Bama Environmental News - BEN
October 6, 1999
1) Ozone Pollution Sends 3000 Alabamians to the ER According to
Study
2) Sierra Club Study: Alabama Not Addressing Sprawl
3) Check Out the New BEN Website
4) Alabama Outdoor Columnist Mike Bolton Calls For Action on LWCF
5) Important Conference Announced On the Future of Hunting and
Fishing in Bama
6) Enviro. Tidbits - Special TREASURED Forest Speaker, Children
Calling for Special Recognition of Red Hill Salamander, Camp McDowell
Enviro Position Open, WildLaw Essay Contest Announced
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"Saint George killed the last dragon, and he was called a
hero for it. I've never seen a dragon, and I wish he would have
left at least one. Saint Patrick made a name for himself by running
the snakes out of Ireland, leaving the place vulnerable to rodent
infestation. This business of making saints out of men who exterminate
their fellow creatures has got to stop. All I'm saying is, it's
starting to get a little lonely up here at the top of the food
chain." - Excerpt from the book "The Big Picture"
by Comedian A. Whitney Brown
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1. Ozone Pollution Sends 3000 Alabamians to the ER According
to Report - According to a report released this week by Clear
the Air: National Campaign Against Dirty Power, a joint project
of the National Environmental Trust and the United States Public
Interest Research Groups (USPIRG) thousands of Alabamians experience
"summer smog" ozone-related adverse health effects.
The report was based on the health study "Out of Breath:
Health Effects From Ozone in the Eastern U.S.", authored
by Abt Associates, the consulting firm under contract with the
U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to analyze air pollution
damages, in the 37 Eastern states affected by EPA's summer smog
rule. According to the study's findings, in the summer of 1997,
Alabama had the following "ozone related" adverse health
effects.
Statewide - Respiratory admissions - 1000, Total Respiratory ER
visits - 3,000, Asthma ER visits - 350, Minor Symptoms - 1,700,000,
Asthma Attacks - 130,000
In Birmingham - Respiratory admissions - 170, Total Respiratory
ER visits - 510, Asthma ER visits - 64, Minor Symptoms - 320,000,
Asthma Attacks - 24,000
In Mobile - Respiratory admissions - 88, Total Respiratory ER
Visits - 264, Asthma ER visits - 32, Minor Symptoms - 160,000,
Asthma Attacks - 12,000
In Montgomery - Respiratory admissions - 50, Total Respiratory
ER Visits -149, Asthma ER visits- 18, Minor Symptoms - 85,000,
Asthma Attacks - 6,600
For more detailed information about this report, it's methodology,
sources and conclusions, please visit the coalition's website
at http://www.cleanair.net
2. Sierra Club Study: Alabama Not Addressing Sprawl - Alabama
lags far behind neighboring states in planning for land-use and
transportation according to a new report issued by the Sierra
Club on "Sprawl".
Urban Sprawl is quickly becoming a major environmental issue throughout
Alabama as statistics show the rapid conversion of forests and
farmland into built up areas. Sprawl is associated with loss of
habitat, increased air and water pollution and the decline of
urban centers. For example, in a report earlier this year by the
Mobile Register, Mobile County's rural to urban land conversion
has outpaced population by a margin of four to one since 1975.
While the county's population grew by 25% from 320,000 to 400,000
in two decades the amount of urbanized land in the county has
grown from 82,000 acres to more than 170,000 acres.
Here is how Alabama ranked and fared with our neighbors in the
Sierra Club national report.
Land Use Planning - Georgia - 4th, Tennessee -6th, Florida -11th,
Mississippi - 31st, Alabama - 42nd
Transportation Planning - Georgia - 24th, Florida - 29th, Tennessee
- 46th, Al abama -47th , Mississippi - 49th
Open Space Protection - Florida -14th, Georgia - 25th, Tennessee
- 34th, Mississippi - 36th, Alabama - 37th
Community Revitalization - Georgia - 6th, Florida - 13th, Mississippi-14th,
Al abama-22nd, Tennessee 39th.
For complete details about the Sierra Club Sprawl report, please
visit their national website at http://www.sierraclub.org/sprawl/report99/
3. Check Out the New BEN Website - Ever wanted to find
that edition of BEN featuring Alabama websites? Or search for
that story on the Water Wars? Now you can access all of the 80
plus editions of BEN at our new website http://www.bamanews.com
Please bookmark this new site which includes "archived BEN's",
links to most of Alabama's media outlets and environmentally related
organizations, and a listing of BEN Quotes. In coming weeks we
will also be publishing action alerts and recent environmental
polls.
