Elected officials need to support 30×30 campaign for Earth’s sake

Dear Editor:

When I started trail running I never thought it would lead me to care for the Earth above all else. It made me see that the world is not for our use. It is for the benefit of all living things on this beautiful planet.

If we do not fight to preserve what’s left of our wildlands we will be unable to come back from the damages that climate change and other human caused disasters will have caused to our ecosystems and vulnerable species. If the protection of the Earth for the sake of the Earth is not enough to realize the urgency of this matter, just think, in many of our lifetimes, there won’t be enough snow to ski on in many parts of Tahoe, we won’t be able to hike through the woods and see beautiful wildlife and the next generation will grow up seeing polar bears, pikas and sea turtles on the same page of their science textbook as dinosaurs.

Unless this is a world that we want to live in, or the future generations to live in, we must urge our elected officials to publicly support the 30×30 campaign in order to protect 30% of our lands and waters in the United States by 2030.

Mila Opalnik, Incline Village

David and Cheryl Duffield are terrific neighbors

Dear Editor:

What terrific neighbors we have in David and Cheryl Duffield.

When the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office cut back the personnel on duty here in Incline Village due to budget constraints and priorities, David and Cheryl Duffield saw the need for more funding for our law enforcement first responders … just as many of us did. They took action.

The news that the Duffield Foundation has made an $11.7 million grant to pay for 11 full-time sheriff’s office personnel for the next five years is being celebrated.

Thank you so much, David and Cheryl Duffield.

Michael and Carlyn Briggs, Incline Village

Caltrans plows are fast, but maybe not good for residential use

Dear Editor:

I’ve seen the new Caltrans plow trucks around for a couple of weeks and they sure can go a lot faster than the road graders. They go so fast that they can throw a full blade of snow up to 8 feet into my driveway because they don’t have the cutoffs on the blades like the road graders.

They probably make more efficient open road plows than the old ones but are not suited for residential use.

Harold Parks, South Lake Tahoe