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DEFENDING ENVIRONMENTAL AGENDA
July 10, 2001
"Over the years, I've dealt with a lot of organizations, each with a particular agenda, each owing allegiance to a certain bias. I talk with all of them. I like to hear what they have to say. Sometimes what they advocate makes sense to me, sometimes it doesn't....It causes me no pain whatsoever to say one of the best and most reliable sources of information I've ever dealt with is the Sierra Club." - from Jim Wright's article in Outdoors, 8/17/00
[1] TAKE ACTION: World Population Day, Wednesday, July 11
On Wednesday, July 11, the Sierra Club joins the United Nations to acknowledge World Population Day. Designated annually, World Population Day focuses on the nexus of population, development, and the environment. We, along with our more than six billion neighbors, are consuming natural resources at a rate that is jeopardizing the health of the planet and threatening the availability of our water, forests and air for future generations. The world's rapidly increasing population affects every habitat and species on the planet. To mark this day, we urge you to write a letter to the editor about how important it is to bring the world's population into balance with our natural resources and environment.
To find out more about World Population Day and to take action, go to https://www.sierraclub.org/population/world_population_day.asp
[2] FIELD UPDATE: Suing An Animal Factory in Michigan; Stopping a Toll Road in California
The Mackinac (Michigan) Chapter of the Sierra Club has filed suit against the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality over River Ridge Farms, a concentrated animal feeding operation, or CAFO. The Club is suing the DEQ for its failure to process permits that would help bring the animal factories into compliance with the Clean Water Act. River Ridge Farms has repeatedly spilled tons of manure and milking house wastes into the Grand River, contaminating the water and threatening public health.
In Southern California, as many as 300 people attended the South Orange County "Stop the Toll Road" event at Joan Irvine Smith's ranch in San Juan Capistrano last week. The gathering followed a recent hearing on the Army Corps of Engineers plan to build the Foothill South Toll Road. Ms. Smith was so impressed with the dedication of volunteers and activists at the hearing that she decided to host a celebration in appreciation of their efforts to stop the Foothill South Toll Road.
What's happening in your community? Find out by going to "My Backyard" at the top of our web site. https://www.sierraclub.org
[3] ROUND TWO: Your Comments Needed Again on Wild Forest Protection Plan
On Jan. 5, after four years' of study, over 1.6 million comments on protecting wild forests and 600 hearings around the country, former President Clinton issued a final plan to protect 58.5 million acres of roadless areas in our National Forests. Only days after taking office however, President Bush delayed implementation of the plan, and now he has launched a formal effort to scuttle the historic plan, by opening a new 60-day public comment period.
So, let's add to the 1.6 million comments already on the books, and let Bush administration hear from us again -- our wild forests are not up for grabs. Please send a letter to U.S. Forest Service Chief Bosworth by clicking on the link below. Please personalize your comments with why you care about protecting our national forests, as it makes your letter even more effective. Thank you!
Go to https://whistler.sierraclub.org:8080/takeaction/wildlands/index4.jsp Or send your comments directly to roadless_anpr@fs.fed.us
[4] GWICH'IN ON THE MOVE: Southwest Arctic Refuge Slideshow Tour
Club organizers helped turn out more than 75 people in both Santa Fe and Albuquerque, N.M., to a slide show on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and to hear Gwich'in speaker Sandra Newman. Over 140 people attended the shows in Phoenix and Flagstaff, Ariz.
The Gwich'in people live in northeast Alaska and western Canada. Their traditional way of life is linked intimately to the caribou that find habitat in the Arctic Refuge. To the Gwich'in, the coastal plain of the Refuge is sacred land. Yet the Bush energy plan targets this area for oil and gas drilling.
Check out our own Web slideshow and further information on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge at https://www.sierraclub.org/wildlands/arctic/
[5] BIG NEWS FROM BIG SUR: Naval Bombing in the Works
Think of a majestic coastline, with towering cliffs and mist rising from thunderous, crashing waves. You might just be imagining the rocky Big Sur coast of California. What wouldn't fit the picture is the United States Navy's plan to use this coastal area for bombing practice. That's right. Thanks to public outcry and organizing in the area, the Navy has agreed to do a more comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement, but the coast isn't clear yet.
