Rep. “Butch” Otter, R-Idaho, and
17 Republican co-sponsors have introduced the
“American Wilderness Protection Act.” Under the act,
all wilderness study areas would lose protection as wilderness
either immediately, as determined by the secretary of the Interior
or secretary of Agriculture, or within 10 years of the act’s
passage (HCN, 3/3/03: The Wild Card).
Taxpayers
will continue to foot the bill for cleanup of the
nation’s filthiest sites: In March, Sen. Frank Lautenberg,
D-N.J., introduced an amendment to reinstate a “polluter
pays” tax on corporations that would pay to clean up toxic
Superfund sites (HCN, 12/9/02: Life in the wasteland). But the
amendment failed, 43-56, along largely partisan lines.
Construction is set to begin on the Fence Lake
Mine in New Mexico (HCN, 10/8/01: Salt Woman confronts a coal
mine). The Salt River Project has announced that work on the coal
mine and railroad link will begin this summer, and the mine will be
ready to open in 2005. Conservation groups and the Pueblo of Zuni
continue to oppose the mine.
On March 1, the
Department of Homeland Security assumed responsibility
for the nation’s borders with Canada and Mexico (HCN, 3/3/03:
Fences go up along the Mexican border). The department swallowed up
the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Border Patrol and
20 other federal agencies. Under the Homeland Security Act,
employees of the new department could be denied union
representation and collective bargaining rights.
Advocates for wild fish are suing to keep
hatchery-raised coho salmon and steelheed trout out of Puget Sound
(HCN, 3/17/03: Bracing against the tide). In their lawsuit,
Washington Trout and the Native Fish Society say that the hatchery
fish kill and eat endangered wild chinook salmon.
Woe is Wal-Mart: The Taos Town Council voted at
the end of March to uphold its land-use plan that prevents
“big-box” stores from moving into the northern New
Mexico village (HCN, 3/17/03: Taoseños take on Wal-Mart). A
representative of La Gente for Wal-Mart was unavailable for
comment, since he had already cleared out of the local motel where
the group was based.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline The Latest Bounce.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
