home of the wildlife conservation environmental and freedom activist

http://edf.org/

The Clean Car Campaign has been actively pursuing its
automotive mercury action plan. Our action plan calls
for automakers to: 1) eliminate the use of mercury
switches in all new vehicles; 2) properly manage switches
contained in the existing vehicle fleet; 3) phase out
other uses of mercury in vehicles; and 4) label new
vehicles that contain mercury.  

Your response to our latest action alert - A Call for
Automakers to Switch Out Mercury Switches with Dealers
- was tremendous. The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
(AAM) received over 3,500 letters from pledgers like
you who want automakers to do more to prevent mercury
contamination of our environment. It was a great response,
and AAM members now know automotive mercury is an issue
they can't ignore.  

And just last week, 27 state attorneys general sent
a letter to Bill Ford Jr. calling on Ford Motor Company
to remove mercury switches from vehicles being recalled
for potentially defective Firestone tires. This is
a good example of how a dealership exchange program
can capture a significant quantity of mercury contained
in the vehicles currently on the road. We sent a letter
of our own to the executives of all three U.S. automakers
asking them to remove and replace mercury switches
any time vehicles are brought to a dealer for service.
In our letter, we used your responses to the mercury
action alert to show that the public is expecting something
more as well.  

The Campaign has also joined forces with the Automotive
Recyclers Association (ARA) and the Institute of Scrap
Recycling Industries (ISRI) to seek legislative solutions
to the mercury switch problem. Mercury is a hot topic
this year, with a number of federal and state bills
being considered which address various sources of mercury.
We see a good opportunity to focus some of this attention
on mercury in vehicles. We will keep you posted when
there may be an opportune time to notify your elected
officials how they can help to solve this critical
problem.  

Thank you for your support.  

The Clean Car Campaign  

What is wrong with the G8

A PDF file of thisleaflet for you to print out
and distribute is available at
http://struggle.ws/wsm/pdf/leaf/genoa.html

------

            G8 protests in Genoa
- the anti-capitalist struggle continues

Over the weekend of July 19/20/21 tends of thousands of
people from all over the world will be in Genoa to
protest against the G8 meeting there.  Genoa will join
Seattle, London, Prague and Quebec as the scene of
confrontation between the forces of capitalist
globalisation (neo liberalism) and those who believe
other worlds are possible.

Make no mistake, in Genoa, as elsewhere two
incompatible visions of the world will collide.  On the
one side are the G8, the most powerful governments of
the planet.  They are Canada, France, Germany, Japan,
Great Britain, Italy, Russia and the United States. On
the other are tens of thousands of ordinary people,
many of them citizens of these countries.

The G8 summits effectively decide what sort of world
you and your children will live in.  Behind closed
doors decisions are made that mean our environment is
sacrificed to profit, our health service is run down
and privatised and millions of people continue to die
for want of clean water and basic medicine.

The G8 summit will plan directives to the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, which impose
cuts in education and healthcare through "Structural
Adjustment Programmes". According to Trocaire "Sub
Saharan Africa still pays US$37 million each day in
debt repayments while seven million children die
annually as a direct result of the loss of resources
through debt repayments". These are the results of the
neo liberal (or free market) dictatorship that the G8
is imposing on the planet.

In 1998, that 20 percent of the world's people living
in the highest-income countries accounted for 86
percent of total private consumption expenditures while
the poorest 20 percent accounted for only 1.3 percent.
And things are getting worse, not better, three decades
ago the poorest 20% accounted for 2.3 percent.

But this is not simply a case of the people of the rich
western countries screwing the people of the third
world.  The figures demonstrate this also. The United
States is the most powerful economic power on Earth.   
In 1999 Bill Gates had more wealth than the bottom 45
percent of American households.  As of 1995 the wealth
of the top one percent of Americans was greater than
that of the bottom 95 percent.  And there also things
are getting worse.  In 1999 Business Week revealed that
top executives earned 419 times the average wage of a
blue-collar worker, up from 326:1 in 1998.  In 1980,
the ratio was 42:1

There will be thousands of anarchists taking part in
the demonstrations in Genoa.  We say the G8 is at the
top of a system of exploitation and human misery, a
system whose role it is to preserve.  We are not
pleading with them to be reasonable.  We are saying
their world must come to an end!   The world's people
need an economy based on filling their needs, not on
making profits.  We need a political system without
professional politicians; a federation of self managed
communities and workplaces.  This is not a demand we
make of the G8 - the world we need cannot come from
above but must be won through the struggle of all of us
below.

                  -----

        Debt relief & Democracy

Polls show huge majorities in favour of debt
cancellation. In Britain for instance 69% of the public
would have liked to see the government celebrate the
Millennium by cancelling Third World debts.  In Ireland
hundreds of thousands signed a Jubilee 2000 petition
for debt cancellation.

While the G8 summit, for PR reasons, talks of poverty
relief the reality is that even the limited debt
cancellation programs agreed to date have been
farcical. The report From Debt to Poverty Eradication
revealed that "The total reduction in debt repayments
delivered for all 41 countries since the adoption of
the HIPC (Highly Indebted Poor Countries) programme in
1996 amounted to only US$1.1 billion. In that time, the
41 HIPC countries paid a total of US$35 billion towards
their outstanding debts".

This is the reality of the G8.  This is why tens of
thousands people will demonstrate in Genoa this
weekend.  But it is also the reality of capitalism.  
All the G8 countries claim to be democracies, their
rulers claim to represent the interests of the
population.  In reality they represent the big
companies based there.  These are the companies which
not only pay their election bills (George Bush got
seventy five million dollars from oil companies towards
his election expenses) but who own the mass media.  
This same media that will tell you that the Genoa
protesters are a combination of mindless hooligans or
misguided innocents.

                 -------

          News from Genoa

You can't trust the mainstream Irish media to
accurately report what is happening in Genoa.

If you have internet access there are many alternative
news sources available.  For links to them and
background details go to www.struggle.ws/global.html or
join the mailing list by sending an email to
global_irl-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Dozens of eyewitness reports, photos, sound files and
even video direct from the protesters at
www.indymedia.org/

---
You can download the PDF file of this leaflet from
http://struggle.ws/wsm/pdf/leaf/genoa.html
                 -----

Events in Dublin

Join us in distributing this leaflet (text above) on
Thursday 19th July at
16.30 at Tara Street Dart Station
18.00 Bottom of Grafton Street
or on Saturday 21st from 12.30 at the Central Bank
(Globalise Resistance meeting from 13.00)

Monday 23nd - Anarchist meeting

Eyewitness report from the Genoa demonstrations
8pm in the Bachelor Inn (upstairs), Bachelors Walk
(beside O'Connell Bridge)

Irish anarchists who will have just returned from the
anti-G8 demonstrations in Genoa will give an account of
their experiences there.

Saturday 28th - Irish demonstration
Workshops in Liberty Hall from 11.00, march from
outside at 15.00. Organised by Globalise Resistance


           --- PDF Poster ---

A poster advertising independent media sources has
also been added to a non WSM section of the site, we
include details of this below.  It is also focused on
Genoa.

-----

What is really happening in Genoa?

Are you not able to get to Genoa but would like to help
the protests.  One way you can help is by getting news
out about what is happening where you live.  But even
better is if you can show others how to get this
information themselves.

To help with this the Struggle collective have produced
a PDF poster that advertises indymedia and our own page
of link on this struggle.  Anyone can go to our site,
print out and then copy and distribute locally copies
of this poster.  The text of it is below, you will also
find a small gif of it on the site itself.  There are
more instructions on the site

We have previously done similar posters for the
Zapatista march and for the May Day protests.  Hundreds
of people reported using these posters, see our PDF
page for details.

Download the poster from
http://struggle.ws/pdf/genoa_poster.html

--Text of poster ---

What is really happening in Genoa?

The main stream media has consistently lied about the
growing wave of anticapitalist protests, from J18
London to S26 Prague, to Quebec.

[graphic from Prague]

You can't expect them to tell you what is really
happening in Genoa but if you have the internet you can
find out yourself!

Dozens of eyewitness reports, photos, sound files and
even video direct from the protesters at
http://www.indymedia.org/

Background information and links to details of previous
protests at
http://www.struggle.ws/global.html

----

Download the poster from
http://struggle.ws/pdf/genoa_poster.html

or download the leaflet from
http://struggle.ws/wsm/pdf/leaf/genoa.html

<-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><-><->

From Irelands's Workers Solidarity Movement
http://www.struggle.ws/wsm.html

Read the International Anarchist Platform
and subscribe to the AP list
http://www.struggle.ws/platform.html


            ********
       ****** The A-Infos News Service ******
      News about and of interest to anarchists
                       ******
        COMMANDS: lists@ainfos.ca
        REPLIES: a-infos-d@ainfos.ca
        HELP: a-infos-org@ainfos.ca
        WWW: http://www.ainfos.ca/
        INFO: http://www.ainfos.ca/org

Greenpeace Activists Facing 11 years for Star Wars Action

Fifteen Greenpeace activists and two journalists are facing extremely serious charges after the Star Wars missile test was delayed on Saturday evening. The group faces jail terms of more than ten years if found guilty of conspiring to violate a safety zone and violating an order.

The activists, from the U.S, UK, Germany, India, Sweden, Australia, Spain and Canada, appeared at the federal Court in Los Angeles on Monday evening. The independent photographer and videographer were charged along side them.

These incredibly harsh charges against a totally peaceful act of opposition are a clear indication of President Bush's dictatorial and non democratic approach to aggressively deploying Star Wars.

Please visit the Greenpeace Cybercentre at:

http://cybercentre.greenpeace.org//t/s/995390018/index_html

to read more about this serious situation and to find out what you can do to support the arrested activists.

