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Billy Weitzenfeld (right) talks with Mary Bishop and husband Dan Crawford of Roanoke as they arrive for the seminar Saturday. Also show (in background, center) is John Richardson.

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Seminar deals with global warming

by Wanda Combs
Editor

The decline of the glaciers, the change in weather patterns, and the shift in seasons were discussed as part of the Global Warming Seminar at the Jacksonville Center Saturday. The day-long event, presented by the AECP (Association of Energy Conservation Professionals), was co-sponsored by Community Housing Partners and the Crater District Area Agency on Aging.
Billy Weitzenfeld, director of AECP – based at the Jacksonville Center, told those attending to make comments, ask questions and “become part of the dialogue”. Global warming, he added, is a very complicated issue, “but a significant issue in our lifetime and that of our children.” Weitzenfeld remarked that he would hope shorter, future seminars would evolve from the larger program over the weekend.
The list of speakers was led by one of the 1,000 volunteers trained by Al Gore. School teacher John Richardson gave a power point program based on Gore’s film “An Inconvenient Truth.” Using visuals, he pointed out that over 97 percent of the glaciers on the planet are receding. He noted that the ten hottest years on record have occurred in the last 14 years and 2006 was the hottest year on record. He added the duration and size of hurricanes have increased by 50 percent. “A couple of years ago we ran out of names, but we kicked in the Greek alphabet as we had tropical storms up into December.”
An increase in ticks and mosquitoes and even the spread of the West Nile Virus in North America are indicators of the shift in seasons, he commented.
He said there were three misconceptions associated with global warming. One, that people don’t agree on the issue. “Global warming is real, human-induced, and will have a detrimental effect on the planet,” he told the audience. Yet, he commented, the top political talk show hosts dedicate only 0.1 percent of their questions to the subject. The second misconception, Richardson said, is that going green will cost too much. He explained it is a matter of paying now or later, and he added companies can also make money in the process. The third misconception, Richardson said, is that the problem is so big it cannot be fixed. He told the group “there is a lot of little things we can do….We are the most incredible country in the world because we are the most responsive.”
He suggested a partial list – of slowing down to save gas and replacing light bulbs with the newer variety. He said by buying local grown food a difference could be made. “The average piece of food that comes to us travels 1,000 miles.”
Other speakers Saturday included Dr. David Roper, a retired Professor Emeritus of Physics at Virginia Tech; Dr. Renee Godard, a Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies at Hollins University; Dr. Diana Christopulos, Chair of the board of the Roanoke Valley Cool Cities Coalition; Dr. Sean McGinnis, a Senior Research Scientist at Virginia Tech; and Mark McClain, Chair of the Roanoke Sierra Club.