After Enduring Government Experiments, Lab Animals Could Get New Lease on Life | Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Happier times ahead? Last year, White Coat Waste, a nonprofit, exposed the USDA’s killing of over 3,000 adoptable kittens. Following that campaign and pressure from Congress, the “kitten slaughterhouse” was shut down. Now, the AFTER Act (HR 2897) seeks to amend the Animal Welfare Act to allow for the adoption of certain animals, including cats and dogs, used in federal research. (Photo credit: Laura D’Alessandro/Flickr)

White Coat Waste: Currently, federal government labs experiment on about 50,000 dogs, cats, primates, rabbits and other regulated animals each year (which excludes mice and rats). Virtually all of these animals will be killed—even if they’re healthy at the end of testing. But new legislation introduced by Reps. Brendan Boyle (D-PA) and Jackie Walorski (R-IN) would reduce the number of animals killed after government experiments. If passed, the Animal Freedom from Testing, Experimentation and Research (AFTER) Act (HR 2897)–—nicknamed Violet’s Law after the rescued ex-laboratory dog who inspired it—would require government labs to try to retire survivors to sanctuaries or adopt them out to loving homes. This would be a first in American history.
>>>Urge Congress to pass the AFTER Act to save the lives of tens of thousands of retired laboratory animals.

World Wildlife Fund: Eight million metric tons of plastic end up in the world’s oceans every year. There are already an estimated 150 million metric tons of plastic in the oceans because this problem was ignored for decades. This has serious consequences for people’s well-being and livelihoods and causes injury and death to fish, sea turtles, whales, birds, coral reefs and other marine life. We urgently need a legally binding United Nations agreement to end marine plastic pollution by 2030.
>>>Ask the world’s governments to take immediate action to end the plastic crisis before it’s too late.

Change.org: Poachers kill an elephant every 15 minutes on the African continent. Now, after five years of prohibition, the ban on elephant hunting in Botswana has been lifted, putting some 130,000 elephants—the largest elephant population on the continent—under threat. In 2017, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council, 74% of travel to Botswana was by tourists, generating $686.6 million and contributing to 26,000 jobs that year. A main reason tourists travel to Botswana is to see wildlife. If anti-poaching units are not restored, the number of wildlife will continue to dwindle—endangering the survival of species and negatively impacting the economy.
>>>Urge President Mokgweetsi Masisi to restore the anti-poaching units to protect its elephant population—and its economy.

Compassion Over Killing: Sales of almond, soy, coconut and other plant-based milks are soaring, on track to reach $20 billion by 2020. Meanwhile, consumer demand for dairy is tanking as Americans become aware of just how cruel the dairy industry is to cows, how it has cheated consumers, and the havoc that dairy milk can wreak on our bodies. Big Dairy is desperate, and it’s turning to the FDA to help squash the rise of plant-based milks. In 2010, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) urged the federal government to block the use of words like “milk” and “cheese” on the labels of dairy-free products. Six years later, that hasn’t worked, so the NMPF is back at it, this time by whipping up members of Congress to write to the Food and Drug Administration about how such labeling is “misleading and illegal.” Truly misleading, however, are current dairy product labels, which do not state what’s really inside: bovine mammary secretions, produced by cows and comprising just the right mix of proteins and hormones for their calves to grow hundreds of pounds in mere months. If it is in NMPF’s own interest in ensuring that labels “clearly identify the true nature of the food,” as noted in its 2010 petition, why not clearly identify dairy as “cow milk?”
>>>Tell the NMPF to make it easier on shoppers to know the “true nature of the food” they’re buying by clearly labeling its products as “cow milk.”

Cause for concern…

Slippery slope: Today’s banana production has environmental and social costs that are not reflected in the prices consumes pay at the register. Those costs are “externalized onto smallholder farmers and the employees of banana plantations, as well as onto the land itself,” writes Joe Fassler of New Food Economy. (Photo credit: Gratisography/Pexels.com)

Round of applause…

Back from the edge? Angalifu, a male northern white rhinoceros at San Diego Wild Animal Park, who died from age-related natural causes in 2014. There are only two known northern white rhinoceroses, both of which are female; unless there is an unknown male somewhere in Africa, this subspecies is functionally extinct. But for the first time, scientists have transformed cells from the northern white rhinoceros into stem cells that could help save this and other species from going the way of the dodo. (Photo credit: Sheep81/Wikipedia) 

Parting thought…

“If all mankind were to disappear, the world would regenerate back to the rich state of equilibrium that existed ten thousand years ago. If insects were to vanish, the environment would collapse into chaos.” —E. O. Wilson

Only 15,000 Wild Bonobos Remain | Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Our cousins need our help: Along with the common chimpanzee, the bonobo is the closest extant relative to humans. But they are endangered due to poaching for bushmeat and habitat destruction. “I fell in love with these amazing animals a few years ago when I narrated ‘The Bonobo Connection,’” writes actor and activist Ashley Judd. “It is a tragic irony that this peaceful species is only found in one of the most war-ravaged countries on Earth. Now that the Congo is rebuilding after years of conflict, groundbreaking efforts are underway to protect and study bonobos.” (Photo credit: Reflexiste/Flickr)

Ashley Judd and the Bonobo Conservation Initiative: Bonobos are the world’s least-recognized great ape, and humanity’s closest living relative. This endangered species lives exclusively in Africa’s Congo Basin, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Only an estimated 15,000 bonobos remain in the wild—poaching and habitat loss are pushing them to the brink of extinction. Bonobo societies are matriarchal, and unlike our other closest relatives, chimpanzees, are incredibly peaceful. Female-led groups of bonobos are highly empathic, and use affection rather than aggression to resolve conflict and to strengthen social bonds.
>>>Urge the Democratic Republic of the Congo to protect our closest living relatives and their rainforest home.

