home of the wildlife conservation environmental
and freedom activist

Environment Action
Alerts for April 1 - April 7, 2001

 

Protect Killer Whales
and People from Toxins
Illegal Fishing off
the Galapagos
Rafi Genotypes: Monsanto
vs Percy Schneider

ENS News April 2 California Activist Network
Action Alert
Act Now to Protect Oceans

Make the Call to Protect
the Arctic Wildlife Refuge
ENS News April 3 Great Victroy for
Alaska's Tongass!

Sierra Club Action
Vol III #37
ENS News April 4 Species Conservation News

April 11 [Stop Citi]
Corporate Takeover Picture
Natural Resources Defense
Council Legislative Watch
ENS News April 5

Sample Press Materials/
Citigroup and the FTAA
Greenpeace Activist News
Vol. 1 No. 4
Last Chance to Protect
Essential Tilefish Habitat

Stop ORV's & Other
Inappropriate Uses of Refuges
Sierra Club Action
Vol III #38
LCV Applauds Bipartisan
Budget Win re:Global Warming

DenLines Issue 37 ENS News April 7





from World Wildlife Fund April 1, 2001


Protect Killer Whales and People From Toxic Chemicals

Dear WWF Conservation Action Network Activist:

Please urge the Bush administration to protect whales, other animals,
and people by signing a critically important global treaty on toxic
chemicals.  

In May, diplomats from around the world will gather in Sweden to
sign the treaty, known as the Stockholm Convention on Persistent
Organic Pollutants (POPs). The new treaty is the most ambitious effort
ever undertaken by the global community to rein in and ultimately halt
the proliferation of toxic chemicals.  It was agreed to last December by
the 122 negotiating governments, and enjoys the support of the
chemical industry and environmental and public health organizations.  
Now it needs to be signed by participating governments and ratified by
at least 50 countries before it enters into force.  

The Bush administration has not yet decided whether to support the
new treaty.  Please go to http://takeaction.worldwildlife.org/ to send a
free message urging Secretary of State Colin Powell to sign the treaty.
Your message will also urge the United States to pursue expedited
ratification.

The treaty targets some of the world's most dangerous chemicals,
including dioxins, chlordane, aldrin, and PCBs.  These chemicals
accumulate in the body fat of wildlife and people and are passed from
mother to fetus.  Sadly, orca or "killer" whales living in the waters
around Washington and British Columbia are among the most
contaminated marine mammals in the world, carrying PCB levels of
over 200 parts per million.  Even small quantities of POPs can cause
nervous system damage, diseases of the immune system, reproductive
and developmental disorders, and cancers.  

Please show the Bush administration that U.S. citizens want swift
action to eliminate these dangerous chemicals.


from Global Response April 2, 2001


Dear Global Response Quick Response Network,

The Sea Shepherd Society asked us to pass on this important information to
you. Please visit this site and write a letter to stop illegal fishing in
this unique ecosystem.

Thank You,

Mariella Colvin
Assistant Director
Global Response

http://www.seashepherd.org/campaigns/gallapagos/sendprotest.html


from Rural Advancement Foundation International April 2, 2001


RAFI
Rural Advancement Foundation International
www.rafi.org  |  rafi@rafi.org


Geno-Types - 2 April 2001


Monsanto vs. Percy Schmeiser

No Corporate Liability for Unsafe Sex
and Bioserfdom

On 29 March 2001 a Canadian judge dealt a crushing blow to Farmers' Rights by ruling that Percy Schmeiser, a third generation Saskatchewan farmer, must pay Monsanto thousands of dollars for violating the Gene Giant's monopoly patent on genetically modified canola seed.

Under Canadian patent law, as in the US and many other industrialized countries, it is illegal for farmers to re-use patented seed, or to grow Monsanto's GM seed without signing a licensing agreement. If the Gene Giants and US Trade Reps get their way, every nation in the world will be forced to adopt patent laws that make seed saving illegal. The ruling against Schmeiser establishes an even more dangerous precedent because it means that farmers can be forced to pay royalties on GM seeds found on their land, even if they didn't buy the seeds, or benefit from them.  

Percy Schmeiser did not buy Monsanto's patented seed, nor did he obtain the seed illegally. Pollen from genetically engineered canola seeds blew onto his land from neighboring farms. (Percy Schmeiser's neighbors and an estimated 40% of farmers in Western Canada grow GM canola). Monsanto's GM canola genes invaded Schmeiser's farm without his consent. Shortly thereafter, Monsanto's "gene police" invaded his farm and took seed samples without his permission. Percy Schmeiser was a victim of genetic pollution from GM crops - but the court says he must now pay Monsanto $10,000 for licensing fees and up to $75,000 in profits from his 1998 crop. It's like saying that Monsanto's technology is spreading a sexually transmitted disease but everyone else has to wear a condom.

The GM canola that drifted onto Schmeiser's farm was engineered to withstand spraying of Monsanto's proprietary weedkiller, Roundup. But Schmeiser did not use Roundup on his canola crop. After all, if Schmeiser had sprayed his crop, the chemical would have killed the majority of his canola plants that were not genetically modified to tolerate the weedkiller!  Schmeiser didn't take advantage of Monsanto's GM technology, but the court ruling says he's guilty of using the seed without a licensing agreement.

Monsanto (acquired by Pharmacia last year) is the world's premiere Biotech Behemoth.  Last week's court ruling has far-reaching implications for farming communities around the world. Last year, Monsanto's GM seed technology was planted on 41.6 million hectares (103 million acres) worldwide. That means Monsanto accounted for 94% of the global area sown to genetically modified seeds in 2000. (Total worldwide area = 44.2 million hectares or 109.2 million acres.)

Thanks in large part to Terminator technology, the Monsanto moniker has became synonymous with GM seeds and corporate greed. Although Monsanto disavowed "suicide seeds" in the wake of international public protest, the company has routinely employed Draconian measures to prevent farmers from re-using patented seed, including the use of private police to root out seed-saving farmers, and toll-fee hotlines to encourage rural residents to snitch on their farm neighbors.  Monsanto has threatened to "vigorously prosecute" hundreds of cases against seed saving farmers, but Schmeiser's was the first major case to reach the courts. Schmeiser courageously decided to fight back and speak out against bioserfdom.

Last week's anti-farmer verdict is being hailed as a landmark victory for Monsanto, but it's too soon for the Gene Giants to celebrate. Will the ruling against Schmeiser unleash a new biotech backlash in the heartland?

North American farmers grew three-quarters of the world's commercial GM crops last year, and now they're showing signs of biotech battle fatigue. Illegal traces of Aventis' StarLink maize (unapproved for human consumption) have disrupted grain markets and jeopardized exports. Unsold stockpiles of US maize are at their highest level since GM crops were commercialized. The US government announced last month that it would spend $20 million in taxpayer money to bail out the biotech industry, by purchasing maize seed that was contaminated with Aventis' StarLink genes. (StarLink maize was planted on less than 0.02 percent of all US maize cropland in 2000, but cross-pollination with other maize varieties resulted in seed contaminated with StarLink genes.) To add insult to injury, the federal bailout is using money that would normally go to disaster relief for farmers.

With the advent of genetic engineering and exclusive monopoly patents, the Gene Giants have abolished the farmers' fundamental rights to save and exchange seed. Now farmers are being forced to accept liability for genetically modified crops. How many bullets will they take for biotech?

In North America, where many farmers have embraced GM technology, there are signs of resistance worth noting:

* The National Farmers Union of Canada has called for a national moratorium on producing, importing and distributing GM food.

* A bill introduced in North Dakota (US), backed by the state's wheat farmers, would impose a moratorium on growing genetically modified wheat - a crop that Monsanto hopes to commercialize by 2003.

* In March 2001 the National Farmers Union (US) adopted a policy supporting a moratorium on the introduction, certification and commercialization of genetically engineered wheat until issues of cross-pollination, liability, commodity and seed stock segregation, and market acceptance are adequately addressed.

* The Indiana (USA) House of Representatives passed a bill last month defending the farmers' right to save seed.

* Oklahoma's Secretary of Agriculture, Dennis Howard, recently commented:  "After reviewing Monsanto's 2001 Technology Agreement, I would discourage any farmer from signing this document. Not only does this contract severely limit the options of the producer, it also limits Monsanto's liability...The protection of the Monsanto contract is strictly one-sided and I would encourage producers to carefully consider this before entering into this agreement."

* A North Dakota State University economist warns that growers of GM crops are exposing themselves to potentially huge financial risks by signing gene technology agreements. Dwight Aakre warns that "responsibility for providing assurance of non-contamination with GMO materials is being pushed back to the individual producer."


Support Percy Schmeiser

Percy Schmeiser has filed a counter-suit against Monsanto, but his family faces enormous legal costs that cannot be sustained without outside assistance. Contributions to Schmeiser's legal defense may be sent to:

Schmeiser Defense Fund
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
Humboldt, Saskatchewan
Canada   SOK 2A0

For more information about Percy Schmeiser's case, go to:
www.percyschmeiser.com

To see the 62-page decision by Canada's federal court judge Andrew MacKay go to: http://www.fct-cf.gc.ca




**********

RAFI (the Rural Advancement Foundation International) is an international civil society organization based in Canada. RAFI is dedicated to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, and to the socially responsible development of technologies useful to rural societies. RAFI is concerned about the loss of agricultural biodiversity, and the impact of intellectual property on farmers and food security.


from Environment News Service April 2, 2001


 ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE (ENS)      http://ens-news.com

                                           "We Cover the Earth For You"
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EUROPE WILL RATIFY KYOTO PROTOCOL WITHOUT THE USA

KIRUNA, Sweden, April 2, 2001 (ENS) - The 15 countries of the European
Union will ratify the Kyoto climate protocol by 2002 with or without
American participation, Swedish Environment Minister Kjell Larsson said
this weekend.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens-news.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-02-03.html

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UN OFFERS TO ANSWER BUSH'S CLIMATE CHANGE DOUBTS

NAIROBI, Kenya, April 2, 2001 (ENS) - In a clear reference to the United
States, a high ranking United Nations official has asked those countries
with doubts about the science behind climate change forecasts, to present
them.

