`Don't ask, don't tell' won't work for Pt. Reyes

One would think the park at Point Reyes, the only national seashore on the Pacific Coast, would be preserved for its abundant biodiversity and natural beauty with the highest possible protection. But ranches in the park are routinely granted waivers from the Clean Water Act. In 2021, five waterways there were found to contain unsafe concentrations of bacteria.

Cattle remain the park's leading source of greenhouse gases. During droughts, ranchers have received special permits to pump water from wetlands without any analysis of environmental impacts. Meanwhile, many Marin ranch workers and their families endure substandard housing and poor working conditions in the park.

In a recently published article in the Marin IJ, David Lewis, the director of the University of California Cooperative Extension, said the National Park Service hasn't tested the park's water since 2013 because ranchers' anti-pollution measures are working (“State to review Point Reyes water contamination strategy,” April 2). But if the water isn't tested, how do they know the measures are still working? Lewis is using a “don't ask, don't tell approach.”

Park Service officials say they will need years to address water pollution and greenhouse gas problems. Yet, in recent months, the Park Service failed to keep cattle out of Drakes Estero federal wilderness area, failed to hold a rancher accountable for intentionally bulldozing a creek and failed to notice a decades-old toxic dump at a ranch. Hikers, not rangers, discovered these violations.

Point Reyes officials are aware the elk are infected with Johne's, a wasting disease spread from cattle to wildlife and potentially humans.

But they don't test the cows. I think it's likely because it would mean having to remove them. Why spend money on testing when you don't want to know?

Officials need to know that the public wants answers.

— Susan Ives, Mill Valley