Limit Water Pollution From Forestry

Dear WWF Conservation Action Network Activist:

Please help strengthen and expand proposed new rules that would
regulate the amount of soil erosion that is allowed into our nation's
streams and lakes by forest management activities such as logging and
tree nurseries.  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is
accepting comments until January 20 on the proposed new rules.  In
announcing the proposed rules, EPA said that "Clean-up plans
developed consistent with these regulatory proposals will help to
restore the health of thousands of miles of river and shoreline and
make millions of lake acres safe for their designated uses."  

Unfortunately, the forestry industry is opposing the proposed rules.   
Currently, water pollution caused by soil erosion generated by forestry
management activities is exempt from regulation.  The proposed rules
would allow EPA or a designated state agency to designate forestry
activities as "point" sources of pollution if they contribute significantly
to water quality problems.  The proposed rules would not affect those
foresters who practice sustainable forestry, but only those who were
unwilling to protect streams and lakes with sound soil protection
practices.

Cleaner water means better habitat for aquatic wildlife.  In addition,
practices that limit soil erosion often also provide wildlife habitat,
including cover, nesting, and den habitats.  We wish to encourage EPA
to strengthen the rules so that they apply to all waters of the United
States and not just those that are already impaired to a certain degree.  
Please send a free e-mail urging EPA to require foresters to keep our
waters clean.  To take action, go to http://takeaction.worldwildlife.org.

Thank you for helping to save our living planet!


*************************************************************************************

from Global response Jan.13,2000

Save the Narmada

We've just received a press release from Narmada Bachao Andolan (Save the
Narmada Movement) with this news:

On January 11, more than 4,000 local residents and anti-dam activists
occupied the construction site of the Maheshwar dam on India's Narmada
River. The non-violent protest/occupation successfully stopped
construction at the dam site. Police prevented another 1,500 protesters
from entering the site.

Police arrested more than 1,500 people, including renowned author Arundhati
Roy and other Indian celebrities who support the Save the Narmada Movement.
They were taken to Mandaleshwar Police Station. Incidents of police
beatings were reported.

The non-violent protesters are demanding complete stoppage of work on the
Maheshwar Dam project and a comprehensive review of the social, economic,
and environmental impacts of the dam project.

REQUESTED ACTION:

If you have not yet sent a letter to the German Chancellor, urging him to
stop a guarantee of financing for construction of the Maheshwar Dam, please
do so now. Review the Global Response Action Alert "Stop Dam Construction:
Narmada River/India" on our website:
<http://www.globalresponse.org/gra/current.html> . Urge the German
Chanceller to respect the voice of the courageous and determined Indian
people who oppose this very destructive dam project.

MORE DETAILS:

This is copied from the Environmental News Service website:
<http://ens.lycos.com/ens/jan2000/2000L-01-12-03.html>


Thousands Arrested Protesting Maheshwar Dam

By Frederick Noronha

BOMBAY, India, January 12, 2000 (ENS) - Anti-dam
campaigners protesting
against major dam projects in the northern part
of India occupied the
controversial Maheshwar dam site on Tuesday
morning. Thousands were
arrested.

The Narmada Bachao Andolan (Save the Narmada
River Campaign) said that "in
spite of police protection" its activists had
walked through the night and
"occupied the destructive Maheshwar dam site on
January 11 morning at 6.45
am local time and stopped the work on the dam."

NBA spokesman Alok Agrawal said among the 4,000
affected people and
activists who "captured the site" were senior
Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA)
activist Chittaroopa Palit, the
internationally-famed Booker Prize winning Indian
writer Arundhati Roy, prominent film makers
Pradip Kishen and Jharna Jhaveri
and a large number of supporters from major
Indian cities like Delhi and
Bombay, and distant points of the country.

Marchers protest the
Maheshwar dam (All
photos courtesy
Friends of the River Narmada)

During the march, some
1,500 people were
prevented by the
police from moving towards
the site.

The NBA said that the
police arrested the
people around 1 pm.
The police allegedly
"misbehaved" with people including Arundhati
Roy, Jharna Jhaveri and
Chittaroopa Palit.

NBA spokespeople charged that Padhri Verma and
Annapurnabai of the village
Pathrad and Chandrashekar and Chandu of the
village Sulgaon were "terribly
beaten up" by police inside the bus on the way
to the police station.

Earlier, at 6:45 am, the people started a sit-in
protest at the dam site with
slogans and songs. Officials including the
regional Khargone District Collector
Bhopal Singh, came forward to pursuade the
activists to withdraw their agitation.
The talks went on till 10.45 am but without
result.

Villager stands on the bank of the Narmada
River that will be submerged if the dam is
completed.

"At about 1 pm about 1,500 people including
Arundhati and others were arrested forcefully
and
taken to Mandaleshwar Police Station," the NBA
said.

The Maheshwar dam in the state of Madhya Pradesh
will affect around 40,000
people in 61 villages in the region, submerging
hundreds of acres of fertile,
irrigated black cotton soils, scores of sand
quarries and a rich riverine economy.

For the past three years, the Maheshwar Dam has
been the target of
campaigners who term it "destructive."

Exactly two years ago on January 11, 1998 the
Maheshwar Dam was occupied
for more than 20 days. That occupation has led
the regional state-level
government of Madhya Pradesh to set up a Task
Force to address the
grievances of the protesters.

Narmada River

After ten months
study, this Task Force
recommended a
comprehensive review
of the Maheshwar
Project to reassess
the cost-benefit
ratio and the viability
and disirability of
the project.

"Instead of acting
on this
recommendation of its own Task Force, the Madhya
Pradesh Government
allowed the S. Kumars' private company to push
ahead with the project and
supported it by unleasing repression on the
affected people," the NBA alleged in
a statement.

This latest case of occupation of the dam site
was to demand a complete
stoppage of work on the project and a
comprehensive review as recommended
by the Task Force.

The Maheshwar Dam is part of the Narmada Valley
Development Project that
entails the construction of 30 large and 135
medium-sized dams in the Narmada
Valley. Maheshwar is one of the planned large
dams and is slated to provide 400
Megawatts in energy.

