White House Refuses to Release Email From Monsanto-Linked Lobbyist

By Mike Ludwig, Cross Posted from Truthout

Photo via Ecosalon

The White House is withholding documents requested under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) by an environmental group that suspects the Obama administration of working with Monsanto-linked lobbyists to defend the planting of genetically engineered (GE) crops in wildlife refuges across the country.

The information currently being withheld includes a portion of a January 2011 email that a top White House policy analyst received from a lobbyist with the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), which represents GE seed companies such as Monsanto and Syngenta.

According to legal filings, the White House withheld the portion of the email because it accidentally contained information on BIO’s lobbying strategy that, if released, would cause competitive harm to the group and the companies it represents.

“We suspect the reason an industry lobbyist so cavalierly shared strategy is that the White House is part of that strategy,” stated Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) staff counsel Kathryn Douglass, who is arguing the email should be a public record. “The White House’s legal posture is as credible as claiming Coca Cola’s secret formula was ‘inadvertently’ left in a duffel bag at the bus station.”

Last July, PEER released a number of internal emails  revealing that Peter Schmeissner, a senior science policy analyst and member of the White House’s biotechnology working group, had corresponded with the BIO lobbyist about a legal challenge filed by PEER and its allies.

The PEER lawsuit had successfully halted GE crop plantings in wildlife refuges in northeastern states, and the group continues to challenge planned plantings in other regions across the country.

In the emails obtained by PEER, longtime biotech lobbyist Adrianne Massey asks Schmeissner if the “interagency working group” is addressing the PEER’s legal challenges. Massey also forwarded environmental assessments of proposed GE crop plots at wildlife refuges in other regions of the country. These assessments could protect future GE crop plots in refuges from legal challenges.

Also See: “Monsanto Found Guilty of Chemical Poisoning in France”

The emails prompted PEER to request further information under FOIA on the interagency group, known as the White House Agricultural Biotechnology Working Group.  According to PEER, the quiet and informal group includes top-level officials from almost every agency under the Obama administration involved in agriculture and trade, including the State Department, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency.

PEER is currently suing the White House for information withheld from the FOIA request, including the Massey email and the working group’s schedule, agenda items and work related to GE crops.

An affidavit filed by a BIO attorney claims the portion of the Massey email withheld from PEER contains industry trade secrets that were “mistakenly” forwarded to Schmeissner and, if released, would cause competitive harm to companies BIO represents:

“BIO operates in an advocacy environment in which there are many organizations that oppose the use of biotechnology, particularly in the agricultural arena, and that seek to persuade federal, state and local agencies to restrict the technology’s use. If this information were released, competitors could imitate or seek to counteract BIO’s strategy and further their own contrary agendas at the expense of BIO and its members.”

In its own legal filings, the White House claims it rightfully withheld information under existing disclosure law.

PEER Director Jeff Ruch told Truthout that he suspects the Massey email details a effort by BIO lobbyists to have the White House ensure that environmental assessments of GE crops on wildlife refuges are strong enough to protect the projects from further legal challenges. Challenging these legally mandated assessments is a tactic often used by environmental groups like PEER to tie up controversial projects in court.

GE Crops in Refuges

Deborah Rocque, a US Fish and Wildlife official overseeing the wildlife refuge system, told Truthout in 2011 that the agency has allowed farming on refuges for years as part of habitat restoration efforts. Rocque said planting herbicide-resistant GE crops would allow conservationists to establish ground cover while killing unwanted weeds with herbicides.

PEER, however, claims the Obama administration is supporting the GE plots in wildlife refuges as part of an effort to boost exports. Several US trade partners, especially in Europe, are skeptical about GE crops, and some countries have banned certain GE seeds and exports. PEER contends that the White House working group’s involvement indicates high-level interest in showing trade partners that the US government considers GE crops to be so environmentally safe that Americans plant them in wildlife reserves.

The US has also has put heavy diplomatic pressure in recent years on countries such as France and Spain to accept exports and GE crop technology, as revealed by WikiLeaks and several Truthout reports.

PEER filed its first legal challenge after being contacted by Fish and Wildlife biologists who opposed growing GE crops in wildlife refuges. PEER later obtained an internal email among Fish and Wildlife officials that the group believes is evidence that USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack has put pressure on Fish and Wildlife to support GE agriculture.