Change.org: Chickens on factory farms are bred to grow so big, so fast, that they often collapse under their own weight. Many live in constant pain, and they are vulnerable to broken legs and heart attacks. These smart and social birds spend their entire lives in crowded, dimly-lit sheds without even a perch to rest on. Restaurants like Subway, Burger King, Sonic and many more have already committed to criteria that reduce the suffering of chickens. They are switching to healthier breeds and giving chickens more room to roam. If all of these other companies can do it, why can’t McDonald’s?
>>>Urge McDonald’s to stop using chickens who are bred to suffer.

ASPCA: New York has one of the country’s highest number of dog retailers. At any given point, there are approximately 2,000 puppies for sale throughout the state. Pet shops often source their puppies from out-of-state, low-welfare, commercial breeding facilities (a.k.a. puppy mills), then offer them up to unsuspecting customers as healthy, high-quality puppies from responsible breeders. This practice is deceptive and leaves families to bear the costs associated with this cruel industry. New Yorkers have an opportunity to make a huge difference for pets this year by supporting a bill to prohibit the sale of dogs, cats and rabbits in pet stores across the state.
>>>New Yorkers, tell your legislators to support A.6298/S.4234 to End Puppy Mill Cruelty in New York State.

Audubon California: In 2017, the Trump Administration reversed decades of government policy—by both Democratic and Republican administrations—to dramatically weaken the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The MBTA has been the foundation of protections for migratory birds in North America for more than a century, saving billions of birds. The federal government now says it will no longer prosecute unintentional killing—called incidental take—of birds from commercial and industrial activities, including massive avian crises caused by oil spills like Exxon-Valdez or Deepwater Horizon. California Assembly Bill 454, authored by Assembly Member Ash Kalra, will ensure California’s birds are protected. The oil industry’s main lobbying arm in Sacramento has declared its opposition, and is fighting hard to so that polluters and other industries can kill birds without any consequences.
>>>Urge the California Assembly to vote yes on AB454.

Cause for concern…

Imperiled pups: Anti-vaxxers are choosing not to vaccinate their pets against harmful diseases, according to veterinarians. Now, the United Kingdom branch of the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) has issued a warning to pet owners who are endangering their cats and dogs lives by ignoring science and not getting them vaccinated. “There is real concern that we will see an increase in the frequency of these serious and preventable diseases, with resulting animal suffering, if the number of vaccinated animals falls,” RSPCA veterinary director Caroline Allen told The Sun. (Photo credit: Torsten Dettlaff/Pexels)

Round of applause…

Smarter logging: A toucan rests in a tree in Guyana’s Iwokrama Rainforest. The small South American nation is pioneering an approach to protecting the trees that cover nearly its entire area. Armed with an inventory of its trees, the Guyana Forestry Commission makes scientific decisions about which ones can be harvested while maintaining overall ecosystem health. This sustainable approach has helped Guyana decrease its annual deforestation rate to 0.048%, one of the lowest rates across the continent. (Photo credit: M M/Wikimedia Commons)

Parting thought…

“Hunting is not a sport. In a sport, both sides should know they’re in the game.” —Paul Rodriguez


Historic Legal Victory for Indigenous People and Amazon Rainforest | Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Amazonian victory: On February 27, hundreds of Indigenous Waorani elders, youth and leaders arrived in the city of Puyo, Ecuador, to launch a lawsuit seeking to stop the government from auctioning off their ancestral lands in the Pastaza region to oil companies. On April 26, the three-judge panel ruled in their favor, protecting half a million acres of their territory in the Amazon rainforest from being earmarked for oil drilling. (Photo credit: Amazon Frontlines)

Amazon Frontlines: On April 26, the Waorani people of Ecuador won a historic legal victory to protect 500,000 acres of their rainforest from oil extraction. “The courts recognized that the Waorani people have rights over our territories that must be respected. The government’s interest in oil is not more valuable than our rights, our forests, our lives,” said Nemonte Nenquimo, president of the Coordinating Council of the Waorani Nationality of Ecuador–Pastaza, a political organization of the Waorani and plaintiff in the successful lawsuit. The ruling sets a key legal precedent, strengthening indigenous rights and rainforest protection in Ecuador and beyond.
>>>Tell the Ecuadorian government to respect Indigenous rights and the court’s decision: The most biodiverse place on Earth is not for sale.

Change.org: For decades, the Philadelphia Gun Club has held cruel and savage pigeon shoots. The club is based in Bensalem in northeast Pennsylvania, the only state in the nation where pigeon shoots are not illegal. “Pigeon shoots are vile competitions where thousands of birds are shot, killed or suffer terrible wounds and crippling pain,” says Illinois-based animal rights organization Showing Animals Respect and Kindness, or SHARK, calling them “Pennsylvania’s shame.” The pigeons used in these shoots are from New York City, where they are captured and transported across the state line. a new bill introduced by the New York City Council may help protect the city’s pigeons from this terrible fate. The bill would “prohibit the unlawful capture, possession, sale or purchase of wild birds.”
>>>Urge the NYC Council and NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio to pass Int. 1202-2018 to prohibit the trafficking of the city’s wild birds.

