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Date:         Wed, 7 Jun 2000 15:49:53 -0700
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Sender: War On the Environment briefing              <[log in to unmask]>
From: Activist Desk <[log in to unmask]>
Subject:      Sierra Club Action Daily, Vol II, #217, June 7, 2000
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     Sierra Club Action Daily
     Vol. II, #217
     June 7, 2000

     -------------------------QUOTE OF THE DAY-----------------------------

     "They're doing the ultimate in leapfrog development," says Bahr,
     conservation outreach director of the Sierra Club's Grand Canyon
     chapter. "They've jumped over a vast area of open land to do a
     development the size of the city of Flagstaff."

     Washington Post: 6/5/00
     ----------------------------------------------------------------------
     TABLE OF CONTENTS:

     1) TAKE ACTION: URGE YOUR SENATOR TO VOTE FOR THE
     GORTON-FEINSTEIN-BRYAN CLEAN CAR RESOLUTION.

     2) REPORT FROM THE FIELD: VOLUNTEERS CONTINUE TO TURN UP THE HEAT
     ON SENATORS

     3) FROM THE FIELD: UTAH GOOD GUYS - 1, SPRAWL MALL BAD GUYS - 0

     4) FROM THE FIELD: LAWSUIT IN OKLAHOMA SEEKS TO SHUT DOWN A CAFO

     5) FROM THE FIELD: NORTH DAKOTANS FIGHT TO PROTECT WILD FORESTS &
     GRASSLANDS

     ****************************FEATURED ACTION**************************


     1) TAKE ACTION: URGE YOUR SENATOR TO VOTE FOR THE
     GORTON-FEINSTEIN-BRYAN CLEAN CAR RESOLUTION.

     THE FIRST ANTI-ENVIRONMENTAL RIDER VOTE IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER!
     VOTE EXPECTED JUNE 15.

     The Senate will soon be taking up the Department of Transportation
     (DOT) appropriations bill.  The House version, once again, contains
     the anti-environmental CAFE-freeze rider.  Since 1995, this rider has
     blocked all funding for even a study of improved miles per gallon
     standards and is a gag order preventing implementation of the most
     successful energy saving policy ever- Corporate Average Fuel Economy
     Standards.

     We've visited nearly every Senate office discussing the Clean Car
     Resolution and they have all stated that they are receiving phone call
     after phone call supporting improved miles per gallon standards.
     Great work, and thanks to your efforts we expect to build on the
     success of last years efforts which garnered the vote of 40 Senators.

     Unfortunately, Senators are also hearing from the auto industry so
     there is still a lot more work to be done and more calls need to be
     made!

     PLEASE CALL YOUR SENATORS TODAY (Capitol Switchboard: 1-202-224-3121)
     and urge them to oppose the CAFE-freeze rider in the DOT funding bill
     and to support increased fuel economy standards.  Raising fuel economy
     standards will save consumers money at the pump, reduce air pollution
     and is the biggest single step we can take to curb global warming.

     While talking to your Senators tell them that raising miles per gallon
     standards will reduce our dependence upon foreign oil, slash pollution
     and will save us money at the gas pump.

     Some quick facts about CAFE:

     The CAFE-freeze rider in the Department of Transportation (DOT)
     appropriations bill has been in place since 1995 and is the first
     anti-environmental rider of the year.

     The rider blocks the administration from even examining fuel economy
     standards, let alone raising them.  Removing the rider will not be the
     last vote, nor will it set the standards.  Removing the rider allows
     for the debate of improved miles per gallon standards to take place.

     Raising miles per gallon standards will save consumers money at the
     pump, as much as $5,000 over the lifetime of their car.  The current
     standards were set in 1975 and haven't been changed since 1989.  These
     standards- 27.5 mpg for passenger cars, 20.7 mpg for light trucks-
     save the US from using 3 million barrels of oil per day.

     Raising CAFE standards would save more oil than we import from the
     Persian Gulf, off-shore California drilling and what we could extract
     from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, combined!  Fuel economy
     standards are good for the economy, energy security, consumers and the
     environment.

     2) REPORT FROM THE FIELD: Club Volunteers Turning the Heat on Congress
     for Clean Car Vote

     Club activists are building pressure on their senators on the FIRST
     ANTI-ENVIRONMENTAL RIDER vote of the year.  The Clean Car Resolution
     opposes the rider that freezes miles per gallon standards at the level
     set in 1975.

     * The Arizona Daily Star published Elna Otter's letter to the editor
     urging the Arizona Congressional Delegation remove the CAFE freeze
     rider because she would "rather be spending money on something other
     than gas."

