Free Republic

Two environmental groups have gone to court to challenge renewed Alameda County permits for Altamont Pass wind farms, saying more studies are needed on the energy operations' lethal effects on birds. One of the groups said Monday that interference by Rep. Richard Pombo, R-Tracy, forced them into court action. Lawsuits by Californians for Renewable Energy and the Golden Gate Audubon Society claim Alameda County supervisors were "arbitrary and capricious" when they approved bird-protection measures in September as conditions of the permits granted to Altamont wind-energy companies. The regulations were approved despite critics, including the office of California Attorney General Bill...

ESA Reform Bill [TESRA - H.R. 2834] Is A Step BackwardJames Buchal - September 23, 2005 The latest attempt to reform the Endangered Species Act (the Act), H.R. 3824, titled "The Threatened and Endangered Species Reform Act," or TESRA, contains positive features. However, this bill would make Section 7 of the Act even worse. This Section of the Act looms above all others for the carnage it has caused throughout the West. Section 7 of the Act declares that federal agencies must avoid taking action that would "jeopardize the continued existence of listed species."  Lawsuits filed under Section 7...

Lawmakers are quietly pressing farmers and environmentalists to settle a bitter lawsuit over the San Joaquin River's future. The behind-the-scenes details are fluid but the stakes uncommonly high for fish, Friant Dam, irrigation districts and, perhaps, political reputations. "We think if we can get both sides to agree, that is better than more years (of fighting) and lawyers," Mariposa Republican Rep. George Radanovich said in an interview last week. "This has got to be a consensus deal." At issue is the long-running fight over restoring the salmon fishery on the San Joaquin River below Friant Dam, northeast of Fresno. After...

"Greenpeace complained Thursday to the Federal Communications Commission about MSNBC talk show host Tucker Carlson's praise for a fatal attack 20 years ago on the environmental group's flagship."

Eleven climate change protesters were arrested yesterday after chaining themselves to Land Rovers at the start of a national campaign against 'gas guzzling' four-wheel drive vehicles. At dawn up to 1,000 Greenpeace activists stormed Ford dealerships across the UK and attached wheelclamps on sports utility vehicles or handcuffed themselves to their steering columns. The environmental group promised a summer of mobilisation against the marketing of 4x4 vehicles for urban use by Ford, which owns Land Rover. They particularly dislike its latest model, the Range Rover Sport, which they see as aimed at city drivers. Placards calling the dealerships as 'climate...

The trial of seven animal rights activists under domestic terrorism laws focuses attention on a threat which law enforcement officials say has become greater than that of the Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazis, and right-wing militias. Defendants in the federal trial in New Jersey, which has just begun and is expected to last into August, are charged with conspiracy and interstate stalking involving the vandalism and harassment of employees of labs that use animals to test drugs and chemicals. Officials say this is part of a growing trend that in recent years has included more than 1,200 incidents of arson, bombings,...

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - New Jersey is using an anti-terrorism law for the first time to try six animal rights activists charged with harassing and vandalizing a company that made use of animals to test its drugs. Prosecutors say the activists, who will stand trial next week, used threats, intimidation and cyber attacks against employees of Huntingdon Life Sciences, a British company with operations in East Millstone, New Jersey, with the intention of driving it out of business. The six, members of a group called Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC), are charged under the Animal Enterprise Protection Act, amended in 2002...

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - New Jersey is using an anti-terrorism law for the first time to try six animal rights activists charged with harassing and vandalizing a company that made use of animals to test its drugs. Prosecutors say the activists, who will stand trial next week, used threats, intimidation and cyber attacks against employees of Huntingdon Life Sciences, a British company with operations in East Millstone, New Jersey, with the intention of driving it out of business. The six, members of a group called Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC), are charged under the Animal Enterprise Protection Act, amended in 2002...

Fire Destroys Large Part of Dead Sea Nature Reserve The Associated Press Published: May 31, 2005 JERUSALEM (AP) - Two-thirds of Israel's Ein Gedi nature reserve was destroyed by fire Tuesday, causing considerable damage to animal and plant life in the lush oasis sandwiched between the harsh Judean Desert and the Dead Sea. Residents of Kibbutz Ein Gedi nearby said the fire covered the kibbutz in smoke, the Haaretz daily reported. Tourists were evacuated from the area, but no injuries were reported. The cause of the blaze was not immediately known. Animal life in the reserve includes the deer-like ibex...

TRENTON, N.J. - Lisa Leitten is finished living her double life. For the past three years, the soft-spoken, 30-year old moved from Missouri to Texas to Virginia, applying for jobs at businesses dealing with animals. She gave her real name, and some real details about herself: a master's degree in animal psychology and prior work at a primate sanctuary in Florida. What she didn't reveal was that she was also working for an animal welfare organization, and that she wore a hidden camera to document instances in which animals were treated with what she calls horrific neglect and cruelty. Leitten...

