King Canute

The popular story goes that the early 11^th C King Canute of England was so arrogant that he thought he could control the sea, but of course – he got his feet wet. More recently I learned that the truth was that the King was so irritated by fawning courtiers that he made the demonstration to show that even kings are subservient to the laws of nature. But not it would seem the North Carolina Senate, which in 2012 passed a law effectively banning the use of data about sea-level changes in determining coastal policy in North Carolina. 

Anne and I visited the Outer Banks of North Carolina earlier this year. It’s a beautiful area and very flat. In fact the entire east coast of the US from Cape Cod to the tip of Florida is flat and sandy. Now why would the NC Senate put their heads in the sand? Let me quote from a couple of websites about the attractions of the NC coast: “Millions of visitors head to North Carolina's beaches every year to rent palatial estates and charming beach bungalows along the state's best beachfront areas.” And “300 miles of barrier island beaches are filled with lovely state parks, top restaurants and world-class golf courses.” 

Yep, money, big money. Rock that boat and the state faces big financial losses. Of course wishing it won’t happen doesn’t change anything. The latest predictions are that sea levels will rise at least a meter (3 feet) in the next hundred years. Compounding that, the rising temperature of the oceans directly leads to stronger hurricanes roaring up the coast. 

There’s no need for panic. There is a need for us to live and act responsibly. My city of Medford has been offering tax-breaks for homeowners putting solar panels on their roofs; and the old seaport city of Boston has begun planning to deal with the ocean rise by turning some streets into canals like Venice; in that way channeling the surge. 

Ignoring the reality of man-made global warming is irresponsible. And so are cute remarks like the one I received from an old English friend recently about how England had a cold spring last year. I know – I was there. The reason was not because the climatologists are wrong, but because they’re right. The arctic ice is melting even faster than predicted sending vast amounts of cold water south producing a cool, wet May in Britain in 2013. 

Island nations that do need to worry are those in the Pacific. The very existence of countries like Tuvalu, Kiribati and Palau are now in question with rising ocean levels. The governments of those countries are not passing laws to try and prevent facing facts, but instead have been urgently demanding that larger nations around the world face up to their responsibilities to reduce their carbon emissions.

We live on a relatively small ball, and more often than we realize, what I do can affect somebody on the other side of the ball, or down the coast in North Carolina – incidentally, the only place in the world where Venus Fly-traps grow in the wild. Here’s my pic taken this past April just a short distance from the sea. 

                                           And this fascinating creature deserves to survive too.