Earth Day Network: Around the world, coral reefs are in danger. These fascinating organisms, which provide habitat for thousands of other species and help support global industries with a value totaling as much as $9.9 trillion, are under attack. With their existence threatened by rising ocean temperatures, ocean acidification, chemical pollution and damage from human contact, coral reefs need your help.
>>>Urge the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to remove the coral-killing chemicals oxybenzone and octinoxate from sunscreens.C

MoveOn: On July 16, 2015, the Australian government unveiled its plan to kill two million feral cats by 2020. While the problem they are targeting is real and serious (scientists say that they are a primary factor behind the extinction of at least 29 indigenous mammal species in Australia), the solution of poisoning the cats is barbaric, to say the least. Efforts should be made to find a more humane solution, working with animal rights advocates, agencies, shelters and rescues to spay/neuter and adopt out those that are healthy and spare as many as possible from a horrible death.
>>>Urge Australian Environment Minister Greg Hunt to stop the poisoning of feral cats and explore humane solutions to prevent overpopulation.

Cause for concern…

Protecting corporations, not the public: On April 30, the Environmental Protection Agency said that glyphosate, the active ingredient in Bayer-Monsanto’s carcinogenic weedkiller Roundup, is safe, ignoring the growing body of independent research showing a strong connection between glyphosate and cancer in humans. In 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, an arm of the World Health Organization, classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” Two separate juries in the past year found that glyphosate caused cancer in two California men who were exposed to the herbicide while handling Roundup. More than 13,400 similar cases have been filed against Bayer-Monsanto. (Photo credit: Mike Mozart/Flickr)

Round of applause…

Bird brains: An American Crow at Carkeek Park in Seattle, Washington. More than four years after Stuart Dahlquist began feeding a family of American Crows in his backyard outside of Seattle, the crows started to leave him what he thinks are gifts. One week, for two days in a row, they left pine twigs that were threaded through aluminum can pull tabs. Dahlquist shared a picture of the twigs on Twitter. “This isn’t only generous, it’s creative, it’s art,” he wrote. It went viral, garnering over 9,000 retweets and some 33,000 likes. Crows are well known for their highly developed intelligence, but Jillian Mock, an editorial fellow at Audubon Magazine, wonders in a recent article, “Is it truly possible that crows crafted these objects and purposefully left them for Dahlquist to find?” (Photo credit: Ingrid Tayla/Wikimedia Commons)

Parting thought…

“True benevolence or compassion, extends itself through the whole of existence and sympathizes with the distress of every creature capable of sensation.” —Joseph Addison

Trump Seeks to Bypass Courts and Fast-Track Keystone XL | Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Taking a stand: Activists protesting the Keystone XL pipeline in front of the State Department building in Washington, D.C., on August 12, 2013. (Photo credit: Rick Reinhard/NoKXL/Flickr)

NRDC: President Trump just took the extraordinary step of issuing a new permit intended to bypass a federal court ruling and fast-track construction of the dirty, climate-busting Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. The Keystone XL pipeline would carry up to 830,000 barrels of dirty tar sands oil each day from Canada’s boreal forest through America’s heartland, threatening our land, climate, and drinking water. It would shackle us for decades to the dirty fossil fuels of the past instead of moving us toward a clean energy future.
>>>Urge the Trump administration to drop its misguided attempt to fast-track the Keystone XL pipeline yet again.

Audubon: What do comical Atlantic Puffins, elegant Least Terns, and majestic Bald Eagles have in common? Besides being beloved by many, they are all also dependent on forage fish—anchovies, sardines, and other small schooling fish—to fuel their diets. Today, there are three hundred million fewer seabirds in the world than there were in 1950, a shocking population decline of seventy percent. Seabirds such rely on fish as their primary food source, and overfishing means they can’t always find enough to eat. But, there is hope: A new bill would help fish populations rebound—good news for the birds, people, and economies that depend on them.
>>>Urge your representative to protect the fish that seabirds need to thrive.

PETA: In late 2018 and early 2019, a PETA eyewitness worked in Alaska’s dog sledding industry. He found dogs denied veterinary care for painful injuries, kept constantly chained next to dilapidated boxes and plastic barrels in the bitter cold and biting wind, and exhausted, dehydrated dogs forced to run hundreds of miles. Dogs deserve far better than a lifetime of isolation, cruelty, suffering, and death on the Iditarod Trail.
>>>Urge Chrysler, Millennium Hotels and Resorts, and Alaska Airlines to sever ties with the Iditarod immediately.

Change.org: Adding plant-based protein options at McDonald’s will appeal to workers out for a quick lunch, families with health-conscious members out to dinner, children on field trips, and anyone looking for something different than the current menu at McDonald’s where even the french fries contain beef flavoring (they don’t in Europe, incidentally). According to a recent survey, more than one-third of Americans already buy meat substitutes for reasons that range from health to ethics. So why not make a meatless option available at one of America’s favorite restaurant chains for everyone to enjoy? Healthy living should be about progress, not perfection, and this is an easy step that McDonald’s could be taking.
>>>Urge McDonald’s to add a healthy, meatless option to their menu.

Animal Recovery Mission: ARM investigators entered into Jaipur, India, to document the abuse behind its extravagant elephant rides that are offered as tourist attractions and transportation. Thousands of enslaved elephants are crammed in tiny 10’x10′ prison cells and shackled by chains with painful spikes that tear into their legs. Holes are drilled into their tusks to hang jewelry for the tourists. They are frequently denied water even in the scorching Indian heat.
>>>Urge the Indian government to end the abuse of elephants used in tourism and prosecute the abusers.

