On the Alert

•UMPs not ATVs: In wilderness areas across the state, New York is poised to take an important step forward in limiting motorized activity while assuring protective measures for recreational use. In the last few months, state environmental officials have improved and released a draft Unit Management Plan (UMP) for the Bog River Flow Complex ø a stretch of the Adirondack Park that includes popular campsites and canoe routes in the Horseshoe Lake Wild Forest and Hitchins Pond and Lows Lake Primitive Areas. The draft plan wisely postpones the debate about extending the snowmobile trail from Long Lake (until the state snowmobile plan is hammered out) and includes a five year phase-out of float plane use in the area. The plan could be a positive template for dozens more such plans due as part of the GovernorÕs ambitious commitment to complete more than 30 Adirondack Park UMPs over the next two years. The Adirondack Park Agency (APA) should be strongly encouraged to approve the plan at its monthly meeting on January 9-10, 2003. Contact Governor Pataki and the APA and tell them to protect our wildlands from unchecked motorized use by keeping the UMP process on track. For more information, contact David Higby, EANY Adirondack Project Director, at dhigby@eany.org or 518-462-5526 ext. 239.

•POPs Off: More than 18 months ago, President George W. Bush pledged support for rapid ratification and implementation of the Stockholm Convention, an international treaty that phases out production and use of persistent organic pollutants (POPs). POPs are a dangerous class of chemicals, including DDT, toxaphene and many other notorious pesticides. Canada and Mexico are among 24 countries that have ratified the treaty. But the White House is now blocking the SenateÕs implementing legislation because it includes language outlining how new chemicals will be targeted for elimination in the US when the international phaseout list under the treaty expands. Write President Bush and insist that he protect current and future generations by supporting the POPs treaty. Write the President at: The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20500 or email: president@whitehouse.gov or fax: 202-456-2461. For more information, contact the Pesticide Action Network North America at 415-981-6205 or kristins@panna.org, or visit: www.panna.org.

•Bitter Herbicide: Syngenta, the worldÕs largest agribusiness company, is the main manufacturer of the herbicide atrazine. Sixty million pounds of the chemical are sprayed on fields and lawns in the US annually. Last year, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) learned that Syngenta had been tracking cases of prostate cancer in employees at its St. Gabriel plant in Louisiana. Only after NRDC alerted the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did Syngenta submit the results. The most significant finding is that Syngenta employees have markedly elevated incidence rates of prostate cancer. Visit www.actionnetwork.org/campaign/ban_atrazine to send an email to the EPA and Syngenta telling them to ban atrazine. For more information, visit: www.nrdc.org.

•VictoriaÕs Secret: Mail order companies sent out nearly 17 billion catalogs in the US last year, consuming nearly 3.6 million tons of paper. Despite the availability, competitive price and equivalent performance of recycled paper, most catalogs are still printed on virgin paper. The result is the unnecessary consumption of natural resources. Visit http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/catalogs to send a fax to the CEOs of leading catalog companies. For more information, visit Environmental Defense at: www.environmentaldefense.org.

For Your Information

Mass Movement: Critical Mass, an international event held in more than 200 cities around the world, occurs on the last Friday of every month when bicyclists come together to ride the ordinarily car-clogged streets of their cities. Critical Mass focuses on the rights of bicyclists and the rights of pedestrians. It also brings attention to the deteriorating quality of life that cars create for cities. In Manhattan, Critical Mass is organized by TimeÕs Up! The December NYC Critical Mass ride will be on Friday the 27th at 7:00PM. Call 212-802-8222, or visit: www.times-up.org for more information.

Take a Hike: The Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK) has just released its newest guide, Catskill Day Hikes for All Seasons by Carol and David White. The 176-page book describes 60 trails located throughout the Catskill Park and includes how to get to each trail, summit elevations, difficulty ratings, hiking with children and more. Catskill Day Hikes for All Seasons can be ordered online at www.adk.org, by calling ADK at 800-395-8080, at ADK information centers in Lake George and Lake Placid or at local booksellers and outdoor retail stores. The cost is $12.95.

Only Natural: The American Museum of Natural HistoryÕs Young Naturalist Awards offers scholarships for students in grades 7-12. Students share their research on a particular place they explore through either a narrative essay or a field journal, both with illustrations and photographs. Award winners receive a cash prize, have their entry published, and win a free trip for a behind-the-scenes Museum tour and a chance to meet some scientists. The entry deadline is January 2, 2003. For more information, visit: www.amnh.org/youngnaturlaistawards or call 212-533-0222.