NBA maintains that that, although the project
will have a proposed installed
capacity of 400 MW, the average firm power will
be only 82 MW, and power
production in the eight non-monsoon months will
not be more than one and a
half hours per day.

Two unidentified of dam
protesters

The protest organization
says the cost of power from
this project will be
prohibitively high - an average of
six to eight rupees per
unit, with the cost of peaking
power being eight to ten
rupees per unit at the point
of production.

This project was privatized in 1994 and handed
over to the S. Kumars. Project
costs have been spiralling from rupees (Rs)
4,560 million to Rs 20,000 million in
the past five years. At the current rate of
exchange one dollar roughly equals Rs
43.50.

The NBA vows to continue with its protest
actions against the Maheshwar Dam.
Agrawal warned that "truth and reality cannot be
suppressed through repressive
method of forceful arrest."

? Environment News Service (ENS) 2000. All
Rights Reserved.


--------------------------------------
GLOBAL RESPONSE is an international letter-writing network of environmental
activists. In partnership with indigenous, environmentalist and peace and
justice organizations around the world, GLOBAL RESPONSE develops "Actions"
that describe specific, urgent threats to the environment; each "Action"
asks members to write personal letters to individuals in the corporations,
governments or international organizations that have the power and
responsibility to take corrective action. GR also issues "Young
Environmentalists' Actions" and "Eco-Club Actions" designed to educate and
motivate elementary and high school students to practice earth stewardship.

P.O. Box 7490 Phone: 303/444-0306
Boulder CO, USA 80306-7490 Fax: 303/449-9794

To receive Global Response "Actions" and "Emergency Actions" by email:
Send a blank message to: globresmembers-subscribe@igc.topica.com

Visit our website at: <http://www.globalresponse.org>

To unsubscribe from this email list, send a blank message to globresmembers-unsubscribe@igc.topica.com

_____________________________________________________________
Check out the new and improved Topica site!
<http://www.topica.com/t/13>

from Greenpeace Jan.14,2000

North Star Road Construction Underway

from World Wildlife Jan.14,2000

CONSERVATION ACTION ACHIEVEMENTS

On behalf of everyone at the World Wildlife Fund, I want to thank you
for being a Conservation Action Network activist and wish you a very
happy year 2000. During the past year, you and the other activists
helped achieve important conservation results-

* stopping the Russians from hunting beluga whales;

* boosting U.S. funding for conservation of endangered right whales,
rhinos, tigers, and other imperiled wildlife;

* fending off an attempt to weaken laws intended to minimize the
impacts of strip mining in Appalachia in the U.S.;

* convincing President Clinton to propose a strong plan for protection
of roadless areas in U.S. national forests; and

* prompting efforts to develop a U.S. management plan for sharks in
Pacific waters.

For more information about these achievements and the many other
actions of the past year, visit the "Action Results" section of the
Conservation Action Network Web site at
<http://takeaction.worldwildlife.org/action.htm>.

from Defender's of Wildlife Jan.18,2000

DENlines Issue #6

Defenders Electronic Network (DEN)

Tuesday January 18, 2000



1. WOLVES: Court Rules That Wolves Can Stay in Yellowstone

2. PUBLIC LANDS: President Protects Natural Areas in AZ and CA

3. MANATEE: Conservationists Sue To Save Florida Manatees

4. POLAR BEARS: Proposed Regulations Threaten Polar Bears

5. DID YOU KNOW?: American Alligator

6. FOOD FOR THOUGHT: L. David Mech on Wolves



====================================================================



1. WOLVES: Court Rules That Wolves Can Stay in Yellowstone!



We Won! Almost five years to the day that the first wolves were

reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho after

a 60-year absence, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously

to allow the program to continue. The decision validates the

ambitious northern Rockies wolf recovery program, which has been

hailed by conservationists as the most important wildlife victory

of the 20th century.



The decision overturns a lower court's 1997 ruling that the 1995

and 1996 Yellowstone and Idaho wolf reintroductions were illegal.

The district court's ruling had called for removal of all the wolves

and their offspring, an action that pleased the American Farm Bureau

Federation, which was behind the lawsuit, but that Defenders of

Wildlife called a virtual death sentence. "Removal" in this case

would have meant killing the wolves, since there was no place for

them to go. On the same day of the latest court decision, the Farm

Bureau announced that their president,Dean Kleckner, who was one of

the most outspoken opponents environmental protection in general and

wolf recovery in particular, was voted out of office at the Bureau's

annual meeting.



"It's a new day for wolves in more ways than one. The Yellowstone

wolves have been given a new lease on life and so has the principle

that science -- not politics -- should guide wildlife restoration

efforts in America," said Rodger Schlickeisen, president of Defenders

of Wildlife. "It's been two long years since the district court's

ruling. The Farm Bureau and Kleckner have been obstinate, but

ironically he lost his job on the same day the Farm Bureau lost the

suit."



For more information on this issue visit our website at

<http://www.defenders.org/wolfvictory.html>



2. PUBLIC LANDS: President Protects Natural Areas in AZ and CA



Standing on the south rim of the Grand Canyon on January 11, President

Clinton signed a proclamation to protect more than one million acres

of pristine canyon lands, rugged coastline, archeological treasures

and ancient volcanoes. The President officially designated three new

national monuments and expanded a fourth, giving added protection to

these already federally owned lands from urban sprawl, new mining

activities and development threats.



The new Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument will protect more

than a million acres of federal land bordering Grand Canyon National

Park in northern Arizona. As the sprawling suburbs of Phoenix creep

further north, the new Agua Fria National Monument will preserve a

rough landscape of mesas and deep canyons characterized by prehistoric

cave art and ancient stone pueblos. The new California Coastal

National Monument will protect thousands of small islands and rock

outcroppings that serve as feeding and nesting habitat for marine

mammals and hundreds of thousands of seabirds. Also in California,

the Pinnacles National Monument will be expanded to create more

habitat for native wildlife and a haven for campers, climbers and

hikers.



