Khachigian Clueless on Protecting Environment

Kenneth L. Khachigian misses the point in his column, “Time to Stand Up to Elitist Eco-Moralists,” (May 25). The “serious needs” of a civilized society are exactly what the Endangered Species Act and environmental protection are all about. We are all part of the chain of life, and supposedly, as most intelligent, we are morally obligated to be responsible caretakers of the earth.

Common sense tells us that the human population at over 5.8 billion is out of control. And because of urban sprawl and our unquenchable greed for newer, bigger, faster and more, we are threatening the existence of every living species on this planet--including ourselves. Leading scientists and biologists believe that we are undergoing the worst extinction since the dinosaurs, with an estimated loss of between 40 to 250 species per day.

As Khachigian points out, we need the pristine beauty that only nature can give us to regroup from too much traffic, too much noise, too much pollution, too many bullets in our “civilized” society. This quality of life certainly is as important as one more tollway.

Fortunately, we have groups such as the Sierra Club that for over 100 years have represented those of us who do care about all living species, obscure or otherwise. These groups defend against those who, in the dead of night, “accidentally” bulldoze just one more scarce, protected ecosystem (critters can’t dial 911).

When the 1994 Congress unsuccessfully tried to roll back environmental protection laws, they quickly got the message from their constituents: Preserve the environment. Unfortunately, it may already be too late to stop our quest to conquer and control nature, a quest that masquerades under the names of “progress” and “development.” After all, it’s only one more tollway to further divide ecosystems until nothing living is left.

No one knows how many people the earth can support. Millions of people worldwide go to bed hungry each night, and millions die from hunger-related causes each year. Perhaps Khachigian might ponder these numbers and their connection to ecosystems and tollways over his next rain forest beef hamburger.

NANCY SORENSEN

Fullerton