Conservationists say save the Okinawa Dugong

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

For Immediate Release: September 7, 2004

Contact:

Peter Galvin, Center for Biological Diversity (USA) 
Martin Wagner, Earthjustice (USA) 

International Conservation Groups Call on Bush & Koizumi to Save the
Okinawa Dugong
New Airbase Would Destroy Essential Dugong Habitat

(California, USA/Okinawa, Japan) - A coalition of hundreds of US and 
international conservation groups representing over 10 million people
sent  a letter today to President George W. Bush and Prime Minister
Junichiro  Koizumi urging the two leaders to cancel a plan to construct
a new air base  on top of a coral reef near Henoko, Okinawa, the feeding
ground of the last  remaining Okinawa Dugong (sea cow). Biologists
believe building this  landing strip could doom these gentle marine
mammals to extinction.

The plan calls for Japan to build a new military base for American use
atop  coral reefs--effectively destroying the remaining habitat of the
gentle  dugong in Japan. The 1.5 mile-long airbase would also
permanently disrupt  one of the most biologically diverse areas in the Pacific.

The coral reefs in question provide important habitat for numerous rare 
wildlife species including the endangered dugong, a Japanese cultural
icon  related to the manatee, and three species of sea turtle. Local
residents  voted against the airbase project in a referendum, but
Japanese and US  authorities are ignoring their voices.

A coalition of US and Japanese conservation groups went to court in 
September 2003 to stop the project 
http://www.earthjustice.org/news/display.html?ID=684. The case is
currently  being heard in US District Court in San Francisco. The
lawsuit asks the US  Department of Defense to comply with the National
Historic Preservation Act  (NHPA) by publicly assessing the impacts of
the proposed project on the  Okinawa dugong. The NHPA requires US
agencies to assess the impacts of  their activities on cultural icons of
foreign nations. Because of their  significance to Okinawan culture,
dugongs are included on a Japanese  government list of protected
cultural properties.

?The Department of Defense has a legal duty to protect the cultural 
resources and national monuments of other nations, especially our
allies,?  said Martin Wagner of Earthjustice, who is representing the
coalition in  the United States. ?The Okinawa dugong is a cultural icon
and national  monument in Japan. This vanishing species deserves the
same protection and  respect that we give to the Washington Monument or
bald eagle.?

The letter sent today was signed more than 400 organizations
representing  more than ten million concerned citizens worldwide.

?Construction of the new airbase would cause severe ecological damage to
 one of the most diverse ecosystems on earth,? said Peter Galvin of
Center  for Biological Diversity who organized the letter campaign. ?
For this  reason, conservation groups around the world are asking
President George W.  Bush and Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to cancel
the base construction  plan and protect the Okinawa dugong, a creature
recognized as a national  monument in Japan.?

Letter Sent Below


September 7, 2004

Dear President Bush and Prime Minister Koizumi,

The island of Okinawa has been called the "Galapagos of the East"
because  of the incredible variety of marine and terrestrial life it supports.

Almost 400 types of coral form Okinawa's reefs, which support more than 
1,000 species of fish, marine mammals and sea turtles.

As two prominent world leaders, you have the power to protect these
unique  and priceless creatures. Unfortunately, a joint project backed
by the  United States and Japanese governments will destroy one of the
last healthy  reefs in Okinawa, pushing many magnificent species closer
to extinction.

Current plans call for construction of a new military base at sea, atop
a  coral reef near Henoko in Okinawa. But the reef that this project
would  destroy supports numerous highly endangered species - animals
protected by  American, Japanese and international law. These species include:

·       The critically endangered and culturally treasured dugong, which
 relies on this habitat for its very survival in Okinawa. Japan's 
Mammalogical Society placed the dugong on its "Red List of Mammals" in 
1997, estimating the population in Okinawa to be critically endangered.
The  U.S. Government's Marine Mammal Commission also fears the project
would  pose a serious threat to the animals' survival.  The World
Conservation  Union's dugong specialists have expressed similar concerns
and have placed  the dugong on their Red List of threatened species.

