Conservation Policies, Environmental Conservation & Protection of Natural Resources, Biodiversity & Conservation in Evironmental Science
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Overview
The opposing forces of conservation and development have shaped and will continue to shape the natural environment and scenic beauty, of the American West. Perhaps nowhere are their opposite effects more visible than in the neighboring state of Colorado and Utah, so alike in their spectacular mountain environments, yet so different in their approaches to land conservation. Through an exploration of the cultural and historical geography of each state, this study explains why Colorado has over twenty-five land trusts, which have conserved over 42,000 acres of privately owned land, while Utah has only one trust and 110 acres conserved. John Wright traces the success of voluntary land conservation in Colorado to the state's history as a region of secular commerce. As environmental consciousness has grown in Colorado, people there have embraced the businesslike approach of land trusts as simply a new, more responsible way of conducting the real estate business. In Utah, by contrast, Wright finds that Mormon millennialism, high birth rates, and the belief that growth equals success have created a public climate opposed to the formation of land trusts. As Wright puts it, "environmentalism seems to thrive in the Centennial state within the spiritual vacuum which is filled by Mormonism in Utah." These findings reveal the underlying cultural values that cause people to conserve or develop the land they occupy. They also remind conservationists of the need to consider the strength of these values in their efforts to preserve private lands.Editorials
Booknews
Wright (geography, New Mexico State U.) contrasts the approaches to development and conservation in Colorado, which has 42,000 acres in private land trusts, and Utah, which has 220. He traces the difference to the history of the two regions: the secular commerce of Colorado in which land trusts are just another way of dealing real estate; and the Mormon millennialism and high birth rate of Utah that equates growth with success. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)Book Details
Published
June 1, 1993
Publisher
University of Texas Press
Pages
275
Format
Hardcover
ISBN
9780292790797