Click for more: http://www.defenders.org/den/dl00006.html#landsjump <http://www.defenders.org/den/dl00006.html>



3. MANATEE: Conservationists Sue To Save Florida Manatees



A national coalition of 19 environmental groups, including Defenders,

filed two lawsuits in federal court in an effort to save the critically

endangered West Indian manatee. The lawsuits, filed on January 13,

demand sweeping changes in the business-as-usual attitude of federal

and state agencies, charged with the recovery of the endangered

marine mammal. Despite being protected under the Endangered Species

Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act and Florida Marine Sanctuary Act,

manatee numbers have continued to decline in recent years, primarily

due to boat collisions and habitat destruction. In 1999, 268 manatees

died, the second-highest recorded total since mortality figures were

first kept in 1984. Human-caused fatalities, such as collisions with

boat props, make up 43 percent of all identified manatee deaths.



Manatees are slow moving herbivores that feed on water plants in

shallow coastal waters, rivers and springs. They must surface to

breathe every few minutes, making them particularly susceptible to

boat strikes. Currently, only an estimated 2,400 survive in the

warm streams and coastal waters of the southeastern United States.

Conservationists hope that the lawsuit will lead to stronger

enforcement of existing protections for manatees, adoption of

additional boat speed zones in critical mortality areas, and the

creation of a series of manatee sanctuaries to protect the animals

while resting, feeding and breeding.



4. POLAR BEARS: Proposed Regulations Threaten Polar Bears



Eight conservation groups, including Defenders, submitted comments

opposing proposed regulations by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

that would allow the unintentional killing or harassing of polar

bears during oil- and gas-related activities in northern Alaska. The

proposed regulations fail to examine adequately the potential impacts

of new untested sub-sea pipeline technology used to transport oil to

mainland facilities from offshore drilling platforms in Arctic waters.

A recent environmental assessment states that it is likely that 11

to 24 polar bears could die from a sub-sea pipeline spill and as

many as 108 bears could die in a worst-case scenario.



The 22-page comment letter called for: (1) additional review of new

information on sub-sea pipeline spill impacts to polar bears (2)

adherence to U.S. commitments to protect polar bear habitat as a

signatory to an international treaty protecting polar bears and their

habitat (3) and exclusion of the area offshore of the Arctic National

Wildlife Refuge from these regulations.



While not currently endangered, polar bears are coming under

increasing threat from expanding offshore and onshore oil development

in northern Alaska and potential long-term habitat threats from

global climate change, such as thinning sea ice. Their natural

curiosity and keen sense of smell often place them in harm's way

such as being attracted to drill rigs, garbage dumps and other

contaminants. Polar bears are particularly susceptible to oil spills

due to their feeding habitats, wide ranges and low reproductive rates.



5. DID YOU KNOW?: American Alligator



The American alligator is truly a living fossil, descended from the

crocodile family that has roamed the earth for the last 200 million

years. The American alligator can grow up to 14 feet and weigh more

than 1,000 pounds. Nearly half of its length is in its large

powerful tail, which it uses to propel itself quickly through water.

Alligators can be distinguished from their endangered and much rarer

cousin, the American crocodile, by color (black vs. brown) and head

shape (broad vs. narrow snout). Their diet consists primarily of

fish, turtles and snails, although adult alligators will eat small

animals that come to the water's edge to drink. Although alligators

have no vocal chords, males manipulate air in their throats to

bellow loudly when attracting mates and hatchlings emit a high

pitched croak when they emerge from their shells. Alligators are

found throughout the Southeast, from the Carolinas to Texas and

north to Arkansas. In areas where water levels fluctuate, such as

south Florida, alligators will dig a hollow in the mud creating a

depression that retains water even during the driest months. Over

the years these "gator holes" can become quite large and provide

water for a variety of other species, including insects, fish,

snakes, turtles and birds. Threatened with extinction earlier this

century due to market hunting and loss of habitat, the alligator

has made a remarkable recovery. Originally listed as endangered in

1967, the now common reptile was delisted in 1987, marking one of

the biggest success stories of the Endangered Species Act.



6. FOOD FOR THOUGHT: L. David Mech on Wolves



"If the wolf is to survive, the wolf haters must be outnumbered.

They must be outshouted, outfinanced, and outvoted. Their narrow and

biased attitude must be outweighed by an attitude based on an

understanding of natural processes. Finally their hate must be

outdone by a love for the whole of nature, for the unspoiled

wilderness, and for the wolf as a beautiful, interesting, and

integral part of both."



-- L. David Mech, 1970. A biologist

and wolf expert, he wrote "The Way

of the Wolf."



* TELL YOUR FRIENDS!! FEEL FREE TO FORWARD THIS ISSUE

AND SPREAD THE NEWS ABOUT WILDLIFE AND CONSERVATION *



====================================================================

To subscribe, visit Defenders' website located at

<http://www.defenders.org/den> or send an e-mail to

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====================================================================

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DENlines is a bi-weekly publication of Defenders of Wildlife, a

leading national conservation organization recognized as one of the

nation's most progressive advocates for wildlife and its habitat.

Known for its effective leadership on endangered species issues,

particularly predators like brown bears and gray wolves, Defenders

also advocates new approaches to wildlife conservation that protect

species before they become endangered. Founded in 1947, Defenders

is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with more than 380,000 members

and supporters.



Defenders of Wildlife

1101 14th Street, NW, Suite 1400

Washington, DC 20005

www.defenders.org <http://www.defenders.org>



(c) Defenders of Wildlife, 2000.

*************************************************************************************************************

from Greenpeace Jan 18, 2000

Help from Shareholders Needed

************************************************************************************************

from Global Response Jan19,2000

SUPPORT U'WA PEOPLE VS. OCCIDENTAL PETROLEUM / COLOMBIA



"The U'wa have always had a law that existed before the sun and the moon.
We have always taken good care of our land, because we have always
followed this law?.  In this world there are many laws, but Mother Earth
also has her laws?.Occidental must hear these laws and leave U'wa territory
please."
-- Berito Kuwaru'wa
   Designated International Spokesman, Traditional U'wa Authority
   Winner, 1998 Goldman Environmental Prize


For eight years, the U'wa people have successfully prevented Occidental
Petroleum Company from drilling in their traditional territory.  They
argued their case in Colombian courts and international human rights
forums, and even at Occidental's Shareholders' Meeting in Los Angeles,
California.  Their chilling pledge to commit mass suicide if Occidental
drills on their lands made headlines worldwide.

