• Abraham: U.S. Must Not Be Held Hostage by Oil Need
  
• Giant Dumbells on Trucks? It's Radioactive Waste!
  
• Arizona, Colorado Towns Evacuated Ahead of Fires
  
• L.L. Bean Funds Buses in Acadia National Park
  
• Birder's Hudson River Paradise Now a Park
  
• Bioengineered Tomato Fights Cancer
  
• Common Bacteria Killing Florida's Elkhorn Coral
  
• Federal/NGO Team Restores Coastal Ecosystems
  

Abraham: U.S. Must Not Be Held Hostage by Oil Need

Today, he told the House of Representatives International Relations Committee that the administration is moving in that direction by taking steps to encourage more domestic oil production, while diversifying sources and types of energy.

Abraham said that as the U.S. economy expands and demand for energy grows, its dependence on foreign suppliers will continue to rise. The U.S. demand for oil is expected to rise almost a third by 2020, according to Energy Information Administration projections.

Abraham said that growing U.S. reliance on imported oil was a major consideration in the development of the President's National Energy Policy and is an overriding concern in the U.S. approach to international oil markets.

This approach is based on principles of free trade and free markets, increased production balanced with a renewed focus on the clean and efficient use of energy, the expansion and diversification of sources and types of energy, and increased engagement with oil consumer and producer countries, he said.

In international markets, Abraham said, the Bush administration is moving in a new direction by building a stronger partnership with Canada and Mexico. A major undertaking in this area, the North American Energy Initiative, aims at developing policies to enhance energy security, trade and interconnections between the three countries, he said.

Abraham cited efforts to advance integration and resource development in the Western Hemisphere, improve the transparency, timeliness and accuracy of oil market data, strengthen bilateral energy relationships with Russia, support oil and gas resource development in the Caspian Sea region and maintain oil reserves as major U.S. activities promoting energy security.

Numerous environmental and conservation groups have criticized the Bush administration's National Energy Policy for its reliance on oil instead of renewable energy sources such as wind, geothermal and solar power.

Giant Dumbells on Trucks? It's Radioactive Waste!

Nevada Senator Harry Reid, a Democrat, today countered the latest Republican attempt to move forward on Yucca Mountain. Senator Frank Murkowski, an Alaska Republican called on the Senate to vote quickly on passing Yucca Mountain, setting aside debate on the Defense Authorization Bill to do so.

Reid, who is Senate Majority Whip, would not allow an accelerated vote. He said, "It's the wrong thing to do. It's not a Nevada related issue. It's an issue that affects everybody in this country. And for anyone to even suggest that the Defense Authorization Bill should be set aside to take up this? We're talking about giving our men and women in the military additional resources to fight the war on terror, to make this country secure."

While political maneuvering takes place on Capitol Hill, a wagon train of mock nuclear waste casks is touring tranportation routes across America targeted by the U.S. Energy Department (DOE) for shipping 77,000 tons of radioactive waste to Nevada from nuclear reactors and Defense Department facilities.

Two mock casks in Madison, Wisconsin (Photo courtesy Citizens Awareness Network)

Six citizens groups are hauling the full size replicas of nuclear waste truck casks - dumb-bell shaped cylinders, 20 feet long and seven feet tall - around on trailers, to show residents along the routes what nuclear transport would look like.

"When it comes to nuclear waste transportation, we all live in Nevada," said Kevin Kamps of Nuclear Information and Resource Service, a tour organizer.

Three casks converged at the St. Louis Arch on June 12, then joined several more casks in a convoy to Washington, DC for an event on June 18. Now each cask is returning to its own region of the country to continue the tour until the Senate vote.

The six groups involved are: the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League, the Citizens Awareness Network, Citizens Action Coalition of Indiana, Citizen Alert of Nevada, and two groups from Washington, DC - Public Citizen, and the Nuclear Information and Resource Service.

Public Citizen warns that current nuclear waste transport casks have never been physically tested under the conditions that would occur in a highway or rail accident. "The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's performance requirements are outdated and dangerously underestimate today's worst case accident scenarios," the group said.

Western North Carolina Physicians for Social Responsibility worry that the potential for road or rail accidents or terrorist attacks on the shipments increase the likelihood of serious public health emergencies. "Western North Carolina is a crossroad of these shipments," said one Asheville doctor, and informed citizens must convince our U.S. Senators to strongly oppose these actions.”

The nuclear industry's Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) assures the public that radioactive waste transport is well regulated and safe. "The annual Nuclear Regulatory Commission recommended radiation exposure limit for humans is unlikely to be exceeded even within six feet of a used fuel container. A person would have to be within the six foot zone longer than 10 hours before the 100-millirem regulatory exposure limit would be exceeded," the NEI says.

But a public safety statement on the NEI website does not address risks from accident or terrorist attack during a shipment of high-level radioactive waste.