VISIT THE CYBERCENTRE

Please don't forget to visit the Greenpeace Cyberactivist Community at:
http://act.greenpeace.org

Please send a letter to Dr. Jim Balsinger, Regional
Administrator of the National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS) to help stop the dramatic declines of Steller
sea lions, sea otters, sea birds, and other wildlife
in the North Pacific Ocean off Alaska.  

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=419220A23288B0717033651C199

We encourage you to take action by August 1, 2001

Help AOC Save Alaska's Marine Wildlife

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

Since 1960, the number of Steller sea lions in western
Alaska has plummeted by more than 80%. Steller sea
lion populations dropped in the 1960s when large fishing
boats with huge trawl-nets and on-board processing
factories began pulling billions of pounds of pollock
and other "groundfish" - staples of the Steller sea
lion's diet - from nearshore Alaskan waters.

In 1997, these Steller sea lion populations were officially
listed as "endangered" under the US Endangered Species
Act. The lack of food for Steller sea lions and other
marine life are leading to their continued decline.
Simply put, many of these animals are starving to death
because large fishing operations are catching too much
of the food they need.

<b>Intensive, Industrial Fishing Operations Put Magnificent
Ecosystem at Risk</b>

Few areas are as productive as the cold, nutrient-rich
waters of the North Pacific Ocean off Alaska. Two areas
of this region, the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska,
support large populations of fish and are home to a
variety of sea life. 48 million seabirds breed in Bering
Sea and Gulf of Alaska colonies. Another 30 million
seabirds that breed elsewhere, also depend on these
waters during critical stages of their life.

These tremendous populations of wildlife need an enormous
amount of food, especially fish, to survive. Unfortunately,
wildlife in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska that
rely on fish are in decline. These declines coincide
with the expansion of the world's largest commercial
trawl fishing industry, which annually remove nearly
4 billion pounds of pollock, cod, and atka mackerel
from the waters of the North Pacific.  

<b>Federal Agency Study of Impacts of Fishing on Ecosystem
Falls Short</b>

Alarmed by the growing extent of wildlife declines,
AOC and other citizen groups, are compelling NMFS to
examine the environmental effects of commercial fishing
in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska on other marine
wildlife. A court order requires NMFS to prepare a
"Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement" (SEIS)
that includes an analysis of the full impact of commercial
fishing of groundfish on the area's entire marine ecosystem.
This analysis supplements a slim, 20 page document
written 20 years ago. The size of the fishing industry
in the area has significantly changed since then.

NMFS released its first draft of the study in January.
The draft document fails to provide a range of reasonable
alternatives to minimize the environmental effects
of the Alaska groundfisheries. Rather than provide
a thorough study of how the North Pacific region could
be more comprehensively managed, NMFS puts "blinders"
on and focuses on one aspect of the environment at
a time. In other words, NMFS does not present an alternative
management plan that adequately studies how fishing
operations can lessen their impact on the ecosystem
as a whole, including birds, mammals, habitat, and
other fish. This makes it difficult to assess the different
possibilities for improving the management of groundfish
fisheries in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska. This
approach continues to put Alaska's ocean wildlife,
Native subsistence users, and future fishing opportunities
at risk from intensive, industrial fishing.

In addition, the draft SEIS fails to adequately address
the environmental harm caused by large scale trawling
to the marine environment and the possible advantages
of improved technology that would lessen this harm.
Bottom trawl fishing boats drag heavy nets along the
sea floor. These nets crush marine life and damage
sensitive habitats that are integral parts of the ocean's
web of life.

Now is the Time to Speak Up! NMFS officials need to
hear from concerned ocean activists who believe that
working on a piecemeal approach to managing the North
Pacific region will only result in more wildlife declines.
Please add your voice to thousands of Alaskans and
other Americans by sending a message to NMFS by July
26, 2001.

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

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=419220A23288B0717033651C199  

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:
Dr. Jim Balsinger


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

Please accept these comments on the Draft Programmatic
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (Draft
PSEIS) for Alaska Groundfish Fisheries. Although the
National Marine Fisheries Service has made serious
progress in terms of describing the fishery and the
affected environment, I believe the alternatives section
of the document needs to be extensively revised. Specifically,
I believe that NMFS has failed to consider true alternatives
to the status quo, as required by the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA). Each of the alternatives focuses
on protecting one component of the environment without
adequate consideration of other components and does
so without regard to the full range of the agency's
statutory mandates. For instance, only one set of alternatives
(Alternative 2.1 and 2.2) seek to achieve a meaningful
level of protection for endangered Steller sea lions,
as required by the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Since
the fishery management plans must, as a matter of law,
protect Steller sea lions, all of the alternatives
must do so as well. While the alternatives can and
should look at various ways to provide the protection
required by the ESA, each must comply with the minimum
standards of that law, as well as each of the other
laws that govern management of the oceans, such as
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management
Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The alternatives
in the Draft PSEIS do not do that, and I urge NMFS
to develop a new set of alternatives that will. This
is the only way to provide the public with a meaningful
opportunity to participate in the public process and
to present the decision makers with real options for
implementing an alternative to the current fishery
management plans.

When the agency crafts this new set of alternatives,
I support consideration of a "Fishery Ecosystem Plan"
alternative. Such an alternative should accomplish
the following objectives: (1) Comprehensively protect
marine habitat; (2) Redefine overfishing in an ecosystem
context; (3) Conserve native species and biological
diversity at genetic, species, and ecosystem scales;
(4) Reduce bycatch; (5) Improve observer coverage and
vessel monitoring systems; (6) Reduce capacity and
consider establishing share-based quota allocations;
(7) Recognize traditional indigenous subsistence uses
of living marine resources; and (8) Adopt a coordinated
scientific research plan.

Until we more fully consider the effects of management
decisions on the entire North Pacific ecosystem, we
risk a future without the abundance of wildlife and
habitats that can restore this area to sustainability
and magnificence.  

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

Remind the German Government of its commitment to environmental
protection. Ask German Chancellor Schroeder to step
forward for environmental protection and transparency
for the German export credit agency (ECA) Hermes.

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=419220A23270B0717055714C209

Visit the web address below and tell your friends to
take action on this important campaign!
http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/ReformECAb/forward?rk=epqUq8d1f7zyW

We encourage you to take action by July 24, 2001

Reform Germany's Export Credit Agency

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

Export Credit Agencies (ECAs) are governmental or quasi-governmental
entities that support a country's exports and investments
abroad. Too often, these exports and investments are
for large industrial and infrastructure projects in
developing countries that can cause environmental and
social devastation. Germany's government committed
itself to reforming its export credit agency (ECA)
-- Hermes -- to adopt environmental, social, and sustainable
development safeguards. After two years of debate behind
closed doors, the German Government announced in April
2001 new guidelines for Hermes, which helps finance
US $17 billion worth of exports and foreign investment
annually. But this "reform" lags far behind the steps
that have been taken in other countries to improve
the environmental and social performance of their export
credit agencies (see sample letter below for examples
of what other countries are doing to reform their own
ECAs).

World leaders will discuss ECAs at this week's G8 Summit
meeting in Genoa, Italy. Take action and remind Chancellor
Gerhard Schroeder of the German Government's commitment
to environmental protection. Ask Chancellor Schroeder
to step forward for environmental protection and transparency
for the German export credit agency (ECA) Hermes.

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

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=419220A23270B0717055714C209  

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:
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder


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

I was surprised to learn how much Germany lags behind
many other industrialized nations with regards to binding
environmental and social standards for its export credit
agency Hermes. I am aware that the German government
usually cares very much about environmental and social
issues. Therefore, please allow me to share with you
some examples of other countries' superior performance
reforming their export credit agencies (ECAs). They
might be useful in view of the upcoming Genoa summit
where you will discuss the question of binding environmental
guidelines for export credit agencies with your colleagues:

- Canada asked its Auditor General to audit the effectiveness
of its ECA's Environmental Review Framework. The publicly
available report recommends improved transparency,
clear environmental standards, and an environmental
review regardless of the nature and level of financial
support requested from the Canadian ECA. The Canadian
government has promised to react to the report.
- Since 1995, the US Export-Import Bank has had its
own quantitative and qualitative guidelines that are
largely based on World Bank standards. Prior to decisions
on whether the EXIM Bank will support a project, the
name, location and description of the project is made
available on the web, which allows for comments and
input from project critics.
- To develop possible reforms for the Japanese ECA
(JBIC), the Japanese Government put in place a Commission
including JBIC staff, governmental officials, NGOs
and environmental/social experts. Its report is open
for public comments.
- The UK ECA has new business principles since December
2000 that include an evaluation of human rights impacts
and impacts on the debt burdens of recipient countries.
- The French ECA Coface agreed to put on its website
all of the projects insured by COFACE that are valued
at over 20 million Euro. This is a first step towards
improved transparency and allows the public to see
which companies are profiting from pubic assistance.

We hope that this might give you some ideas for possible
improvements for Hermes.

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

To: All Activists
From: Steve Holmer
Date: July 17, 2001

Senate Places Limits on Fuel Treatments - Rebukes Bush Plan to Drill
Monuments - Defends ESA

The Senate completed action on the Interior Appropriations bill last
week with a flurry of goods news.  Language was inserted into the bill
directing that 60% of the hazardous fuels budget must be spent in the
urban wildlands interface.  

In addition, an amendment by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) to prevent energy
developments in National Monuments passed while an amendment offered by
Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) to suspend the ESA to allow water diversions in
the Klamath Basin was defeated 52-48.  The Senate also did not include
language extending the fee demonstration program.  Many thanks to all
who weighed in on these issues.

Interior Bill Moves to Conference Committee
We are expecting the Interior Conference Committee, where the House and
Senate versions of the bill will be negotiated, to take place in
September.  The forest community now has a number of positive
opportunities to convince this Conference to approve a final Interior
bill that will reform the fire program, halt new logging subsidies and
prevent the fee-demonstration program from becoming permanent.

