I am proud to live in the beautiful State of Oregon. My family and I enjoy our natural surroundings and lovely forests. To walk amongst the great trees brings my heart so much joy! It would be a terrible tragedy to destroy the delicate ecosystem in which we Oregonians have fought so hard to protect. Please read the letter below from Oregon Wild to see the danger our Oregon forests face today…

Dear Teri,

Last fall, we told you about Oregon’s 10 Most Endangered Places. Coming in at #8 on the list were the Tillamook and Clatsop State Forests, threatened by a proposal to ramp up clear-cut logging.

Now, the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) is set to approve this logging increase, and they need to hear from you! Tell them our state forests are vital for the salmon, wildlife, clean water, and recreational opportunities they provide!

Write a letter to ODF today and tell them to protect clean water, salmon, and recreation opportunities in our state forests.

Oregon prides itself on protecting its natural heritage, but what is being done to our state forests should be an embarrassment to every Oregonian. Instead of a legacy of abundant wildlife and clean water, we are leaving our children a heritage of clear cuts, mud slides, and wrecked rivers.

For decades, all forests in Oregon (including the Tillamook, Clatsop, Elliot, and Santiam state forests) were managed primarily for industrial timber production. As a result, most of our old-growth is gone and the species that rely on complex native forests are still vanishing.

Finally, in the 1990s, forest managers began using science to determine how their logging activities would impact things like salmon populations and water quality. Not surprisingly, clear-cutting doesn’t do wildlife and favors and doesn’t keep streams more pristine. Recognizing this, ODF refocused some of their management plans towards restoring more old-growth forest habitat, calling for an even 50/50 split between timber emphasis and forest protection.

Now, they plan to do away with any sense of balance and ramp up clear-cutting on up to 70 percent of State Forest land.

We need to tell them that protecting only 30 percent of our state forests isn’t enough. Write a letter before the January 29th comment deadline here.

With approximately 50% of Oregon’s forests in private hands (and subject to a constant rotation of industrial logging), it is imperative that we protect the small portion of forest land that we all own as Oregonians.

Thanks for standing up for the Tillamook and other state forests.

For wild forests,
Sean Stevens
Communications Associate
Oregon Wild

Salmon survival is at stake in the ODF decision to ramp up clear-cutting. (photo courtesy Wild Salmon Center)

Mitaku ye oyasin (All my relations)… I would like to pass along a very important message, from a sister who walks the Lakota path as I do, concerning our Sacred Earth. Prayers are needed, as well as action from those who know what to do, to help save the land from unnecessary desecration. Please look into your hearts and find the time to send out a message to preserve our lands… Pilama ye for your time in this urgent matter.

“Good Morning,

Carolyn Gray”

EarthWorks takes Action

Rio Tinto and BHP – Billiton have created a subsidiary that is proposing to mine a rich copper vein more than 7,000 feet below sea level east of Superior, Arizona. As a first step, Rio Tinto is currently shopping around a land exchange bill that would end an executive order banning mining from Oak Flat Campground and privitize more that 3,000 acres of public land.

Concerned citizens are worried about the loss of Oak Flat Campground, a very popular recreation area. Birders, climbers, campers, canyoneers, bikers, and hikers enjoy the area throughout the year, all of whom would be greatly harmed if these lands were forever taken from public access. Western Apache people have traditionally used the area for cultural, spiritual, and subsistance. The land exchange would include Apache Leap, a cliff where more than 80 Apache warriors chose to leap to their deaths rather than surrender to the US calvary.

Both the San Carlos Apache Tribe and the White Mountain Apache Tribe has passed unanimous reslutions opposing the mine and land exchange. In addition, the Concerned Citizens and Retired Miners Association in Superior, AZ has been meeting regularly opposing the land exchange and is circulating a petition.

The largest of the great apes, the gorilla is among our most endangered species. Gorillas are shy and peaceful. The only natural enemy of gorillas has always been human beings. Gorillas are still hunted for meat (bushmeat) and trophies in some parts of Africa, and they are caught in traps set for other animals. In the past, whenever an infant gorilla was captured for a zoo, the mother and often the other members of the family were killed as they defended the baby. Now the most serious threat to free-living gorillas is the human population explosion. As more and more people take over the land for agriculture, logging and other development, the gorillas have nowhere left to go.

Please come and join us at Vote4Cause and vote for the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International..

Description: The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International is dedicated to the conservation and protection of gorillas and their habitats in Africa. We are committed to promoting continued research on their threatened ecosystems and education about their relevance to the world in which we live. In collaboration with government agencies and other international partners, we also provide assistance to local communities through education, health, training and economic development initiatives.

