———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Feral Power! – alleycat [at] alleycat.org
Date: Sep 26, 2006 4:42 PM
Subject: Avenal Prison update! Write a Letter to the Editor to support TNR at Avenal Prison

Write Letters to the Editor to support TNR at Avenal!

Read “Prison cat program declawed; fur flies,” which explains the ongoing battle local Avenal, CA activists (Feral Paws Rescue) fight to reinstitute Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) at Avenal Prison – front page news in the Fresno Bee on Monday, September 25, 2006.

This article points out clear flaws in the prison’s reasons for ending their five year TNR program. Volunteers were able to reduce the feral cat population from 600 to 200 with no state funding, but they claim the program was ineffective.

Take action: Write a firm but polite Letter to the Editor stating that Trap-Neuter-Return should be reinstituted on the prison grounds to humanely reduce and manage outdoor cats. Please respect the 200 word limit for each paper. Encourage the San Francisco Chronicle to pick up the story since this hot topic issue needs more media coverage.

* Write a Letter to the Editor of the Fresno Bee HERE.

* Write a Letter to the Editor of the San Francisco Chronicle HERE.

Action Center

Continue to write letters to the Avenal Prison Warden, the California Department of Corrections and the Governor of California to ask for a revision of the prison’s policy on cats! Visit our Action Center to take action: HERE.

Alley Cat Allies · 7920 Norfolk Avenue · Suite 600 · Bethesda, MD 20814-2525 · www.alleycat.org

ACA is the owner and sole moderator of the Feral Power! e-mail list.

To prevent mailbox filters from deleting mailings from Feral Power!, add alleycat [at] alleycat.org to your address book.

Via Ecological Internet’s Rainforest Portal:

Say No to Industrial Mining in French Guyana’s Ancient Rainforests

The French government will soon decide whether to grant the last required environmental license for industrial open-air gold mining in the primary rainforests of French Guyana by the Canadian multinational Cambior. The site chosen for the project covers 30 square kilometers of protected rainforests including numers nature reserves. Local peoples are protesting by organizing the “No to the Cambior project at Kaw Mountain” campaign made up of a coalition of 24 organizations in French Guyana against the gold mining activity.

The gold mining activities as planned by Cambior S.A. will devastate the ecology of these priceless tropical rainforests of Guyana and their inhabitants.

Read more and take action here.

UPDATE: The following update was sent out by Ecological Internet on 10/13/06:

VICTORY: French Guiana Rainforest Gold Mine Successfully Blocked; Ecological Internet’s Campaign Protest Given as Major Factor in Decision

French Guiana’s environmentalists are rejoicing as it became known yesterday that gold mining activities of Canadian multi-national Cambior in the heavily rainforested Kaw region in French Guiana have been blocked. In late September, Ecological Internet’s Earth Action Network mobilized, upon the request of local and international conservationists working in the area, a last ditch effort to protect the area from certain ruin – inundating government officials with tens of thousands of protest emails.

Read more here.

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: DawnWatch – news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Sep 26, 2006 3:39 PM
Subject: DawnWatch: NY Times column on ecotourism in Africa — 9/26/06

The Tuesday, September 26, New York Times includes an column by Nicolas Kristof, headed “Where Gorillas and the Antelope Play.” (P A23)

It tells us that the Central African Republic, Cameroon and the Congo Republic, have joined forces, “establishing adjoining national parks that cover an area the size of Rhode Island and Delaware combined.”

We read:

“It’s part of a growing trend that deserves strong support from the West: poor countries seeking economic opportunities by protecting nature rather than pillaging it.”

And:

“Yet if the gorillas can lure rich Westerners here, ecotourism could become a more sustainable economic pillar than slash-and-burn logging.”

The column is available only to New York TimesSelect subscribers (newspaper subscribers can upgrade to Timesselect for free) on line here.

Others in the US can check out a hard copy at your local newsstand or coffee shop.

Supportive letters can be sent to letters [at] nytimes.com

Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. Shorter letters are more likely to be published.

Yours and the animals’,
Karen Dawn

(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at www.DawnWatch.com. To unsubscribe, go to www.dawnwatch.com/cgi-bin/dada/dawnwatch_unsubscribe.cgi
You are encouraged to forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts but please do so unedited — leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)

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Via Greenpeace:

Hi. I’m a Mac, and iToxic.

Apple’s releasing more than new products these days, they’re also releasing tons of toxic chemicals. That’s because under their skin, apples are full of toxic chemicals. When they get tossed, they can end up at the fingertips of children in developing world countries, who dismantle them for parts. Take Action! Tell Steve Jobs that you want a green apple.

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Save the Manatee Club – action [at] savethemanatee.org
Date: Sep 26, 2006 12:50 PM
Subject: Keep The Heat On!

Keep The Heat On So Manatees Won’t Be Left Out In The Cold

Your help is making a difference for manatees!

