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DESPITE THE HEADLINES that leapt reason's firebreak to announce that ecoterrorism was "suspected" in Monday's fire in Charles County, Md., it is far too soon to pin the blame for the blaze on radical greens. Although evidence indicates the fire, which destroyed a dozen partly built homes and damaged 14 others, was intentionally set, no group has claimed responsibility, and a run-of-the-mill arsonist could well be the culprit.
Still, the mention of ecoterrorism is a reminder of two things: Not all of the threats to America originate in the Middle East; and every broad movement, even when its goals are legitimate, has its kook fringe.
Environmentalists who raise their voices against the wholesale destruction of our natural resources well serve society. By speaking up for the snail darter, for magnolia bogs, for clean air and fresh water, activists help focus the public's attention and, through political action, prevent overdevelopment.
For some, alas, the way of the public square is too tedious. These individuals turn to terror, which the FBI defines as "acts of violence[which] appear to be intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population, or influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion." Ecoterrorists, many of whom belong to the Earth Liberation Front, fall into the category of "special-interest extremists" for the investigative agency. They are at the very top of the FBI's domestic-terror list.
Special-interest terrorist groups, says the bureau, have committed over 1,100 criminal acts costing at least $110 million since 1976. These outfits' escalation in violent rhetoric since 2002 is alarming, as is a change in their tactics. These include an increased frequency of attacks in populated areas, the targeting of SUVs, and arsons against homes being built in once-pristine areas.
On Aug. 1, 2003, a condominium under construction in La Jolla, Calif., was torched, resulting in $50 million in damages. Later that month, someone burned or damaged 120 SUVs in West Covina, Calif. Here in Virginia in 2002, three Henrico County high schoolers--one of whom matriculated to Mary Washington College--played ELF, setting fire to vehicles at a mall construction site, trashing SUVs at a Richmond dealership, and defacing a fast-food joint. A year ago, the three pleaded to federal arson and conspiracy charges. ELF also claimed credit for $30,000 in damages at a Charlottesville work site in February, announcing itself with a large sign: "Your construction = long-term destruction."
Identifying ecoterrorists is challenging. The movement is not highly organized. Activists often know how to breach security and temporarily, at least, outwit law enforcement. The FBI is working with local and state police to uncover and bust perpetrators through Joint Terrorism Task Forces and other means.
In a free country, people have a right to build, to develop, to reap a profit--and to speak up for the environment, promote nature-friendly laws, and push for zoning restrictions when sprawl looms. But ecoterrorists are bent on chaos, not constructive change. Gentle-souled tree-huggers? No. These are violent criminals who deserve the redwood of justice to fall on them.
Postscript"Ecoterrorism" refers only to outrageous things people do to protect the environment. Too bad the term's spoken for, because it also seems a pretty good way to describe mankind's untrammeled assaults on the natural world, even when they're legal.
What should we call people, for example, who shear the tops off West Virginia's timeless mountains? If al-Qaida were doing that, wouldn't we consider it a high crime against the nation's heritage?
