Outreach

[James Marple <jesl@carolina.net>]

Comment by a Citizens for Responsible Water Management member who reviewed the first few days of this discussion.

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Yes, the EPA needs to go into the community and talk to people regarding participation in local planning, but for this to be effective it must first saturate the area with a clear, colorful, brief illustration of proposed actions and planning options.  If, as is common in California, the public has been brainwashed from birth to accept a false picture of natural resource management options they won't be interested in participating since they think this will not be productive.  
But if shown the true costs and benefits of proposed actions, and in California it is easy to demonstrate how ordinary planning could bring immediate monumental improvement, their desire for personal gain can cause them to become participants.  

At present, a family head may slough off civic duty, a responsibility to attend workshops or hearings and study data, by referring to the 'you can't fight city hall' or 'you can't fight Mother Nature' myths promulgated by self-interested bureaucrats and engineers. (At the instigation of and in coordination with consultants serving profiteers) who seek to minimize public input.  The bureaucrats, lobbiests, attorneys, senior engineers and planners who's practice it is to deceive use the oldest of salemen's/politicians techniques, talking us into feeling ignorant and therefore timid, then offering a deal that appeals to our greedy side and persuading us we would look like a fool to refuse. 

The EPA should begin its efforts to promote public involvement in its planning by providing us with a broad view of how we benefit from putting natural resources to best use and protecting them from degradation.  Not with cute brochures and thick manuals but with an information campaign that reaches every citizen to illustrate how they may personally benefit from taking part in local planning and how they can best persuade the people they vote into office to make all planning a public process.