Who's Funding Global Warming - Preparing for a Post-Oil World.

February 12, 2007

:: Who's Funding Global Warming - Preparing for a Post-Oil World ::(Other news on the Environment bellow)

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Headlines NewsletterFebruary 12th, 2007All stories, blogs, and video »

Who's Funding Global Warming?By Tara Lohan, AlterNetFind out which banks are part of the problem, and which are part of the solution, in the fight against global climate change. Read more »

Ten Ways to Prepare for a Post-Oil SocietyBy James Howard Kunstler, Kunstler.comThe best way to feel hopeful about our looming energy crisis is to get active now and prepare for living arrangements in a post-oil society.

Vegetarian Is the New PriusBy Kathy Freston, HuffingtonPost.comLivestock destroy the environment, so fill your bowl with veggies instead of veal.

Renewables Can Turn the Tide on Global WarmingBy Kelpie Wilson, TruthOut.orgThere is no "silver bullet" solution to our energy crisis. But a new study shows that the right combination of renewables may be our best bet.

ExxonMobil's War on ScienceBy Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., HuffingtonPost.comWith an elaborate network of phony think tanks and slick public relations firms, ExxonMobil has become today's Big Tobacco, defrauding the public and waging a war on science.

The Most Important Thing You Can Do To Stop Global WarmingBy Tara Lohan, AlterNetEnvironmentalist Bill McKibben explains that forcing Congress to take action on climate change is the top priority. Fortunately, he has a plan.

Alpha FemalesBy Bill McKibben, Grist MagazineYou know climate concern has gone mainstream when sororities get on board.

Biodiesel: The Fuel That Doesn't Kill UsBy Joshua Scheer, TruthdigAnnie Nelson, wife of Willie Nelson, speaks about community-based biodiesel production as a way of restoring dignity to family farmers, the environment, the economy and national security.

Apple Computers: Fun for You, Toxic for the EnvironmentBy Jess Hemerly, AlterNetApple positions itself as the technological haven for the hip, the progressive and the revolutionary. But when it comes to the environment, Apple is quite out of touch.

Will 'Green' Building Be the Future of New Orleans?By Kellie Lunney, The American ProspectThere is no shortage of "green" plans for rebuilding New Orleans. But what does sustainability mean to people without a roof over their heads?

FEED – Food & Environment Electronic Digest - February 2007Read FEED onlineContents

Good news for pigs: Gestation crates being phased out

Good news for rural communities: Manitoba limits hog farms

Victory in engineered bentgrass case

Cloned food can't be sold as organic

What you can do: Attend a hearing on factory farming

1. Good news for pigs: Gestation crates being phased outBoth the world's largest pork producer, U.S.-based Smithfield Farms, and Canada's largest pork producer, Maple Leaf Foods, are phasing out the use of gestation crates for pigs over the next decade. These metal cages confine pregnant sows for months at a time in an area so small that they cannot turn around, causing the animals physical and mental distress. Both companies will transition their sows to group housing in pens instead. Smithfield's decision came after Arizona and Florida passed ballot initiatives banning gestation crates, and corporate customers pressured it to adopt more humane practices. Sows will still be confined in the small crates for a time after they give birth. Read more in The New York Times (free reg. req'd.).2. Good news for rural communities: Manitoba limits hog farmsThe Canadian province of Manitoba has placed a moratorium on construction of new hog farms until it has determined whether it is environmentally safe to expand hog operations. Read more...3. Victory in engineered bentgrass caseIn a landmark case, the U.S. District Court ruled that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) failed to enforce rules governing the cultivation of genetically engineered bentgrass, a lawn and golf course grass that contains a gene for herbicide resistance. The USDA improperly waived environmental assessments under the National Environmental Policy Act and failed to assess the potential for bentgrass to become a noxious weed, as required by the Plant Protection Act. Bentgrass in Oregon test plots interbred with wild grasses and established colonies of hybrid plants that carried engineered genes up to 9,800 feet beyond the 900-foot containment recommended by the USDA. The ruling eliminates the USDA's current practice of waiving environmental assessments of experimental engineered crops. The USDA reviews about 1,000 such field trials each year. Read more from the Center for Food Safety.4. Cloned food can't be sold as organicThe National Organic Program says that even if cloned animals are approved for sale as food, they cannot be sold as organic. Read more...5. What you can do: Speak at a hearing on factory farmingThe National Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production is holding a series of public hearings around the country on factory farming. The task of the Commission, an independent entity launched by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, is to examine the impact of factory farming on public health, the environment, rural areas, and animal welfare. Its final report and recommendations could be very influential, so it is important for the Commission to hear from family farmers, citizens in communities affected by factory farming, and others who have particular knowledge of the issues. Visit http://www.ncifap.org/meetings/ to see hearing locations and dates, and to sign up to speak.

