Environment should be a state priority

EDITORIAL BOARD Editor in
Chief  Timothy Kudo

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 Michael Falcone

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 Cuauhtemoc Ortega

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 Maegan Carberry
 Edward Chiao
 Kelly Rayburn

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 Maegan Carberry
 Edward Chiao

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During an economic downturn ““ not to mention a
gubernatorial election year ““ high gas prices are both
unpopular and harmful to pocketbooks. But when dealing with the
environment, there should be no ceiling to the amount of money
dedicated to ensuring safety. Gov. Gray Davis was primarily
concerned with politics when he decided to postpone the deadline
for California refineries to switch from MTBE (methyl tertiary
butyl ether) to ethanol as a prime component of gasoline. While the
decision definitely protects the financial interests of
Californians ““ and his chances at reelection ““ it does
little to further the fight against environmental destruction.

It is imperative that Davis make a commitment to addressing
environmental concerns immediately. We can delay changes like this
one and continue to live concerned only with the present moment,
but environmental problems are not going to disappear. Even this
“solution” is not a complete one, as ethanol production
itself is subject to fossil fuel use.

What’s really needed is work towards the elimination of
dangerous materials completely. In the short term, this means
improvements in public transportation, driving less, and
encouraging the use of carpools. In the long term, it means
developing new forms of energy and expanding those with less
environmentally destructive byproducts. It may serve our interests
at present to keep gas prices low and continue use of dangerous
materials, but we’ll have little interest in a world with a
less habitable environment.