In a recent article by the Virginian-Pilot, it was noted that four landmarks in Hampton Roads are “among the 30 nationwide threatened by climate change-related weather conditions,” according to a report released by the Union of Concerned Scientists.
“The report lists sea level rise, higher temperatures, wildfires and heavy rainfall as threats to Jamestown Island, Fort Monroe and NASA’s Langley Research Center and Wallops Flight Facility.”
The Ghostbusters couldn’t have written it any better.
Of course, what’s not quite as shocking is that this 400-year-old story (or longer) was brought to us by our friends at The Virginian-Pilot in an effort to create alarm, concern, and government spending/regulation.
And that concern allows people like former Lt. Gov. Don Beyer, in his effort to placate his leftist base in Alexandria and Arlington, to run commercials about how when he is elected to Congress that he will impose a carbon tax to reduce global warming.
But, wait. Could it be possible that living in Hampton Roads, with its abundance of waterways and proximity to the ocean, could actually be beneficial?
In what is truly a shocking development (/sarcasm), the Pilot is reporting that a vote on Craney Island to transfer control from the federal government to the Virginia Port Authority is forthcoming. (Of course, now that former Senator Jim Webb is no longer in the senate, we can actually have the vote. In the 2006 campaign during a debate, former Gov. George Allen famously asked Webb where Craney Island was and Webb couldn’t respond).
Congress is moving this week to turn over 321 acres of federal land along Craney Island’s eastern side to the Virginia Port Authority, part of a long-term plan to develop a new marine terminal.
The transfer would give the authority ownership of property that is underwater.
What the port intends to do with that underwater “property” is build a series of dikes and fill in the area with dredging material from the channel out to the Atlantic…to create a larger port facility. And that larger port facility, with deeper channels, would service post-PANAMAX ships, be connected to rail terminals that can take rail cars that are double-stacked with containers, and bring thousands of jobs and economic development to the region.
I suppose, when the sky is falling, it’s important to do a cost-benefit analysis.
Of course, the sky might not as much be falling (or sea levels rising) as much as Hampton Roads is sinking. But that’s a story for another day.
All articles cited have been featured in our Virginia Morning News Review, published daily every morning directly to your email inbox. To subscribe, visit http://jrhoeft.com.
J.R. Hoeft is the founder of BearingDrift.com.
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