To the editor:

During Gov. Parkinson’s State of the State address, he spoke of the need to capitalize on wind energy opportunities, the need to make decisions for Kansas that will be long-term smart, and the chance to make choices now that will astonish future historians when they review how Kansans dealt with pressing issues.

Nowhere, however, was there a mention of the land itself, or how much Kansans value the environment and its wildlife. When it comes to being the nation’s leader in wind power, the environmental angle must be there or our energy production gains will have long-term costs.

Kansas has shrinking swaths of rich but fragile prairie. Rather than embracing the equivalent of Alaska’s “drill, baby, drill!” mentality, Kansas deserves a sustainable energy vision that respects the landscape.

Dust Bowl history and today’s sad situation in Treece are glaring examples of how it can go wrong in Kansas when natural resources are exploited via poorly designed visions. By contrast, Greensburg shows how Kansas can get it right with development that is sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Is it beyond reach to develop energy projects that preserve the habitat? Hardly. Rob Manes, of The Nature Conservancy in Topeka, is on a federal committee drafting guidelines for siting wind energy projects. He and others in Kansas have mapped our state, identifying wind energy sites that minimize the impact on habitat.

Let’s take the governor’s goal of astonishing historians further. Let’s tap the wisdom of our environmental experts and plan wind projects to support our children, their children and the landscape that we call home.