Policy/Positions

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The GPA's policies and positions clarify our stand on the important issues of our communities, state, nation, the world, and the environment; while encouraging Greens and other parties, organizations, groups and individuals to stand for what is ethical and moral for the well-being of all humanity.

Issues

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The Green Party of Arkansas is strongly opposed to any action that would threaten the watershed of Lake Maumelle. This area is vital for conservation and water-supply purposes. It is for the protection of areas like this that the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission and the Conservation Districts were formed. The action of the Central Arkansas Water Commissioners in July of 2005 has allowed property that is on the bank of the main contributing river that flows into the lake to be at risk.

The current watershed management plan has no regulatory authority and seems powerless to prevent development in this area. It is the position of The Arkansas Green Party that critical watersheds should be protected by the state agencies that are charged with protecting the water supply of central Arkansas.

On a more local level the local leadership within Pulaski County has failed to step up in this three year battle to protect this resource. All of the competing plans are flawed and without solid scientific backing or support.

As always the position of the Arkansas Green Party stands on our Ten Key Values. We are committed to ecological wisdom and we feel that wise use of this watershed is not being made. We are committed to direct participation by local people and we feel that the concerns of several groups affected by this matter have been ignored. The Arkansas Green Party is committed to a future focus and to the sustainability of all planning. The lack of legacy provisions within the current plans make them unacceptable.

The Green Party of Arkansas strongly opposes the SWEPCO coal burning power plant is southwest Arkansas. We join a host of other environmental and health conscious groups in protesting the John W. Turk power plant.

Our concerns reach from the global effects of the carbon dioxide emissions on global warming to the local effects of the poisons such as mercury (a chemical which can cause birth defects) which is released into the local ecosystems and ground water.

The Arkansas Green Party is joined in our opposition by Public Citizen, The Sierra Club, The Union of Concerned Scientists, The National Academies, and The Rainforest Action Network, Physicians for Social Responsibility and many networks and groups in surrounding states such as Clean Energy for Texas. The young people of the nation are represented by groups such as The Youth Climate Movement.

The opposition of the Arkansas Green Party stands on our Ten Key Values that form the heart of the Arkansas Green Party. We are committed to Ecological Wisdom and feel this plant is unwise. We are committed to Grassroots Democracy, Decentralization, and Community-based Economics and feel that the people who are most directly affected by this plant have not had their say. And most of all we stand for Personal and Global Responsibility and feel that it is the duty of each person in the state of Arkansas to reject this plant through the use of popular democracy.