Answers to Go: Great Lakes play big role in earth’s fresh surface water

Features

March 13, 2010

By Susan Smith The San Marcos Record Sat Mar 13, 2010, 01:27 PM CST

Each week hundreds of people call or visit the San Marcos Public Library to find information. "Answers•To•Go" highlights recently received questions. Please visit the library at 625 East Hopkins, call 393-8200 for information over the phone, or e-mail us through our web-page at www.ci.san-marcos.tx.us/library.htm.

Q. I heard recent news reports about the plans to attack invasive species and reduce pollution in the Great Lakes. I was surprised to hear how much of the earth’s fresh surface water is found in the Great Lakes. Could you help me with some comparison so I can picture how large the lakes are?

A. Our new “World Book Encyclopedia” reports that 18 percent of the earth’s fresh surface water is in the Great Lakes.

Let’s return to your question about comparative sizes. We’ll compare the total surface area of the five lakes to some nearby states. The combined area of the five Great Lakes is 94,200 square miles. The combined area of Louisiana and Mississippi is pretty close at 95,406 square miles.

How much of Texas could be covered by the Great Lakes? Texas has an area of 266,853 square miles. The combined surface area of the lakes would cover more than a third of Texas.

Lake Superior is the largest of the lakes at 31,700 square miles. That’s bigger than South Carolina which has 31,118 square miles.

At 7300 square miles, Lake Ontario is the smallest of the Great Lakes. New Jersey is a bit bigger at 7813 square miles.

Q. Can you help me find a tax form? I think I qualify for a tax credit because I replaced my home’s old windows with windows designed to reduce heat loss.

A. I think you’re looking for IRS form 5695 which covers residential energy credits. The instructions contain detailed information about the type of energy saving measures that qualify.

You may be able to take a credit of 30% of the costs paid or incurred in 2009 for any qualified energy efficiency improvements and any residential energy property. See form 5695 for details on the limit amount for the credit.

How can you be sure the products you purchased qualify? Reading IRS prose is seldom enlightening. Let’s pull out our copy of “J.K. Lasser’s Your Income Tax 2010.”

Lasser’s guide states, “Qualified improvements include insulation, exterior windows including skylights, exterior doors, certain metal or asphalt roofs designed to reduce heat gain, and energy-efficient heat pumps, water heaters, furnaces, water boilers, and central air conditioners.

“These improvements must meet specified energy-efficiency standards to qualify for the credit. The IRS has provided manufacturers with guidelines for certifying that their products meet these standards. You may rely on a manufacturer’s written certification that a product qualifies for the credit. You can rely on an Energy Star label for exterior windows purchased before June 1, 2009, when IRS guidelines were released. You do not have to attach the certification to your return. Retain the certification as part of your tax records.”

You may also use this form to claim credits on qualified residential solar panels, solar water heating equipment, wind turbines, and geothermal heat pumps.

While the same form is used, limits on the credit for this type of equipment appear to be different. See the IRS instructions or “Lasser’s Tax Guide” for more information.

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