The Qwarriors: A Conservation Tale

By Linda Vaughn Fitch

Book Overview

"The Qwarriors: A Conservation Tale." is an engaging book written by Linda Fitch. It tells the story of an environmental battle that took place between 1995 and 1998 next to her family property on Isle La Motte, Vermont, a tiny island in Lake Champlain. It was a war waged between a company seeking to reopen a limestone quarry which had lain dormant for many years and neighbors who dreaded the negative impacts that they believed the mining operation would engender. Vermont's environmental legislation was, at the time, among the most progressive in the nation. Even so battles between developers and ordinary citizens were arduous and the ordinary citizen fighting development rarely emerged victorious. In this account, mis-statements--if not outright false statements-- on the part of those who supplied information for permits to re-open the quarry, made it very difficult for citizens, without the funds to hire legal assistance and expert witnesses, to prevail.Linda Fitch organized neighbors, friends, and expert witnesses who volunteered time and expertise to an all consuming, legal battle and who, becoming over time a tightly knit team, called themselves the "Qwarriors." They comprised a motley group from varying walks of life with a sprinkling of genuine heroes including a tubby citizen from the other end of the state, a passionate environmental advocate who, without any legal training, had prevailed in a number of cases and was known by developers throughout Vermont as "the ordinary citizen from hell." As this particular eco battle stretched out over the course of three years, it assumed wider public interest as it became known that the site to be quarried contained remnants of an ancient fossil reef--known by scientists world-wide as the oldest biologically diverse reef in the history of life on Earth. The author, a non-scientist who reports that she had gotten a "C" in freshman geology, gradually became knowledgeable about what scientists were telling her was an irreplaceable geological treasure of international significance.The story is embedded in the broad perspective of the environmental movement of the 19th and early 20th century, in the history of the small island of Isle La Motte, and in the history of the family property which was actually visited by Teddy Roosevelt on September 6, 1901-- the day on which President McKinley was shot. This historic event led, of course, to the presidency of Teddy Roosevelt, who has since been called "The Conservation President." The book, which takes its place among other riveting accounts of environmental battles, contains its share of both humor and personal tragedy. The story takes many twists and turns between the moment in August 1995 when Linda hears the jack hammer in the old Fisk Quarry to the cliff hanger ending on December 30, 1998. "The Qwarriors" is a story of community, of working together, sharing talents, skills, and knowledge and a deepening awareness of the environmental assault that one small development can have on one small place. Environmental historian Donald Hughes has written, "For anyone interested in conservationism, this is a must-read and an enjoyable one."

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1517180473
• ISBN13: 9781517180478
• Release Date: March 2016
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 250 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.6" x 6.0"