Sustainability and accountability are two of the biggest components of environmental reform; yet often times these factors can be used in defense of the behavior called into question. In other words, the balance between something environmentally conscientious and something fiscally sound is fickle at best.

Like most movements that seek reform, change must start from the ground up. The first and foremost change would need to be a nearly-across the board level of respect for the environment that citizens would not only believe in, but also act upon. Before pressure can even reach a governmental body, whether it be a school board or Congress itself, it needs to have at least some sort of consenting support from the people being represented. The problem is that environmental problems don’t have a quick solution, nor, more often than not, do they have a simple approach.

Take agriculture in Colorado, for example.  A semi-arid, high-altitude, and cold environment doesn’t really bode well for crops, yet if one were to glance to the east of the Rocky Mountains, they would see a land dominated by the farming and ranching business. That’s because the agriculture market here uses over 80% of the annual water supply on maintaining healthy crop outputs. The market does provide both benefits to the economy and the heritage of families around Colorado, but it acts as a drain of our local resources as well. If there is enough support to even bring this matter to the attention of those in authority, there is guaranteed to be heavy-resistance from farms that rely on the water as a way of life. So who exactly is in the right? It’s all subjective in the end.

Even when a public opinion does garner enough attention to pressure legislators one way or another, odds are there’s another voice with a vastly different green hue to its nature– corporate America. The realms of the public and private sector intersect so frequently these days, it can be a challenge to differentiate between the two. Keeping that in mind, businesses like to make money; it’s desirable not just for the companies themselves, but for the shareholders, the niche markets they’re in, and ultimately, the economy. Government, on the other hand, has been engineered to allow those with the most influence to have their say. A congressman or woman would need to decide whether or not he or she feels that the pressure of lobbyists overshadows the consequence from the voting base back home. Again, if citizens can make their stand united and firm, there’s a much higher chance that the legislative body will vote in favor of environmental policy reform.

So, what can be done by those who are concerned with such issues? Simple. Let your representatives know what is important to you and your community. Encourage your friends and family to do the same. Here’s a few links to votes about the environment in Colorado that are coming up soon:

• The 2015-2016 List of Initiatives Submitted for the Colorado General Assembly http://www.leg.state.co.us/LCS/Initiative%20Referendum/1516initrefr.nsf/ACD7E51D3FC2B60B87257A3700571F9F
• A running record of every bill and resolution up for a vote in Congress and the voting history of your representatives https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/