Restriction on Fuel Treatments a Good First Step
The requirement for the Forest Service to spend 60% of the $209 million
hazardous fuels money in the urban wildland interface zone is a positive
step in the right direction for this controversial program that is
rapidly becoming mired in logging projects in pristine areas far away
from communities at risk from fire. This is comparable to a requirement
in last year's emergency fire appropriation that was mostly ignored by
the Forest Service.

While restricting 60% of projects to the urban wildland interface
doesn't begin to solve all of our problems with the fire program, it is
a significant reform that offers the public an opportunity to keep
pressuring the agency to steer projects towards the interface zone and
to fight harmful projects in backcountry areas.   We will be asking the
conferees to keep this language in the final Interior bill and to add
additional environmental safeguards to the program such as restrictions
on old growth logging.

House Interior Bill Includes Language Supporting Fire Plans
The House included language in the Interior report which accompanies the
Interior bill urging the Forest Service to complete fire plans for all
National Forests by 2004.   Fire plans are urgently needed to allow the
agency to more appropriately respond to wildfire and to stop knee-jerk
suppression actions.  Please see
http://www.americanlands.org/forestweb/fire_planning_op_ed.htm for a
recent letter to the editor by Timothy Ingalsbee about the importance of
fire plans.
Because this is just Report Language to the Interior bill, it does not
have the force of law.  We will be asking the conferees to accept this
language, and to elevate it to Bill Language so that it legally mandates
the Forest Service to have fire plans for all National Forests completed
by 2004.

Stewardship Contracting Rider Still in the Bill
Unfortunately, the Senate bill includes language that would authorize an
additional 28 stewardship pilot projects.  These pilot projects allow
the Forest Service to give away National Forest trees to pay for
restoration and maintenance projects.  This is similar to the purchaser
road credit program that allowed the Forest Service to pay for road
construction with trees.  This program was eliminated several years ago
because it was subsidizing logging.  

The Forest Service already has 56 stewardship projects authorized by
Congress to test out "goods for services" and other ideas.  This is more
than adequate to provide enough information to fairly evaluate these new
authorities.  A number of the projects have already proven to be
complete failures because of the amount of logging that was proposed.  
Please see http://www.americanlands.org/forestweb/pilot_projects.htm for
more information on four current stewardship projects.

We will be asking the conferees to oppose the additional 28 projects.  
If that is not accepted, we will propose allowing the projects go
forward without the "goods for services" authority which creates the
incentive for logging.

Senate Does Not Extend Fee Demo
The Senate Interior bill does not contain the four year extension and
unlimited expansion of the fee demo program beyond the current one
hundred locations as included in the House bill.  The program is facing
increasing public opposition and to enforce the program the agency is
beginning to redirect its extremely limited law enforcement capacity
towards giving tickets and patrolling parking lots.  

If the House language is accepted by the Conference Committee, this
would essentially make the fee demo program permanent because of the
four year extension.  The program is likely to be entrenched after four
years, and the agency will be even more dependent on these revenues just
to continue operating.  

We will be asking the conferees to accept the Senate language, which
would end the fee demo program as of Sept. 30 this year.  If that isn't
accepted, we will ask the conferees to limit the extension to only one
year, and to not lift the cap of 100 locations where fees can be
charged.

August Recess an Opportunity to Educate Lawmakers
Now is an excellent time to request a meeting with your Rep. and two
Senators for the August recess (Aug. 3 - Sept. 3) to discuss these
issues.

List of Interior Conferees
The Conference Committee will be made up of members of the House and
Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee.  Given the parity between
the number of Republicans and Democrats on the Conference, every vote is
extremely important.  If your Rep. or Senator is on this list, please
try to meet with them over the August recess, write a letter outlining
these concerns, or call 202/224-3121:

Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) Chairmen Rep. Joe Skeen (R-NM)
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) Rep. Ralph Regula (R-OH)
Sen. Ernest Hollings (D-SC) Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ)
Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) Rep. Charles Taylor (R-NC)
Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) Rep. George Nethercutt (R-WA)
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) Rep. Zack Wamp (R-TN)
Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA)
Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) Rep. John Peterson (R-PA)
Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) Rep. David Obey (D-WI)
Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) Rep. Norm Dicks (D-WA) ranking D
Sen. Pete Domenici (R-AZ) Rep. John Murtha (D-PA)
Sen. Robert Bennett (R-UT) Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA)
Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY)
Sen. Ben Campbell (R-CO) Rep. Martin Sabo (D-MN)

All Reps and Senators Can Help
If your Rep. or Senators is not on the conference committee, they can
still help by contacting the conferees by writing a letter.  Please
contact your Rep. and Senators who are not listed above (particularly if
they are friendly office) and ask them to write a letter to the
conferees.   

Here is a quick summary of the asks we are making to the Interior
Appropriations Conference Committee:

1.  Support the Senate Language requiring 60% of the hazardous fuel
treatment funds be spent in the urban wildlands interface to protect
lives and property.
2.  Support the House Report Language encouraging completion of fire
management plans for all National Forests by 2004 and support making
this bill language to make this provision mandatory.
3.  Oppose the Senate language authorizing 28 additional stewardship
pilots.
4.  Oppose the House language extending the fee demonstration four years
and lifting the cap on the number of locations fees can be charged.
Steve Holmer
Campaign Coordinator
American Lands
726 7th Street SE
Washington, D.C. 20003
202/547-9105
202/547-9213 fax
mailto:wafcdc@americanlands.org
http://www.americanlands.org

SAVE OUR ENVIRONMENT ACTION CENTER UPDATE

By using the Save Our Environment Action Center, you are working
together with the nation's most influential environmental advocacy
groups in the crucial battles to protect our air and water, forests
and oceans, climate, wilderness, and wildlife.

July 17, 2001

************************************************************
After attacks by the Bush administration on drinking water and global
warming solutions, the Clean Air Act is now threatened by the
administration and a coalition of the oil refining industry and the
dirtiest power companies in the nation. Speak out now to stop this
threat and clear our air of *hundreds of thousands of tons* of
pollution.

To email an official comment, just reply to this message (comments are
due next week, so do it today!).
************************************************************

The vast majority of air pollution from non-vehicular sources comes
from old power plants and refineries that use decades-old pollution
control devices. The New Source Review provision of the Clean Air Act
requires modern pollution controls to be installed in these old
facilities whenever they are expanded or significantly modified. If
enforced, this rule would reduce pollution by hundreds of thousands of
tons each year, preventing thousands of premature deaths annually.

But many of companies operating these facilities routinely break the
law by ignoring these rules, and have been working for years to weaken
them. Currently, penalties and fines are pending against dozens of
power plants and refineries across the nation that are emitting
massive amounts of illegal pollution. Instead of prosecuting these
polluters, President Bush is siding with industry, and has ordered the
EPA to seek public comments on whether to weaken these safeguards.

Among the companies and interests lined up on the anti-environment
side of this issue are: Southern Company, ExxonMobil, the Edison
Electric Institute, the National Petrochemical and Refiners
Association, the American Chemistry Council, and the American
Petroleum Institute.

Don't allow the Bush administration to let our nation's biggest
polluters off the hook. Please send the EPA a message today (the
official 30-day comment period ends July 27). We've made it easy for
you -- just reply to this email and we'll automatically email the
message below to the EPA's official comment address. Or, if you prefer
to send your own message, the address to use is
a-and-r-docket@epamail.epa.gov [please use "Uphold strong New Source
Review regulations" as your subject line].

Once again, thanks for being part of the Save Our Environment activist
network and for taking action to help preserve and protect the Earth's
natural treasures and quality of life. Remember, you can increase the
impact of your support by encouraging your family and friends to visit
the Save Our Environment Action Center as well. We've made it easy for
you with our "Tell a Friend" feature which allows you to send an
electronic postcard right from the site.

Save Our Environment Action Center --

http://www.saveourenvironment.org/

************************************************************
Email message -- just reply to this email and we'll send this message
to the official EPA comment address.

Subject: Uphold strong New Source Review regulations

Administrator Christie Whitman
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC  20460

Dear Administrator Whitman and EPA staff,

I urge you to maintain the strongest possible "new source review"
regulations requiring old power plants and refineries to meet modern
pollution limits when they are significantly modified. I also urge you
to support efforts to sharply reduce all four of the major power plant
pollutants: smog, soot, mercury and carbon dioxide.

Pollution from power plants and refineries causes asthma attacks,
brain damage and an estimated 9,000 annual premature deaths; it also
contributes to global warming, an environmental crisis of massive
proportions. But the dirtiest power companies and refiners, like
Southern Company and ExxonMobil, are trying to roll back the Clean Air
Act so that their older and dirtier facilities can continue to emit
hundreds of thousands of tons of excess pollution each year.

Don't let the nation's biggest polluters off the hook. Again, maintain
strong new source review regulations for old power plants and
refineries.

Sincerely,

[your name and address]

1. U’WA UPDATE FROM THE GROUND
2. URGENT ACTION ALERT to STOP MILITARY AID AND FUMIGATION IN
        COLOMBIA!
3. COLOMBIA MOBILIZATION SEPT 27 & 28 IN WASHINGTON DC
4. RAND CORPORATION REPORT ON COLOMBIA

1.U’WA UPDATE
OXY’s exploratory drilling at the Gibralter 1 test well on U’wa
ancestral territory continues to be riddled with problems and work
slippages.  According to reports from the ground, the company’s diamond
drill bit broke last month, further delaying the project and it is still
unknown whether commercially viable levels of oil will be found.  A
critical juncture lies ahead in the coming months as OXY will either
move into the production phase at the Gibralter site, or begin
exploratory drilling anew in another area within U’wa ancestral
territory.  The U’wa also report that there has been a significant
increase in military presence in the area.  Estimates put the number of
armed soldiers in the Samore oil block and Auruca province at
approximately 15,000.    