For full text and graphics, visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-02-10.html

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NATIONS PLAN FOR TOURISM THAT SHELTERS BIODIVERSITY

By Susana Guzman

MEXICO CITY, Mexico, April 2, 2001 (ENS) - Protecting the plants and
animals of the world's most visited places was the focus of a three day
international meeting in Mexico City that wound up Saturday.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens-news.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-02-04.html

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TWO GOVERNMENTS BID TO SAVE CANADIAN BOG

VANCOUVER, Canada, April 2, 2001 (ENS) - The largest domed peat bog on the
west coast of North America could be permanently protected if a financial
offer made by Canadian and British Columbia governments is accepted.

For full text and graphics, visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-02-11.html

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AUSTRALIA GAINS A FISH, LOSES A MAMMAL

ADELAIDE, Australia, April 2, 2001 (ENS) - Australia's largest river, the
Murray, has gained a new fish species - the Yarra pygmy perch - offering a
bright spot in the river's legacy of pollution and dwindling biodiversity.
But in other parts of the nation, species like the tiny brush tailed
phascogale and dozens of woodland birds may be vanishing forever.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-02-06.html

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GREENPEACE TAKES ON BRITISH AND U.S. OIL INDUSTRY

ABERDEEN, Scotland, April 2, 2001 (ENS) - Seventeen Greenpeace volunteers
appeared in a Scottish magistrates court this morning in connection with
the occupation of an oil drilling rig that was about to leave Cromarty
Firth to explore for oil and gas in the North Sea.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens-news.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-02-02.html

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ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE AMERISCAN: APRIL 2, 2001

Earthjustice: Roadless Forest Rule Still At Risk

Senators Introduce Renewable Fuels Act of 2001

Critical Habitat Designated for Arkansas River Shiner

Environmental Groups Take Aim at Southwestern Grazing

Toxic Metals, Organic Pollutants Persist in Charles River

California Cattle Ranch, Owner and Foreman Indicted

McDonald's Approves EarthShell Container for Big Mac

Recycled Bottle Promotes Plastic Recycling

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-02-09.html

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

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TO BUSINESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

     First American sells 2 KDS Micronex"! Systems to a Fraser Valley Waste
Management consortium to convert chicken waste into energy for heating
greenhouses
     
     VANCOUVER, B.C. April. 2 -/E-Wire/-- C.L. Kantonen, Chairman of FASC
is pleased to announce that FASC has received a signed purchase agreement and
deposit to supply two (2) KDS systems to be installed in the central Fraser Valley
region of BC, Canada. A pilot plant, costing $ 1.2 million Cdn, will be constructed
by B & B Poultry Waste Management Inc to process approximately 72 tons of
chicken waste per day through the KDS machine converting it to a fine
dry powder which will be fed into state-of-the-art powder burners. This
will generate sufficient energy to heat approximately 64 acres of
greenhouses at one half the cost of heating with natural gas. The
facility is expected to commence operation before the end of June 2001.
    
/CONTACT:  Call Corporate Communications toll free at (877) 778 - 7101 or
(800) 561- 8656/

/Web site:  http://www.fasc.net//

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/02Apr0108.html

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TO BUSINESS EDITOR:

     EarthCare Makes Solid Waste Acquisition in Growing Florida Market
     
     DALLAS,, TX, Apr. 2 -/E-Wire/-- EarthCare Company (Nasdaq: ECCO),
announced today that it has acquired the assets of Palm Carting, Inc.  Palm
Carting currently provides construction and demolition waste services in Palm
Beach and Broward counties in Florida and has plans to expand services into
Dade County.  These three counties account for more than one-third of the
Florida population.  Annual revenues for Palm Carting are approximately
$2 million.
    
/CONTACT:  Bill Solomon, Vice President, Chief Financial Officer of
EarthCare Company, 972-858-6025/    (ECCO)

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/02Apr0107.html

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TO BUSINESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

         Major Car Wash Equipment Company Contracts
       With EnviroClean Technologies For Pilot Program
     
     MIAMI, FL, Apr. 2 -/E-Wire/-- EnviroClean Technologies, LLC, the
developers of ECT-2000, the next generation water disinfectant products,
announces that it has entered into an agreement with a major car wash
equipment company to conduct a pilot program utilizing EnviroClean's
wastewater treatment product -- ECT-2000W -- in their car washing facilities.
ECT-2000W is non-toxic, less-corrosive, environmentally safe, and would
replace the use of chlorine.
    
/CONTACT:  Maxine Adler, the Adler Network, Inc., 954-776-6633

/Web site:  http://www.envirotech.com/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/02Apr0106.html

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TO BUSINESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

       Bio-Services International, Inc. Signs Sales Agreement With
                EnviroClean Technologies, LLC

     To Market and Distribute Next Generation Water Disinfectant Products
                That Meet or Surpass FDA and EPA Standards --
             Without Health or Environmental Hazards of Chlorine

     MIAMI, FL, Apr. 2 -/E-Wire/-- EnviroClean Technologies, LLC, announced
that it has signed a Marketing Representative Agreement with Bio-Services
International, Inc. that allows Bio-Services (BSI) to market, sell and
distribute EnviroClean's product, ECT 2000 to its current customer base within
the United States and the international export market.
    
/CONTACT:  Maxine Adler, The Adler Network, Inc., 954-776-6633 for
EnviroClean Technologies, LLC/

/Web site:  http://www. envirotech.com/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/02Apr0105.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     Activists are needed for global finance reform
but have lessons yet to learn, study says
     
     NEW YORK, NY, Apr. 2 -/E-Wire/-- Activists, NGOs, trade unions, lobby groups and other elements of civil society can play an important role in correcting major problems with the global financial system but to become more effective players they need to draw from several lessons of recent years, according to a new study by the U.N. University and the Centre for the Study of Globalisation and Regionalisation (CSGR) at the University of Warwick, U.K.
    
/CONTACT:  Terry Collins, Tel: 416-538-8712, 416-878-8712 (cell), UNU Liaison Office, New York: 212-963-6346/

/Web site:  http://www.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/CSGR/projects.html/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/02Apr0104.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     Breakthrough, Compostable Plastic Premiers as Dunlop Golf Ball Packaging Film
     
     MINNEAPOLIS, MN, Apr. 2 -/E-Wire/-- NatureWorks(TM) PLA, the
revolutionary polymer made entirely from annually renewable resources such
as corn and wheat, is now being used in its first full-scale, mass market
packaging film application. Launched in the Japanese market by Mitsubishi
Plastics, Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd., Dunlop Japan Ltd. and Cargill Dow
LLC, the polymer is being unveiled as new, environmentally responsible
packaging option for Dunlop golf balls.
    
/CONTACT:  Cargill Dow LLC, Michael O'Brien, 952/742-0523, michael_o'brien@cargilldow.com  or Gibbs & Soell Public Relations, Jennifer Gray or
Steve Halsey, 847/519-9150, jgray@gibbs-soell-il.com, shalsey@gibbs-soell.com/

/Web site:  http://www.cargilldow.com
                      http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/photo.cgi?pw.040201/bb9/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/02Apr0103.html

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TO BUSINESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

     DynaMotive Announces DTI Renewable Energy Grant For BioOil Consortium
     
     LONDON, U.K., Apr. 2 -/E-Wire/-- DynaMotive Europe Limited, a wholly
owned subsidiary of DynaMotive Technologies Corporation (OTCBB: DYMTF) and
producer of clean burning BioOil fuels, today announced details of one of the
UK Government's largest ever grants to support the development of energy from
biomass in the UK. The pnds stlg 1.16 million/US $1.7 million grant from the
Department of Trade & Industry (DTI), which was announced by the UK Energy
Minister Peter Hain, will enable commercial production testing of an
integrated BioOil and electricity generating plant to take place in the UK.
The project is expected to cost in excess of pnds stlg 4.5 million/US $6.6
million  and will be funded equally by the partners.
    
/CONTACT:  call Toll Free (in North America): 1-877-863-2268; Raymond
McAllister, Director, Corporate Communications, Tel: 604-267-6000,
email: investor@dynamotive.com,

/Web site:  http://www.dynamotive.com/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/02Apr0102.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     Dave Foreman to be Keynote Speaker at the Appalachian
      Wildlands Conference in Bethesda, MD, on April 7th
     
     MECHANICSVILLE, MD, Apr. 2 -/E-Wire/-- Dave Foreman is one of the 100 most influential conservationists of the 20th Century and the Founder of the Wildlands Project, designed to protect and restore the ecological richness and biodiversity of North America.  Dave is also the publisher of Wild Earth, a quarterly journal about conservation biology and wildlands activism.  He is also the author of several books.  Dave has agreed to speak at this meeting because he is excited about a wildlands recovery and restoration program in Maryland and the Chesapeake Bay Region, the Appalachian Wildlands Preserve-Maryland Project.
    