Cause for concern…

Critical condition: Composed of nearly 3,000 individual reefs and stretching for more than 1,400 miles, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia is the world’s largest coral reef system. Oceanic warming due to climate change has caused mass coral bleaching events in recent decades that threaten the reef’s future survival. New researchhas found that, following the death of half the reef’s corals in 2016 and 2017, the survivors aren’t having enough babies to repopulate this important marine ecosystem. (Photo credit: Kyle Taylor/Flickr)

Round of applause…

Peak pollution: A base camp set up at Mount Everest. The route to the top of the world’s tallest mountain has been littered with trash, as climbers regularly leave empty oxygen tanks, food cans and battered tents on their way to the summit. The Nepali military, in one of the nation’s biggest clean-up campaigns, recently removed more than two tons of trash from the mountain. (Photo credit: ilkerender/Flickr)

Parting thought…

“For many of us, water simply flows from a faucet, and we think little about it beyond this point of contact. We have lost a sense of respect for the wild river, for the complex workings of a wetland, for the intricate web of life that water supports.” —Sandra Postel

America’s National Parks Are Falling Apart | Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Unhappy trails: Repair work being done to the Big Oak Flat road in Yosemite National Park in 2017 following damage to soils caused by severe winter storms. Inconsistent funding from Congress has left the National Park System with a nearly $12 billion repair backlog. (Photo credit: National Park Service)

Pew Charitable Trusts: The U.S. National Park System contains some of the nation’s greatest natural, cultural and recreation treasures that have become beloved destinations for millions of Americans and international visitors. As a result, parks are also a major economic engine for adjacent communities, generating over $18 billion for local economies each year and more than 306,000 jobs annually. Sadly, aging infrastructure, visitor pressures and a history of inconsistent congressional funding has led to nearly $12 billion backlog of repairs. These include crumbling roads and bridges; rotting historic buildings; impassable hiking trails; and deteriorating electrical, water and sewage systems. If unaddressed, these repair needs could threaten visitor access and safety. Bipartisan legislation has recently been introduced in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to provide dedicated funds to address priority maintenance needs within our parks and on public lands.
>>>Urge your members of Congress to support The Restore Our Parks Act (S. 500) and the Restore Our Parks and Public Lands Act (H.R. 1225).

American Heart Association: Children and teens in the United States drink more than 30 gallons of sugary drinks every year, including sports drinks, fruit-flavored drinks and sodas. In March, the American Academy of Pediatrics and American Heart Association announced a set of policy recommendations designed to reduce kid’s consumption of sugary drinks—like sugary drink taxes and less marketing to children.
>>>Urge your representatives to support policies to reduce kids’ sugary drink consumption.

Care2: Every year, hundreds of thousands of animals are forced to endure cruel testing procedures by cosmetics companies. Yes, it’s hard to believe, but many cosmetics companies still test on animals prior to releasing products to the market. Animals are rubbed with chemicals to check for irritation and forced to ingest large quantities of chemicals to determine what constitutes a “lethal dose.” And when the animals are no longer needed, they are killed. Thankfully, some American states have made headway in banning the practice. California, New York, New Jersey and Virginia have each banned animal testing for cosmetics, sending a strong message to cosmetic manufacturers that animal testing is not OK. Unfortunately, animals can still be used for testing in the rest of the country.
>>>46 states still allow animal testing for cosmetics: Sign the petition to support a nationwide ban.

Humane Society of the United States: An undercover investigation has exposed heartbreaking realities for bunnies in Petland, one of the country’s largest chains of pet stores. The investigation revealed a disturbing lack of concern for the rabbits’ health or safety. There was no veterinary care that investigators could see for any of the rabbits. In the store, sick rabbits were left to die and then stuffed in bags and put in the freezer. The undercover investigator found 14 dead rabbits in Petland’s freezer on a single day in January 2019 alone. One employee stated on hidden camera, “There’s nothing we can do because they don’t get checked by a vet. We just let them die.” Also uncovered was a connection between Petland and a rabbit mill where about 200 rabbits were packed into filthy cages. When an investigator asked an employee about the rabbit breeder, the employee said they came from a good place where the rabbits were treated nicely. This couldn’t be further from the truth.
>>>Demand that Petland makes the right decision and stops selling bunnies, kittens and puppies in their stores.

Cause for concern…

Bad air: Children are forced to wear masks due to the toxic smoke from peat land fires. Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan. According to a new major study, the life expectancy of children born today will be shortened by an average of 20 months due to breathing toxic air, with the most severe impact in south Asia. (Photo credit: Aulia Erlangga/Center for International Forestry Research)

Round of applause…

Mother nature: A woman works on her cassava field in the Mkuranga district in eastern Tanzania. A new study suggests that environmental conservation goals are better achieved when more women are involved in group decisions about land management. Researchers traveled to more than 30 rural villages near collectively-managed forests in Indonesia, Peru and Tanzania. (Photo credit: Roots, Holly Holmes/Tubers and Bananas/Flickr)

Parting thought…

“The ultimate test of man’s conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard.” —Gaylord Nelson

Momentum to Rebuild Canada’s Cruel Commercial Sealing Industry Is Growing | Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Bloody legacy: Animal activists gather in Calgary, Alberta, to protest the Canadian seal hunt. “More than one million seals have been slaughtered in the past five years alone,” according to the Humane Society of the United States. “These kill levels are among the highest witnessed in Canada in half a century. The last time seals were killed at this rate—in the 1950s and ’60s—the harp seal population was reduced by as much as two-thirds.” (Photo credit: Robert Thivierge/Flickr)

Humane Society International: Right now, momentum to rebuild the commercial sealing industry in Canada is growing. Sealing associations have made three proposals to the federal government that would expand the commercial sealing industry in Canada. One would lift restrictions on commercial sealing licenses, another would allow the killing of baby seals in a nature reserve in Quebec, and a third one would open a mass commercial seal hunt in British Columbia, in which tens of thousands of seals and sea lions would be clubbed, shot and harpooned. There has been much progress over the years shutting this industry down, taking away much of the incentive to kill baby seals. Today, most sealers do not participate in the slaughter because it is no longer profitable, but passing these proposals would be a huge step backward.
>>>Urge Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Environment Minister Benoit Charette to ignore these outrageous proposals and stop the commercial seal hunt.