2.  Urgent Action: Call Your Representatives Today!  Stop Military Aid
and Fumigation in Colombia!

While OXY’s project continues to be plagued by problems, the U’wa have
identified another threat to their lives, land, and culture—one that not
only threatens their people, but thousands of other indigenous,
campesino, and Afro-Colombian communities throughout Colombia who are
already suffering from rights abuses from a U.S. backed military (and
their tacit support of the paramilitaries) and seeing their legitimate
crops, livestock, water, rainforest ecosystems, and physical health
decimated by the aerial spraying of the Monsanto produced
‘Super-Roundup’ to allegedly destroy coca crops.

In a February 7th interview with the San Francisco Bay Guardian, Roberto
Perez, President of the U’wa Traditional Authority, talked about the
implications of Plan Colombia:

“Plan Colombia is a plan for violence. The Colombian government says its
purpose is to eradicate coca production, but that's not the case. It is
directed against the guerrillas and against the people. The money the
United States is spending in Plan Colombia will go to protecting the
international companies by purchasing arms, more sophisticated
equipment, and to constructing military bases in the richest zones. And
when they say they will eradicate the coca crops by aerial fumigation,
they are contaminating the environment, the rivers, and the
[agricultural] cultivations for consumption.  When you analyze the
regions where they have chosen to apply those resources, their first
priority is Putumayo, because it is rich in natural resources. Second is
the Colombian Amazon; third, the northeastern forests where our
territory is located; and fourth is the Pacific coast. Those are the
strategic areas, and that is where they will construct military bases.

Resistance is the only alternative that we can continue to advance in
the long run. When we attain more unity, I think we can do something for
the world. So our message to people in the United States would be,
first, to exert pressure from here to put a stop to Plan Colombia, and,
two, to stop all U.S. military intervention in Colombian territory. Plan
Colombia is a death sentence for us.”

This week presents those of us who have been doing solidarity actions
and organizing in support of the U’wa’s uncompromising resistance to
OXY’s oil project with a key opportunity to affect the next
Congressional military aid package to Colombia and to stand up for human
rights, dignity, and social, environmental and economic justice not only
for the U’wa, but for all Colombians.

The bill goes to the House floor around July 18th and there is likely to
be amendments offered to the bill that would cut US military aid to
Colombia and put a brake on fumigation. The Senate Foreign Operations
Subcommittee will consider the foreign operations appropriations bill
during the third week of July.

The best way for us to support the U’wa and peace and justice in
Colombia this week is for us to call our representatives immediately
(see subcommittee list below or go to www.house.gov/writerep and
www.senate.gov) and urge them to vote YES on any amendment to cut
Colombian military aid. Also tell them to vote YES on any amendment to
halt fumigation.  To reach any office in the house or senate, call the
Congressional switchboard at (202) 224-3121.  If you get an indication
of how a member will vote, please e-mail lawg@lawg.org with a report.

Please read the below action alert from the Latin American Working Group
for details on amendments related to military aid and fumigation, and
background on the Andean Regional Initiative- Bush’s request for aid to
Colombia and the Andean region.

URGENT ACTION ALERT FROM THE LATIN AMERICAN WORKING GROUP

Now is your chance to influence US aid to Colombia!  The Bush
Administration's aid request for Colombia and the Andean region, which
this year is part of the annual foreign operations appropriations bill,
will hit the House floor around July 18th.  During the debate,
representatives will have a chance to voice their opinions and vote on
the aid package; it is especially important that we let our members of
Congress know how we feel about aid to the Colombian military and
fumigation.  

Recent Events in the House:  The Foreign Ops Appropriations bill started
on June 27th in the House Foreign Operations Subcommittee, where the
first draft of the bill was ‘marked up’ or debated and voted on.  The
debate during the markup showed that there is increasing support for
cutting military aid to Colombia and putting a moratorium on fumigation.
From there, the bill went to the full Appropriations Committee, where
Rep. Pelosi (D-CA) introduced an amendment that would cut $100 million
in military aid to Colombia.  After a heated debate, in which several
Democrats stood to voice support for the amendment, the amendment was
defeated by a vote of 39-22.

Urgent Action!  On the House floor, Rep. McGovern (D-MA) will offer a
global health amendment which will significantly reduce military aid to
Colombia and transfer the money into programs such as TB prevention,
child survival, and maternal health, much like Pelosi's amendment in
committee.  There will most likely be other amendments offered on
fumigation and domestic treatment and prevention. Contact your
representative immediately to tell them to vote YES on McGovern's
amendment and any amendment to cut Colombian military aid. Also tell
them to vote YES on any amendment to halt fumigation.  If you get an
indication of how a member will vote, please e-mail lawg@lawg.org with a
report.

If you are not sure who your representative is, please see
http://www.house.gov/writerep.

Update and Urgent Action: Senate

The Senate Foreign Operations Subcommittee will consider their version
of the foreign operations appropriations bill during the third week of
July.  Members of the subcommittee and the full appropriations committee
should hear from constituents.  Please contact both your senators, doing
so before July 20 if they are on the appropriations committee, and tell
them your opinion on US military aid to Colombia and the fumigation
policy.

Senate Appropriations Committee Members

Democrats:

Robert Byrd (WV)
Daniel Inouye (HI)
Ernest Hollings (SC)
Patrick Leahy (VT)
Tom Harkin (IA)
Barbara Mikulski (MD)
Harry Reid (NV)
Herb Kohl (WI)
Patty Murray (WA)
Byron Dorgan (ND)
Dianne Feinstein (CA)
Richard Durbin (IL)
Tim Johnson (SD)
Mary Landrieu (LA)

Republicans:

Ted Stevens (AK)
Thad Cochran (MS)
Arlen Specter (PA)
Pete Domenici (NM)
Christopher Bond (MO)
Mitch McConnell (KY)
Conrad Burns (MT)
Richard Shelby (AL)
Judd Gregg (NH)
Robert Bennett (UT)
Ben Nighthorse Campbell (CO)
Larry Craig (ID)
Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX)
Jon Kyl (AZ)

It is crucial to voice our opinions on current US policy in Colombia and
the Andean region at each stage in the process.  Please spread the word
and contact your senators and representatives as soon as possible!

Background. In late March, the Bush Administration announced its plans
to continue a military counter-drug strategy in the Andes with its
proposed "Andean Regional Initiative"(ARI).  This initiative requests
military and social and economic aid for Colombia and its neighbors:
Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Brazil, and Panama.  Most of this aid
will come through the regular foreign operations appropriations bill,
but additional aid will come through the defense appropriations bill.  
Together, the aid totals about $1 billion in military and police
assistance and economic and social aid to the Andean region for 2002
(this is on top of the $1.3 billion two-year package approved last
year).  The administration intends to send a massive $363.04 million in
training, spare parts and equipment for Colombia's military and police
forces.

The administration is selling the ARI package as "balanced," with 50% of
the money going to regional security forces and 50% for social and
economic development.  However, the request for Colombia is still 71%
military.  The package also includes sharp increases in military aid for
all of Colombia's neighbors.  The one positive element, a result of all
of the criticism last year, is an increase in alternative development
assistance (crop substitution programs) to a number of countries in the
region.  For a full analysis of the package by the Center for
International Policy, please see
http://www.ciponline.org/colombia/2002request.htm.

For more information, please visit www.lawg.org or call 202/546-7010.

3. NATIONAL MOBILIZATION ON COLOMBIA
September 27-28, 2001
Washington, DC

This event marks the start of a large, national mobilization against US
militarization of the Andean Region.  It is sponsored by organizations
including: human rights groups, labor groups, environmental groups,
peace groups, religious groups, Latin America solidarity groups,
indigenous rights groups, and groups interested in populations of the
African Diaspora—among others!  Please send this to your lists and come
join the action in DC:

Thursday:
Hear Personal Testimony at Workshops and Panels!
Meet with Key Policy Makers and Experts!
Lobby Your Congresspersons!
Reunion of Witness For Peace Returned Colombia-Delegates!

Friday:
More Workshops!
Nonviolent Demonstration/Vigil on the Capitol Steps!
Strategy Sessions To Build a Local and National Movement!
Fiesta to Celebrate Colombia!

Thursday and Friday morning WORKSHOPS:

· The "War on Drugs"
· Displacement and Refugee Issues
· The Situation of Human Rights Defenders
· Labor in Colombia
· Immigration/TPS
· Quagmires: Is Colombia another Vietnam?
· Aerial Eradication: Environmt & Health Impacts
· Impacts on Indigenous peoples
· The hidden face: Afro-Colombians
· Globalization: The Role of Oil, Trade, TNCs, & IFIs
· And more!

The Colombia Mobilization is a national coalition of organizations and
individuals working to transform U.S. policy toward Colombia and the
Andean region.  We share the following principles.

1. We call for an end to U.S. military aid to Colombia and the Andean
region.  Current U.S. military aid to Colombia, including military
training and private contracting, is a failed policy.  As part of the
"War on Drugs," U.S. military assistance is inflaming a violent conflict
and contributing to increased human rights abuses, including massive
displacement.  Afro-Colombians, indigenous groups, trade unionists, the
rural poor, human rights defenders, social organizations, and others
working for peace and justice in Colombia are suffering
disproportionately from these human rights violations.

2. We call for an end to U.S. funding of counter-narcotic aerial
eradication in Colombia and the Andean region.  We recognize that
U.S.-funded aerial eradication, or fumigation, of coca and poppy crops
is destroying critical biodiversity throughout the Amazon region and is
creating health and food-security crises among the local populations.
Aerial eradication is a destructive tool that largely fails to achieve
U.S. policy goals, without addressing the real development needs that
drive people to cultivate coca leaf and poppy.

3. We call for dramatic expansion of drug treatment and prevention in
the United States.  Any sincere effort to curb illegal drug use in the
United States must seriously address the issue of demand, and must
de-emphasize the destructive and ineffective supply-side policies,
including punitive and racist mandatory minimum drug sentencing.