4. Alabama Outdoor Columnist Mike Bolton Calls For Action on
LWCF - "The Land Water Conservation Fund is a lot like
your gall bladder. You've got one, you benefit from it, you don't
ever pay attention to it, but it hurts if it has to come out."
- Introductory paragraph to Outdoor Columnist Mike Bolton's, October
3rd Birmingham News Column
In a very strong and frank op-ed, longtime Birmingham News outdoors
writer Mike Bolton called on Congress to stop raiding the Land
Water and Conservation Fund (LWCF) and to fully and permanently
fund it. The column titled "Congress Raids Funds for Parks
With Impunity" is a well written and a "must read".
Please access this article and share it with your friends and
local public officials. It truly sums up the importance of LWCF
and the need to permanently and fully fund it. People can find
the column at: http://www.al.com/columnists/birmingham/mbolton/10031999-e254716b.html
5. Important Conference Announced On the Future of Hunting
and Fishing in Bama - The new Alabama Conservation and Natural
Resources Foundation will be hosting the "Alabama Symposium
on the Future of Hunting and Fishing" October 21 at the Montgomery
Civic Center.
The conference which is being promoted and led by the Alabama
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and a number
of wildlife groups will tackle important issues such as the recent
decline in the number of hunters, anglers and shooting sports
enthusiasts in Alabama. Since the Alabama Department of Conservation
pins most of it's revenue on the purchase of licenses and fees
paid by hunters and fishermen, the future of the agency and it's
ability to effectively manage and conserve Alabama's natural resources
could be in jeopardy. This is a very important conference even
for people who do not hunt and fish. For more information about
attending this symposium contact the Alabama Department of Natural
Resources and Conservation at 334-242-3465.
6. Enviro. Tidbits - Special TREASURED Forest Speaker,
Children Calling for Special Recognition of Red Hill Salamander,
Camp McDowell Enviro Position Open, WildLaw Essay Contest Announced
Special TREASURED Forest Speaker - My good friend Dan Dumont,
director of the Alabama Forest Resources Center has informed me
that one of the nation's experts on conservation easements and
preserving timberland for small family forestowners will be speaking
at the TREASURED Forest Landowner Conference this Friday (Oct.
8th). Dr. Stephen Small is an author and former advisor in the
Office of Chief Counsel of the IRS, where he wrote the federal
income tax regulations on conservation easements.
If you care about conservation easements and preserving timberland
this presentation is a "can't miss" (Continuing Legal
Education credit has also been approved). Dr. Smith's presentation
is scheduled for 8:00 A.M. Friday morning (Oct. 8) at the Four
Points Sheraton/Paul Bryant Conference Center in Tuscaloosa. For
more information call 334-887-4510.
Children To Launch Red Hills Salamander Campaign - Currently,
Alabama does not have a designated "state amphibian".
Yet.... The students of Fairhope Elementary School in Baldwin
County are sponsoring the adoption of the Red Hills Salamander
as our state amphibian, and are hosting a reception at the school's
library, Monday, October 11th, at 4:00 P.M. Several local and
state legislators and biologists, including Dr. Robert Mount (author
of, The Reptiles and Amphibians of Alabama) are expected to attend.
A 20 minute video presentation will be shown at the reception.
If want to attend, please RSVP the school at 334-928-8400. Let'
hear it for the Red Hills Salamander!!!
Camp McDowell Seeking Homeroom Habitat Instructor - The Camp McDowell
Environmental Center's Homeroom Habitat Program is seeking an
instructor to teach outreach classes in the Birmingham area. The
position will last from December through February, with time off
over the holidays and the possibility of long-term opportunities
and promotion. Applicants should have a college degree, background
in environmental issues, experience working with children and
a desire to play! The job involves visiting local fifth grade
classrooms and leading students in games and activities that teach
about urban-focused natural science and environmental issues.
The schedule will average two classes per day, and each class
lasts about 1.5 hours. For more information please call Nicole
at 205-387-1806 or e-mail her at arborgirl@hotmail.com
WildLaw Essay Contest Announced - As part of WildLawís
program to educate people about environmental laws and issues,
WildLaw announced last week an essay contest for 4th through 6th
graders throughout the United States. Now through March 2000,
students are encouraged to submit a 500-word essay on "What
the Endangered Species Act Means to Me." Contest ends March
15, 2000, and the winner will be announced May 15, 2000. The winner
will receive $5,000 in U.S. Savings Bonds for college, and the
winning essay and four runners up will be published on WildLawís
Web site.
For more information, go to http://www.wildlaw.org
or contact Ray Vaughan at 334/265-6529.
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
