Earth Island Journal articles from September 2004

Earth Island Journal archives from September 2004

From the editor.(political activist David Dellinger)(Editorial)(Obituary)
September 22, 2004... On October 29, 1979, on the 50th anniversary of the great stock market crash of 1929, I went with some friends to Washington, DC to demonstrate at the Department of Energy offices on L'Enfant Plaza. It's an action that some of you young...

Shut those right-wingers up!(refuting claims that illegal immigration damages the environment)(Brief Article)(Letter to the Editor)
September 22, 2004... You devoted precious space on your Summer 2004 Letters page to a letter written by Alan A. Norian, who claimed that "illegal aliens" are a "real environmental disaster" and accused the EIJ of "hypocrisy" for not pointing out this alleged...

Tuna-safe tuna?(vegetarianism)(Brief Article)(Letter to the Editor)
September 22, 2004... Re: Voices, Summer 2004; First let me commend Todd Steiner for the great job he's doing with the Turtle Island Restoration Network. Then let me remind him and your readers that there is an even better diet for a small planet--it's called...

Reusing oil.(recycling used motor and lubricating oils )(Brief Article)(Letter to the Editor)
September 22, 2004... Re: End of the Oil Age, Autumn 2003; One thing that sent a shiver up my spine was the statement made by M. King Hubbard, "You can only use oil once." Mr. Hubbard's statement is entirely false. Oil can be reused! Oil does not wear out. What is...

Errata.(Letters)(Brief Article)(Correction Notice)
September 22, 2004... In our Summer 2004 issue, in Leonie Sherman's Tongass article, we misspelled the name of Audubon Alaska's John Schoen. We regret the error.

Recycling on the mother continent.(Africa)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... In a new effort to improve livelihoods and help conserve the environment, African communities are beginning to use waste products as resources. The Zero Emissions Research Initiative (ZERI), based at the University of Namibia, focuses on using...

Poached rhino.(Africa)(white rhino nearing extinction in the wild due to poaching by the Sudan People's Liberation Army)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... In the northern Congo, Sudanese rebels have poached the rare northern white rhino to near extinction. If left unchecked, the rebels could wipe out the rhino in a matter of months, says Henri Paul Eloma, the co-ordinator of a project to protect...

That's just distusking.(Africa)(Namibia to ask for repeal of ban on ivory trade)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... This October, at the 13th annual meeting of the United Nations Convention on International Trade on Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES), Namibia intends to ask for a repeal of the global ban on ivory trade. African...

Lead out.(Africa)(12 African countries plan to phase out leaded fuel)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Twelve African nations have committed to phase out leaded petroleum fuel, and nine countries--Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Ghana, Mauritania, Mauritius, Nigeria, Rwanda, and Sudan--have already switched entirely to unleaded fuel. ...

GM out.(Africa)(Angola rejects importation of genetically modified grains and seeds)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... In March, Angola became the latest country to formally reject genetically modified grains and seeds. Angola joins Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe in this ban. The countries plan to ensure that their crops aren't accidentally...

Bhopal redux.(Asia)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Twenty years after a devastating gas leak at the Union Carbide chemical plant in Bhopal, India, there are signs that the tragedy is not over. Tons of toxic material used in cleaning up the old plant have contaminated Bhopal's groundwater. ...

Dawning: a Vanunu era.(Asia)(nuclear activist Mordechai Vanunu released from Israeli prison)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Mordechai Vanunu was released from prison in Israel on April 21 after spending 18 years behind bars, 11 of them in solitary confinement. Vanunu was jailed for revealing secrets that exposed Israel as one of the world's top nuclear powers in the...

China sends out for Burmese logs.(Asia)(China imports timber from Myanmar)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... As the world's fastest-growing market for tropical timber, China has made efforts to protect its own endangered forests by imposing a nationwide ban on logging in 1998. But there is mounting evidence that China has merely exported this problem...

