Secretary Norton tries on an Interior T-shirt
presented by
Sue Ellen Wooldridge, her deputy chief of staff. Photos by
Tami Heilemann, NBC
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Secretary Norton's confirmation experience reinforced her belief about one of the major problems facing Washington,
D.C.--too often groups are pit against each other in stereotypical roles, and political dialogue too often becomes shrill and
divisive.
That, Norton said, is why one of her top priorities as Secretary is to move the debate on natural resource stewardship past
geographic and partisan barriers so that she can bring state and local priorities to Washington. The Bush Administration is
committed to empowering local people with more of their own resources and with a larger voice in their government,
Norton noted.
"I believe there are good ideas all over America--not just in Washington--and I believe in the value of developing
partnerships and listening to people," Norton said. "I want to be partners with local
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people at the beginning of the process,
not at the end. I'll ask for their advice to find innovative ways to care for and protect precious national treasures."
One of the formulas for achieving this goal, the Secretary told Interior employees, is a process called the Four Cs:
consultation, cooperation, and communication . . . in the service of conservation.
"I promised to listen to people from all over this country, to involve them in our decisions, to tap their experience, and
their wisdom, and their creativity," the Secretary said. "But I only have one set of ears, and that means I need to rely on
you--the dedicated employees of the Department--to listen and to learn from the people of America. It is an inclusive
approach, and that's what I hope we can all follow."
Norton urges employees to seek out the views and perspectives of the Americans whose lives are directly affected by
Interior decisions. "The work that we do affects people, from the family taking a vacation in one of our national parks to the
children studying arithmetic in one of our Indian schools."
Interior manages one out of every four acres of this country's land, Norton noted. "Most people outside the Department
have no idea that the Federal Government owns nearly 90 percent of Nevada and over half of some of our other Western
states. There's clearly no one correct use for all of that acreage. We have to have different approaches for allowing
Americans to enjoy and use that land."
Some lands should remain wild and pristine like they were almost 200 years ago, when Lewis and Clark made their
expeditions--and for eons before that, as our Native Americans conserved the land, Norton explained. Other lands should
be approached from a 21st century perspective, using the most innovative new technologies to extract mineral resources.
"Where we once needed scores of oil wells to tap underground reserves, today we can use one hole on the surface to drill
for oil in a circle extending seven miles away. We can use the resources below the ground while we preserve the landscape
and habitat above," the Secretary said.
Norton emphasized that she is dedicated to opening up lines of communications that have not always been properly
fostered--between landowners and environmentalists; between state officials and federal officials.
"At the federal level, we need some standards. And we need scientific information--that's something that we can do
nationally, and everybody around the country can learn from the science that is developed at the federal level," Norton said.
"We also need to have the local knowledge that people have when they live on or next to a piece of property, when they see
a problem with their very own eyes. Often for us in Washington, we look at an issue and think we understand it because
we've read the briefing papers. But it's those people who have lived it on a day-to-day basis who have a much more
complete understanding of the issues. So we need to have their input. And that's what states are good at doing. They hear
that local input.
"So, if we can work together--with the Federal Government cooperating with the state governments--so that we have that
balance of national guidance and local implementation. That, I think, is one of the things that will work best for us in trying
to have a good cooperative approach on our lands."
Norton noted, as an example, that Interior can build on the principle of respect for property rights. "Farmers and ranchers
are often the best stewards of the land. We can achieve more by working with them, capitalizing on their intimate
knowledge of the land they depend on and the land they love."
"Environmental compliance is a high priority for me," Norton said, "but there is something profoundly wrong with a
system that threatens private land owners with economic devastation over endangered species, rather than encouraging
them with economic incentives to help wildlife recover. Solely punitive systems create conflict and hardship, instead of
environmental stewardship."
To move from the current system of conflict to one of cooperation, she noted, President Bush has proposed using
landowner incentive programs to give technical assistance, habitat enhancement tools, and financial reward to foster
win-win solutions, benefiting landowners, endangered species, and national treasures.
Clearly, this approach is challenging. "It's easy for Washington to say we'll just set huge swaths of the American landscape
off-limits to Americans," the Secretary said. "Or, at the other extreme, to say we'll exploit resources without worrying about
the environment." The Department can chart a new path for environmental protection, she believes. "We can break away
from coercive, bureaucratic approaches that are counterproductive in the long run, creating conflict and turning attention
away from problem solving."
Secretary Norton wants this approach to be a keystone of her legacy--that she has lent a voice to those who are most
directly affected by federal land decisions.
"The Department is often viewed as remote and distant, making decisions that deeply affect people's lives without really
understanding the consequences," she said. "I would like to be remembered as a Secretary who really brought people
together and changed our decisionmaking focus to one that requires Washington to listen to people throughout the country."
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