1. Leave a Legacy for our Rivers
2. Keeping the Momentum: Wildlife Funding Moves to the House
3. Rollbacks for Clean Air Protection

4. Good News for Maine's Allagash River 

Upcoming Events

5. Sharpen Your Tools for Change (Workshops in Pennsylvania and Maine)
6. The Northern Forest at the Boston Museum of Science

Throughout the country some of our nation's greatest rivers are threatened by sprawl, industrial development and unsustainable timber harvesting. In the Northeast, rivers like the Pequannock in New Jersey, the West Branch of the Penobscot in Maine, and the Headwaters of the Connecticut in New Hampshire are being pressured by these forces. Currently, the United States loses more than half a million acres of privately owned timberland to development each year. Fortunately, there is a program that can protect our greatest rivers and the forested landscapes that support them - it is called the Forest Legacy Program. Authorized by Congress in 1990, Forest Legacy primarily helps states purchase conservation easements, which permanently protect the land from development. This year, the demand for Forest Legacy dollars is expected to reach $150-$200 million, with over $54 million needed for immediate projects in the Northeast region alone. Your letters to Congress are critical in helping ensure that Forest Legacy, and the places that need our help, get the critical funding that they need this year.

TAKE ACTION

Ask your members of Congress to support the Forest Legacy program by e-mailing them directly from: http://ga0.org/ct/I1asSR41jqFa/River-Legacy

2. Keeping the Momentum: Wildlife Funding Moves to the House

Thanks in part to letters, e-mails, and phone calls, the Senate unanimously passed the American Wildlife Enhancement Act (S. 990), a bill introduced by Senator Smith (NH) that will help protect threatened places in the Northern Forest and Central Appalachian Highlands. This is a huge step for a bill that would provide states with much-needed funds for the protection of significant natural areas, as well as the protection of wildlife and endangered species. This bill comes at a critical time when over 6 million acres of land in the Northern Forest have changed hands in the last 3 years, and sprawl and industrial development threaten prized outdoor recreation areas in the Highlands of NJ, NY, CT, and PA.

The American Wildlife Enhancement Act now needs support in the House, and your letters to your representatives will help keep up the momentum: http://ga0.org/ct/W7asSR41jqF1/Wildlife-Funding

On Feb. 14, the White House announced its "Clear Skies Initiative," a power plant clean-up plan that could significantly weaken clean-air safeguards by setting the stage for new loopholes in the Clean Air Act. Full implementation and active enforcement of the laws already on the books would actually lead to cleaner air than the White House proposal. One tool that is already in danger of being rolled back is New Source Review (NSR). NSR is a major tool for helping to clean up the air in the Northeast and throughout the country. It is a key part of the Clean Air Act that requires older, "dirtier" electric power plants and oil refineries to meet current air quality standards if they expand the plant and increase pollution. It also applies to newly built power plants and refineries. If NSR is curtailed, many of these utilities that have modified their plants without installing up-to-date pollution control devices won't ever have to do so. The pollution emitted by these sources contributes significantly to increases in asthma and emphysema incidence rates, haze throughout the Appalachian region, acidification of northeastern lakes and streams, and the weakening and death of trees in our forests.

TAKE ACTION

Let the Bush Administration know that clean air and clear views are important to you at: http://ga0.org/ct/WpasSR41jqFq/Clean-Air

Learn more about the Bush Administration's "Clear Skies Initiative" at: http://ga0.org/ct/IdasSR41jqFz/AMC-Clean-Air

In late February the National Park Service and the Maine Department of Conservation signed an agreement that reaffirms the state's responsibility to manage the Allagash as a wild river and requires a review of its 1999 management plan. The Allagash Wilderness Waterway has long been a premier destination for those seeking a remote river adventure, but that remote quality has been in severe danger of slipping away. Once only accessible in a few places, the river now has 14 vehicle access points all along the Wilderness Waterway. As a "wild" river under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, the Allagash is meant to be "generally inaccessible except by trail, with watersheds or shorelines essentially primitive." However, the State of Maine, which has managed the river since its designation in 1970, has increased vehicular access points, which have eroded the once-remote nature of the river. Of the 1,400 letters received by the National Park Service, 90% supported the agreement. AMC-CAN members sent in over 140 letters of support!

Now is your chance to become the conservation advocate you've always dreamed you could be. At two upcoming conservation leadership workshops you'll learn about key regional land and river conservation issues, how you can get involved, and pick up new skills to make a difference in your community. You can also learn to communicate effectively on conservation issues, develop strategies, and reach your conservation goals. You'll even find out how you can get involved in AMC's work to protect the Central Appalachian Highlands or the Northern Forest. Join members of AMC's Conservation Department at Pine Grove Furnace State Park in Gardners, PA on March 9-10 or at Outward Bound in Bethel, Maine on April 12-14. For more information or to register contact Bryan Wentzell at (617) 523-0655, ext. 386 or email bwentzell@amcinfo.org.

Spanning 26 million acres across New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, the Northern Forest is the largest remaining wild forest in the East. Its mountains, lakes, forests, and rivers support wildlife, numerous recreation opportunities, and the regional economy. Unfortunately this region is threatened by land sales, poor forest management, and now the impacts of global climate change. In an upcoming lecture series at the Boston Museum of Science ecologists and earth scientists who study the Northern Forest will discuss their research and recent efforts to determine the complex relationships among climate, air pollution, soils, and forest health.

Lectures will be held on Wednesdays, March 6, 13, and 20 at 7:00 p.m. in Cahners Theater at the Boston Museum of Science and are free to the public.

March 6: Global Change in Our Backyard: Effects on the Northern Forest

March 13: Studying New England Forests: A view From Space

March 20: A Case Study in Ecology: Sugar Maple in a Changing Environment

For more information call (617) 589-0419 or go to: http://www.mos.org/whats_happening/calendar/lectures.html#unh