Gut reactions.(Asia)(Japanese whalers threaten environmentalists from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Fishermen threatened environmental activists who filmed them as they captured over 30 whales in southern Japan. Fishermen from the village of Taiji, near Osaka, "made killing gestures with their knives" at activists and shone flashlights in the...

CeThaiceans.(Asia)(Thailand asks for upgrade of the Irrawaddy dolphin to endangered species)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Thailand has asked an international wildlife protection agency to list the Irrawaddy dolphin as a critically endangered species. The request is one of 50 received by the CITES Secretariat from governments around the world. Kongkieat...

BiodOzel.(Australia)(biodiesel plant)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Australia's first large-scale biodiesel plant is expected to be operating in Adelaide by early 2005 Australian Renewable Fuels (ARF), a wholly owned subsidiary of Amadeus Energy Unlimited (AEU), has committed to build the first biodiesel plant...

Surf's up.(Europe)(beach erosion )(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Despite annual combined spending of more than $3.5 billion to combat beach erosion throughout Europe, a recent study shows that almost a sixth of the UK's coastline is suffering from serious erosion The European Commission is calling for a...

GM in.(European Commission allows sale of genetically modified canned corn)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... A five-year moratorium on imported GMOs in the European Union was effectively lifted in May. In response to an application from the Swiss firm Syngenta, the European Commission has decided to allow import of genetically modified sweet...

Is cod dead?(Europe)(cod overfishing)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the world's cod stocks could be wiped out by 2020 because of overfishing, illegal catches, and oil exploration. The WWF report, dated May 13, states that the world's largest remaining cod stock,...

GM wheat plowed.(Europe)(genetically modified wheat by Monsanto)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... The American biotech company Monsanto announced in May that it was suspending efforts to introduce genetically modified wheat. Commercial development of Roundup Ready wheat, modified to be resistant to a widely used weed killer, will be...

Goldman Prizes.(North America)(Goldman Environmental Prizes)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... The annual Goldman Environmental Prizes are awarded each year to seven grassroots environmentalists from around the globe. The Goldman Prize, often called the "environmental Nobel Prize," recognizes their perseverance and accomplishments as...

Greenpeace wins one.(North America)(Greenpeace Foundation Inc.)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... On May 19, citing lack of evidence, US District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan threw out a case brought against the entire organization of Greenpeace by the US Department of Justice. This case [see EIJ, Spring 2004] was unusual in that it...

PL tries to renege on Headwaters.(North America)(Pacific Lumber)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... To the dismay of North Coast environmentalists and California lawmakers, the Pacific Lumber Company (PL) is attempting to renegotiate the deal it made with the state of California that protects Headwaters Forest in Humboldt County PL wants...

On the blecch.(Oceania)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... A solid waste crisis threatens to overwhelm many Pacific islands, where human-made debris is piling up on the beaches of paradise. In Tarawa atoll, the Kiribati (pronounced Ki-ra-bas) government is opening one landfill and building another....

A coral-ation.(Ocenia)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... A recent study shows that even traditional fishing methods can disturb fragile coral reefs. Until now, coral reefs were thought to be resistant to the effects of age old fishing methods such as using spears and hooks. "This study...

Losing ground.(South America)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Brazil has launched a $140 million plan to reverse Amazon deforestation, which hit near-record levels last year. The government announced in April that annual Amazon deforestation had grown two percent last year, to 9,169 square miles. ...

Born free (slow version).(South America)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Venezuela's government has established what it believes is a record for releasing an endangered species back into the wild. Over the weekend of April 5, tens of thousands of protected Arrau turtles were set free into the Orinoco River. ...

Bay Area Wilderness Training.(Earth Island project reports)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Bay Area Wilderness Training celebrated its fifth year in April. Since 1999, BAWT has served over 2,000 youths, and has trained well over 200 youth workers and teachers in outdoor leadership skills. A weekend-long gathering held to mark the...

Global Service Corps.(Earth Island project reports)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Global Service Corps is looking for volunteers to work at the Suksasongkhraw Orphanage in Thailand. The orphanage school has more than 1,100 students in grades one to twelve and only 34 teachers, two of them English teachers. GSC volunteers...

