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CEC ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS UPDATE 5/16/03 CEC Notes Synergy Awards Nominations The CEC is now accepting nominations for the 2003 Synergy Awards for Environmental Excellence! Please help us recognize members of the community who have made a noteworthy contribution to improving our local environment and quality of life. Nominations are accepted for the following awards:
Coalition Notes Blueprint Houston needs volunteer facilitators Volunteer to be a Citizen Congress facilitator. Blueprint Houston needs 140 facilitators to support discussions at the Citizen Congress this May 31. The event is from 8am-3pm Saturday, May 31. Interested facilitators must attend a training session on either Monday, May 19 or Tuesday, May 20. For more information and to sign up, call the Blueprint Houston offices at 713-522-0590 or email callie@blueprinthouston.org. MarshManiacs at it again The Galveston Bay Foundation invites you to join us on May 31, 2003, for the Fifth Annual MARSH MANIA, 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. Volunteers will unite for a one-day extravaganza to plant smooth cordgrass and promote the restoration of Galveston Bay. Many sites will be planted this year including Armand Bayou Nature Center and Minello Marsh. Pre-registered volunteers can enjoy a wet day of fun, a free T-shirt, door prizes, complimentary lunch, and the satisfaction of knowing they made the Bay a better place! The fun does not stop May 31! Keep your waders and booties on to plant marsh grass at Dickinson Island this fall. To volunteer, please call 281-332-3381x205 or email at marshmania@galvbay.org. School Habitat Workshop Does your school have a school habitat or outdoor classroom? Do the teachers at your school use your school habitat? Are the teachers at your school afraid to use the school habitat to teach reading, writing, math, science, health, social studies, art, or music? Then, a school habitat workshop is for you. The Environmental Institute of Houston will come to your school and show your teachers how to link the TEKS to your school habitat. The workshop format is a teachersÕ in-service for 3 or 6 hours at your school site and customized to meet educatorsÕ needs. Teachers receive valuable of materials and equipment upon workshop completion. For More Information Contact: Wendy Reistle, Environmental Institute of Houston/UHCL 281/283-3045 or reistle@cl.uh.edu Workshops are sponsored by Reliant Energy/HL&P and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Local Indigenous Amazon communities resist Houston oil companyby Erika McDonald Representatives from indigenous communities in Ecuador and Peru are in town this week to protest Houston-based Burlington Resources' plans to explore and extract oil from their land in the Amazon rain forest. Leaders of the communities, representing more than 100,000 people living on millions of pristine acres in the Amazon rain forest, turned up at the doorstep of Houston-based Burlington Resources Tuesday afternoon. The presidents of the Shuar, Achuar, Kichwa and Zapara nations were in town to demand the company halt plans for oil exploration and extraction on ancestral lands. President of the Achuar nation in Ecuador, Milton Callera said his federation would resist BurlingtonÕs efforts for fear of environmental destruction. "We are the guardians of the forest," he said. "We are here to ask Burlington, what part of ŌnoÕ donÕt you understand?" The indigenous people came to Burlington headquarters in the Galleria hoping to deliver an eviction notice to CEO Bobby Shackouls, but were turned away security guards. Burlington spokesman James Bartlett said company officials were not contacted prior to the presidentsÕ visit but would have refused to meet with leaders even if they had been notified earlier. "Our policy is to meet with the leaders in Ecuador," Bartlett said. "We donÕt know who those people (who traveled to Houston) are or whether they are in fact leaders in their communities." U.S. activists who helped bring the indigenous people to Houston were outraged Burlington officials refused to meet with leaders of the four nations. "I think if theyÕre going to have the nerve to come onto these peopleÕs land and take their resources, they ought to at least acknowledge these men, who are the presidents of their federations, came a long way to deliver this message," said Amazon Watch organizer Atossa Soltani. According to an attorney with the Center for Economic and Social Rights in Ecuador, Burlington violated Ecuadorian constitutional law, which stipulates the company must receive informed consent of indigenous communities before exploration can begin. Burlington