On Wednesday, November 5, 2014, the Word Witch posted her latest blog, dealing with the the recent elections and what the results may mean for Florida’s environment in the near future. Following are a few excerpts from her deliberations, but for the entire, thought-provoking article go to this link.
“One message I’ve gotten from the 2014 mid-term elections is that we cannot be effective water advocates unless we acknowledge and work with the ideas that our water problems are political problems and have broad economic implications.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if there aren’t attempts to weaken or even nullify Amendment 1. We need to stay strong, remain vigilant, and work together to ensure that doesn’t happen. It might seem tempting to give up, but our waters and Mother Earth need more than that from us right now; they need our strongest efforts and our highest talents.”
“So often, water conversations end when the idea of ‘private property’ is invoked. It is important to remember, however, that water is not owned—it is not property.’ ‘It is permitted. Is the fact that someone owns land an appropriate rationale for allowing water use that may have negative impacts on our natural systems or others’ wells? Could Florida’s water managers do a better job of making this distinction by invoking the idea of ‘responsible stewardship’? (Of course, this idea would have to be clearly defined to avoid its being co-opted.)”
http://awordwitch.blogspot.com/