There is no doubt that public participation is extremely important when making decisions large or small that will affect a community. I have spent a lot of my college career learning about why it is important and ways in which to properly involve citizens in projects. What I appreciated about the article "Local Knowledge in Environmental Health Policy" is that it brought up the very tough truth that sometimes it can be extremely challenging and possibly detrimental to try to include a large number of citizen voices on projects. This does not mean that it shouldn't still be done- it just means that it needs to be done correctly and carefully. The article talked about holding a "public hearing that might merely act as a forum to placate the demands of competing public interest groups" or the alternative which is facilitating a productive conversation for citizens to be properly included in the decision-making process, which officials may not have the skills to carry out. It can be difficult to reach out to citizens and ask for their opinions without falling somewhere in the middle of Arnsteins ladder. Even if you allow citizens to vote or have their voices heard in other ways, the feedback loop needs to be in place so that they know that their opinion is making it to the people in power. The idea of public participation definitely relates to Portlands current situation with the Willamette being named a Superfund Site. After visiting the Port of Portland however, I am not convinced that it is their job to get the public involved in the process, I believe that is the job of the City of Portland. Visiting the Port of Portland was a really educational experience, it was nice to see some of the things we have been talking about in class in person and to talk to some of the key decision makers in the process. The most interesting thing that I learned was that the incentive to join the Lower Willamette Group is that the money that the businesses invest now for the research of the superfund site will then be deducted from the amount that they will owe when the time comes to pay for the clean up. All-in-all, I feel like more could be done to involve citizens in the process, but that it seems like the Port of Portland is already taking some important first steps in the cleanup process which is essential. Hopefully this blog will act as a resource for providing useful information to people who care deeply about our river.
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AuthorsWe are Portland State students who care about the urban rivers of the Pacific Northwest. Archives
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