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.' e On the edge of common sense Filling up Lake Powell e . By BAXTER BLACK SPECIAL TO THE PSN The Sierra Club is back, seeking more funds! I've got to give !he!!"! credit. The\' d~n't th!nk small. Now they wantt~ drain Lake Powell and reclaim Glen Canyon. When it's fourth down and 25 yards to go, you're behind and time is run- ning om, a drastic play is necessary! The Sierra Club, as well as many other "anti" groups, have experienced a decline in membership and income over the last several years. "Chicken Little Overkill" has numbed the public. But what better way to shock the wallet out of people's pants than with a giant Goliath. Some cause so great, and so insurmountable that it can become the symbol offund.raising campaigns lor generations beyond our time. Granted, enthusiams may wear thin DIU the years, but it is a great market- ing strategy lor a business in decline. This cynical view of the motives of the Sierra Ciub icadersilip does an injus. tice to those members and others who harbor an idealistic view of nature and m,lJl's interlertllce thereot: There are many I:lrmers and ranchers who would prclcr to keep power sta- tions, nuclear reactors, airports, malls, Iandlills, city limits, strip mines, Ij'ee- ways, testing grounds and toxic waste dumps Irom being builr next to rhem. Bur rhey have had lirtle luck getting them dismantled after the lact. Civilization is a mighty force. This "back to nature mo\-ement" falls e on deaf ears when you start a!lecting pea. plc:'s costs ofliving. Skyrocketing electric bills, warer shortages and declining livabil- ity are things people take personally. The Glen Canyon Dam backs up rhe Co!or\:do River for 186 rnUes and fo=-ms Lake Powell, the second largest man. made lake in the U.S. It now supplies power and water to 6 million rate payers and recreation for 400,000 boaters each year. The price of civilization. If the Sierra Club wanted, they could start smaller. Take the face ofT Mount Rushmore, for insrance. Restore it to its natural beauty. The land under Washington D.C. was originally a wetland wirh habirar lor birds, reptiles and plants. Now ir is' overun with predators. The Golden Gare Bridge mars rhe, grandeur of rhe San Francisco Bay. ' All those unsightly locks and dams that disrupt the natural flow of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers could be removed to restore their ancient ecosystems. Then move on to the Tennessee Valley Authority. But the Sierra Club has declined these options and picked an area th,lt they con- sider more practical as a fi.JIId-raiser. And they're right, regardless of their motives. Most potcntial donators don't even know where it is. They can rally to the cause without thinking because, after all, it will never antct their own costs of living. Bein' green is easy when it's not per- sonal. B/lxur RI/lck is 01le Of the Il/1rioll'S best- kllown con>bll;V poets.