Two too-common cringe-inducing word usage errors appeared in today’s Everett Herald.
“Pine trees” is not a generic term for evergreen conifers. The trees in the freeway median are almost certainly cedars, firs, hemlocks and spruces. Pines are not native to this area.
Most “retention ponds” are detention ponds, which collect stormwater and release it slowly through restricted outlets. Ponds that retain stormwater have no outlets, instead allowing the water to soak into the soil. They are usually dry between storms and can be located only in well-draining soils, which are not common locally. Engineers call them infiltration ponds, not retention ponds. If you’re not sure what kind of pond it is, you can’t go wrong calling it simply a “stormwater pond.”
These errors of misinformation never oughta happen in a quality newspaper.
John Cherry
Former copy editor
Former civil engineer
Snohomish
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