spokesman James Bartlett said the company reached an agreement with seven nations living in the oil concession blocks. The attorney, Jose Serrano, said the Burlington spokesman claims were exaggerated. "They may have gotten people to sign on an individual basis, but these are not representative of the communities," he said. "The true representatives are the presidents of the Aschuar, Shuar, Kichwa and Zapara, who are here today." There is also dispute over the degree of environmental impact from Burlington's activities. To date company plans include seismic testing of the land in search of oil, an activity spokesman James Bartlett says causes little ecological damage. But activists say seismic testing is one of the most harmful aspects of the oil extraction process. "They cut seismic lines through virgin forest, through their sacred spaces," Amazon Watch organizer Kevin Koenig said. Dropping dynamite into the holes scares away animals the communities subsist upon. "ItÕs by no means harmless to any living creature," he said. Koenig said it was important for indigenous people to come Houston to build solidarity with oil-affected communities and remind American consumers of their role in corporate resource extraction. He compared BurlingtonÕs activities in Peru and Ecuador to oil companies like Occidental who displaced native communities in Colombia. As part of their efforts, the indigenous people will take a "Toxic Tour" of Houston sponsored by the Environmental Justice Clinic at Texas Southern University. They will visit some of the dozen oil refineries that border low-income communities in Port Arthur later this week. Activists say Dell recycling event exploits prison laborby Erika McDonald As part of a national public relations campaign, Texas-based Dell Computers will collect unwanted computers from a drop-off location in Southwest Houston on Saturday. Where the e-waste goes from there has environmentalists raising questions over prison labor exploitation. Federal Prison Industries, also known by the trade name UNICOR employs inmates to turn obsolete machines back into raw materials. Texas Campaign for the EnvironmentÕs Robin Schneider said inmates were being exposed to carcinogens without the benefit of the same environmental protections as their free-market counter parts. "At a state-of-the art facility laborers are unionized so they have the ability to complain about their conditions and participate on committees that have input on health and safety policies." Schneider said inmates who complained often faced retaliation and no input on their conditions. UNICOR spokesman Larry Novicky denied the charge. He said the company meets or exceeds all environmental and safety standards. In fact, neither the Environmental Protection Agency nor the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has yet developed guidelines for electronic waste recycling. Dell spokesperson Michele Glaze defended UNICORÕs practices calling them the industry leader in responsible recycling. Inmates are required to wear protective clothing when handling certain kinds of e-waste. But environmentalists claims are not entirely unfounded when it comes to electronic recycling at federal prisons in Texas. An investigator with the regional office of OSHA, said UNICOR has been issued citations for inadequate environmental protections. Still, Dell intends to stand behind UNICOR and continue to use the company for its year-round recycling efforts. "ItÕs too bad that a special interest group is choosing to focus on the labor issue," she said. "Our focus is the environment." Schneider also complained ultra-cheap prison labor undercuts recycling industry infrastructure, making it difficult for free-market companies to compete. UNICORÕs Larry Novicky argued his employees, the federal inmates, were primarily low income people of color. This weekendÕs event is cosponsored by Keep Houston Beautiful, a city-funded non-profit that provided volunteers and publicity for Dell. Events coordinator Michael Cowin said the city was not aware of the labor issues at play until contacted by the CEC. He said the revelation would not change KHBÕs support for the event. "Throwing the baby out with the bath water is just not sensible," he said. "Recycling is a good thing no matter what the circumstance surrounding it." Texas Campaign for the Environment, an Austin-based group and Houston Clean Water Action will send protesters dressed in prison uniforms to tomorrowÕs event. Their aim is to inform people who want to discard their old computers with a clear conscience. Final EIS out on Bayportby Erika McDonald The Army Corp of Engineers this week released the final environmental impact statement on the Port of Houston