In the January 14 email, Interior Department Deputy Secretary David Hayes told top Interior Department and Fish and Wildlife officials that Vilsack is “somewhat exercised that the Administration is not being consistent in supporting genetically engineered crops.”

Rocque told Truthout that she was unaware of any internal pressure from higher-ups in the Obama administration.

Earth First! makes a mess of SITLA tar sands plans in Utah

Yesterday, February 20, the Earth First! 2012 Organizers Conference & Winter Rendezvous culminated in a rowdy demonstration outside the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) offices in downtown Salt Lake City. Earth First! activists staged their protest with local organizers from Utah Tar Sands Resistance and Canyon Country Rising Tide. The offices were closed for Presidents’ Day, but a clear (and messy) message was left at the doorstep—a mock oil spill accompanied by a mural reading “Hey SITLA: Tar Sands Outta Utah!” 

The project would lease school trust lands for tar sands extraction in the Book Cliffs area, directly impacting PR Springs, a site which is also utilized for camping and recreation.

“Destruction of education trust lands through tar sands mining is contrary to the mandate of this agency, which requires them to maintain the land for the long term,” said Mark Purdy of Utah Tar Sands Resistance.

An article in the Desert News stated: “The proposed mining operation would occupy a 213-acre site in the East Tavaputts Plateau straddling the borders of Uintah and Grand counties.  An ore processing facility would accommodate up to 3,500 tons of ore per day in the production of bitumen. The extraction process would require 1.5 barrels to 2 barrels of water per barrel of bitumen produced… The company will have to post a reclamation bond of nearly $1.7 million before any work is allowed to begin at the site.

Another company, MCW Energy, is proposing a pilot project to test its proprietary solvent in the extraction of bitumen on 1,000 stockpiled tons of tar sands 3 miles west of Vernal in Uintah County.

Opponents have appealed permits issued related to the PR Springs project, with hearings set for next month.”

"oil spill" at SITLA's doorstep (non-toxic, maybe even edibe...)

Utah was chosen specifically as the site of the annual Earth First! winter gathering to highlight resistance to these tar sands proposal, as well as lend support to the courageous actions of people like Tim DeChristopher who was sentenced to a two-years in prison for his effective sabotage of an oil and gas auction on Utah’s public lands. 

Along with DeChristopher, two other ecological and animal liberation activists from Utah, Jordan Halliday and Walter Bond, are also currently facing time behind bars for their involvement with direct action efforts. Contacts for these and other eco-prisoners can be found at the Earth First! Journal’s prisoner support page.

In related news, an anonymous communique was also received the previous night, apparently sent back from the future: “The Book Cliffs, where Spotted Owls screech and Elk reign, were under attack… Eco-Warriors worked under the rising sun. We have Molotoved their mining equipment. We have Monkey-Wrenched their machines. We have sawed their bulldozers to pieces. There are no longer any functional drilling tools in the Book Cliffs.

A major blow has been dealt to the oil extraction infrastructure. The PR Springs Mine Project is at its knees. Take Warning. Oil will never be piped through the West. Utah will never be mined. The mines of Alberta will cease.

Image from the futuristic communique distributed at the protest

No longer will our wild places fuel this militarized culture. Your machines are bound to rust. Tar Sand Extraction Profiteers, SITLA, CEO’s Glen D. Snar, and, Mr. Cuthbert; We are coming for you. This is just the beginning…”

The mining equipment is not actually present on-site yet, just in case that was unclear.

New Government Informant in Earth Liberation Front Prosecution

by Will Potter for GreenIsTheNewRed.com

Animal rights activist David Agranoff agreed to become a government informant as part of a plea agreement related to Earth Liberation Front crimes in Bloomington, Indiana, more than 10 years ago.

Details are still emerging about the prosecution, and others who might be implicated. The following information is based strictly on what appears in court documents, signed by all parties:

*The prosecution is related at least in part to an April 30, 2000 arson in Bloomington, Indiana, that destroyed 14 pieces of logging and construction equipment.

