Signs of the Apocalyse #586: Wal-Mart Protects Environment

Mom sent me an email asking for my take on Wal-Mart's sudden environmental largesse.

Well,

1) $35 million is a drop in the bucket for Wal-Mart (cheaper than an ad campaign).
2) Many environmentalists & other activists decry Wal-Mart for many, many valid reasons, like
3) Wal-Mart has fought in many localities to build in violation of the Clean Water Act, among other things. Google walmart environmental damage to get a sense of the extent. And we can deduce that
4) Wal-Mart will never build stores in the Grand Canyon, Deschutes Nat'l Forest, or other as-yet unpopulated, partially protected areas.
5) It's done in cooperation with the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation. Fish & wildlife? Hey, don't they sell guns & fishing rods at Wal-Mart? Hmmm...
6) It helps bolster Republican assertions that environmental protection doesn't need federal money. Remember where most of Wal-Mart's campaign money goes.

So my asessment would be:
Cheap PR campaign to prove how progressive they are. Meanwhile, they resist unionization, deny healthcare benefits & overtime for employees, buy from sweatshops in China, build on healthy natural sites in local areas, drive local retailers out of business, censor what they sell based on conservative ethics, and generally show blatant disregard for all things healthy and decent.

Might also be interesting to read reports about these trusts - how much of the money they receive goes to paying their employees, vs. actually doing land conservation? Think Swift Boat Veterans for Truth.

Here's the Grand Canyon Trust Charity summary. They do spend an awful lot on administrative costs. But that alone doesn't mean they're not doing good.

Oh, wait, here we go. This might have something to do with it:

The WCWCD is currently investigating the feasibility of several identified routes in order to determine if they can gain the necessary easements for the [water] pipeline [to Utah]. The State DWR and the WCWCD are sharing the expenses of these studies. The pipeline was originally planned for construction completion by 2030.

Maybe watering St. George is useful to Wal-Mart & they're trying to, um, lube the process a little. So far, the Grand Canyon Trust has advised against it.

However, I must say that money that helps the environment is great, regardless of origin or motives. As long as corruption charges don't follow a year from now, like what happened with the Nature Conservancy in the south.