AuthorityÕs permit application to build a container port at Bayport. The Galveston Bay Conservation and Preservation Association is set to take the matter to court should a permit eventually be issued. Adding to a growing list of indictments against the project, the group complained this week about public access to the recently released EIS. The final document is on display at a handful of libraries throughout the city; it is available online. A printed copy may be obtained for more than $800. GBCPA chairman Jim Blackburn balked at the fee. "How can something costing that much money be called public? It is far beyond the reach of nearly everyone." A spokesperson for the Corps, Marilyn Uhrich said the document, at close to 2,000 pages, was expensive to produce and distribute . She said an electronic version could be obtained by citizens at no charge. Not good enough according to GBCPAÕs Larry Tobin. He said trying to read the lengthy document on the computer was a "recipe for frustration." "Navigating around it is intimidating and getting an overall view is next to impossible," Tobin said. "Maps and graphics present special complications. Most people simply are not equipped to handle this; people need to be able to see it in print." These are only the latest charges to come from GBCPA, which has fought the Bayport project for years. Blackburn, also the groupÕs attorney said a permit issued at Bayport would be illegal because a permit was issued last month at a site in Texas City that was originally considered as alternative to the Bayport site. Under EPA guidelines, a permit may not be issued unless the site in question is determined to be the least environmentally damaging alternative. Because a permit was already issued at Shoal Point, Blackburn argues the Bayport EIS should consider the cumulative impacts of both projects. Before the Corps can reach a decision on the Port AuthorityÕs application, the project must receive a section 401 wetlands-certification from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The final EIS must also be sanctioned by the Coastal Coordination Council. The council will determine whether the document is consistent with the stateÕs Coastal Management Plan. Public comment on the project will close June 16. Submit written comments to Fred Anthamatten at P.O. Box 1229, Galveston, Texas 77553. Cyclists celebrate Bike to Work Dayby Erika McDonald A handful of cyclists turned out for Houston Bike to Work Day, celebrating their independence from automobiles with a ride from South Main Baptist Church to downtown. Though the tone was festive, the cityÕs recent removal of bike lanes from West Alabama was on the minds of many. Bike Houston organizer Lorin Gaertner said cyclists should view the cityÕs action not as a bike-lane removal, but a bike-lane widening. Under Texas law, it is illegal to share traffic lanes narrower than 14 feet. When the lane is too narrow for sharing, cyclists have the right of way. Removal of the bike-only lanes from Alabama, effectively opened up traffic lanes for cyclists. "Cars will just have to move out of the way," Gaertner said. This may be the answer to cyclistÕs problem; but what about disabled commuters who relied on the bike lanes as a safe place to roll their wheelchairs? Gaertner said the sidewalks on Alabama are in disrepair and do not have wheel chair ramps. Inadequate sidewalks are the basis of one disabled residentÕs complaint filed against the city. The resident, Kristen Jones filed a complaint with the Justice Department last week in hopes that city officials would be compelled to improve sidewalk conditions. JonesÕ attorney, Dan Lundeen said the city has an obligation to its disabled citizens. "They have to make sure the streets are usable for all people, not just people who can afford the price of admission by buying a car," he said. Jones said getting around on her own was critical to her independence. Without the bike lanes, Jones said she must either buy a specially equipped car, or rely on others for transportation. "The American Disabilities Act basically says I have as much right to unobstructed, safe passage on city streets as anyone else in America. The City removing West Alabama's bike lanes took that away from me," she said. ABOUT THIS PUBLICATION CEC Environmental News Update is a weekly publication by the Citizens' Environmental Coalition, a 501(c)3 dedicated to fostering dialogue, education and collaboration about environmental issues in the Houston-Gulf Coast Region. Visit the CEC online at www.cechouston.org. To subscribe or unsubscribe, or to suggest items for inclusion, send your request via e-mail to Sarah Doss at sarah@cechouston.org. |
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