Grounded: Schools of Ground Zero: Early Lessons Learned in ChildrenÕs Environmental Health, a new report by the Healthy Schools Network (HSN), documents the 9/11 evacuations of the seven public schools of Ground Zero and tells the story of how volunteer Parent Associations coped with official pressure to return students to contaminated schools. ÒA wake-up call to every public health department, Board of Education, and school system in the countryÓ, says American Public Health Association Executive Director Mohammed Akhter, MD. Copies are available from HSN for a donation of $30 or more. Visit: www.healthyschools.org for more information.

Activists' Corner

Climate Control: The Global Warming Action Network of Greater Syracuse (GWAN-GS) brings together citizens and organizations working to take action on global warming issues on a local level. The network is currently focused on buying blocks of wind power now offered through some utilities, developing an energy/global warming curriculum for local school teachers to use, and developing a series of continuing education courses on alternative energy systems for practicing professionals, including engineers and architects. Their website points to actions both for individuals and for communities, providing links to relevant programs. For more information on GWAN-GS, contact Ollie Club at oclubb@accucom.net or Richard Smardon at smardon@mailbox.syr.edu. Visit the network online at: http://home.twcny.rr.com/gwan2/.

December

2: Leveraging Your Open Space Money: How to Work with County, State and Other Officials to Preserve Land, a Westchester Open Space Alliance Meeting. New Castle Town Hall, Chappaqua. 7:00PM. Call 914-241-6346 ext. 24.

3: Get the Mercury Out: A Web Conference on Mercury in Automobiles, second in a series of five sessions sponsored by Great Lakes United (GLU). Agenda will focus on mercury legislation. $.55/min plus a $3 processing fee. 3:50PM. Contact Bailey Mylleville at 716-886-0142 or bailey@glu.org. Also: 12/17, Mercury Switch Capture Programs.

4: Prospect Park Green Team. Learn about the natural wonders of Prospect Park and how to protect them in this fun, drop-in conservation program for children ages 9-13. Audubon Center, Prospect Park, Brooklyn. 3:30PM-5:00PM. Call 718-287-3400.

5: Real-World Energy & Environmental Technologies: Choices For Today and Tomorrow, sponsored by Ulster County Development Corporation (UCDC) and others. CH Energy Group, Route 28, Kingston (behind Johnson Ford). 8:30AM-12:00PM. Pre-registration required. Call UCDC at 845-338-8840.

6-7: Annual Alternative Craft Fair, sponsored by Metro Justice of Rochester. Cooperative games, vegetarian foods, social justice groups, music and stroytelling. First Unitarian Church, 220 Winton Road South, Rochester. Call 716-325-2560.

10: Science and Sustainable Development, talk by Dr. Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. New York Academy of Sciences, 2 E. 63rd St., Manhattan. 6:00PM-9:00PM. Email EnviroSciences@nyas.org. The Economic Value of Long Island Sound, part of the Soundwaters Business and Environment Lunches Series. Soundwaters Community Center for Environmental Education, Cove Island Park, Stamford, CT. 12:00PM-1:30PM. Call 203-323-1978.

11: New Yorkers For Parks Staten Island borough meeting to Discuss NY4P advocacy agenda and research projects, city budget analysis and impact on parks, community and government outreach efforts, and much more. CYO-MIV Community Center, 6451 Hylan Blvd., Mount Loretto, Staten Island. 6:30PM-8:00PM. Call Pamela Governale at 212-838-9410 ext. 231.

14: Common Threads in the Fabric of Farming: Honoring the Role of Women, 3rd New England WomenÕs Agricultural Network Conference. Lewiston/Auburn College, 51 Westminster St., Lewiston, Maine. 8:00AM-3:45PM. Contact Vivianne Holmes at 207-353-5550 or vholmes@umext.maine.edu.

14: Christmas Bird Count, sponsored by the Teatown Lake Reservation. Help collect data on which birds winter in the Teatown area. 1600 Spring Valley Road, Ossining. Meet at Nature Center parking lot. Limited to 15 adults. Call 914-762-2912 ext. 17.

27: NYC Critical Mass bike ride, organized by Times-Up!. Meet at Union Square Park North. 7:00PM sharp. Call 212-802-8222. (See FYI.)

January

1: 13th Annual Traditional New YearÕs Day Environmentalists Walk, coordinated by Protectors of Pine Oak Woods and Natural Resources Protective Association. Take a stroll on the beach at Gateway National Recreation Area with members from numerous environmental groups. 12:00PM-2:30PM. Call Dick Buegler at 718-761-7496.

13-17: An Organic Approach to Turfgrass Management, offered by the Western NY Society for Organic Horticulture and the Cooperative Extension Associations of Monroe and Erie Counties. Genesee Community College, Batavia, NY. Contact Al Festaiuti at 716-741-3372 or abland98@aol.com or Joann Gruttadaurio at 607-255-1792 or jg17@cornell.edu.