Thirsty Planet

Blog #14

• How can you ensue that the surface and ground water in your area is safe?
• I live in an area where is this isn't as much concern as with the farms that are 20miles away from me. In Castroville, Salinas and Watsonville; I would assume they have stricter policies to keep the surface and ground water safe for their residents. You drive for miles following farms and fields. Every time pass through, you now wonder how they are feeling, are they being safe, are they keeping their communities safe, by being diligent with laws and standards to protect their water? These blogs truly make you appreciate just how fortunate you are! I also wonder as our community ages, well really some areas are already well seasoned, how our sewage system looks- this frightens me more!
• What resources in your community could you rely on?
• Monterey has an amazing EPA, Coast Guard and Aquarian staff. All these resources are vital to the preservation of our community and the communities that surround us! I feel that encouraging newer generations to stay local is a challenge, especially when they have been here for so long, but to offer an incentive to stay and to protect our valuable resources on the Peninsula would be my first step.
• Are there NGOs in your community advocating for clean water?
• Absolutely! They are everywhere, you can't walk 10feet on the beach without seeing a surveyor, locals, environmentalist and even community members, walking around cleaning streets, gutters, our beaches; anything that could lead back to the ocean and damage our water supply. I found this picture, that i remember seeing at the college I teach for and thought it was a very easy way to explain what happens. Following one of our last blogs about contamination and under privileged communities being inundated with treatment plants, I thought it would be helpful! 

• Would you be interested in becoming a "groundwater guardian" in your community?
• I love the idea of becoming more active in my community, but to be honest, I have too much between: new home owner, USF, teaching at MPC, and working as an RN full time to dedicate any more time outside. In the future when some of these have been taken off my plate, I would love to be more involved in the safety of my community!
• How would you change the policies in your area to better protect your water?
• Again I feel that in Monterey we are secluded and protected. Although I can recall that during the last election Fracking was brought to the ballet, and at first I felt that if done in a safe way, why not have a new energy source (not currently in Monterey), but then you read about everything that could go wrong, and everything that has gone wrong and how companies say one thing and do another. No apology will ever make destroyed ocean life better.
• So I guess to make a difference in my community; would be to take an active role (as active as I can) in protecting what I feel is important and valuable. Educating myself on these issues, instead of ignoring them and moving on with a ballot.

In the News: 

     North Carolina reported back in December that over 16million gallons of raw sewage spilled from an aging sewage system [photograph below]. The rush was on to protect their surrounding environment: Lake Yadkin and High Rock Lake which is the second largest in the state. I wonder how cities and states determine when new pipes are needed, how long do they last- not how long they are suppose to last.

     I would love for something to be invented that could tell you this. Some device that would sit inside/outside the walls of these pipes and send reports on strength and durability. I can only imagine something like this and how much it would cost, of course what it breaks or malfunctions. But wouldn't it be something to have a device that could well in advance warn you and an event like this could occur? 

     The photographs from the article were just heartbreaking. Because these pipes are so heavily buried and tucked beneath the ground, I imagine it would be challenging to notice even the smallest change.