Bruce Frohman: Lawns play important role in cooling our area
At first blush, the idea to take out lawns in order to save water sounds sensible. However, doing so has a major drawback. We need to be concerned about the desertification of the community.
Remove the lawn and we remove a source of air cooling by evaporation. Replace lawn with rocks and we have more runoff, causing street flooding during storms and hotter summers. Over time, less vegetation results in a drier climate. The problem will be magnified if everyone removes his lawn.
If one lets the lawn die in summer, it will bounce back with the winter rains. In wet years, we will have green lawns to enjoy. Please print opinions of some experts rather than have the public guess at what is best.
Bruce R. Frohman, Modesto
This story was originally published May 11, 2015 at 2:11 PM with the headline "Bruce Frohman: Lawns play important role in cooling our area."