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Feature Story

Wolf of the River

Superlatives seem to follow the giant river otters of Brazil’s Pantanal lowlands. These giants live in the largest wetland left on earth, which is also home to the world’s biggest species of kingfishers and toucans -- not to mention the largest rodent (the capybara) and the Western Hemisphere’s largest cat (the jaguar). The latest edition of Defenders, our quarterly magazine, takes a look at these six-foot-long “wolves of the river” -- and how they’re making their last stand in the rivers of South America.

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Action of the Month

Bald Eagle: Do Not Disturb

Soon, the Fish & Wildlife Service is expected to issue a final rule on removing the bald eagle from the list of species protected by Endangered Species Act. The announcement will mark a successful end to a long journey back from the brink of extinction. But to ensure this story’s happy end, we need to make sure that this national symbol has the protection that it deserves.

Take action now: Tell the Fish & Wildlife Service to take steps to secure the bald eagle’s future.

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Feature Story

Great Lakes, Rotten Rockies

As the federal government proposes to remove protections for wolves, the fate of wolves in two regions may soon be in the hands of state officials. While this is good news in the Great Lakes, where states have shown that they’re ready to maintain healthy populations of wolves, it’s quite another story in the Northern Rockies: Wyoming and Idaho are already preparing to move forward with wolf eradication plans.

Defenders has been busy on the ground, preparing to review and comment on the federal proposals once they're official, working with other conservation groups and educating the public. This week, we will also meet with our Livestock Producers Advisory Council -- ranchers and landowners living in wolf country who help guide our work on non-lethal controls for predators and compensation programs for losses linked to wolves and grizzlies.

Together with our sister organization Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund, we have also mobilized over 40,000 activists -- people just like you -- to speak up to keep protections intact for wolves in the Northern Rockies. Thanks for all your support! Events will unfold quickly on the ground, so stay tuned for more ways that you can help.

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Defenders Updates

Alaska: Good & Bad NewsThe good news: Last week, the Alaska certified the tens of thousands of signatures gathered by Alaskans for Wildlife, securing the issue’s place on the 2008 ballot. Twice before, Alaskans voted to reject aerial gunning in the state. Perhaps the third time will be the charm for the state’s wolves. Unfortunately, last week, a state judge denied a Defenders request to halt this year’s season. This means the killing can still take place as our lawsuit to end the state’s ill-advised program continues. Meanwhile, the death toll mounts: 14 wolves have already been killed in the early weeks of the aerial gunning season, with more expected as Alaska's weather improves. >> Read More

Endangered Refuges Education programs for school children and endangered species recovery programs are among the items on the chopping block at several National Wildlife Refuges in the Midwest. “These refuges provide some of the last vestiges of open space for people to enjoy, whether for birding, photography, hunting, fishing or just taking a peaceful walk in nature,” said Defenders President Rodger Schlickeisen. “It's a tragedy to see them being abandoned one by one.” >> Read More

Gull as CanaryThe ivory gull is fast disappearing from its remote haunts in the Arctic, and its dwindling numbers have scientists concerned. The Inuit see this bird as a canary-in-the-coalmine, its decline indicating larger problems in the region. The ivory gull, already a rare seabird, could become another victim of a changing climate. These snow-white birds are the focus of Defenders’ latest chapter in our ongoing report on global warming, “Navigating the Arctic Meltdown.”>> Read more about the ivory gull and see what Defenders is doing to combat global warming.

Rare Flock Suffers Big LossSeventeen young whooping cranes were killed in storms that swept through central Florida last week. Just last month, the birds were led on a 1,200-mile journey by ultra-light aircraft from Wisconsin to Florida as part of an effort to create a second North American migratory flock of these endangered birds.This devastating loss -- reducing the remaining whooping crane population by 21 percent -- demonstrates how vulnerable single populations of species are to catastrophic events such as natural disasters.