/CONTACT:  Linda Murdock, Walk Lightly in Peace, Inc., P.O. Box 181, Persimmon Creek Road, Mechanicsville, MD  20659, lindamurdock@walklightlyinpeace.org, 301-884-0500/

/Web site:  http://www.magicalliance.org/events.html/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/02Apr0101.html

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                                               ENVIRONMENTAL JOBS
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from Natural Resources Defense Council April 3, 2001


========================================
Natural Resources Defense Council's

CALIFORNIA ACTIVIST NETWORK ACTION ALERT

NRDC's California Activist Network was formed to mobilize
and provide action tools to Californians and others
concerned with protecting the state's extraordinary wealth
of natural treasures and the health of its citizens.

April 3, 2001
========================================
In This Issue:

--Action alerts--

1. Help build bipartisan support for critical energy
efficiency legislation

2. Urge Governor Davis to stand up for California's Carrizo
Plain and Coastal Monuments

3. Tell Senator Feinstein not to propose building costly and
destructive dams in California

======================================================
You will also find these alerts in NRDC'S Earth Action
Center, which includes tools for taking action easily
online, at http://www.nrdc.org/action

(Please do not reply to this message; see the instructions
below for how to unsubscribe or contact NRDC with questions
or comments.)

=============
Action alerts
=============

1. Help build bipartisan support for critical energy
efficiency legislation

As the warm spring gives way to a hot summer, the demand on
California's already stressed power grid is expected to
increase. State Senator Sher (D-Palo Alto) has introduced
SBX1 5 to help reduce energy demand by providing one billion
dollars in urgently needed funds to promote energy
efficiency this summer and beyond.

Energy conservation programs the bill would fund include
high efficiency heating, ventilation, and air conditioning
systems; efficiency standards for street lights, traffic
lights, and billboards; and home weatherization
improvements. The legislation also provides for replacing
and recycling old and less efficient appliances, and gives
priority to low-to-moderate income households.

The State Energy Commission estimates that for every day the
legislature delays passing SBX1 5, it misses the chance to
save the state 20 megawatts of energy, enough to power about
15,000 homes. But funding bills require two-thirds votes to
pass the legislature, so bipartisan support for SBX1 5 and
its Assembly companion bill, ABX1 29, is essential.

== What to do ==
To help generate bipartisan support for the bill, send a
message to Assemblyman Anthony Pescetti, a Republican leader
who has a record of working for sound energy policy.  

== Contact information ==
You can email Assemblyman Pescetti directly from NRDC's
Earth Action Center at http://www.nrdc.org/action. Or use
the contact information and sample letter below to send your
own message.

Assemblyman Anthony Pescetti
4158 State Capitol
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone:  916-319-2010
Fax:  916-319-2110
Email:  anthony.pescetti@asm.ca.gov

== Sample letter ==

Subject: Support SBX1 5/ABX1 29 to help reduce energy demand

Dear Assemblyman Pescetti,

I urge you to support SBX1 5/ABX1 29, a comprehensive
package of efficiency investments designed to deliver real
conservation as quickly as possible. Energy efficiency is
the cleanest, fastest, and most cost-effective way to help
ease the state's growing energy crunch, through this coming
summer and beyond.

The steady growth in demand for electric power throughout
the western United States in recent years, coupled with
significantly reduced investment in energy conservation and
new generation, is a major contributing factor to the
current electricity crisis. Increasing energy production is
not the only solution, and should not be the primary focus
of options we consider, to help overcome our current
circumstances. To properly tackle energy supply shortages,
the first steps must be to ease the demand pressures on the
electricity market.

SBX1 5 appropriates funds to implement new, and support
existing, energy efficiency programs. In addition, using
less energy will save the state money, reduce air pollution
and global warming emissions, and make us less reliant on
out-of-state power generators.

Again, please support SBX1 5/ABX1 29.   

Sincerely,

[Your name and address]

2. Urge Governor Davis to stand up for California's Carrizo
Plain and Coastal Monuments

Two of our nation's newest national monuments are located
here in California. The Carrizo Plain National Monument,
east of Bakersfield, is all that remains of the once vast
grasslands that covered the central part of the state. The
monument's 204,000 acres are home to many endangered and
threatened plant and wildlife species as well as important
archeological and historic resources. The California Coastal
National Monument is comprised of the islands, rocks,
exposed reefs and pinnacles off the length of our coast, and
provides unique feeding and nesting habitat for breeding
seabirds and marine mammals. In designating these areas
national monuments, former President Clinton recognized
their significance to the entire country as well as to
California and sought to protect these natural treasures for
future generations to enjoy. But now those protections are
at risk.

Interior Secretary Gale Norton has just written to western
governors, including Governor Davis, asking for suggestions
about boundary and other changes for all Clinton-designated
monuments managed by the Department of the Interior. (The
Giant Sequoia National Monument is managed by the U.S.
Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture.) If the
protections for these two new national monuments in our
state are to remain in place, Governor Davis must strongly
support them.

== What to do ==
Contact Governor Davis and urge him to emphatically defend
California's new Carrizo Plain and Coastal National
Monuments as designated.

== Contact information ==
You can email Governor Davis directly from NRDC's Earth
Action Center at http://www.nrdc.org/action. Or use the
contact information and sample letter below to send your own
message, and please include your own reasons why protecting
these unique places is important to you.

Governor Gray Davis
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone:  916-445-2841
Fax:  916-445-4633
Email:  graydavis@governor.ca.gov

== Sample letter ==

Subject: Protect Carrizo Plain and California Coastal
National Monuments

Dear Governor Davis,

I understand Interior Secretary Gale Norton has asked you to
recommend boundary and other changes to the Carrizo Plain
and California Coastal National Monuments, both of which
were established by former President Clinton. These
monuments safeguard significant parts of our state's unique
natural heritage and I urge you to strongly defend their
current protections in response to Secretary Norton's
request.

The Carrizo Plain National Monument encompasses all that
remains of central California's once vast grasslands. It is
home to numerous federally listed endangered and threatened
plants and wildlife species, as well as archeological and
other resources. The California Coastal National Monument is
composed of the rocks, exposed reefs and other geological
formations off our coast and provides major feeding and
breeding places for shorebirds and marine mammals.

Their status as national monuments ensures that these
singular places and their resources will be protected for
present and future generations to enjoy. Please tell
Interior Secretary Norton that you believe that the current
protections for both of these monuments should remain in
effect and should not be rolled back or undermined in any
way.  

Thank you for your leadership in defending these special
places.

Sincerely,

[Your name and address]

3. Tell Senator Feinstein not to propose building costly and
destructive dams in California

Senator Dianne Feinstein has drafted a bill that could
seriously harm California's environment. The senator's
legislation, which she may introduce any day now, supposedly
is designed to implement an ambitious joint state-federal
program called CALFED, which would help restore the San
Francisco Bay-Delta Estuary, and improve water quality and
water supply reliability for all Californians. CALFED also
supports ecosystem restoration and water conservation. Sen.
Feinstein's draft legislation, however, would instead
destroy the environmental/economic balance in the CALFED
plan and launch a costly and environmentally destructive
dam-building campaign.

Specifically, the draft bill would authorize the
construction of new dams and canals across the state, and
give controversial Interior Secretary Gale Norton sweeping
authority to approve virtually any dam project in the
Central Valley (the bill authorizes half a billion federal
taxpayer dollars to pay for these facilities). Just as
important, Sen. Feinstein's bill ignores a CALFED
requirement that any new dam projects be paid for by water
users, rather than taxpayers, and a provision for at least
$150 million in annual funding for ecosystem restoration.

== What to do ==
Send a message to Sen. Feinstein urging her to revise and
improve her draft bill so it meets the needs of the state's
environment and economy in a balanced fashion.

== Contact information ==
You can email Senator Feinstein directly from NRDC's Earth
Action Center at http://www.nrdc.org/action, where we'll
send a copy of your message to California's other senator,
Barbara Boxer. Or use the contact information and sample
letter below to send your own message.

Senator Dianne Feinstein
331 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone:  202-224-3841 (Washington); 415-393-0707 (San
Francisco)
Fax:  202-228-3954
Email:  senator@feinstein.senate.gov

== Sample letter ==

Subject: Fund a balanced California water strategy, not dams

Dear Senator Feinstein,

I understand that you are drafting legislation to provide
federal funding for water projects in California. While I
support federal funding to help restore the health of the
Bay-Delta ecosystem and to improve California's water
quality and water supply reliability, any federal
legislation regarding California water issues must be
carefully designed to reflect the environmental/economic
balance in the CALFED water plan.  

I therefore urge you to insure that any legislation you
introduce includes the following:

** an emphasis on conservation and water use efficiency as
the primary strategies to meet California's future water
needs;

** full environmental and economic analysis of proposed new
dams and canals prior to any full congressional
authorization vote;  

** elimination of taxpayer subsidies for dams and canals;

** guarantees that the Interior department will not roll
back the use of water for fish and wildlife restoration
provided by the Central Valley Project Improvement Act; and

** $35 million in new water user fees and at least $150
million per year for ecosystem restoration, as called for by
the CALFED plan.

California needs a new balanced strategy to meet our water
needs, not a return to old-fashioned, environmentally
destructive, taxpayer-subsidized water projects. The
principles above represent the wisest and most balanced
approach to help meet the needs of the state's environment
*and* economy, and I urge you once again to incorporate them
into any legislation you introduce or support.

Sincerely,

[Your name and address]


*==== California Activist Network Special Feature ====*
Question: "What do you call someone who would drill our
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, where there's hardly any
oil?"
[Go to http://www.nrdc.org for the answer.]

