To Preserve a Wildlife 6

By Patricia Fayerweather Harlow

Book for all ages, 13 to 21+, because we all need to know! Civilized animal friends, at Rodney, the rock n' roll Rabbit's party, play: "Way Out Yonder", from Perky the powerful partying Panther's bag of games. Win, making smart choices to stop environmental disasters from affectin

• Language: English
• Publisher: Great Writers Media, LLC
• Release date: Dec 29, 2022
• ISBN: 9781959493655

Book preview

Chapter 1

Old Time Rocks N’ Rolling Hills

"Now that we have more time to prepare for our fundraiser, we can continue learning more to be ready.

Since 1949, the National Trust for Historic Preservation has led the fight to preserve America’s quickly disappearing landmarks. When these treasured places are destroyed, they take with them OUR ties to the past– OUR understanding of OUR own history." Perky the powerful partying Panther begins.

"It is essential that we don’t abandon OUR nation’s heritage!

National Trust for Historic Preservation Members plays a key role in saving America’s historic places. OUR support will help save America’s Historic Places, too! Out of every dollar given, 84 cents to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, supports our efforts to save the places of OUR past that enrich OUR future, directly. They act to save historic places that tell the American story –raising critical funds, creating, and building partnerships, or fighting in court to take a stand for OUR treasured landmarks and icons..."

Keep them, all the same, we must protect them, all the same. After all these years, we’ll be having fun, Preserving America’s Historic places, keeping them, still the same! Rodney rocks.

Growing up, trees were magical companions, giving us cool shade in the summer, trunks to climb, and branches to birdwatch. However, trees are more magical than just that. One tree can convert as much as 48 pounds of carbon dioxide into clean air, per year. Perky powerfully continues. "A mature tree can reduce peak summer temperatures by up to 9° Fahrenheit.

But trees are falling at an alarming rate… Forests are one of our most treasured resources, however they are disappearing at the rate of 20 football fields per second, because of pulp and paper production… among others.

When we lose forests, we lose their ability to filter our water, provide habitat for thousands of species, trap carbon, and provide us with fresh air. ~ Every living thing that depends on them is in jeopardy… 67,000 ACRES OF RAINFOREST ARE DESTROYED PER DAY.

Some rainforests provide a home to 15,000 species in a single acre. Such as, my wild, Panther relatives, Perky the powerful, partying Panther points out. Every year, 50 acres per minute, an area the size of Louisiana is cleared! Deforestation causes 20% of the world’s carbon emissions and damages water supplies, soil quality, and biodiversity…

Imagine the United States without Yosemite, the Grand Canyon, the Arctic Refuge, the Everglades, or the many other wild places, in serious jeopardy?

~ Iconic American landscapes and wildlife, must remain wild, free, and protected! It’s up to us, to keep and protect these historical landscapes for us, as well as, many generations of tomorrow…

Giant saw blades threaten to reduce huge swaths of irreplaceable old-growth trees in America’s last intact rainforest to stumps and sawdust. The ancient Tongass National Forest in Southeast Alaska is home to black and brown bears, 5 varied species of Pacific salmon, bald eagles, wolves, and many more unique species.

Unfortunately, these creatures, and more, are threatened by the U.S. Forest Service’s plans to sell off big swaths of old-growth trees. The crown jewel of our national forest system in Tongass National Forest is under attack!

If we don’t act, the Tongass National Forest will face the largest timber sale in more than 20 years— and almost all of it is in vitally important old-growth habitat. After the Forest Service approved the massive Big Thorne timber sale, April 17, 2014, Earthjustice colleagues jumped into action to oppose it. They convinced the Forest Service to reconsider, but the plan is back, and the Forest Service is once again poised to move forward with this giant old-growth timber sale.

The Tongass is a national treasure that contains some of the most intact expanses of old-growth temperate rainforest remaining on the planet. An attorney in Earthjustice’s Juneau, Alaska office, and resident of the state for more than 25 years says, ‘I know the critical ecological value of this ancient forest. It serves as critical habitat for species that are threatened, or endangered in the lower 48 states—including wolves, bears, salmon, and other wildlife.’

In fact, it began: March 2014, when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined that the Tongass’ Alexander Archipelago wolf faces serious threats from habitat destruction and logging roads. They even authorized listing them under the Endangered Species Act. Should’ve acted to protect them then, but the Big Thorne project makes this dire situation so much worse… The Forest Service rushes out a new decision on this massive timber sale… we must help stop it!

In Tongass, amazing trees grow to be hundreds of years old. If we don’t fight back—more than 6,000 acres of these old-growth trees will be destroyed. This ancient rainforest is also a warehouse of carbon—among the most carbon-dense ecosystems on earth—playing an important role in the planet’s climate-control system.

For decades, Earthjustice has fought to protect the Tongass from timber industry attacks—and, thankfully, have won.

We must keep helping to support their fight!