4. We call for the United States to support comprehensive sustainable
economic development alternatives throughout the Andean region, as well
as efforts for peace that include the full participation of civil
society. U.S.-supported international financial institutions, such as
the World Bank and IMF, have promoted development and trade policies in
the Andean region that have failed to address the region's growing
poverty and need for long-term social investment.  Proposed U.S.-led
free trade agreements will further contribute to economic injustice if
they favor large corporations over the needs of the general population.  
For the United States to make a positive contribution in Colombia, the
development and human rights needs
of Colombian people and an emphasis on the peace process must be
incorporated into the policy-making process.

5. We call for the United States to help alleviate the conditions of
refugees and those people internally displaced because of the conflict.
With over 300,000 Colombians internally displaced in 2000, and thousands
of refugees spilling into neighboring countries, US policy is
aggravating a staggering humanitarian crisis that is militarizing
borders and threatening regional stability.  The United States should
increase humanitarian assistance, prevent further displacement by
safeguarding communities' human rights, and provide temporary protected
status (TPS) to Colombians living in the United States whose lives are
in danger because of the conflict.

6. We are committed to nonviolence in our own actions as well as
supporting exclusively nonviolent, negotiated political solutions to the
conflict in Colombia.  We do not support or endorse any armed actor in
the Colombian conflict.

Sign-ons to date:

Amazon Watch
Carolina Interfaith Taskforce on Centra America (CITCA)
Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America
Church of the Brethren, Washington Office
Colombia Human Rights Committee
Colombia Support Network
Common Sense Drug Policy
Disarm Education Fund
Ecumenical Program on Central America and the Caribbean (EPICA)
Fellowship of Reconciliation
Global Exchange
Guatemala Human Rights Commission/USA
Drug Policy Project & The Peace and Security Program
Institute for Policy Studies
International Labor Rights Fund
International Rivers Network
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns
Nicaragua Network
Peace Action
Rainforest Action Network
Rights Action
School of the Americas Watch
Global Ministries/Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
United Church of Christ
Public Life and Social Policy Office
United Church of Christ, Justice and Witness Ministries
United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America (UE)
U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project (USLEAP)
Witness for Peace

For more information www.ColombiaMobilization.org

5.THE RAND CORPORATION REPORT ON COLOMBIA
‘THE COLOMBIAN LABYRINTH: THE SYNERGY OF DRUGS AND INSURGENCY AND ITS
IMPLICATIONS FOR REGIONAL STABILITY’

The Santa Monica-based Rand Corporation, a right-wing conservative think
tank whose reports and recommendations often find their way into U.S.
foreign policy, recently released a report entitled “The Colombian
Labyrinth: The Synergy of Drugs and Insurgency and its Implications for
Regional Stability.”  The report, while admitting that more must be done
to combat drug use in the U.S. and that fumigation has largely been a
failure, explains that “drugs and insurgency are intertwined in
complicated and changing ways, but the former cannot be addressed
without dealing with the latter,” and hence advocates for “improving
Colombia’s capabilities, especially in the military sphere."  The report
exposes many of the underlying policy strategies now being pursued under
Plan Colombia and Bush’s new Andean Initiative but have yet to be
disclosed to the U.S. public: that Plan Colombia is not only a phony
‘war on drugs,’ but rather about solidifying U.S. hegemony in a
growingly unstable region of strategic importance to the U.S. and
Colombia’s four decade long civil war is a threat to U.S. national
security for various reasons, one of which the report cites as access to
the country’s immense oil reserves.  The report recommends abandoning
the current U.S.-Colombia ‘counter-narcotics’ strategy and move towards
an all out ‘counter-insurgency’ strategy.

Below are two more revealing excerpts and the web link where the entire
report can be downloaded for free.

"Drug trafficking and political disintegration in Colombia could
confront the United States, if present trends continue, with the most
serious foreign and security policy crisis in the Western Hemisphere
since the Central American wars of the 1980s. The first question is why
Colombia matters. U.S. policy toward Colombia has been driven to a large
extent by counter-narcotics considerations, but the situation in that
South American country is a national security as much as a drug policy
problem. Colombia is a strategically important country. It is South
America’s fourth largest country in area and the second largest in
population. It is the only South American country with coastlines on
both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and it is contiguous to the
Caribbean basin, Central America, Venezuela and its oil fields, and
Panama and the Canal. Colombia also has some of the largest untapped
petroleum reserves in the Western Hemisphere. Colombia’s trajectory will
also influence the direction of broader trends in the unstable Andean
region and beyond."

"The United States is the only realistic source of military assistance
to the Colombian government on the scale needed to redress the currently
unfavorable balance of power. Further assistance will be needed, beyond
the $862.3 million (out of a $1.3 billion package) approved for Colombia
by the U.S. Congress in 2000. The U.S. program of military assistance to
El Salvador during the Reagan administration could be a relevant model.
Although U.S. military assistance to El Salvador was a matter of
considerable political controversy, there is no question that it
succeeded in transforming the unprepossessing Salvadoran military into a
force capable of turning back a formidable guerrilla threat."

"In conclusion, understanding the Colombian labyrinth drives home the
realization that drugs and insurgency are intertwined in complicated and
changing ways, but the former cannot be addressed without dealing with
the latter. This argues for improving Colombia’s capabilities,
especially in the military sphere." http://www.rand.org/publications/MR/MR1339/

Want to change a bad policy into a win-win-win situation?

Send a message to President Bush and pledge to use your tax rebate for a
good cause. Make a pledge and choose how you want to fulfill it.

http://www.sierraclub.org/brighteridea/index.asp

Over the next few weeks, millions of "advance payment" tax rebate checks
will be sent to many American taxpayers. At the same time, the Bush
administration is abandoning a long list of projects that would help
protect the planet.

You can do something that would be a "win" for your wallet, a "win" for
your planet, and a "win" for your spirit.. You could invest in
energy-efficient upgrades for your home or business. You could support the
work of Earthjustice to defend poor communities from toxic air pollutants.
You could help Trust for Public Land preserve wildlands, or assist Planned
Parenthood's global family planning programs.

Or you could support the Sierra Club's work to shed light on the
environmental record of the Bush administration. Our pledge web page will
take you to all these
options:  http://www.sierraclub.org/brighteridea/index.asp

Take the tax-rebate pledge today!

Natural Resources Defense Council's

LEGISLATIVE WATCH

July 18, 2001

******************************
Please do not reply to this message. See the instructions below for
how to unsubscribe or contact NRDC with questions or comments.
******************************

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 ! =

7/18/01

The Senate has been busy working on appropriations bills to meet
Majority Leader Daschle's (D-SD) goal of passing nine funding bills by
8/3. The Senate already approved funding for the Interior department
and has begun considering appropriations for energy and water
projects. The House is also working quickly, passing its versions of
the Agriculture, Energy and Water, Interior, and Transportation
funding bills, and is currently considering the Commerce department
funding bill.

...

Budget/Appropriations

= N O T E ! =
On 7/17, the House began considering the funding bill for the Commerce
department, which includes agencies responsible for protecting ocean
and coastal resources. This bill, H.R. 2500, contains language that
could undermine the government's ability to protect marine and coastal
resources by blocking funds for marine protected areas. These are
zones that are temporarily or permanently closed to fishing and other
resource extraction to protect marine environments or species.
Although the bill also contains language that has been used in the
past to hinder government efforts to address global warming, efforts
will be made to strip this out and to increase funding to address
global warming.

= N O T E ! =
In additional action on 7/17, the House Appropriations Committee
approved $7.5 billion in funding for the Environmental Protection
Agency. The House bill has several problems, including that it does
not provide full funding to clean up dirty sewer system overflows,
fails to provide adequate funding for federal enforcement efforts, and
jeopardizes pesticide protections by eliminating funding. Other
provisions of concern could affect protections for people exposed to
arsenic, radon and sediments contaminated with toxic materials. The
full House is expected to vote on the bill the week of 7/23; the
Senate Appropriations Committee is expected to pass its bill on 7/19.

= N O T E ! =
Also on 7/17, the Senate approved Sen. Stabenow's (D-MI) proposal to
ban oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes for two years. (The Senate
began consideration of the bill funding energy and water projects on
7/16.) In committee, the Senate improved a provision inserted in the
House bill by Rep. Latham (R-IA) that would have blocked efforts to
save three endangered species on the Missouri River by preventing the
federal government from releasing water in the spring to restore more
natural conditions. Although the Senate compromise would allow water
to be released in the spring, Sen. Bond (R-MO) may try to challenge
this compromise on the Senate floor. The House passed its version of
the energy and water bill on 6/28 by a vote of 405-15. Among its
troubling provisions, the bill authorizes $1 million in studies on an
expensive California water project that would destroy environmental
resources while failing to provide funds for environmental
restoration.

= N O T E ! =
On 7/12, the Senate approved $18.5 billion to fund the Interior
department and related agencies. The bill, H.R. 2217, includes a ban
on oil and gas development in national monuments and bans funds for
even studying oil and gas development in sensitive coastal waters. The
Senate also rejected an effort by the House to prevent offshore oil
and gas drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico in an area that has not
yet been opened to development and rejected a move to override
environmental protections for endangered species by depriving them of
water from the Upper Klamath Lake. On 6/21, the House passed its
version of the Interior bill by a vote of 376-32. In a great victory
for the environment, the House repeatedly rejected key
anti-environment components of the Bush energy agenda. Bipartisan
amendments were approved to reverse Bush administration policies that
would have allowed oil and gas drilling within the boundaries of
national monuments, oil and gas development off the west coast of
Florida, and mining on public lands.

= N O T E ! =
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved $60 billion for
transportation funding on 7/12 (S. 1178). On 6/26, the House approved
its transportation funding bill (H.R. 2299). For the first time in six
years, this bill does not include language blocking the federal
government from considering whether vehicle fuel economy standards
should be increased.

