One riverfront landowner in the Nature Conservancy article said "When I die,
I want 'em to roll me out in the river and let the fish eat me." But people
like that are a minority. For every one there are a hundred who don't care,
or who view the environment as a resource placed here at our disposal to be
developed, or who believe the dangerous and irresponsible Rush Limbaughism
that "the Earth's ecosystem is not fragile." All over the west, in Alaska
especially, people have a frontier mentality and are distrustful of
government and oppose regulations and other restrictions. But those same
people are the only real hope for environmental preservation and species
conservation. The ESA is only as strong as the public is willing to insist
that it be. Congress can undo it just as they did when they imposed the
moratoriam on listing new species. Education is the only answer because
informed people make good decisions. People have to understand that
protecting the environment and maintaining biological diversity is actually
for their personal betterment.
-- Jay DeLong Olympia, WA
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