scooter
03-05-2009, 09:53 AM
Rednecks and tree-huggers in battle over land use
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I've been giving a lot of thought lately to Bubba and the tree-hugger, trying to make sense of apparent disagreement over how we should treat our environment.
With no disrespect to those named Bubba, the label goes with other slights such as redneck and good ole boy. The perception is he's friendly, companionable and assertively masculine, but also intolerant, bigoted, anti-intellectual and violent. The term is generally offensive, although some rednecks take ownership of it with some pride.
Bubba will show that his view of the world and how to use it is different from environmentalists by calling them tree-huggers. It's also considered a derogatory term but generally relished by those who believe in preserving forests and more broadly protecting the environment from destruction or pollution. They can also be intolerant of those who would destroy or damage natural resources.
A variation is the conservationist who is more specific with concerns about protecting fish and game and conserving the food and fuel supply in the public interest. Many hunters are conservationists. Sometimes, they are scorned, too.
Up front, let's acknowledge that in any case, it's name calling that leads to entrenchment and little likelihood for agreement to resolve environmental problems. In fact, Bubba may not accept there is a problem, except that he sees Tree-hugger as a threat to his lifestyle.
I heard the term tree-hugger used at a meeting of diverse groups trying to figure out how the Castle Special Places region might be protected. The user said the group he represented was not optimistic he could find common ground with "a bunch of tree-huggers." He seemed reasonable, however, and willing to listen. I'm not sure he fully fit the Bubba description.
It's probably fair to say that rednecks and environmentalists are the main combatants in a decades-long southern Alberta battle. It rages in the 1,000 square kilometres of Crown land between Waterton and the Crowsnest Pass known as the Castle-Crown Wilderness, or Castle Special Place. Go north from the Pass as far as the Kananaskis and you'll see other skirmishes.
Oil and gas and forestry companies have helped open the wilderness with roads, which allows the rest of us to access the back-country. What we do when we get there varies from relatively non-invasive pursuits such as hiking, cross-country skiing and photography to potentially destructive recreation that involves ATVs, dirt bikes and other off-road vehicles.
It's not hard to see the conflict in the South Castle area, for example, between those who would seek to enjoy nature on its own terms and those who want to use it with noise-making machines that can tear up a stream bed where fish spawn.
Organized ATV users promote responsible use of the machines, maintain trails and build bridges so users can avoid driving through streams. But there is evidence not all ATV users act responsibly.
Can Bubba and the tree-hugger agree on how best to use the land that belongs to all of us? Who else is involved? Does the government hear?
Tune in next week.
Richard Burke can be contacted by email at grburke@crowfly.ca. For previous columns, visit www.crowfly.ca/infinite.html (http://www.crowfly.ca/infinite.html).
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PUBLICATION: The Lethbridge Herald
DATE: 2009.02.28
SECTION: Travel & Outdoors
PAGE: e2
BYLINE: Sulz, Dave
WORD COUNT: 499
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I've been giving a lot of thought lately to Bubba and the tree-hugger, trying to make sense of apparent disagreement over how we should treat our environment.
With no disrespect to those named Bubba, the label goes with other slights such as redneck and good ole boy. The perception is he's friendly, companionable and assertively masculine, but also intolerant, bigoted, anti-intellectual and violent. The term is generally offensive, although some rednecks take ownership of it with some pride.
Bubba will show that his view of the world and how to use it is different from environmentalists by calling them tree-huggers. It's also considered a derogatory term but generally relished by those who believe in preserving forests and more broadly protecting the environment from destruction or pollution. They can also be intolerant of those who would destroy or damage natural resources.
A variation is the conservationist who is more specific with concerns about protecting fish and game and conserving the food and fuel supply in the public interest. Many hunters are conservationists. Sometimes, they are scorned, too.
Up front, let's acknowledge that in any case, it's name calling that leads to entrenchment and little likelihood for agreement to resolve environmental problems. In fact, Bubba may not accept there is a problem, except that he sees Tree-hugger as a threat to his lifestyle.
I heard the term tree-hugger used at a meeting of diverse groups trying to figure out how the Castle Special Places region might be protected. The user said the group he represented was not optimistic he could find common ground with "a bunch of tree-huggers." He seemed reasonable, however, and willing to listen. I'm not sure he fully fit the Bubba description.
It's probably fair to say that rednecks and environmentalists are the main combatants in a decades-long southern Alberta battle. It rages in the 1,000 square kilometres of Crown land between Waterton and the Crowsnest Pass known as the Castle-Crown Wilderness, or Castle Special Place. Go north from the Pass as far as the Kananaskis and you'll see other skirmishes.
Oil and gas and forestry companies have helped open the wilderness with roads, which allows the rest of us to access the back-country. What we do when we get there varies from relatively non-invasive pursuits such as hiking, cross-country skiing and photography to potentially destructive recreation that involves ATVs, dirt bikes and other off-road vehicles.
It's not hard to see the conflict in the South Castle area, for example, between those who would seek to enjoy nature on its own terms and those who want to use it with noise-making machines that can tear up a stream bed where fish spawn.
Organized ATV users promote responsible use of the machines, maintain trails and build bridges so users can avoid driving through streams. But there is evidence not all ATV users act responsibly.
Can Bubba and the tree-hugger agree on how best to use the land that belongs to all of us? Who else is involved? Does the government hear?
Tune in next week.
Richard Burke can be contacted by email at grburke@crowfly.ca. For previous columns, visit www.crowfly.ca/infinite.html (http://www.crowfly.ca/infinite.html).
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PUBLICATION: The Lethbridge Herald
DATE: 2009.02.28
SECTION: Travel & Outdoors
PAGE: e2
BYLINE: Sulz, Dave
WORD COUNT: 499
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