A few changes in the newsletter as you can see. This is caused by changes in the Earthjustice website, which we think are pretty cool. Check 'em out and let us know what you think.

One new wrinkle of which I'm especially fond is an archive of about 70 extremely short book reviews that originally appeared in In Brief, our old-fashioned quarterly, which is printed on actual paper. As you'll see, for many of the books we provide a link to the mail-order service of Powell's Books, the fabulous Portland (Oregon) bookstore. If you're ever in Portland don't miss it. If you should feel moved to order a book via that link, Earthjustice even receives a tiny kickback.

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These signs warn prospective buyers that a given product may harm salmon

A request to readers in Oregon, Washington, and California: The next time you're in your gardening store or another establishment that carries weed killers and bug poisons keep an eye out for this symbol on the left. The Environmental Protection Agency -- as the result of an Earthjustice lawsuit -- is sending the warning signs to more than 4,000 stores to caution customers that the chemicals are dangerous for salmon and their use near urban streams is carefully restricted. We'd love to know if the signs are being displayed prominently or not.

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Kudos to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer for its new environment page http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/environment/ with a wealth of news and commentary on matters both in and outside the Northwest. Check it out.

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Photo of grafitti: we will win the war on glaciers

Grafitti in Oakland, CA

Last April, an article appeared in the Washington Post quoting Brian Gorman of the National Marine Fisheries Service saying that a ruling (in a lawsuit brought by Earthjustice) to the effect that more water must be left in the Klamath River to preserve salmon, plus a statement by some federal scientists that dams on that river should be removed or made passable by salmon, might just be a turning point in the right direction "People may look back on this past week and say that is when things really turned around for fish in the Klamath," Mr. Gorman said. Someone up the line in the administration was not so enthusiastic, however. The day after that piece appeared, an order came down instructing all employees of NMFS to pass questions about salmon to one of three political appointees in Washington, DC. Must keep the party line straight. The Post's report is here.

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Finally, the International Whaling Commission is set to convene its annual meeting next week in St. Kitts, and the newspapers are reporting that Japan and Norway have persuaded many countries to join in order to vote to rescind the moratorium that has been in effect for two decades. Here's a fascinating piece outlining what just may be nefarious dirty dealing.

Tom Turner, Senior Editor
yourturn@earthjustice.org