The Cross Section, Volume 26, Number 8, August 1980 Page: 3
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August, 1980 THE CROSS SECTION Page 3
ECONMICS---ETHICS--ECOLOGY: THE
ROOTS OF PRODUCTHUK CONSERVA1KBy OR. SAM E. CURL tean
College gi AaritulIural Sci-rc
Tem r TeL University
at'v:n . - a two pur. dI .- l.t Iwo
Di, Sam Curls kvntto 4dd4esIs
tie FoirtWenIh Annul IMeeting of 1' t
re.as Cou.cl of Ilia Soil and Wa:!:
Cafrservation Society 1d Ainrt, ii
Sin Arin , July 1.Q12. 11rnji
The economics of conservation
means different things to different peo-
ple. Producers must obviously be con-
cerned about profit-near-term, long-
term, or both-while society in general
is much less concerned whether the
cost/benefit ratio is high or low.
In considering the economics of
conservation a producer can be con-
sidered as a resource manager. Others,
such as park planners and recreation
managers, are also resource managers.
These resource managers are respon-
sible for making a series of investment
and resource allocation decisions. The
resource manager can only maximize
the total value of his resources by
choosing some best combination of
inputs and outputs over a long-term
planning horizon. The mix of products
includes not only conventional market
commodities, such as cotton or live-
stock for the producer, but also in-
creasing quantities or recreation or
leisure-related commodities.
The producer, or resource manager,
must deal with calculations involving
both renewable and non-renewable
resources. The resource manager is
guided in his utilization of non-renew-
able resources over time by his per-
ception of future prices relative to
current prices and by his choice of a
discount or interest rate. As the value
of the discount rate is increased, more
of the production and consumption of
non-renewable resources is moved into
the present and the near-future, andinstilled with a conservalian '11hic, It
seems unrealisrc 'o expect Ihe vast
majority of pxnivale resource managers
to undertake conservation iavestments5
at a level in excess of that (or which
they receive dire t compernsa1ion,
Policies and programers of the pubic
sector such as c usi sharing. ditec t pay-
ments, or credit arrangemert! for ter-
race constiruaiont are meiris of offering
ccompensa1ion to 1he private resource
manager for benefits accruing to the
public sector. A wide range of alter-
native strategies which might be used
to accomplish specific conservation
goals is described in the USDA review
draft of the Soil and Water Resources
Conservation Act.
The ethics of conservation is a topic
which has been discussed by many
individuals since conservation began.
Our forefathers in this nation had a
"love-of-the-land" ethic-that the land
was holy, a God-given resource that
had to be revered. George Washing-
ton, Thomas Jefferson and Teddy
Roosevelt each had a significant impact
on conservation practice. H. H. Ben-
nett of the Soil Conservation Service
and Gifford Pinchot of the Forest
Service greatly influenced today's con-
servation programs.
The ethic related to conservation
should go back to the word manage-
ment-management of the environ-
ment, management of our natural
resources, management of the soil and
water. The word protection cannot be
in our ethic, because that means
"hands off," "to shield," or "let nature
take her course." If we did that, plants
would be covering the streets of our
cities within 20 years, or perhaps
sooner. Nature can actually be vicious.
It can be destructive.
Therefore, let's continue to keep theV
tilon pownliial. He had made foresis
more arid by removing timber and
tet.ting sunlight reach 'ihe earth's sur,
Lace. He has made arid regions pro-
ductive by irrigation, by developing
cropping systems 1hat leave protecive
cover, arnd through good cultural pract-
lices. He h as drained swamps In some
Cases and purnped water from deep
underground sources iin others.
In areas where 1he envirunmrcn ha.
been difficult to modify, man has
adapted to the environment and modi-
fied the biological organisms using the
area. He has developed drought-resis-
tant plants, bred animals to withstand
climatic extremes, and learned to co-
operate with the climate.
At the heart of all environmental
issues, including the world food prob-
lem, is the population explosion.
Whether we look at energy resources,
land use, water, chemicals, or other
requirements for food and fiber pro-
duction, all nations must become more
concerned about irresponsible popula-
tion growth and its impacts on the
world's environment. Population con-
trol, therefore, becomes a necessity for
man's survival.
Man lives in a delicate natural bal-
ance with other organisms and the
physical factors of the environment.
As more people are added to the
population base, as the developing
nations adopt modern technology, as
man continues to deplete non-renew-
able resources, we move closer and
closer to the ultimate limits of the
environment.
The intelligent use of soils, streams,
lakes, rangeland, forests and wildlife
is not only everyone's privilege but is
everyone's responsibility. Human rea-
son is the strongest tool we have to
achieve conservation of resources. The
approach to such management and
conservation cannot be born of hysteriaand emotion but must be one of "com-
mon sense" ecology-one which will
assure a sustained productivity of the
benefits of these resources to total
society.
.. I* ii L ' iminiri 142.lnll
The College of Agricultural Sciences
at Texas Tech University is aware of its
role and responsibility in providing
leadership for effective natural resource
management. Through our research
programs, we are attempting to devel-
op an information base from which
ecologically sound concepts in man-
agement can be developed and the
technology extended to our con-
stituents.
