Land use and rights of use is going to become an even bigger issue than it is now. The gamut of land-use perspectives runs from the “we are stewards” to “only we have control over what happens on this parcel”. Frequently these two extremes clash, for example, in the wind turbine debates within my home state where there is the argument that “nobody can sell use-rights for a mountain range, because it belongs to everyone” running afoul of the long-held principle of freedom, including the freedom to buy, sell, and own land. This is already a sustainability issue and has been one since Feudal times when lords and their serfs. However, I think it is poised to become an important issue to reckon with in the near future.
As the coastal waters rise over the next two decades, flooding becomes more frequent, and southern climates become less livable, there will be a migration of people to higher altitudes cooler climates. The people in those regions — Vermont included — will need to face issues of urbanization, over-crowding, land development, and other issues the coastal areas faced decades ago. Land-use laws and social expectations will need to be reimagined in order to accommodate larger populations in these predominantly rural areas.
I’m not sure how to solve this, but I’ve done some canvassing here and there about people’s attitudes towards this possibility, and most of what I hear is similar to one of the arguments against wind power: “not in my backyard” or “they need to find someplace else to go” or just downright saying they don’t want migrants.
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