Please join us to vote and chat…the gorillas need you!

Go here and Vote… Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International 

Thank you!

Take a few moments to visit World Wild Life to learn more about these wonderful creatures.

You may also wish to visit Koko Kids Club to get some amazing facts about Gorillas.

All Life is Sacred…

Here is another example of why we must pay very close attention to our surrounding environment as we walk through this Life. Hawaii’s wetlands are a vital part of the ecosystem, and the danger is very real. Please read the following, and let your voice be heard on this important matter…

Wetlands Going Dry
By Brandon Roberts, Molokai Dispatch, 27 February 2008

Disappearing Mana..e wetlands cause concern.

The lack of zoning enforcement on Molokai’s wetlands may bring serious environmental problems and cultural violations. Community leaders met with Mana..e (East End) residents to discuss development which is potentially damaging the wetlands in the area.

The lo..i (irrigated terrace) and the loko i..a (fishpond) are intrinsic with the culture and represent a living balance between the po..e (people) and the ..aina (land). Some of the development may be irresponsible and indiscriminate.

The non-profit organization Malama Pono O Ka ..Aina hosted the meeting last Saturday at the Kilohana Community Center, to gather input from the residents. Guest speakers included Rep. Mele Carroll, DLNR Branch Chief Randy Awo, and cultural specialist Vanda Hanakahi. Community members also gave valuable testimony.

“Indigenous knowledge cannot be ignored,” kumu ..Opu..ulani Albino said. “Best practices are found in the people who live with the land.”

Carroll revived the ‘Aha Kiole advisory council on Molokai and across the Hawaiian Islands The ..Aha Kiole exists as a bridge between the farmer, the hunter, the homesteader, the community, and state legislators.

Hanakahi, chairwoman of the ..Aha Kiole council, made a cultural presentation, explaining why the Mana..e coastal lands are a vital part of the Hawaiian culture.

“We want to create a Hawaii that Hawaiians would like to see,” Hanakahi said.

Prior to the meeting, Carroll, along with Awo and other officials took an ocean excursion to survey the development on the wetlands in Mana..e.

The meeting was a chance for Carroll to listen to residents’ concerns and receive public comments on hb2788. The bill seeks to prohibit wetlands development that did not include a “public informative meeting”before a permit is issued.

“What do you want to see in your community?” Carroll asked. “My role is to convey the message of the people.”

Awo gathered notes on community concerns, from jet skis on the reef to zoning infractions on the wetlands . He reassured the attendees that he would speak with the proper agencies and follow up on these concerns.

Possible zoning infractions were photographed by Malama Pono O Ka ..Aina and presented at the meeting in a slide show. The photographs show homes that speckle the Mana..e shoreline, some with Ho..olehua red dirt piles intended to fill the wetlands.

This imported earth may contain heptachlor, an insecticide used on the old pineapple plantation fields. Many residents fear water contamination. Exposure to heptachlor has been linked to liver damage and is associated with an increased risk of cancer. The Environmental Protection Agency banned heptaclor in 1978, yet it still lingers in the environment.

Other wetland residents may have illegal sea walls, boat ramps, and roads through the loko i..a. In some instances, shoreline trees were cut and bulldozed right into the ocean.

Attendees were frustrated with the lack of consistency and communication between various governmental agencies, as well as inadequate enforcement. Currently there is no zoning enforcement agency on Molokai, and meeting attendees feel this is one reason why there is wetlands abuse.

Malama Pono O Ka ..Aina President Linda Place wants to “work together to protect the wetlands.” She said this is possible through a “management swap,” which would transfer sensitive coastal lands into the protective custody of an appropriate governmental or non-profit entity.

Malama Pono O Ka ..Aina strives to “assure development that is lawful and respectful of the environmental health and historical culture of Mana..e, Molokai,” according to its mission statement.

Malama Pono O Ka ..Aina will host its next meeting March 13 at 5:30 p.m. at the Kilohana Community Center. All interested persons are encouraged to attend and share their mana..o.

It can be incredibly frustrating when our dedication and love for Earth’s wild creatures goes unheeded. The ignorance and greed of some people is bringing about devastating events which are serving to destroy the Balance, and cause the inevitable extinction of yet another creature, the Polar Bear. While the Mothers and Cubs lie snug deep within their dens, the Bush/Cheney Administration auctioned off key habitat for these struggling animals to Big Oil.. despite the opposition of tens of thousands of activists like you and I.