In Defense of Animals: Yellowstone National Park is currently capturing resident bison to serve private ranching interests, and has already shipped 150 to slaughter. Others are held in quarantine, subject to invasive tests to determine if they carry a disease called brucellosis, a reproductive disease introduced to Yellowstone bison by ranchers. Every year, the National Park Service cooperates in roundups and slaughter to serve ranchers who fear that bison will transmit brucellosis to cows, even though there has never been a documented case of this happening. This senseless bison harassment and slaughter privileges private industry over some of our most iconic wildlife, and works directly against the long-term survival and expansion of the Yellowstone bison herds. It’s unconscionable that our national mammal is not even safe in our oldest national park.
>>>Urge Yellowstone Superintendent Cameron Sholly to stop cooperating in the slaughter of America’s wild bison.

Change.org: At the State University of New York (SUNY) College of Optometry, a team of scientists has been maiming and killing cats since 2002, conducting brain experiments to study the science of vision. These deplorable experiments continue what was started over thirty years ago in 1985, funded by a federal grant from the National Eye Institute (NEI). These arcane and useless experiments are killing and maiming helpless cats merely to create esoteric maps of neurons involved in visual processing. Trusting and loving cats, some as young as 4 months old, are purchased from suppliers and brought into labs at the SUNY College of Optometry. There they are cut up and tortured in lengthy procedures that go on for hours. Anesthetized and paralyzed, their heads are mounted in frames to keep their eyes focused on flashing images while their skulls are removed and their brains are cruelly probed with electrodes. This horrific, dead-end research has consumed $7.95 million taxpayer dollars and has not resulted in any treatments for vision disorders. Over $800,000 was spent in 2017 alone.
>>>Urge the National Eye Institute and the SUNY College of Optometry to end these horrific experiments immediately.

Blue Planet Society: Protected short-beaked common dolphins are being killed in huge numbers by the fishing industry wherever mid-water trawlers targeting pelagic fish species operate in EU waters. This barbaric practice is referred to as ‘bycatch’ by the fishing industry.
>>>Urge EU Commissioner for Environment Maritime Affairs & Fisheries Karmenu Vella to take action immediately to stop this slaughter.

Cause for concern…

Up in smoke: Scholven Power Station, a coal-fired power plant in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. According to a new report from the International Energy Agency, energy-related CO2 emissions rose by 1.7 percent last year, to 33.1 metric gigatons—the equivalent to a full year’s worth of emissions from international aviation. The burning of coal, which President Trump has strongly advocated, accounted for a third of the emissions growth. “Perhaps the most worrying finding in the report is the threat of a feedback loop between severe weather events and carbon emissions,” notes The Economist. “According to the IEA, a hotter-than-average summer and colder-than-average winter led to greater use of heating and air conditioning, which together were responsible for about half of the rise in energy demand in America and roughly a fifth of the worldwide increase. If humans keep burning fuel to shield themselves from extreme temperatures, and the emissions produced by that activity cause temperatures to become ever more extreme, the worst-case scenarios for climate change are more likely to materialize.” (Photo credit: Guy Gorek/Flickr)

Round of applause…

Furry freedom: Following a year-long campaign by White Coat Waste Project (WCW), a taxpayer watchdog group, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced it is ending all cat experiments and adopting out the 14 cats remaining at its laboratory. The decision follows just two weeks after WCW released a report exposing the USDA’s kitten cannibalism experiments using cats and dogs purchased from meat markets in China. “This is a historic victory and we’re proud to share it with the 2 million WCW supporters who helped make it possible,” said WCW vice president Justin Goodman. (Photo credit: Torrey Wiley/Flickr)

Parting thought…

“Chimpanzees, gorillas, orangutans have been living for hundreds of thousands of years in their forest, living fantastic lives, never overpopulating, never destroying the forest. I would say that they have been in a way more successful than us as far as being in harmony with the environment.” —Jane Goodall

Trump Poised to Threaten Endangered Whales in Oceanic Hunt for Oil | Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Deafening depths: A North Atlantic right whale and calf. With fewer than 450 North Atlantic right whales remaining, the threat of seismic airgun blasting and offshore drilling could push the critically endangered population to extinction. (Photo credit: NOAA/Flickr)

Oceana: President Trump stands poised to green-light new seismic airgun blasting and offshore drilling in the Atlantic Ocean—and the fate of one of the world’s most critically endangered whales hangs in the balance. The dynamite-like blasts of seismic airguns—used to search for oil and gas deposits—hinder North Atlantic right whales’ ability to find food, ward off sickness and keep track of their babies. Their existence is already hanging by a thread. No calves are known to have been born during this year’s calving season, and in the past year, at least 17 whales have been found dead—the most since scientists started reporting on mortality rates. Only about 100 breeding females remain alive.
>>>Tell the Trump administration that you want to protect North Atlantic right whales from harmful seismic airgun blasting and offshore drilling.

Food Justice Community Benefits Coalition: As a start-up food tech company operating in more than 10 large U.S. cities, Imperfect Produce has a massive impact on smaller organizations. Since 2015, millions of dollars in venture capital has allowed the “ugly” fruit and vegetable delivery service to use the language and messaging from small farmers and community-based organizations that are building resilient, sovereign food systems, even as they out-advertise and out-compete smaller community-based producers. Imperfect Produce is consolidating ownership in the food system and aims to be the gatekeeper to the access of this precious commodity to food banks, food pantries and community-based organizations.
>>>Urge Imperfect Produce to adopt the 6 Global Principles of Food Sovereignty to mitigate the impact they have on small-scale food producers, distributors and farmers.

