Water helps remove 'rust' from region

Older, Northern cities "have the best attributes of 'smart growth,' including walkable neighborhoods, historic downtowns and main streets, strong universities and hospitals . . . unused infrastructure capacity . . . and abundant water.

"By contrast, the burgeoning cities of the 'Sun Belt' are low-density, auto-dependent, and survive on ever diminishing supplies of borrowed water. 'Sun Belt' economies are driven not by diversity but by the business of growth itself, such as home building and construction, which the great recession of 2008-2009 revealed as illusory and unsustainable.''

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09340/1018542-155.stm?cmpid=bcpanel1#ixzz0Ytu2DOUR

Yeah, you can ship jobs to the Sun Belt for slave labor, But how are you going to run heavy industry without water or infastructure.

the Great Lakes have 22% of the world's fresh water, and in the coming decades that will become a major influence on decisions made about any manufacturing, etc. Recent droughts have brought this fact to the forefront. The North will rise again!

Canada and the Great Lakes States have been steadfast in their refusal to allow greedy American special interests to siphon off water from this tremendous resource. Most people have no idea how the Great Lakes influence the world's climate, either. Any human tampering with this fragile resource could cause dire consequences for the world's climate.

It's a joy each Spring to watch the migratory birds heading north for the breeding season, although there has been a marked decrease in some waterfowls' migration patterns. Whether due to global warming or some other factors (or a combination thereof) is unknown.

Yep, I've lived on the shores of Lake Ontario most of my life. I now migrate, like the birds, to Florida in the winter and back "home" in the spring, summer and fall. I love Florida's climate in the winter months, but summer in Florida is a living hell.

Most people in my neck of the woods take the Great Lakes for granted. They shouldn't.

They don't use desalination quite as much as they should. Also, the idea of where to dispose the brine is an issue. In the Indian River area, we have a problem with heavy rains causing an influx of fresh water into the lagoon, which destroys the clam crops and hurts most other marine growth. When I worked for FDEP I suggested that the brine from the local desalination plant could be used to offset this age-old problem if we just designed a storage and deivery system. They looked at me like I was from Mars.

It also doesn't help here in Florida when the Water Management Districts keep issuing permits to bottled water companies to pump 500,000 gallons of water out of our aquifer per factory per day to bottle up and sell in other states, all while telling us that we can only water our landscaping once per week because our aquifer needs to be preserved. Most production factories in FL are extremely good at water conservation (not the bottled water bastards), especially the citrus producers. I'm always available to help...for a price.

It's unfortunate that the era of the automobile brought about the era of sprawl, but most cities reflect the conditions and times in whihch they were created. The great and lasting cities continue to develop to face the challenges of new conditions.

Because of political differences, the east and west of this country seem to have a big divide, but the condition and quality of life is not something to gloat about. A little smugness goes a long way.

I'm glad to see the old cities begining to revive, but old is hardly the term for a place that's been around 300 years. Jerusalem, Baghdad, Athens, Rome...those are some really old cities.

nt