Mr. Tercek is the new head of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the book does a great deal to explain the philosophy and approach of the organization to environmental matters. I have been a member of the organization for some time, and view it as proposing common sense solutions to environmental problems, often acquiring land, either singularly or in conjunction with others, and preserving it in its natural state. However the book points out much more.
Mr. Tercek came from the investment firm of Goldman Sachs, after obtaining an MBA from Harvard. Hardly the resume for an environmentalist. But he brings a great deal of practical business savvy to the job and to the organization. He sees TNC as the ideal organization to champion the idea of “natural capital”– recognizing and actually trying to put a value on nature as an asset. This at first seems self evident- “natural” products such as timber, iron, fish, and crops are bought and sold every day. But he sees the need to attach value to the ecosystems that supply such resources.
The book stresses water as a precious, yet essentially undervalued asset in a capital sense. Indeed, as he points out, we rarely pay for water, we pay for the delivery systems to get it to us in a form that we can use. We all take for granted the fact that we can turn on a tap and get fresh, clean water. But how does that water come to be? It requires watersheds, streams, rivers, forests, and a complex ecological system that in essence produces it. We just capture it, and, more often than not, clean it after capture, if necessary, by vast “grey infrastructure”–water treatment plants, etc. But what of the value of the source? He uses New York city as an object lesson in valuing the ecosystem.
NYC, surprisingly to me, has some of the least treated water in the country. City planners, back in the 19th century, set up the infrastructure to bring water to the city from the Catskills. That watershed supplied the city for generations, but, in the latter part of the 20th century, the water began to be below standards set by the EPA. The city planned to spend over $8billion to build a huge treatment plant, which would of course have additional costs of operation, maintenance and repair. Instead of this “grey infrastructure”, the city chose to invest in preserving the Catskill watershed. The area had seen farmers selling land to developers, and more of the land going from its natural state to the concrete and asphalt that removes the cleansing effects of the natural environment. The city bought some of this land, or otherwise gave financial incentives to property owners to preserve it. It made a large investment in “green infrastructure” to maintain a clean supply of drinking water. But this “large investment” was $1.5billion as opposed to the $8+ billion for more grey infrastructure. This alternative appears to be working, and not only saves the city money, but insures clean water for the future, and, as a by product, preserves a beautiful part of the state.
These are the types of “bottom line” environmental solutions that TNC seeks to explore and develop. Such exploration and development must include business, local communities, environmental groups and governments. The author stresses the need for all to work cooperatively, and points out the need to bridge the current divide between environmental groups and both business and local communities. He also points out, at least as I interpret the book, the importance, perhaps the necessity, of government involvement because governments are the only entities that can bring the legal and financial firepower necessary to accomplish many environmental goals. But he also emphasizes that governments can not “go it alone”– business and individuals must be converted to conservation by demonstrating that it is necessary for their practical welfare. Indeed, large corporations, with all of their financial and political power, must be enlisted as environmental allies. Saving the environment can not be an elitist effort to preserve some small spectacular places, but rather an ongoing attempt to unite all communities in an appreciation of the value of our natural capital.
The book has countless examples of successful cooperative efforts that resulted in true “win-win” situations that benefited business, government, local communities, and the environment. The approach that is suggested is practical and inclusive. It may well be of extreme importance in our own country where politics and politicians ignore the truth and show no capacity to accomplish anything of long term benefit. The book, although perhaps filled with too many similar examples, is not only an interesting, but an essential read.
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