As a result, Occidental gave up plans to drill inside the U'wa
Reservation, but there's a catch:  the U'wa Reservation covers only 14% of
U'wa traditional territories.  Occidental's first drill site is just 600
yards outside the U'wa Reservation, but well within U'wa traditional
homelands.  The U'wa community of Santa Marta lies adjacent to the drill
site, putting them at clear risk from impacts of the oil project.

What is at risk?  The U'wa homeland in Colombia's Sierra Nevada de Cocuy
mountains is one of the most delicate, endangered forest systems on the
planet.  It lies at the headwaters of the Orinoco River basin, which flows
through sensitive cloudforest and rainforest ecosystems and other
indigenous peoples' homelands on its way to the sea.

For thousands of years, the U'wa have lived by seasonally migrating
between upland cloudforest and lush valleys, gathering plants, hunting and
fishing.  Their agricultural practices are famous for being virtually
undetectable from the outside because the U'wa do not cut down the larger
trees or ones that provide food for animals.  Between uses, the U'wa let
their fields lie fallow for 10 to 15 years, allowing full regrowth of
native plant and animal species. The U'wa give complete protection to the
high mountain ranges; no human beings are permitted to go there.

Just north of U'wa territory, Occidental's Cano Limon pipeline has spilled
an estimated 1,700,000 barrels of crude oil into nearby soil, rivers and
lakes over the last 13 years (compare to 257,000 barrels in the Exxon
Valdez spill).  A government study found that "because of the polluting
effects from Cano Limon, the receiving rivers and lakes are no longer fit
for human consumption."   In addition to pollution, oil projects inevitably
lead to deforestation directly, because forests are cleared for oil
exploration and production, and indirectly, because road systems created by
the oil projects open new arteries into forests, clearing the way for
colonization.

In Colombia, oil also means violence.  Colombia's left-wing guerrilla
groups view oil installations as strategic targets; Occidental's Cano Limon
pipeline has been bombed more than 600 times, causing major spills;
frequent assassinations, massacres, torture and kidnappings occur in
communities near the pipeline.

Occidental's drilling would invite these horrors to the U'wa communities,
and for what gain?  The oil reserves in U'wa territory can only supply
three weeks worth of world oil consumption.

To prevent ecological and social horrors in their homeland, more than 200
U'wa people, including women, children and tribal elders, are now occupying
Occidental's drill site known as Gibralter 1.  Tribal leaders consider this
permanent settlement a necessary action to block the drilling, since the
government has already issued Occidental a permit for the site without
consulting the U'wa.

How can we support the U'wa in their courageous struggle?  Occidental will
back down if shareholders demand it.  Last year, 13% of Occidental's
shareholders voted for a resolution to assess the negative impacts of
Occidental's project in U'wa territory.  Global Response members can
increase the pressure on Occidental by convincing Fidelity Investments, one
of Occidental's top shareholders, to demand "hands off" all U'wa land.  US
presidential candidate Al Gore owns $1/2 million Occidental stock and takes
major contributions from the company.  He wants the environmental vote:
let's challenge him to tell Occidental to abandon oil fields on all U'wa
land.


Communique to the International Public
"Approximately 200 members of the U'wa indigenous tribe of northeastern
Colombia assembled in a permanent settlement on part of our ancestral lands
yesterday, November 16.  This area?is the site where?Occidental Petroleum
wants to drill the oil well 'Gibralter 1,' an action which threatens life
and our ancient culture.
"With this permanent presence and with the support of the local farmers of
Sarare, we are claiming our ancestral and constitutional rights to life and
to our traditional territory. We demand that the Colombian government and
Oxy leave us in peace and that once and for all they cancel the oil project
in this area.  We U'wa people are willing to give our lives to defend
Mother Earth from this project which will annihilate our culture, destroy
nature, and upset the world's equilibrium.  Caring for the Earth and the
welfare of our children and of future generations is not only the
responsibility of the U'wa people but of the entire national and
international society.
"?We ask people around the world who value the Earth and indigenous
peoples to speak out against the multinational oil company Oxy through
protests, letters and other actions of solidarity."
--Roberto Perez, President of Tribal Council U'wa Traditional
Authorities.


Requested Action:  Please write polite letters to:

1) Albert Gore
Vice President of the United States
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington DC 20500
FAX: Int'l code+202/456-7044

In his book, Earth in the Balance, Gore wrote that car exhaust is "a
mortal threat to the security of every nation, that is more deadly than
that of any military enemy we are ever again likely to confront."   So why
does he accept campaign contributions from oil companies, and why does he
invest $1/2 million in Occidental Petroleum?

Urge Gore to confront Occidental and convince the company to withdraw from
all U'wa traditional territory.  Ask him how he justifies the sacrifice of
the U'wa people and destruction of a rare cloudforest ecosystem for 3 weeks
worth of oil. Tell him if he wants the environmental vote, he must show
leadership in the global struggle for environmental justice.


2) Edward C. Johnson III
Chairman and CEO, Fidelity Investments
82 Devonshire St.
Boston MA 02109
FAX: Int'l code+617/476-4164

Fidelity Investments controls more than 30 million Occidental shares -
over 8 percent of the company's total value.  Fidelity's  slogan is "We
help you invest responsibly."

Demand that Fidelity Investments act responsibly for the rights of
indigenous people and for precious, irreplaceable ecosystems.  Urge
Fidelity Investments to convince Occidental to cancel its project on U'wa
traditional lands, and if they refuse, to dump all their Occidental stock
in protest.


