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Perspectives
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Sarah Kickler
EDITORIAL EDITOR
Mike Schmierbach
NIGHT EDITOR
Carl Yeh
AN EMERALD EDITORIAL
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CHRIS HUTCHINSON/Emerald
Both the Willamette and Columbia
rivers will require comprehensive and
coordinated regional efforts to save them
The old adage typically goes, “If it
ain’t broke, don’t fix it." In Ore
gon environmental politics, how
ever, there seem to be a few peo
ple who feel, “If it’s already broke, it ain’t
worth fixing.”
This approach is evident in the ongoing
debate over how to preserve and restore the
Willamette and Columbia rivers. Both are
in grave danger, yet local and regional offi
cials have failed to develop effective and
well-coordinated strategies for dealing with
the problem.
For years, dwindling fish runs and high
pollution levels have indicated the Colum
bia River was suffering from a variety of fac
tors including commercial fishing, agricul
ture, industry, logging and especially
hydropower.
Saving native salmon runs in the Colum
bia will take serious and drastic measures,
yet many groups continue to push for per
mission to continue and even expand de
structive practices. For example, the federal
government continues to experiment with
barges designed to move fish around dams.
The barges are designed to avoid the
practice of having water spill over dams,
but they have proven expensive and inef
fective. Nevertheless, despite being faced
with piles of evidence that anything short
of removing several dams from the Colum
bia and Snake rivers will continue to pose a
risk to salmon, the government is wasting
millions on absurd measures such as giant
fish taxis.
Leaders from otfrer states have also
shown an irrational indifference to the
problems. Idaho has declined to participate
in a forum to discuss the region’s approach
to fish issues, and Montana’s governor has
hinted he has similar reservations.
Politicians from both states indicated
they were worried about losing control over
the waterways; in reality, the rivers are not
ours to control and any influence we do ex
ert will be lost if federal regulators are
forced to impose drastic action to save fish
runs.
Of course, this assumes the federal gov
ernment will prove willing to act when
state politicians have failed. The Environ
mental Protection Agency has such an op
portunity, offered by Portland International
Airport officials.
The airport is seeking permission to
dump glycol, the chemical used to de-ice
planes, into the Columbia River. Numerous
studies have shown that glycol is a health
risk and kills fish.
While PDX needs to cut runoff into the
Columbia Slough and federal mandates re
quire some kind of de-icing program,
dumping toxic chemicals directly into an
already polluted river is not the best option.
Many years ago, a massive effort to clean
up the Willamette River was undertaken by
communities throughout the valley, partic
ularly Portland. For a time, the river was
clean enough to swim in even at its conflu
ence with the Columbia. Now, sewage
spills and pesticide runoff make water
sports a questionable practice once again.
It will take another, more intense effort to
clean up both the Willamette and the Co
lumbia. Fundamental attitudes about how
we view and treat the rivers must change;
dumping antifreeze into the Columbia is
not a practice that fits with that attitudinal
change.
Similar to the Columbia, the Willamette
faces a number of damaging factors. While
the Columbia has received more attention,
the Willamette may well be in worse shape;
a recent study by the U.S. Geological Sur
vey indicates the river is among the least
healthy for fish in the nation.
Problems include toxic pollutants from
agricultural and industrial use, including
paper processing. In December, a task force
formed by Gov. Kitzhaber made a number
of suggestions, as did the federal survey
team. While some of these suggestions —
such as removing development from flood
planes, restoring a more natural flow to the
river and drastically reducing fertilizer and
pesticide use—may seem extreme, they
should be viewed as necessities.
Perhaps the most important observation
made by the governor’s task force is that bil
lions are already being spent by local agen
cies who are wasting much of their money
on unnecessary or redundant efforts. Just as
on the Columbia, the Willamette is plagued
not by a lack of concern but by a lack of co
ordination.
Everyone in the region is immediately af
fected by the health of the watershed in
which they live, and the Columbia and
Willamette are components of a very large
watershed. We need to take efforts to save
them seriously, and this means ensuring
the participation of all officials and block
ing approval of proposals that would con
tinue to damage the rivers.
Perhaps there is no better example of the
failure of politicians to deal with the river
problems than the recent protest raised by
state Sen. Gordon Smith and others against
the potential listing of the Willamette in a
federal rivers program. The listing would
have meant increased research dollars but
no specific regulations.
Nevertheless, Smith opposed the move
because he feared federal regulation would
destroy local autonomy over the waterway.
What he should really fear is that local
leaders will continue to provide inadequate
leadership for dealing with the crisis.
It may take federal control or it may sim
ply take better local coordination, but river
preservation, management and improve
ment need to be among the highest priori
ties for area leaders. The cost of fixing a dy
ing river may seem impossibly high, but the
cost of a dead river is even higher.
This editorial represents the opinion of the
Emerald editorial board. Responses may be
sent to ode@oregon .uoregon.edu.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Medical birth control
It was stated in the “thumbs
down" column (ODE, June 1) that
the anti-impotence pill for males
is covered by insurance, while
birth-control pills for women are
not. Then it was stated, “birth
control... may not ‘treat’ medical
conditions, but it is an important
tool women use to maintain their
physical, mental and emotional
well-being.”
I want to clarify that birth con
trol is indeed used to treat a
wealth of medical conditions.
Many women take birth control
to alleviate the painful symptoms
or endometriosis and polycystic
fibrosis. Both diseases cause se
vere menstrual cramps, heavy
bleeding, bowel irregularities, ir
regular periods, anemia and, if
left untreated, infertility. Birth
control is also used to treat
women who fail to menstruate
(amenorrhea).
I take birth control pills for en
dometriosis. I used to have to
stay in bed the first two days of
my period because of severe
pain, but because of birth con
trol, I can go to classes and work.
My regimen of treatment costs
$175 a year and is not covered
by insurance because it also
happens to be a contraceptive.
Gender inequality in health
care? It’s $175 I’d like to spend on
something else.
Angie Barrick
Psychology
Flag honors nationalism
As members of the Eugene
chapter of the Society for the Uni
versal Human, an organization
dedicated to honoring all humans
who share this planet, we dis
agree with the placement of an
American flag on Skinner Butte
as a war memorial. Let us not for
get that wars occur due to overt
nationalism. Having a large
American flag as a war memorial
is a blatant symbol of nationalism
and only honors Americans, not
the millions of other people in the
world who have died in wars. Just
as the large cross honored only
Christians, a large flag honors
deaths of only Americans.
In the spirit of world peace, we
would respectfully submit that a
universal symbol should be con
sidered as a monument. Possibili
ties might be a dedication plaque
to all those in the world who have
lost their lives in a war, a dedica
tion to the innocent children of
the world who have been lost, or
a model of our planet as seen
from space. Perhaps we could en
gage the creativity of the local citi
zens in a contest to develop a
symbol that would more accu
rately express Eugene’s sympa
thies and hopes for the future.
We believe that war is a de
structive option; it is time to
switch our focus to promoting
peace. Let’s create a symbol that
is inclusive of all people and en
genders feelings of global unity
that can help promote peaceful
solutions to conflict for all chil
dren and future generations.
Charlotte and Carl Peterson
Society for the Universal Human
and Five Cosigners