Hint: Last week, NRDC launched a TV commercial that will be
seen in 21 regions around the country, including California,
where we hope to convince several key on-the-fence senators
to vote against any bill that opens up the Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge to drilling. You can see a video of the ad
on our website, where you can also send a message to
California's senators, if you haven't already. And if you
like the ad, please forward this message to others who might
like it, too.
*=====================================================*


==================================================
About Our Bulletins/How to Subscribe & Unsubscribe
==================================================

NRDC distributes three bulletins by email. To subscribe to
any or all of them or to join our activist networks, go to:
http://www.join.nrdcaction.org/subscribe.asp.

If you already subscribe and want to change your
subscriptions or update your email address or other
information, go to:
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(or see the unsubscribe information below).

The CALIFORNIA ACTIVIST NETWORK ACTION ALERT is distributed
monthly to members of NRDC's California Activist Network and
provides action tools to Californians and others concerned
with protecting the state's natural resources and the health
of its citizens. To unsubscribe from the California Activist
Network Action Alert, send an email message to
wildcalifornia@nrdcaction.org with REMOVE in the subject
line.

EARTH ACTION is sent biweekly and calls out urgent
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LEGISLATIVE WATCH is sent biweekly when Congress is in
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==========
About NRDC
==========

The Natural Resources Defense Council is a nonprofit
environmental organization with over 400,000 members
nationwide and a staff of scientists, attorneys and
environmental experts. Our mission is to protect the
planet's wildlife and wild places and ensure a safe and
healthy environment for all living things.

For more information about NRDC or how to become a member of
NRDC, please contact us at:

Natural Resources Defense Council
40 West 20th Street
New York, NY 10011
212-727-4511 (voice) / 212-727-1773 (fax)
General email: nrdcinfo@nrdc.org
California Activist Network email: wildcalifornia@nrdc.org
http://www.nrdc.org

Also visit:
BioGems -- Saving Endangered Wild Places
A project of the Natural Resources Defense Council
http://www.savebiogems.org


from Environmental Defense April 3, 2001


President Bush moves to reverse new Marine Protected
Areas policies.

You can take action on this alert either via email
(please see directions below) or via the web at:
http://actionnetwork.org/take-action.tcl?key=419220A19408B0403113844C227

We encourage you to take action by April 20, 2001

Act Now to Defend Our Oceans

----------------------

The Bush Administration is moving to reverse new Marine
Protected Areas policies. Act now!

----------------------

INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND VIA THE WEB:
If you have access to a web browser, you can take action
on this alert by going to the following URL:

http://actionnetwork.org/take-action.tcl?key=419220A19408B0403113844C227  

INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND VIA EMAIL:
Just choose the "reply to sender" option on your email
program, and edit the letter below as you wish. You
must include the whole letter in your response including
"-YOU MAY EDIT THE LETTER BELOW-" and "-END OF LETTER-".
Please do not add your name and address to your letter.
Our system automatically does this for you.  

We STRONGLY encourage you to make edits directly to
our sample letter below, and put the alert talking
points into your own words. An individualized letter
is worth ten computer generated letters. Of course,
hundreds of unedited letters will still create a large
impact, so please reply even if you don't have time
to personalize the letter.

Your letter will be addressed and sent to:
Secretary Donald L. Evans
President George W. Bush
Secretary Gale Norton


-------YOU MAY EDIT THE LETTER BELOW---------

I write to strongly encourage your continued support
for establishing an adequate network of Marine Protected
Areas, including fully-protected marine reserves, within
U.S. waters.

I am concerned that the Bush Administration may reverse
important federally mandated measures to restore America's
marine environment, which were put in place after very
substantial public comment last year.

Specifically, I urge you to continue the critical ocean
restoration efforts begun under Executive Orders that
created the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef
Ecosystem Reserve, the National Center for Marine Protected
Areas, and which significantly improved our nation's
policies for sustainable management of marine resources.

In addition, I strongly support a science-based network
of fully protected marine reserves within California's
Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary and at the
Dry Tortugas Reserve in the Florida Keys National Marine
Sanctuary.

Substantial problems exist within our coastal waters
which must be addressed, and there is now compelling
scientific evidence that an appropriately designed
system of marine reserves can help restore damaged
marine populations. Traditional fishery management
measures have not worked well in addressing these issues.
To ignore these problems at this time simply invites
a more severe crisis in the future.

There is now a broad array of practical experience
demonstrating that marine reserves can protect biological
diversity and help restore depleted fish populations.
The resulting protected areas can also provide tangible,
long-term benefits to both commercial and recreational
fishermen.

Currently, less than 1% of America's coastal waters
are within fully protected marine reserves in which
all extractive activities are precluded. By creating
safe havens inside of marine protected areas, species
now in decline can enjoy a much-needed recovery. I
urge your support for this important tool for restoring
our nation's marine resources.

Thank you for your attention to this pressing matter.

-------END OF LETTER-------------------------


from League of Conservation Voters April 3, 2001


On April 3rd we can help protect a national treasure: the Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge!

Call your Senators and Representative by dialing the capitol switchboard
TOLL FREE at 1-888-750-4897 or 202-224-3121. This is your chance to let
your Senator or Representative know that you think they should oppose any
efforts to open America's Arctic to oil and gas drilling. This week is
critical, as it is one of the last opportunities for drilling proponents
to launch a sneak attack on the Arctic by including a drilling provision
in our federal budget resolution - but we're not going to let them! Ask
everyone you know, your friends, hairdresser, barkeep, grandma - everyone,
to make the call as well and help protect the Arctic Refuge from drilling.

The coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge is the biological heart of the last
unspoiled Arctic ecosystem in North America. Polar bears den on these
coastal lands while 130,000 Porcupine River caribou travel hundreds of
miles each year to the coastal plain, where they deliver their young.
Grizzly bears, musk oxen, wolves, golden eagles and tundra swans all call
this unique place home for at least part of the year.

The Gwich'in Indians call this area "the sacred place where life begins."
The Gwich'in are "caribou people," - the Porcupine caribou herd has been
the cornerstone of their culture and subsistence for 20,000 years. If the
caribou herd declines because the calving grounds are disturbed by oil
industrialization, the Gwich'in way of life will be jeopardized.

ACT NOW: Call your Senators or Representative at 1-888-750-4897 or
202-224-3121. Once you. ve been connected with the capitol switchboard, ask
to be transferred to your member of Congress. This is your chance to have
your voice heard! Simply leave the message with the person who answers the
phone, "I urge Senator X / Representative Y to oppose any efforts to drill
for oil and gas in the Arctic Refuge." Also, let them know you're a
constituent, and state your name and where you live. Thanks for your help!


from Environment News Service April 3, 2001


               ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE (ENS)      http://ens-news.com

                                           "We Cover the Earth For You"
***********************************************************************

CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM PASSES THE SENATE

By Cat Lazaroff

WASHINGTON, DC, April 3, 2001 (ENS) - The U.S. Senate has approved a bill
that would radically change the way money is raised for federal elections.
The Sierra Club, one of the nation's most prominent conservation groups,
said Monday the bill would "get the money out of the political process,"
and could prove critical to future environmental protections.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-03-06.html

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

TEN WORLD LEADERS IMPLORE BUSH TO CUT GREENHOUSE GASES

WASHINGTON, DC, April 3, 2001 (ENS) - Ten of the world's most prominent
citizens are urging President George W. Bush to reduce the amount of
greenhouse gas produced by the United States. They may not be elected
officials, but they can claim much of the world's attention and the
political pressure it may generate for their hope of reversing global warming.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-03-02.html

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

U.S. FIRES FIRST SALVO IN SOFTWOOD LUMBER FIGHT

WASHINGTON, DC, April 3, 2001 (ENS) - The U.S. lumber industry has made
good on its promise to file unfair trade practices complaints against
Canadian lumber imports as last minute talks between U.S. and Canadian
trade ministers failed to extend the five year Softwood Lumber Agreement.

For full text and graphics, visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-03-10.html

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

Canadian Farmer Loses Biotech Seed Case to Monsanto

By Jane Akre

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan, April 3, 2001 (ENS) - A farmer from western
Saskatchewan, Canada plans to continue fighting the giant biotechnology
company Monsanto for the right of farmers worldwide to save seed for next
year's crops.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-03-01.html

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

NEW TASK FORCE SET TO TACKLE TIGER POACHING

NEW DELHI, India, April 3, 2001 (ENS) - The first meeting of a task force
on wildlife crime got under way Monday in New Delhi, India where government
officials and law enforcement experts are discussing ways of curbing tiger
poaching by targeting criminal networks.

For full text and graphics, visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-03-11.html

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

ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE AMERISCAN: APRIL 3, 2001

U.S. Population Has Biggest 10 Year Rise Ever

Asbestos Claims Lead Grace to Claim Bankruptcy

Rhode Island Supported in Lawsuit Against Lead Industry

International Campaign Aims to Protect Prairie Birds

Pesticides Threaten California's Red Legged Frogs

Audubon Campaigns to Restore San Francisco Bay Wetlands

Coke and Pepsi Waste Targeted by Environmental Groups

National Wildlife Federation Brings Wild to Washington

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-03-09.html

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

***********************************************************************
                       SEND NEWS STORY TIPS TO news@ens-news.com
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                          E-Wire is a paid press release distribution service.  
              Responsibility for the factual accuracy of each press release rests
           entirely with the individuals or organizations identified on the release.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     Baseball Star Al Leiter Makes Pitch for Old Growth Protection
  Letter sent to Logging Giant Boise Cascade as Public Campaign Intensifies

     NEW YORK, NY, Apr. 3 -/E-Wire/-- As Opening Day has baseball fans
across the country eagerly anticipating another season, baseball star Al
Leiter took a moment recently to take part in another American pastime;
writing to protect old growth forests.  The New York Mets All-Star pitcher
wrote a letter to Boise Cascade recently, urging the logging company to stop
selling wood products from old growth forests.

