Archived Opinion

Thanks to Franklin, Macon leaders

To the Editor:

As a proud Great Lakes kid, I am so pleased that Franklin Town Council and Macon County commissioners have voted to make Macon a green county and town by supporting the U.S.A. “Climate Alliance.”

I was born in Michigan. My family began their U.S. experience on the shores of Lake Michigan. Due to World War II events, my parents moved to Ohio, near yet one other of the Great Lakes, Lake Erie.

I was horrified to read about the ‘Larsen C’ ice shelf breaking off in the Antarctic. One reason the article caught my eye was that it referenced one of the Great Lakes. The ice shelf is not only the size of Delaware, but the resulting iceberg has the volume of twice that of Lake Erie.

Climate-change deniers say human activity doesn’t have an effect on climate, even though most of us believe it does. Even if you think it doesn’t exist, why not err on the side of caution? The last time I looked, we all live on this one little blue planet we call Earth, and it needs us to take care of it..

I’m not concerned about me, but what kind of world are we leaving those who follow us?

So, thank you to the Franklin and Macon County elected leaders for taking this step — all our steps together will add up.

Shirley Ches

Franklin

Smokey Mountain News Logo
SUPPORT THE SMOKY MOUNTAIN NEWS AND
INDEPENDENT, AWARD-WINNING JOURNALISM
Go to top
Payment Information

/

At our inception 20 years ago, we chose to be different. Unlike other news organizations, we made the decision to provide in-depth, regional reporting free to anyone who wanted access to it. We don’t plan to change that model. Support from our readers will help us maintain and strengthen the editorial independence that is crucial to our mission to help make Western North Carolina a better place to call home. If you are able, please support The Smoky Mountain News.

The Smoky Mountain News is a wholly private corporation. Reader contributions support the journalistic mission of SMN to remain independent. Your support of SMN does not constitute a charitable donation. If you have a question about contributing to SMN, please contact us.