March 26, 1999
1) Little River Canyon NP Comments Needed
2) Community Foundation Supports the Environment
3) Alabama Sturgeon Up For Listing Again
4) Baldwin County Cracks Down on Garbage
5) House Committee Passes Transit Bill
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"Find your place on the planet. Dig in, and take responsibility
from there."
- Gary Snyder
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1. Little River Canyon NP Plan Not Enough - Here is
a great way to help the
environment during your Spring Break vacation. Currently, the
National Park
Service is accepting comments on its General Management Plan for
the Little
River Canyon National Preserve through March 31, 1999. This document
is
important because it will help shape the management of the park
for decades
to come.
The Southeast Regional Office of the National Parks and Conservation
Association (NPCA) has reviewed the "draft" General
Management
Plan/Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and has strongly recommended
the
National Park Service to issue a revised draft EIS. Some of NPCA's
concerns
include:
1) The draft EIS was too broad and did not fully explore alternatives
and
impacts as required by the National Environmental Policy Act (According
to
NPCA the EIS is less than 40 pages long and lacks detail in management
prescriptions and environmental impacts).
2) The draft EIS has only 2 alternatives
3) The draft EIS does not provide enough specificity to enable
the public to
understand what is being recommended for the general management
of Little
River NP under NEPA and National Park Service Planning Guidelines.
In general, NPCA supports the general direction of the draft
EIS, which
emphasizes keeping Little River Canyon preserved from development,
but this
EIS is simply not defined or detailed enough. For more information
about
NPCA's position, please call 1-423-457-7775. You can send your
Little River
Canyon National Preserve comments to 2141 Gault Avenue North,
Fort Payne Al.
35967.
2. Community Foundation Supports the Environment - Last
month, the Community
Foundation of Greater Birmingham (CFGB) celebrated their 40th
Anniversary.
During those 40 wonderful and productive years, the foundation
has been a big
supporter of environmetnal causes throughout the Birmingham Metro
area. Some
of the local conservation groups CFGB has funded include, Ruffner
Mountain,
the Southern Environmental Center, Alabama Conservancy/Environmental
Council,
Cahaba River Society, Nature Conservancy, Alabama Rivers Alliance,
Scenic
Alabama and the Alabama Wildlife Rescue Center.
Currently, the Community Foundation has over $85 milion in
assets and 140
seperate funds. In 1998, 4.3% of the Foundation's grantmaking
went to local
environmental efforts. Supporters of the environment can set up
through the
foundation a "donor advised" fund which an individual
can contribute to
during one's lifetime, through wills, or deferred giving (ex.
charitable
remainder trust).
The Community Foundation has been a champion for a better environment
for a
generation. For more information on the Foundation and how they
can help you
"leave a legacy" for Alabama's environment, contact
Kate Nielson for donor
info and Carey Hinds for grantmaking info, at 205-328-8641 or
write 2027 1st
Ave North, Suite 410 Birmingham, Al. 35203.
3. Alabama Sturgeon Up For Listing... Again - This week
the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (USFWS) stated that it will propose listing the
Alabama
Sturgeon as an endangered species.
Five years ago, USFWS first proposed listing the Sturgeon as
endangered
setting off an 18 month battle between environmentalists and business
interests. State lawmakers sided with business interests contending
that
protecting the fish would shut down South Alabama's waterways
and cost the
state billion of dollars in economic losses. The proposal was
withdrawn by
Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt declaring that the fish may already
be
extinct. Since that decision six (6) Alabama Sturgeons have been
caught by
state, federal and recreational fishermen. Joint studies by the
U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers and the USFWS have also concluded that listing
the Alabama
Sturgeon as endangered will not impact any current activities
in the Alabama
and Tombigbee rivers, including the annual maintenance and dredging
programs.
For the past four (4) years business, governmental, and environmental
interests have been meeting about Mobile River Basin resource
issues such as
the Sturgeon and numerous species issues. Despite an expected
political
"firestorm" depicted in the media and expressed by politicians
as a result of
the proposed listing, most participants in the cooperative efforts
that have
occurred as a result of these Mobile Basin meetings over the years,
believe
that common ground and understanding will be found and forged.
4. Baldwin County Cracks Down on Garbage - The Baldwin
County Commission has
taken a bold step in attempting to solve a solid waste problem
in the
unincorporated areas of the county. In December of 1998 the County
Commission appointed David Roberson an environmental consultant
and lobbyist
to serve as a solid waste deputy for their county-wide mandatory
solid waste
program. Since the inception of the county-wide program there
has been more
than $700,000 in delinquent collection fees. Since January, Mr.
Roberson has
been serving as an Administrative Hearing Officer for those people
who have
not paid their fees. A county solid waste investigator was assigned
to
research delinquent accounts, and make as many on-site visits
as possible
prior to bringing residents in for a hearing. It is estimated
that since the
hearings began in January the county has recovered approximately
$70,000.
This new policy has helped "enforce" the county-wide
mandatory garbage pickup
program and of course has resulted in fewer illegal dumps.
5. House Committee Passes Transit Bill - Earlier this
week the House Ways
and Means General Fund Committee passed by a 12-1 vote (Rep. Nelson
Starkey
D-Florence voted against) a proposed constitutional amendment
by Rep. Perry
Hooper R-Montgomery that would loosen the longtime ban on using
gasoline
taxes and other motor vehicle fees for anything but roads projects.
Under
the amendment up to 2 percent of the proceeds could be used for
public
transportation.
Advocates for the poor and environmental groups praised the
proposal at the
public hearing held Wednesday citing the desperate need for programs
to help
people get to work (especially in rural communities) and the reduction
in air
pollution from auto emissions. The Department of Transportation
(DOT) under
Gov. Don Siegelman has yet to take a position on the bill. In
the past DOT
officials have opposed the measure.
Please share BEN with friends and fellow conservationists.
If you have any questions about BEN, contact Pat Byington at
205-226-7739 or pkbyington@aol.com
