home of the wildlife conservation environmental and freedom activist

Positive Energy
November 11-18, 2001
v1.21


As long as the sun keeps shining the "Positive Energy" keeps
flowing. Time for the highlight of your week - Greenpeace's
Clean Energy Now Campaign Weekly Update.

> > The Los Angeles Community College District Going
    Solar Because Of Greenpeace

The Rolling Sunlight and Greenpeace activists in orange
"Clean Energy Now" shirts in force for the Los Angeles
Community College District board meeting on Wednesday,
November 14 to show Board members that solar
is here to stay.

By teaming up with solar installers and the local municipal
utility district Greenpeace made solar the option they
could not turn down.  The LACCD is now considering
installing solar electric systems generating
1.5 megawatts to 3 megawatts of electricity throughout
the nine community colleges!

                ** Victory! **
> > Greenpeace Scores A Victory By Halting The
    California Energy Commission's (CEC) Plan To Fastrack
    Power Plants But The Fight Is Still Not over


The California Energy Commission (CEC) passed a resolution
to fast-track power plants by bypassing environmental impact
assessments on proposed power plant sites in California.

You have sent over 300 faxes to the CEC Commissioners
asking to them reverse this dangerous decision. It worked!

The Commission met on Wednesday, November 14 and decided to put a
hold on this decision!

There's still more work to be done though.  

One Commissioner's support for putting these plants on a
fast track is wavering.  We need you to keep the pressure up,
as the Commissioners will meet again soon to make the final decision.

If you have not sent a fax, please do so. If you have - send another!
We'll keep you informed on the outcome as the issue unfolds.


Take Action:
http://www.cleanenergynow.org/bin/actioncenter.pl


> > Help Stop Dirty Power Plants From Being Built On
    The Mexico Side Of The U.S.- Mexico Border. Act Now!

There's a scary new development just a few miles south of
the U.S.- Mexico border.

American companies like Sempra Energy are planning to build
power plants there with no emissions controls. The plants will
receive natural gas from Texas, burn it, and ship the electricity to
California.

These plants will not have any of the emissions controls
that would be required in the U.S. and they will use
millions of gallons of valuable water that would otherwise
go to the Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge in Imperial County.

The U.S. Department of Energy is currently debating whether
or not to complete an Environmental Impact Report on the
effects of these plants. These surveys are not required by
law but they are a vital step in determining the
environmental and water quality impacts of these power plants.

Tell Christine Todd Whitman of the EPA and Spencer Abraham
of the Department Of Energy that the environment of
Southern California and Mexico shouldn't be sacrificed for
the sake of electricity.

Take Action Now:
http://www.cleanenergynow.org/takeaction/doestudies.html


Want to do more?  Become a Greenpeace Member!
https://www.greenpeaceusa.org/join2/cen.htm

****************************
* WILD ALERT
* Friday, November 16, 2001
****************************

Dear WildAlert Subscriber,

National Forest roadless areas are *again* under attack from the Bush
Administration and the U.S. Forest Service.  This time, the Forest
Service is issuing yet another administrative "directive" that chips
away at roadless area protections, protections Americans have voiced
support for time and time again.  Please tell the Forest Service by
NOVEMBER 19th that you strongly oppose the proposed "Categorical
Exclusions" directive --
http://www.wilderness.org/takeaction/?step=2&item=855

CATEGORICAL EXCLUSIONS
The latest Forest Service proposal would greatly weaken environmental
review requirements for Forest Service management activities in
National Forest roadless areas.

Categorical Exclusions (CE) are used when a land management activity
is believed to have an insignificant effect on the environment.  CEs
can be used currently on a variety of activities, including relatively
small logging and road-building activities.

WHEN CEs CANNOT BE USED
Until now, if certain extraordinary circumstances are present in the
area in question, then CEs generally cannot be used.  Those
circumstances include: inventoried roadless areas, threatened or
endangered species habitat, municipal watersheds, Native American
religious and cultural sites, or Research Natural Areas.  

PROPOSAL EXPANDS THE USE OF CEs
The Forest Service proposal would change that, and allow the use of
Categorical Exclusions for activities affecting these critical
National Forest resources.  It reverses a long-standing agency policy
originally set during the previous Bush Administration.  

Under the Forest Service's proposal, a broader range of activities
that now require environmental review would be allowed in roadless
areas under a Categorical Exclusion (i.e., without a review),
including motorized trail construction, construction of utility lines,
and some mining activities.

TAKE ACTION
The Forest Service is soliciting comments on this proposal, but only
through NOVEMBER 19th.  We must let the Forest Service and the current
Bush Administration know that the American people continue to pay
attention to the environmental wounds that they are inflicting on our
National Forests.  You can send your comments from
http://www.wilderness.org/takeaction/?step=2&item=855 or tell the
Forest Service directly:

- That you strongly oppose the proposed directive.

- National Forest roadless areas, endangered and threatened species
habitat, municipal watersheds, Native American religious and cultural
sites, and other special wildlands should be afforded the strongest
possible protections.

- Any project involving these resources should continue to have public
involvement and must disclose impacts through preparation of an
environmental impact statement.

Send written comments to:
EMAIL: landsidce@fs.fed.us
Director, Lands Staff
4th Floor-South, Mail Stop 1104
Sidney R. Yates Federal Building
USDA Forest Service
P.O. Box 96090
Washington, DC 20090-6090


***************************************************************
For a full list of Action Items, visit
http://www.wilderness.org/whatcan/takeaction.htm

***************************************************************
An archive of past Wildalerts can be found at
http://www.wilderness.org/wildalert/wildalerts.htm

***************************************************************
WildAlert is an email action alert system brought to you by The
Wilderness Society to keep you apprised of threats to our wildlands --
in the field and in Washington.  WildAlert messages include updates
along with clear, concise actions you can take to protect America's
last wild places.  You are welcome to forward Wildalerts to all those
interested in saving America's wildlands.

FEEDBACK: If you need to get in contact with the owner of the list,
(if you have trouble unsubscribing, or have questions about the list
itself) send email to <action@tws.org>.

