Well the resource economists had to know this poet’s work was coming. Today we hear from Kenneth Boulding, economist and poet, for the first but probably not the last time. His works are mainly meant to add a little truth-telling humor to the profession and we could all use a little of that right now. In the current American ‘ignorance is bliss’ era, though his targets were often environmental problems in the 1960s, this humor bites again. Today’s work is an excerpt from a longer poem, “The Feather River Anthology.” 

II
On the General Absence of People-Centered Policies
The Army Corps of Engineers
Insists on building Dams and Weirs,
The Reclamation men assume
That every desert ought to bloom.
The wildlife people often wish
That all the world were game and fish.
The conservationist’s a whiz
At keeping nature as she is.
The Church is measured by its steeple –
And no one gives a dam for people!

Excerpt from The Feather River Anthology
Kenneth Boulding, 1966



The reason for this particular piece of the poem is twofold. First, there is the obvious connection to the current water concerns and political interference in a system that’s been managed for decades by competent engineers, whose mandates have shifted over time from directing water to farmers and urban areas to include a much broader set of environmental and human interests that encompass the waters’ socio-ecological systems. But second, I wanted to share with you this story of some clever beavers, acting in their nature, accomplishing what they wanted. Luckily, what they wanted was also what the people wanted – an aquatic Nature-based Solution that built a dam and ended red-tape barriers. Stakeholder engagement is important – and can even benefit from including more-than-human interests!

You can read more about beavers as ecosystem engineers here.

You can read more about Kenneth Boulding here.

You can read more about the history of California Water Policy in Mark Reisner’s brilliant book Cadillac Desert here. This all became news again when Donald Trump compelled the Army Corps of Engineers to release water in California, despite the release being entirely wasteful, and harmful to the farmers who depend on carefully timed and regulated water flows.

There was also a great PBS special based on the Cadillac Desert book, available in parts on YouTube:

Part 1: Mulholland’s Dream

Part 2: An American Nile

Part 3: The Mercy of Nature

Part 4: The Last Oasis (also includes material from other sources).

Image credit: “Beaver dam in Tierra del Fuego” by User:IlyaHaykinson is licensed under CC BY-SA 1.0.