Beware, the flood is coming. At this point I am rather confused about our climatic transitions in the years ahead. One group of scientists and meteorologists tell us the North Pole ice masses are gradually creeping toward us and that in a million years, more or less, little Vacaville will be covered by glaciers measuring hundreds of feet deep.
But, after viewing Walter Cronkite’s Universe a few nights ago on television, a complete reverse theory is expounded. In the years ahead, 100, 1,000 or several million, the North Pole ice masses will start a process of melting, forcing an increase in elevations in the oceans around the world.
This latest theory places the blame on pollution in the atmosphere, which is creating a shell encasing the world as we know it today. The sun’s rays will be able to penetrate this shielf, but the excess heat will not be able to dissipate back into the atmosphere, causing an increase in temperatures around the world of from 5 to 10 degrees.
A “guesstimate” of extention of the melting Polar ice points to an increase in the ocean levels of from 20 to 40 feet. It will do no good for the little Dutch boy to stick his finger in the leaking dike in Holland, because the height of the water will gradually be higher than the protective earth dikes now keeping the Dutch high and dry.
If this catastrophe is to happen, and I for one believe it is a lot of hot air, much of the earth which is dry now will be flooded under several feet of water, and because of the increasing trapped heat lying under the pollutant shield, hundreds of millions of acres of fertile lands today will become parched desert.
It’s frightening to conceive that such an event could take place, but only time will tell.
In 1937, when Interstate 80 was re-routed away from downtown Vacaville, workers on bulldozers uncovered a quantity of shell fish skeletons in a hill being cut down in the vicinity of the Remark Restaurant, south of Vacaville.
The only explanation given for the discovery was that millions of years ago the area, including Vacaville, was covered by the Pacific Ocean.
Although we may scoff at such a radical theory of melting polar ice, we must admit that our climate is getting considerably warmer. It is estimated that an increase in the earth’s temperature of five degrees would cause the glaciers and ice masses to start melting.
Right here in Vacaville, June of this year was the hottest month in recorded history with 21 days during the month having high temperature readings of 90 degrees and over, including 11 days of 100 degrees and more. Then, to add injury to insult, the sun came back strong during the month of July and gave us 26 days of 90 degree or higher temperatures, with seven of those days being over the 100 degree figure.
Although there is a possibility that our temperatures will increase as the years roll along, any anxiety that we are going to experience a sudden flood should be taken with a grain of salt. If such a catastrophe does happen, it will be gradual, and the peoples around the world will have ample time to pack up and move to higher grounds.
Residents of the town of Vacaville need have no fears of having their homes or lands inundated by the rising Pacific Ocean. At a spot on Depot Street, the official elevation of the city of Vacaville is placed at 166 feet, so you can see even with the increased water we will be able to have ample room to move around. The people in the small hamlet of Elmira will be relatively safe, because above sea level is 79 feet.
But, millions of acres of lands south of Vacaville and Elmira, plus the towns of Fairfield-Suisun, Rio Vista, Benicia, Vallejo and hundreds more, will be completely under water. That is certainly a freightening future to look foward to.
The huge Monticello Dam and Lake Berryessa will not be in any trouble, because latest figures on the height of water in the lake is placed at around 420 feet above sea level. The concrete dam itself is 304 feet tall. But, should the oceans spread out as predicted, millions of acres of fertile lands in this and other areas will be covered with salt water.
As much as any of us hesitate to accept such drastic evolutions in our future, we can look back and see just what has taken place in the past. At one time there were no exotic Hawaiian Islands, until an under ocean volcano erupted.
We look at the terrain around Vacaville, note the fertile valleys and also the rocky mountains that certainly were formed by some explosive force.
Those of us who have resided here for a long period of time can vouch for the fact that the major creeks in the area have not changed in more than half a century.
At times we wonder why many new industrial plants are being constructed far inland in California, and at the higher altitudes. Perhaps a sixth sense dictates that this is the proper move for these huge expenditures.
Despite some gloom forecast in the possibility of the melting ice masses, scientists tell us that we need not fear a deluge, such as Noah went through to preserve civilization.
In the final analysis, no person living today need have any fears of this excessive water episode which is predicted into our future. If you live in Fairfield and Suisun, you may casually give the impending catastrophe some thought, but don’t rush out and buy hip boots because you will not be needing them for 100, 500, 1,000 or a million years from today.
The possibility of the water catastrophe occurring is remote, but time infinitum assures us to go merrily on our way doing our “thing.”
But, some day when you are at a social gathering you may stir up a bit of controversy by discussing whether or not the ice age is coming back, or the hot spell is going to cause the predicted flood.
Link: http://articles.solanohistory.net/7065/ | Solano History Database Record
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Vacaville Heritage Council