This Global Response Action is issued in support of and with information
provided by the Tribal Council U'wa Traditional Authorities, Rainforest
Action Network, Project Underground and Amazon Watch.  For more
information, please see these websites: www.ran.org; www.moles.org; and the
publication "Blood of our Mother" available from Project Underground,
510/705-8981 or project_underground@moles.org

--------------------------------------
GLOBAL RESPONSE is an international letter-writing network of environmental
activists.  In partnership with indigenous, environmentalist and peace and
justice organizations around the world, GLOBAL RESPONSE develops "Actions"
that describe specific, urgent threats to the environment; each "Action"
asks members to write personal letters to individuals in the corporations,
governments or international organizations that have the power and
responsibility to take corrective action.  GR also issues "Young
Environmentalists' Actions" and "Eco-Club Actions" designed to educate and
motivate elementary and high school students to practice earth stewardship.

P.O. Box 7490 Phone: 303/444-0306
Boulder CO, USA 80306-7490 Fax:   303/449-9794

To receive Global Response "Actions" and "Emergency Actions" by email:
Send a blank message to: globresmembers-subscribe@igc.topica.com

Visit our website at: http://www.globalresponse.org

from RAINFOREST ACTION NETWORK Jan 19, 2000

 UPDATE 

*******
RAN LAUNCHES NEW CAMPAIGN!
We are launching a new campaign to work with home builders to eliminate
the use of old growth wood in home construction. Come to the site and
read about the campaign and our recent adventures at the convention of
the National Association of Home Builders.
<http://www.ran.org/ran_campaigns/old_growth/index.html>

*******
ACTION ALERT: Al Gore's Oily Connections
Vice President Gore owns up to $500,000 in Occidental Petroleum stock
and takes major contributions from the company. Yet Gore wants the
environmental and human rights vote: let's challenge him to tell
Occidental to abandon oil fields on all U'wa land.
<http://www.ran.org/info_center/aa/gore.html>

*******
As always, please consider SUPPORTING RAN. It's what makes our work possible!
<http://www.ran.org/scripts/ran/join_start.pl>

*******
SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
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To unsubscribe, send a blank message to: ran-updates-unsubscribe@igc.topica.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rainforest Action Network
221 Pine Street, Suite 500
San Francisco, CA 94104
tel: 415-398-4404
fax: 415-398-2732
URL: <http://www.ran.org/>

_____________________________________________________________
Check out the new and improved Topica site!
<http://www.topica.com/t/13>

************************************************************************************************

from ZPG Jan20, 2000

Mark Your Calendar! Join ZPG in Washington, DC for our 4th

Annual Capitol Hill Days event March 25-28, 2000. This year

we'll need a stronger presence than ever before in order to

repeal the odious Global Gag Rule.

As you know, late last year Congress and the White House

imposed severe funding restrictions on U.S. aid for

international family planning. In addition, they imposed a

"gag rule" on what family planning groups, that receive U.S.

aid, can do or say with their own private funds. The "gag

rule" could, if interpreted strictly, result in the

disqualification of nearly every family planning provider in

the developing world.

Family planning organizations are already predicting that,

even in the best case scenario, the new policy will deny

nearly 500,000 women in developing countries access to

family planning and reproductive health services, resulting

in more than 250,000 unintended pregnancies and 100,000

additional abortions. The new restrictions will also result

in nearly 10,000 more maternal and infant deaths. Please

come in March to help repeal this misguided new policy!

Capitol Hill Days is a once-a-year opportunity for ZPG

supporters to visit Congress, exchange ideas and network.

Washington, DC also provides an array of social, cultural

and educational activities.

For more information, please contact Heather Smith or Kathy

Touloumis in ZPG's Government Relations Department at 1(800)

POP-1956 or e-mail them at lobbydays@zpg.org

Please join us for Capitol Hill Days 2000. You will make a

difference.

************************************************************************************************

The Forest For the Trees- Clear-Cuts in Alaska

If one Alaskan cruise operator has
anything to do with it, clear-cuts in
the Tongass may soon be a thing of
the past.

By David Herndon

It's said that the Tongass National Forest wears a
mantle of precipitation in modesty: on those rare
days when the sun does shine, the landscape is
simply too gorgeous. But perhaps the rainclouds are
worn in shame, too—in a vain attempt to shroud
the scars of a half-century of clear-cutting.

The clear-cuts along Alaska's Inside Passage—miles
and miles of them—testify to a decades-long war
over the Tongass, the world's largest remaining
temperate rain forest. Conservationists, including
those who support ecotourism, advocate the
preservation of this precious habitat, home to
bears, wolves, moose, deer, and bald eagles. The
timber industry and its adherents, who include the
state's disproportionately powerful Congressional
delegation, have fought hard against logging
restrictions and in favor of the subsidies upon which
the industry depends. Right now, as the market for
timber continues to decline and Washington seems
bent on changing its policies, the greens have
reason to hope that the campaign has finally
shifted in their favor.

In April, Under Secretary of Agriculture Jim Lyons
applied the final touches to a management plan
that declared prime tracts of the Tongass off-limits
to logging. The move reflected a national shift in
Forest Service priorities, away from its traditional
tree-farming agenda and toward a stewardship
based on conservation, recreation, and tourism. All
eyes are on Forest Service Chief Mike Dombeck, who
has declared a widespread moratorium on road
building in "roadless areas" of the national
forests—which basically means no new
logging—while he decides on a nationwide policy.
For now, happily for the Alaska delegation, the
Tongass is exempt from the moratorium; 2 million
of the forest's remaining 9 million roadless acres
hang in the balance.

"The Lyons plan took us a long way, but didn't solve
all the problems," says Marc Wheeler of the
Southeast Alaska Conservation Coalition. "As long
as the Alaska delegation is in place and there's a
Republican Congress, it's all still pretty fragile."
In fact, the day after the plan was announced, Alaska
senator Ted Stevens, chairman of the Senate
Appropriations Committee, vowed to gut the Forest
Service budget if the agency followed its new
agenda.

Despite the partisanship, however, the debate
about the Tongass does not break down strictly
along party lines. Michael McIntosh describes
himself as a "fiscally conservative Republican
businessman," and it annoys him that the
government subsidizes logging in the Tongass to
the tune of $30 million a year. "If I need federal
funds to underwrite my business," he says, "then I
probably shouldn't be in that business." Especially
when it harms viable businesses such as tourism.
"People aren't going to pay a lot of money to go on
a cruise and see a clear-cut."