The Tongass’ intact stands of ancient trees provide some of the last safe havens for species, threatened and endangered in the lower 48 states…

Even Mount Everest needs a cleanup crew to scour its peak. Hear what I read about Mile High Trash: The amount of waste left behind by climbers is disgusting…"

How dare they? They’re allowed to climb beautiful Mount Everest, and should, in return, respect it! These National Treasures need to be protected! You bring it in, you take it out! That’s the way of keeping our parks and recreational places, across the country clean! BYO ~ CIO: Bring your own, carry it out! Fanny the fun-loving Fox feels a promising idea for keeping litter in its place. That’s a great idea!

"Our last remaining wild places are under tremendous threat from pressures of oil and gas development…

We got to fight for the right to PROTECT! These lands are simply too wild to drill.

Let’s keep wild in wilderness: We got to fight for the right to protect!" Rodney rightly rocks.

I’d say, look at this picture, we need to save, Perky says, while holding up a beautiful picture. "Priceless wild places most threatened by drilling ~ Drilling could happen just outside Arches National Park, within view of tourist destinations.

A Wilderness Society Report titled Too Wild to Drill spotlights 12 of the most threatened wild places needing protections:

Arches National Park, Utah

Desolation Canyon, Utah

Chaco Canyon, New Mexico

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska

Dinosaur National Monument, Colorado

The George Washington National Forest, Virginia

Los Padres National Forest, California

North Fork of the Flathead, Montana

Otero Mesa, New Mexico

Thompson Divide, Colorado

Red Desert, Wyoming

Wyoming Range, Wyoming.

EVERYONE’S SMALL CHANGE WILL MAKE A BIG CHANGE FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT!

Join, in your school, or community to help SAVE OUR PLANET!

Chapter 2

Water, Water Everywhere & Not A Drop To Drink

Then, there’s the plague of plastic litter in our oceans’ finally getting attention from federal regulators. After a groundbreaking petition by the Center for Biological Diversity, the EPA announced it will take steps to cut plastic pollution, improve monitoring, and conduct a scientific review of the human-health effects of eating plastic- and pollution-filled fish…"

OMG ~ Barf out, and gag me with a spoon ~ Totally, Grody to the max! Taffy the totally, tubular Turtle freaks.

Not healthy, at all! Billions of pounds of plastic in giant, swirling ocean meetings are found around the world, including the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, twice the size of Texas. Perky powerfully proclaims, "The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a giant floating patch of trash off the coast of California; North Pacific Ocean. It is a soupy collection of marine debris. Marine debris is litter that ends up in oceans, seas, and other large bodies of water—mostly plastics. In the Los Angeles area alone, 20 tons of plastic fragments, like from grocery bags, straws, and soda bottles ~ are carried into the Pacific Ocean each day… eventually leading to death. Plastic makes up approximately 90% of the trash in the world’s oceans that contain approximately 5 trillion pieces of garbage in total.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, also known as the Pacific trash vortex, spans waters from the West Coast of North America to Japan. The patch consists of the Western Garbage Patch, located near Japan, and the Eastern Garbage Patch, located between the U.S. states, Hawaii, and California.

There are Worldwide Garbage Patches – The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is not the only marine trash whirlpool ~ it’s just the biggest. The Atlantic and Indian Oceans both have trash vortexes. Even shipping routes in smaller bodies of water, such as the North Sea, are developing garbage patches.

Imagine gazing at the surface of what ought to be a pristine ocean, but it’s confronted, as far as the eye can see, with the sight of plastic. It seems unbelievable, but if swift action isn’t taken, we’ll never find a clear spot crossing the subtropical high, we’ll only see plastic debris floating everywhere: plastic bags, bottles, bottle caps, wrappers, fragments…

‘Every year bits of discarded plastic kill thousands of seabirds, sea turtles, seals, and other marine mammals’, Center oceans attorney, Emily Jeffers said. ‘Some choke on plastic, and others are poisoned by it. Still more find themselves swimming through vast patches of toxic litter. It’s an international tragedy that needs to be addressed.’… Now!

This plastic poncho is not the latest trend in feathered fashion… Only to show, an out of control trash. Approximately 500 billion plastic bags are used every year across the world, that’s about 1 million every hour.

Why not opt for a paper bag to recycle, or a reusable bag next time you head to the grocery store? We can look fashionable, and help save the environment all at once!

Or, check out this picture of a turtle, found, caught in a 6-pack plastic waste…"

Like, totally bogus! Taffy the totally, tubular Turtle speaks out. Not the 6-pack-abs I’m after, for sure! Seriously, cut up plastic rings before tossing them in the can, or ocean, to protect my poor wild turtle relatives, as well as, other species!

"Without thumbs to help, it’s hard to get out of sticky situations. About one million wild sea birds and 100,000 sea mammals are killed annually because of garbage in the ocean. ~ How sad!

When ships are caught in storms, they often lose cargo and trash to the oceans, too.