WASHPIRG Students: The University of Washington still uses fossil fuels for much of its power needs, including electricity, transportation and heating. The university can be a green leader by committing to converting entirely to renewable energy sources by the year 2050, making substantial investments in sustainable infrastructure and increasing transparency on what efforts are being made. Action by the University of Washington to move towards a clean, renewable future will set an example for other universities—and the rest of the nation.
>>>Urge UW President Ana Mari Cauce to put the university on a path to powering all operations with clean, renewable energy by 2050 and for all electricity to come from renewable sources by 2030.

Care2: Since December 2018, more than 20 race horses have died at the famous Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. One died from a heart attack, while the others were euthanized after suffering catastrophic leg injuries on the track. It has been a very wet winter in California, with over 11 inches of rain falling in Arcadia, so that may be contributing to the deaths. Another possible factor is that, according to a 2012 New York Times investigation, California researchers found that 90 percent of horses that break down on the track had pre-existing injuries. The horses are given painkillers so they can continue to run.
>>>Urge the City of Arcadia and LA County to shut down the Santa Anita Race Track. 

PETA: As the Animal Welfare Board of India’s inspection reveals, animals used in Indian circuses are subjected to chronic confinement, physical abuse and psychological torment. Whips, bullhooks—weapons resembling a fireplace poker with a sharp hook on one end—and other devices are used to inflict pain on the animals and beat them into submission. They perform frightening, confusing tricks, such as jumping through rings of fire—not because they want to but out of fear of violent punishment. Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus and Greece have already outlawed the use of all animals in circuses, but so far, the Indian government has banned only the use of bears, monkeys, tigers, panthers and lions. Other species are also suffering in Indian circuses and are in great need of the same protection.
>>>Urge Indian officials to amend legislation in order to extend the circus ban to all animals.

Cause for concern…

Silenced songs: Fewer than 500 black-winged mynas are left in the wild in Indonesia, but the species is not protected by an international conservation agreement. Researchers estimate its population has declined by at least 80 percent over the last decade, primarily due to the trade in pet birds. (Photo credit: Doug Jansonjj/Wikipedia)

Round of applause…

Empire State’s had enough: Plastic bags stuck in trees at East River Park in New York City. New York is set to become the third state with a statewide single-use plastic bag ban, following California and Hawaii. “I am proud to announce that together, we got it done,” Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a joint statement announcing the plastic bag ban with fellow Democrats Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the Senate majority leader, and Carl Heastie, the Assembly speaker. The ban will begin on March 1, 2020. (Photo credit: AmelieNewYork/Flickr)

Parting thought…

“The education of women is the best way to save the environment.” —E. O. Wilson

Across Africa, Elephant Populations Are Collapsing: Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Gentle giants, gunned down: Poaching is pushing the African elephant to extinction. Their numbers have plummeted by 62 percent over the last decade alone. Between 2010 and 2012, an estimated 100,000 African elephants were killed by poachers seeking ivory, meat and body parts. A century ago, there were around 10 million elephants roaming Africa. Today, only around 400,000 individuals remain. Hunters argue that trophy hunting older male elephants helps supports elephant conservation efforts; however, the revenue generated from hunting fees that local communities ultimately see is insignificant. In addition, “older male elephants are very important to the health and genetic vitality of a population,” according to Cynthia Moss, head of the Amboseli Elephant Research Project in Kenya. “Killing these males compromises the next generation of the population.” (Photo credit: Jeremy T. Hetzel/Flickr)

Rainforest Rescue: When people think of Botswana, they often picture majestic herds of elephants roaming free across the savanna. For years, the country has been a safe haven for Africa’s elephants. But unless we speak out, we may soon be seeing images of grinning trophy hunters posing with their kills. Elephant populations are collapsing across Africa. Yet Botswana’s government wants to “manage” its herds by lifting its ban on trophy hunting and carrying out “regular but limited culls.” The authorities even suggested that the meat of the elephants could be canned and sold as pet food.
>>>Urge Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi to keep the hunting ban in place, reject the proposed culls and step up measures to fight poaching.

PETA: A total of 350 dogs were pulled out of the 2018 Iditarod—likely because of exhaustion, illness or injury. A necropsy report for Blonde—a dog who died after being pulled from the race—revealed that his death was consistent with aspiration pneumonia, showing that he likely choked to death on his own vomit from being forced to run excessively hard, the leading cause of death for dogs who die in the Iditarod. More than 150 dogs have perished in the history of this race, not counting innumerable others who died during the off-season while kept on chains or who were killed simply because they couldn’t run fast enough.
>>>Urge The Odom Corporation to join the growing list of companies that have ended their affiliations with this death race.

Pew Charitable Trusts: The Pacific Fishery Management Council is considering authorization of one of the most damaging methods of fishing in the world: pelagic longline fishing gear. This is despite the Council’s stated commitment to reduce the injury and death of non-target marine life, commonly known as bycatch. Notorious in international waters, longline boats deploy lines that can stretch up to 60 miles with hundreds of hooks that ensnare recreationally important fish such as marlin, sharks, seabirds and a host of other marine wildlife. If pelagic longlines are ultimately authorized, the decision will thwart existing efforts to reduce bycatch, specifically the transition of the drift gillnet fleet to less harmful fishing methods such as deep-set buoy gear.
>>>Urge the Pacific Fishery Management Council to oppose the use of pelagic longlines off the West Coast.