Unless they're on one of McIntosh's own little ships.
He's behind an outfit called the Boat Company,
which consists of two World War II-era
minesweepers that have been retrofitted as luxury
craft. They hold no more than 20 guests on six- and
nine-day cruises that cost $600 per person per day.
His crews make a point of showing large clear-cuts
to the passengers, and a naturalist explains their
potentially harmful effects on the environment,
which go well beyond aesthetics. Old-growth forest
provides prime habitat for wildlife, especially deer.
In southeastern Alaska, traditional clear-cuts work
like neutron bombs in reverse: they devastate the
forest infrastructure and leave the fauna to try to
survive in the rubble. McIntosh wants his clients to
learn that when you're splintering forests that have
taken at least 250 years to grow, the ecology of the
area is devastated. "When it's gone, it's gone," he
says, "and the world is worse off." He hopes visitors
will take this message back home to their
representatives—Republican and Democrat alike.

Fittingly, it was the great Republican forefather of
conservation in America, Teddy Roosevelt, who first
designated the Tongass a national forest in the
early part of the century—and the McIntosh family's
stake in southeastern Alaska goes back nearly that
far. A subsidiary of A&P (the family grocery
business) ran the largest salmon-canning operation
in the region, and McIntosh himself worked on a
fishing boat there in the early fifties. "I fell in
love with the area," he says. In the late seventies he
decided to go into the cruise business "on a mini
basis," as a way to raise consciousness about the
need to conserve the Tongass. At first his guests
were drawn strictly from the ranks of the converted,
Nature Conservancy members and the like, but over
the years he has attracted, by word of mouth, a
well-heeled, influential clientele that he estimates
is 80 percent Republican. A newsletter and Web site
keep former passengers abreast of political
developments affecting the forest, and gently
encourage them to take an interest in one of the
conservation groups the McIntosh Foundation
supports from its $40 million endowment. ("A small
foundation," he says.)

Clearly, Michael McIntosh is not your typical
tree-hugger, any more than the Boat Company is
your typical cruise line. It must be noted that
conservation is not the focus of the line's trips. It
could easily be argued, for instance, that fine dining
is. Three outstanding meals are served daily. These
glorious events are interrupted by stops in Juneau,
Sitka, and Ketchikan, whale-watching sessions,
canoe outings, visits to villages, nature walks, and
fishing excursions—which leads us back to dinner,
where your own freshly caught halibut or salmon
might appear on your plate, grilled. As for the
boats, the 97-foot, 12-passenger Observer and the
144-foot, 20-passenger Liseron, both made entirely
of wood and detailed with mahogany brightwork,
are so distinctive that the company can't buy any
more; a third vessel, a wood-and-aluminum copy of
the Liseron, has been commissioned and will launch
next season.

"I'm a big fan of what the Boat Company is doing
here," says writer and cultural anthropologist
Richard Nelson, and he's not just talking about the
open-bar comforts of the Observer's lounge. In fact,
Nelson is much more in his element while wholly
immersed in the raw rain forest; his book The
Island Within details a year in the life of one of the
Tongass's uninhabited isles. "Because the Liseron
and the Observer are such small boats, they give
you great views," says Nelson, "but they're
unobtrusive—not a huge intrusion on the land and
water."

Tourism's impact on the character of southeast
Alaska is a hot topic. The region's 70,000 residents
host 650,000 tourists every summer—double the
number of 10 years ago. Some towns, like Juneau
and Ketchikan, have embraced the big-time cruise
lines that account for most of the visitors, while
others, like Sitka, have resisted. "We want tourism
based on quality as much as quantity," says Nelson,
who sits on the board of the Sitka Conservation
Society. "For a lot of us, the essence of the Alaska
experience is solitude." He's not the only one who
thinks so. The Forest Service is trying to figure out
how to manage access so hunters, kayakers, and
small-craft passengers will experience no more than
three daily "encounters" (loosely defined as waving
distance) with other humans.

It remains to be seen whether such an exclusive
arrangement can bring the kind of economic
sustenance needed to help offset the decline in
commercial fishing and industrial logging. But for
now, conservationists are cautiously celebrating
their recent victories. "People need to appreciate
the place for its wildness and beauty and
biodiversity, not as a source of pulp for Pampers,"
says Nelson. "The wonderful thing about tourism is
that trees become more valuable on the
mountainside than when they're cut down and
hauled away. Locals are beginning to see this."

This article appeared in the Nov, 1999 addition of Travel and Leisure
Magazine.


____________________________________________________________________________
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where you can easily remove yourself from the list. To speak with someone
directly please e-mail info@akrain.org or call 907-222-2552.

Thanks for your support.

Alaska Rainforest Campaign Staff.

***********************************************************************************************

URGENT URGENT URGENT

COMMUNIQUE TO THE INTERNATIONAL AND NATIONAL PUBLIC
"OXY INVADES UWA TERRITORY
THE ARMY OF COLOMBIA WITH 5000 MEN AT THE SERVICE OF THE OXY"

On the 19th of January 2000, more than 5000 heavily armed soldiers of the
Colombian Army, invaded our traditional territory, exactly in Cedeno, where
there is the oil drilling well - Gibraltar 1, of the Occidental, Oxy.

Facing the opposition of the Uwa people, headed by our representative the
indigenous leader Roberto Cobaria Berito, the Armed forces stated that
"Over and above the indigenous U'was, they had to exploit oil".  At the
same time Police forces move to the zone with the aim to "protect" the
safety of the Occidental engineers.

Since the 15th of November 1999, more than 250 of our community stand in
peaceful protest in the area of Cedeno, which is part of our ancestral
territory, claiming  resistance against oil exploitation by the OXY. Today
we are being cordoned off by the Colombian Army and Police, putting at risk
our physical integrity.

