the news that one reason Houston is so flooded is because they don't have any zoning laws. There is so much more cement due to development and land that would have absorbed the water is now cemented over. In New Orleans, they have developed and built on wetlands. There is land that needs to be clear. Everywhere, including Miami.
In Houston, you can have a house next to an oil rig, next to a skyscraper next to a farm. There is too much cement where there should be land, which would absorb the excess water.
One answer to the flooding in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, would have been to reclaim the wetlands and relocate those who were displaced, rather than rebuild right in the same place. One day, insurance companies are not going to be able to afford all these disasters. And that should be something South Floridians think about.
We are being cemented over.
When these new homes go up in Coconut Grove and cover 80% of the lot, removing trees and covering so much of the land, will that be a threat if we are hit with a massive hurricane and lots of rain? There is now more cement on these lots than there were in the past. So where water would have been absorbed, there is no place for it to go now.
Just a thought.
posted by Tom Falco at 9:00 AM
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