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| 1. CONTEMPT OF COURT: Norton thumbs nose at judge
as manatees die in record numbers
To send a petition to Secretary Norton urging her to protect Florida's manatees, go to www.helpmanatees.org 2. SALMON KILLED, MINNOWS DYING: Drought hurting fish from Klamath Basin to Rio Grande It's the worst fish kill ever in the Klamath River – as many as 30,000 salmon have died as they struggled to make it to spawning grounds. Partly because of decisions by Secretary Norton, the river is dramatically low, and the water temperature is well above what these cold-water fish can tolerate. Defenders of Wildlife is joining with salmon fishermen and other conservationists in filing a lawsuit to force Norton to release more water from irrigation systems to the Lower Klamath River. "They played Russian roulette with our fish and our fish lost," said Troy Fletcher of northern California's Yurok Tribe. To learn more about how the Bush administration ignored warnings against shifting water from salmon, click here. http://www.defenders.org/den/salmon.html. Defenders also is trying to ensure the availability of reservoir water if needed to save the Rio Grande silvery minnow from extinction in the wild. Water use across New Mexico is unsustainable and jeopardizing the health of the entire Rio Grande ecosystem. "The minnow is an endangered species because the river is endangered," said Kara Gillon, wildlife counsel for Defenders. 3. HELP SAVE WOLVES: Stop government from lifting protections The Bush administration is vowing to strip gray wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains of their protections under the Endangered Species Act next year. That was the word from Craig Manson, assistant secretary of the Interior Department in a speech at Bozeman, Mont. The administration would throw wolves to the mercy of states like Wyoming. That state's wildlife agency has recently gone on record for allowing wolves to be killed like skunks or jackrabbits. To urge Secretary Norton to protect wolves for future generations, go to www.savewolves.org And mark your calendars -- Wolf Awareness Week is Oct. 13-19. For more information, go to http://www.defenders.org/waw/. 4. BACKROOM DEALING: Arctic wildlife refuge in jeopardy again? As if the pending national energy bill isn't bad enough already, Big Oil is trying to make it even more environmentally destructive by reviving the discredited proposal to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling. Last year, the House of Representatives voted to allow drilling. But in April in a great victory for environmentalists, the Senate voted to protect America's greatest wildlife preserve. Now despite that Senate vote, Big Oil's political allies are trying to cut a backroom deal to allow drilling in some parts of the refuge. Even if the refuge is protected, which looks likely, the energy bill still could still open vast swaths of other public lands to for-profit exploitation. It emphasizes dirty fossil fuels over cleaner, smarter new technologies and improved efficiencies. Defenders of Wildlife has joined other major environmental organizations in urging Congress to junk the current energy bill and start over.
SAVE THE DOLPHINS!
Your sponsorship donation will help support our efforts to safeguard these magnificent marine mammals. To adopt a dolphin visit our Wildlife Adoption Center at http://www.defenders.org/adopt/. 6. INDUSTRY'S MAN AT INTERIOR: He flouts conflict-of-interest laws Who's the Bush administration official responsible for protecting America's magnificent public lands for future generations? None other than J. Steven Griles, who lobbied for the biggest oil, coal and gas companies before becoming Secretary Norton's chief deputy. Before the Senate confirmed Griles, he insisted his lobbying ties wouldn't be a problem and promised to avoid even the appearance of impropriety. Now, official government records show Griles is flouting conflict-of-interest laws. Within weeks of taking office, he began meeting with former clients on regulatory matters important to them. Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon has called for an investigation into Griles' behavior. To read more, click here http://www.defenders.org/new sroom/griles.html 7. JUST ADD WATER: New Defenders book focuses on fight to save Colorado River
To buy the book, call 1-800-992-2908 or visit: DENlines is a
bi-weekly update of Defenders of Wildlife, a leading national conservation
organization recognized as one of the nation's most progressive advocates
for wildlife and its habitat. It is known for its effective leadership on
endangered species issues, particularly predators such as 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
400,000 members and supporters. To unsubscribe, send an e-mail to
denlines@den.defenders.org
and put the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line. Defenders of Wildlife Copyright Defenders of Wildlife 2002 |
Greenpeace's Positive
Energy
September 21 - 28, 2002
v 2.33
Time for Greenpeace's Clean
Energy Now! campaign's weekly
good news update!!!