A big THANK YOU to everyone who sent messages to the St. John’s River Water Management District (District), Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and Florida Governor Jeb Bush – your actions are helping us get some movement in the right direction! The District recently met and decided to delay the final vote on the proposal to tap into waters from Blue Spring to support increasing development and demands for water from surrounding counties.

The District has postponed their decision until October 10th in order to re-run their model using the most recent winter season manatee counts, which is expected to force them to revise the rule proposal. We have repeatedly told the District that their model is erroneous and underestimates manatee use, and this past winter season proved our point with substantially more manatees showing up to use the spring than their model predicted. For example, a minimum of 190 manatees were documented at Blue Spring during the 2005/2006 season, while the District model would not provide warm water for that many manatees until 2009. And the District’s current minimum flow proposal doesn’t require the Blue Spring flow to be restored to present levels until 2024!

As you know, Blue Spring is a critical warm water refuge for manatees in the winter. And manatees have gained an ally in Philippe Cousteau, grandson of the late explorer Jacques Cousteau, who was recently at Blue Spring creating a documentary for National Public Radio. In an Orlando Sentinel article, Philippe was quoted as saying, “This spring and these manatees represent a resource that should benefit all of the people of Florida, not just a few special interests.”

The District has made the right decision to delay the final vote on the proposal. They have seen first hand that their model doesn’t work before the rule was even adopted. The District should set the minimum flow at no less than the current average annual flow level (157.7 cfs). We need to keep the heat on so manatees are not left out in the cold come October!

What You Can Do:

Both Florida and Non-Florida Residents: Please speak up to protect Blue Spring for manatees!

1. Attend the Public Hearing

Please come to the public hearing on October 10, 2006 (see more information below) and state that you are OPPOSED to a proposal that allows any additional reduction in Blue Spring’s flow.

2. Send a Quick Online Letter and tell Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the Secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and the Chairman of the District Governing Board that you oppose the District’s proposal. Please click on the link below to get more background information and send a quick and easy online letter. If you prefer to send a personal letter or email, contact information is listed below.

www.savethemanatee.org/actionalert.cfm?id=8

Blue Spring Minimum Flow Public Hearing
Regulatory Meeting of the Governing Board
When: Tuesday, October 10, 2006, 1:00 p.m.
Where:
St. Johns River Water Management District
4049 Reid Street
Palatka, FL 32177

Click here for more information and driving directions.

3. Please forward this email to as many people as you can.

Thank you for your help on this important issue for manatees!

Contact Information:

Governor Jeb Bush
The Capitol
400 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32399
Fax: 850-487-0801
E-mail: jeb.bush [at] myflorida.com

Secretary Colleen Castille
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
3900 Commonwealth Blvd, MS 10
Tallahassee, FL 32399
Fax: 850-245-2128
E-mail: colleen.castille [at] dep.state.fl.us

David G. Graham, Chairman
SJRWMD Governing Board
4049 Reid Street
Palatka, FL 32177
Fax: 386-329-4125
E-mail: nmesser [ay] sjrwmd.com

Sign up for our free Paddle Tales E-Newsletter: Go to www.savethemanatee.org/enews_signup.htm

Our postal address is:

500 N. Maitland Ave.
Maitland, Florida 32751
United States

About SMC

Save the Manatee Club is a nonprofit organization founded in 1981 by former Florida Governor Bob Graham and singer Jimmy Buffett. To learn more about manatees and our work, go to www.savethemanatee.org

Join Us!

Adopt-A-Manatee and join Save the Manatee Club. Your contribution will support our work to help protect endangered manatees and their habitat. For more information, go to www.savethemanatee.org/adoptpag.htm

Pass It Along

Help spread the word about manatees! Please forward this action alert to your family and friends. If you got this message from a friend, sign up to receive our Action Alerts at our Take Action page at www.savethemanatee.org/action.htm

Questions?

You can get updates on Action Alert issues by visiting the Take Action page of our web site. If you have additional questions, email us at action [at] savethemanatee.org

Via the League of Conservation Voters:

Demand New Energy Now! Sign The Petition to Congress

LCV’s New Energy Now! Petition maps out a sustainable and safer energy future for America. By signing today, you are advancing sensible energy solutions – energy efficiency, renewable energy, less global warming pollution, and protection of America’s wild places from oil drilling.

With the midterm election just around the corner, we need to make our voices heard today! Help shape the energy positions of your representatives in Congress.

Via the Humane Society of the United States:

Please Thank Ben & Jerry’s

In some of the best news for egg-laying hens this year, Ben & Jerry’s has decided to adopt a cage-free egg policy for the eggs it uses in its ice cream. Please thank Ben & Jerry’s for taking such a positive step—there’s nothing like good feedback to reinforce a good decision.

Tell me more ->

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: DawnWatch – news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Sep 25, 2006 8:24 PM
Subject: DawnWatch: Artificial hormones in cows’ milk on Boston Globe front page — 9/25/06

The Monday, September 25 Boston Globe has a front page story headed, “2 Dairies to End Use of Artificial Hormones; Hope to Compete with Organic Milk.”

