Bitter disputes over public-land use and property
rights in the West may increasingly be resolved through dialogue
and cooperation, according to panelists at a conference on
environmental conflict resolution held recently in Tucson, Ariz.
There were 70 speakers and 260 participants at the conference,
sponsored by the Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy at the
University of Arizona, and funded by the Morris K. Udall
Foundation. “It was amazing how many people wanted to be part of
this,” said conference organizer Kirk Emerson. To spur more
consensus efforts, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., introduced a bill
this March that would establish a U.S. Institute for Environmental
Conflict Resolution within the Udall Foundation. According to
McCain, some 400 to 500 environmental lawsuits are filed each year
in federal courts, and the institute would seek to head off cases
through consensus. McCain’s bill would federally fund the new
institute with $3 million in 1998 and $2.1 million for each of the
next four years. For information about the bill, contact Kevin
Adams, administrative assistant to Sen. John McCain, 1839 S. Alma
School Road, Suite 375, Mesa, AZ 85210 (602/491-4300).
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Let’s talk.
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