On Tuesday evening, September 29th, St. Mary's and Catholic Charities of Chemung and Schuyler County hosted a presentation on "Water Issues" by Catholic Charities.
The first speaker was Dr. Hillary Lambert of the Cayuga Watershed. The first part of her presentation focused on understanding the scope of the effects we have on the watershed. From here in Elmira the Chemung River drains south to the Susquehanna River, and eventually to the Chesapeake Bay. What we do to our water affects the waters entering the Atlantic Ocean from the Chesapeake Bay. In Catholic Social Teaching there are Seven Themes as presented by the United States Bishops. The sixth theme is "solidarity." We must think not just of ourselves but of others. We must ask ourselves how what we do affects others.
Then Dr. Lambert discussed the questions of hydofracking in the Marcellus Shale for natural gas drilling.
The second speaker was Sr. Phyllis Tierney, SSJ (Justice and Peace Coordinator for the Sisters). There is a lot of water in the world but did you know that only 3% of that water is drinkable. There are 1.1 billion people in the world without access to safe drinking water. She spoke of the need for balance in nature. When wetlands are destroyed in the name of development it upsets this balance. When animals or vegetation are introduced outside their native areas, it can upset the balance. We must do our part to maintain the balance of nature.
The third speaker was me. I spoke about Catholic Social Teaching on these water issues. Here is the handout I provided in question and answer format. I spoke on concepts such as why the Church speaks about environmental issues, why water is important in our Catholic values, the Seventh Commandment, "You shall not steal" as it applies to use of water, overconsumption and life-style, and how we talk to atheists about water issues as a matter of rights.
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December 25, 2009
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