Representation needed on board
By MARY TAYLOR Sam Rayburn

The Region I Board member's expression of outrage at being left off the Texas Water Conservation Advisory Council is certainly justified.

However, the fact that Jasper County is not represented on the Region I Water Development Board should be even more cause for concern and outrage by anyone having an interest in preserving Sam Rayburn's recreational assets.

There is no other community within the state whose economy is more dependent upon the recreational assets of Sam Rayburn and Toledo Bend, yet Jasper County is not even represented on the Region I Water Development Board or the ANRA Water Quality Steering Committee.

Conservationist organizations typically provide strong arguments against the construction of new reservoirs but many of their constituency view all water reservoirs negatively while ignoring indiputable positive benefits, and they promote the inter-basin transfer of East Texas waters to support Dallas and Houston metroplexes.

The "conservationist" organizations comments submitted during the preceding Texas Water Development Board Planning session actually promoted the interbasin transfer of Toledo Bend Water while business and real estate values dependent upon the reservoir were plummeting as a consequence of drought and draw down of T-Bend to levels that could not support recreation.

The placement of the well written article on page 3 of the 9/13 issues of the Lufkin Daily News (LDN) concerning the lack of representation by Region I Water gurus on the Texas Water Advisory Council indicates a poor overall assess- ment of priorities in my view.

The makeup of steering committees and control boards is irrefutably weighted in of favor of special interests. Obviously these interests will prevail over public interests.

Local interests should begin lobbying the state legislature to establish a minimum draw down lake elevation of 154 feet above sea level for Sam Rayburn.

East Texas interests should also promote desalination as a solution to the states projected needs and short circuit the water marketers' designs for profit taken from sale of water that provides a vital asset to the East Texas economy. been able to deliver recovery aid that has been promised for 2 years.

This week's New York Times reported on the efforts of Paul G. Vallas, superintendent for the New Orleans Recovery School District, in trying to jump start a failing educational system. In spite of the seeming impossibility of the task at hand, Mr. Vallas says, "I'll just focus on what needs to be done. The community needs to close ranks and get the kids in school, period. There's no excuses this year."

If we were to abide with his attitude perhaps we could quit pointing fingers of blame and "just focus on what needs to be done." And there is a lot to be done!