= N O T E ! =
On 7/11, the House approved the fiscal year 2002 funding bill for the
Agriculture department by a vote of 414-16. The House removed a ban on
using federal funds to implement the Kyoto Protocol from the bill.
This ban had been used to obstruct government efforts to address
global warming. However, the bill does not contain funding for
important wetlands reserves, wildlife habitat, and farmland
conservation programs. Environmentalists would like to fully fund
these programs by adding $650 million.

= N O T E ! =
On 7/10, the Senate approved nearly $7 billion in supplemental funding
for fiscal year 2001. This bill, S. 1077, contains $300 million in
financial assistance for low-income households struggling with high
power bills this summer. The House approved its version of the bill
(H.R. 2216) on 6/20.

On 5/6, Congress passed the Bush administration's tax cut bill, H.R.
1836. The bill authorizes a $1.35 trillion tax cut over the next
decade. Opponents of the cut maintain that the huge loss of government
revenue will make it impossible to adequately fund many important
environmental programs.

For a step-by-step guide to our annual odyssey through resolutions,
reconciliations and appropriations, see NRDC's budget process fact
sheet (http://www.nrdc.org/legislation/fbudg.asp).

...

Campaign Finance Reform

= N O T E ! =
On 7/12, the House rejected the campaign finance reform bill (H.R.
2356) introduced by Rep. Shays (R-CT) and Rep. Meehan (D-MA). The
Senate passed S. 27, Sen. McCain's (R-AZ) and Sen. Feingold's (D-WI)
campaign finance reform bill, on 4/2. Both bills would have banned
"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.

...

Clean Air and Energy

= N O T E ! =
Sen. Bingaman (D-NM), the new chair of the Senate Energy and Natural
Resources Committee, is holding hearings on energy policy bills
dealing with renewable energy, vehicle fuel efficiency standards,
hydropower, and energy efficiency. He also plans to begin
consideration of a broad energy policy bill on 7/27. Sen. Bingaman and
the Senate Democratic leadership have been more supportive of energy
conservation measures than their Republican counterparts, and unlike
the Republican leadership, the Democrats oppose drilling for oil and
gas in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. However, environmentalists
do not support the Democratic energy bill (S. 597) introduced by Sen.
Bingaman on 3/22 because, in part, it would increase the use of coal
without environmental safeguards and allow offshore oil and gas leases
in the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico.

= N O T E ! =
On 7/18, the House Science Committee will consider the Comprehensive
Energy Research and Technology Act of 2001. While environmental groups
back provisions in the bill that would provide needed support for
clean and renewable energy research and development programs, they
oppose provisions that would increase the use of coal-fired power
plants and promote new and potentially dangerous nuclear technology
that could encourage the proliferation of nuclear weapons.

= N O T E ! =
Also on 7/18, the House Ways and Means Committee will consider a bill
to create tax incentives for energy development. Environmental groups
oppose this bill because it promotes use of dirty diesel fuel and
coal.

= N O T E ! =
Rep. Tauzin (R-LA), chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee,
and Rep. Dingell (D-MI), ranking minority member, have collaborated on
a bill that will be considered by their committee on 7/17 and 7/18.
This bill would fail to increase fuel economy standards significantly
and encourage an increase in the number of nuclear and coal-burning
power plants.

= N O T E ! =
On 7/17, the House Resources Committee approved Rep. Hansen's (R-UT)
bill, H.R. 2436. Environmental groups oppose this bill because it
would open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas
development, undermine environmental protections on federal lands, and
provide huge federal subsidies for the oil, gas, and geothermal
industries. The bill would also shift the cost of complying with
environmental regulations from industry to taxpayers.

On 6/7, Rep. Matsui (D-CA) introduced a comprehensive energy tax bill
(H.R. 2108) that provides tax incentives for energy conservation and
production. While environmentalists support incentives for energy
efficiency technologies, this bill contains objectionable tax credits
for coal production. This bill is a companion to the Senate bill, S.
596, offered by Sen. Bingaman (D-NM).

Sen. Reid (D-NV), the highest-ranking Democratic member of the Senate
Environment and Public Works Committee in the Republican-controlled
Senate, gave up his chance to become chair of the committee when the
Democrats gained control so that Sen. Jeffords (I-VT) could have the
position. In his new role, Sen. Jeffords will have the opportunity to
move the bipartisan bill that he and Sen. Lieberman (D-CT) authored to
impose mandatory cuts on carbon pollution through committee. The
Jeffords-Lieberman bill, S. 556, has 16 cosponsors and new momentum.
The House bill, H.R. 1256, introduced by Rep. Boehlert (R-NY) and Rep.
Waxman (D-CA) on 3/27 has 112 cosponsors.

On 5/16, Rep. Camp (R-MI) introduced H.R. 1864, a bipartisan bill
aimed at making fuel-efficient hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles more
affordable, and saving consumers money at the gas pump. On 4/24, a
bipartisan group of ten senators led by Sen. Hatch (R-UT) and Sen.
Rockefeller (D-WV) introduced S. 760, a companion Senate bill with the
same goals. The bills link the amount of tax savings for each vehicle
to increased fuel efficiency, and would help decrease both carbon
dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming and the use of
petroleum fuels.

On 5/10, Rep. Olver (D-MA) and Rep. Gilchrest (R-MD) introduced H.R.
1815, a House companion bill to S. 804. Introduced by Senators
Feinstein (D-CA), Snowe (R-ME), Schumer (D-NY), and Collins (R-ME) on
5/1, S. 804 seeks to tighten corporate fuel economy standards for
sport utility vehicles and light trucks. The bill would require that
SUVs and other light trucks increase fuel economy to 27.5 mpg by model
year 2007, expand the current fuel economy standards to trucks
weighing between 8,500-10,000 pounds by 2007, and raise the fuel
economy of the federal government's fleet by 6 mpg. SUVs and light
trucks currently use 43 percent more gasoline per mile than the
average car.

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 7/19, Sen. Feinstein (D-CA) will chair a hearing on her bill, S.
976, in a Senate Energy and Natural Resources subcommittee. The bill
seeks to reauthorize a popular federal and state partnership to ensure
adequate water for urban and agricultural water users, as well as for
wildlife and habitat restoration. Environmental groups are concerned
that this bill will authorize new dams without appropriate review and
will give agricultural water users priority over the environment.

...

Global Warming

= N O T E ! =
Sen. Lieberman (D-CT), chair of the Senate Governmental Affairs
Committee, plans to hold a hearing on 7/18 on a bill to create a
framework within which the United States can develop a comprehensive
program to reduce pollution that contributes to global warming. This
bill, S. 1008, introduced by Sen. Byrd (D-WV) and Sen. Stevens (R-AK)
on 6/8 would require the federal government to develop a robust
strategy to stabilize concentrations of greenhouse gases (those that
exacerbate global warming) in the atmosphere at levels required to
protect human health and the environment.

On 5/16, the House approved a bill to reauthorize the State Department
that contains language, added by Rep. Menendez (D-NJ), which urges the
U.S. to reduce greenhouse gases and continue to participate in
international negotiations on the Kyoto Protocol treaty.

...

Public Health

On 5/22, the House unanimously approved H.R. 1831, a bipartisan bill
that exempts municipal solid waste and small quantities of hazardous
waste from Superfund liability. This bipartisan compromise legislation
moved swiftly through the House because it had the support of key
leaders on both the Commerce Committee and the Transportation
Committee.

On 5/3, Sen. Chafee (R-RI) introduced a bill (S. 830) that would fund
research into links between breast cancer and the environment. Rep.
Lowey (D-NY) introduced a House companion bill (H.R. 1723) on the same
day.

On 4/26, Sen. Boxer (D-CA) led six other Democratic senators in
offering S. 796, a bill designed to inform the public about the health
dangers associated with arsenic in drinking water. The bill also seeks
to inform people that the EPA has decided not to strengthen the
arsenic standards because of cost concerns.

On 4/25, by a vote of 99-0, the Senate approved a popular bipartisan
brownfields redevelopment bill (S. 350), introduced by Senators Smith
(R-NH), Chafee (R-RI), Reid (D-NV), and Boxer (D-CA). The bill
provides states with increased funding and authority to clean up
former industrial sites known as brownfields. The bill now moves to
the House, where its fate is uncertain. The Bush administration has
signaled its support for the bill, but with funding extremely tight,
finding money in the budget for brownfields clean-up may be difficult.

On 4/4, Rep. Waxman (D-CA) introduced H.R. 1413, which would reinstate
the arsenic-in-drinking-water standard of 10 parts per billion (ppb)
issued by the Clinton administration in January and revoked by the
Bush administration in late March. This bill would also provide
funding for local water authorities to bring their systems into
compliance. With 173 cosponsors and the support of environmental and
public health groups, the bill's supporters are pushing hard to
quickly bring it to the floor of the House. In a move also applauded
by environmentalists, Rep. Sanders (I-VT) has introduced H.R. 1252, a
bill that would establish an arsenic-in-drinking-water standard even
lower than the 10 ppb standard in H.R. 1413.

...

Public Lands

= N O T E ! =
On 7/12, the Senate approved, by voice vote, the nomination of J.
Steven Griles to be second in command at the Department of the
Interior. Griles served in President Reagan's Interior department for
eight years. He is a lobbyist and a former industry official who is
expected to push for more industry resource extraction from, and less
environmental protection for, public lands.

= N O T E ! =
On 7/10, the House approved H.R. 2131, a noncontroversial bill
introduced by Rep. Portman (R-OH) that reauthorizes a "debt for
nature" swap program that allows other countries to apply debt
payments to projects aimed at saving tropical forests. The Senate
could take up Sen. Lugar's (R-IN) version of this legislation, S.
1021, before the August recess.