Mangrove Action Project.(Earth Island project reports)(Coastal Communities Resource Center)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Working in co-ordination with the local NGO Kelola and the village of Tiwoho, Mangrove Action Project has successfully completed its first Coastal Communities Resource Center (CCRC). The CCRC has hosted several relevant workshops and training...

SAVE International.(Earth Island project reports)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Four members of SAVE International jointly presented a paper at The 2004 International Symposium for the Conservation of the Black-Faced Spoonbill in the East Asian Region in Seoul on June 4-5. Organized by KFEM (Korean Federation for...

UniversitArea Protegida (UAP) Nicaragua.(Earth Island project reports)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... UniversitArea Protegida (UAP) Nicaragua would like to thank its first visiting member group, Mateo, Christina, and Manicito Davis from Santa Barbara, California, for their two-week tour of the four Nicaraguan natural reserves where...

Faultline, California's Environmental Magazine.(Earth Island project reports)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... Faultline, California's Environmental Magazine has just finished an extensive Web site redesign. The new site is faster to load, far more accessible to the disabled and to people with slower net connections, and allows readers to talk back,...

Reef Protection International (RPI).(Earth Island project reports)(Brief Article)
September 22, 2004... EII's newest project, Reef Protection International (RPI), aims to aid worldwide coral reef conservation by transforming behavior and business practices surrounding the ornamental fish trade. RPI's ultimate goal is ending imports of vulnerable...

Bush administration wrong on dolphin protection.(International Marine Mammal Project)
September 22, 2004... Through federal court action and new scientific research, IMMP continues to show that the Bush administration is harming dolphins in the name of trade politics. IMMP obtained a series of memos that show the Bush administration has a...

Drive fishery in Taiji.(International Marine Mammal Project)
September 22, 2004... It was still dark on a chilly morning in late January when we arrived at the lagoon in Taiji, Japan, where a pod of 100 to 150 bottlenose dolphins spent their last night in the open sea. A day earlier, we had seen fishermen corral the dolphins...

Dolphins rescued from Haiti capture.(International Marine Mammal Project)
September 22, 2004... When One Voice received an urgent appeal from an anonymous source in Haiti to come to the rescue of several bottlenose dolphins that were confined in a small and shallow sea enclosure in the Arcadins Islands, its Marine Mammal Specialist, Ric...

Brower Youth Awards.(Earth Island in the news)
September 22, 2004... In the four years since David Brower's death and the birth of the Brower Youth Awards, Earth Island's youth leadership program has grown from a one-time award to an ongoing network of support for the country's top young environmental leaders....

Alliance for a Clean Waterfront: restoring an urban shoreline.(Earth Island in the news)
September 22, 2004... San Francisco's Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood is a study in contrasts. Home to both the largest concentration of African-Americans in the city and the highest percentage of homeowners, it is also home to numerous environmental hazards,...

Sustainable World Coalition: sustainability and inclusivity.(Earth Island in the news)
September 22, 2004... "Sustainability" is rapidly becoming a buzzword that needs clarification. The working definition used most widely is "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own...

Borneo project: Sabah tribes rally against corporate takeover of land.(Earth Island in the news)
September 22, 2004... In January 2004, village headman Wilster L. and approximately 100 other representatives from 30 tribes stood before Sabah's Deputy Chief Minister of Land, Datuk Lajim Haji Ukin. Wilster had traveled from the remote region of Tongod, traversing...

Mangrove Action Project: shrimp farms not for the birds.(Earth Island in the news)
September 22, 2004... In 2000, the Brazilian government announced a three-year plan to expand its shrimp aquaculture industry's area of production sixfold--from 12,000 to 75,000 acres. In 2002, over 25,000 acres of Brazilian shrimp farms produced about 60,000 tons...