Find out more about it at https://ventana.sierraclub.org/edit.htm#bombs
[6] REMINDER: Call Your Representative about Campaign Finance Reform!
Join thousands of others TODAY, July 10, and ask your representative to vote for the Shays-Meehan campaign finance reform bill -- and against any weakening amendments. Call the Capitol Switchboard at: (202) 224-3121. The operator will direct you to your representative.
"Every time Bush even hints that he wants to take on some greenish sacred cow, he reawakens another contingent of environmentalists. Al Gore would have talked them into a trance; Bush has them leaping and screaming and reaching for the telephone to alert the nearest branch of the Sierra Club." - from the Los Angeles Times, "Thanks to Bush, Green Interest Soars," June 24, 2001. See the full story at: https://www.latimes.com/news/politics/elect2000/pres/news2/20010624/t000052317.html
[1] TAKE ACTION: Your Call Needed in Support of Campaign Finance Reform
The House is expected to begin debate on the Shays-Meehan Campaign Finance Reform bill (H.R. 2356) as early as July 11. The Shays-Meehan bill contains the same basic elements as the McCain-Feingold bill passed by the Senate earlier this year. The soft-money ban in the bill is a critical first step in getting "dirty money" out of politics and reducing the special influence of polluting industries. Join thousands of others on Tuesday, July 10, and call and urge your representative to vote for Shays-Meehan -- and against any weakening amendments. Call the Capitol Switchboard at: (202) 224-3121
For more information on campaign finance reform go to: https://www.sierraclub.org/politics/clean_elections/ or contact Deanna White at deanna.white@sierraclub.org
[2] HOGWASH NO MORE: Support the EPA's Proposal to Limit Animal Factory Pollution
Concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) confine millions of animals -- usually hogs and chickens -- in crowded warehouse conditions, produce trillions of pounds of manure each year and pollute the air and waterways. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that hog, chicken and cattle waste has polluted more than 27,000 miles of rivers and contaminated groundwater in 17 states. In January, the EPA proposed revised CAFO regulations and is accepting public comments on them until July 30. Send in your comments telling the EPA to adopt tough regulations to protect our air and water.
To read a story from The Planet on the proposed regulations, go to: https://www.sierraclub.org/planet/200106/alerts.asp#cafo
To send a public comment via e-mail and for more background information, go to: https://whistler.sierraclub.org:8080/takeaction/cleanwater/index6.jsp
[3] WETLANDS SHORTCHANGED: Federal Wetlands Program Flawed
According to a study released by the National Academy of Sciences on June 26, a federal wetland mitigation program has failed to compensate for wetlands filled or otherwise destroyed by developers. The program requires developers to create substitute wetlands if they fill in a natural wetland. Unfortunately, many substitute wetlands are never finished, and those that are completed fail to do the same job as the naturally functioning wetlands that have been destroyed. To top it all off, the Army Corps of Engineers has devoted fewer resources to compliance and enforcement than to processing permits for developers.
For more information, go to: https://www.sierraclub.org/wetlands/ or contact Robin Mann at robin.mann@sierraclub.org
[4] BREATH EASIER: Clean Air Hearings Need You
The Environmental Protection Agency has scheduled four public hearings as part of a review of Clean Air Act regulations for new energy sources. Attend a hearing and make sure the EPA knows that you don't want to weaken the Clean Air Act. The hearings will be in Cincinnati (July 10), Sacramento (July 12), Boston (July 17) and Baton Rouge (July 20).
For more information, contact a local Sierra Club representative: Cincinnati: (513) 841-4001 Sacramento: (510) 622-0290 x240 Boston: (617) 423-5775 Baton Rouge: (225) 755-6852
[5] BACK PEDALING: Bush and Cheney Cater to Public's Conserving Side
When the Bush administration lauched its energy plan, it downplayed conservation in favor of increased production of fossil fuels. But the American public apparently cares more about conservation and the environment than Bush and Cheney calculated. Recent editorials in national newspapers have noted that the administration is attempting to repackage its energy plan and look more environmentally friendly.