Care2: Tales of unethical treatment of animals at the Austin Zoo have long been whispered by employees but it wasn’t until a few animal deaths that workers there finally said they had enough. According to the Austin American-Statesman, nearly 24 current and former staff members told reporters that the zoo had, on several occasions, opted to let sick and dying animals suffer. In 2010, when Annie, one of the zoo’s patas monkeys, went blind, they decided to separate her for her own good. Alone, she languished for nearly 10 years, suffering a rattlesnake bite and several strokes that progressively rendered her paralyzed. Zoo officials then let her wither away for a decade until she finally died in her caretaker’s arms. This is not normal procedure and it shows why this zoo is not accredited and their mission of “helping animals” is suspect.
>>>Tell Marriott, Lowe’s and Whole Foods to cut ties immediately with the Austin Zoo to send a message that this type of treatment towards animals is not acceptable.

Cause for concern…

Risk ignorance: The landscape between the Cape Fear River and the Outer Banks was submerged in water after Hurricane Florence dumped 13 trillion gallons of rain onto the Carolinas in September 2018. Scientists estimate that the hurricane was 50 percent worse due to climate change. Though the Federal Emergency Management Agency under the Obama administration stressed the importance of climate risk, the new plan formed by the Trump administration does not even include the phrase “climate change.” (Photo credit: Matin Guptil/Flickr)

Round of applause…

Dirty business: The scarred landscape of a coal mine in Estercuel, Spain. On March 8, Antonio Huertas, the CEO of Mapfre, the largest non-life insurer in Spain and Latin America, announced that his company would stop underwriting new coal mines and power plants, and would no longer invest in firms that derive more than 30 percent of their revenue from coal. (Photo credit: Jennifer Woodard Maderazo/Wikipedia)

Parting thought…

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” —Margaret Mead

California Has an Opportunity to Ban Fur Trapping | Take Action Tuesday @EarthFoodLife

Happy in their own skin: Foxes are among many species of animals killed in California to supply the global demand for fur. California now has a chance to ban fur trapping in the state if a new bill becomes law. (Photo credit: Rachid H/Flickr)

 

 

In Defense of Animals: Despite a leg-hold and body-gripping trap ban enacted in 1998, wild animals throughout California continue to be killed by unimaginably cruel trap-and-kill methods in the name of vanity. Every year, hundreds of fur-bearing animals including coyotes, mink, foxes, beavers, raccoons, badgers, and various other species are trapped in California so that their skins can be sold to countries around the world including Russia and China. Trappers viciously kill animals and strip them of their pelts in large quantities within small areas, threatening the survival of the populations and negatively interfering with their habitats. Now, Californians finally have a chance to prohibit all fur trapping in the Golden State. California Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez has introduced Assembly Bill 273 to prohibit the issuance of fur trapping licenses in the state.
>>If you live in California, urge the California State Assembly to support a statewide fur trapping ban. If you live outside California, sign this petition.

Change.org: Porpoises, dolphins and whales are being driven from feeding grounds and can be deafened by acoustic deterrent devices (ADDs) used by salmon farms. These mammals echolocate to find food, and if deafened will starve. Most Scottish salmon farms use cheap single nets in which dead fish accumulate, tempting seals to bite through the nets. 121 of 172 farms use ADDs (outputting over 179 decibels) to deter seals, but because ADDs are not very effective, farmers using ADDs also shoot seals. There are alternatives: Marine Harvest use ADDs and shoot seals in Scotland, however in British Columbia, where ADDs and seal shooting are banned, the company uses double-skinned anti-predator nets, which also solve the problem of escapes.
>>>Urge Scottish Cabinet Secretary for the Environment Roseanna Cunningham to protect cetaceans by banning ADDs.

Dog Meat Free Indonesia: Live animal markets—locally known as “traditional markets”—in North Sulawesi and throughout Indonesia are places of extreme cruelty. Every week, tens of thousands of animals are traded and slaughtered, including many thousands of dogs and cats. Thousands of live dogs and cats are put through hell every week—terrified and trembling, they wait their turn. Children watch as dogs are repeatedly bludgeoned over the head and blow-torched alive. Not only is this trade cruel, it also poses a threat to public health and safety, and is largely illegal—encouraging dog theft, illegal wildlife trade and enabling the transmission of deadly diseases such as rabies by accepting dogs of unknown disease-status from outside the province.
>>>Urge Indonesian President Joko Widodo to close down these markets of extreme cruelty.

Peter Hannam, Sydney Morning Herald: Individuals everywhere must make different choices if humanity—and many of the world’s other species—are to avoid a “bleak” future, leading environmental campaigner Jane Goodall says. Dr. Goodall, who is heading to Australia in May for a series of talks dubbed Rewind the Future, said “the consumer must take responsibility,” adding “the accumulation of millions of ethical choices will certainly make a difference—and it’s beginning to happen.” Dr. Goodall blamed an “unholy alliance” between governments and big fossil fuel companies for slowing the advance of renewable energy that could have seen many more people get off the power grid by now.
>>>8 habits to become a more ethical consumer (Carina Kolodny, Huffington Post)

Cause for concern…

Trump vs. science: In April 2017, some 100,000 people joined the March for Science in Washington, D.C. Held on Earth Day in more than 600 cities across the globe and drawing over 1 million participants, the international rally celebrated science and raised concern over the Trump administration’s hostility toward science-based policymaking. President Trump’s budget proposal for the 2020 fiscal year includes several cuts to his administration’s science budgets, including the National Institutes of Health and the Environmental Protection Agency. Trump also wants to eliminate NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program, which funds over 30 American universities that conduct research, education and training on ocean and coastal topics. (Photo credit: Molly Adams/Flickr)