TO SUBSCRIBE: If you have been forwarded this message and would like
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alerts@earthhopenetwork.net with the word "remove" in the subject line.

Founded in 1935, The Wilderness Society works to protect America's
wilderness and to develop a nation-wide network of wild lands through
public education, scientific analysis and advocacy.  Our goal is to
ensure that future generations will enjoy the clean air and water,
wildlife, beauty and opportunities for recreation and renewal that
pristine forests, rivers, deserts and mountains provide. To take
action on behalf of wildlands today, visit our website at
http://www.wilderness.org

Rainforest Action Network - Monthly Email Newsletter
October 2001


Welcome!  Thank you for being a partner in Rainforest Action Network's
campaigns.  Read on to get the latest news and learn how you can help
save the world's rainforests.


In this post:
   1. Exciting Progress with the Citigroup Campaign
   2. Victory!!  RODOLFO AND TEODORO RELEASED!
   3. Support RAN: Holiday Gift Memberships

______________________________________________________________-

Citigroup and progress?  Read on!

November was an exciting month in the campaign to transform the
investments of Citigroup away from destructive activities that threaten
the environment and human rights!

On Nov 7th in over 60 communities and campuses across the country people
took action to confront Citigroup's role in financing global warming,
forest destruction and a host of other human rights violations.  With
actions ranging from credit card cut ups, to consciousness raising
tables, to demonstrations and symbolic deliveries Citigroup got the
message across the country that we will no longer tolerate them funding
destruction.

Meanwhile on the other side of the Atlantic our allies scored a major
victory that will send ripples through the world of finance.   ABN AMRO,
the largest Dutch bank and a lead investor in fossil fuels and logging
operations, made an historic commitment to cease funding extractive
industries in primary and high conservation value forest ecosystems.
This pledge comes at the end of a campaign spearheaded by Milleudefense,
Greenpeace Netherlands, and Sawit Watch, a coalition of Indonesian NGOs.


The campaign targeted funding of projects that threaten Indonesia's
primary forests and also succeeded in getting two other Dutch banks,
Rabobank and Fortis bank to adopt a narrower set of policies to address
the crisis in Indonesia's forests. The ABN-AMRO's policy goes far beyond
just Indonesia to affect all extractive industries operating in forests
around the planet.

Citigroup has claimed that they cannot adopt social and environmental
standards.  Citigroup has claimed they can't afford to divest from
global warming and forest destruction but the actions of these Dutch
banks sets a historical precedent that make it obvious how self-serving
and myopic Citi is acting.  This agreement is the first of its kind and
brings us one step closer to Citigroup's eventual acceptance of our
movement's demands that they stop funding destruction.  As a top ABN
AMRO exec remarked "Companies that manage their environment poorly will
suffer financially. Clients and shareholders walk away, employees will
seek another boss."

Send the strongest message possible to Citibank! Cut up your credit
card!  Send the letter available to Citibank along with your cut-up
credit card!

http://www.ran.org/ran_campaigns/citigroup/cutup.html

For further information see:
http://www.ran.org/news/newsitem.php?id=458&area=finance

_____________________________________________________________

RODOLFO AND TEODORO HAVE BEEN RELEASED!  

The arrest and conviction of the two peasant ecologists stemmed from
their nonviolent protests of rampant logging in Guerrero, Mexico to feed
a mill formerly operated there by Boise Cascade.  The decision was
announced shortly after the killing last month of Rodolfo and Teodoro's
Lawyer, Digna Ochoa.  As a top Mexican rights lawyer, the death of Digna
Ochoa is probably linked to the fierce battle between loggers and
ecologists in the western state of Guerrero, Mexico.

Ochoa was found shot to death in her private office in Mexico City on
Oct. 19. She had won international acclaim for defending the poor and
marginalized in Mexico, including the two peasant ecologists from
Guerrero.

Mexico's President Vicente Fox announced the release of Rodolfo Montiel
and Teodoro Cabrera, imprisoned for almost two years after being
tortured until confessing to crimes they did not commit. Send a letter
to President Fox thanking him for this step, and urge him to conduct an
investigation that will bring justice to those responsible for the human
rights abuses committed against these men. Democracy and environmental
reform cannot be achieved in Mexico as long as it is unsafe for
environmental and human rights activists there to speak out for what
they believe.

There is no doubt the release of Rodolfo and Teodoro is directly related
to international pressure and encouragement from letters like yours!  
Thank President Fox for listening!  To instantly email President Fox
click here:  http://www.ran.org/info_center/aa/thankyou_montiel.html

President Vicente Fox
c/o Ambassador Ezequiel Padilla Couttolenc
Mexican Embassy
45 O'Connor St., Suite 1500
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1P 1A4

Dear President Fox:

I wish to express my profound gratitude for the release of Rodolfo
Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera and urge you conduct a thorough
investigation into their arrest and torture and bring justice to those
responsible for the human rights abuses committed against these
environmental heroes.  Until environmental and human rights activists
are free to speak without fear in your country, democracy and
environmental reform in Mexico will be impossible.  

Thank you,

__________________________________________________

Support Rainforest Action Network with a holiday gift.

Remember Rainforest Action Network in your holiday plans!  Give the gift
of a Rainforest Action Network membership. And, ask your loved ones to
share your concern for the world's rainforests and request a gift in
your name to RAN.

Membership is a gift that continues all year long.

https://secure.bluemandala.com/ran-secure/give/gift.html


AOL Links

<a href="www.ran.org ">RAN's website</a>
<a href=" http://www.ran.org/info_center/aa/thankyou_montiel.html ">Fox
email</a>
<a href=" http://www.ran.org/ran_campaigns/citigroup/cutup.html"> cut
up</a>
<a href=" https://secure.bluemandala.com/ran-secure/give/gift.html">gift
donation</a>


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

------------------------------------------------------------
EARTHJUSTICE E-BRIEF
Monthly news and views from Earthjustice
-------------------------------------------------------------

In this issue:

* STUNNING VICTORY FOR NATIONAL MONUMENTS
* YOU CAN STILL HELP STOP HARMFUL ENERGY LEGISLATION
* BAY AREA BUSES ARE KEY TO CLEAN AIR
* OIL DRILLING + GRIZZLIES = NO WAY!
* STRAIGHT FROM THE TOP
* STANDING UP FOR HER BELIEFS: AN EARTHJUSTICE CRUSADER
* RECYCLING IS GOOD, RIGHT? YES, EXCEPT...
* FAST IS GOOD, RIGHT? NOT WHEN...
* CHECK OUT THE BEST GIFTS ON EARTH!

