Congress has taken
up a bill that could invalidate all
environmental laws within 100 miles of any U. S. border or coast,
with the rationale being to help Homeland Security secure national
borders. .The
areas impacted would include the entire state of Florida and most of
Washington state Oregon and California as well as popular
destinations such as the Cape Cod National Seashore, Glacier National
Park, the White Mountain National Forest and the Statue of Liberty
among others.
Utah Republican Rob
Bishop is sponsoring the bill, called the National Security and
Federal Lands Protections Act (HR 1505). It would “prohibit
the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture from taking action on
public lands which impede border security on such lands.” By giving
the DHS control over the U.S. coastal and border regions, the bill
would, in effect, negate environmental regulations that protect the
air and drinking water of two-thirds of the U.S. population.
Endangered species that inhabit these lands would also be in peril.
In all, this bill would dispose of 36
environmental protections.
It is important to
note the environmental damage done to the border areas as a result of
powers already handed over to the DHS. Under a section of the REAL
ID ACT, the DHS has the power to negate any laws that impede the
construction of the southern border fence, meant to prevent
immigration from Mexico.
The construction of
the border fence has had catastrophic effects for both human and
animal communities. Animals have been blocked from important water
sources and deprived of valuable forest lands, and have seen the
complete destruction of wildlife refuges. Human communities have
faced flooding and polluted air and water as a result of the border
fence. Furthermore, hundreds of poor migrants have died after being
forced to traverse the most inhospitable desert lands. These
atrocities will intensify as DHS increases its power and regional
scope.
It is interesting
to compare this situation to that of a country with legitimate
security concerns. Cuba has been able to protect its borders from
U.S. aggression for nearly 60 years while building a reputation for
environmental development and preservation. Through socialist
planning, the Cuban government has developed a strong national system
that restores and preserves its wildlife.
The U.S. government
has undertaken a racist anti-immigration policy. Scapegoating
immigrants is a classic capitalist tool for shifting the blame for
the failures of the economic system. This latest wave of the
capitalist blame game is also having far-reaching consequences for
our natural resources and wildlife. We must reject capitalist
divide-and-conquer methods. We must fight for a system that truly
values all human beings and the sustainable development and
preservation of our valuable resources.