For a few good examples, go to: https://www.cincypost.com/2001/jul/02/editb070201.html https://www.nytimes.com/2001/07/01/opinion/01SUN1.html?ex=995373569&ei=1&en=bbd7639b4e328b99
"[Rep. Wayne Christian] recalled how the Sierra Club sent him a questionnaire, shortly after his election, wanting to know where he stood on various environmental issues...he simply wrote 'Whatever you're for, I'm probably against,' on it, and mailed it back to them." - from the Lufkin Daily News on Texas State House Rep. Wayne Christian (R), Sunday, June 17, 2001
[1] TAKE ACTION: Help Free Jailed Environmentalists in Mexico
For more than two years, Sierra Club members and other human rights activists have been writing letters urging the government of Mexico to release jailed environmentalists Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera. We have recently learned that what stands in the way of Rodolfo and Teodoro's release are factions within the Mexican government that represent the old guard, including Attorney General Rafael Macedo de la Concha. Please write a letter to the editor of your local paper urging Mexico to confront the human rights abuses of the past and release Rodolfo and Teodoro.
For more information and a sample letter to the editor go to: https://whistler.sierraclub.org:8080/takeaction/humanrights/index1.jsp
[2] OIL AND WATER DON'T MIX: Bush Continues Plans To Drill off Florida Coast
Yesterday the Bush administration announced its intent to scale back plans that would allow oil drilling off the Gulf Coast of Florida. While the new proposal would move the drilling sites further from the Florida coast, allowing the rigs could result in devastating oil spills despoiling the nation's coasts. The spills will just take longer to reach the beaches. Instead of shifting the location of environmentally dangerous drilling, we should be pursuing an energy plan that is quicker, cleaner, cheaper and safer.
Read more about it at:https://www.nytimes.com/2001/07/03/politics/03OIL.html
[3] FIELD NOTES: Sierra Club Activists Celebrate Lewis and Clark Trek in Oregon, Say No To Bombing Range in Texas
Oregon: Boat tours of the Columbia River Estuary, slide presentations on native plants and animals, a talk about the Lewis and Clark journey and a visit from a pelican named Netarts enlivened the Oregon Chapter's weekend-long celebration at Fort Clatsop National Memorial. The event, set at the endpoint of Lewis and Clark's outbound trek, was part of the Club's campaign to highlight the need to protect the lands the explorers traveled through. Activists collected signatures on postcards urging better management of the Clatsop and Tillamook state forests, still managed primarily for their timber resources rather than for their wildlife and clean water.
Texas: With plans to stop bombing on Vieques Island, Puerto Rico, the Navy has shifted its focus to the Texas coast. In response, a coalition of environmental groups, including the Sierra Club, sent a letter of protest to the Secretary of the Navy. The target area borders the Laguna Madre, home to 15 threatened or endangered species. "There is no other human activity that can cause as much environmental damage as modern military operations," said Fred Richardson, with the Lone Star Chapter. "The impact of large explosions, millions of pounds of shrapnel, tremendous noise, brush fires, toxic chemicals, fuel spills, and the crushing weight of heavy military vehicles would leave the area scorched and poisoned."
[4] EPA STEPS IN: Agency Asks BLM to Reconsider Weatherman Drilling
The Environmental Protection Agency recently voiced doubts about allowing exploratory oil drilling in Weatherman Draw, a sacred Native American site in southern Montana. In a letter to the Bureau of Land Management, the agency suggested the BLM reevaluate its decision to permit Anschutz Exploration Corp. to drill in Weatherman Draw, which is referred to by area tribes as "Valley of the Chiefs" and is known for its prehistoric rock art. The drilling and building of a new road may significantly impact both traditional cultural values of the site and place it at risk from increased public access, according to the letter. Sierra Club Regional Representative Kathryn Hohmann told the Billings Gazette, "The EPA is saying the same thing we've said to the BLM. Is this letter going to carry the day? It helps."