/CONTACT:  Michael Brune, 415/398-4404; Shannon Wright, 415/596-7246/

/Web site:  http://www.ran.org/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/03Apr0107.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     Napier Environmental Technologies Inc. Teams Up With Universal Ice
Blast, Inc.

     VANCOUVER, B.C., Apr. 3 -/E-Wire/-- Napier Environmental Inc. (TSE:NIR)
is pleased to announce that it has completed a reciprocal marketing
agreement with Universal Ice Blast Inc. (UIBI) of Kirkland, Washington.

/CONTACT:  Napier Environmental Technologies Inc.,Bradley T. Aelicks,
604/801-6664, Website: www.napierenvironmental.com/

/Web site:  http://www.napierenvironmental.com
                      http://www.iceblast.net/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/03Apr0106.html

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EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT:

     200 International Experts to meet at the Hemispheric Trade and Sustainability Symposium on April 17-19 2001
     
     WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, Canada, Apr. 4 -/E-Wire/-- The Hemispheric Trade and Sustainability Symposium will gather 200 experts from the Americas from April 17 to 19, 2001 in Quebec City.  The Symposium is chaired by Pierre Marc Johnson, former Premier of the Province of Quebec and Counsel at Heenan Blaikie, David Runnalls, President and CEO of the International Institute for Sustainable Development, and Enrique Leff from the United Nations Environment Programme Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean.  It is organised jointly by the International Institute for Sustainable Development, IUCN, the World Conservation Union, and the United Nations Environment Programme - Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean.
    
/CONTACT:  Karel Mayrand, Director and media Relations Coordinator (514) 985-0343 or (514) 802-2781.  Secondary contact: Marie Claire Segger, Director, (514) 581-4984./

/Web site:  http://www.iisd.org/trade/qc2001/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/03Apr0105.html

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TO BOOK, ENVIRONMENTAL AND AUTO EDITORS:

     'Ford & ISO 14001' Provides Roadmap to Environmental Savings
     
     WASHINGTON, D.C., Apr. 3 -/E-Wire/-- Ford Motor Company has saved millions
of dollars since becoming the first automaker to certify all of its
manufacturing facilities worldwide to the ISO 14001 international standard on
Environmental Management Systems in 1998.
    
/CONTACT:  Paul Scicchitano of the McGraw-Hill Companies, 866-225-3122, or
ISOeditor@aol.com; or Phil Colley of the Ford Motor Company, 313-323-0660, or
pcolley1@ford.com/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/03Apr0103.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     Trimol Group to Participate in Fuel Cell Conferences
     Chief Scientific Officer Presents Ground Breaking Aluminum-Air Fuel Cell Developments

     NEW YORK, NY, Apr. 3 -/E-Wire/-- Trimol Group, Inc. (OTC-BB: TMOL) announced
today that the Company's Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Donald W. Kirk, will
unveil details of the Company's revolutionary aluminum-air fuel cell
technology at two major fuel cell conferences to be held this month - the
first in Paris followed by a second in Washington, D.C.
    
/CONTACT:  Rafael Ferry, Vice President of Marketing, Trimol Group, Inc., 866.277.FUEL (4835), ext. 224 or 212.554.4394/

/Web site:  http://www.batteries2001.com
                      http://www.knowledgefoundation.com/events/11081046.htm/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/03Apr0104.html

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TO BUSINESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

     Terminal Railroad Begins Using Cleaner Burning Fuel
     
     ST. PETERSBURG, FL, Apr. 3 -/E-Wire/-- RxP Products, Inc. President
Don Woodward announced today that Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis
would begin using fuel treated with RxP, an emissions-reducing fuels
technology.
    
/CONTACT:  Don Woodward of RxP Products, Inc., 727-327-2394, or fax,
727-321-8540/

/Web site:  http://www.rxp.com/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/03Apr0102.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     Public Power Renewable Energy Action Team Launched
Non-Profit Center for Resource Solutions Assumes Management Responsibilities

     SAN FRANCISCO, CA, Apr. 3 -/E-Wire/-- Municipal utilities in California
have come together behind renewable resources.  Volatile electricity markets
are making renewable energy increasingly cost-effective, and a team of
municipal utilities plans to deploy renewable resources as a means to ensure
the continued competitiveness of public power.  The Center for Resource
Solutions (CRS), a non-profit organization based in San Francisco, has
assumed management and organizational responsibilities for the group, which
is called the Public Power Renewable Energy Action Team (PPREAT).  Key
supporters of PPREAT include the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power,
City of Anaheim, Northern California Power Agency and many other municipal
utilities in California.

/CONTACT:  Këri Bolding, CRS Communications Director, 415-561-2100,
kbolding@resource-solutions.org  or  Kirk Brown at CRS at 415-561-2100 or
e-mail at: kirkbrown@resource-solutions.org/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/03Apr0101.html

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from Alaska Rainforest Campaign April 4, 2001


Great news for Alaska's Tongass!


Earthjustice o Sierra Club o The Wilderness Society o
Alaska Center for the Environment o Sitka Conservation Society

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 2, 2001

Court Orders Protection of Tongass Roadless Areas
and New Wilderness Study

Anchorage, Alaska ­ In response to a lawsuit brought by Earthjustice on
behalf of four conservation groups, a federal court on Friday ordered the U.S. Forest Service to consider whether more wilderness areas should be designated in the Tongass National Forest.  Judge James K. Singleton, Jr., of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska ruled that the Forest Service violated two federal laws when the agency refused to consider any new wilderness areas in the 1997 Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Tongass Land Management Plan Revision (TLMP).  The order also prevents the Forest Service from permitting any new roads or timber sales in roadless areas of the Tongass until the agency prepares an EIS considering wilderness.

"In Alaska and in the rest of the country, the public strongly supports
protection of the remaining roadless areas of the Tongass," said Tom Waldo,an Earthjustice attorney representing the plaintiffs.  "In the recent public process for the Forest Service roadless area protection rule, over a million people spoke out in favor of protecting these places from roads and clearcuts."

"Finally, we will have a public forum to address whether some of the
incredible remaining roadless areas of the Tongass should be designated as wilderness," said Allen Smith of The Wilderness Society.  Under federal law,only Congress can designate new wilderness areas, but the Forest Service is required to make recommendations on new wilderness proposals when preparing a land management plan.

"What a relief," said Pat Veesart of the Sitka Conservation Society.  "This order spares some of most prized roadless areas in the Tongass from the ax." He cited sales planned for Cape Fanshaw, the Cleveland Peninsula, Bradfield Canal, Gravina Island, and Cholmondeley Sound as examples of sales the Forest Service will have to cancel to comply with the order.


To speak with someone directly please e-mail info@akrain.org or call 907-747-8292.

Thanks for your support.

Alaska Rainforest Campaign Staff.


from Sierra Club April 4, 2001


SC-ACTION Vol. III, #37
DEFENDING THE ENVIRONMENTAL AGENDA
Tuesday, April 3, 2001
--------------------------------

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"The idea that this country can ever again be energy independent is
outmoded and probably was even in the era of Richard Nixon..."

-- Lee Raymond, ExxonMobil's Chairman and CEO, questioning the notion that
the United States could ever become energy independent as quoted in
Business Week [4/9/01].

--------------------------------

[1] THE PUBLIC SPEAKS: Documents Show Overwhelming Support for Wild Forests

The Sierra Club will release new, more precise numbers tomorrow that show
Americans overwhelmingly support the Wild Forest roadless initiative. The
initiative, which will protect almost 60 million acres of still-wild forest
and grassland, was recently delayed by President Bush. Though the president
claims that more consultations with local land-owners are needed, the newly
released numbers show the unprecedented amount of public involvement in the
process -- and the incredible level of support the initiative has won.

The Sierra Club press release with detailed numbers will be available
Wednesday at:
http://www.sierraclub.org/pressroom/

--------------------------------

[2] VICTORY: Senate Passes Campaign Finance Reform

Though opponents in the House of Representatives are already sharpening
their knives, the Senate's passage of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance
bill is a historic victory for clean elections -- and a cleaner
environment.

Do campaign donations really impact our environmental laws? You make the
call: In the 2000 election alone, the mining industry donated more than $5
million dollars and the oil and gas industries donated more than $14
million. Now President Bush has removed a plan to lower the amount of
arsenic in our drinking water and, along with allies in the Congress, is
pushing to open the pristine and irreplaceable Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge up for oil exploration. Hmm...

To get the low-down on dirty money and our environment:
http://www.sierraclub.org/politics/clean_elections/

--------------------------------

[3] IN THE NEWS: Smart Growth Activists Get Glossy Cincinnati Spread

Sierra Club activists in Cincinnati have broken new ground -- in the pages
of Cincinnati Magazine. The April edition of this glossy "lifestyle"
magazine will include an in-depth feature on our efforts to slow sprawl and
encourage smart growth. According to the upcoming feature: "The Sierra
Club's man on the job in these parts is Glen Brand, and he's as likely to
be looking for allies among  soccer moms as backpackers.  His goal: to get
our heads out of the woods  and into the world of off-ramps, cul-de-sacs
and traffic jams." Note to area activists: Better watch those paparazzi!

