Newswise — Forty years ago, as our cities were shrouded in smog, rivers and lakes were on fire and crude oil coated our coastlines, April 22 was set aside as a day to inspire awareness and appreciation for the earth’s environment. Thus, April 22 became know as Earth Day. As we prepare to celebrate Earth Day’s 40th anniversary, our environmental issues of the past have given way to newer, more complex ones: global warming, destruction of natural habitat and extinction of species, and even the drilling for natural gas in our communities to satisfy our ever expanding energy needs.
Three Temple University environmental experts are available to discuss the current state of the environment, where it is going and what needs to be done to get there. They include:
Robert J. MasonAssociate professor of Geography and Urban StudiesExpertise: Environmental policy, land-use planning and growth management
“At many levels, we have greater, more enduring civic engagement in environmental issues. This means more engagement with watershed planning, land protection, transportation, climate, and other environmental concerns. Citizens are speaking out, participating in broad-ranging discussions—on-line or in other forums—as never before.”
Jeffrey FeatherstoneProfessor of Community and Regional PlanningExpertise: Environmental and water resources management
“It's a mixed bag in terms of results since 40 years ago. We've cleaned up many rivers and lakes, some of which were on fire 40 years ago. But the issues are much more complex now. We still have these requirements that all the streams are supposed to be fishable, swimmable and drinkable. But we’re not going to get there because we have either neglected or bulldozed most of our streams in our communities.”
Michel BoufadelProfessor and Chair of Civil and Environmental EngineeringDirector of the Center for Natural Resources Development and ProtectionExpertise: Environmental assessment, hydrology, water quality, oil spills and remediation
“We are not living in a world without risk. But the risk has to be at a level that’s at an acceptable standard by all those involved, whether it is the government, the energy companies or the communities that are being impacted by environmental issues such as natural gas drilling. Fifty years down the road, someone is going to ask if we did a risk assessment on this drilling and it would behoove us to be able to say, ‘Yes, we did.’”
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