According to an Associated Press report at the time: “Gas tanks were filled with sand, which was also packed into oil crankcases, police said. Fuel and hydraulic lines were cut, and a tractor-trailer filled with wood chips was set on fire. On the trailer had been emblazoned the words, ‘Go develop in Hell.’ The letters ‘ELF’ had been spray-painted on several pieces of equipment…”

*In March, 2011, Agranoff waived his right to indictment (which means agreeing that the government has reason to bring the charges against him). [Source: waiver of indictment]

*In August, 2011, his attorneys filed a motion to push back his sentencing hearing, because: “The Defendant has not yet completed the cooperation he intends to provide to the government in consideration of a motion pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 5K1.1.” This is the section of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines related to “Substantial Assistance to Authorities.” [Source: motion to continue]

*In January, 2012, Agranoff was sentenced to 1 year and 1 day for misprision of a felony (knowing about the commission of a felony and failing to report it to the police). The court recommended he serve his time a low-security prison camp. He also received 1 year probation. [Source: judgement in criminal case]

*He has been ordered to pay $134,000 in restitution to two companies: $84,000 to John Jones Timber and Cutting, and $50,000 to Crider & Crider, Inc. [Source: judgement in criminal case]

As background, Dave Agranoff has been active in the animal rights movement since the 1990s. In 2007, he was subpoenaed to a federal grand jury investigating a speech by Rod Coronado. He and two other activists refused to testify, and he served 80 days in prison.

As a final note, the April 30, 2000 arson in Bloomington also appears in the plea agreement of Frank Ambrose. Ambrose became a government informant and provided information against Marie Mason in exchange for a reduced sentence. This crime was one of many that Ambrose provided information about. It is unclear at this time how, or if, these cooperating agreements are related.

No Coal Eugene Banner Drop

(EUGENE, Ore.) – Yesterday at approximately 1:36 PM members of No Coal Eugene dropped a banner reading “STOP THE COAL TRAIN” from the parking garage on 10th and Oak in Eugene, Oregon.

This action was done in solidarity with Rocky Mountain Powershift and to bring attention to the coal trains that will soon be coming through Eugene.

In October 2011, the Port of Coos Bay signed a contract with an anonymous company to ship coal out of their harbor. Coal will be coming from the Powder River Basin in Montana through several cities, including Eugene, to be exported out of Coos Bay to Asian markets.

An estimated 15,000 tons of uncovered coal will be on every train. The Sightline Institute estimates that 500 lbs to a ton of coal can escape from a single loaded car. With one or two trains coming through Eugene everyday, Eugenians will be inhaling an unsafe amount of coal dust.

No Coal Eugene is in opposition to the coal trains for three reasons: We support the community of Coos Bay which is already impacted by environmentally destructive industries – including strip mining, deforestation, dredging and pollution.

We are opposed to the use of fossil fuels as a non-renewable energy source because of its effect on the global climate and global health. We are also opposed to large coal companies using public money for their own profits.

 

We are opposed to the use of fossil fuels as a non-renewable energy source because of its effect on the global climate and global health.

Tags: banner drop, coal, direct action, energy, eugene, Oregon, protest

France Demands Suspension of Monsanto GMO Corn Approval

France asked the European Commission on Monday to suspend authorization to plant Monsanto’s genetically modified (GM) MON810 corn, the environment ministry said, as the country seeks to keep a ban on GM crops despite losing court rulings.

France banned in 2008 the growing of MON810 corn, the only GM crop approved for planting in the European Union, citing environmental risks.

Its highest court ruled against the ban in November, following a similar decision by the European Court of Justice last September, leading the government to say it would look at all ways to maintain the freeze on GM planting.

The French government’s request to the EU executive was based on “significant risks for the environment” shown in recent scientific studies, the ministry said in a statement.

EU governments are divided over authorizing GM crop cultivation, with some countries like France reluctant to allow them in view of public hostility.

Denmark, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU, is seeking to revive stalled talks on allowing individual countries to decide on whether to allow GM crops.

Tags: Monsanto, France, gmo, corn, genetically modified organisms, EU

Malaysian Indigenous Communities Demand Referendum on Mega-Dams

cross posted from Environment News Service.

In a picture taken on August 20, 2009, Penan tribespeople man a blockade with banners and spears to challenge vehicles of timber and plantation companies in Long Nen in Malaysia's Sarawak State. Hundreds of Penan tribespeople armed with spears and blowpipes have set up new blockades deep in the Borneo jungles, escalating their campaign against logging, dams, and palm oil plantations. AFP PHOTO/Saeed KHAN

MIRI, Sarawak, Malaysia, February 19, 2012 (ENS) -

Malaysian communities are asking the government to stop all 12 planned mega-dam projects in the state of Sarawak on the island of Borneo and to hold a referendum on dam construction.