·       Three types of endangered sea turtle - the hawksbill,
loggerhead,  and green - also depend on this ecosystem. All of these
turtles, as well as  the dugong, are listed under the U.S. Endangered
Species Act. Because of global warming, landfill and pollution,
Okinawa's coral reefs,  along with coral reefs around the world are
already threatened. More than  half of Okinawa's coral reefs have
disappeared over the past decade. This  makes preserving the healthy
reefs that continue to exist all the more  important. By canceling the
plan to construct the airbase near Henoko, you  can help protect a
globally important ocean ecosystem and some of the best  remaining
habitat for Okinawa dugong. We urge you to cancel this  destructive project.

Sincerely,

Peter Galvin, Conservation Director, Center for Biological Diversity (USA)
Martin Wagner, International Program Director, Earthjustice (USA)
Joel Reynolds, Senior Attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council
Carl Zichella, Regional Staff DirectorCA/NV/HI Field Office, Sierra Club
Priscilla Feral, President, Friend of Animals (USA)
Andrew J. Orahoske, Land Air Water, University of Oregon?s environmental
law society
Scott Hoffman Black, Executive Director, The Xerces Society
Cynthia Elkins, Program Director, Environmental Protection Information Center
David Gordon, Acting Executive Director, Pacific Environment (USA)
Dr. Thomas J. Goreau, President, Global Coral Reef Alliance
William W. Rossiter, President Cetacean Society International
Dr. Jean-Luc Solandt, Biodiversity Policy Officer, Marine Conservation Society
Greg L. Carter, President, Oceanic Resource Foundation
Robert Rabin/Nilda Medina, Committee for the Rescue and Development of Vieques'
Tara Thornton, Executive Director, Military Toxics Project
Pamela K. Miller, Director, Alaska Community Action on Toxics (ACAT)
Alfredo Quarto, Exec. Dir., Mangrove Action Project
Ann Z. Olib, Executive Director, People's Task Force for Bases Cleanup Philippines
Drew Weiner, Director, Reef Protection International
Frederic Evenson, Ecological Rights Foundation
Alison Rolfe, San Diego Bay Keeper
Sigrid Lüber, ASMS, OceanCare
Puanani Rogers, Ho`okipa Network - Kauai
Kyle Kajihiro, American Friends Service Committee - Hawai'i
Gershon Cohen Ph.D., Project Director, Campaign to Safeguard America's Waters
Jim Albertini, President, Malu `Aina Center For Non-violent Education & Action
Laura Olah, Executive Director, Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger
Cheryl A. Magill, Stop LFAS Worldwide Network
Dan Clark, Cry of the Water
Henk van der Keur, Laka Foundation (Netherlands)
'Ohana Koa, Nuclear Free & Independent Pacific, Hawai'i Chapter
Carroll Muffett, Director of International Programs, Defenders of Wildlife
Tim Dillingham, Executive Director, American Littoral Society
Karen Sack, Oceans Policy Advisor, Greenpeace International
Lisa Finaldi, Greenpeace USA
Sarah Matsumoto, Western Representative, Endangered Species Coalition


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Peter Galvin
Conservation Director
Center for Biological Diversity
Post Office Box 83
Garberville, California 95542

"First, they destroyed the Carolina parakeet, and I did not speak out
because I was not a Carolina parakeet. Next, the Florida red wolf was
made extinct, and I said nothing because I  am homo sapien, not Canis
rufus floridanus. Then they took the habitat of the silver trout, the
Santa Barbara song  sparrow, and the Wisconsin cougar, but I inhabited
elsewhere and had no  concern and did not get involved. Then my
environment began to deteriorate and decay - and there were no other
species to whom I could look for protection."

-Adapted by Judge Fred Biery

Email: pgalvin@biologicaldiversity.org
Website: www.biologicaldiversity.org.

The Center for Biological Diversity protects endangered species and wild
places through science, policy, education, and environmental law.
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