I spent a lot of time on the road last week, traversing the
great state of Nevada from its Northern tip to its Southern valley. I spent five consecutive days
inside planes and cars, in hotel rooms and conference halls—even wandering
around a casino or two. Desperate
for sunlight and fresh air, I eventually braved the heat and wind of Las Vegas
to spend some downtime at the hotel pool.
From the inside it beckoned, a glittering oasis of cool blue water and
bright green grass, grass so green in fact, that it fairly glistened in the
afternoon sun.
That should have been my first tip off…. when does grass
ever sparkle? One sorely
disappointed bare foot later, I had my answer: Astroturf.
I can’t blame the hotel for using fake grass to spruce up its
pool area. And, as I’ve discussed
in this blog before, Las Vegas is at the forefront of the battle against
water-intensive landscaping: including its turf
replacement program that pays property owners $1.50 per square foot for grass
removed and replaced with a water-efficient landscape, including artificial
turf. In fact, the Synthetic Turf Council estimates that upwards of 3,500
synthetic playing fields exist throughout the nation, with another 800 installed
annually at universities, parks, and stadiums.
Of
course, there are other alternatives to artificial turf: including not only
xeriscaping, but also the use of specially designed, drought-resistant
grass. The latter in particular is
a good fit for those of us who loath to give up on that patch of green. Many people feel strongly about their
lawns, and, while I wholeheartedly agree that grass is lovely,
at some point it’s worth asking whether by letting this affection run wild,
we’ve wandered over into the realm of the ridiculous.
Case
in point, the new Celebrity Solstice Caribbean-bound
cruise ship. Launching this fall,
the ship comes equipped with a half-acre lawn of real grass on the top
deck. Don’t worry, the lawn isn’t
purely ornamental, guests will be encouraged to picnic, practice their putting
skills, and maybe even play some bocce or croquet upon its emerald surface.
Now,
it’s my understanding that cruise ships in general are self-contained units (the
press release mentions nothing about the logistics involved in irrigating this
half-acre), but—short of using reclaimed water—this floating backyard seems like
a supreme waste of both water and energy.
At a time when most communities are attempting to conserve their
resources and use water wisely, doesn’t this stunt seem over the top and out of
step with the realities most of us are facing?