-------------------------------------------------------------
STUNNING VICTORY FOR NATIONAL MONUMENTS
On Wednesday, the Court rejected a lawsuit challenging
President Clinton's application of the Antiquities
Act of 1906, reaffirming the presidential power to
establish national monuments protecting public lands
with significant natural values. Get the details at:
http://ga0.org/ct/X11aAPE1uc-0/

-------------------------------------------------------------
YOU CAN STILL HELP STOP HARMFUL ENERGY LEGISLATION
Last month, we told you about legislators trying to
use our recent national tragedy to force a vote on
harmful energy legislation that includes drilling in
the Arctic. They're still at it! If you haven't already
taken action, you can click here to tell your Senator
we won't allow it:
http://ga0.org/ct/c71aAPE1uc-8/

-------------------------------------------------------------
BAY AREA BUSES ARE KEY TO CLEAN AIR
"We know how to clean up the [San Francisco] Bay Area's
air, and that is to offer clean, reliable transit alternatives
so people can get out of their vehicles," says Earthjustice
attorney Deborah Reames. Guess what? The court agrees,
and ruled that the Metropolitan Transportation Commission
must increase ridership by 15%. Check out the full
story of this accomplishment:  
http://ga0.org/ct/B71aAPE1uc-o/

-------------------------------------------------------------
OIL DRILLING + GRIZZLIES = NO WAY!
The U.S. Forest Service thinks roadbuilding and oil
drilling in a crucial grizzly bear habitat near Yellowstone
National Park is a good idea. We don't, and filed a
lawsuit last week to stop it. Find out more about this
latest threat to wildlife:
http://ga0.org/ct/B11aAPE1uc-k/

-------------------------------------------------------------
STRAIGHT FROM THE TOP
Now's your chance to hear from Earthjustice Executive
Director Buck Parker. Buck delivers the straight talk
to SkyRadio, the airlines' inflight news service. Listen
to Buck's interview here:
http://ga0.org/ct/Xd1aAPE1uc-p/

-------------------------------------------------------------
STANDING UP FOR HER BELIEFS: AN EARTHJUSTICE CRUSADER
Patti Goldman, Managing Attorney of Earthjustice's
Seattle office, was recognized for her outstanding
leadership with a conservation award from the Wilburforce
Foundation. She's amazing! Find out why:
http://ga0.org/ct/X71aAPE1uc-P/

-------------------------------------------------------------
RECYCLING IS GOOD, RIGHT? YES, EXCEPT...
...when it's a bad Bush administration nominee. Donald
Schregardus, the embattled and defeated nominee to
head the Environmental Protection Agency's enforcement
division, has now been named to a new environmental
position - the Navy's Deputy Assistant Secretary of
the Environment. We didn't like him then, we don't
like him now. See why here:
http://ga0.org/ct/Bp1aAPE1uc-l/

-------------------------------------------------------------
FAST IS GOOD, RIGHT? NOT WHEN...
...it results in weakened health and environmental
standards. The Bush administration is pushing Congress
to approve "fast track" trade negotiation authority
with Chile by stonewalling public access. Earthjustice
and our clients, the Center for International Environmental
Law, Friends of the Earth and Public Citizen, are concerned
about what that means for environmental protections.
Read about it here:
http://ga0.org/ct/Bd1aAPE1uc-9/

-------------------------------------------------------------
CHECK OUT THE BEST GIFTS ON EARTH!
Get them gifts with heart this holiday season! You
can purchase Earthjustice caps, shirts and our cool
CD online. It's easy, fast and benefits Earthjustice.
Check it out:
http://ga0.org/ct/411aAPE1uc-R/

-------------------------------------------------------------
ABOUT EARTHJUSTICE
Founded as the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund in 1971,
Earthjustice is the non-profit law firm for the environment.
Earthjustice represents hundreds of environmental organizations,
large and small, from nine offices across the country.
We do not charge our clients for our services.
http://ga0.org/ct/cp1aAPE1uc-i/

SUPPORT US
Your support of Earthjustice will help defend and protect
our forests and other public lands; our air, water,
and wildlife; our children, and our communities. Please,
join us.  
http://ga0.org/ct/Xp1aAPE1uc-Q/

QUESTIONS? FEEDBACK?
Drop us a line: mailto:enews@earthjustice.org

--------------------------------------------------------
All contents copyright 2001 by Earthjustice Legal Defense
Fund, 180 Montgomery Street, Suite 1400, San Francisco,
CA 94104

***********************************
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The Leader in Online Campaigns
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Dear Members of Global Response's "Quick Response Network:"

This Action Alert is doubly urgent; it seeks to protect not only
the magnificent Amazon forest and rivers, but also the safety of
local activists. Death threats, imprisonment and murder are being
used to silence opposition to major "development" projects,
including dams, roads, mines, oil and gas development and
industrial logging. Please speak out for the rights of indigenous
communities and environmental activists, and help stop the
construction of the Belo Monte dam.


GLOBAL RESPONSE ACTION #5/01
PROTECT AMAZON RIVERS, FOREST AND ACTIVISTS / BRAZIL
Nov-Dec 2001

“What will be left of the Xingu River for the people of Xingu?”
-- Ademir Alfeu Federicci, opponent of the Belo Monte Dam,
murdered Aug. 25, 2001

In the late 1980s, the Kayapo people forced the Brazilian
government to abandon plans to build 6 huge dams on the Xingu
River. The international uproar over environmental and human
rights concerns was enough to persuade the World Bank to suspend
financing for all dams in the Amazon Basin.