To find out more about the Sierra Club's Challenge to Sprawl Campaign:
http://www.sierraclub.org/sprawl/

To read about smart growth in Cincinnati:
http://www.ohio.sierraclub.org/cincy/

--------------------------------

[4] HUMAN RIGHTS: Final Push Needed to Free Mexican Environmentalists

Jailed environmentalists Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera are one step
closer to gaining freedom -- but they need our help. On March 9, lawyers
for the two filed legal papers with the court calling for an "amparo,"
which is a finding of wrongful prosecution. If granted, the amparo would
open the door for Montiel and Cabrera's release. While President Vicente
Fox and officials within his administration have publicly stated support
for Montiel and Cabrera, President Fox's attorney general, Rafael Macedo de
la Concha, has the opportunity to officially support the amaparo. Urge him
to do so by visiting our Take Action Webpage.

To send a customizable letter to Mexico's attorney general:
http://whistler.sierraclub.org:8080/takeaction/humanrights/index.jsp

--------------------------------

[5] TAKE ACTION: Help Needed to Restore Funds to Key Environmental Programs

President Bush's proposed budget will slash $3.3 billion from key
environmental programs -- your quick action is needed to turn the tide.

Please call your senators today and urge them to vote against the Senate
Budget Resolution for Fiscal Year 2002, H.Con.Res.83, and vote for the
amendment expected to be offered Wednesday by Senator Jon Corzine (D-NJ)
that would restore the drastic cuts.

Bush's proposed budget would cripple federal efforts to set air and water
quality standards, promote energy efficiency, protect wildlife and manage
sensitive public lands. In contrast, Corzine's amendment would ensure that
federal agencies have the funding they need to enforce environmental laws
and it would fund a popular program created by Congress last year to
protect open space.

This is a critical environmental vote, so your calls are important!  Please
call your senators today and urge them to vote against the Senate Budget
Resolution and in favor of the Corzine Amendment.

To contact your senators, please call the US Capitol Switchboard,
202-224-3121 or go to: http://www.senate.gov/contacting/index.cfm.

--------------------------------

Sierra Club Legislative Hotline - 202-675-2394
Sierra Club National Headquarters - 415-977-5500
Sierra Club World Wide Web - http://www.sierraclub.org
Sierra Club Vote Watch Website - http://www.sierraclub.org/votewatch/
White House Comment Line - 202-456-1111
White House Fax Line - 202-456-2461
George W. Bush's e-mail - president@whitehouse.gov
Dick Cheney's e-mail - vice-president@whitehouse.gov
White House Address - 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington, DC 20500
US Capitol Switchboard - 202-224-3121
To contact your senators - http://www.senate.gov/contacting/index.cfm
To contact your representative - http://www.house.gov/writerep
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


from Environment News Service April 4, 2001


ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE (ENS)      http://ens-news.com

                                           "We Cover the Earth For You"
***********************************************************************

WHITMAN GIVES EUROPE NO JOY ON CLIMATE PROTOCOL

By Cat Lazaroff

WASHINGTON, DC, April 4, 2001 (ENS) - The best reasons advanced by European
environmental officials in Washington this week to reinterest the Bush
administration in climate negotiations did not appear to be persuasive. U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christie Todd Whitman gave
European environmental representatives little hope that the Bush administration
would reconsider its decision not to support the Kyoto Protocol.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-04-06.html

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MOST ENDANGERED PARKS LIST INCLUDES ENCORE APPEARANCES

WASHINGTON, DC, April 4, 2001 (ENS) - Air pollution, development,
insufficient funding and recent actions by the Bush Administration threaten
U.S. national parks, says the National Parks Conservation Association. The
group released its third annual list of America's Ten Most Endangered
National Parks today, citing dangers to parks in nine states and the
District of Columbia.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-04-07.html

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WWF ECO-FORESTRY PROJECT OPERATING WITHOUT APPROVAL

Bob Burton

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea, April 4, 2001 (ENS) - The Papua New Guinea
Forest Authority has revealed that an eco-forestry project run by the U.S.
based World Wildlife Fund (WWF) as a model of well managed forestry, is
logging mangrove forests without permission. Mangrove forests are excluded
from logging under the PNG Code of Logging Practice.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens-news.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-04-01.html

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PEACE BREAKS OUT IN WAR OVER CANADIAN RAINFOREST

By Neville Judd

VANCOUVER, Canada, April 4, 2001 (ENS) - Loggers and bureaucrats call the
4.8 million hectares (11.8 million acres) of marine, foreshore and upland
area on the British Columbia coast, the central coast. In announcing the
protection today of a vast swath of the region's temperate rainforest,
British Columbia Premier Ujjal Dosanjh called it the Great Bear Rainforest.

For full text and graphics, visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-04-10.html

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CANADA FIRM IN SUPPORT OF CLIMATE TREATY

OTTAWA, Ontario, Canada, April 4, 2001 (ENS) - Top European Union
environmental officials seeking support for the Kyoto climate protocol met
with a warmer reception in the Canadian capital today than they did in
Washington on Monday and Tuesday.

For full text and graphics, visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-04-11.html

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ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE AMERISCAN: APRIL 4, 2001

California Water System May Need Federal Investment

Spill for Fish Withheld Because of Drought

Klamath Mountains Steelhead Do Not Need Protection

Biomass Programs Promoted in Congressional Hearing

Reason Foundation President May Serve in Interior Department

Audubon Receives Million Dollar Grant for Wetlands Protection

Foot and Mouth Disease Could Pose Risk at Zoos

Soybean Hulls Eyed for Wastewater Filtering

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-04-09.html

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

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           entirely with the individuals or organizations identified on the release.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

     Castrol and Earth's 911 Kick-off Oil Recycling Month
     
     LA PUENTE, CA, Apr. 4 -/E-Wire/-- USED OIL DRIVE

WHAT:   An opportunity for Los Angeles area residents to be part of the solution by participating in a USED OIL DRIVE.

The first 50 people who bring their used oil to be recycled will receive a John Force autographed Castrol GTX t-shirt, and there will be free giveaway items for everyone who participates.

/CONTACT:  CONTACT:   Bill Holtz or Alan Taylor Comm. 212-714-1280/

/Web site:  http://www.castrol.com//

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/04Apr0108.html

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TO ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

     Three Puget Sound Companies Plug in to 100% Green Energy
     
     PORTLAND, OR, Apr. 3 -/E-Wire/-- Three Puget Sound area companies
announced today their purchase of Green Tags sourced by the Bonneville
Environmental Foundation(1) (BEF) in an amount equal to 100% of their energy
use.  The companies, Xantrex Technology, Inc., for its Arlington facility,
Batdorf & Bronson Coffee Roasters of Olympia, and Global Energy Concepts of
Kirkland are the first in Washington -- and among the first in the U.S.
-- committing to 100% new renewable energy.
    
/CONTACT:  Pam Field of Bonneville Environmental Foundation, 503-248-1905/

/Web site:  http://www.bonenvfdn.org/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/04Apr0105.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

     Bush's Former Oil Company Threatens Endangered Sea Turtles in Costa
Rica; 800 Turtle Scientists Issue Plea

     SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA, Apr. 4 -/E-Wire/-- Plans by Harken Energy
Corporation, a Houston-based oil company with ties to U.S. President George
W. Bush, to drill for oil and natural gas just off the Caribbean port of
Limón in southeastern Costa Rica have run headlong into opposition from
hundreds of scientists.  The proposed drill site is barely five miles off
the coastline in a region referred to as the "cradle" of the Caribbean's sea
turtle populations.

/CONTACT:  Caribbean Conservation Corporation, 4424 NW 13th St., Suite
A-1, Gainesville, FL 32609, 352-373-6441, ccc@cccturtle.org,  Cindy Taft
(Director of International Programs) or Roxana Silman (Costa Rica Director),
INT+506-224-9215/

/Web site:  http://www.cccturtle.org/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/04Apr0107.html

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TO HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT EDITORS:

New Nutrition Study Indicates Significant Increase in
  Omega-3 Fatty Acid Levels in Wild California Salmon

USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference to Reflect Findings

     LOS ANGELES, CA, Apr. 4 -/E-Wire/-- According to a recent study
reported by the USDA's Nutrient Data Laboratory, the level of omega-3 fatty
acid in wild California salmon is 29.4% greater than previously recorded.

/CONTACT:  David Goldenberg, 916/358-2960, or  Lee & Associates, Inc.,
Howard Pearlstein, 323/938-3300/

/Web site:  http://www.calkingsalmon.org/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/04Apr0106.html

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TO ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

     Mining of Cell Phone Mineral Suspended in Key Wildlife Area

     BRONX, NY, Apr. 4 -/E-Wire/-- Park guards and military personnel have
successfully stopped illegal mining of coltan, a mineral used in the
manufacture of cellphones, in the Okapi Faunal Reserve in the Democratic
Republic of Congo, the Wildlife Conservation Society has learned.

/CONTACT:  STEPHEN SAUTNER (718-220-3682; ssautner@wcs.org), JOHN DELANEY
(718-220-3275; jdelaney@wcs.org)/

/Web site:  http://www.wcs.org/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/04Apr0104.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     University of California, Berkeley Awarded AT&T Industrial Ecology
Faculty Fellowship

     NEW YORK, NY, Apr. 4 -/E-Wire/-- AT&T selected researchers from six
leading universities, including the University of California, Berkeley, to
receive an AT&T Industrial Ecology Faculty Fellowship.  Researchers at
University of California, Berkeley received a $25,000 grant to support their
project, "Hybrid Life-Cycle Assessment of Telework and Teleconferencing."

/CONTACT:  Cynthia Neale,(908) 221-7249, cneale@att.com/

/Web site:  http://www.att.com/foundation/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/04Apr0103.html

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TO TRAVEL AND ENVIRONMENT EDITORS:

     Leading ecotravel nonprofit brings resources to top eco-lifestyles
website

     BURLINGTON, VT, Apr. 4 -/E-Wire/-- The International Ecotourism Society
(TIES), a nonprofit membership organization, and naturalist.com, an online
network for nature and natural health enthusiasts, have teamed up to provide
travelers with expert ecotourism news and resources on the internet.

