Comments on: Senator of Katrina-ravaged Louisiana tries to block climate change response centers http://climateprogress.org/2009/09/23/vitter-senator-of-katrina-ravaged-louisiana-block-climate-change-response-centers/ The Latest on Climate Science, Solutions, and Politics Mon, 15 Mar 2010 15:21:02 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Mark http://climateprogress.org/2009/09/23/vitter-senator-of-katrina-ravaged-louisiana-block-climate-change-response-centers/#comment-124524 Mark Wed, 23 Sep 2009 16:44:53 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/?p=11693#comment-124524 Honestly, I get quite tired of Katrina being invoked in climate debates and I fear it is counter-productive. It was a category 3 storm at landfall--bad, but not as bad as could have been. Many other category 3 storms have made landfall, and several category 5 storms have made landfall. The main issue with the death and destruction caused by Katrina were infrastructure and planning. Levees that should have held did not. Emergency response plans that should have removed people from harm's way were not properly developed, drilled or executed. And the vast area of wetlands in coastal Lousiana, which can absorb some storm surge, has been destroyed by poor water management throughout the Mississippi River basin. I understand that harmful storms are very likely to be more common with increased global warming and that Katrina provides a powerful image for warning the public. But I believe that message is often twisted to read as though the Katrina disaster was caused by global warming, which is a stretch at best. The truth will set you free. I worry that mis-stating the facts can come back to bite us and actually make it harder to get meaningful action on climate. Honestly, I get quite tired of Katrina being invoked in climate debates and I fear it is counter-productive. It was a category 3 storm at landfall–bad, but not as bad as could have been. Many other category 3 storms have made landfall, and several category 5 storms have made landfall. The main issue with the death and destruction caused by Katrina were infrastructure and planning. Levees that should have held did not. Emergency response plans that should have removed people from harm’s way were not properly developed, drilled or executed. And the vast area of wetlands in coastal Lousiana, which can absorb some storm surge, has been destroyed by poor water management throughout the Mississippi River basin.

I understand that harmful storms are very likely to be more common with increased global warming and that Katrina provides a powerful image for warning the public. But I believe that message is often twisted to read as though the Katrina disaster was caused by global warming, which is a stretch at best.

The truth will set you free. I worry that mis-stating the facts can come back to bite us and actually make it harder to get meaningful action on climate.

]]> By: Seth Masia http://climateprogress.org/2009/09/23/vitter-senator-of-katrina-ravaged-louisiana-block-climate-change-response-centers/#comment-124449 Seth Masia Wed, 23 Sep 2009 15:06:25 +0000 http://climateprogress.org/?p=11693#comment-124449 Ignorance is bliss. I believe Sen. Vitter simply wants his constituents to remain happy. Ignorance is bliss. I believe Sen. Vitter simply wants his constituents to remain happy.

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