Now Eletronorte, the state-owned electrical utilities company, is
back on the Xingu River with plans to build a first dam, the Belo
Monte, with a smaller reservoir than the original design. Since
Belo Monte won’t have enough water to generate electricity during
the 4-month dry season, critics feel certain that more dams will
be built upstream to increase efficiency. These will have huge
reservoirs that will double the amount of submerged rainforest in
Brazil.

While Eletronorte’s PR team touts the Xingu dams as “a blessing
from God,” the battle between different development models for
the Amazon has turned bitter and bloody.  Since June, 5
grassroots activists have been murdered and hundreds jailed. They
and their organizations denounce the government’s $40 billion
top-down plan to build 6,000 miles of highway, dams, mines, power
lines, gas and oil fields and logging concessions throughout the
Amazon.

MDTX, a coalition of 113 organizations representing farmers,
women, indigenous peoples, youth, scientists and religious
groups, argues for a bottom-up model of sustainable development,
land reform, indigenous rights and environmental protection.

“Why sacrifice the Xingu River by building dams, when its basin
represents one of the country’s most important sites of
ecological capital in its natural state?,”  wrote murdered
activist Ademir Alfeu Federicci in an MDTX letter.

Indeed, the earth’s most biologically diverse region hangs in the
balance. One-third of all the world’s species live in the Amazon
River Basin; one-third of the world’s tropical woods (2,500 tree
species) occur only in the Amazon. The Amazon River and its
tributaries, including the Xingu, supply 20% of the earth’s fresh
water and have the highest diversity of freshwater fish.

Brazil receives 93% of its electricity from large dams.  One
million Brazilians have already lost their lands and livelihoods
because of dam construction. Indigenous peoples are especially
vulnerable since their survival depends on their knowledge of
specific ecosystems. Dams on the Xingu River would flood parts of
the Xingu Indigenous Park, threatening the survival and cultural
integrity of at least 15 indigenous tribes, including the Kayapo.

REQUESTED ACTION: MDTX is calling for international support to
pressure the Brazilian government to bring the murderers of
community leaders to justice, and to require community
participation and consent for dam construction projects in
keeping with the recommendations of the World Commission on Dams
(see box).

**********************
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
**********************
MURDER IN THE AMAZON – The Belo Monte dam’s most prominent critic
was Ademir Alfeu Federicci, known to his neighbors as Dema. In
addition to voicing environmental and human rights concerns, Dema
denounced corruption among Xingu government officials who stand
to gain from Eletronorte’s compensation payments. Instead of
opening serious democratic debate about the project, Eletronorte
has intimidated opposition groups. In a letter to the president,
Dema wrote, “All public meetings against the dam have been filmed
by police and intelligence forces. This is unacceptable in a
debate over the future of the Amazon.”
        At dawn on August 25 in his home, 36-year-old Dema was
shot in the head in front of his wife and children.  More than
3,000 people attended his funeral the next day.  MDTX leaders
have no confidence in local authorities who are unlikely to
investigate the powerful interests behind the murder. Indeed,
they are investigating it as a robbery-homicide, although nothing
was stolen from Dema’s home.
        Intimidation and fear reign in the region, where a
newspaper recently printed a death list of 24 activists.

WORLD COMMISSION ON DAMS –  The World Commission on Dams was
convened by the World Bank to review the performance of large
dams and make recommendations for future planning of water and
energy projects worldwide.  Twelve Commissioners from industry,
financial institutions, environmental organizations and
dam-affected communities produced a final report (www.dams.org)
which found that large dams do not produce as much electricity,
provide as much water or control as much flood damage as their
backers claim. They regularly suffer huge cost-overruns.
Worldwide, large dams have forced 40-80 million people from their
homes; people living downstream of dams suffer increased disease
and loss of sustenance.  Environmental damage includes the
extinction of many fish and other aquatic species, huge losses of
forest, wetland and farmland.
        Based on these findings, the World Commission on Dams
recommends that: * governments should maximize the efficiency of
existing water and energy systems before building any new dam; *
no dam should be built without the agreement of the affected
people.  The International Rivers Network and dam-affected
peoples are urging governments worldwide to adopt and implement
these recommendations.  See: www.irn.org.

INDIGENOUS PEOPLES IN BRAZIL – Through conquest, colonization and
“development,” dozens of Brazil’s indigenous cultures have been
exterminated.  An estimated indigenous population of 6 million in
the 1500s has been reduced to barely 300,000 today.  Over 30
years of struggle, Brazilian Indians have won official
recognition of their land rights to 20% of the Amazon Basin.
Still, indigenous lands are often invaded or threatened by
large-scale development schemes.  See: www.socioambiental.org;
http://forests.org/brazil/

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

REQUESTED ACTION:  Please write a polite letter to the president
of Brazil.

*  Express your concern about the atmosphere of intimidation in
the Amazon region, and ask him to guarantee full protection of
the rights of free speech and personal safety for community
activists there.

*  Demand a full investigation into the August 25 murder of
Ademir Alfeu Federicci to identify the real authors of this crime
and bring them to justice.

*  Ask him to order Eletronorte to immediately release the
feasibility studies for the Belo Monte dam, for independent
review.

*  Urge him to suspend construction of the Belo Monte dam in
order to first adopt and implement the recommendations of the
World Commission on Dams, specifically:

     -give priority to maximizing the efficiency of existing
water and energy systems before building any new dam;

     -build no large dam without the informed consent of the
affected people.

*  Express your support for the 130 local organizations that form
the Amazon Working Group(GTA) in their petition for a Moratorium
on all high-impact development projects in the Amazon; the
Moratorium should be enforced until consensus is reached with all
communities that would be affected by these projects.

YOUR LETTER WILL BE MOST EFFECTIVE STAMPED AND MAILED.
SECOND BEST: FAX
THIRD BEST: EMAIL
MOST IMPORTANT: DO ONE OF THESE!

PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTER TO:

Exmo. Sr. Fernando Henrique Cardoso
Presidente da República
Praça dos Tres Poderes
Palacio do Planalto - 3o  Andar
Brasília – DF  70150-900
Brazil
(Postage from US is $.80)

FAX: Int’l Code+55 (61) 411-2222

EMAIL: presidencia@planalto.gov.br; pr@planalto.gov.br

********************************
This Global Response Action was issued at the request of and with
information provided by the Movimento Pelo Desenvolvimento da
Transamazonica e Xingu (MDTX); Amazon Watch
(www.amazonwatch.org); Environmental Defense
(www.environmentaldefense.org); and International Rivers Network
(www.irn.org).

********************************
Paula Palmer, Executive Director
Global Response
PO Box 7490
Boulder CO 80306
Tel. 303-444-0306
Fax. 303-449-9794
Website: www.globalresponse.org

Mission:  Global Response empowers people of all ages, cultures,
and nationalities to protect the environment by creating
partnerships for effective citizen action.  At the request of
indigenous peoples and grassroots organizations, Global Response
organizes international letter-writing campaigns to help
communities prevent environmental destruction.  Global Response
involves young people as well as adults in these campaigns, to
develop in them the values and skills for global citizen
cooperation and earth stewardship.

NEW!  Now you can make donations online at:
www.globalresponse.org.

To: All Activists
Fr: Faith Campbell, Invasive Species Program, American Lands
Date: November 19, 2001

Ask Your Representative and Senator to Urge USDA
to Prevent the Spread of Sudden Oak Death

Sudden Oak Death (SOD) is one of the most damaging plant pathogens now
in North America.  It attacks a wide variety of plants, including
several oak species, rhododendrons, madrone, evergreen huckleberry, and
California buckeye.   To date, no cure has been found.  Since the
disease was discovered in 1995, it has killed more than 100,000 tanoaks,
coast live oaks, California black oaks and Shreve's oaks along the
California coast. The disease is also killing trees in SW Oregon.  
Sudden Oak Death is now found in 7 counties. [For more about SOD, see
http://camfer.cnr.berkeley.edu/oaks/]

Sudden Oak Death threatens forests across America.  Tests have shown
that seedling northern red and pin oaks are also killed; scientists
believe that mature trees in these species would probably also be
affected.   Red and pin oaks dominate forests covering a combined range
from northeastern Texas to Nova Scotia.  While no one yet knows where
the Sudden Oak Death pathogen originated, it appears likely that it was
introduced to the United States on rhododendrons imported from Europe.

Like several other pathogens in the Phytophthora genus, the SOD pathogen
(Phytophthora ramorum) is easily transported in soil or on plants,
stems, or leaves.   Unfortunately, huge quantities of potentially
infested material are shipped from affected regions of Northern
California and southwestern Oregon.  For example, in 2000, more than 177
tons of foliage, including tanoak, huckleberry and madrone branches were
put into the interstate floral trade.  Rhododendrons and azaleas are
also shipped across the country from nurseries in the region.

If the disease does spread to the East, there is great potential for
ecosystem havoc because of the important role oaks play in wildlife food
webs, according to Dr. Steve Zack, a wildlife ecologist with the
Wildlife Conservation Society.

Despite the danger, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has taken no action to minimize
the likelihood that SOD will spread.  APHIS has ignored pleas for action
by the USDA Forest Service, National Association of State Foresters,
members of the National Plant Board, and officials at the American
Nursery and Landscape Association.

USDA APHIS pays attention to Congress.  Please contact your
Representative and Senators (call 202-224-3121 and ask for your
representative and senators by name).  Ask them to urge APHIS to
immediately adopt regulations that would:
1) Prohibit interstate movement of potentially infested material from
affected parts of California and Oregon
2) Prohibit imports of rhododendrons, azaleas, and other potentially
infested plants from Europe.

For more information contact Faith Campbell, 202-547-9120 or
mailto:phytodoer@aol.com

To: Trade and environmental activists
From: Jason Tockman, American Lands
Date: November 19, 2001

ENVIRONMENT, FORESTS LOSE GROUND WITH WTO DECLARATION
WTO agrees to new issues damaging to the environment

Though civil society can be somewhat relieved that a comprehensive New
Round was not launched at the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Doha
Ministerial, new issues have been identified for negotiation that will
likely mean setbacks for the environment.  In the overtime hours of the
meeting, the trade ministers of 142 countries stitched together a
Ministerial Declaration that fell significantly short of the ambitious
New Round that industrialized countries had sought.  Yet, the resulting
workplan embraces new trade and investment measures that will cause harm
to forests, environmental standards, and sustainable development.  

While small gains have been made, particularly in the area of fisheries
subsidies, WTO negotiators again have demonstrated that the organization
is badly off-course and incapable of ensuring that trade deals do not
undermine environmental concerns. In the end, the environment lost much
more than it gained in Doha.

Doha's environmental outcome:

1. LOSS: USHERING IN LAWSUITS AGAINST ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION.
Negotiations on a multilateral agreement on investment are planned to
begin in a couple of years. This may lead to investment rules that
resemble those of North American Free Trade Agreement's (NAFTA's)
Chapter 11, which allows foreign corporations to sue governments if they
feel their ability to make a profit has been harmed. These
investor-to-state lawsuits provide corporations with rights far above
those of citizens or domestic investors.

2. LOSS: MORE LOGGING, LESS FOREST PROTECTION.
Initiating negotiations on the comprehensive elimination of tariffs and
non-tariff measures (NTMs, commonly known as laws and regulations)
revives the possibility of increased exploitation of critical forest
areas and elimination of the availability of public policy tools to
protect forests.  This "Global Free Logging Agreement" was a significant
issue at the 1999 Seattle Ministerial, and poses a threat to ancient
forests in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Chile. Further, strategies for
environmental conservation, such as eco-labeling, certification, and
bans on raw log exports, could come under fire in these market access
negotiations.

