Saturn Probe Endangered!

ETS! #41 reported about the Cassini Space Probe which will Launch from Cape Canaveral, Fl, on October 6, with 72.3 pounds of plutonium, the most toxic substance known to humanity, on board. Before it heads toward Saturn--its intended target--it will slingshot past the earth at 4,000 miles per hour to pick up speed. The probe will pass within 312 miles of the Earth's surface. NASA puts the chances of a fly-by accident at one in one million, but before the Challenger blew up, they said there was only a one in one-hundred-thousand chance of a shuttle accident. Should Cassini plunge back to earth (or blow up on take off?), NASA has plans to relocate animals, remove topsoil, demolish "some or all structures," and relocate affected population. If the upper atmosphere is contaminated, of course, it will be interesting to see where NASA plans to relocate all six billion of us.

And the insane risk of Cassini is only the beginning; there are already plans to send a nuclear reactor up to Mars, and the Clinton Adminstration intends to fund a succession of nuclear-fueled missinos over the next 15 years, most for military purposes.

From NASA web page links, it looks like all this Cassini talk has the pro-spacy program scientists worried. They say, yeah, sure there are risks but think of the very large amounts of knowledge that we gain! (What good is a smart planet if it's dead?) NASA scientists believe the Cassini launch is endangered because of plans by activists. They ask those concerned to contact the President. So do we; at this time the president is the only one that can [legally] stop the "mission." What's better: an endangered planet or an endangered Cassini launch? Contact the President at The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington, D.C. 20510, email: president@whitehouse.gov.

There is an effort to gather a group to travel from the west coast to Florida, joining others to stop this madness. On October 4 there will be attempts to get on the launch pad. In addition, the Stop the Cassini Coalition is calling for actions to take place across the country targeting NASA contractors. If you can't make it to Florida, how about a trip to Boeing? Call 206-632-1656 or email can@scn.org for more info.

Unlawful Assembly in Wisconsin?

On July 7, 29 people were arrested in Forest County, Wisconsin, while taking part in an Earth First! protest against the proposed Wolf River Exxon/Rio Algom corporation metallic sulfide mine. Protesters were arrested and charged with unlawful assembly criminal trespass. Everyone has pleaded not guilty.

Exxon has spent millions of dollars on a public relations blitzkrieg justifying the mine, including forming a "grass roots" (astroturf) front group, People for the West. The mining process will result in a drying up of streams and ponds, and in net transfers of polluted water from one water table to another. Secondary air pollution from the processing of the mining ore will further contribute to acid rain and mercury buildup in lakes.

For more info contact the EF! July 7th Support Committee c/o UW Greens, 731 State Street, Four Lakes Madison, Wisconsin 53703, 608-262-9036 (ph), 608-251-3267 (fax), email: brmanski@students.wisc.edu.

Got A Problem With Your Air? Use Duct Tape!

On August 14, in East Liverpool, OH, there will be a protest at the WTI Toxic Waste Incinerator. The WTI incinerator is the world's largest toxic waste incinerator. It is owned by the Swiss steel corporation Von Roll, which is in turn owned by the Union Bank of Switzerland. The citizens of the area have been embroiled in a 17-year-long struggle to stop the operation of this monstrous incinerator, next to a public school, in a river valley plagued by air inversions, in a 100-year flood plain on the Ohio River, a source of drinking water for millions downstream.

The protesters will meet at the East Elementary School, which is only 400 yards from the incinerator; the stack height of the incinerator is at the same height as the doors of the school. The city's emergency plan in case there is a deadly accidental release? Duct tape the doors and windows and wait for help. For more information call 412-269-3663 or 304-387-0574.

Timber Dollars

A "Money in Politics Alert" from the Center for Responsive Politics shows that the 211 Representatives who voted with Rep. Norm Dicks (D-WA) on his amendment to restore timber road subsidies received an average of $3,873 from timber political action committees, compared to an average of $606 received by the 209 Representatives who didn't. The top Timber PAC recipient in the 1996 election cycle was Rep. Frank Riggs (R-CA), the center reports, with Reps. Don Young (R-AK), and Rick White (R-WA) scoring second and third in the competition.