|
|
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
If you want to see the Galapagos, youve waited too long., 9 Jan 2003
Swimming with sea lions, petting giant tortoises, observing birds who have no fear of man...These Edenic images, promoted by tour companies, have led many of us to dream of traveling to the Galapagos Islands someday and walking in the footsteps of Charles Darwin. But while these images may have been true forty years ago, when small tour boats brought the first tourist-adventurers to the islands, they are far from true today. In this sad chronicle of the Galapagos, 600 miles from Ecuador, which both claims and governs them, Michael D'Orso documents the devastating changes which have taken place in the past ten years and focuses on the immediate crises of the past three years--crises which threaten the very existence of this irreplaceable natural resource. Several astute and eccentric long-time residents of the islands serve as D'Orso's first person commentators, giving him insight in to the islands' history, explaining how they have changed, and commenting on the ecological disasters now unfolding. The disasters are many, and they are getting worse, according to D'Orso. In crisp and unambiguous prose, which he sometimes wields like a truncheon, he excoriates corrupt local officials, judges, and members of the national government. Many of these, he points out, have financial interests in the oil, fishing, boating, and tourism industries, but they also want to be seen as "populist" supporters of the poor immigrants who have flooded the Galapagos looking for a piece of the tourist action. The government, he says, is "so horrifically convoluted and corrupt that onlookers have taken to calling this country 'Absurdistan.'" The introduction of non-native animal species (rats, feral dogs and cats, pigs, goats, and burros), along with foreign insect life (wasps, roaches, and fire ants), and foreign plants (blackberry, lantana, and wild guava bushes) has already permanently changed the environment on which much of the Galapagos wildlife depends. Fishing regulations are wantonly ignored, and penalties are not assessed for violations. Sea cucumbers and other marine life continue to be harvested willy-nilly; fishing boats with long-lines up to 75 miles long continue to hook and kill protected species; and rustbucket oil tankers, never inspected and often owned by highly placed public officials, carry nearly raw petroleum to the islands. They are already responsible for one major oil spill in the formerly pristine islands. Most threatening, however, is the massive influx of economic refugees from the Ecuadorian mainland who have brought the permanent population to twenty thousand (to be thirty thousand by 2010). With a lack of fresh water and adequate sanitation, and the immigrants' single-minded determination to tap into the underwater riches of the Galapagos, the ecological disaster is not just threatening--it's already happened. In a recent uprising, these immigrants physically destroyed the national park and station offices, along with the personal homes of the directors, even ripping out their toilets. D'Orso is passionate in his desire to awaken the world community to the disaster that is taking place before the islands have been totally destroyed. His forecast is bleak, but his message, and his book, are strong. Mary Whipple
|
(1 customer review)
See all customer reviews...