3. LOSS: PROMOTING LANDFILLS AND INCINERATORS.
Ironically woven into a section on the environment is the elimination of
tariff and non-tariff measures for such industries as hazardous waste
landfills, incinerators, and water services (since they are considered
to be "environmental services"). The liberalization of these industries
could prevent governments from placing limits on the number of
facilities permitted to operate in a given area.

4. WIN (?): ELIMINATING FISHERIES SUBSIDIES.
The WTO agreed to initiate negotiations regarding "trade distorting"
subsidies of the fishing industry that are related to the global decline
of fisheries stocks. It is the hope of the environmental community that
these talks will lead to the elimination of ecologically harmful
subsidies. Concerns remain, however, that the undemocratic nature of the
WTO will not consider the needs of the millions of people who depend on
sustainable fisheries.

5. DRAW: RECONCILING THE WTO WITH INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL
AGREEMENTS.
It is difficult to assess whether the WTO's assessment of the
relationship between the WTO and multilateral environmental agreements
(MEAs) will be a help or hindrance to environmental protection.
Environmentalists have long called for a clarification that deference
should go to the environmental agreement in the case of a conflict with
the WTO. At the urging of the European Union, it was agreed that
negotiations would explore the relationship between the WTO and MEAs;
however, there is no assurance that the outcome will be favorable. In
fact, there is some concern that the WTO may attempt to use these
negotiations to assume jurisdiction in relation to MEAs.

6. LOSS: COMPETITION RULES MAY CHALLENGE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTIONS.
In this new area of negotiation (that, like investment, is being
postponed a couple of years), the WTO may adopt language that would be
used to challenge environmental laws and regulations if they are deemed
to be barriers to competition.

7. DRAW: DISCUSSION ON ECO-LABELING.
The WTO has instructed the Committee on Trade and Environment to study
"labelling requirements for environmental purposes." This may produce an
outcome that is beneficial, harmful, or has no affect on eco-labeling
schemes.

8. LOSS: NEW MOMENTUM TO ADVANCE THE WTO'S AGENDA.
Perhaps the greatest loss that environmental protection has been dealt
is that the World Trade Organization has, in a limited sense, maintained
some legitimacy amongst the governmental officials of the world. After
real public scrutiny of the agency emerged in Seattle and developing
countries began to stand up for their interests, it became questionable
whether the WTO would survive. The Doha Declaration has breathed some
new life into the organization to advance an agenda that has proven
detrimental to the environment (as well as workers, women, developing
nations, and farmers).  The situation is still very tenuous, and it
remains to be seen whether the relatively small agenda that came out of
Doha will serve to hold the organization together. The enormous cracks
that emerged in Seattle once again dominated the talks in Doha, and they
are not likely to dissipate at any time soon. As it stands now, however,
the WTO has survived and will live to undermine the environment another
day.

For more information contact Jason Tockman, 740-594-5441 or
mailto:tockman@americanlands.org

Your help is needed to convince California's governor
to protect the internationally renowned waters and
vital sea life around the Channel Islands National
Marine Sanctuary off the Southern California coast.
Some fishing interests oppose a landmark plan to protect
and restore these waters. Even if you don't live in
California, please respond to this alert and tell Governor
Gray Davis he must protect this internationally significant
ocean wilderness. Please try to edit the letter below.

You can take action on this alert either via email
(please see directions below) or via the web at:
http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/SaveChannelIslands/wkwxs54at8xm

Visit the web address below and tell your friends to
take action on this important campaign!
http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/SaveChannelIslands/forward/wkwxs54at8xm

We encourage you to take action by December 15, 2001

Rescue California's Channel Islands

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

The waters surrounding the Channel Islands are a national
and international treasure. This wild and diverse ecosystem
is home to California's most valuable fish and sea
life, including giant kelp forests, 26 species of marine
mammals, and over 60 species of seabirds. The Islands
are refuge to several threatened and endangered species,
including blue whales, peregrine falcons, and brown
pelicans. The Channel Islands have been designated
a National Park, a National Marine Sanctuary, and a
United Nations Biosphere Reserve in an effort to protect
the spectacular seascapes and landscapes of this region.
But this has not succeeded in adequately protecting
or preserving the fish and wildlife that depend on
healthy, wild oceans.

Why are Marine Reserves Needed in the Channel Islands?

Fully protected marine reserves are areas where all
extractive uses - fishing, oil drilling, dredging,
etc. - are prohibited. In the Channel Islands, many
marine species have declined, including abalone, rockfish,
and even the kelp forests. White abalone is now an
endangered species and bocaccio, a type of rockfish,
is being considered for protection under the Endangered
Species Act. Protecting areas with fully protected
marine reserves allows natural ecological balances
and processes to be restored. They can help rebuild
the health of ocean habitats, prevent ecosystem collapses,
help restore depleted fisheries, and provide insurance
against management mistakes.  

Fully protected marine reserves are an important tool
to protect biodiversity and sustain marine life and
human activities that depend on healthy oceans. In
the Channel Islands, these reserves will help to conserve
and restore, for generations to come, the wonderful
abundance of marine life that draws so many people
to this wild and beautiful place.  

The Channel Islands Marine Reserves Proposal

In response to the dramatic decline of once-abundant
sea life, conservation, community, and some fishing
leaders convinced state and federal officials to recommend
a landmark plan to restore this once-thriving biodiversity
hotspot. The plan will set aside 25 percent of the
Channel Islands Sanctuary waters as fully protected
marine reserves. While we prefer a larger network,
we believe this compromise is the minimum necessary
to protect and restore the ocean resources of the Channel
Islands. Some fishing interests, however, seek to undermine
support for this landmark plan. The Governor's Fish
and Game Commission will make a final decision in the
next few months.

How You Can Help

Please respond to this alert, even if you do not live
in California, and send a message to Governor Gray
Davis supporting the plan will set aside 25 percent
of the Channel Islands Sanctuary waters as fully protected
marine reserves. If you have time, please edit the
sample letter. A message in your own words will carry
more weight with the governor than a copy of the sample
letter. Please respond even if you do not have time
to edit the letter as every message Governor Davis
receives will help.

