RAMBLINGS
FROM THE [IKC] PRESIDENT... Cave
Conservancy Home
“One of the penalties of
an ecological education is that one lives alone in a world of wounds” --
Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac
“Ocean fish populations
plummet _ stocks of large predatory fish have declined by 90 percent since
industrial fishing began in the mid-1950's…” -- Discover, January
2004
“... the administration
wants quick action: it has directed federal managers to remove regulatory obstacles
to oil and gas development along the (Rocky Mountain) Front, ...Concern for
wildlife and its habitat is no longer a priority.” -- National
Wildlife, August / September 2004
“But until enough
citizens who are voters care, then these special interests will be able to
block any meaningful policy change. It's
as simple as that... Are we going to have significant climate change and all
its consequences, or are we going to try to do something early on? Right now I don't think we're going to act
soon enough without significant degradation of our environment. I hope I'm wrong.” -- Senator John McCain
(R-Arizona) speaking of his failed attempt at a bipartisan (with Joseph
Lieberman D-Connecticut) workable bill on climate change, OnEarth,
Spring 2004
Just some
samples from the pile on my office floor. It's a bit depressing. As an engineer, I know that we have no hope
of manufacturing the clean air and water we need to sustain our population;
instead we must rely on natural systems to do the heavy lifting.
Unfortunately, the world is
just too complex to allow us to predict how many species we can kill off and
how much pollution we can dump before the Big Machine starts to falter.
We, the IKC, don't get
involved in politics; as a 501c3 organization we can't. If we did, then your contributions would no
longer be tax deductible; and you might choose not to be so generous the next
time. Instead, the IKC has chosen to
emulate The Nature Conservancy; and while we certainly can't match their budget
and scope, we've been able to do a first rate job with what we have.
You, on the other hand, as
individuals can and should get involved in the politics. Most of the big problems that are on the
horizon will, unfortunately, require some sort of legislative action and a
willingness to enforce the regulations.
I can hear the groans now, “Not more onerous regulations!” That's what you've been taught to say by talk
radio and the cable TV news shows. I've
had the opportunity to see some of the `onerous regulations' from both
sides. Having worked for a large
corporation and having seen the way things are done at the bottom, middle and
near the top - I can say it works like this:
Businesses are neither moral nor immoral; they make decisions based on
survival.
Profitability in the face of
competition and changing conditions determines survival. It's as simple as that. If, for example, and this is strictly
hypothetical, you are in an industry that uses plating processes as a part of
your manufacturing; then you use some very poisonous solutions. What to do with those solutions when they
become contaminated or depleted? The
cheapest thing to do is to dump them in the sinkhole out back. Without `onerous regulations' that's what
would happen. “Can't be!” you say, “Businesses
would never stoop that low!” Suppose
you're the plating line supervisor barely making enough to support your family;
now picture the MBA CFO calculating that with present costs and with
competition driving the prices down there will be a net loss next year. An order comes down – “All departments will
reduce expenses by 20%, if this isn't met then there will be layoffs! Supervisor's performance reviews will be
based on meeting this target. No arguments, just do it!”
Now remember, there's no regulation (in this hypothetical case) against
dumping the solutions on your property and there's still that sinkhole out
back. Costs to have a reputable
certified hazardous waste hauler take those barrels of cyanide bath off your
hands are almost 20% of your budget.
You've heard from a reputable source that the competition has its own
sinkhole. And of course, everybody knows
that water cleans itself underground and comes out pure as “spring water”. You haven't seen the IKC's
karst groundwater (ant farm) demonstration; the one
where the pollutant dumped in a sinkhole comes up the neighbor's well
pipe. It must be okay,
otherwise it would be illegal, right? The CFO, conveniently, can later say that he was “””horrified” to
find out what happened. One man's
“onerous regulation” is another's lifesaver.
What can you do?
1)Become involved.
Learn the issues and where your elected representatives and the opposing
candidates stand on them. It's tough to
do. Politicians tend not to take clear
stands, particularly when they are running for office; but you can get a pretty
good idea from the news and from voting records (available from various sources
on the web). They and the talk shows
will try to convince you that you really care about same-sex marriage or some
such topic rather than about leaving a working world to your grandkids - you
decide what's important. Pick somebody
who will listen to you even if you don't agree with everything they stand for. You are the leader when it comes to saving
natural systems; big money and politics are almost invariably on the other
side. You may even want to make a
campaign contribution. In the real world
this gives you more of a tendency to be heard by the candidate.
2)VOTE! If nothing else,
it gives you the moral right to complain about the results.
3)Let the winner know what you want them to do. Write your congressman, senator, president -
believe it or not, they want to hear from you.
Hand written letters are great; petitions and mass mailings have much
less credibility. Don't be a crank! Keep your letter short and on target, be
respectful and make it personal with related personal experiences. When they do what you want, thank them. When they don't, let them know (respectfully)
that you disagree.
If all else fails, Sears
sells a nice countertop water distillation unit that removes most nasty
chemicals and bugs. I
know, I've got one.
Richard Vernier
President,
Reprinted from the September
2004 IKC Update