Big Cats!

...are the coolest. I love my kitty cats, but, c'mon...a lion? a cougar? a bear?...oh, wait...

 I stole this from the Sierra Club Petition page:

"Although the Florida Panther was originally declared an endangered species by the federal government in 1967, the amendment to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) which required each species so listed to also have 'designated critical habitat' did not go into effect until 1978. As a result, no critical habitat exists for America's only big cat east of the Mississippi.

Once roaming throughout the southeastern United States from east Texas to the Carolinas, a single population of 80 to 100 individual panthers now remains, surviving on only about 5 percent of its former range. Florida's schoolchildren overwhelmingly selected the panther as the Florida State Animal in 1982. It is the iconic symbol of the world famous Everglades and all that is wild in Florida.

The Florida panther is a solitary and wide ranging species where males can have a range of up to 200 square miles. Scientists have concluded that existing habitat is the bare minimum the remaining population needs to survive. Five panthers have already been killed on south Florida highways this year, with an additional 24 panthers killed by vehicles in the preceding two years."

Organizations I support:

• Sierra Club
• World Wildlife Fund
• Nature Conservancy
• Riverkeeper 
• Center for Biological Diversity
• Brooklyn Botanic Garden
• National Audubon Society
• Greenpeace
• Rainforest Action Network
• Defenders of Wildlife
• The Wilderness Society
• Earthworks
• Natural Resources Defense Council
• Environmental Defense
• Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics
  

You may ask: Why so Many?

      2 Reasons:  One, it's hard to say no, and, Two,  I think it's important that such a variety of organizations exists. We can cover all our bases this way, so to speak. They all offer very different services. My current favorite is RAN (Rainforest Action Network.)

Petition of the Month:

Chernobyl in the Amazon

From 1964 to 1990, Chevron-owned Texaco deliberately dumped billions of gallons of toxic waste from their oil fields in Ecuador's Amazon -- then pulled out without properly cleaning up the pollution they caused. Facing imminent defeat in the courts, Chevron has turned to legal machinations, powerful public relations firms and lobbyists to intimidate its critics into silence and avoid responsibility for the massive environmental and human disaster it has triggered.

Chevron has repeatedly vowed to refuse to pay for a clean up even if ordered to by the court, saying “We will fight this until hell freezes over. And then we’ll fight it out on the ice.” Its latest strategy: pushing the US government to bully Ecuador into burying the case.

We cannot sit back and watch Chevron make a mockery of justice like this -- let´s build a critical mass of support and help the rainforest inhabitants win this round, in the court of public opinion and before the law. Click here to sign the petition and help deliver a deafening message personally to Chevron´s new chief executive John Watson:

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/chevron_toxic_legacy_2/?vl

GOOD NEWS!

Thirty-one food, cosmetic and consumer goods companies – and one palm oil supplier – have signed a Rainforest Action Network (RAN) pledge to support a moratorium on the expansion of palm oil plantations into tropical forests.  Read more here.

Journey of the Forsaken

This is an interesting website following the progression of the building of 40 gas wells within a mil radious of a homeowner. 

Coal=Dirty

Currently, China is the #1 emitter of CO2 gases. Our beloved United States of America is #2. Coal power plants account for about 30% of this. There are plans of about 150 new Coal Power Plants in the making.

Learn more here.

GOOD NEWS!

However, just recently, a court ordered that the EPA could no longer ignore a law that had been passed earlier this Spring: CO2 emissions are a pollutant that must be more thoroughly regulated. In effect, these new Power Plants have been halted until these new regulations are dealt with.

PAST PETITIONS

Write to Philips CEO Gerard Kleisterlee

60 Days to Save the Polar Bear

Save Critical Habitat for the Florida Panther

Help the Florida Panther

Stand up for Your Rice!

Save Rainforests and Stop Climate Change