Inside this
edition:
- Activists Demand World Bank to Switch to Clean Energy
- Ventura
Fire Stations Go Solar!
- Florida Gubernatorial Candidates See the
Light
+++++
Activists Demand World Bank to Switch to Clean
Energy
On September 26, 2002, Greenpeace Executive Director,
John
Passacantando, kicked-off a rally of environmental
and civic organizations
in Washington, DC by demanding that
the World Bank halt public funding for
the oil, gas and
mining industries. Greenpeace called for the World Bank
to switch its funding to clean energy sources like wind
and solar
power.
In an unrelated incident, Passacantando was arrested
Friday
while riding his bike past a World Bank protest in
Washington, DC. He was on
his way to work, and not involved
in any illegal activity, but slowed down
to watch World
Bank protesters in the area. According to Passacantando,
police surrounded the area and arrested the large group of
people, many
of whom were bystanders. The police did not
give anyone in the area a chance
to disperse. Nearly 300
people were arrested, put in police vans and taken
to the
Blue Plain facility in Anacostia, where they await
processing.
John was finally released at 2:00 am, and is
in good spirits.
To
learn more about the World Bank Protests, go to:
http://www.cleanenergynow.org/media/pressreleases/09262002.html
+++++
Ventura
Fire Stations Go Solar!
In the hopes of solving California's ongoing
energy crisis,
Ventura County has begun installing solar panels on
public
buildings and purchasing hybrid vehicles.
Twelve Ventura
County fire stations have installed the
solar panels necessary to provide at
least 25% of each
station's daily electricity use. Utilizing rebates and
state grants, the County spent around $7,000 per firehouse
to install
the new solar systems and plans on solarizing
at least a dozen additional
stations in the very near
future. With Ventura joining cities and
communities around
the U.S. to create a clean energy future, is it not time
for the University of California, one of the state's
largest public
institutions, to do the same?
To read about the Ventura Fire Stations, go
to:
http://www.solarbuzz.com/News/NewsNAPR101.htm
Take
action right now by sending a fax to UC President,
Richard Atkinson and urge
him to support clean energy now!
http://www.cleanenergynow.org/bin/takeaction.fpl?action_id=147
+++++
Florida
Gubernatorial Candidates See the Light
The Florida Clean Energy Now!
campaign's bird-dogging tactics are
already paying off: Democratic
gubernatorial hopeful Bill
McBride has committed to meeting with our team to
discuss
the idea of a global warming action plan for Florida,
while
Governor Jeb Bush has indicated his willingness to
meet with us as well.
Adding to the pressure for action on global warming is a
forthcoming
letter from many Florida scientists, warning
candidates that Florida is in
trouble and that as leaders,
it is their responsibility to take action now by
implementing clean energy solutions!
Stay updated on the Florida
Clean Energy Now happenings at:
http://www.cleanenergynow.org/fl/
The
"Positive Energy" newsletter and our web site,
http://www.cleanenergynow.org ,
will give you good news
about ways to achieve clean air, climate justice,
and
renewable energy solutions to our ongoing energy crisis.
Help Greenpeace spread the word. Forward this e-mail on to other
caring individuals.
Want to do more? Become a Greenpeace member
today!
To give online, go to:
https://www.greenpeaceusa.org/join2/cen.htm
Congress Cutting Deals on Energy
Bill. Arctic Wildlife and Energy Efficiency at
Risk.
Take action to secure our energy
future. Tell
President Bush and Congress to support the energy bill
only if it protects the Arctic from
oil drilling and promotes real energy efficiency.
Send
a letter to the following decision maker(s):
Below
is the sample letter:
Subject: Support
an Energy Bill that Protects the Arctic and Promotes Energy
Efficiency
Dear [decision
maker name automatically inserted here],
Congress continues to debate an energy policy for America
as it attempts to come up with a compromise between energy
bills passed by the House and Senate in the last year. I urge
you to support provisions in energy legislation that place
energy efficiency and environmental protection before oil
industry interests. In particular, I support provisions
to:
Sincerely, Instructions:
Tell-A-Friend:
What's
At Stake: Campaign
Expiration Date: If you would like to unsubscribe from Environmental Defense Action
Network, or update your account settings, please click here or respond to this email with "REMOVE"
as the subject line.
