Wednesday, 12 Apr 2000

Seine Freeze

The Clinton administration's attempt to loosen standards for "dolphin-safe" tuna has been blocked by a federal judge, preventing the label from being used on cans of tuna caught with nets that snare dolphins. Several enviro groups had filed suit in August after the Commerce Department proposed a change in the dolphin-safe labeling standards, which would let fleets use huge encircling purse-seine nets as long as the dolphins caught in the nets are set free. The judge ruled that the department failed to assess whether repeatedly capturing and releasing dolphins has any impact on dolphin populations. The enviro groups that filed the suit, including Earth Island Institute, say the standards were improperly loosened to allow fishing fleets from Latin American countries to sell their tuna in the U.S. But other enviro groups, including Greenpeace, support the labeling change as a way to foster international cooperation on dolphin protection.

Putin Their Mouth Where Their Money Is

Russia's Ministry of Atomic Energy announced yesterday that it would like to import and reprocess 20,000 tons of nuclear waste, a proposal that could bring in some $21 billion over 10 years and help boost the nation's economy. The ministry anticipates that most of the waste would be spent fuel rods from civilian nuclear power plants in Europe and Asia. Russia's parliament would have to change a law forbidding such imports before the plan could go forward. Both Russian and foreign environmental groups object to the plan, saying Russia already has plenty of nuclear waste from domestic sources. "This is an extremely dangerous and cynical deal to generate billions of dollars which will add to the enormous environmental problems that already exist in Russia," said Tobias Muenchmeyer of Greenpeace.

Big Trees From the Big Guy

President Clinton has scheduled a trip for this Saturday to California's Sierra Nevada, where he is expected to announce the creation of a new national monument to protect groves of giant sequoias. The monument, which Clinton can designate without approval from Congress, could encompass as much as 355,000 acres of land now in the Sequoia National Forest. Names being considered include the California Big Tree National Monument and the Sierra Nevada National Monument. The Sierra Club and other green groups have been pushing Clinton to create the new monument, while the area's members of Congress have been lobbying against it.

Bawl's in Their Court

A federal appeals court panel ruled yesterday that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission acted properly in rejecting a bid for closer review of safety issues surrounding the renewal of the operating licenses for the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant in southern Maryland. The NRC voted last month to extend the life of the Calvert Cliffs complex for another 20 years, the first such license extension in the nation. Opponents of the license renewal, including the National Whistleblower Center, argued that the NRC had rushed its decision without addressing certain safety questions or allowing adequate time for public input. The group plans to appeal the court's decision, which it fears will give a boost to the nuclear power industry. Six more of the nation's 103 operating nuclear reactors have filed for license renewals, and 21 more plan to do so by 2003.

Hunt and Picket

The Makah Indian tribe of Washington state is gearing up for another whale hunt, 11 months after its first hunt in 70 years drew international attention and impassioned protests from many environmentalists. The U.S. government made a deal in 1997 with the International Whaling Commission that allows the Makahs to kill up to five gray whales a year through 2004; last year, the tribe killed one. With the gray whales' spring migration underway, anti-whaling activists are heading for Washington's Olympic Peninsula, hoping to disrupt the hunt and protect the whales.