Brockovich urges global partnership to save Earth
Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Parapat
"The environment is the place where mankind lives. In dealing with the environment, we have only two extreme positions: Ally or enemy. If we take care of it, it will take care of us and if we abuse it, it will abuse us," visiting American environmentalist Erin Brockovich said in an interview with The Jakarta Post after delivering her address to the Lake Toba Summit in Parapat, North Sumatra, recently.
She insisted that a country could not fight on its own for a better environment and against environmental destruction, and that all humankind and every countries needed a global partnership to salvage the planet from further environmental catastrophe.
"All nations, whether big or small, have to work hand in hand to create cleaner air, to support reforestation programs in tropical and subtropical countries, and to comply consistently with all the agreements they have made.
"Otherwise, we will become enemies, the environment will be further destroyed and the planet will not be a pleasant place to live for the next generation," she stated.
Erin expressed her disappointment with the U.S. government's rejection of the Kyoto Protocol, but said that more and more federal states were expected to follow California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's move to accept the international agreement so as to reduce to a minimum the greenhouse gases they produce.
The United States is the highest greenhouse emissions producer worldwide, she said, and it needed to set a good example for other industrial countries by accepting the protocol and showing a commitment to minimizing the greenhouse effect and supporting other federal states in implementing the protocol.
"I know the US government has not yet signed the protocol; however, I want the (American) people to know that state by state in America, they are contributing, they are making changes and they are getting involved and more are getting on board," she said.
Referring to the summit's conclusion, she emphasized the importance for all governments at the regional level to continue enhancing bilateral and multilateral cooperation to exchange information, human resources and technology to implement the sustainable development concept.
Brockovich, who is also the vice president of environmental affairs at Los Angeles-based Save the World Air, Inc., said she was here to join in showing international solidarity for Indonesia and not to promote her film Erin Brockovich, starring noted Hollywood actress Julia Roberts, who bears a striking similarity to her.
"I come here because I love Indonesia, its kind people and its unique environment. I'm representing the American people in conveying their sorrow over the recent earthquake and tsunami that devastated Aceh and Nias.
They (American people) have been showing genuine sympathy and joined the international solidarity to contribute to the disaster victims and help the ongoing rehabilitation and reconstruction work," she said, adding that the disaster occurred only weeks after her visit to Bali in November, 2004.
She said that natural disasters provided sound lessons for all humankind about the importance of taking care of the environment.
"We give our deep empathy to all the victims but I am opposed to activities that degrade the environment; all nations should pay attention to this in an attempt to make the Earth a safe place to live in."
She said she would continue campaigning for a better environment and against air pollution through films, books and country visits worldwide as part of a global attempt to make the world a better place for the next generation.
She said she was proud of the film not because it won five Grammy Awards in the United States but mainly because it has raised mankind's awareness of the importance of the environment. This was especially true having regard to air pollution, which had reached alarming levels in most developed and developing countries with high levels of industrialization and large numbers of motor vehicles.
The film depicts how Brockovich, played by Roberts, was affected by a deteriorating environment. Since then she has initiated a global campaign against air pollution.
She said air pollution was a genuine cause for concern as numerous studies showed that it triggered cancer and other health problems.
Brockovich and her organization are still holding discussions with the Yogyakarta Governor, Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, and Gadjah Mada University on how to reduce air pollution in the city, which is home to a very large number of motorcycles.
She said her company would introduce an affordable special product for motorbike owners to use in local campaigns to reduce combustion emissions.
"From Yogyakarta we will move to Jakarta, and West and East Java, where industrial and vehicle densities are very high. Air pollution in Java has reached alarming levels and it has affected people's health as the small island is overpopulated and many industries that use environmentally unfriendly technology operate in industrial zones on the island," she said.
Brockovich also called on major developing countries like Indonesia to start promoting the use of liquefied natural gas as an alternative energy source to replace polluting fuels.
"Resource-rich Indonesia should start promoting the use of liquefied natural gas as alternative energy in its transportation sector because it has enormous gas deposits," she said.