America’s Polar Bears will likely be extinct in fewer than 50 years, according to U.S. Geological Survey scientists. Yet federal officials have once again delayed action to protect these struggling animals as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. As a warming climate takes its toll on polar bear habitat, federal officials are selling off the very places these great white bears depend on for hunting, denning and survival.

Instead, officials auctioned off millions of acres of vital habitat in Alaska’s Chukchi Sea to Shell and other Big Oil companies earlier this month — and yet again, President Bush has included dangerous drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in his budget. Increased drilling in these critical habitats could devastate America’s polar bears. But ExxonMobil, Shell and other Big Oil companies continue to use their billions in profits to press for harmful drilling in the places polar bears need to survive — and continue our dependence on the fuels that spur rising temperatures that are causing the bears’ demise.

Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund is doing all we can to protect our polar bears — right now, we’re…

* …working to prevent Arctic Refuge drilling language from entering the federal budget.
* …working to pass the Udall-Eisenhower Arctic Wilderness Act, a bill to permanently protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and continuing to battle efforts to open this special place to Big Oil’s dirty rigs.
* …working to pass the Global Warming Wildlife Survival Act — already passed by the House of Representatives, this legislation is a vital first step to ensure that polar bears and other wildlife can cope with a changing climate.
* …working to pass the Polar Bear Protection Act, legislation to stop wealthy U.S. trophy hunters from killing polar bears in Canada and returning with their quarry.
* …working with Congressional staff to find sensible energy solutions to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, help combat global warming and protect our wildlife.
* …holding our elected officials accountable for their actions on global warming and other wildlife-related issues.

Even in their final months in office, officials in the Bush/Cheney Administration have made their intentions crystal clear: they’ll fight for Big Oil’s profit — and leave our polar bears out in the cold.

Our polar bears need allies if they are going to survive. Please donate now to help us fight to give our polar bears a fighting chance — and a lasting future.

In our fight to save Earth’s wild creatures, we are faced with many battles. I will never tire of this worthwhile cause… yet I sometimes wonder if time is our greatest enemy. Time is running out for the beautiful and wild Polar Bears in the Chukchi Sea. Yet truly time is not THE enemy of those who wish to live as Nature intended. Year after year, President Bush has called for harmful drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, one of the most important onshore denning habitats for U.S. polar bears. Earlier this month, his Secretary of the Interior approved the sale of drilling rights in the Chukchi Sea, potentially threatening even more bears with pollution, spills and disruptive activities.

What does George Bush have against polar bears?

The Bush/Cheney Administration’s own scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey say that global warming and habitat loss could lead polar bears to extinction in the U.S. by 2050. Yet, the president said little in last night’s State of the Union about what — if anything — his administration would be doing to prevent their extinction.

It is so very important to place this matter on high priority. Please visit Defenders of Wildlife and take the time to send a personalized message urging President Bush and his administration to do the following…

~ Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to immediately list polar bears as “Threatened” under the Endangered Species Act. The decision on listing has already been delayed once. It’s time for President to act.
~ Abandon plans to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; and
~ Protect polar bears by scrapping the planned February 6th sale of leasing rights to drill for oil and gas drilling rights in the Chukchi Sea.

Our fellow Polar Bears are quickly running out of time. I am sending my own personalized message right this moment, and I strongly urge you to follow my example and Take Action Today!

Thank you so much for your support and thoughts for this important cause in helping to protect our four legged friends. We are nearly halfway there… let it be known how precious and sacred ALL Life is, and let your voice be heard!

Save the Polar Bear with us at Defenders of Wildlife

Taking root
By VALERIE MONSON, Staff Writer

ULUPALAKUA – Hawaiian family members long separated from their roots returned home Saturday in an emotional reunion that many thought might never happen.

Eight alani seedlings went back to the Auwahi forest, taking their place in the shadow of their only known ancestor living in the wild.

“This is where they’re supposed to be,” said a proud Martha Vockrodt Moran, caretaker of the tree that produced the seeds, as she watched another plant go from pot to posterity. “It’s so great that they’re going home.”

The story of the alani – a native Hawaiian tree that once flourished on the back flank of Haleakala – has become yet another piece of the ongoing miracle at Auwahi, the dryland forest that was all but dead five years ago. With its dwindling collection of rare trees reaching old age and unable to reproduce in a landscape made hostile by cattle, kikuyu grass and fire, the native forest was fading away.

Since it was man who unwittingly led to the downfall of the forest, it seemed only right that it was men – and a whole lot of women, too – whose exhaustive efforts have brought a strand of it back, restoring hope for the land and the Native Hawaiian people whose culture centers on the sights, the sounds, the smells and the very spirit of the forest.