On 6/7, Rep. Simpson (R-ID) introduced the National Monument Fairness
Act of 2001 (H.R. 2114), a bill seeking to curb the president's
ability to either designate new national monuments or expand existing
national monuments under the 1906 Antiquities Act. This bill, which
would require congressional approval for monuments over 50,000 acres
in size, is opposed by the environmental community because it would
hinder swift presidential action to protect important public resources
that are threatened by development.

On 5/1, the House unanimously passed a substantially improved version
of H.R. 601, a bill that redesignates a portion of the Craters of the
Moon National Monument in Idaho as a preserve where traditional
hunting would be allowed. Environmentalists did not oppose the final
version of this bill, because it reflects an agreement that the
Clinton administration had reached with the local community, and it
ensures that the Interior Department retain oversight of hunting
there.

...

Regulatory Reform

= N O T E ! =
As early as 7/18, the Senate could vote on the nomination of John
Graham for a key position within the White House that makes
recommendations on regulations to be issued. Sen. Lieberman (D-CT)
joined Sen. Durbin (D-IL) and Sen. Torricelli (D-NJ) to oppose
Graham's nomination in committee. Environmental, labor, and consumer
groups oppose Graham's nomination because he consistently advocates an
ideological approach to regulation that is hostile to strong
environmental, health, and safety protections.

...

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

...........

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 environmental
organization with over 500,000 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
NY, NY 10011
212-727-4511 (voice) / 212-727-1773 (fax)
General information: nrdcinfo@nrdc.org
Email subscription questions: nrdcaction@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

Dear Friend of Alaska’s Rainforest:

Last year over 1.5 Million Americans -including you- wrote to the US Forest Service asking them to protect America’s last wild National Forests, including Alaska’s Tongass and Chugach.

In January, the US Forest Service responded by issuing the Roadless Area Conservation Rule, protecting the last wild 58.5 million acres of our National Forests, from logging and road construction. It was the overwhelming public support that kept Alaska’s Tongass from being the only forest excluded from this landmark policy.

But now George W. Bush is intent on undermining the most important forest conservation initiative in the past hundred years and placing Alaska’s forests at risk again.  He wants to turn these last wild forests over to the timber industry to open them to logging, mining, drilling, and new road construction.

Your Voice is Needed!

This is your chance to tell the Bush Administration and the Forest Service that you want our wild forests to remain wild.  Please take a few moments of your time to WRITE A LETTER in support of the Roadless Rule as it was published in January.  Be sure to include your own personal stories about your local forests as well as Alaska’s forests and how they enrich your life.

Here are some suggested talking points for drafting your letter.  Don’t forget – you are the nation’s number one expert on why you care about wild forests!

* Specify that these are your official comments on the “the Roadless Area Conservation Rule-proposed changes”

* Tell Chief Bosworth to Protect All of Our Nation’s Roadless Areas, including Alaska’s Tongass and Chugach from All Logging, Roadbuilding and Mining.

* State you wish to see no exemptions or exclusions created to undermine or weaken the Roadless Area Conservation Rule. Be sure to specifically mention that Alaska’s Tongass, the nation’s largest deserves full protection under the policy! (It’s the number one target for Bush and his friends).

~BE SURE TO SIGN YOUR FULL NAME AND ADDRESS!~

Please send your letters by August 31,2001 to:

Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth
C/O ARC
201 Lincoln Street, #1
Sitka, AK 99835
roadless@akrain.org
1-907-747-8873

Your personal letter is by far the most effective way to help protect wild forests.  If you absolutely can not write your own letter, you can send a personalized message from our web site at www.akrain.org

Thanks and please help spread the word!

If at anytime you wish to unsubscribe please visit http://www.akrain.org/howtohelp/default.asp where you can easily remove yourself from the list.  To speak with someone directly please e-mail info@akrain.org or call 907-747-8292.

Thanks for your support.

Alaska Rainforest Campaign Staff.

Care2's alerts newsletter features important steps YOU can quickly
take to help make the world greener, such as sending letters to
political representatives or doing something to green your home. We're
pleased to share with you a special action opportunity from Care2's
nonprofit partner, Environmental Defense.

I. NEW ALERT: Save Our Fragile Coasts
On a fragile stretch of shoreline between two sensitive national marine
sanctuaries on the Central California coast, the U.S. Department of
Interior is preparing to give the go-ahead to oil companies for new
offshore drilling. As many as five new offshore drilling rigs would be
built along the spectacular coast of northern Santa Barbara County and
southern San Luis Obispo County. Immediately to the south lies the
lush ocean environment of the Channel Islands National Marine
Sanctuary, and just to the north is found the rugged Big Sur coast and
the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

This new drilling proposal brings an increased risk of oil spills to some
wild and pristine coastline, home to the slowly recovering population of
threatened California Sea Otters. Discharge of toxic drilling muds and
cuttings, seafloor disturbance from undersea pipeline construction, and
degraded air quality are only a few of the impacts identified in recently
released studies from the Interior Department.

To take action, click here http://www.care2.com/go/redirect/2/2096

II. ACTIVIST TIPS
* Send a message by signing environmental petitions online at
http://www.ThePetitionSite.com. Join thousands of people worldwide by
supporting the environment one signature at a time! Or if you have a
pressing environmental issue, start your own eco-petition and send it
to your local representative.

* Save water during the summer by purchasing a water-saving showerhead.
You can get similar pressure while using half the water!

III. INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE
"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting
to improve the world."
- Anne Frank, Diary of a Young Girl

Dear Fellow NRDC Earth Activist,

We wanted to pass along to you our message about the Navy's plans to
blast the world's oceans with a dangerous new sonar system, and the
urgent need for us to fight back. As an NRDC Earth Action subscriber
you've most likely already taken action on behalf of the whales and
marine mammals threatened by this perilous new technology -- and we
thank you. Now, please do us the great favor of forwarding our message
to everyone you know -- your friends, family, co-workers, discussion
groups -- encouraging them to join us in this critical battle.

Sincerely yours,

James Taylor
Pierce Brosnan
Jean-Michel Cousteau
=====

Dear Friend,

The three of us have never teamed up like this before. But we all
share something in common: a deep love of the ocean and marine
mammals. That's why we're very disturbed by a U.S. military program
that, if approved, will soon be bombarding millions of whales and
dolphins around the world with intense noise.

You may have read about the U.S. Navy's "Low-Frequency Active" (LFA)
sonar program. The military has been testing this new, high-powered
system in secret for years. Now, the Navy wants to deploy it across 80
percent of our planet's oceans. LFA sonar is designed to detect enemy
submarines by flooding vast expanses of the oceans with sound. Leaving
aside the military wisdom of this sonar -- which is still in dispute
-- the environmental dangers are becoming increasingly clear.

Here's the problem: LFA noise is billions of times more intense than
that known to disturb whale migration and communication. Whales and
dolphins depend on their sensitive hearing for survival. To put it
simply, a deaf whale is a dead whale. Deafening noise from the LFA
system will interfere with the vital biological activities of marine
mammals. Scientists fear that long-term exposure to LFA could push
entire populations over the brink into extinction.

Inevitably, there will also be marine mammals unlucky enough to swim
too close to LFA loudspeakers. Imagine an acoustic wave so powerful
that, even at substantial distances, it can destroy your hearing,
cause your lungs or ears to hemorrhage, or even kill you.

We've already seen a glimpse of the resulting carnage. Last year,
whales from four different species stranded themselves and died on
beaches across the northern Bahamas during a Navy military exercise.
All but one of the dead animals examined by researchers had suffered
hemorrhaging around the inner ear -- the telltale sign of acoustic
trauma. The U.S. Navy's own report concluded that it is "highly
likely" that the stranding was caused by the use of mid-frequency
active sonar. But despite this tragic event, the Navy now wants to
deploy LFA, the most extensive active sonar system ever devised.

We know that different frequencies will affect different marine
mammals and that the lower the frequency, the farther it penetrates
the ocean. We believe it is unconscionable to expose marine mammals
around the world to more high intensity sonar. If you agree, then
please join us in taking immediate action; it will take you only a few
seconds.

Just go to http://www.nrdcaction.org/index.asp?step=2&item=518. The
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and Ocean Futures Society
(OFS) have set up this web page to make it easy for you to send
electronic messages of protest to your U.S. senators and
representative. Congress is now deciding the Navy's funding for next
year -- tell them to "Turn Off LFA Sonar" by cutting off its funding.

And please forward this message to your family, friends and
colleagues. NRDC used web activism to help generate a million messages
of protest to Mitsubishi and, just last year, stopped the company from
destroying the last unspoiled birthing ground of the Pacific gray
whale.

Congress cannot ignore millions of us. Together, we can keep whales
and dolphins safe from high-powered sonar.

Thank you for your time and your concern.

Sincerely yours,

James Taylor
Pierce Brosnan
Jean-Michel Cousteau
=====

To unsubscribe from Earth Action, send an email message to
earthaction@nrdcaction.org with REMOVE in the subject line.
To update your email address or other information, go to:
http://www.join.nrdcaction.org/profileeditor

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
Earth Action email: nrdcaction@nrdc.org
http://www.nrdc.org

To: All Activists
From: Anne Martin, Field Director
Date: July 19, 2001

On-line Registration for Corporate Campaigning Forest Action Camp August
11 - 18

REGISTER ONLINE NOW @ http://www.ran.org/chautauqua
Sponsored by ForestEthics, Rainforest Action Network, and the Ruckus
Society

August 11- August 18* - Sonoma County, California
13th Annual Rainforest Action Chautauqua

Join us for this gathering of students and activists from the grassroots
movement for forest protection.  Whether it's your University's
purchasing policies, Staples' paper choices, Boise Cascade's logging
practices or Citigroup's investments, it's time to hold corporations
accountable for the destruction of the world's endangered forests.