As an illustration, in the Department
of Range and Wildlife Management,
the major research emphasis centers
about the control of Noxious Brush and
Weeds on Texas rangelands. If thescope of this program were only to
study the impact of chemicals, ma-
chines, or fires on mesquite and other
undesirable range plants, we could
be accused of inadequate planning and
a narrow vision in looking at research
needs. Instead the research program
involves a broad "ecosystem" approach
to problems of brush control. We are
concerned not only with techniques of
combating mesquite and other brush
species, but our researchers are also
investigating the effects of the various
treatments on insects, upland game
birds, migratory waterfowl, small mam-
mals, big game, and fish, as well as on
the performance and behavior of
domestic animals.
A national emphasis orr conservation
of rural areas was announced by Presi-
dent Carter in December of 1979. A
major element of that program direc-
tive involves conservation of soil and
water resources as well as maintenance
and enhancement of the quality of life
and the cultural integrity of rural com-
munities. We at Texas Tech University,
through the College of Agricultural
Sciences, are deeply committed to the
goals of this directive through teach-
ing, research and public service pro-
grams in many areas dealing with the
planning, design and management of
renewable natural resources. Programs
addressing erosion control, energy
problems, water use, land and water
resources for parks and open space,
landscape planning, watershed man-
agement, range and wildlife manage-
ment, and natural resource economics
are conducted in our nationally recog-
nized department.s
Progress is being made in soil, water
and energy conservation, but many
problems still exist. Wiser and more
efficient use of our natural resourcesmust continue to be encouraged. We
can all make a contribution to this
common goal.
The contemporary issues in conser-
vation today, such as erosion control,
water conservation, energy, and land
use planning, are interwoven among
the topics of economics, ethics, and
ecology-the roots of productive con-
servation. Those of us in the universi-
ties have a responsibility for research,
teaching and public service. Soil and
water conservation districts have a
responsibility in implementing conser-
vation programs. True, aggressive
leadership must come from the soil
conservation districts and the universi-
ties and in so doing, we must try to
always keep facts separated from emo-
tions. The public also has a responsi-
bility to share concern and costs of
managing and conserving our natural
resources. Our generation must be
willing to pay the costs that are neces-
sary to make the sacrifices needed for
conservation of natural resources.
Let's keep conservation a key word
in all of our programs and activities.\I \ ALLD WATER LABS COMING a.oniired froi e-
lesser amounts are held for future
generations. Notable among the essen-
tially non-renewable resources impor-
tant to agriculture are fossil fuels, water
from non-recharging aquifers, and top-
soil.
The resource use decisions must be
made within an institutional framework
of laws, property rights, and public
conservation programs. The bulk of
the decisions involving resource use
and conservation are made and will
continue to be made by private indi-
viduals. The private decision maker
will tend to weigh most heavily those
costs and returns which most directly
affect him at the present or in the im-
mediate future. Thus, he may some-
times fail to provide the appropriate
weight for the welfare of future gener-
ations. Equally important, the private
decision maker may not fully consider
benefits and costs which accrue to
other users for which he receives no
direct benefit nor pays any costs. For
example, the resource manager who
has a secure tenure situation and hence
may expect to receive benefits over a
longer time period is more likely to
invest in terrace construction for con-
servation purposes than will a manager
with a less certain tenure. While there
are a great number of individualsword management in our conservation
ethic. Conservation must continue to
be management oriented. The defini-
tion of conservation should continue
to be "wise use." Management should
include research, education, under-
standing, analysis and planning.
Arable land is still our single most
valuable resource, a fact often forgot-
ten in our urban society. A civilization
that elects to pass on a diminishing
resource base to successive generations
is only living for the moment, and is
treading on a dark path that ultimately
leads to disaster.
One of the signticant developments
of the '60's and the '70's is the nation-
wide interest in environmental im-
provement. The study of Ecology as a
science in the field of Biology has been
with us for a long time. Ecology is
defined as a study of the relationship
of one organism with another and their
relation to the total environment.
From the science of ecology, we
have learned that man has influenced
and continues to influence the environ-
ment everywhere on the earth's surface
and perhaps beyond. Man is the great
accelerator of change. He has used his
unique powers of reasoning to add
millions of acres to the world's produc-- mini field lab o0l he l iryd
'orinmy &S Po Lter Counly SC5-
Ine large liIeld lab ro be shared wilth
idIolnIng counties and one mini field
.b- 9) Parnier Couiny 5C- nr rini ri
i1rd lab; 101 Cai1ro Couny SCS-oe
nini fin ld lab; li eal Smrith Couniv
C-lm' mini field lab: 121 Lamb
Sm1.ei s~ rir lld iAi -U iRardali Cotinty SCS- -une m.n f sield
I;1i to le shared with Armstrrng Coun-
tv sCs; 1 Arms1irng Cqr.niv 5C5 Is
In slhare Ihe use of the bandall County
'S mmi laW The smll Veld labs
financed by the North Plains Disrdci
11) and ir' IPnliandr'e DPirici (1i will
be 'iiarned in l h v 2i r eSpectw-r
iUmtrr kPage 3
August, 1 980
T HE CR O SS S E C T ION
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High Plains Underground Water Conservation District No. 1 (Tex.). The Cross Section, Volume 26, Number 8, August 1980, periodical, August 1980; Lubbock, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1533065/m1/3/?q=%22~1%22~1: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.