With this action, the Oxy and the Colombian army insist on ignoring our
territorial rights, sacred for thousands of year and as the real owners of
the land where the oil exploitation is going to take place. This series of
events ignores our constitutional and legal rights, which state that the
communal ethnic territories are inalienable, cannot be seized and are
imprescriptible, and that they are protected by the title deed of colective
territory.

Likewise, the Colombian government, headed by the Minister of Mining and
Energy  with the complicity of INCORA (National institute for Agrarian
Reform), pretend to declare the U'wa territory as an oil reserve, with the
false argument that the national oil industry acquires by law a special
status of public interest, with the true and only purpose of facilitating
and allowing the oil exploitation on behalf of the Multinational Oxy.

We are urgently calling the attention of the national and international
community and the NGO support groups to take action, speak up and move
against this latest violation against the Uwa people, which is threatening
our existence and culture.

THE UWAS WILL NOT GIVE UP OUR CULTURAL, HISTORICAL AND MILLENARY RIGHTS.

WE RATHER PREFER A GENOCIDE SPONSORED BY THE COLOMBIAN GOVERNMENT BEFORE
OUR MOTHER LAND IS DESTROYED BY THE OIL COMPANIES.

Your letters can be sent to:

JUAN MAYR, Ministro del Medio Ambiente, Juan_Mayr_M@Hotmail.Com y
Jmayr@minamb.gov.co 3361166, 2886877, 2840363

Dr. ANDRES PASTRANA, Presidente de la Republica de Colombia, Palacio de
Narino, Fax 2867434. Bogota. pastrana@presidencia.gov.co

Dr. GUSTAVO BELL LEMUS, Consejero Presidencial para los Derechos Humanos,
Fax 571 3418364. Bogota.

Dr. JAIME BERNAL CUELLAR, Procurador General de la Nacion, Fax 571 2840472,
3429723. Bogota.

Dr. ALFONSO GOMEZ MENDEZ, Fiscal General de la Nacion, Fax 571 5702000.
Bogota.

Dr. FERNANDO CASTRO CAICEDO, Defensor del Pueblo, Fax 571 3461225. Bogota.

Dr. NESTOR HUMBERTO MARTINEZ NEIRA, Ministro del Interior, Fax 571 2515884.

Cubara, 20 de enero del 2000
CABILDO MAYOR U?WA
Cubara, Boyaca, Colombia
INFORMATION: Tel: 091 2812071;
091 3376950; 091 2456860;
091 2458906
---------------------------------------------------------


--------------------------------------
GLOBAL RESPONSE is an international letter-writing network of environmental
activists.  In partnership with indigenous, environmentalist and peace and
justice organizations around the world, GLOBAL RESPONSE develops "Actions"
that describe specific, urgent threats to the environment; each "Action"
asks members to write personal letters to individuals in the corporations,
governments or international organizations that have the power and
responsibility to take corrective action.  GR also issues "Young
Environmentalists' Actions" and "Eco-Club Actions" designed to educate and
motivate elementary and high school students to practice earth stewardship.

P.O. Box 7490 Phone: 303/444-0306
Boulder CO, USA 80306-7490 Fax:   303/449-9794

To receive Global Response "Actions" and "Emergency Actions" by email:
Send a blank message to: globresmembers-subscribe@igc.topica.com

Visit our website at: http://www.globalresponse.org

***********************************************************************************************

from Alaska Rainforest Campaign

330 Scientists Call on President Clinton to Protect the Tongass
Signers include 2-time Pulitzer Prize Winner E.O. Wilson

Three hundred and thirty scientists have written President Clinton supporting his bold initiative to protect national forests and urging him to make sure those protections include Alaska's controversial Tongass National Forest. Signers on the letter include some of the nation's most prominent ecologists and biologists, such as Harvard professor and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner E.O. Wilson; Stanford professor Paul Ehrlich; Reed Noss, President of the Society for Conservation Biology; and Jane Lubchenco, past president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

"I'm pleased to be part of this effort to protect roadless areas, especially Alaska's Tongass," says E.O. Wilson, the internationally known author of numerous books, including The Diversity of Life, Biodiversity, and Biophilia. "This is a tremendously important resource management issue where the science is clear. These areas, including the Tongass, must be protected."

"Exempting the Tongass and other national forests from any new reforms governing the management of roadless areas would severely weaken an otherwise laudable policy," reads the scientists' letter to President Clinton. "In a 1997 speech calling for better stewardship of roadless areas, you stated: 'These unspoiled places must be managed through science, not politics.' There is no scientific basis to exclude the Tongass."

According to the 330 scientists. "The Tongass National Forest represents the largest remaining tracts of old-growth temperate rainforest in the world….Excluding the Tongass would severely compromise the scientific legitimacy of any national policy on the protection of roadless areas."

***********************************************************************************************

from Defenders of Wildlife  Jan 28, 2000

DENlines Issue #7

Defenders  Electronic Network (DEN)



1.      POLITICS: President Calls for New Funding for Parks and Forests

2.      BEARS: Defenders Leads Efforts To Restore the Grizzly

3.      ENDANGERED SPECIES: Canada Fails To Protect Species and Habitat

4.      ADVOCACY: Leading Conservation Groups Join Forces

5.      DID YOU KNOW?: Great White Shark

6.      PRESIDENT'S CORNER: Save Something Wild



====================================================================    



1.     POLITICS: President Calls for New Funding for Parks and Forests



During last night's State of the Union address to Congress, the

President announced his "Lands Legacy" proposal to provide permanent

conservation funding to protect America's most valuable but

unprotected ancient forests, wildlife habitat and other natural and

historic resources. The President called for bi-partisan support for

the new funding proposal in last night's nationally-televised

address saying, "As our communities grow, our commitment to

conservation must continue to grow. Tonight I propose creating a

permanent conservation fund to restore our wildlife, protect

coastlines, save natural treasures, from the California redwoods to

the Everglades..."



The initiative is the next step to providing permanent conservation

funding after Congress and the President agreed last year to

substantially increase funding in fiscal year 2000 for America's

best remaining wildlife habitat and natural areas.  While the details

of the President's proposal won't be made public until February 7,

it should help assure that a strong national commitment to land

conservation is actually realized into the future.