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

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/campaign/SaveChannelIslands/wkwxs54at8xm  

INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND VIA EMAIL:
Just choose the "reply to sender" option on your email
program, and edit the letter below as you wish. Do
not delete "-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:
Governor Gray Davis


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

I strongly urge you to protect the incredibly wild
and diverse ecosystem found in the waters surrounding
the Channel Islands. These waters are a national and
international ocean treasure in need of greater protection.

Specifically, I urge you to support the preferred alternative
proposed by the California Department of Fish and Game
that sets aside 25 percent of the Channel Islands National
Marine Sanctuary waters as fully protected marine reserves.
I also urge you to recommend this proposal to the California
Fish and Game Commission for their approval.

The remarkable sea life in these waters is in serious
jeopardy. The Channel Islands have experienced drastic
declines in marine life, including abalone, rockfish,
and even the kelp forests.  

Protecting these areas with fully protected marine
reserves allows natural ecological balances and processes
to be restored. The Department of Fish and Game's proposal
to set aside 25 percent of the sanctuary waters as
fully protected reserves is the minimum needed to protect
the ocean wilderness of the Channel Islands, its diversity
of marine life, and its unique underwater habitats.
Any smaller area will not adequately protect the long-term
health of the Channel Islands.

Thank you for considering my views.

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

As long as the sun keeps shining the
"Positive Energy" keeps flowing.

Greenpeace's CLEAN ENERGY NOW! Campaign weekly update.




***CPA BACKS GREENPEACE DEMANDS FOR CLEAN ENERGY FINANCING***

The board of the California Power Authority (CPA)
reversed their earlier position and declared at a weekend
working retreat that they have decided to meet the
majority of California's future energy demands with
renewable energy and conservation programs, and not
fossil fuel. Greenpeace's first priority at the meeting
was to stop the development of 2000MW of gas-fired peaker
plants by investing in clean energy, like wind, solar,
and other energy forms. In addition, activists demanded
the CPA address global warming in its mission statement.
As a result, the Board members have placed a moratorium on
financing gas-fired peaker plants and have redirected the
focus of the CPA to finance renewable energy and
conservation to meet statutory mandates of ensuring
energy stability and reducing price volatility.
Greenpeace also called for a more open process. The board
openly admitted that their efforts to engage stakeholders
were inadequate, and promised to actively seek out affected
communities and individuals for their participation in
future meetings.

ALL IS NOT WON!!!!
We still need YOUR positive energy and involvement!

Send a fax to the CPA Board demanding that they keep their
promise to institute an open planning process
that actively seeks out the input of affected communities,
and has scheduled, state-wide public
hearings, and strives to meet California's future energy
needs with renewable energy, like wind and solar,
displacing old, dirty power plants.


To take action, go to: http://www.cleanenergynow.org/bin/takeaction.pl?action_id=80


***WESLEYAN PURCHASES GREEN ENERGY***

Starting next year, Wesleyan University will purchase
2,600,000 kwh of renewable ("green e," certified Ecowatt)
energy from the Connecticut Energy Cooperative. This
purchase will supply electricity to the entire Freeman
Athletic Center, roughly 10% of the school's energy demand.
This purchase will make Wesleyan one of the largest green
energy buyers in the state. Purchasing 2,600,000 kwh of the
Co-op's green electricity product will prevent approximately
2.1 million lbs of Carbon Dioxide and 16,000 lbs of Sulfur
Dioxide--compounds known to cause global warming, acid
rain, and respiratory illness--from being released into
the air.

Greenpeace is currently working with student activists
across the nation, including California's Los Angeles
Community Colleges, Stanford University, and University of
California, Berkeley.

To learn more about our campus campaigns: Contact Kristin
at kristin.casper@sfo.greenpeace.org.

***EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE ENERGY EFFORTS
TO CREATE 750,000 NEW JOBS***

The new study, "Clean Energy: Jobs for America's Future,"
developed by the Tellus Institute and the World Wildlife
Fund indicates that efficiency and renewable energy
policies and programs could create more than 750,000 new
jobs over the next nine years and 1.3 million new jobs by
2020. According to the study, by implementing policies to
promote energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies,
the U.S. can begin to address some of today's most pressing
environmental and energy challenges, global warming, while
continuing to create jobs.

To read the study, "Clean Energy: Jobs for America's Future"
visit: http://www.worldwildlife.org

Keep the Positive Energy flowing . . .
http://www.cleanenergynow.org.

DEN Alert:
Support Recovery of the Canada Lynx

The lynx once roamed throughout the northern Lower 48 states. Hunted
and trapped for their fur for many years, they now inhabit only a
fraction of that historic range. The U.S. Forest Service is
considering a plan to save the lynx in the northern Rocky Mountains.
But this plan doesn't go far enough to protect dwindling lynx
habitat. The Forest Service must clamp down on intensive logging,
road building, and unauthorized snowmobile use in our national
forests. If improvements aren't made to the plan, lynx will
continue to face an uphill battle for survival.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Please send a FREE fax to Jon Harber, director of the Northern
Region headquarters for the U.S. Forest Service and urge him to
improve the lynx conservation plan for the northern Rockies.  
Comments will be accepted until MONDAY, DECEMBER 10, so please send
your fax TODAY.  Thanks for helping to protect this rare and unique
cat.



INSTRUCTIONS TO RESPOND VIA THE WEB:

If you have access to the web, simply click on the link below which
will take you to the DEN Action Center web site:

                        http://www.denaction.org


If you do not have access to the Internet, please mail your letter
to: Northern Rockies Lynx Amendment, Jon Harber, Northern Region
Headquarters, P.O. Box 7669, Missoula, MT 59807 or via fax at:
(406) 329-3347.

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear Director Harber:

As a citizen who cares deeply about the nation's national forests
and the rare species who inhabit them, I am writing to suggest
improvements to the conservation plan for the lynx in the northern
Rockies and High Plains.

One of the biggest threats to the lynx is logging and road-building
in northern forests. Many of these forests are roadless and
administered by the U.S. Forest Service. The lynx needs undisturbed
habitat to survive.

