There are no easy answers to the way we use our natural resources.

In West Texas, where my family lives, fracking is producing an economic boom in a depressed area.  Huge trucks are hauling in the water needed for this process and hauling out the polluted water after it is used.  Roads are being torn up by these heavy vehicles and large “lakes” are being created to hold the polluted water where it is left to evaporate in this hot, dry climate.  Liquified natural gas is the main product.  Many jobs have been created.  Many new motels and barracks have been constructed to house the workers.  It’s a boom town, and you want to think very carefully there before you say anything negative about this.  I do want us to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and I do like to drive my Subaru and I like for people to have jobs.

Here in Oregon, our conversations focus on the harvesting of our beautiful forests for the creation of wood and paper products.  Last summer kayaking on the Willamette down near Harrisburg, we came upon the illegal dumping of residue from a mill.  The water was polluted far above acceptable levels.  Reports were made, fines were paid, and this was “remedied.”  A hundred years ago, the river was used this way all along its path to the Columbia and out to sea.  No one even thought that this might not be a good use of the conveniently-located flowing waterway.  Times change and now we try to regulate tree-chopping and river-dumping while still supporting this industry.

I like to think that, if there is any lesson for us today to take away from the Genesis story of the Garden of Eden, it is this:  The tale relates that first humanity was placed in a beautiful garden and told to tend it and to care for the animals.  Simply put, what this means to me is that we are supposed to be good stewards of our garden, this amazing Earth.

As I said, there are no easy answers.  Yesterday driving home from the Courthouse and The Minto in my gasoline-powered car I came upon this train moving along the tracks.   When I got home to my beautiful wooden house, I sat down at my wooden table to read a print edition of the newspaper.  There are no easy answers to being good stewards.