For the past several decades, more than $12 billion has been legally

set aside in federal revenue from offshore oil drilling to permanently

protect these national treasures through the Land and Water

Conservation Fund (LWCF). However, special interests have blocked

spending the money on its legally mandated conservation purpose. To

date, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has helped preserve such

American treasures as Alaska's Denali National Park, the Appalachian

Trail, and Cape Cod National Seashore. But sprawl, uncontrolled

development and wealthy special interests threaten our remaining

unprotected special places.  



2.      BEARS: Defenders Leads Efforts To Restore the Grizzly



A century ago, grizzly bears dominated the forests and mountains of

the American West. Today, however, only an estimated 1,000 survive

in the lower 48 states, primarily in just two areas in the northern

Rockies -- the alpine valleys of Yellowstone National Park and the

isolated mountains of Glacier National Park. Biologists say a

population of as many as 2,000 bears may be needed to assure the

species long-term survival south of Canada. Only three areas remain

in the lower 48 states that are large enough and isolated enough

from human contact to support grizzly bears. The most promising is

the 15-million-acre Bitterroot ecosystem in central Idaho with four

million acres of federal wilderness, low road densities, and ample

food and habitat.

   

A diverse coalition of conservationists, including Defenders of

Wildlife, and local timber industry developed a proposal to restore

the grizzly to the Bitterroot ecosystem. The plan calls for focusing

reintroduction efforts in remote wilderness areas, establishing a

15-member bear management committee consisting of state and federal

officials, tribal representatives and local citizens and increasing

management flexibility for problem bears. That proposal was offered

as the preferred alternative in a draft environmental impact

statement (EIS) released by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)

in 1997.



Although the plan has been subject to a series of delays,

conservationists are hopeful that a final decision will be reached

later this spring. If FWS approves the grizzly reintroduction

proposal, bears could be released into the Bitterroot wilderness

after a year-long public education campaign about grizzlies and

related issues in surrounding communities.



Click here for more: http://www.defenders.org/den/dl00007.html#bearjump



3.      ENDANGERED SPECIES: Canada Fails To Protect Species and Habitat  



While the United States works to recover endangered species that

also range north across the border -- such as the grizzly bear,

spotted owl and marbled murrelet -- Canada currently has no federal

legislation to protect these same endangered species. Because many

imperiled wildlife cross the border, it is essential that Canada

pass a strong Endangered Species Act to protect our mutual natural

heritage.



Last year Canada's Environmental Minister David Anderson proposed

draft endangered species legislation. However, the bill is

unacceptable to conservationists because, unlike the U.S. Endangered

Species Act, it (1) does not protect endangered species habitat (2)

lets politicians, not scientists, determine whether a species can

be listed as endangered and (3) does not include a mechanism for

citizens to hold the government accountable if agencies fail to

protect a species.



Anderson met with key U.S. officials last week to discuss endangered

species issues. Conservationists have appealed the Canadian

government to strengthen the draft legislation before it is

introduced in Parliament next month. We expect to have future

opportunities to weigh in on this issue in the coming weeks, so stay

tuned.



4.      ADVOCACY: Leading Conservation Groups Join Forces



At least 16 of the largest national environmental organizations,

representing more than 3.5 million citizens, have joined forces in

an exciting new partnership to advocate more effectively for

important environmental initiatives and fight Congressional proposals

to roll back environmental laws. Chaired by Defenders President

Rodger Schlickeisen, the Partnership Project is a non-profit

organization that helps national environmental groups cooperatively

contact their members with a call to action on a limited number of

crucial environmental campaigns. The collaboration will focus on

campaigns that are supported by a super-majority of participants,

and no group is required to participate in any individual campaign.



Following its inception in September, the Partnership Project has

already initiated successful collaborative campaigns to remove anti-

environmental riders from federal funding bills and to gain funding

for land and water conservation. The project generated more than

60,000 petitions to President Clinton and countless phone calls to

members of Congress and the White House supporting funding for

conservation lands such as parks, forests and refuges.



5.      DID YOU KNOW: Great White Shark



The great white shark is the world's largest predatory fish, with an

average length of 10 to 20 feet and an average weight of 2,500 pounds.

A familiar sight on television and in movies like "Jaws," this

solitary shark is characterized by its torpedo-shaped body, pointed

snout, cresent-shaped tail and large triangular dorsal fin that can

sometimes be seen breaking the water's surface. Like most sharks,

great whites have inefficient gills that require them to swim

constantly to get enough oxygen into their bloodstream. They locate

prey -- such as seals, sea lions, dolphins, fishes and other sharks

-- primarily through their extremely sensitive sense of smell. The

great white has a white underbelly and a gray top surface that

blends in with the dark water when viewed from above. When hunting

the great white usually strikes from below allowing it to approach

its prey by surprise. It uses its 3,000 teeth to rip prey into

mouth-sized pieces that it then swallows whole. As teeth are lost,

broken or worn down they are replaced by new teeth that rotate into

place. The great white is the only shark that will go to the surface

to poke its head out of the water perhaps to see potential prey such

as surface-dwelling sea lions. Attacks on humans are extremely rare

and are most likely a case of mistaken identity -- a human floating

on a surfboard looks surprisingly like a seal or sea lion from below.

Despite their notoriety, great white sharks are one of the most poorly

understood of the world's sharks. Reliable information on their

breeding habits and overall population numbers are not fully known.

They are a protected species along the east and west coasts of the

United States, Australia and South Africa.



6.      PRESIDENT'S CORNER: Save Something Wild



"The new millennium provides a unique opportunity. Where other years

serve mainly as rear-view mirrors with which to examine what's behind,

the year 2000 offers itself as a giant focusing prism through which

we are invited to debate the decades and century ahead... In that

spirit, I offer two questions: Given current trends, will there be

any bigger challenge in the 21st century than saving wild things and

wild places? What will it mean for the future if we fail this challenge?"



                         -- Defenders President Rodger Schlickeisen

                            discussing conservation in the new

                            millennium from a recent issue of

                            DEFENDERS magazine.



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