Making Government 



Work For You 



by OR. Edgerton 



Some folks think the government is the last place to go for 

 answers to coastal environmental problems. 



But Bill Holman, a "green" lobbyist, and George Everett, one 

 of state government's top environmental watchdogs, say the 

 legislature is the best route to travel when protecting the state's 

 natural resources. 



Holman, a lobbyist for the Conservation Council of North 

 Carolina and the N.C. Chapter of the Sierra Club, believes in 

 solving environmental problems through legislation. It's the only 

 sure way of guaranteeing your agenda, he says. 



"The state's legislature is fairly representative of the people of 

 North Carolina," he said. "And most of them take being a legislator 

 seriously. That's why input from a lobbyist or input from citizens 

 can make an impact." 



Changing laws that may have an adverse affect on the 

 environment takes time and effort. "It takes persistence and a long 

 range goal," he says. 



Sometimes you win. Sometimes you lose. 



Here's an example. 



Last year, Rep. Bruce Etheridge introduced a bill that would 

 provide what Holman calls "modest" protection to the state's 

 freshwater wetlands. 



The bill was referred to the House Environment Committee 

 and from there to a subcommittee. The subcommittee held 

 informal hearings, inviting experts to comment on the bill. 



"It was highly controversial," Holman says. "And it was 

 strongly opposed by the forestry industry, the Homebuilders 

 Association and the Martin Administration." 



Opponents and proponents of the bill contacted supporters in 

 their respective legislative districts. Because of the large volume of 

 people against the bill, no vote was ever taken. It never left the 

 subcommittee. 



"The problem was that we (the proponents) got outworked 

 and outspent by our opponents," Holman says. "But Etheridge 

 used a parliamentary trick to keep the bill alive until the 1992 short 

 session of the legislature. You can bet there'll be another major 

 fight on the floor at that time." 



In the case of the Etheridge bill, the environmentalists lost. 

 Sometimes, the tables are turned. 



"Some people, the Town of Topsail Beach in particular, 

 thought the state's policy against constructing seawalls needed 

 changing," Holman says. "And these people had been able to get 

 the ear of the Coastal Resources Commission." 



The CRC is a commission appointed by the governor to make 

 decisions regarding regulations associated with the Coastal Area 

 Management Act. 



Hearings on the seawall policy were held in July and at that 

 hearing — and in the mailboxes of CRC members — there was 



overwhelming public support for maintaining the seawall ban. 



"In this case, private citizens were able to sway the commis- 

 sion," Holman says. "It showed that working through the proper 

 channels, through the government's own guidelines, you can make 

 a difference." 



Another important element in the success of the anti-seawall 

 group was the fact that several environmental groups joined forces. 



"Usually environmental groups work in coalition," he says. 

 "It's easy to get frustrated and cynical, and change is often slow. 

 You can do much if you work together." 



There is strength in numbers, but sometimes the most 

 successful work is done by an individual like Holman who, as a 

 lobbyist, has one of the loneliest jobs in Raleigh. 



"My job is to provide infonnation to legislators," he says. "To 

 educate them on why the Sierra Club, for example, supports a 

 wetlands bill. I also inform environmentalists throughout the state 



8 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1991 