Nevada Senator Harry Reid has posted a map showing the DOE's proposed transport routes state by state on his website at: http://reid.senate.gov/welcome.cfm

Arizona, Colorado Towns Evacuated Ahead of Fires

This new fire is out of control and has consumed 48,000 acres so far. Clay Springs, Timberland Acres and numerous ranches are threatened.

The Arizona fire is one of five new large fires that started today across the country. The acreage burned - 1,837,500 acres - is more than double the 10 year average for this time of year.

Another new fire in Colorado's Rio Grande National Forest has torched 6,000 acres and is out of control. Smokejumpers, crews, 28 fire engines and nine air tankers are fighting the flames. Approximately 2,000 to 3,000 residents have been evacuated in a 15 mile radius around the town of South Fork south of Highway 160, which is now closed.

Southwest of Denver, Colorado, the Hayman fire in the Pike-San Isabel National Forest is now 40 percent contained after burning 136,000 acres. Gusty, erratic winds, and very dry fuels are hampering containment efforts by 2,340 firefighters and 19 helicopters. At this time, there are approximately 7,908 people either evacuated or being evacuated. U.S. Forest Service technician Terry Barton, who has admitted setting the fire, was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Denver.

The Missionary Ridge fire in Colorado's San Juan National Forest has charred 53,888 acres and is considered 25 percent contained. This human caused fire that started June 9 has forced the evacutation of 18 subdivisions, and 23 homes have been burned. Extreme fire behavior, significant crowning runs, torching and long range spotting were observed, said fire officials.

L.L. Bean Funds Buses in Acadia National Park

The gift will be presented Friday at a ceremony on the Bar Harbor village green.

Since the Island Explorer system was introduced in 1999, the buses have reduced pollutants by at least 16.3 tons, and ridership has increased by 75 percent.

Last summer, the buses handled 240,000 passengers, in effect removing 80,000 personal vehicles from the park roads.

"L.L. Bean is making this contribution to help at a time when national parks throughout the country face increased use and underfunding," said Chris McCormick, CEO of L.L. Bean.

"We want to help draw attention to the added burdens on park staff and park assets. Additionally, the impacts of pollution on the park are of great concern to a company whose foundation is to promote recreation and sound stewardship of our natural resources."

"L.L. Bean's inspiring gift sets a significant conservation precedent as the first corporate contribution to nonprofit public transportation in the country's 385-unit National Park System," said Ken Olson, president of Friends of Acadia.

"At the same time," he said, "the grant continues an honored tradition of private philanthropy begun when Acadia, the first national park established east of the Mississippi, was donated to the nation in 1916."

Friends of Acadia will use the L.L. Bean donation to make annual grants to the transit system, which is operated by the nonprofit Downeast Transportation of Ellsworth, Maine.

The donation will allow the Island Explorer bus service to expand to meet growing visitor demand. It will enable free bus service to expand into the fall season beginning in 2003.

Birder's Hudson River Paradise Now a Park

The 1,052 acre Schodack Island State Park, located on a peninsula 10 miles south of the City of Albany, offers the only public boat launch on the east side of the Hudson River between the Cities of Rensselaer and Hudson. Capital Region residents will be able to access this area of the Hudson River which was previously inaccessible.

Governor Pataki designated a 864 acre portion of the park as a State Estuary and Bird Conservation Area to "ensure that its variety of bird species and habitats are protected for future generations to enjoy," the governor said. It is a concentration site for a variety of wading bird species and home to a number of bird species that are at risk.

David Miller, executive director of Audubon New York said, "From bald eagles to cerulean warblers, Schodack Island State Park is a birder's paradise on the Hudson River."

The total cost of the Park is $7.4 million. The first phase of the Master Plan for Schodack Island State Park is complete and includes the installation of a double-lane boat launch with a riverside promenade, the construction of a new bridge, and the creation of an access road on the island to the developed area.

Majority Leader Bruno said, "For more than 17 years I have been committed to creating a park on this peninsula. I am proud to have obtained $2.6 million in state funds to support this project from inception right on through to the actual construction of facilities."

State Parks acquired the property several years ago, which today includes some seven miles of Hudson River and Schodack Creek shoreline.

The park includes habitat for rare plants, threatened and endangered species, in fields, shrubland, dredge spoil forest, freshwater intertidal mudflat, floodplain forest, and freshwater tidal marsh and swamp. Hunting will be allowed in designated areas of the park as regulated by the state.

Plans include a bike path, and the development of a Native American interpretive area. The name Schodack for the peninsula, traditionally the location of the Mohicans' central council fire, came from the Mohican word "ishoda" meaning "fire plain" and "akee" meaning "land."