     *  Greg Farley (IL) enlisted the mayor of Davenport, IA to call his
     congressional delegation to support the Clean Car Resolution.

     * Bill Vance in New Hampshire hijacked a statewide radio show
     discussing the high price of gas, talking about raising miles per
     gallon standards would let us all keep more money in our pockets
     rather than pouring it into our gas tanks.

     * Today, students in 5 key states generated hundreds of calls to their
     Senators in support of the Clean Car Resolution.  Next week, Rebecca
     Crooker from the University of Delaware is leading a team of
     volunteers equipped with cell phones to rally the entire campus to
     call on Senators Roth and Biden to end the CAFE freeze.

     To find out what you can do, call Kate Simmons at 202-675-2388.
     The automakers are telling Congress how they feel.  It's now time to
     make our voices heard to protect the environment.

     3)FROM THE FIELD: UTAH GOOD GUYS 1 - SPRAWL MALL BAD GUYS 0

     Always wanted to fight a Sprawl Mart for real? The proposed mall near
     Salt Lake City would be 500 acres in size, have over 11,000 parking
     spaces, and would conveniently be build at the proposed interchange of
     Legacy Highway and Interstate 80. It would be 56 blocks from downtown
     in open space/wetlands to the west and over 40 blocks away from any
     residential area. Hard to get any worse!

     We, the Utah volunteers and staff, quickly formed a coalition, largely
     with help from the "Vest Pocket Coalition" (a group of Salt Lake local
     businesses). It consist of Vest Pocket, Downtown Alliance, Upnet,
     Workers Justice, and Sierra Club. Our Coalition held a press
     conference before the City Council meeting yesterday and received
     favorable coverage from the local affiliates of NBC, ABC, CBS, and
     FOX. Marc Nielsen got a good sound bite calling it the "Sprawl Mall"
     on CBS. The council meeting yesterday was stacked with about 100
     people, and we had the proponents outnumbered 4 to 1. We wanted to
     strike first because next week is the official hearing on the Mall.

     Stay Tuned: ask Marc Nielsen in Utah for updates.

     4) FROM THE FIELD: LAWSUIT IN OKLAHOMA SEEKS TO SHUT DOWN A CAFO

     Sierra Club sues hog farm owner
     By BRIAN FORD 6/6/00
     OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Oklahoma Sierra Club filed a lawsuit against
     Seaboard Corp., alleging that one of its hog farms in the Panhandle
     violated federal law when 160,000 gallons of wastewater were spilled
     near a river, it was announced Monday.

     The Sierra Club filed the lawsuit in Western District Federal Court
     on Friday, alleging several violations have occurred on Seaboard's
     Dorman site in Beaver County. The facility can hold as many as
     27,000  hogs.

     "State and federal agencies have not taken sufficient enforcement
     action to address Seaboard's repeated violation of federal law," said
     Chris Corbett, chairman of the Sierra Club's Oklahoma chapter.
     "Seaboard's illegal actions must stop."

     Corbett said more than 160,000 gallons of wastewater were
     apparently spilled at the Dorman site in October. He said the spills
     and other alleged violations "are particularly alarming due to the
     proximity of the Dorman site to the Beaver River and because the site
     overlies the Ogallala aquifer, creating a major threat to the quality
     of these important Oklahoma water resources."

     The lawsuit seeks to stop operations at the Dorman site until it
     is found in compliance with the Clean Water Act.

     5) FROM THE FIELD: NORTH DAKOTANS FIGHT TO PROTECT WILD FORESTS &
     GRASSLANDS

     North Dakota's Wild Forest, or in this case Grasslands, Campaign
     has proven to be quite successful so far. On Earth Day the Teddy
     Roosevelt Group and the Badlands Conservation Alliance, another
     local conservation organization, distributed over 4,000 tear-off
     postcards to residents in Dickinson, North Dakota, a town in the
     heart of oil and ranching country. This event was followed by an
     equally satisfying turnout for the Forest Service's informational
     hearing on President Clinton's Roadless Protection Initiative.
     The 19 attendees included 2 ranchers, 1 Farm Bureau staff member,
     an attorney from the attorney general's office and 15
     conservationists. An all out organizing effort is planned for the
     formal hearing in Bismarck on June 28th.

-----------------------------------------------------------------
 Sierra Club Legislative Hotline - 202-675-2394
 Sierra Club National Headquarters - 415-977-5500
 Sierra Club World Wide Web - http://www.sierraclub.org
 Sierra Club Vote Watch Website - http://www.sierraclub.org/votewatch/

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 White House Address - 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington, DC 20500

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 To contact your representative - http://www.house.gov/writerep/
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