The following improvements should be made to the conservation plan
before it is completed:

*  Lynx protection plans should be consistent throughout the
different regions administered by the Forest Service to ensure that
populations are adequately protected in those areas.

* Clear-cutting or mowing down of forests in lynx habitat should
not exceed more than 40 acres.  Lynx rely on intact habitat for
successful denning and hunting.

*  The Forest Service should ensure that excessive road-building
does not occur in lynx habitat. Roads threaten lynx by bringing in
hunters, trappers and vehicles.

*  Snowmobiles should be restricted where they pose a threat to
lynx.

*  Forest Service officials should work with the Canadian government
to protect migration for lynx between southern Canada and the lower
48 U.S. states.

Thank you for considering my comments.

Sincerely,
__________________________

To subscribe, visit Defenders' website at http://www.defenders.org/den
or send an e-mail to denlines@defenders.org and put the word SUBSCRIBE
in the subject line.  
====================================================================

Defenders of Wildlife is a leading national conservation organization
recognized as one of the nation's most progressive advocates for
wildlife and its habitat and known for its effective leadership on
saving endangered species such as brown bears and gray wolves, Defenders
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 420,000 members and supporters.

                       Defenders of Wildlife
                  1101 14th Street, NW, Suite 1400
                       Washington, DC 20005
                     http://www.defenders.org
                     http://www.kidsplanet.org

News Release:
Wednesday, November 21, 2001

Enhancing Corporate Monopoly and Bioserfdom in the 21st Century:

New Enclosures

Corporations are developing a variety of new mechanisms to secure monopoly
control of biotech and other emerging technologies.

A new report by ETC group (formerly RAFI) identifies new mechanisms -
ranging from remote sensing technologies, biological monopolies, and legal
contracts - that are being developed to strengthen corporate dominance over
new technologies.  

According to ETC group, the political, practical and technical uncertainties
surrounding intellectual property are increasingly unacceptable to industry
- and that is why companies are developing new tools for monopoly control-
what ETC group calls "New Enclosures."

The new 20-page ETC Communiqué (November/December 2001), entitled "New
Enclosures: Alternative Mechanisms to Enhance Corporate Monopoly and
Bioserfdom in the 21st Century" can be found, in full, on the ETC group
website: http://www.rafi.org (until our website changes to
www.etcgroup.org).

Patent Pandemonium:  The recently concluded WTO Ministerial meeting in Doha
underscores that intellectual property is becoming ever more politically
contentious as growing segments of society recognize that monopoly patents
are preventing poor people from gaining access to life-saving drugs and
life-sustaining seeds.  Compounding the political uncertainties, the
transaction costs of winning and defending patents is enormous. US-based
companies alone spent more than $4 billion on patent litigation last year;
it typically costs $1.5 million (per side) to litigate a patent, many
start-up biotech companies are forced to budget as much for patent
litigation as they are for research & development.

Biological Monopolies, Eye in the Sky, Contract Controls: The ETC group is
not suggesting that patents are about to disappear as a strategy to win
corporate monopoly. However, it is critically important to examine New
Enclosure mechanisms -ranging from earth observation satellites, to genetic
encryption, to technology user agreements - that will allow companies to
identify and control germplasm, territory and labour. ETC warns that New
Enclosures threaten to erode the rights of farmers and workers, undermine
national sovereignty and facilitate corporate consolidation. For example:

Earth observation satellites are being used to enforce proprietary rights
and regulatory compliance. In Argentina, for example, satellite surveillance
is already being used to monitor farmers' crops in an effort to halt tax
evasion; satellite surveillance is also proposed to stop farmers from saving
and exchanging proprietary seeds. Who needs Monsanto's "Gene Police" when
government authorities are prepared to enforce corporate rules?

The best known examples of New Enclosure mechanisms are the controversial
genetic use restriction technologies (i.e. Terminator and Traitor) that are
designed to impose biological monopolies on seeds. ETC group also examines
genetic encryption for livestock, and a gene barrier technology for crops
that could someday be used to limit industry liability from GM crop
contamination (that is, the flow of transgenes from genetically modified
crops to crop relatives nearby).

ETC group also examines legal contracts such as technology user agreements
and material transfer agreements that go beyond intellectual property as
mechanisms to control germplasm and technology, and to appropriate public
research for private profit.

With New Enclosure technologies, companies are positioned to dictate
regulatory standards to governments that lack the capacity to monitor and
assess control mechanisms. ETC group asks, how long before the terms and
conditions for "biosafety" and "consumer confidence" will be dictated by
industry standards - not by government regulators?

Action needed: Intergovernmental bodies and civil society organizations must
move beyond intellectual property to examine how new technologies are
becoming strategic alternatives for strengthening corporate control. New
Enclosures must be carefully monitored, analyzed and independently regulated
at the national and international level.

The United Nations General Assembly should establish a new "UN Centre on
Commerce and Technology," with the necessary resources to address not only
corporate power and concentration, but new commercial and technological
combinations.

The ETC group believes that New Enclosures must become an important element
for discussion in the process leading up to the World Summit on Sustainable
Development, September 2002 in Johannesburg.

                *******

The Action Group on Erosion, Technology and Concentration (ETC group),
formerly RAFI, is releasing a series of new reports in 2001. New Enclosures
is the third in the series that also includes the following issues of The
ETC Communiqué available on our web site from September to December:

* Globalization, Inc. Concentration in Corporate Power: The Unmentioned
Agenda
* The New Genomics Agenda - A Political Epilogue to the Book of Life: Update
on Pharmaceutical Multinationals and the Human Genome
* Nanotechnology - Spiraling down from Genomes to Atoms

The Action Group on Erosion, Technology and Concentration, formerly RAFI, is
an international civil society organization headquartered in Canada. The ETC
group (pronounced Etcetera group) is dedicated to the advancement of
cultural and ecological diversity and human rights. Our new web site,
www.etcgroup.org is under construction. All RAFI and ETC group's
publications are available at: www.rafi.org