New York's Bird Conservation Area Program, the first of its kind in the United States, is designed to protect bird populations and their habitats by integrating bird conservation into agency planning, management and research. The BCA Program, modeled after the National Audubon Society's Important Bird Area Program, became law in 1997.

Bioengineered Tomato Fights Cancer

Scientists at Purdue and the USDA's Agricultural Research Service were working to develop tomatoes for food processing that were of higher quality and would ripen later than known varieties. In the process they discovered that the new tomatoes also had more lycopene than conventional tomatoes.

"This is one of the first examples of increasing the nutritional value of food through biotechnology," said Avtar Handa, professor of horticulture at Purdue. "In fact, it may be the first example of using biotechnology to increase the nutritional value of a fruit."

Bioengineered tomatoes high in lycopene (Photo by Peggy Greb courtesy USDA)

The research was announced this week in the June issue of "Nature Biotechnology."

A U.S. patent application has been filed on behalf of the joint owners USDA and the Purdue Research Foundation. The Consortium for Plant Biotechnology Research Inc., a USDA funded program, funded the research.

Lycopene is a pigment that gives tomatoes their characteristic red color. It is one of hundreds of carotenoids that color fruits and vegetables red, orange or yellow. In the body these pigments capture electrically charged oxygen molecules that can damage tissue. Because of this they are called antioxidants.

Research has found that lycopene also reduces the amount of oxidized low density lipoprotein - the so-called bad cholesterol - and therefore may reduce the risk of heart disease.

Handa says, "We are excited about this approach, not only because it results in an increase in lycopene in tomato, but because we think this approach could be used to increase the phytonutrient content of other fruits and vegetables."

Common Bacteria Killing Florida's Elkhorn Coral

The investigative team, led by researchers from the University of Georgia, has identified the common fecal enteric bacteria, Serratia marcescens, as the cause of white pox.

The source of the bacteria is still under investigation, but it can be found in the intestines of humans and other animals. It can also survive as a free living microbe in both water and soil. This is the first time this common bacterium has been shown to cause the death of marine invertebrates.

Elkhorn coral is an important Caribbean shallow water species, providing food and shelter for many animals on the reef. Its large branching form produces a complex three dimensional structure upon which many other reef organisms depend.

"It is very sad that the one coral species affected is the magnificent branching elkhorn coral. These are the giant redwoods of the reef," said James Porter, professor of Ecology and Marine Sciences at the University of Georgia and research team leader. "What used to be the most common coral in the Caribbean has now been recommended for inclusion on the endangered species list."

"Identification of this common bacterium as the cause of white pox means we cannot blame global warming as the main problem on coral reefs, but it all adds up," said Kathryn Patterson, a University of Georgia marine sciences doctoral student and principal investigator who conducted her research under a cooperative training agreement while at the EPA's Gulf Ecology Division in Gulf Breeze, Florida.

"Warmer water depresses coral growth but increases bacterial growth. In combination, this domino effect could foretell a disaster. There appear to be environmental changes occurring that may be making this non-pathogenic bacterium pathogenic," Patterson said.

According to Porter and Patterson, the pox has already killed more than 98 percent of the elkhorn coral on some reefs near Key West. The disease effects, compounded with additional stressors such as recent hurricanes, coral bleaching and ship groundings, have caused elkhorn coral populations to crash.

The research is published in the latest Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences as an outcome of the Coral Reef Monitoring Project being conducted in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. The project is supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Federal/NGO Team Restores Coastal Ecosystems

"This partnership comes at an exciting time in The Nature Conservancy's 50 year history because we are launching new freshwater and marine initiatives in order to more effectively protect aquatic species and habitats," said Steve McCormick, The Nature Conservancy's president.

"Although we have enjoyed working with a number of federal agencies, our relationship with NOAA is relatively new and very exciting. We can't wait to grow this partnership, and to explore similar opportunities to work together in the future," McCormick said.

Projects are underway in California's Santa Clara River, the Chesapeake Bay watershed, Oregon's Siuslaw and Long Island's Peconic and South Shore estuaries, the beaches of Delaware, Texas's Croaker Hole Complex, the Florida Keys, and North Carolina's Pamlico Sound.

Projects can be complex and involve many organizations in addition to NOAA and the Conservancy. In one project this year, new science is being incorporated into projects on the beaches of Delaware Bay to protect communities from storm damage while improving habitat for spawning horseshoe crabs. Partners include the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, Delaware Coastal Management Program, Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve, United States Geological Survey's Leetown Science Center, Delaware Fish and Wildlife Service, New Jersey Institute of Technology, the community of Pickering Beach, and the town of Bowers Beach.

During the partnership's first year, The Nature Conservancy coordinated public and private partners, and local communities, to match and further leverage NOAA's Community Based Restoration Program $400,000 challenge grant to jump start local restoration projects.

The total value of this collaboration is expected to exceed $4 million over its three year lifespan.