WASHINGTON -- We are all proud of the exceptional men and women who are members of the U.S. Senate. Outside the Beltway and their home states, senators often are treated with a deference that could cause revolution or rioting in some countries. They usually travel with an entourage of sycophantic staff. And those of the Democrat persuasion would wear Roman togas if they thought these ensured their re-election. This month, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works met to quiz and harass John Lewis, the FBI's counterterrorism deputy assistant director. This committee has them all. Chairman James Inhofe of...

(Accused of releasing mink from farms) Supporters of an animal rights activist Peter D. Young crowded into a federal courtroom Tuesday afternoon as Young was arraigned on charges of interference with interstate commerce and animal enterprise terrorism. Young allegedly released thousands of mink from Wisconsin farms in 1997. About 50 people watched as attorney Chris Kelly entered not guilty pleas on behalf of Young, 27, formerly of Mercer Island, Wash. Magistrate Theresa Owens continued detention after finding Young, who was a fugitive until recently, to be a flight risk and a danger to the community. Young was picked up in...

MADISON, Wis. (AP) - An animal rights activist pleaded not guilty Tuesday to domestic terrorism charges that he freed mink from Midwestern farms in 1997, causing thousands of dollars in damage and spreading fear through the nation's fur farmers. Peter Daniel Young, 27, made the plea in U.S. District Court in Madison as he appeared for the first time on the charges after eluding authorities for more than seven years. Judge Theresa M. Owens ordered Young held without bail, saying he is "a flight risk and danger to the community." Investigators say Young is part of the Animal Liberation Front,...

Arabs resumed using arson as a weapon against Israel Friday morning and destroyed more than 10,000 pine trees in Israel's largest planted forest. Shortly after noon, firefighters overcame the fire at the Yatir Forest but still were trying to prevent it from rekindling the trees as afternoon winds become stronger. The forest is on the edge of the Negev and Judean deserts, about seven miles (12 kilometers) northwest of Arad and 15 miles (25 kilometers) northeast of Be'er Sheva. "This is the largest and worst arson in the forest," said Abu Abukyan, Yatir Forest superintendent. He said there were no...

Groups such as the Animal Liberation Front, the Earth Liberation Front and Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty are "way out in front" in terms of damage and number of crimes, said John Lewis, the FBI's deputy assistant director for counterterrorism. "The FBI has observed troubling signs that this is changing. We have seen an escalation in violent rhetoric and tactics,"

WASHINGTON, May 19 (UPI) -- The newest threat to U.S. national security is animal rights and environmental groups, senior law enforcement agencies told the U.S. Senate. In testimony before the Senate Environment Committee Wednesday, officials from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives identified three groups of concern -- the Animal Liberation Front, the Earth Liberation Front and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, CNN reported Thursday. John Lewis, the FBI's deputy assistant director for counterterrorism, said various animal and environmental rights extremists have claimed responsibility for more than 1,200 criminal incidents since 1990, and...

Last month, animal rights extremists followed the wife of a pharmaceutical company executive to her job, rifled through her car and stole a credit card. They used it buy $20,000 in travelers checks, which they then donated to four charities. “If we find out a dime of that money granted to those charities was taken back we will strip you bear (sic) and burn your (expletive). This is OUR insurance policy.”

Animal rights activists a top law enforcement priority: FBI Extremist animal rights groups like the Earth Liberation Front and the Animal Liberation Front pose a serious domestic terror risk and are a top law enforcement priority, a senior FBI official said. At a hearing of the US Senate's Committee on Environment and Public Works US a senior US lawman said the threat posed by eco-terrorists is serious and widely underestimated. "Extremists have used arson, bombings, theft, animal releases, vandalism and office takeovers to achieve their goals," said John Lewis, Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI's counterterrorism division. Lewis said that...

WASHINGTON, (AP) -- Environmental and animal rights activists who have turned to arson and explosives are the nation's top domestic terrorism threat, an FBI official told a Senate committee on Wednesday. Groups such as the Animal Liberation Front, the Earth Liberation Front and Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty are "way out in front" in terms of damage and number of crimes, said John Lewis, the FBI's deputy assistant director for counterterrorism. "There is nothing else going on in this country over the last several years that is racking up the high number of violent crimes and terrorist actions," Lewis said. ALF...

WASHINGTON, MAY 18/PRNewswire/--Congressman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, was informed yesterday by the Republican Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee that he could not testify at Wednesday's Committee hearing, "Eco-terrorism specifically examining the Earth Liberation Front ("ELF") and the Animal Liberation Front ("ALF")." In what is believed to be a first, a Member of Congress has not been granted permission to testify when he has formally requested to do so. The Committee, which is chaired by Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) claimed that issues of domestic terrorism are not within...