/CONTACT:  For The International Ecotourism Society, contact Patricia
Carrington at 802/849-9729; for Wilderness Web, contact Mike McCarney at
802/863-4690; and for naturalist.com, contact Phil Horn at 212/279-0024./

/Web site:  http://www.ecotourism.org
                      http://www.naturalist.com/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/04Apr0102.html

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

     CARB Advisory on Diesel Emergency Generators Understates Public Health
Benefits of Keeping the Juice On

     WASHINGTON, DC, Apr. 4 -/E-Wire/-- In a strongly worded letter to the
California Air Resources Board, the Diesel Technology Forum today charged
the Board with the "use of  unsubstantiated data" on the health effects from
the emissions of sporadically-used emergency diesel generators.  Forum
Executive Director Allen Schaeffer warned that by doing so, "CARB blows out
of proportion the risks from the very machines whose primary purpose is
often the protection of public health and assurance of public safety."

/CONTACT:  Forum Office: One Dulles Tech Center, Suite 100, 2191 Fox Mill
Road, Herndon, VA 20171; Media Contact at Forum office: Allen Schaeffer,
Tel: 703/234-4411
, Mobile: 301/346-2086, Email: aschaeffer@dieselforum.org; Media Contact at
Rowan & Blewitt Incorporated: Pam Jones, Cell: 650/576-9377, Tel:
650/598-9905, Email: JonesComm@aol.com/

/Web site:  http://www.dieselforum.org/

For Full Text Visit:  http://ens.lycos.com/e-wire/Apr01/04Apr0101.html

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from World Wildlife Fund April 5, 2001


========================
Earth Day - 22 April 2001
========================
Take action for our natural planet. See WWF's Tip of the Day for easy ways
to be Earth-friendly in your own life.

Go to http://www.panda.org/cgi-bin/motd.pl?cf=wwf/tips_new.cf&how_many=1


Fur... flippers... feathers... fangs!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Our new species mini-site focuses on WWF's "Big 6":
  - giant pandas, elephants, tigers, rhinos, great apes, marine turtles.

Get the facts, figures and photos at:
http://www.panda.org/species/species.cfm?d


Good news! Golden monkey swings back from the brink of extinction
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
30 years ago the Golden Lion Tamarin was one of the world's most
endangered primates, and a conservation priority for WWF.  In March 2001,
the wild population of this beautiful monkey reached 1,000 following the
birth of a baby male. This means that the chances of survival for this
species are excellent.

See exclusive pictures and video footage at:
http://www.panda.org/species/tamarin/?d


Man of the forest - back at school
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Orang-utans learn forest skills from their mothers, but many youngsters
are orphaned or kidnapped for the illegal pet trade. So how do they learn
to survive when they are returned to their native forests after a life in
captivity?

This month, WWF's Living Planet Magazine explores the sensitive work
involved in the rehabilitation of orphan orang-utans. Subscribe to the
magazine today:
http://www.panda.org/livingplanet/livingplanet_magazine.cfm?d


Wanted  - alive - pandas in the wild
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
  - A panda normally gives birth to only one cub at a time.
  - When a baby panda is born, it weighs only 100-200 grams.
  - Out of all the pandas in captivity, only 28% are breeding.

For WWF's panda conservation team, the top priority is to protect pandas
in their natural habitat.

Read the new species report at:
http://www.panda.org/resources/publications/species/pandas/index.htm?d

You can also watch an exclusive interview with the giant pandas Tian Tian
and Mei Xiang who arrived from China at the National Zoo in Washington,
DC. Go to the WWF-US website at:
http://www.worldwildlife.org/pandas/interview.htm


Wetlands reclaimed - birds come back to the Yangtze
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Two years after the restoration of wetlands in China's Qingshan and
Xipanshanzhou Polders (two of the pilot project sites of WWF's Living
Yangtze Programme) hundreds of migrating birds have returned to their
preferred habitat - the reclaimed wetlands.

Read the full story at:
http://www.panda.org/news/features/story.cfm?id=2232


Many thanks for your continuing support of WWF.

With warm wishes from,

       Holly Ellson

Panda.org e-news team
WWF International, the conservation organization

P.S. Why not forward this to a friend and ask them to make a difference
for Earth Day.

------
NB: You have received this email from WWF-International because you have subscribed to species-alert list on our site at www.panda.org  If you have subscriptions to other WWF-International email alerts you may receive this message again.

We respect your on-line privacy - your e-mail address was entered, presumably by yourself, on the WWF mailing list. You are currently subscribed to species-alert as: [alerts@earthhopenetwork.net].

You can have it removed by sending a blank email to leave-species-alert-670591Y@lists.panda.org

Important:
We promise you that WWF will not give, rent or sell your email address to any other organization.

- If when clicking on one of the links in the newsletter, nothing happens, copy and paste the address in to your internet browser location box, and press Return to go to the page.

- Some of the longer links may break into two lines in some email readers. If this happens, copy and paste the link into your internet browser.

- - - - - - - - - - -
Any questions?
Please use the enquiry form on the website at:
http://www.panda.org/forms/feedback.cfm


from Rainforest Action Network April 5, 2001


6 DAYS TO APRIL 11TH!

Check out the picture. here
It is an incredible snapshot of the corporate take over of everyday life.

It is a picture from the frontpage of the NY Times from November 13 of 1999.
This is the coverage of Bill Clinton signing the Financial Services Modernization
Act which not only repealled many of the consumer protections of the 1933 Glass-Steagall
Act but specifically legalized the Citibank-Traveler's insurance merger that
formed Citigroup.

This law is historic in that it created one of the largest, most destructive
and unaccountable concentrations of wealth and power in modern history.  April
11th and the unfolding campaign is our opportunity to say no way! WE WILL NOT BE
RULED BY WALL ST!

Attached in Word 2000 - manipulate, enhance and alter at will.
also available for download at http://www.ran.org/ran_campaigns/citigroup/0411.html

Big or small organize something on April 11th. Find the nearest tentacle
of the Citimonster at :

<http://www.citibank.com/branches/
<http://www.citifinancial.com/branchlocator/
<http://www.salomonsmithbarney.com/

FOR MORE INFO, TO GET AN ORGANIZING PACKET OR TO CONNECT WITH LOCAL
ACTIVISTS IN YOUR AREA CONTACT RAINFOREST ACTION NETWORK:

NY - Beka Economopoulos beka@ran.org, 917-560-3609/888-840-6416 or
SF - Patrick Reinsborough organize@ran.org, 415-398-4404/800-989-RAIN


from Natural Resources Defense Council April 5, 2001


Natural Resources Defense Council's

LEGISLATIVE WATCH

April 5, 2001

Contents:

1) Legislative Watch
2) About Our Bulletins/How to Subscribe & Unsubscribe
3) About NRDC/How to Contact Us

The information in this bulletin is also available on our
website at http://www.nrdc.org/legislation/legwatch.asp. The
web version links to the text of bills and congressional web
pages. To take action on these and other environmental
issues, visit NRDC's Earth Action Center at
http://www.nrdc.org/action, where you can use our online
activism tools, or subscribe to Earth Action, our biweekly
activist bulletin.

1) LEGISLATIVE WATCH

This is a status report on congressional action on the
environment. To make new or updated sections easy to find,
we've highlighted them with:
= N O T E ! =

4/5/01

Environmentalists scored a big victory with the recent
passage of the House budget resolution without revenues from
oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge;
these revenues are likely to be excluded from the Senate
version of the budget resolution as well. In other important
action, the Senate passed campaign finance reform
legislation that seeks to change the rules for
contributions to candidates for national office.

...

Budget

= N O T E ! =
On 3/28, the House passed its $1.98 trillion budget
resolution for fiscal year 2002. Because of strong
opposition by Democrats and moderate Republicans, led by
Rep. Markey (D-MA), Rep. Hoeffel (D-PA), and Rep. Johnson
(R-CT), the resolution did not include revenues from oil
drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Senate
proponents of opening the Arctic Refuge appear to lack the
votes to include these revenues in the Senate budget
resolution.

= N O T E ! =
On 3/28, the House rejected Rep. Spratt's (D-SC) Democratic
alternative budget that would have increased environmental
and natural resources funding by 4 percent, reversing the
Bush administration's proposed environmental spending cuts.
The Bush administration's initial budget proposal cut the
Environmental Protection Agency budget by more than 6
percent, and the Department of Interior budget by 3.9
percent, from last year's funding levels. Global warming,
potentially the most significant worldwide environmental
challenge, was not addressed at all in the president's
budget blueprint. Oil and coal programs were slated for huge
increases, whereas energy efficiency programs were cut
drastically and funding for solar and other renewable energy
tied to expected revenues from drilling in the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge. The president's final budget
proposal is due to Congress on 4/9.

= N O T E ! =
For a step-by-step guide to our annual odyssey through
resolutions, reconciliations and appropriations, see NRDC's
budget process fact sheet at
http://www.nrdc.org/legislation/fbudg.asp

...

Campaign Finance Reform

= N O T E ! =
On 4/2, the Senate approved S. 27, Sen. McCain's (R-AZ) and
Sen. Feingold's (D-WI) campaign finance reform bill. This
bill would ban "soft money" donations from corporations to
political parties, which currently are not subject to
federal limits. Huge soft money contributions from wealthy
corporations have made it easier for these corporations to
persuade members of Congress to attach anti-environment
riders to funding bills, and to gain special exemptions from
environmental laws and regulations. S. 27 also contains a
provision that would increase the amount of money
individuals could give to candidates, which has the
potential to increase the influence of the wealthiest
contributors. Another provision would limit issue advocacy
by nonprofit groups preceding an election (this provision
may be unconstitutional, however). While environmental
groups disagree on the merits of this particular bill, they
generally support efforts to reduce the influence of
corporate special interests in the funding of national
elections.