A conference of some 150 representatives of indigenous communities and civil society groups concluded Saturday in the city of Miri with demands that the state government address the adverse impact of existing hydroelectric dam projects in Sarawak and stop planning for more to power industrial development of the rainforest.

Organized by the newly formed Save Rivers Network, the conference brought local civil society organizations together with indigenous peoples organizations and concerned individuals for three days. Discussions centered on the adverse impacts of dam construction on the environment and on the livelihoods of dam-affected communities.

Tags: direct action, protest, environment, indigenous, dam, borneo, malaysia, Batang Ai National Park, mega-dam, indigenous resistance, wildlife habitat

Greenwashed Certifications of Longlines Kill Sea Turtles, Sharks

cross posted from global animal.

The Marine Stewardship Council allowed two eco-certifications for the use of longlines for swordfish fishing that will effect sea turtles and sharks drastically. For every swordfish caught, two sharks are killed.  Every year 1,200 endangered sea turtles are hooked by longlines, resulting in drowning. If swordfish are caught by longlines, consumers need to know what they’re buying and that the fishing method used resulted in preventable deaths. Read on for why many are arguing why longline-caught swordfish should be labeled in the market.

Sea Turtle Restoration Project

Two back-to-back eco-certifications of Atlantic longline fisheries for swordfish that capture and kill thousands of sharks and endangered sea turtles by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is a death knell for the credibility for the industry-funded sustainable seafood eco-labeling scheme. Ocean conservation groups are now calling on seafood retailers and restaurateurs to stop offering unsustainable longline-caught swordfish.

“The eco-labeling of longlined swordfish dupes well-intentioned seafood lovers into unknowingly consuming fish caught in ways that sacrifice sea turtles and sharks,” said Teri Shore, Program Director at SeaTurtles.org. “It spells the end of sustainable seafood schemes since none can be fully trusted.”

Last week the MSC dismissed an objection to the sustainable certification of the Canadian Atlantic longline fishery for swordfish filed by three major marine conservation organizations, allowing the eco-labeling to go ahead with only minor technical changes in the assessment document.

This followed in the wake of the eco-certification of the Florida longline swordfish fleet, which targets swordfish and accidentally captures sea turtles from the same populations as the Canadian fishery, without any consideration of cumulative impacts. The Florida swordfish fishery captured an estimated 147 endangered leatherbacks and loggerheads from 2005 to 2009.

At the same time, the MSC’s credibility has been undermined by several major Alaskan fisheries vacating the program in favor of self-certification, which will further undermine the credibility of eco-labeling and sustainable seafood marketing.

The MSC assessment of the Canadian longline fishery recognized that two sharks die for every swordfish caught and that the fishery captures 1,200 endangered sea turtles every year and operates without measures that protect sea turtles. Neither fact will prevent the newly-certified fishery from selling swordfish marked with MSC’s ‘blue check mark’ as of March 2012.

Longline-caught swordfish is listed on Canada’s SeaChoice Red ‘Avoid’ list, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Red ‘Avoid’ list, and Greenpeace International’s Seafood Red List. These assessments are based on the best science available, include strict conservation criteria, and are not paid for by industry clients, unlike the Marine Stewardship Council.

Giant retailers that want to profit from rising demand for sustainable seafood are triggering the false eco-labeling of fish caught with destructive gear such as the two longline swordfish fisheries.

Even worse, the U.S. government warns women of child-bearing age (18 to 45) never to eat swordfish due to high mercury levels (as well as shark, mackerel and tilefish). No certification scheme considers mercury or other toxins in fish.

Tags: canada, endangered species, fishing, Florida, greenwashing, longlines, marine stewardship council, sea turtles, sharks, water

Cascadia Forest Defenders Mic Check Oregon Governor

On Valentines Day, the Cascadia Forest Defenders mic checked Governor Kitzhaber of Oregon for his decision to allow the transition of the Elliott State Forest into private ownership.

The unilateral decision has outraged many Oregonians, due to the harsh methods of deforestation used on private lands. Already, public land use leads to virtually unchecked cuts that run across vast tracts of land, but private lands stand up to even less scrutiny, often leaving little more from a lush native forest than a small christmas tree farm.

As important carbon sinks, the Pacific Northwest bioregion of Cascadia is crucial to mitigating climate change, yet it is currently under attack by state and county legislation that is threatening to deforest large areas and even place a Nestle bottling plant in Mount Hood at the site of the Colombia River Gorge.

