Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (July 1, 1981)
Local I nc DM I I ML-IWIM WEDNESDAY, JULY 1, 1981 I v> Study of flooded home A&M housing, sprinklers lauded areas could be of use People with homes seriously damaged by high water across Central Texas may like this bit of advice: a Texas A&M researcher says government officials should refrain from helping victims rebuild in areas r with a high risk of flooding, but should purchase 4 those homes at a fair market price. “It is extremely important for city, state and feder al officials to fully evaluate the cause and effect of flooding and damage before a single solution is ap- ssistance plied,” said Dr. Christopher Mathewson, a geology n access tt professor and authority on hydrology, this, then! He explained that flood problems are a complex beserioi: ,n * xture of both land and water management, r entire sv Simply clearing some small vegetation along ' urban creeks and rivers and maintaining the channel r of Vireiit^ >et ^ s cou ^ reduce the flood risk to many homes that , would otherwise be damaged, Mathewson said, as is a “Homes that can’t be economically protected — 'at tilt both from a financial and environmental standpoint Kepublict— may be better off being purchased with public lest begir funds at a fair price.” as preside Besides easing the cost of flood recovery, such a ion in lfcpl an would allow homeowners to retain most of the a justice investment they had made, Mathewson said. “It dby aRfn wou ^ ^ >e a s ^ a,ne if flood victims couldn’t afford to move to a safer location because they can’t sell their houses at fair market value,” he said. tice Pont Mathewson also said nearby landowners could be ® ut c given the option of buying the easily flooded lots with Equal).the understanding that no structures be placed caption ( there. t buildiM He says the floodplains are too valuable a resource leal ofor to abandon. They can be used as parks, landscaped hichoure£ reener y> large backyards, parkinglots, outside stor- tral to t r a ® e areas ih* 1 * can l 56 cleared on short notice, or other . i. resources that would not be damaged by rising water j. . ■— but not as a safe place to live. religion 1 It is not economically feasible to provide complete al that j^D ro t ec ti on f or every conceivable flood like the ones have killed 22 people in Central Texas since norial Day, Mathewson said, but an integrated and water management program can lessen the *ge- Me often forget that for any flood for which a 3m is designed, there will always be another of ter intensity,” said Mathewson, author of a new <, “Engineering Geology,” which includes por- |s on flooding. e said rains that fall on rapidly developing urban s today can cause high water where it was never a >lem yesterday. “ *Ve can demand improved runoff from growing C ;s such as housing developments and shopping 3 ters, but we refuse to be responsible for that > < ;ubstan« I to ecov undento most crt l-servicfi: ho sits« f the cb ilngtopos water once it enters the creek area because the creeks belong to nature,” Mathewson said. More streets, gutters, curbs, parking lots and slanted roofs boost runoff from heavy rains while improved sewage systems increase the rate at which water is dumped into city rivers and streams, leading to flooding, he said. He suggests that shopping centers install smaller pipes, and that the outer limits of the parking lot be designed to hold a maximum of six inches of rain water during the heaviest downpours, decreasing the rate at which water enters urban creeks. Other engineering designs such as flat-topped roofs capable of holding and supporting the weight of some rain could help reduce damage, while provid ing extra energy conservation against hot Texas sum mers, he said. A 24-hour flood warning system similar to those used for tornadoes would allow time to clear parking lots, storage areas or objects of value in flood-prone regions, Mathewson said. Clearing a few bottlenecks in streams could drop the high-water mark a few feet at low financial and ecological costs to the cities and still eliminate much of the damage. Dr. Kenneth Brundidge, a professor of meteorolo gy at Texas A&M, said the heavy rains plaguing the Hill Country are the result of routine storm systems that stalled. Their rain, he said, was triggered by an outside force like a cold front. “The rain is produced in the warm, moist air from the Gulf that moves inland. The rain is released, however, by some other disturbance acting on the moist air, such as a low-pressure area or a cold front passing through,” he explained. Despite the heavy rains, the storm systems are not unusual at all for this of year, said Brundidge. “This is much like the wet spring we had last year just before the record heat wave and dry spell be gan,” he said. Records from the State Climatologist’s Office at Texas A&M show that in 1980, the month of May was the wettest in 25 years for some portions of the state even though one of the worst dry spells since the ’50s began a few weeks later. Other documents from the Climatologist’s Office indicate water levels in major Texas reservoirs had already reached a total of nearly 25 million acre-feet by late April, and the current flooding is expected to add to the total. During the 1970s, Texas lakes have held a high of about 28 million acre-feet while the total conserva tion level for major reservoirs is approximately 32 million acre-feet. IZ udents seek employment 3 . :c Jobs cut college costs J .8 federal financial aid for college and university ents dries up, students may be looking for part- ; employment to make ends meet while getting f education. At Texas A&M University, more than 6,000 