Imagine taking your grandchildren to where you watched dolphins swim as a child, only to have to explain why the magnificent mammals have disappeared.

These “what-if” scenarios are unacceptable to Americans, but if the Bush administration continues on its crusade to reverse decades of environmental protection policy, they will be reality.

Buried beneath headlines of war, terrorism trials and the stumbling economy, this administration is quietly dismantling decades of natural resource policy. Their tactics are calculating and the consequences dangerous, as their policy course will degrade the beauty and reduce the diversity of our environment, at an insurmountable cost to future generations.

In my ideal 108th Congress, the House Resources Committee would assert its jurisdiction and fight tooth and nail to stop this administration’s destructive approach to maintaining the environment. But many initiatives have bypassed this institution, and the administration is instead using the judicial system along with the executive powers of the secretaries to enact regulatory changes to further their anti-conservation agenda.

As the ranking Democrat on the House Resources Committee, I have a front row seat for this shell game. Hiding behind buzz phrases like “forest health,” “wildlife management” and “protecting private property rights,” this administration seems intent on destroying this nation’s natural heritage.

The public has not idly sat back while their pristine public lands have been sold to the highest bidder. Thousands of concerned citizens have objected to plans to repeal the ban on snowmobiles in Yellowstone National Park, ax the roadless rule in fational forests and open up the coast of California to drilling. Yet they have found a deaf ear in this administration and Congress.

This committee must seize the opportunity to halt the desecration of our natural resources. A starting point should be reforming the 1872 General Mining law, an antiquated statute that virtually gives away public lands for mining purposes with no environmental safeguards, while shortchanging the U.S. Treasury. This statute doesn’t require basic holding fees or royalty payments from the corporation getting the land to mine. I, along with 18 colleagues, have introduced the Mineral Exploration and Development Act of 2003 to remedy this problem.

Another area of our jurisdiction that demands attention is this nation’s parks, which are deteriorating under the Bush administration’s stewardship. A park maintenance backlog, the reversal of conservation policies such as banning snowmobile use in Yellowstone National Park and plans preferring road construction to public transportation projects are undermining these jewels.

Fisheries are being depleted by policies that cater to short-sighted industry demands without replenishing stocks for future generations of fishermen. Recently the Pew Commission has shed light on the rapid decline of fish stocks in the oceans, recognizing the time bomb threatening coastal economies that rely on this resource.

And the administration and members of this committee are threatening to gut the Endangered Species Act, a landmark environmental statute, under the guise of protecting private property rights.

As Congress breaks for August recess, politicians are using naturally occurring fires in the West as a pretext to push legislation that would allow the decimation of our national forests. This committee should be focused on protecting communities, not destroying magnificent forests that have been burning and replenishing themselves for centuries.

The Resources Committee is also charged with overseeing the federal government’s relationship with Native American tribes and individuals. The most pressing issue is reaching a resolution to the Interior Department’s history of mismanagement of the Individual Indian Money accounts. Chairman Richard Pombo (R-Calif.) has expressed his interest in taking an active role in resolving this accounting debacle, and I hope that as a committee, we have the courage to live up to our responsibility to Indian country.

Despite our drastically different approaches to maintaining the environment, I hope to work with Chairman Pombo along with members on both sides of the aisle in the upcoming months to address these important issues.