Round of applause…

The kids are not alright: Student activists gathered on March 15 in London, one of more than 1,500 cities across the globe where students went on strike to protest climate inaction by world leaders. Notably, while every single year of these students’ lives has been one of the warmest ever recorded, the United States could double its oil production by 2030, according to a new report from the environmental advocacy group Oil Change International. A 13-year-old activist in New York put it bluntly: “Our world leaders are the ones acting like children.” (Photo credit: Garry Knight/Flickr)

Parting thought…

“Being a vegetarian or vegan is not an end in itself, but a means towards reducing both human and animal suffering and leaving a habitable planet to future generations.” —Peter Singer

Pacific Council Vote Could Signal End of Whale-Killing Nets in West Coast Swordfish Fisheries: Take Action Tuesday @ Earth | Food | Life

Deadly waters: A humpback whale entangled in drift gillnet fishing gear. California is the only state to permit these deadly nets, which inadvertently kill thousands of seabirds, sea turtles and marine mammals like whales and dolphins and turtles every year. In June, the Pacific Fishery Management Council has an opportunity to begin phasing out these death traps by passing a proposed rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration authorizing deep-set buoy gear “as an additional fishing gear in the U.S. west coast commercial swordfish fishery that minimizes by-catch and incidental mortality of fin-fish and protected species.” (Photo credit: NOAA)

 

 

Pew Charitable Trusts: An untold number of marine animals, including whales, dolphins and sea turtles get entangled and die in drift gillnets, currently the primary method of fishing for swordfish off California. In June, the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) can authorize a better fishing technique, known as deep-set buoy gear. Successfully tested for over seven years off the West Coast, deep-set buoy gear offers fishermen a better way to catch swordfish without the unwanted catch of other marine wildlife.

>>>Urge PFMC chairman Phil Anderson and council members to authorize deep-set buoy gear.

Rainforest Rescue: Guinea’s highlands are an environmental treasure: Its forests and grasslands provide habitat for rare animals like leopards and chimpanzees. Many rivers, including the Niger and Senegal, originate in the mountains of Fouta Djallon. And it’s there, of all places, that Guinea’s President Alpha Condé wants to build a 294 MW hydroelectric dam. The project would hit chimpanzees hard: the dam would flood the heart of Moyen-Bafing National Park, submerging the habitat of 1,500 of our closest relatives. The population of western chimpanzees has plummeted by 80 percent in only 24 years, and the dam would push them closer to extinction.

>>>Urge Guinean President Alpha Condé protect chimpanzees by dropping the dam project and going solar instead.

PETA: Federal reports back up whistleblower allegations of rampant neglect and incompetence in Washington University in St. Louis animal laboratories. In multiple incidents, WashU experimenters gave expired or inadequate pain medication or none at all to animals who’d been subjected to painful or invasive experimental surgeries. For example, inadequate analgesics were given to rats whose abdomens were cut open as well as to mice whose intestines were punctured.

>>>Urge WashU to investigate the alleged appalling failures in its laboratories and pull the plug on cruel and pointless experiments.

Sumatran Orangutan Society: The proposed development of a new hydro dam within the Batang Toru ecosystem—an area of pristine primary forest in Sumatra—threatens the livelihoods of over 100,000 local people, as well as the survival of the recently discovered Tapanuli orangutan. On March 4, the state administrative court in North Sumatra’s capital, Medan, ruled that construction on the dam can continue, despite a large body of evidence that the environmental impact assessment for the dam was deeply flawed. This is devastating news, but the fight is not over. Walhi, the Indonesian Forum for the Environment, will appeal the court’s decision, and pressure against the project’s funders continues to mount.

>>>Urge the Bank of China to stop financing Batang Toru dam.

Care2: There is an overpopulation problem in Romania where thousands of cats and dogs roam the streets. Many are without veterinary care or shelter. Some slowly starve to death. Some perfectly healthy dogs are picked up by the dog warden, put in kennels for 14 days and then killed by lethal injection. None of this suffering is necessary. A spay and neutering program is a humane solution that is even more cost-effective than killing dogs.

>>>Urge the mayor of Craiova, Romania, to implement a humane catch and spay program.

Cause for concern…

Deep plastic: New research has discovered that amphipods like this small shrimp-like creature living in the deepest parts of the ocean are eating microscopic pieces of plastic and microfibers. (Photo credit: Smithsonian Environmental Research Center/Flickr)

Round of applause…

Sunny days: Solar owner Karen Wilson shares her home solar project at Riverside Park in St. Cloud, Minnesota, for a “Solar Works in Central Minnesota” workshop in 2012, an event which drew more than 80 community members across the state and featured a panel of Minnesota-based solar manufacturers, a solar education and resources session, and a solar owners panel. On March 4, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced new energy and climate initiatives, including achieving 100 percent clean energy in the state. (Photo credit: Clean Energy Resources Teams – Minnesota/Flickr)

 

Parting thought…

“But man is a part of nature, and his war against nature is inevitably a war against himself.” —Rachel Carson

Earth | Food | Life (EFL) explores the critical and often interconnected issues facing the climate/environment, food/agriculture and animal/nature rights, and champions action; specifically, how responsible citizens, voters and consumers can help put society on an ethical path of sustainability that respects the rights of all species who call this planet home. EFL emphasizes the idea that everything is connected, so every decision matters.

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Questions, comments, suggestions, submissions? Contact EFL editor Reynard Loki at [email protected]. Follow EFL on Twitter @EarthFoodLife.