It is no exaggeration to…

It is no exaggeration to state that the decisions we make now about how we relate to the natural environment - of which, naturally, we are a part - are absolutely a matter of life or death, for ourselves as much as for the other species that we endanger.

In the past, we have consistently chosen expedience and short-term gain over sensible and sustainable alternatives. It is utter madness to pretend now that this sort of denial can form the basis of a valid economic path into the future in a world in which life is worth living.

The mantra of jobs must not be allowed, as it has been too often in the past, to disguise the plundering of the natural environment for the short-term enrichment of the few at the long-term expense of those whose inheritance is a role in a sustainable green economy.

Now more than ever before, the role of government must be to ensure the stewardship of natural resources and the protection of the perilously diminished natural environment. It is a betrayal of the public trust to enact any policy that will in the long term lead to the destruction of wildlife habitat and the collapse of ecosystems upon which we all ultimately depend.

Future generations will look back upon a time when we might have taken the last best chance to save the natural environment and the diminishing diversity of species and justly condemn those who had the power to act responsibly and chose instead to sell the future cheaply for their immediate gain.