“In a Western sort of thinking, man has dominions over nature,” said Kalei Tsuha, the kumu whose family led the chants and prayers that welcomed back the alani. “In the Hawaiian perspective, we are one and the same. As Hawaiians, we need to have contact with the forest and the forest needs to have contact with us.”

Until a year ago, there was the very real possibility that contact with the alani would become a thing of the past. Biologists were aware of only two left – one in the wild at Auwahi on Ulupalakua Ranch and the other in the arboretum started by Moran’s grandfather, the renowned agronomist D.T. Fleming. Even worse, both were ailing and appeared to have lost their capability for producing viable seeds.

But Moran was determined to carry on the legacy of her grandfather who had collected the alani from Auwahi 50 years ago and planted it in his arboretum at nearby Puu Mahoe along with other plants that he feared were nearing extinction.

Alani were once prolific at Auwahi, where they grew to 30 or 40 feet tall and developed trunks a foot in diameter. Formerly known as “Pelea” for Pele, the goddess of Hawaiian volcanoes, the leaves release a fragrance similar to oranges and were used to scent kapa. The bark was used for medicine.

Calling herself “only a gardener,” Moran knew she needed help to save her tree, so she assembled a crack team that made Saturday’s homecoming possible: Makawao arborist Ernie Rezents, who diagnosed the tree’s disease and prescribed the cure; Nellie Sugii, a researcher at Lyons Arboretum on Oahu, whose experiments led to germination; and expert growers Anna Palomino, Richard Nakagawa, and Dan and Noah Judson, all of Maui, who produced the eight seedlings.

Meanwhile, Auwahi, with the permission of ranch executives Pardee and Sumner Erdman, was being readied for its return by tireless biologist Art Medeiros and his crack team of volunteers who have spent the last eight years fencing, weeding, digging, propagating, planting and willing the land back to life. After successfully restoring one 10-acre enclosure, they have fenced off another 20 acres that includes an old lava channel where the last alani was struggling to survive.

“When it gets cloudy here, it’s like you’re in a cathedral,” said Bob Mikell, one of the volunteers who has given up weekend after weekend to see Auwahi revived. “Everyone here is really possessive of this place. It’s part of their body and part of their spirit.”

The feeling of family was in the forest air as the plants were unloaded from four-wheel drive vehicles that traveled as far as they could, and then the plants were carried by hand the rest of the treacherous way across loose rocks and tangles of weeds. As the alani were going home, Moran couldn’t help but think of her grandfather on the afternoon that he went to Auwahi and gathered the alani that would become the mother to this new generation. Also thinking back was Mahealani Kaiaokamalie, seventh generation of his ohana to live in the area. Kaiaokamalie’s grandfather, William Ainoa Kaiaokamalie, saw the forest collapse in his lifetime. When famed botanist John Rock, who once described Auwahi as one of the top two dryland forests in Hawaii, returned in the 1960s to see it again, he asked the elder Kaiaokamalie to lead the way. As the men came upon the forest near death, Rock broke down and wept.

Mahealani Kaiaokamalie, who has spent much of his adult life restoring native ecosystems, wondered what his grandfather – and other ancestors – would be thinking at the scene below.

“I can only imagine they’re looking down and saying ’mahalo,’ ” said Kaiaokamalie. “My family has always been private, but I think they would be proud that somebody from their genealogy is here today. That’s all I live for – to make them proud.”

It was a day when pride seemed to ooze from the ground. Once the holes were dug, they were checked and rechecked to make sure they were deep enough (but not too deep) and wide enough (but not too wide).

Finally, with the holes deemed ready for occupancy, Kalei Tsuha and her family – husband, Mark, and daughters, Kawai and Joanna – called for silence as the crowd gathered around the single ancestor alani left in the wild. Holding the keiki up to the kupuna tree, Kalei Tsuha summoned the forest gods in a chant of celebration and introduced the young alani to the old one while reuniting a larger ohana.

“The forest is the greater kuahu (altar),” Tsuha said earlier. “The kuahu is where the gods dwell. For Hawaiians, those are our ancestors. Since we’re losing them, we’re losing ourselves.”

But on this afternoon, the ancestors – and their living descendants – got a boost and made contact. Moran was even startled to see how different the alani seedlings looked once they were sprung from their pots and had settled into their beds of rich volcanic soil.

“They seem to have gotten bigger by just getting into the ground,” she said with joy.

After years on the brink of extinction, the alani were back where they belong. They were home with the ancestors.

Valerie Monson can be reached at vmonson@mauinews.com.