Articles by Kate Sheppard

Almost extinct in the ’70s, black-footed ferrets celebrate 25 years since their rediscovery

We get all sorts of interesting press releases here. Some informative, some less-informative, others amusing and random. According to this one, today marks the 25th anniversary of the rediscovery of the black-footed ferret. It came with a complete history of the ferret, as well as charts, graphs, and contact information for prominent ferret experts.

The black-footed ferret, which is the only species of ferret native to the United States, was believed to be extinct back in 1979, after the last known ferret died in captivity. But on September 26, 1981, a fortuitous run-in with a ranch dog led investigators to the last remaining ferret colony in the United States.

Tour calls attention to low-income communities of color facing environmental challenges

This week, environmental justice activists are travelling the country with the Environmental Justice For All Tour to call national attention to sites of ecological and public-health concern in the nation's poorest communities.

Stops include both major metropolitan and rural areas, most of which are communities of color and low-income communities disproportionately affected by toxic contamination in their air, water, and soil.

In San Jose, Calif., employees toil in carcinogen-laden factories. In Dickson, Tenn., waste from a nearby landfill seeps into a community's wells. And in Syracuse, N.Y., a woman stands up to a city government that would evict her in order build a sewage treatment facility.

The tour allows these folks to tell their stories, many of which are absent from the conversation of the mainstream environmental movement.

The tour is the result of the efforts of more than 70 environmental-justice groups around the nation. It includes three tour groups -- in the northeast, south, and west -- and is intended to provide social and political forums for citizens to tell their stories. Monday, Oct. 2, is meant to be a lobbying day in Washington, D.C., where the participants speak to representatives about what they have witnessed on the tour.

The Times a bit too flowery on China’s growing rose industry

China is positioning itself to take the lead in world rose production. Government leaders hope investing in the flower industry will bring capital and jobs to southwestern China, and florists in the U.S. see it as an opportunity to obtain cheaper products, thereby increasing profits.

Workers in the burgeoning rose industry are mostly young women, earning an average of $25 per month, which the NYT article at least points out. Missing from the piece, though, is any thought to the health, labor, and environmental effects of the flower industry, or to how China's flower project could engage with fairer standards.

Lousiana spends half a mil beautifying private golf course

According to a report in today's Times-Picayune, the state of Louisiana has pledged half a million dollars to replace trees on a private golf course damaged by Hurricane Katrina last year.

The expenditure was buried in the budget state legislators passed last spring, and is listed as a "forestry program for the planting of trees and other native plants." This comes after the state spent $13 million to subsidize the construction of the Tournament Players Club in the first place.