"LISTENING TOURS" SEEM TO BE POPULAR WITH REPUBLICANS

By: S. Becker
Published On: 8/10/2006 8:48:51 PM

It seems as though the Bush Administration is conducting a "listening tour" of their own this summer, supposedly traveling the nation and gathering information and advice from citizens on how to best protect our nation+óGé¼Gäós land, waters and wildlife. However, given their tract record of raping the land and total disregard for the environment, I highly doubt these efforts are sincere. As a matter of fact, I've been told the Bush Administration+óGé¼Gäós hidden agenda behind these events is to build momentum to even further weaken our nation+óGé¼Gäós critical environmental laws, most notably through a proposed package of +óGé¼+ôCooperative Conservation Legislation+óGé¼-¥ that would degrade and weaken the ever so important Endangered Species and Clean Water Acts by merely suggesting that big business follow these important environmental laws (thus turning "laws" into "guidelines").

Anyway, we have the distinct honor of hosting one of these "listening tour" events right here in Virginia. Monday of next week, August 14th at 10:30am, the tour will be at Roanoke College in Salem, and will be attended by none other than Assistant Secretary of the Interior Patricia Lynn Scarlett.

At first glance Scarlett might appear to be a dim but visible light in the evil, dark kingdom of the Bush Administration, but after a second glance that ray of light quickly disappears. According to her book "A Consumer's Guide to Environmental Myths and Realities," Scarlett doesn't believe we are running out of natural resources, disregards the notion that disposable products are bad for the environment, and doesn't necessarily think that America is a wasteful society.

Oh by the way, a big thanks to the Bush Administration for conveniently conducting this event on a Monday morning so that very few hard working, environmentally conscious Virginians are able to attend. Brilliant!

Anyway, if you can work it into your schedule, please try to attend this event and make your voice heard. Tell these cronies that you support strong environmental laws such as the Endangered Species Act, Clean Air Act, and Clean Water Act, as well as strong forest conservation programs and wilderness area protection, and that you do not want to see them weakened or replaced by voluntary programs. Most importantly, let them know how much you care about the environment, and how important it is that your children and grandchildren have a future here in Virginia.
 

Comments



Dude (phriendlyjaime - 8/10/2006 10:25:15 PM)
I don't care who runs for office, the country would be in a much better place if someone would just turn to Al Gore and let him handle the environment.  Let him tell us what to do to change things for the best as well as we can, and then we all do it.  Regardless of what you may feel about Al Gore, you have to respect the fact that he has been researching this for years.  He is, in fact obsessed with it, and he has been since well befoere his term as VP.  I think we can all admit he knows a lot more about the subject than anyone else we see in governmental power.

Or, you can drink kool-aid and insist that the jury is still out on global warming.



Regional surface water quality report - up for public comment. (Bubby - 8/11/2006 12:28:09 PM)
Virginia Department of Environmental Quality identified as polluted about 9,000 miles of rivers and streams in a report last month, alarming a state that prides itself on its natural beauty.

The report summarized the condition of 14,300 miles of rivers and streams, almost one-third of the state's total, which the department studied between 2000 and 2004. It concluded that about 63 percent of the waterways examined were impaired, meaning they failed to meet standards in categories such as swimming, fishing and sustaining aquatic life.

The report also identified more than 100,000 acres of polluted lakes, estuaries and reservoirs.


Vast  Stretches of Rivers are Polluted

Closer to home, in the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, large numbers of fish have been dying for unknown reasons, many of them with lesions or ambiguous sex organs. Scientists suspect that discarded pharmaceuticals, considered an "emerging pollutant," and traditional pollutants such as fertilizers might have contributed.

http://www.deq.virgi...

Many of the waterways were identified as impaired in the state report because of contaminated fish. A particular problem in the downstream parts of the Potomac are polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, industrial chemicals banned in the 1970s but lingering in the environment, officials said.