Spring 2003
Table of Contents
Terratorial
This issue of Terrain goes to print on the eve of what will likely be the largest show of anti-war sentiment since Bush’s infamous “axis of evil” speech morphed the war on terrorism into a renewed war on Iraq.
Biowarfare in the Andes
Hostile intentions toward the people of another country. Deployment of chemical weapons and biological agents. Pursuit of a scorched earth policy. Sound like Saddam’s Iraq? Think again.
Fasting for Old Growth
In 1998, then-Lt. Governor Gray Davis made a promise to the Conservation League Foundation: If he were elected governor, Davis vowed to ensure that “wetlands are preserved, rivers are clean and all old-growth trees are spared the lumberjack’s ax.”
The Road Not Taken
The most heated controversies over genetic engineering in this country have centered on millions of acres of genetically altered corn and soybeans across the Midwest.
Unions, Environmentalists Unite Against Wal-Mart
Anti-sprawl groups and the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union have teamed up to fight Wal-Mart’s plans to build 40 “Supercenters” in California over the next four years, saying such stores block union organizing, worsen air pollution, and destroy habitat loss on the urban fringe.
Chevron Gets the OK to Pollute Bay
Instead of keeping ChevronTexaco’s Richmond refinery from polluting San Francisco Bay with dioxin, mercury, nickel, and selenium at excessive levels, regulators have issued a permit for it, according to a lawsuit by Communities for a Better Environment.
Dental Mercury
California dentists have agreed to adhere to state Proposition 65 and warn patients that mercury can “cause birth defects or other reproductive harm.” This follows a December $350,000 settlement with the San Francisco-based environmental group As You Sow.
S. F. Bus Standoff
A standoff between the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni) and the city Board of Supervisors may result in Muni’s adoption of a diesel-electric hybrid technology that does not meet California’s new, more stringent emissions standards.
Forest Plan on the Block
The Bush Administration is attempting to remove key protections for forests and waterways in the 24 million acres covered by the 1994 Northwest Forest Plan, the landmark plan governing logging in Oregon, Washington, and northwestern California.
No Water Bags for the Gualala
World Water SA president Ric Davidge has withdrawn his company’s application to haul water from the Gualala and Albion rivers in polyfiber bags for sale to San Diego.
Air Pollution by the Numbers
• Tons of carbon monoxide (CO) emitted in 1999 by OLS Energy (UC-Berkeley campus), Alameda County’s largest non-refinery individual (point) source: 120 • Tons of CO in 1999 from second-largest point source, Waste Management of Alameda County: 78 • Tons of carbon monoxide emitted per day by motor vehicles in the San Francisco Bay Area: [...]
Medical Incinerator Shut Down
Stericycle, the largest medical waste treatment company in the US, has closed its medical waste incinerator on the Gila River Indian Reservation, in Arizona, in the wake of protests over health threats.
The Brownfields Dilemma
In 1997, 60 teenagers from Fruitvale and San Antonio, two east Oakland neighborhoods, came together to envision something many other kids take for granted: a park.
Reclaiming the Modoc
The steep walls of the canyon are no barrier, nor is the river. We know they have crossed such before, and they will again.
Consequences
Late November in the Solano County farmlands: Up ahead on the gravel road there are two vehicles on the shoulder and a huddle of birders with spotting scopes.
A Bushel of Hedgeballs
We were gliding along a dirt road east of Fairfield, trolling for mountain plovers, when I spotted a number of unlikely objects on the grassy shoulder.
The Recycling Business is Picking Up
A conversation with Dave Williamson, the operations manager of the Berkeley Recycling Center, who says he’s seeing more recycling than ever on Berkeley curbs, despite the poachers.
The Long Drive to Fresno
I drove to Fresno and back yesterday, in my old pickup truck. Traffic was light, and I drove fast, but it still took three hours each way from Oakland, and used two tanks of gas.