stu- lents already participate annually in on-campus vork programs. Student financial aid officials report hat jobs are plentiful — if the student is willing to vork and isn’t too picky about the kind of work he or he does. This year the on-campus payroll to student work ers was more than $3 million, said Clair Fink of the "exas A&M student financial aid office, and that does tot include salaries paid to some 2,000 graduate ssistants and research assistants. In addition to the on-campus jobs, the Bryan- >ollege Station community :—which is experiencing ne of the greatest growth patterns in the state — ffers a plethora of job opportunities. Many are post- d on campus bulletin boards and some are never lied. A student’s ability to work is affected by class dhedule, grade average and desire, said Fink. Those who work for the University receive at least 3.64 an hour. 0 i 1 About 20 percent of the on-campus jobs are short lilt term, lasting only a few days, Fink said. These in clude handling registration cards and working in the bookstore during the opening days of each semester, processing mail-outs for various research projects and distributing the yearbook. Long-term jobs include work in the University’s dining halls, which employ about 200 students each semester, intramural athletics, which uses about 300 students for officials and referees for various sports, and clerical positions in almost all campus depart ments. “The jobs range from milking cows to parking lot attendant to data processor,” Fink said. In addition to the normal job offers posted on financial aid office bulletin boards, students meeting financial need criteria may participate in a work- study program. Texas A&M has $300,000 in funds for this program this year, Fink said. Under the program, the University pays 80 per cent of the student worker’s salary and the em ploying department pays 20 percent in fringe be nefits. The average student works about 10 to 15 hours a week, Fink estimated, and earns from $600 to $1,000 during the year. it high* n pred# cceed I# >s have* •derail! 11 ■reatioe 1 cally> ‘ Faith isj stratioij eatioP if thej duceii’’’ A Matched Pair /■ are lo n P t<;rsfo r ^ tain the? liowthe? •elcomd * ints * * to: Etl» , Vi'dnfS^I t «mew| -3. tin «s liir'd «,n> crcd'd 1 —I'oii.’flf From KIRON 30-80mm f/3.5-4.5 and 80-200mm f/4. The Kiron lens system lets you do more with less — no one lens can do everything, but the kiron 30- 80mm f/3.5-4.5 comes close. Wide angle scenics to telephoto candids without changing lenses. Add a Kiron 80-200mm f/4 and you may never need another lens. The 80-200 focuses down to Va life size without accessories. Add the 2X match mate and you’ll have a 160-400mm f/8 that focuses down to Vs life size. Fewer lenses, less money, but more creative possibilities makes Kiron your value alternative. Each less than $ 275 Buy - Sell - Trade - Repair w f [master charge! L / A m CAMPUS PHOTO CENTER 401 University Drive • 846-5418 • Northgate Two innovative programs to reduce campus operating costs have resulted in recognition for Texas A&M University by the National Asso ciation of College and University Business Officers and the U.S. Steel Foundation. Texas A&M’s centralized, radio-controlled landscaping irrigation system which uses a radio signal to activate lawn sprinklers throughout the 5,000-acre campus was cited for the University’s innovative use of movable wall dividers in married student apartments to allow tenants to determine interior arrange ment and use of floor space. The movable wall dividers also permit the apartments to be adapted to accomodate four single students or a married couple. The esti mated savings are $53,000 a year. Texas A&M is one of 29 winners in the sixth annual Cost Reduction Incentive Awards Program sponsored by the college and univer sity business officers organization and U.S. Steel. Last year the same group cited Texas A&M for the innovative modular dormitory con struction concept. brings you July 4th RECORD SALE! 50 of the ilottest- Sellinq LPs only OR Chech out these sizzling titles! 1! • ROSANNE CASH Seven Year Ache • STANLEY CLARKE/GEORGE DUKE Clarke-Duke Project • REO SPEEDWAGON Mi-Fidelity • SANTANA Ze-Bop • LOVERBOY Loverboy • OZZY OSBOURNE Blizard Of Oz • BARBRA STREISAND Guilty • TOTO Turnback • JIMMY BUFFET Coconut Telegraph • OAK RIDGE BOYS Fancy Free • TOM PETETY hard Promises • SHAKE RUSSELL The Shake RusselUDana Cooper Band • SPYRO GYRA Carnival • KENNY ROGERS Share Your Love Greatest Mits • KIM CARNES Mistaken Identity • APRIL WINE Mature of The Beast • IRO MAIDEN Killers • AIR SUPPLY The One That You Love • PAT BENETAR Crimes Of Passion • ALAN PARSONS PROJECT Turn Of A Friendly Card • MOODY BLUES Long Distance Voyager • ERIC CLAPTON Another Ticket • STYX Paradise Theater • AC/DC Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap Back In Black 4 DYNAMITE SALE DAYS PHIL COLLINS Face Value CHRISTOPHER CROSS Christopher Cross DIRE STRAITS Making Movies JOHN LENNON/YOKO ONO Double Fantasy STEPHANE GRAPPELLI/DAVID GRISMAN Live THIRD WORLD Rock The World MARSHALL TUCKER BAND Dedicated LEE RITTENOUR Rit DAVID SANBORN hideaway STAR ON Stars On Long Play JOE WALSH These Goes The neighborhood GROVER WASHINGTON Wine light STEVE WINWOOD Arc Of A Diver MANHATTAN TRANSFER Mecca For Modems The WHO Face Dances GEORGE HARRISON Somewhere In England VAN HALEN Fair Warning YOKO ONO Season of Glass ELTON JOHN The Fox JEFFERSON STARSHIP Modem Times JOHN KLEMMER Mush LARRY GATLIN help Yourself PETER TOSH Wanted Dread Or Aliv DREGS Unsung heroes Wed., I Thurs., I Fri., July 1 I July 2 I July 3 NKUS/C EX***tt^ M ¥ MM W wmLam 725-B UNIVERSITY DRIVE OPEN 10-K) “Behind Skaggs & McDonalds’ 846-1741