It opens:

“The region’s biggest dairies are rushing to rid their bottled milk of artificial growth hormones in a bid to draw back customers who have switched to organic milk.

“Dean Foods, which operates the Garelick plant in Franklin, and H.P. Hood, which operates a plant in Agawam, are demanding that regional farmer cooperatives supply them with milk from cows that haven’t been injected with synthetic hormones that boost milk production.

“Over the next few weeks, jugs of Hood and Garelick milk with labels pledging ‘no artificial growth hormones’ should start filling supermarket shelves a strategy the dairies hope will satisfy the chief concern of consumers going organic and do so at less than half the retail price of organic milk.”

Demonstrating that artificial growth hormones are not the only concern of organic milk buyers, we read:

“But Nasser Hussain, a teacher from Boston, said he buys organic milk largely because he opposes industrial farming. ‘Organic to me means they let the cows out of the pen,’ he said.”

(Note: Unfortunately that is somewhat misleading. An August 20 front page story in the Chicago Tribune shared complaints that cows on large organic dairy farms are hardly able to graze. It referred to guidelines being sought by the Organic Standards Board that would organic require dairy cows to get about one-third of their diet from pasture four months out of the year — i.e. one ninth of their diet from pasture. See tinyurl.com/mz56s for more on that Tribune story.)

You’ll find today’s front page Globe story online here OR tinyurl.com/o6blp

It opens the door for letters about the treatment of cows on dairy farms, and from those who have found happy substitutes for cow’s milk.

A nice source of information is www.dumpdairy.com

The Boston Globe takes letters at letter [at] globe.com

Always include your full name, address, and daytime phone number when sending a letter to the editor. Shorter letters are more likely to be published.

Yours and the animals’,
Karen Dawn

(DawnWatch is an animal advocacy media watch that looks at animal issues in the media and facilitates one-click responses to the relevant media outlets. You can learn more about it, and sign up for alerts at www.DawnWatch.com. To unsubscribe, go to www.dawnwatch.com/cgi-bin/dada/dawnwatch_unsubscribe.cgi
You are encouraged to forward or reprint DawnWatch alerts but please do so unedited — leave DawnWatch in the title and include this tag line.)

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———- Forwarded message ———-
From: DawnWatch – news [at] dawnwatch.com
Date: Sep 25, 2006 8:11 PM
Subject: DawnWatch: NY Times editorial condemns pig industry consolidation 9/23/06

The Saturday, September 23, New York Times, included an editorial (the paper’s official editorial opinion) headed “The Ultimate Agricultural Efficiency.”

It opens:

“Any American history of pork — the meat, that is — shows a steady concentration of more and more hogs in the hands of fewer and fewer producers. That is what modern agricultural “efficiency” looks like. It’s good for the bottom line of the big industrial players, but bad for farmers, hogs, the environment and, ultimately, consumers. That history took another step in the wrong direction when Smithfield Foods — the biggest pork packer — agreed to buy the second biggest pork packer, Premium Standard Farms.”

The piece explains that as pig farming operations are increasingly consolidated, small farms are dying out, and pig farmers are becoming “janitors in confinement barns across rural America where the packers’ huge herds of pigs are crammed in stalls to live out their short lives.”

The reference to pigs being crammed into stalls points to the cruelty of factory farming, but the piece doesn’t focus on it, which is why letters to the editor can help. Since it was photographs of pigs living in individual in stalls so small that they cannot even turn around that first piqued my interest in animal rights, I urge anybody who has not seen those photos to check out the photo gallery at www.FactoryFarming.com .

(more…)

UPDATE, 3/23/07, via Earthjustice:

I am delighted to brighten your day with news of an important victory in our fight to stop hugely destructive mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachia.

Today, a federal judge in West Virginia ruled that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers illegally issued permits allowing mining companies to bury streams under millions of tons of waste.

In September 2005, Earthjustice and the Appalachian Center for the Economy and the Environment went to court challenging five mountaintop removal coal mining permits in West Virginia. We believed that the Corps approved these permits without proper evaluation of environmental impacts – which is in violation of the Clean Water Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. Today, the court agreed.

Today’s ruling sets a strong precedent and is a first and important step in stopping this shameful destruction. Thank you for helping to make this possible through your support of Earthjustice.

To learn more about this ongoing struggle and meet the people most affected by mountaintop removal , please visit www.StopMountaintopRemoval.org.

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Via Stop Mountaintop Removal.org:

Mountaintop removal coal mining is destroying Appalachia

Thousands of acres and hundreds of miles of streams and rivers are being permanently demolished while state and federal governments look the other way. The culture and history of Appalachia is disappearing with each mountaintop that is blown away. Mountaintop removal mining is the worst environmental disaster our country has ever known, and it’s time this destructive mining practice ends!

Regardless of where you live, there is something you can do to let your community know that mountaintop removal mining is unacceptable. Help end mountaintop removal mining.

* Send a letter to your public utility commission!

* Send a message to your elected officials!

* Send a letter to the EPA

* Send a letter to the Army Corps of Engineers