Whenever I look at a snapshot of Earth taken by astronauts in orbit, I’m struck by the simple fact that we humans have only one world to live on. We live on a planet of life.
Unfortunately, we homo sapiens tend to forget Earth is not only humanity’s home, it’s also the home world to many other species that have evolved here. We could not exist long without them.
Tomorrow is Earth Day, an annual event to remember how all our lives are directly tied to this globe of rock, water and air zipping around the universe. Here in the South Valley, Morgan Hill will hold an Earth Day event at its Community Center to enlighten local residents about their roles as stewards of the environment. And Henry Coe State Park has scheduled an environmental restoration event to mark the day.
But Earth Day 2006 is special for the South Valley for one particularly important reason: One of the co-founders of this day of environmental recognition is Pete McCloskey.
From 1967 to 1982, McCloskey represented the Bay Area’s Peninsula as a Republican member of the House of Representatives. In January, he got back in the political campaign saddle to oust Congressman Richard Pombo from District 11 (which includes a portion of the South Valley). If McCloskey wins, this champion of the environment will represent Morgan Hill, San Martin and portions of Gilroy.
Because this year’s Earth Day has significant relevance for us in the June 6 primary, it’s useful now to consider its esteemed history.
The origins of Earth Day go back to November 1962 when U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson came up with the idea of having President John F. Kennedy travel around the nation on a tour to put environmental conservation issues into the political limelight. Kennedy liked the idea and in September 1963, he began a week-long environmental campaign across America.
The vibrant young president sparked an awareness in the people of this nation that our environment is indeed important. Unfortunately, with JFK’s death in Dallas two months later and the growing turmoil of the war in Vietnam, the environmental movement lost much momentum.
The summer of 1969 was the peak of social agitation then going on throughout America. Senator Nelson saw the power of grass roots movements such as the anti-war demonstrations. And he realized the American people have great power to make a political difference. That power, he recognized, could be harnessed to protect the environment.
Years later, Nelson recalled Earth Day’s evolution: “I was satisfied that if we could tap into the environmental concerns of the general public and infuse the student anti-war energy into the environmental cause, we could generate a demonstration that would force this issue onto the political agenda. It was a big gamble, but worth a try.”
Nelson, a Democrat, obtained Republican Congressman Pete McCloskey’s help in co-sponsoring the nationwide environment demonstration. And on April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day event was held. It was a massive success. More than 20 million people – including schools and city governments – participated throughout the nation to show support for environmental conservation.
The success of that first Earth Day helped spark many important environmental laws. During the next four years, Congress passed the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Amendments, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Estuary Protection Act, the Coastal Zone Act and the Endangered Species Act. Several of these laws were written by Congressman McCloskey.
What Senator Nelson proposed as a one-time demonstration event quickly became an annual celebration of the environment. Over time, Earth Day’s impact was recognized as so important that President Clinton awarded Nelson with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Clinton remarked of Nelson: “He inspired us to remember that the stewardship of our natural resources is the stewardship of the American Dream.”
The conservation ideals and laws that Earth Day inspired are now under threat. And one of those responsible is South Valley’s own Congressman Richard Pombo.
Last week, a young man from the Sierra Club came to my door while canvassing my neighborhood. We talked about how Pombo has used his powerful position as Chairman of the House Resources Committee to weaken the environmental laws put into effect in the 1970s.
In 2005, Pombo proposed opening off-shore oil drilling along the pristine waters of California and other coastal states. And he tried to sneak a bill into the House Budget Reconciliation package to drill for oil in Alaska’s environmentally sensitive Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
Against the objections of both Democrat and Republican leaders, Pombo also tried to sell off thousands of acres of land in many of our country’s national parks, wilderness preserves and scenic waterways. Our congressman believes mining companies and private real estate speculators can make better use of our parks than the American people.
Whales and other endangered species will also not fare well if Pombo gets his way. Our congressman considers whales a “renewable resource” and seeks the “resumption” of killing these magnificent creatures for commercial profit.
Congressman Pombo, who calls himself a “conservative,” needs to gain a true understanding of what conservation really means. He needs to learn that the world belongs not to just humans alone. We must share it respectfully with all life God has placed here.
As a myopic society, we selfishly exploit our planet for short term gain at the great expense of our future. But I’m optimistic. We as human beings have an amazing ability to change ourselves – if we see the perils we put ourselves into.
As human beings, we are as much a part of Earth’s environment as the plants and animals, the mountains and valleys, and the rivers and oceans. Sometimes, we forget that important fact. We forget that our actions – whatever we might intend – dramatically affects our world for good or ill.
Next time you see a photo of our planet of life taken from the lofty vantage of space, remember that every day is indeed Earth Day.