Everyone's got a story.
September 22, 2004... Sharon Fuller has been in the press a lot lately. A life-long resident of Richmond, California, she was recently named "Woman of the Year" by California Assemblymember Loni Hancock and Lt. Governor Cruz Bustamante. Fuller is also one of twelve...

The Endangered Species Act at 30.
September 22, 2004... When the Endangered Species Act (ESA) was passed in 1973, the US was awakening to the mounting environmental threats we had been visiting upon ourselves. Rapid population growth, excessive development, and unsustainable exploitation of our...

China's panda census.
September 22, 2004... Beijing, China -- The most comprehensive survey of the giant panda population ever undertaken has found almost 1,600 pandas in the wild, nearly 50 percent more than were previously known to exist. The findings come from a four-year-long study...

Delays in Endangered Species Act protections lead to extinctions.
September 22, 2004... By 1968, it was well known that the Marshall's pearly mussel, a distinctively colored freshwater mussel that lived in the Tombigbee River and its tributaries in Alabama and Mississippi, was highly imperiled due to river development and...

Upstream battle.(In Short)
September 22, 2004... Coho populations throughout California have suffered a precipitous decline and are listed on the state and federal endangered species list. It is believed that only 10 percent of California's coho populations remain after habitat destruction,...

Illegal sales.(In Short)
September 22, 2004... A recent undercover survey of traditional Chinese medicine shops in New York City and San Francisco found widely available illegal products made from endangered species. TRAFFIC, the world's leading wildlife trade monitoring network, found...

An ESA success story.
September 22, 2004... The bald eagle is back from the brink of extinction. Only 40 years ago, breeding pairs of bald eagles numbered fewer than 500 in the entire continental US. Today, more than 7,600 pairs nest in the lower 48 states, and the number continues to...

Helping, half a world away.
September 22, 2004... Staff members at the Seattle, Washington head office of the International Snow Leopard Trust (ISLT) are accustomed to the uncertain half-question: "I didn't know there were snow leopards in Washington." ISLT's headquarters is half a world...

Empire of extinction.
September 22, 2004... An optimistic, problem-solving attitude can sometimes conceal a deeper despair. In 1995 India's Environment Ministry moved to protect Indian butterfly and moth species under the Government's Wildlife Act. Sensible enough! The measure came after...

How crude can they get? Alaska still rolls over for big oil.
September 22, 2004... March 24 marked the passage of 15 years since the Exxon Valdez oil spill. I'll never forget walking the oiled beaches the week Exxon declared the Prince William Sound "clean." Some of the beaches looked spotless, but walking on them was...

The birdman of St. Lucia.
September 22, 2004... A few kilometers down a dense rainforest trail that winds through the mountainous interior of St. Lucia, the man who would save parrots seems, briefly, to have become one. Here, on a narrow pathway contoured into the edge of a...

The desert sisters.(Cover Story)
September 22, 2004... A map of the US-Mexican border reveals a unique opportunity. Both countries have large desert reserves astride the line in southwestern Arizona and northwestern Sonora. Together these areas are a wildland despoblado of nearly 5.8 million acres....

Chronicle of a disaster foretold.
September 22, 2004... They walked through the small Colombian village openly brandishing knives used to butcher pigs. Then, as they had the tools sharpened at the local meat market in the Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel, Chronicle of a Death Foretold, the two brothers...

Make fries, not war!
September 22, 2004... As the world's supply of oil diminishes, biodiesel is quickly becoming the most popular alternative vehicle fuel in the US. A vegetable-based fuel that runs in all diesel engines, biodiesel burns cleanly and biodegrades faster than sugar....

Case dismissed: land pays the price.
September 22, 2004... Columnist Al Knight of the Denver Post wrote a piece on June 16, 2004 entitled "A Win for Gale Norton," in regard to the lawsuit Norton v. Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance et al. He wrote that although the Interior Secretary Gale Norton has in...

Voices.
September 22, 2004... Critics who have dismissed the recent report commissioned by the Pentagon, An Abrupt Climate Change Scenario and Its Implications for United States National Security, should instead view it as a clarion call. Small risks that can result in...