A wealthy software executive in Utah has come under fire for his landscaping project that destroyed thousands of acres of forestlands and also took money from taxpayers' pockets.
As reported by The New York Times earlier this month, Mike Siaperas "bulldozed swaths of forest on his property and an adjacent state reserve" in hopes of creating a luxury hunting retreat.
However, an investigation by The New York Times and The Salt Lake Tribune uncovered that "state lawmakers have appropriated more than $5 million to support Mr. Siaperas's forestry work." While only half of that money has been paid out to Siaperas, it illustrates how he took advantage of taxpayer money to support his projects that have had detrimental environmental effects.
Siaperas reportedly patented a tree-clearing technique called "roller felling," which the Times said "could strip as much as 100 acres of woodland in a day." The method involves a cable strung between two bulldozers that is supported by a 10,000-pound barrel in the center that can uproot everything in its path without getting caught on stumps.
To test out the technique, Siaperas received more than $1 million in state funds for a roller-felling trial in 2020 where he uprooted 900 acres of woodland on two private ranches. He then won a bid for the clearing of 825 acres in the state reserve of Currant Creek in 2023 after the initial proposal from 2022 was revised to be tailored to his capabilities.
To make matters even more egregious, Siaperas rationalized his method by claiming that it would have various ecological benefits. He even used his nonprofit, Atlantis USA Foundation, to obtain state funds for his roller-felling company.
The Times noted that while Siaperas declined to be interviewed, he previously offered reasons such as "to prevent wildfires" or "to fight drought by reducing water-guzzling conifers" when explaining why his tree-clearing technique was necessary. However, climate experts have challenged the validity of those claims and criticized him for disguising his harmful practices as beneficial.
"To me, it looks like nothing more than a pet project with a thin veneer of science," Ben Abbott, an ecology professor at Brigham Young University, told the Times. "I'm disturbed by the process we went through to approve something like this."
Siaperas' projects are examples of "greenwashing," which is a practice whereby companies or individuals make misleading claims about the environmental benefits of their products or activities. Greenwashing can be a severe threat to genuine environmental progress because it can mislead the public and policymakers about the true impact of certain projects.
Siaperas used political donations to forge connections with influential allies who have backed his projects regardless of their harmful effects on the environment. The Times noted that "scientists say they're concerned about long-term consequences" of Siaperas' projects and went on to explain how damaging his method can be.
"Using heavy machinery to tear down trees leaves a lot of debris that the state needs to remove to prevent fires. Clear-cutting large areas of forest leads to erosion and polluted water supplies. And scientists worry about impacts on a variety of wildlife, not just game," the Times stated.
To combat greenwashing, it's crucial to support political candidates and policies that are committed to addressing the climate crisis. Staying informed and voting for eco-conscious representatives can help ensure that the projects and policies being promoted are truly beneficial for the environment.
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