Bush Breaks Promise to Protect Hawaiian Islands from Pollution

There are very few instances in which Bush has done something genuinely good for America and for the world. Back in 2006 when he declared a remote chain of islands in Hawaii the biggest, most environmentally protected area of the ocean in the world, it was to much fanfare and praise from conservationists. But, if you visit this supposedly clean, protected area today, you’ll see a reality that’s far from what Bush promised.

From The Huffington Post:

His proclamation featured some of the strictest measures ever placed on a marine environment. Any material that might injure the area’s sensitive coral reefs and 7,000 rare species _ a fourth of them found nowhere else in the world _ would be prohibited, even if the debris drifted in from thousands of miles away.

Ocean currents are still bringing an estimated 57 tons of garbage and discarded fishing gear to the 10 islands and the waters surrounding them each year. Endangered monk seals are still being snared and coral reefs smothered by discarded fishing nets. Albatrosses are still feeding on indigestible plastic and feeding it to their young.

So, what happened? It’s simple: it got pushed to the back burner. The Bush administration cut the budget back by a whopping 80%. The photo above shows Kamilo Beach in September of last year, covered in trash again. But, is anyone surprised? Bush is a foe of the environment. Trash on a beach in Hawaii is the last thing on his mind, or that of anyone else in his administration.

Is it 2009 yet?

Link [The Huffington Post]

Photo credit: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Carey Morishige

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