The Green Revolution

Thanks for your cover story "Going Green" (Aug. 14). But you shouldn't assume companies that switch from oil to a lower-cost alternative and investors who happen to invest in those companies necessarily do so to "do good" for the environment. All of your examples of companies' going green and making more money in the process are due to the high price of oil and/or government regulation. If the price of oil dropped significantly tomorrow, most of these projects would stop dead in their tracks and your super-IPO examples would falter. Executives who truly care for the environment and for mankind implement a triple-bottom-line strategy in which they aim for environmental, social and economic sustainability. True sustainability is achieved only when the environment is not degraded in the process of development, and when companies generate earnings and cash flow sufficient to sustain their growth.

Steve Sperelakis, President Symbio Polska

Warsaw, Poland

Thank you for a fair and balanced look at "The Greening of America" (Aug. 14). What a thrill to have Republicans and Democrats embracing environmentalism. Granted, much of it may be economically driven. After all, $3-per-gallon gasoline has a way of turning the most diehard SUV lovers into Sierra Club members. But whatever the reason, it's a step in the right direction. Let's not forget it was Richard Nixon who signed into law the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, and established the Environmental Protection Agency. And it was Teddy Roosevelt, the original green GOPer, who was responsible for our un-rivaled network of national parks and wildlife refuges. Which all goes to prove that while our tenuous environmental situation may be "an inconvenient truth," it's a truth that transcends party lines.

Bob August

Republicans for Environmental Protection