Bear Bile Practice Draws Criticism in China

Cross Posted from the Spokesman-Review

A storm of criticism in China over share listing plans by a company that sells tonics made with bear bile is highlighting the increasingly affluent country’s changing attitudes toward the environment and wildlife.

Reports Friday said dozens of well-known entertainers, writers and other celebrities signed a petition to the China Securities Regulatory Commission urging it to withhold approval for the initial public offering by Guizhentang, a Chinese medicines maker. The company is awaiting approval for a share listing in Shenzhen.

Hundreds of thousands of comments on “weibo,” the Chinese version of Twitter, blasted the company for extracting bile from bears.

Animal rights groups contend the practice of bear bile farming is cruel because the animals are confined to small cages and milked of bile through catheters inserted into fistulas, or permanent wounds, in their gall bladders.

They say that antibiotics used to counter chronic infections from the practice, and other contaminants in the bile, also pose a hazard to human health.

A photo on the front page of the state-run newspaper China Business News on Friday showed a satirical photo montage of a caged bear, its muzzle bloodied, with a picture of the head of the China Association of Traditional Chinese Medicines, Fang Shuting, quoted as saying that bears are “very comfortable” while the bile is extracted.

News reports cited Fang as saying China has 68 licensed bear farms and more than 10,000 bears farmed for their bile, which can cost up to $635 a kilogram.

A spokesman for Guizhentang, who gave his surname as “Xu,” refused comment.

Officials at the CSRC said they could not comment on an IPO plan under consideration.

Animal rights are gaining increasing attention in China, with public figures such as basketball star Yao Ming and actor Jackie Chan speaking out against eating shark fins and other customs that many view as cruel or a threat to endangered species.

The change reflects both a growing awareness of the need to protect the environment and wildlife and also increasing affluence among many ordinary Chinese who now keep pets, travel overseas and have changing attitudes toward traditions they may not have questioned in the past.

In recent years, for example, animal protection groups have staged mass releases of cats and dogs caged for shipment to restaurants and markets, where they are slaughtered for dishes considered to be delicacies or especially nourishing.

The petition to the stock watchdog from more than 70 celebrities and environmental protection groups seeks to block the IPO and urges the use of synthetic substitutes for bear bile, which is a digestive substance made in the liver and stored in the gall bladder.

The main active ingredient in the bile is ursodeoxycholic acid, or UDCA, which is thought to act as an anti-inflammatory and is used to treat gallstones and liver ailments. It is mainly taken from the Asiatic black bear, a protected but not endangered species in China.

Chinese media reports cited Fang as defending Guizhentang’s bile-collecting practices in a news conference in Beijing, after visiting its facilities in southeast China’s Fujian province.

“Collecting bile is like turning on a tap. It’s painless, natural and simple. I didn’t see bears suffering in the process,” Caijing magazine quoted Fang as saying.

“After the bile is extracted, bears can still drink milk and honey and have fun in the farm.”

Farmed bears live about four or five years, while those in the wild live up to 30, according to the Animals Asia Foundation, which has been working to close down bear farms and rescue the animals.

© Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Lebanese Activists Sit-in to Protest Environmental Destruction

Cross Posted from The Daily Star

Tripoli residents organized a sit-in Wednesday to protest against the recent felling of several trees in the city and to demand answers on who was ultimately responsible for the decision.

Inhabitants of the northern city’s Al-Mina suburb held Wednesday’s sit-in on the city’s main boulevard. Protesters slammed the recent move, and also urged relevant authorities to undertake the necessary actions to prevent similar incidents from happening again in the future.

However, the mayor of Al-Mina, Mohammad Issa, said the trees had been felled following a petition from other residents, who had demanded the trees be cut down after an incident two years ago in which a palm tree fell on a car and resulted in the death of a young woman.

In compliance with the resident’s petition, Issa said that 14 trees, none of which were older than 15 years, were cut down. The mayor also expressed his willingness to plant new trees to replace those which were cut down.

Residents described the felling of old trees as an environmental massacre. “Trees do not harm anyone; we need to preserve the green spaces in light of the growing usage of concrete,” said Zaki al-Zaylaa, an environmental activist.

Zaylaa added that cutting down such trees was irresponsible and questioned who had the authority to decide when trees can be cut down as such. Zaylaa, a member of an environmental committee affiliated to the municipal council, denied the committee had any role in cutting down the trees.