After the first Earth Day in 1970 laws were passed all over the country aimed at protecting the environment. A heightened awareness of the dangers of ignoring our natural resources turned a "happening" into a framework intended to prevent or reduce significant damage to our land, air, and water resources. In California this became the California Environmental Quality Act.
Like most people, Earth Day 1970 passed me by quietly. My husband was in Viet Nam and I was home tending three babies. I didn't have time to march or attend "happenings" but I did care what kind of world would be left for my children. I fully expected the people in charge would use the new laws to provide a clean, natural environment.
Years later, with my children I walked along the banks of the San Luis Rey River. I could imagine how beautiful it must have been when the Native Americans camped along its banks. Now sand mining drag lines littered the river bed. The banks of the river were undefined and giant holes lay all around.
Now the wide beaches I had played along as a child were eroded away. I saw row after row of homes on the hills across from the Mission San Luis Rey where the riders from the San Diego Mission would camp as they visited our mission many years ago. The geese and other wild birds rarely passed over my home anymore and I wondered where all the protection went.
The truth is the California Environmental Protection Act (CEQA) was left in the hands of beauracrats who quickly turned it into an alphabet soup of confusing terms and reports that elected officials have used to justify over development and poor planning. Instead of using the laws to inform the public of the adverse impact of a proposed project they have often used them to assist the developers of the project to circumvent the ecological implications.
This does not mean that the laws cannot be used by the public effectively to determine the environmental issues and values of the community. What it means is that community members must become involved early in the process and demand that the values of the community be supported by their elected officials.
When I was on the City Council there was a running joke that there was really only one environmental impact report (EIR) ever written and only the locations and names were changed to protect the guilty. It was a just a joke because most EIR's are wonderful sources of information about the community's natural resources. The problem is that those who prepare the EIR's do not often get enough input from community members . When an EIR is about to be prepared the public always has a right to comment. The most effective way to do this is at a "Scoping Meeting." Scoping Meetings are exactly what the name says-- a meeting to set the scope, or parameters, of the report. This meeting is your opportunity to ask that issues of importance to the community are addressed. You can ask for facts and studies and surveys to be performed that will demonstrate that the public is being protected. You can bring up community values and economics.
On November 17, 1997 at 6 PM in the City Council chambers there will be a scoping meeting regarding changes to the uses in our Harbor Beach. The proposed plans include paving over nearly a third of the beach to provide parking for increased boat launching ramps and a proposed aquarium. This is your chance to set the stage for what the reports will analyze. This is your chance to be heard and to make the CEQA process work . Years from now you may take a walk with your children or grandchildren along Harbor Beach and wonder what would have happened if you had not become involved. That is the real legacy of Earth Day.