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Defenders Staff Profile

Our Man in Mexico

Juan Carlos Cantú is our man in Mexico. He thinks big and he gets things done. His work -- which includes multi-national ad campaigns, an award winning radio show and five comic books -- has protected whales, sea turtles, migrating birds and many other species across Mexico and beyond.

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Time is running out! Last chance for shipping in time for Valentine’s day is February 7th at 11:00 PM, Pacific!

Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle Weighing just under 100 pounds, the Kemp’s ridley are the smallest sea turtles in the world. They live primarily in the Gulf of Mexico and use their parrot-like beak to chomp crabs, their favorite food. After mating at sea, thousands of females take to the shores to lay their eggs in a mass-nesting behavior unique to this species of sea turtle. But uncontrolled egg collection and unintended catch in shrimp nets have brought these shelled shore-nesters to the brink of extinction.Thanks to the efforts of biologists, conservationists and volunteers, the Kemp’s ridley has been slowly making the turn toward recovery. But these sea turtles are the most critically endangered in the world and face newer threats from offshore drilling and global warming. You can help Kemp’s ridleys and other sea turtles by giving the gift of Wildlife Adoption.

Chill on the Warm Up Even in bitterly cold climates, letting a car idle in your driveway to warm up is probably just a waste of gas -- and produces needless pollution. Modern vehicles don’t need to be warmed up at all. Just a few minutes driving at moderate speed is the fastest way to get your engine ready for the commute. Have an Enviro Tip to share?E-mail envirotip

Last month, we found out that more than 23 percent of you purchase clean energy for your homes. This month vote for the next Wildlife Adoption Center plush candidates!

>> CAST YOUR VOTE NOW

First Thursday of each monthRodger Schlickeisen on Conscious Talk Radio Listen live in the hour of 7AM Pacific, or listen to the archivesonline.

For more on the following select local events or how you can get Defenders materials for your own event, contact Marcia LeskyFebruary 10Monarch Butterfly Migration FestivalNatural Bridges State ParkSanta Cruz, CAFebruary 16-17New Mexico Organic Farming ConferenceAlbuquerque, NMFebruary 17Defenders of Wildlife presentation: Colorado’s Most Endangered AnimalsBeaver Meadows Headquarters Visitor Center AuditoriumRocky Mountain National ParkEstes Park, COFebruary 21An Inconvenient Truth PresentationHawley Methodist ChurchHawley, PA February 24An Inconvenient Truth PresentationDelaware County Environmental Leadership ProgramJohn Heinz National Wildlife Education CenterPhiladelphia, PAFebruary 26th An Inconvenient Truth PresentationWilliam Paterson University 300 Pompton Road Wayne, NJ

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2007 Defenders of Wildlife

ACTION ALERT Please forward widely!Brazil Approves Deforestation of Important Amazon ReserveRainforest Portal, a project of Ecological Internet, Inc.http://www.rainforestportal.org/January 25, 2007TAKE ACTIONThe strength and permanence of protected status for ancient rainforests under Brazilian law is at stakehttp://www.rainforestportal.org/alerts/send.asp?id=brazil_reserveThe State Government of Mato Grosso, Brazil, has voted to drastically reduce one of the Amazon's most biodiverse reserves. What is at stake is the strength and permanence of protected status for ancient rainforests under Brazilian law. The Cristalino State Park is a world-renowned ecotourism destination, whose 184,000 hectares are home to over 550 species of birds, and protects endangered species like the white-whiskered spider monkey. Some 27,000 hectares of its forest will now lose protected status; becoming vulnerable to logging, cattle ranching and agribusiness. State Governor Blairo Maggi initially vetoed the reduction of the park on the grounds that it would "be seen as endorsing illegal occupancy and deforestation of public lands", and that it would suggest Brazilian environmental law can be flouted. The veto was short-lived, however, as members of the Mato Grosso House of Representatives immediately overturned it. Mato Grosso has suffered the highest rate of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon and yet it looks like the State Government is manipulating this particular situation for political gain. Please contact key players in Brazil's Federal and State governments, and let them know that removal of protected status so easily from preserved Amazonian ancient rainforests is simply unacceptable. TAKE ACTION NOW at:http://www.rainforestportal.org/alerts/send.asp?id=brazil_reserveDiscuss this alert at:http://www.rainforestportal.org/issues/2007/01/brazil_approves_deforestation.asp