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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
15
, 2004 |
CONTACT:
Marianne Maw
(415) 977-5761
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Sierra Club Honors Antarctica Activist
San Francisco, CA - The Sierra Club presented its highest international honor, the EarthCare Award, to longtime Antarctica activist James Barnes on Monday. James is the founder of The Antarctica Project (TAP), a non-governmental organization which works to protect the biological diversity and the wilderness of Antarctica, and the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition (ASOC). ASOC is a global coalition of more than 200 environmental and conservation groups, including the Sierra Club, which was a founding member. ASOC also holds the only green seat in the Antarctic Treaty System.
In spite of protections put in place over the years, most notably the Environmental Protocol in 1991 that bans mining and oil drilling, Antarctica, the world's largest wilderness, remains at risk. Species are being lost to illegal fishing, including Antarctic Toothfish (called “Chilean Seabass in the US), and majestic albatross and petrels caught in the pirate fishers’ longlines. The growing tourism market, which has tripled in the past decade, also threatens species and the wilderness character of the region. In addition, Antarctica provides a natural laboratory for scientists to study what is happening to our planet, including valuable research that is currently taking place on the effects of ozone and carbon dioxide on our atmosphere. Research shows that global warming has already affected the sensitive environment of Antarctica in the form of a 2-degree Celsius rise in water temperature in the last 15 years, with huge ice shelves breaking off far earlier than once predicted.
It is time for the United States to provide international leadership on the issues facing Antarctica, to speak out on behalf of a region that has no voters but a worldwide constituency. The United States should take steps to protect Antarctica, its environment, and the potential scientific discoveries that may take place there by supporting:
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A crack down on illegal fisheries, and using its satellites to track the pirates.
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Legally-binding regulation of the tourism industry.
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The creation of protected areas in the Ross Sea and Lake Vostock.
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Measures to limit sonar and seismic activities in the Southern Ocean.
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A ban on bottom trawling in the Southern Ocean, which destroys sensitive corals and other important benthic species.
James Barnes joins other esteemed recipients of the EarthCare Award, including Wangari Maathai, winner of the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize.
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