1) Dauphin Island Sea Lab State Appropriation Slashed
2) Legislature Finds Money For Mobile Air Pollution Study
3) City of Florence Commits to Preserve and Forever Wild
4) Attention Needed: TVA Regional Resource Stewardship Council
5) Ecotourism and Smart Growth Conference in Jacksonville
6) Nature Conservancy's John Sawhill Passes Away After Coma

"God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches and a thousand tempests and floods. But He cannot save them from fools." - John Muir

1. Dauphin Island Sea Lab State Appropriation Slashed - Despite receiving recommendations for budget increases by the Alabama House Ways and Means Committee and the Alabama Commission on Higher Education (ACHE) Council of Presidents, the legislature followed the Siegelman Administration's original recommendation to reduce the Dauphin Island Sea Lab appropriation by $200,000.

The Sea Lab is now forecasting programmatic cuts in the statewide educational efforts of the marine laboratory. The Sea Lab facility serves 22 colleges and universities within Alabama, 35,000 K-12 students annually and provides teacher training for several hundred teachers each year. Detailed analysis of the 5 year budget history of the laboratory (before the present budget reduction) reveals that it is already operating at $200,000/year less than it did 5 years ago.

2. Legislature Finds Money For Mobile Air Pollution Study - State Senator George Callahan (R-Theodore) and Rep. Mike Dean (R-Mobile) just did something pretty darn innovative. The legislators introduced and passed a bill to take $50,000 out of a $225,000 pollution fine that was levied against subsidiaries of Degussa-Huls out of Theodore, Alabama and applied it to the comprehensive Mobile County Air Quality Study. Normally the entire $225,000 fine would go direct into the state general fund.

State Sen. Callahan and Steve Perry of The Forum, a Mobile industry coalition, gave Mobile Bay Watch Director Casi Callaway much of the credit for developing the idea and keeping attention focused on the bill, according to an article in the Mobile Register. The money will be used to partially fund a air quality study for the county that will include air monitoring, and the development of models that predict how pollutants mix and move through the air. The study is expected to cost between $750,000 and $1 million dollars, which will be borne by the county, city of Mobile, Alabama Power, The Forum and Mobile Bay Watch.

3. City of Florence Commits to Preserve and Forever Wild - In a May 16th resolution, the Florence City Council committed $100,000 to be appropriated to the Forever Wild Land Trust for the purpose of purchasing approximately 300 acres known as the Shoal Creek Preserve located in Lauderdale County. The commitment by the city of Florence of monies to purchase property for the Forever Wild Program, is the first of its kind by a municipality. The appropriation is contingent on the Friends of Shoal Creek Preserve raising $100,000 (to be applied to the purchase price) and Forever Wild agreeing to pay the remainder of the purchase.

In the past month, along with city of Florence support, the Friends of Shoal Creek Preserve have garnered public support from State Representative Nelson Starkey, the Lauderdale County Commission (road upkeep) and the Times Daily newspaper.

4. Attention Needed: TVA Regional Resource Stewardship Council - Here are some interesting facts: The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is responsible for the nation's fifth largest river system. Its reservoirs have a total surface area of 480,000 acres and 11,000 miles of shoreline. Currently, TVA manages more than 277,000 acres of public land and is responsible for protecting critical habitats for endangered and threatened species.

On Thursday, May 25th at the Huntsville Hilton, TVA's newly formed Regional Resource Stewardship Council (RRSC) will be meeting between 11:30 to 4:00 to hear from the public and decide on the direction of this citizen/stakeholder driven council. If you are interested in the Tennessee Valley's environment, this is a great opportunity to make a difference. For more information about the RRSC visit their website at http://www.tva.gov/rrsc/index.htm or call council member Stephen Smith, director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy at 865-637-6055.

5. Ecotourism and Smart Growth Conference in Jacksonville - I can't think of a better way to spend 3 days in Jacksonville, Alabama than at a dynamic three day conference/special event on Smart Growth (June 1), Ecotourism (June 2) and a Mount Cheaha Celebration opening up the Doug Ghee Accessible Trail (June 3rd). The 3 day event is being organized by the Jacksonville State University Environmental Policy and Information Center and the East Alabama Regional Planning and Development Commission. This "can't miss" event has incredible networking potential for conservationists searching for ways to stop urban sprawl and promote ecotourism solutions. Some of the speakers include Phillip Morris of Southern Progress , Ed Mc Mahon of the Conservation Fund, state representatives and state senators, and at the June 3rd event, Georgia U.S. Senator Max Cleland and Governor Don Siegelman (for a schedule on the June 3rd event visit http://www.jsu.edu/depart/epic/Cheaha.htm ).

For addtional details and registration information about the schedule of events, call Donna Fathke at 256-237-6741.

6. Nature Conservancy's John Sawhill Passes Away After Coma - Nature Conservancy President John Sawhill died this weekend at the age of 63. Sawhill, who suffered from diabetes, had been in a coma for about two weeks.

A true environmental pioneer, during Sawhill's tenure as President of the Nature Conservancy the organization bought and protected more than 7 million acres in the U.S., tripled its staff, doubled its membership and increased its revenues from land sales more than fivefold. He said the traditional approach of setting aside areas in parks created "lifeboats of natural diversity. But even lifeboats can sink. Noah's ark has sprung a leak." Last year, Sawhill and the Nature Conservancy donated $1 million to Forever Wild for the Mobile Delta purchase and just this spring after the Conservancy released the book "Precious Heritage", Sawhill announced an initiative to spend $1 billion on protecting biodiversity. The environmental community and the world truly lost a hero.

A wonderful way to celebrate the memory and life of John Sawhill would be to support the Nature Conservancy of Alabama. Please contact them at 205-251-1155.

Please share BEN with friends and fellow conservationists. If you have any questions or comments about this publication, contact Pat Byington, the author and publisher of BEN at 205-226-7739 or pkbyington@aol.com We also encourage readers to visit our website at : http://www.BamaNews.com