President
George W. Bush
Your Congressperson
Your Senators
-Protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in
Alaska from oil drilling;
-Catalyze the development of
clean and renewable energy resources;
-Reduce wasteful and
destructive taxpayer subsidies for the fossil fuel and nuclear
industries;
-Increase fuel efficiency in cars and light
trucks, saving millions of gallons of oil each day;
and
-Enact meaningful policies to reverse the harmful
affects of global climate change.
If the compromise
energy bill does not include these important elements, I urge
you to vote NO and send this harmful bill back to the
conference committee, where it must be improved. Thank
you.
your name
Take
Action!
Click here to take
action or
choose the "Reply to Sender" option on your email program.
Invite
your friends and family to take action: 
Tell-a-Friend!
With rumblings of war in the Middle East and Congress
desperate to pass an energy bill this year, oil companies and
their supporters in Washington, D.C. are
horse-trading on an energy deal that could open the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska to oil drilling. This
"deal" would open the Arctic to drilling in exchange for
nearly meaningless action on climate change and energy
efficiency. While a long-sought energy bill compromise
may be close at hand, the result could do more harm than
good. Remind President Bush and your representatives in
Congress that the compromise energy bill must protect the
Arctic and promote real energy efficiency, or it must be voted
down.
November 1,
2002
Dear Friend, Thank you for your help, once
again.
Sincerely,
I'm
writing to bring your attention to an urgent problem. Right now,
tens of thousands of salmon have died and more may follow in the
Klamath Basin in Northern California. A major cause is the Bush
administration's disastrous water policy. So much water has been
diverted from the Klamath River for irrigation that salmon are dying
in record numbers.
California Fish and Game officials blame
low river flows and high water temperatures for killing the fish,
and still the Bush administration refuses to admit responsibility or
change a destructive ten-year water plan they put in place this
year. The story has captured national media attention, and was even
featured on the front page of the
New York
Times
Last
week we filed a lawsuit on behalf of commercial fishermen,
environmental organizations, and Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) to
challenge the administration's water policy.
Learn
more about what we are
doing to protect the Klamath River basin.
We need your help! Make a
gift today and help us save the salmon and the coastal communities
that depend on them
Earthjustice
Bottom trawling devastates habitats and wildlife - killing animals and plants we haven't even discovered yet! Sophisticated new fishing technologies continue to extend the reach of these deadly nets. We must stop the clear-cutting of our ocean floor habitats before it's too late.
Oceans provide 95 percent of the living space for the earth's animals and plants, and are the largest source of protein in the world, feeding billions of people around the globe. We need healthy oceans to survive.
But in our lifetimes, the ocean abundance we treasure now could be gone. Thanks to destructive fishing practices like bottom trawling, we're destroying ocean habitat faster than it can possibly regenerate, including some ancient corals that are thousands of years old. Below the surface of the ocean lies a mosaic of habitats that serve as vital feeding, shelter and nursery areas for a wide array ocean life. Every day in America's oceans, these habitats are crushed and demolished by a fishing practice that involves dragging heavy nets equipped with "rockhopper" and "roller" gear along the seafloor.
We must act now to preserve the earth's web of life for future generations. Congress is now looking at changing the laws that govern the nation's fishing resources. As part owner of this public resource, you can make a difference by asking your Congressional Representative to support the Ocean Habitat Protection Act. This bi-partisan bill will restrict the use of commercial fishing gear that demolishes vital habitats, and will encourage the use of more sustainable fishing gear.
Please take a moment to send a
strong message that healthy oceans are important to you.
Click here to take action.
Sincerely,
Dawn Martin
Oceana
While Interior Secretary Gale Norton drags her feet,
refusing to obey three separate court orders to protect Florida's
endangered manatees from careless pleasure boaters, the gentle sea cows
are being killed in record numbers. With three months to go, the number of
manatees already killed this year by boats has broken the record of 82 set
three years ago. The 83rd manatee died last week with fractured ribs and
deep propeller wounds across its back. Defenders of Wildlife is urging a
federal judge to cite Norton for contempt of court for refusing to follow
his repeated orders to establish more sanctuaries for manatees. To read
more, click here 