Read more about it at: https://www.billingsgazette.com/archive.php?section=local&display=rednews/2001/06/30/build/local/1weatherman.inc
[5] ENERGY INDEPENDENCE: Efficiency Efforts Help Avoid Blackouts in California
As Californians enjoy the July 4th holiday, they can also celebrate independence from rolling blackouts during May and June. Despite short power supplies, the lights stayed on as residents cut their energy consumption by as much as 11 percent from last year. The energy savings can be linked to using efficient compact fluorescent lightbulbs, turning up the thermostat on air conditioners and replacing appliances with more efficient models.
For more information on how you can save energy, go to: https://www.sierraclub.org/energy/conservation/
"I just do not understand. We can send people to the Moon. We can send people to Mars. We can go all over this world, and we cannot drill safely?" - Rep. Shimkus (R-IL) on drilling in the Great Lakes, 6/27/01 [Mars, huh?]
[1] VICTORY! Congress Passes Amendment to Protect Great Lakes
Congress passed an amendment that will protect the Great Lakes from oil and gas drilling and development. The amendment to the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill passed by an easy margin of 265 to 157. President Bush's energy plan could have opened up the Great Lakes to drilling, a move that would harm critical wildlife habitat, drinking water and recreation areas.
See our press release at https://lists.sierraclub.org/SCRIPTS/WA.EXE?A2=ind0106&L=ce-scnews-releases&D=1&T=0&H=1&O=D&F &S=&P=1874
Keep an eye on our Votewatch center for an update on how your representative voted. https://www.sierraclub.org/votewatch/
[2] WHAT'S UP? Carl Pope on Dennis Miller Live - Friday, June 29!
Carl Pope, Sierra Club's Executive Director, will be on the Dennis Miller Live! Show on HBO this Friday, June 29, at 8:30 p.m. Tune in! ------
[3] OUR ALLIES: Native Americans and Environmentalists Join Forces
Representatives of the pueblos of Zuni, Acoma, and Laguna, Ramah Navajo and the Hopi Nation, along with Sierra Club environmental justice volunteers, packed a hearing last week to fight against permitting a coal mine at Fence Lake, N.M. People of these nations believe that the coal mine would damage the Zuni Salt Lake, a sacred Native American sanctuary, which is fed by the aquifer that the mining operation would tap for its water. Zuni Governor Bowekati called on each individual attending the meeting to file suit against the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department and the Bureau of Land Management. These suits could hold up the mining operation for years.
Find out more about the Sierra Club's Environmental Justice Program at https://www.sierraclub.org/environmental_justice/
[4] MORE PRESS: Raising Fuel Efficiency Standards
The Sierra Club and Union of Concerned Scientists' new report, "Drilling in Detroit: Tapping Automaker Ingenuity to Build Safe and Efficient Automobiles," is getting press all around the country. Missouri activists drummed up media attention late last week by organizing a demonstration on the corner of a busy intersection in St. Louis. They highlighted recommendations from the report, including raising fleet fuel standards for light trucks, SUVs and minivans to 27.5 miles per gallon from 20.5. By 2010, such new standards would reduce global warming gas emissions by 273 million tons! Good for the Earth, good for you, and good for your budget.
See the report at https://www.ucsusa.org/vehicles/drill_detroit-exec.html
[5] NO TRADE OFF: Crane Fast Track Bill Imperils the Environment
On June 13, Representative Phil Crane (R-Ill.) introduced "fast track" trade legislation that would be used to expand the environmentally damaging North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) throughout the Western Hemisphere. The House could vote as soon as late July right before the August recess. Please write your representative right away and urge him or her to oppose "fast track." While you're at it, write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper!
A sample letter and background information are on our Take Action center at https://whistler.sierraclub.org:8080/takeaction/trade/index.jsp
[6] Q&A
Question: Sierra Club is the country's oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization. How many members make up the Sierra Club?
Answer: In May, we topped 700,000! WOW!
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