...

Clean Air and Energy

= N O T E ! =
The Democratic energy bill, S. 597, introduced by Sen.
Bingaman (D-NM) on 3/22, would not open the Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling, but would allow offshore
oil and gas leases in the eastern part of the Gulf of
Mexico. Because this area has not previously been open to
oil and gas exploration, environmentalists oppose the bill.

In response to President Bush's 3/13 reversal of his
campaign pledge to require cuts in carbon dioxide emissions
from power plants, several members of Congress immediately
introduced bills in both the House and the Senate to impose
mandatory cuts on carbon pollution. With 14 cosponsors, Sen.
Jeffords (R-VT) and Sen. Lieberman (D-CT) introduced S. 556
on 3/15. Rep. Boehlert (R-NY) and Rep. Waxman (D-CA) intend
to introduce their bipartisan House bill shortly.

On 2/26, Sen. Murkowski (R-AK) introduced the Republican
leadership's energy bill (S. 389), which emphasizes
increasing the fossil fuel supply and opening the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling. The bill
contains only a few provisions to increase energy-efficient
buildings and equipment, and fails to adequately address the
need to decrease demand for fossil fuels. The bill also
would effectively exempt coal power plants from clean air
requirements and turn over federal oil and gas leasing to
the states. Environmentalists continue to mount strong
opposition to this bill and any efforts to open the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling, and Sen.
Kerry (D-MA) promises to filibuster the bill if it includes
plans to drill in the refuge. The Senate has delayed
consideration of this bill for several weeks.

On 2/8, the Senate approved Sen. McCain's (R-AZ) pipeline
safety bill (S. 235) by a vote of 98-0 despite the fact that
it fails to provide adequate environmental protections.
Although a few changes were made to strengthen the bill,
including a requirement sponsored by Senators Corzine
(D-NJ), Torricelli (D-NJ), Cantwell (D-WA) and Murray (D-WA)
that requires pipeline inspections at five-year intervals,
the Senate bill fails to include any of the key protections
environmentalists believe are needed to improve pipeline
safety. These provisions include holding polluters liable
for releases, requiring meaningful community right-to-know
data, and allowing states to require stronger protections
for interstate pipelines in their state than the federal
government requires.

NRDC's report, A Responsible Energy Policy for the 21st
Century (http://www.nrdc.org/air/energy/rep/repinx.asp),
outlines the components of an alternative energy policy --
one that can meet the nation's energy needs without
destroying wilderness or rolling back environmental
safeguards.

...

Clean Water

= N O T E ! =
On 3/28, EPA administrator Whitman testified before the
House Energy and Commerce Committee on water infrastructure
needs. At the hearing, Rep. Waxman (D-CA) criticized
Whitman's decision to pull back a recent regulation,
approved during the last weeks of the Clinton
administration, to reduce the allowable levels of arsenic in
drinking water. The current standard, once more in place
because of Whitman's decision, is outdated and harmful to
public health.

...

Coasts and Oceans

On 2/14, Senators Snowe (R-ME), McCain (R-AZ), Kerry (D-MA),
Hollings (D-SC), and Breaux (D-LA) introduced S. 328, which
provides funds to states for the management of coastal
areas. The most significant part of this bill designates
funding to stem polluted coastal runoff, the biggest water
quality problem facing shorelines and coastal ecosystems.
However, the chairman of the House Transportation Committee,
Rep. Young (R-AK), objects to this coastal pollution program
and may try to eliminate it when the House considers the
bill.

...

Public Health

= N O T E ! =
A popular bipartisan brownfields redevelopment bill (S. 350)
is on the verge of approval by the full Senate. Senators
Smith (R-NH), Chafee (R-RI), Reid (D-NV), and Boxer (D-CA),
the bill's sponsors, are anticipating a vote on the bill
soon. On 3/15, the Senate Environment and Public Works
Committee overwhelmingly approved this bill, which provides
increased funding and authority to states to clean up former
industrial sites known as brownfields. The bill's sponsors
defeated efforts by Sen. Inhofe (R-OK) to weaken the bill by
restricting the federal government's enforcement authority
over polluters. On 3/7, the House Energy and Commerce
Committee also held a hearing on brownfields, but members of
this committee have not yet developed a House bill.

...

Public Lands

= N O T E ! =
Two House Resources subcommittees plan to hold a joint
hearing to discuss whether the Forest Service's new rule to
ban roadbuilding in many areas of national forests would
hinder energy policy. The subcommittees will review an
energy department study, which found that the new roadless
rule could have a negative impact on gas supplies. The
subcommittees also intend to consider the effect of the rule
on coal mining and other mineral extraction.

= N O T E ! =
On 4/3, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
held a hearing on access to public lands for oil and gas
drilling. The committee heard from representatives of the
U.S. Geological Survey as well as a number of drilling
proponents, such as the American Petroleum Institute.
Although drilling on public lands increased substantially
under the Clinton administration, drilling advocates are
pushing for access to the 9 percent of public lands that are
still off-limits. They also complain that environmental
protections on the lands open to drilling are increasingly
onerous.

= N O T E ! =
On 3/28, the House Resources Committee approved H.R. 601,
Rep. Simpson's (R-ID) bill to restore hunting in a portion
of the Craters of the Moon National Monument in Idaho by
redesignating that section of the monument as a preserve.
Environmentalists did not oppose this bill, because the
Interior Department will oversee hunting activities in the
preserve, and the government did not intend to prohibit
traditional hunting in the preserve when the monument was
created.

= N O T E ! =
On 3/21, the House Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee
heard testimony from the U.S. Geological Survey about its
preliminary assessment of oil, gas, coal and coal-bed
methane reserves in the 21 national monuments designated by
President Clinton since 1996.

= N O T E ! =
On 3/15, the House Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee
considered access to energy reserves on federal lands, with
witnesses discussing restrictions designed to protect
natural resources. The subcommittee also addressed offshore
drilling for natural gas. Environmental witnesses pointed
out that restrictions to resources on public lands serve
important purposes and are compatible with appropriate
development.

On 3/7, the House Resources Committee held a hearing on
energy supplies and federal lands, but questioned only
witnesses who support increased drilling and mining on
federal lands. Environmental groups object to easing
restrictions on resource extraction in sensitive public
lands, as 95 percent of Bureau of Land Management lands, and
91 percent of federal Rocky Mountain lands, are already open
to oil and gas drilling.

On 2/28, key members of both the House and Senate introduced
bipartisan legislation to protect the coastal plain of the
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil and gas drilling by
designating it a wilderness area. In the House, Rep. Johnson
(R-CT) and Rep. Markey (D-MA) introduced H.R. 770, which now
has the support of 177 cosponsors. In the Senate, Sen.
Lieberman (D-CT) introduced S. 411 with the support of 24
senators, including Sen. Jeffords (R-VT) and Sen. Chafee
(R-RI).

...

Regulatory Reform

On 3/15, the House unanimously approved Rep. Burton's (R-IN)
Small Business Relief Act (H.R. 327). This bill contains
overly broad and burdensome obligations on federal agencies
to annually compile a list of each piece of information they
have requested from businesses. Because this requirement
would be incredibly expensive and time-consuming, it could
be virtually impossible for federal agencies to comply
without severely disrupting their operations.

On 3/6, President Bush nominated economist Dr. John Graham,
a long-time critic of protective health, safety and
environmental standards, to direct the Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs in the Office of Management and
Budget. Graham is the director of the Harvard Center for
Risk Analysis -- an industry-funded research group that
advocates pro-industry positions on the regulatory process.
Health and environmental experts warn that, as the
gatekeeper for all federal regulations, Graham would use his
industry connections, controversial economic analyses, and
ideological bias against strong regulatory standards to
prevent new regulations that are protective of public health
and the environment from being adopted. Graham's nomination
must be ratified by the Senate, but hearings have not yet
been scheduled.

...

For information on the environmental voting records of
members of Congress, see the League of Conservation Voter's
National Environmental Scorecards at
http://www.lcv.org/scorecards/index.htm

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2) About Our Bulletins/How to Subscribe & Unsubscribe

NRDC distributes three bulletins by email. To subscribe to
any or all of them or to join our activist networks, go to
http://www.join.nrdcaction.org/subscribe.asp. If you already
subscribe and want to change your subscriptions or update
your email address or other information, go to
http://www.join.nrdcaction.org/profileeditor (or see the
unsubscribe information below).

EARTH ACTION is sent biweekly and calls out urgent
environmental issues requiring immediate action. To
unsubscribe from Earth Action, send an email message to
earthaction@nrdcaction.org with REMOVE in the subject line.

LEGISLATIVE WATCH is sent biweekly when Congress is in
session and tracks environmental bills moving through the
federal legislature. To unsubscribe from Legislative Watch,
send an email message to legwatch@nrdcaction.org with REMOVE
in the subject line.

The CALIFORNIA ACTIVIST NETWORK ACTION ALERT is distributed
monthly to members of NRDC's California Activist Network and
provides action tools to Californians and others concerned
with protecting the state's natural resources and the health
of its citizens. To unsubscribe, send an email message to
wildcalifornia@nrdcaction.org with REMOVE in the subject
line.

...........

3) About NRDC/How to Contact Us

The Natural Resources Defense Council is a nonprofit