November 12, 1998

Journal of a Sabbatical

November 12, 1998

hope for the cove

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Nancy called me this afternoon from work to tell me she'd read in the paper that the dredging dump site may be changed. Apparently the Corps actually listened to what people had to say about Watchemocket Cove and they're looking at an alternate site to bury the container of toxic stuff where it won't affect the city of East Providence's development plans for their waterfront. So, at this point it looks like there won't be a gaping hole dug in the cove. Now I've just gotta find out if the waterfront development plans take into account the ducks.

Nancy keeps encouraging me to write an op-ed piece about the cove but I don't even know where to start. I love the place because I can watch wild ducks from really close by, there's so many different species, something new is always revealing itself to me... I don't know ... all those things. How can I love a place that's right next to a sewage treatment station? How can I love a place that's overrun with mute swans? Actually, I like the swans. I can't see that they're doing any damage to the habitat for the ducks and geese or the herons and egrets at all. A lot of people hate them, but a lot of people love them and feed them. It's not like the swans are corrupting pristine wilderness. The Corps was pretty quick to point out that it's already a compromised area. I guess I worry that if I write too glowingly about the wild aspects of the cove, some wizard at DEM will decide the swans have to be killed to save the wilderness. But a) it's not wilderness, and b) the swans aren't destroying it. Ok, enough on the swans.

So, I felt really happy and excited to think that ordinary citizens like me can influence the government after all. Especially since I've been reading the sections of Song for the Blue Ocean having to do with salmon and how the Corps basically ignored the salmon in the construction of some of the dams out west despite people speaking out. In fact, a little while before Nancy called me I'd been sitting in Starbucks with Song for the Blue Ocean and getting really depressed about our chances of saving the cove.

Now if I can just get past my writer's block and write something that will convey how special the cove is.