Neila Seaman, MPA Director Sierra Club, Iowa Chapter 3839 Merle Hay Road, Suite 280 Des Moines, IA 50310 [log in to unmask] 515-277-8868 >From: "Lnorrgard" <[log in to unmask]> >To: "Lois LNorrgard" <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: Alert for Senate Tongass Subsidy Amendment >Date: Fri, 24 Jun 2005 17:09:38 -0500 > >Message > > > > >CONSERVATION, SPORTING AND RELIGIOUS GROUPS > >WORKING TOGETHER TO PROTECT ALASKA'S PUBLIC LANDS > > > >Tell Your Senators to Vote YES on the Sununu/Bingaman Tongass Subsidy >Amendment to End Wasteful Spending and Protect the Tongass National Forest! > > > >June 24, 2005 > > > >Dear Members of the Alaska Coalition and Activists, > > > >A month after the House was denied the chance, we are happy to report that >the Senate will have the opportunity to vote on the Tongass Subsidy >Amendment to end taxpayer subsidies used to build new logging roads in the >Tongass National Forest. Furthermore., we are delighted to announce that >Senator John Sununu (R-NH) will be leading the charge! with Senator Jeff >Bingaman (D, NM) as co-sponsor. > > > >Speaking up for taxpayers and the Tongass, Senator Sununu (R-NH) will offer >the Tongass Subsidy Amendment to the Interior Appropriations Bill as early >as next week. Due to the limited time, it is very important that we >contact our Senators as soon as possible and urge them to support this >amendment, votes may be as early as Tuesday. > > > >To Take Action Now: > > > >1. Call Your Members of Congress : >Senator Chuck Grassley Phone: 202-224-3744 Fax: 202-224-6020 > >Senator Tom Harkin Phone: 202-224-3254 Fax: 202-224-9369 > > > >2. Email Your Members of Congress : [log in to unmask] >[log in to unmask] > > > >3. Spread the Word: Ask your family and friends to call and email their >Senators as well. The more calls and emails we get into their offices the >better are chances are! > > > >Now more than ever we need to tell Congress that we don't want to pay to >pave and log America's Rainforest! > >More Information: > >The U.S. Senate is expected to begin debate next week on the Interior >Appropriations bill and will take up Senator John Sununu's amendment to end >taxpayer subsidies in the Tongass National Forest. > > > >Last year the Tongass Subsidy amendment, offered by Reps. Chabot and >Andrews, passed the U.S. House by a strong bi-partisan majority before it >was eventually dropped from the Interior bill during conference committee >negotiations. So far this year, U.S. House member have been prevented from >voting on the popular measure. > > > >That's why it is so important that we urge the Senate to do the right thing >and pass the Tongass Subsidy amendment next week! > > > >At a time when the government is running huge budget deficits, the Forest >Service wasted $48 million taxpayer dollars last year to subsidize the >timber industry's clearcutting of America's Rainforest - and they want to >continue to throw good money after bad. If the Bush administration were to >stick to its proposed logging schedule in the Tongass, over the next decade >America's taxpayers can expect to continue to lose tens of millions of >dollars annually-a hefty price tag for clearcutting America's Rainforest. > > > >If the President and Congress are serious about cutting government waste, >the subsidy to the logging industry in Alaska is a good place to start. It >should not be the responsibility of American taxpayers to foot the bill to >clearcut America's rainforest. American taxpayers deserve better and so >does America's Rainforest. > > > >What is at Stake: > >The Tongass is a national treasure. Created in 1907 by Teddy Roosevelt, the >Tongass is America's largest national forest and the largest intact >temperate rainforest in the world. This coastal temperate rainforest-an >ecosystem even more rare and threatened than tropical rainforests **-boasts >towering stands of spruce, hemlock, and cedar. Soaking up more than 100 >inches of rain per year, the forests of the Tongass provide critical >habitat for healthy populations of grizzly bears, black bears, Sitka >black-tailed deer, eagles, wolves, and 5 species of wild salmon. Mountain >goats roam the steep slopes and rocky mountaintops of the coastal range and >countless streams running through mist-shrouded valleys are the spawning >grounds for millions of salmon. > > > >** The temperate rainforest is the rarest ecosystem or biome in the world, >and was originally found only along North America's northwest coast, the >southern coast of Chile, in Tasmania, along the west coast of >Scotland/Norway, and to lesser extent, along Japan's Hokkaido Island. Today >almost this entire magnificent forest ecosystem is gone. The most intact >belt of temperate rainforest runs along the coast of British Colombia to >Alaska's Glacier Bay region (Tongass), though sprinklings remain in >California, Washington, Oregon, and in Prince William Sound. > > > >Let's tell our Senators to stop using taxpayer subsidies to log our >nation's largest national forest. > > > >With limited time we need to get this message out quickly and to as many >people as we can, so please be sure to pass this news onto your family and >friends and ask them to contact their Senators today! With enough pressure >from the grassroots we can make sure that the Senate does what the House >couldn't do last month, pass a fiscally-responsible amendment that is good >for taxpayers and the Tongass National Forest. > > > >If you have any questions or want to know other ways you can help, please >send an email to [log in to unmask] > > > >Sincerely, > > > >The Alaska Coalition > >www.alaskacoalition.org > > >Lois Norrgard >Regional Organizer >Alaska Coalition >10368 Columbus Circle >Bloomington MN 55420 >ph/fx: 952.881-7282 >[log in to unmask] - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To get off the IOWA-TOPICS list, send any message to: [log in to unmask]