The nation’s 1st statewide ban on flimsy plastic grocery bags, takes effect in California, thanks to the defeat of an industry-backed ballot measure to overturn it. California Voters Saved the First Statewide Plastic Bag Ban-Upholding the state’s 2014 law, 52% of voters had approved Proposition 67, ending the use of thin plastic shopping bags in supermarkets and larger grocery stores.

Conservation supporters have been progressively seeking such bans at local and state levels across the country because the bags, which are made from petroleum and may take centuries to fully biodegrade, have become a major source of plastic litter, which is hazardous to wildlife. A study published by Ocean Conservancy identified plastic bags, as one of the most hazardous types of plastic litter for marine mammals, getting tangled up in the bags, or mistake them for prey and eat them.

‘We have a coalition of over 700 groups, ranging from the California Grocers Association to the Sierra Club to the L.A. Chamber of Commerce,’ in support of the law, said a spokesperson, Steve Maviglio. ‘One hundred fifty-one communities have local bans, so it became a better business practice to support the ban.’

That makes perfect sense, and all other states should also follow suit! Perky powerfully points out, continuing, Maviglio called Prop. 67 ‘a very deceptive manipulation of our electoral system by out-of-state plastic companies to prop up their business in the state for another year and a half.’ He estimated that delaying enforcement of the law, allowed bag manufacturers to supply around 20 billion thin-film bags to supermarkets, and grocers, earning around $160 million.

The Pebble Mine, a national treasure in Bristol Bay, Alaska is an economic powerhouse. This American paradise is home to the greatest wild salmon fishery on the planet, which provides 13,000 jobs and generates $480 million in annual revenue. Perky continues, But global mining giants, Anglo American, Rio Tinto and Northern Dynasty Minerals are targeting Bristol Bay for their monstrous Pebble Mine project. This enormous gold and copper operation would be the largest open pit mine in North America and would generate up to 10 billion tons of toxic mining waste that would have to be contained forever in an active earthquake zone…

To Anglo American and Rio Tinto:’ WHAT PART OF ‘NO’ DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND?’

The people of Bristol Bay, Alaska don’t want your Pebble Mine ~– or the billions of tons of waste it will dump into their environment.

Anglo American’s chief executive said: ‘We will not go where communities are against us.’ Rio Tinto claims: ‘Good community relations are … necessary for OUR business success…’

Really? An overwhelming 80% of Bristol Bay residents ~ including its Native peoples, commercial fisherman, and many other Alaskans ~ are against this massive gold and copper mine, opposing it, too. Residents left no doubt when they passed a Save Our Salmon ballot measure that would ban the Pebble Mine.

The Native people, fishermen and other residents of Bristol Bay don’t want their unspoiled homes to become the kind of dead zone that surrounds other giant copper mines around the planet.

They shouldn’t go there, as they quoted: ‘It’s not good community relations’. Unfortunately, the companies behind the mine won’t take ‘NO’ for an answer, challenging the vote in court, lying about not going where communities are against them.

It’s no surprise that opposition to the mine is so intense. This vast open pit ~ 2-mile-wide and 2,000 feet deep ~ would be gouged out of the headwaters of one of the greatest wild salmon runs in the world. Its operations would produce over 10 billion tons of contaminated waste ~ 3,000 pounds for every man, woman, and child on Earth. The mining giants are hoping that colossal dams ~– some taller than the Three Gorges Dam in China ~ will hold back that waste forever, even though the mine will sit in an active earthquake zone?!? Go figure?

A comprehensive study by the EPA, confirmed that the Pebble Mine would devastate Bristol Bay’s salmon runs, along with the Alaskan Native communities that depend on wild salmon for survival.

Time to bring attention and tell Mr. President: you can prevent the economic and environmental devastation of Bristol Bay and secure a lasting environmental legacy for your administration. I urge you to direct EPA to use its authority under the Clean Water Act to prohibit the Pebble Mine.

Protect Bristol Bay. Stop Pebble Mine: www.StopPebble.org

The campaign against the Pebble Mine moved to Washington, February 2013, as NRDC’s attorneys’ hand-delivered, over 100,000 ‘Stop Pebble’ petitions from members to the White House and a full-page ad in The Washington Post carried the same strong message from Robert Redford, a longtime conservationist, and NRDC Trustee called on President Obama to prevent the economic and environmental destruction of Alaska’s Bristol Bay by ensuring that the Environmental Protection Agency use its authority to kill the mine. A comprehensive study by the EPA, found: the immense open-pit mine and other large-scale operations like it would spell disaster for the greatest wild salmon fishery on the planet ~ along with Bristol Bay’s economy, Native communities, and wildlife populations. April 2013, they took their campaign to London, where 2 of the mining giants behind the scheme ~ Anglo American and Rio Tinto ~ hold their annual shareholder meetings.

The mining pit will be deeper than the Empire State building… with dams, higher than the Seattle Space Needle… And, wide enough to line up 9 of the world’s longest cruise ships. The project would include 86 miles of new roads…