Liberty Matters News Service

February 05, 2008  

Region 6 EPA Meets with Coordination Commission on Trans Texas Corridor

Last week, four top officials from the Environmental Protection Agency Region 6 office in Dallas traveled to Holland, Texas to meet with the Mayors and respective school districts of Holland, Little River-Academy, Bartlett and Rogers. They agreed to the meeting after the eight local governments informed them that the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on the I-35 segment of the Trans Texas Corridor was grossly inadequate and should be rejected by the EPA because the Texas Department of Transportation (TXDOT) did not do the study in cooperation with the local governments, as required by federal law. Mae Smith, mayor of Holland (and president of the 391 Commission organized to require TXDOT to coordinate with the local governments), asked the EPA to use their "persuasion" to require TXDOT to do a proper study, which includes the impact on the human environment. Attorney Fred Kelly Grant, brought in by the American Land Foundation and Stewards of the Range, impressed upon the EPA that they should closely examine the document so that the parties did not all end up in court. TXDOT informed Smith at a prior meeting that they expect to send the final EIS to the Federal Highway Administration in the next 45 days. If, however, it is determined that the DEIS is insufficient, TXDOT may have to spend several more years studying the impact before they can begin condemnation for the superhighway. "It's pretty impressive to watch these four mayors and school board members stand up to TXDOT," commented Dan Byfield of the American Land Foundation. "They are literally standing between the NAFTA Superhighway and our American Sovereignty."

Corridor Foes Happy After EPA Meeting

Proposed Polar Bear Listing Poses Danger

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne may be considering listing polar bears as threatened, due to global warming. Despite clear evidence to the contrary, certain elements of society continue to insist that man-made global warming is responsible for melting ice floes that threaten survival of the polar bear populations. Polar bears number about 22,000 and there is no evidence their habitat will disappear. However, listing them as threatened or endangered could have a huge negative impact on human activities in the United States because the Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires the federal government to regulate activities that potentially harm a selected species. Virtually every aspect of commercial venture could be severely modified to avoid releasing CO2 emissions that are supposedly responsible for the global warming that is melting ice caps. Just as listing the northern spotted owl destroyed the timber industry, the polar bear could be used to destroy the economy of the United States, as the government would regulate how much fossil fuels we can use to drive or heat and cool our homes. Already, California legislators are proposing to place controls on homeowners' thermostats so the central government can shut off the heat or air conditioning if an electrical blackout is threatened. Everyone who wants to keep big government from turning off his furnace needs to contact President Bush and Secretary Kempthorne and tell them the bears are not endangered, but jobs and lives of Americans will be endangered if they list the polar bear.

Don't List the Polar Bear Under the Endangered Species Act
Proposed Polar Bear Listing Threatens YOUR Future!!

Kempthorne Includes Alamo as New World Heritage Site

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne recently announced that fourteen American historical sites have been named to the United States World Heritage Tentative List. The next step is for the U.S. to nominate the sites to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage List. "I am pleased to be able to take the necessary first step so that these truly significant American natural and cultural properties can be considered for the most prestigious international recognition accorded to properties of global importance," Kempthorne twittered. According to the propaganda, "neither inclusion in the Tentative List nor inscription as a World Heritage Site impose legal restrictions on owners or neighbors of sites, nor does it give the United Nations any management authority or ownership rights in U.S. World Heritage Sites." However, during the Clinton administration, a proposed mining operation was forced to withdraw plans to mine for gold outside the boundaries of Yellowstone Park because it might negatively impact the Park as a World Heritage Site. There are currently 20 World Heritage Sites in the United States, including the Statue of Liberty. The public had the opportunity to comment on the selections, but the majority of comments came from Federal, State, local government executives and legislative officials. The proposed sites include three churches in Alabama that were significant during the Civil Rights Movement, and Virginia's state capitol building (that once served as the Confederate Capitol). Also on the list are the Franciscan Missions of San Antonio, Texas, including the Alamo, which is under the care of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas. The applications were evaluated by National Park Service staff, non-government experts on the World Heritage nomination process and the U.S. National Commission for UNESCO. The United States fourth term on the World Heritage Committee expires in 2009.

Secretary Kempthorne Selects New US World Heritage Tentative List
National Park Service Invites Comments on Draft US World Heritage Tentative List

Bush's Conservation Partnerships

Acting Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner has announced USDA will use taxpayer's money to reward certain landowners for allowing their property to be used for wildlife habitat. The new program is part of the Bush administration's expansion of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). SAFE, (State Acres For wildlife Enhancement) lures landowners into using government-approved methods to enhance their land for the benefit of wildlife. So far, 259,000 acres in 18 states have received the Farm Service Agency (FSA) stamp of approval. "USDA is ushering in a new era in the history of the Conservation Reserve Program by making it even more focused, results-oriented and community based," Said Secretary Conner. "These cooperative plans illustrate that, under the Bush Administration's Cooperative Conservation Initiative, government works effectively with state and regional partners across the country to conserve natural resources and help protect America's wildlife legacy for years to come," he continued. So far, 45 projects have been approved, including 250 acres in Maine to protect habitat for the New England cottontail rabbit, a candidate for ESA protection and 14,000 acres of agricultural land along the Texas Gulf Coast have been enrolled in CRP to protect the mottled duck, northern bobwhite quail, Atwater's greater prairie chicken and other species. In Minnesota, Pheasants Forever and other project partners have placed 23,000 acres in CRP to improve habitat for ring-necked pheasants and other birds. This CRP program has nothing in common with the original program that paid landowners to set aside land for erosion purposes. It has everything to do with the government becoming a permanent managing partner of private property all across America.

Bush's Conservation Partnerships

Acting Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner has announced USDA will use taxpayer's money to reward certain landowners for allowing their property to be used for wildlife habitat. The new program is part of the Bush administration's expansion of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). SAFE, (State Acres For wildlife Enhancement) lures landowners into using government-approved methods to enhance their land for the benefit of wildlife. So far, 259,000 acres in 18 states have received the Farm Service Agency (FSA) stamp of approval. "USDA is ushering in a new era in the history of the Conservation Reserve Program by making it even more focused, results-oriented and community based," Said Secretary Conner. "These cooperative plans illustrate that, under the Bush Administration's Cooperative Conservation Initiative, government works effectively with state and regional partners across the country to conserve natural resources and help protect America's wildlife legacy for years to come," he continued. So far, 45 projects have been approved, including 250 acres in Maine to protect habitat for the New England cottontail rabbit, a candidate for ESA protection and 14,000 acres of agricultural land along the Texas Gulf Coast have been enrolled in CRP to protect the mottled duck, northern bobwhite quail, Atwater's greater prairie chicken and other species. In Minnesota, Pheasants Forever and other project partners have placed 23,000 acres in CRP to improve habitat for ring-necked pheasants and other birds. This CRP program has nothing in common with the original program that paid landowners to set aside land for erosion purposes. It has everything to do with the government becoming a permanent managing partner of private property all across America.

Home

Send mail to the webmaster with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2001 Liberty Matters