Statesman Journal

September 10, 1997

Today's subject is the role of government in protecting the environment.  South Salem High School students are working on this portion of the summit.

There are three major causes for environmental problems in the U.S., according to 20 Salem teens:

* Natural resource depletion.

* Industrial abuse of the environment.

* Human needs vs. environmental needs.

The students show how corporations shoulder much of the blame for large-scale environmental degradation, such as overharvesting of trees, toxic pollution by manufacturers and air and water quality problems.

The Salem group thinks the U.S. government is in a unique position to act against further pollution.  A major tool, they say, is money.

They will ask government leaders to force corporations to drastically cut emissions and their use of natural resources by imposing heavy fines on polluters.

They also will ask for help in protecting the remaining lands and resources by buying reserve lands that can't be touched by development or industry.

And they will ask for more public transportation systems to limit the amount of air pollution created by single-family cars.

"The government should have the power to protect the environment and its population from toxic emissions and waste.  They should have the power to fine industries and...to have them make the changes themselves," group wrote in its report.

Through Internet connections with students in other countries, the Salem group came up with many examples of ways other governments have controlled pollution.  They used Japan's system of reserves as an example of how the U.S. could protect sensitive lands.