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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (July 18, 1973)
College Station, Texas Wednesday, July 18, 1973 THE BATTALJON Griffiths Appointed State Climatologist In his best British accent, Prof. John F. Griffiths emphatically declines any claim of being the super weatherman for Texas. The A&M meteorologist, how ever, has acquired the title of state climatologist with the bless ings of Gov. Dolph Briscoe and the National Weather Service. “Weathermen tell you what the weather is and probably will be,” Griffiths pointed out, “whereas climatologists tell you what the ^weather has been, historically speaking.” “To a certain extent, we’re en gaged in forecasting, too,” the TAMU professor continued. “While weathermen check their charts and issue probabilities for certain types of weather on a short-term basis, we can study our records and give the odds for a certain condition occurring dur ing a particular span of time, but we could quite easily be off a Texas Airlines Passengers Grow AUSTIN—Passenger boardings of Texas intrastate airlines for the first quarter of the year in creased almost 35 percent over the previous three-month period, according to figures released to day by the Texas Aeronautics Commission. The six commuter airlines regu lated by the TAG reported com bined boardings of 191,171 for the period January 1 through March 31, 1973, compared to 141,647 boardings during October 1 through December 31, 1972. represented a 61 percent increase in passenger boardings from the same first quarter period a year ago. From January 1-March 31, 1972, the airlines carried 118,402 passengers. In making the announcement, Aeronautics Commission Chair man Rex C. Cauble of Denton stated that this substantial growth in passenger traffic was indicative of the strong develop ment of intrastate service in Tex as and the healthy economy of the state. The six carriers are Amistad Airlines of Del Rio; Davis Air lines of Bryan/College Station; MAC Helicopters and Houston Metro Airlines of Houston; Rio Airways of Killeen; and South west Airlines of Dallas. The new traffic figures also During the first quarter, two of the carriers also initiated serv ice into new markets in the state. Houston Metro began service be tween Victoria and Houston In tercontinental Airport on Febru ary 15 and Rio Airways began carrying passengers between Temple and Dallas on March 7. year or two.” Climatologists keep detailed tabs on such facets as drouths, precipitation recurrence inter vals, temperatures, hailstorms, high winds, tornadoes and hurri canes — and now air pollution. The data is compiled on both a statewide and sectional basis. Capsule versions of such infor mation are regular features of almanacs, and Griffiths will do the honors for the “Texas Alma nac.” Griffiths and A&M took on the climatological responsibilities following announcement by the National Oceanic and Atmos pheric Administration that its National Weater Service would discontinue all state climatology programs. The Texas Office of Climatology had been in Austin. All the records have since been moved to College Station, and Griffiths hopes to have the new office in full swing by Septem ber. Even prior to that, he and an associate, Michael S. Flynn, plan to travel across the state and meet as many people as possible who have need for climatological information. This includes in dividuals and groups, with most probably being involved in in dustry, agriculture or some level of government. “We could sit up here in a vacuum on the 10th floor of our new oceanography - meteorology building and tell people how many days we had 12 years ago with temperatures above 80 degrees,” Dr. Griffiths quipped, “but we want to get out and determine Big Or Little Thicket The Nixon administration, through its Office of Man agement and the Budget, (OMB) has refused to endorse the idea of a Big Thicket National Biological Reserve of more than 68,000 acres. The Big Thicket is a unique area in East Texas of ex traordinary biological diversity. Its annual 60 inches of rain fall on a forest floor of more than 100 different soil types, thereby enabling plant life from widely separated climatic zones to thrive. Tropical palms grow with the yucca of the Southwestern deserts, New England’s sugar maples with the magnolias of the South. At one time, the Big Thicket covered an area of 3,500,- 000 acres, larger than the state of Connecticut. It has now shrunk to around 300,000. There are seven proposals before the House, ranging from a plan for a reserve of 100,000 acres to a plan of 68,000 acres. The 100,000 acre plan consist of several units linked together by ecological corridors along the stream beds. The small plan calls for several units completely isolated from each other, thereby rendering it defenseless against pollu tion from development along the stream. By opting for the 68,000 acre plan, the OMB goes against the recommendations of the Department of the Interior and the industrial forces responsible for the destruction in the first place. Both favor reserves of 75,000 acres and both have corridors. According to an Interior Department source, the OMB couldn’t justify the corridors in terms of recreational values, refusing to even consider the scientific values. The damage that has been done can’t be undone but neither can we expect to undo the damage to come. Our only course is to assure that we guard against the total destruction of the Big Thicket. With the administration’s present stand, our guard is down. si.i i m •»' . Ji- . :i. Cbe Battalion Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those tip the editor or of the writer of the article and are not necessarily those of the University administration or the Board of Directors. The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting enterprise operated by students as a University and Community newspaper. rhe shei alion, a student newspaper at Texas A&M, is published in College Station, Texas, daily except Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and holiday periods, September through May, and once a week during summer school. Represented nationally by National Educational Advertising Services, Inc, New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles. LETTERS POLICY Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and are subject to being cut to that length or less if longer. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit such letters and does not guarantee to publish any letter. Each letter must be signed and show the address of the writer. Address correspondence to Listen Up, The Battalion, Room 217, Services Building, College Station, Texas 77843. MEMBER The Associated Press, Texas Press Association yea sale Mail subscriptions are $3.50 per semester; $6 per school ubject to ear; $6.50 per full year. All subscriptions subjei Advertising rate furnished on request. The Battalion, Room 217, Services Building, College Station, 6% Address: Texas 77843. The Associated Press is entitled exclusively to the use for news dispatches credited to it or not the paper and local news of spontaneous Right of reproduction of all other served. Second-Class postage paid at College Station, Texas. reproduction of all otherwise credited in origin published herein, matter herein are also ] Members of the Student Publications Board are: Jim Lindsey, chairman ; Dr. Tom Adair, Dr. R. A. Albanese, Dr. H. E. Hierth, W. C. Harrison, J. W. Griffith, L. E. Kruse and B. B. Sears. EDITOR TED BORISKIE Photographers Peter Leabo, Doug Kirk Reporter Doug Kirk Teen Burger Basket m One Beef Pattie, Crisp Bacon, and Garden Fresh Vegetables —All This Plus Golden French Fries. 4611 Texas Avenue Open ’Til Midnight 846-3333 Reg. 90^ For Only With Coupon 151 Offer Good Through July 21, 1973 Coupon Must Accompany Purchase Limit 1 With Coupon what Texans need now in the way of historical data concerning the atmospheric environment.” The Texas Office of Climatol ogy will have a larger staff at TAMU than it did in Austin, and Griffiths envisons a broader based service. “Most important, we will put more emphasis on research,” he explained. “Utilizing meteorol ogy graduate students specializ ing in climatology, we will ana lyze data with a constant eye for practical application.” “In addition to providing use ful and possibly valuable infor mation to citizens of the state, this endeavor also will give our graduate students an opportunity to work on practical problems,” the TAMU professor emphasized. Flynn, for example, is studying precipitation patterns and char acteristics during drouth periods. The research project is part of his requirements for a Ph.D. “If we follow this overall phil osophy of research as an integral part of climatology, it should lead to a better understanding of the vagaries of Texas weather,” Prof. Griffiths concluded. Although English born and ed ucated and having come to TAMU by way of Africa, Griffiths has now observed, recorded and writ ten about Texas weather for more than a decade. Like all other Texans, native or other wise, he knows the most predict able thing about Texas weather is that it is unpredictable. FOR BEST RESULTS TRY BATTALION CLASSIFIED COME SEE “So Long Joey’’ — a true story 8:00 p. m. 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