The Corporate Campaigning Forest Action Camp will include Ruckus Society
trainings on nonviolent direct action, banner making, and street
theater.  The agenda also includes discussions on the state of our
forests worldwide-specifically in British Columbia and Chile;
presentations on the state of our southern forests;  strategy sessions
and skills sharing on current corporate campaigns; and organizing skill
sessions on building coalitions, local organizing, and working with the
media.

The camp will be located in Oceansong in Sonoma County, near Occidental,
CA from August 11th through the 18th*.  The site has free camping
available, and there are hotels in Occidental. Kids are welcome and dogs
are prohibited. We are offering a free shuttle from San Francisco
airport to the camp but you MUST notify us of your arrival time!

The Corporate Campaigning Forest Action Camp is endorsed by the forest
markets campaign, including Dogwood Alliance, Rainforest Relief, Free
the Planet!, Student environment action Coalition, Student Alliance to
Reform Corporations, National Forest Protection Alliance, American Lands
Alliance, and many many others.

ForestEthics, RAN, and Ruckus are all founded on principles of
nonviolent social change. None of the sponsoring and endorsing
organizations promote or engage in the use of violence or property
destruction.

For more information, get in touch with ForestEthics or RAN: emails
rcrooker@coin.org or ran_meighan@hotmail.com.  Or call Becky
(ForestEthics) 573-817-2623 for more information or Meighan (RAN) at
415-398-4404.  

Register online now: http://www.ran.org/chautauqua
Steve Holmer
Campaign Coordinator
American Lands
726 7th Street SE
Washington, D.C. 20003
202/547-9105
202/547-9213 fax
mailto:wafcdc@americanlands.org
http://www.americanlands.org

Dear Members of Global Response's "Quick Response Network:"

Here's news of a court decision that is very disappointing for all of us who
have written letters over the last 2 years on behalf of Rodolfo Montiel
Flores and Teodoro Cabrera.  Here's a press release from the JustEarth
Network.


Yesterday, the Mexican court upheld the conviction of environmental
defenders Rodolfo Montiel Flores and Teodoro Cabrera Garcia in spite of
evidence of torture presented by the men's lawyers.  Below is a joint
Amnesty International USA/Sierra Club press release on the new development.
It is critical that we increase the pressure on the Mexican government to
immediately and unconditionally release these Amnesty prisoners of
conscience.  Please visit our website at www.amnestyusa.org/justearth for
more information on this case and what you can do to help defend those who
give the earth a voice.  Stay tuned for more suggested actions on this
case.

Best regards,
Folabi
======================================================
For Immediate release
July 18, 2001

            WARNING: UNSAFE TO BE AN ENVIRONMENTALIST IN MEXICO
       Groups call for Immediate Release of Jailed Environmentalists

Washington, DC:  Amnesty International and Sierra Club called the decision
of a Mexican judge earlier this week to deny the appeal of Rodolfo Montiel
Flores and Teodoro Cabrera Garcia, two imprisoned environmentalists, a
severe blow to human rights and the protection of the environment in
Mexico.  It is also a serious set back for the Fox administration, which
had repeatedly expressed support for the release of both men.  Both groups
call on President Vicente Fox to release the two men immediately and
unconditionally.

"The arrest, torture and conviction of these Prisoners of Conscience were
clearly linked to their peaceful efforts to protect the forests in Guerrero
State," said Diego Zavala from Amnesty International USA.  "The request by
the Attorney General's office for the continued incarceration of these men
is a contradiction to President Fox's expressed commitment to human rights.
With this latest decision by the Judge, the Mexican justice system remains
a bastion of impunity. While Rodolfo and Teodoro, both victims of torture,
remain in prison, the accused torturers, members of the Mexican armed
forces, remain free and unencumbered by the justice system."

"This ruling against Rodolfo Montiel Flores and Teodoro Cabrera García will
have an extreme chilling effect on other environmental activists in Mexico"
said Alejandro Queral, of the Sierra Club.  "President Fox could have
quickly moved beyond rhetoric by ensuring that the Attorney General's
office acknowledge the use of torture against Montiel and Cabrera.  The Fox
administration is on the verge of loosing credibility worldwide about his
commitment to respecting human rights and protecting the environment."

On May 2, 1999, Mr. Montiel and Mr. Cabrera were arrested by members of the
40th Infantry Batallion of the Mexican Army. During the raid, the soldiers
shot and killed Salomé Sanchez Ortiz, a local farmer.  Mr. Montiel and Mr.
Cabrera were subsequently beaten, tortured and forced to confess to charges
of planting marijuana and possession of illegal weapons.  On August 28,
2000, Mr. Montiel and Mr. Cabrera were convicted and sentenced to six-year,
eight months and ten-year jail terms respectively.  Last October, a judge
denied an appeal to the two men.  The ruling this week was on their latest
legal recourse, an "amparo," which was based on human and civil rights
concerns.

Amnesty International and Sierra Club believe that the arrest and
conviction of the two environmentalists stem solely from their efforts to
stop the rampant logging in the southern state of Guerrero, Mexico.
Particularly disappointing is the lack of support from the Fox
Administration, which had earlier voiced concern for Mr. Montiel and Mr.
Cabrera. In a March 13 meeting with Amnesty International Secretary General
Pierre Sané, President Fox stated "we want them out," referring to the two
environmentalists. Despite encouraging words from President Fox and
environmental minister Victor Lichtinger, the Attorney General recommended
an opinion of guilt to the Judge and today the Judge upheld the sentence
against Rodolfo and Teodoro.

Both men were declared prisoners of conscience by Amnesty International.
Mr. Montiel, one of the founding members of the Organization of Campesino
Environmentalists of the Sierra de Petatlán and Coyuca de Catalán, is the
2000 recipient of the Goldman environmental Prize and Sierra Club's Chico
Mendes award for environmental heroism.  His efforts to organize farmers to
oppose the rampant and possibly illegal logging in the mountains in
Guerrero, Mexico, and his plight at the hands of the Mexican government
have earned worldwide respect and admiration. Thousands of people around
the world will continue to write to the Mexican government on behalf of Mr.
Montiel and Mr. Cabrera, until they are set free.

 Take Action Now!

****************************
* WILD ALERT
* Friday, July 20, 2001
****************************

The House Resources Committee has approved energy legislation that would mandate oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; give Big Oil companies billions of dollars in relief from royalties they would otherwise owe American taxpayers; and threaten energy development on most other federal public lands,
like Wildlife Refuges and National Forests.

Next stop is the full House. Take action today
at http://www.wilderness.org/takeaction/?step=2&item=529 or tell
your Representative that ripping up the Arctic Refuge while ripping
off taxpayers will do nothing to solve our energy problems.

WHAT A RIP-OFF
Demonstrating that it is radically out of step with the majority of
the American people, the House Resources Committee approved H.R.
2436, the Energy Security Act, introduced by the committee's
chairman, Rep. Jim Hansen (R-1/UT).  The vote paves the way for the
full House to consider the bill, which is expected as soon as next
week.

"This bill will rip up some of America's most outstanding wildlands
while ripping off American taxpayers," said Jim Waltman, Wilderness
Society Director of Refuges and Wildlife.  

Among others, Rep. Hansen's legislation would:

   - *Mandate* oil and gas drilling in the biological heart of the
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge -- the 1.5 million-acres coastal
plain.  It's hard to imagine a more inappropriate place to drill for
oil.

   - Require the Interior Secretary to inventory "all federal lands,"
except national parks and wilderness areas, for coal, geothermal,
wind, and solar energy.  That means all National Monuments, National
Wildlife Refuges, Wild & Scenic Rivers, National Forest Roadless
Areas, BLM Wilderness Study Areas and Areas Of Critical Environmental
Concern, National Conservation Areas, and units of the National Trail
System would be open to energy production.

   - Require suspension of royalties for certain offshore oil and gas
leases, handing Big Oil companies a way out of billions of dollars of
royalties they would normally have to pay American taxpayers.

   - Requires the Departments of Interior and Agriculture to
determine what regulations stand in the way of energy development on
public lands.

   - Limits the ability of the BLM and Forest Service to require
environmental safeguards for oil and gas drilling on public lands.

   - Disallows the Forest Service from restricting certain areas of
National Forests from oil and gas development.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH
Much of the discussion of energy production from federal lands
appears to be driven by the perception that abundant resources have
been "locked-up" or put off limits, to the detriment of the country's
energy future. "This is a myth that should not drive the energy
policy debate," stated Waltman.  In fact, the vast majority of
federal lands already are open to energy production.  Significant
efforts were made in the last few years to enhance, where
appropriate, oil and gas production on these lands even in the face
of falling prices.  Important new areas were opened and are being
leased.  

SECRET ENERGY TASK FORCE
Meanwhile, Vice-President Cheney continues to refuse divulging who
his secret energy task force met while preparing the Administration's
energy policy.  Even the General Accounting Office (GAO), Congress's
auditing arm, is demanding that he disclose details, something the
GAO has never had to ask a Vice-President before.  Cheney has
admitted meeting with energy executives but won't reveal who.  If
Cheney refuses to do so, the GAO could go to court.

TAKE ACTION
Please contact your Representative as soon as possible -- the full
House is expected to vote on Rep. Hansen's energy bill as soon as
next week.  Send a message from
http://www.wilderness.org/takeaction/?step=2&item=529 or contact them
directly with this message:

- OPPOSE Rep. Hansen's Energy Security Act, HR 2436, because it would:
- Mandate oil drilling in America's last frontier, the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge.
- Give Big Oil companies billions of dollars in royalties owed the
American people.
- Open up what much of what is left of our public wildlands to energy
development.  It has to stop somewhere.

Send your message to:
Rep. ________
U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC  20515
(202) 224-3121
Look up your Representative at
http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.html


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For a full list of Action Items, visit
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http://www.wilderness.org/wildalert/wildalerts.htm

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Cool the Earth and Protect Biodiversity

Dear WWF Conservation Action Network Activist:

For the first time in 25 years, Congress will vote-possibly within the
next few weeks-on whether to require that