MAJOR ENV. GROUPS SUPPORT CWC

["Dar Rudnyckyj" <rudy@igc.org>]

Major Environmental Groups Urge Senate to Ratify Chemical Weapons Treaty

Pressure Builds on Senate to Schedule Vote Before April Deadline

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, March 20, 1997
Contact: Dr. Paul Walker, Global Green USA, 202-879-3181
 Gawain Kripke, Friends of the Earth, 202-783-7400x212

[Washington]--Environmental organizations representing over one million
members urged the Senate to ratify the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)
today, the second anniversary of the 1995 Tokyo subway nerve gas attack. In
a letter (attached) sent today to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, the
groups urged fast action on the treaty which will enter into force on April
29th, 1997 regardless of whether the U.S. ratifies it by that date.
 The groups cited the public health and environmental risk posed by chemical
weapons as a major incentive for U.S. support of the treaty. "The sooner
the Senate acts to abolish these dangerous arsenals the better off all
Americans will be," said Paul Walker, director of the Global Green USA
Legacy Program. 
 The organizations supporting the treaty include the Sierra Club, the
Natural Resources Defense Council, the Environmental Defense Fund, Friends
of the Earth, Global Green USA, the League of Conservation Voters,
Physicians for Social Responsibility, Zero Population Growth, and Population
Action International. "The environmental community is proud to join
veterans groups, religious organizations, the peace and arms control
communities and others to support this vital treaty," said Carl Pope,
executive director of the Sierra Club.
 In the spring of 1995 the Tokyo and Yokohama gas attacks killed scores and
injured thousands. "The nerve gas attacks in Japan proved to the world that
we need to take urgent action to ensure public safety and environmental
security. The Senate should approve the chemical weapons treaty now,"
proclaimed Brent Blackwelder, president of Friends of the Earth.

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¨ Environmental Defense Fund ¨ Friends of the Earth ¨ Global Green USA ¨
League of Conservation Voters ¨ Natural Resources Defense Council ¨
Physicians for Social Responsibility ¨ Population Action International ¨
Sierra Club ¨ Zero Population Growth 

20 March 1997

The Honorable Trent Lott
Majority Leader, United States Senate
487 Russell Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Majority Leader Lott:

We are writing you as the leaders of national environmental organizations to
urge your support for ratification of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).
This treaty, signed by President George Bush over four years ago, warrants
your vote and active support before it enters into force on April 29, 1997.

The United States has long recognized the public health and environmental
risk posed by our chemical weapons arsenal. Because this arsenal lacks
military utility, the U.S. Congress has already approved a program to
unilaterally eliminate our entire 31,000-ton unitary stockpile. U.S.
ratification of the CWC, already signed by some 160 nations and ratified by
70 signatories, will afford us the opportunity to participate in the
international effort to ban these weapons of mass destruction across the
globe and to encourage other nations, especially Russia, to undertake the
destruction of existing stockpiles. 

In the U.S., stockpiles of these weapons are located in eight states:
Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Oregon, and Utah.
Public health and safety are at risk in the communities where these weapons
are located and they will continue to be compromised until the weapons are
destroyed. Congress has provided significant leadership in recent years in
promoting the use of safe and effective methods of chemical weapons
destruction. Ratification of the CWC is the vital next step.

We urge that you and the Senate act quickly to ratify the CWC and ensure the
public health and environmental security for all Americans. Thank you.

Sincerely,

John Adams
Executive Director
Natural Resources Defense Council

Brent Blackwelder
President
Friends of the Earth

Deb Callahan
President
League of Conservation Voters

Hugo Hoogenboom
President
Population Action International

Peter Kostmayer
Executive Director
Zero Population Growth

Fred Krupp
Executive Director
Environmental Defense Fund

Robert Musil
Executive Director
Physicians for Social Responsibility

Mathew Petersen
Executive Director
Global Green USA

Carl Pope
Executive Director
Sierra Club

***************************************
* Dar Rudnyckyj *
* Program Associate *
* Global Green USA Legacy Program *
* 1025 Vermont Avenue NW, Suite 300 *
* Washington, DC 20005-6303 *
* Ph: 202-879-3181 *
* Fx: 202-879-3182 *
* email: rudy@igc.org *
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