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Show The Salt Lake Tribune OPINION Saturday, May 31, 1997 New Book Spots Damages Done By So-Called ‘Clean Industry’ ROBERTO RODRGUEZ PATRISIA GONZALES CHRONICLE FEATURES SAN FRANCISCO — There are few sensations more invigorating than to sit barefoot on the banks ofa river and feel the cold through your feet while listening to the waters rush by. To experience a river's spirit is sacred. It is a baptism lion, The authors argue that, with that kind of money, these businesses should clean up their own messes, rather than burdening consumers or taxpayers. They should also be good corporatecitizens by paying their fair share of taxes rather than receiving corporate welfare in the form of massive tax breaks. The silicon chip industry was, of course, born in Northern California, from nature that has taken hundreds of millions of years to create, which is today hometo the most EPA Su- Andyetin a few short years, in parts of 80 percent of them created by high-tech industries. Ratherthan voluntarily cleaning upits mess, the industry's response has been to the world, life-sustaining waters that many people holdto be sacredarein danger of being completely contaminated and suckeddry by high-tech corporations — companies that were once considered to be part ofa “clean industry.” InSacred Waters: Life Blood ofMother Earth, a new book from the Southwest Network for Environmental and Economic Justice and Campaign for Responsible Technology, the authors sound the warning that in our quest for faster and more powerful computers,weas a society are permitting industries to destroy our environments.It is not individuals allow- ing this to happenbut local, state and national governments the world over, in their endless courting of businessesto se- cure jobs and prosperity. In Sacred Waters, the authors document four case studies of “high-tech water resource exploitation and corpo- rate welfare in the Southwestern United States,” including the Silicon Valley in Northern California; the Silicon Desert (Phoenix-area) of Arizona, the Silicon Mesa (Albuquerque-area) of New Mexico and the Silicon Hills of Austin, Texas. The authors conclude that new jobs have indeed come to these areas, but many of them have gone to “outsiders” who have been brought in to work for these corporations, without any real benefit to these local communities. The book also concludes that the arrival of hightech industries to these areas has been very prosperous indeed — not for the communities, but for the companies themselves. Whatlures these migrant companies to water-starved regions — deserts, in some cases — has been long-term multimilliondollar tax abatements, infrastructure support, a nonunionized laborforce, extremely cheap water and lax enforcement of health, worker safety and environmen- tal laws. But the cost of creating more conve- nient forms of communication has been the contamination of water anda trail of toxic sites left behind. Industry experts estimatethatin addition to chemicals and electrical power,it takes over 2,000 gallons of water to make a single six-inch silicon wafer. Of course, once used, the wateris not reusable. rnNow that we've Ww settled | the NATG affair, let's _{move on to the big one!} Projectednetsales for the semiconductor industry alone for 1997 is $154 bil- perfundcleanupsites (29)in the country, pick up and move — to places such as. Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, where its pollution and depletion of water sources has continued unabated. It has also triggered destruction of a way oflife for many. Thisis true not just in the Unit- ed States but wherever subsidiaries of these companiesexist, and as the authors of Sacred Waters pointout, that’s everywherein the world. Someusedto call this environmental racism because many of the affected communities in the Southwest are Chicano villages and Native pueblos. However, these four case studies reveal that the insatiable thirst of these high-tech industries for water andprofits is decimating fee regions, not just poor communiies. It’s true that the most highly polluted Superfundsites are generally in communities of color. However, the authors warn of an impendingdisaster that will affectall the residents of the Southwest. Oncethe industries suck upall the water andpolluteit all, what are we as a society Seec Clinton Will Try Avoiding Paula Jones Showdown gal or moral question about his political and personal behavior. Thelast thing Bill Clinton wants is for CAL THOMAS Jones to air her allegations in court, a forum that could be nationally televised and might haveto be rated so that parents going to do? The companies will simply move on, leaving in their wake, water-starved communities and the decimation oflocal cultures, For example, the 300-year-old ace- could use the V-Chip their president wants to put in every television to protect the kids from bad words andsexual images. quia (water irrigation) associations in rural New Mexico, whose purpose is to Writing for the court, Justice John share and maintain the limited water resources equitably, are in danger of being dissolved as high-tech companies attempt to purchase more and morewater rights to meet their own expanding needs. Once the acequia members succumb to financial pressures andsell their water rights, their farming wayoflife will cease. Sacred Watersis not anti high-tech, but demands that industry and government create self-sustaining and non-polluting technologies. Because weonlylive on one planet, these corporations will one day run out of places to migrate to. That’s why the authors speak of an impending international watercrisis. Wecan’t fathom the day when we can no longer feel the cold and hear the soundsof the riverspirits. Hopefully, we won't ever haveto. LOS ANGELES TIMES SYNDICATE WASHINGTON — While the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that no presi- dent mayhide behind the Constitution to avoid legal accountability for his actions before becoming president,therearestill manylegal maneuversBill Clinton’s law- yers can use to make sure Paula Jones nevergets to tell her story in open court. From Whitewater to questionable cam- Paul Stevens said that the Little Rock trial judge, Susan Webber Wright, should give the president wide latitude in the norof Arkansasin a hotel room wherehe allegedly exposed himself and asked her to perform a lewd sexual act, which she says she refused. So far, the president has said he “can’t recall” ever meeting Jones and denies doing that of which she accuses him. Why can’t he say that underoath, unlessit isn’t true and hehas something to hide? Jones’ attorneyssay she is still open to an apology from the president, but it would take excruciatingly legalistic language to apologize for something one Jones case becauseof his busy schedule. What busy schedule? The president wasnot so busy with his “official” duties claimsnot to have done. fund-raising activities, from small talk at than about women. They were quick to canonize Anita Hill in her testimony al- that he couldn't find time for marathon “coffees” in the White House, to renting out the Lincoln bedroomto top donors, to myriad other schemes that packed his calendar for nearly two years. Mostof his activities are now focused on image- building and his “heritage.” paign contributions to Paula Jones, Bill Clinton has usedthetactics of delay, deny If he could sparethe timefor all of that fund-raising and meaningless proposals and deceive to avoid being held account- for “our children and grandchildren, able for anything he and his minions may have done. He is the Harry Houdini of education and the environment,” surely hecansparea few hours, at most, to give polities, seemingly able to escape any le- that she wasaskedtovisit the then-gover- a deposition in response to Jones’s charge Thefailure of feminist organizations to come to Paula Jones’ defense is further proof that they care more about politics leging that Clarence Thomassexually harassed her. There was no doubtin their mindsthat Hill wastelling the truth. But with Jones it's a different matter because the targets are different. Thomas is a conservative pro-lifer. Clinton is socially liberal and pro-abortion. Harry Houdini billed himself as the greatest escapeartist in history. He never metBill Clinton. aiCO Pita 32 0% Fall eape.577** Queen Set $177 Kin,ing Set $277** $2500 As Low As 1 FULL YEAR’ 10% OFF EVERY & per Month When Only The Very Best Will Do. 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