Besides making me giggle inappropriately every time I heard its name, Hurricane Gustav did mercifully little damage to either people or property when it hit Louisiana this week, which is good because like everyone else I was watching its progress with nauseated apprehension. However, while the oil platforms fared all right, the area's natural wetlands took a severe beating. From Grist:
"The last thing on anyone's mind during a hurricane is how the wetlands
are going to do," says activist Aaron Giles. But since happy and
healthy wetlands act as storm barriers, "wetlands are a critical piece
of keeping coastal Louisiana safe." Heavy storms toss around fauna in
marshes and deposit saltwater where it ain't supposed to be.
Louisiana's wetlands have been severely eroded by natural disaster and
development; some estimates hold that healthier wetlands could have
knocked Gustav's 12-foot tidal surge down by three feet. The hurricane
shut down oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico, but at first
look it seems the storm has not caused any serious structural damage or
significant spills on offshore platforms, leading President Bush to
reiterate Tuesday, "This storm should not cause members of the Congress
to say, 'Well, we don't need to address our energy independence.' We
need more domestic energy. One place to find it is offshore America.''
Oil and gas companies are still assessing damage however, and have said
it could take weeks to determine the full extent of the storm's impact
since most of the gulf's 717 drilling platforms haven't been examined
up close yet.
I'm also looking forward to the day when "energy independence" doesn't automatically translate into "offshore oil drilling", but that's just me.
Also:
- Measles uptick! Even as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are urging more measles vaccinations with cases at a 12-year high, some parents are not vaccinating because they fear a possible link between the vaccine and autism. With such conflicting information if I were a parent I have no idea what I would decide to do.
- Inexplicable speed! The performance of world-record-shattering Jamaican Usain Bolt in the Beijing Olympics has scientists scrambling to explain how he did it, positing factors like a hereditary disposition toward fast-twitch muscles and long stride. Even as a former sprinter myself I can't begin to wrap my brain around the fact that people keep getting faster and faster.
