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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (June 1, 1981)
Students join in anti-Watt drive The University Survival Center has joined the Sierra Club in a petition drive to remove interior secretary James Watt from office. To protest Watt’s actions and proposals, the Sierra Club hopes to send one million signatures to Congress. Survival Center public wildlands coordinator Steve Kramer says the petition drivd ajdn^'yvon’i remove Watt, but it is "intended to make a statemenf to me Congress and to the president that a lot of people don’t like what’s been going on.” In support of the Sierra Club’s opposition to Watt's policies, the Survival Center is collecting signatures from University students. About 400 names already have been collected, according to Kramer. The Sierra Club, a national environmental organization, claims Watt is representing his own economic interests by undoing environmental protection legislation aimed at pro tecting natural resources. “The secretary of the interior has as his foremost re sponsibility the wise stewardship of our public lands her itage,” says Sierra Club director Michael McCloskey. "He is meant to be the country’s number one conservationist.” By contrast, Watt has "declared virtual war” on the environment, McCloskey says. Kramer says he believes Watt intends to promote industry and development by opening up formerly reserved or pro tected lands. Natural resources, wildlife, scenic lands and national parks are all endangered by Watt’s proposals, he says. "He’s promoting the interests of the people he’s always worked with,” claims Kramer. According to Kramer, Watt’s proposals are so extreme that any sort of compromises would be unacceptable to environmentalists. Watt is making unreasonable demands so that it will appear he’s willing to compromise when he must give in partially to conservationists, Kramer claims. “It’s the things he’s said that really scare me. He thinks environmentalists are wrong morally. "He believes he's on a mission from God to subdue this planet.” 21 rescued following 60 days at sea HONOLULU (AP) - It was supposed to have been a two hour, 23-mile pleasure cruise on a 20-foot cabin cruiser for 21 residents of the sparsely populated island nation of Ki ribati. Two months and 1,300 miles later, nine were dead and the other 12 had survived only by drinking rainwater or sea water and eating fish — including a shark — that they had caught with their bare hands. The survivors were reported in good condition Sunday at a hospital on Moen Island in the Truk District of the U S. Trust Territory of the Pacific. A hos pital nurse said all 12 — includ ing a 3-year-old boy — probably would be released and flown home in about a week. The islanders had drifted hel r plessly in the Pacific Ocean for 60 days until they were spotted Friday by the helicopter of a San Diego-based tuna boat about 700 miles southeast of Guam. Their cramped cabin cruiser left Abaiang Island the morning of March 26 to bring the people to Tarawa, the capital of Kiribati, formerly known as the Gilbert Islands. ‘‘A good term to describe the boat would be overcrowded,” said Quartermaster Mike McKiernan, a Coast Guard spokesman on Guam. But Cinrata Teaanene, a police constable on Tarawa, said it is not unusual for ships on short trips in Kiribati to be crowded because there is a shortage of boats in the poor island nation. Most of the people on board for the two-hour trip were head ed to Tarawa for a vacation, Teaanene said. The rest were bringing food to a market there. But at one point the ship’s only engine failed and the boat began drifting to the west, McKiernan said. As prevailing currents carried the boat through an area of few landfalls, the islanders lived on the goods that were being taken to the market. The supply of fresh water lasted about four days — the food about two weeks. Once the initial supplies ran out, those on the ship survived by catching rainwater and fish with their bare hands, said Coast Guard spokesman Keith Spangler in Honolulu. He said their last fish, a shark, was caught two weeks ago. 71 SYD’S NATURAL HAIR STORE is offering a FREE HAIRCUT For men and women with the purchase of a perm thru June. Prices start at $35.00 and up. Bring this coupon to receive your free cut. Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. 804 E. 12th Eugene 485-8597 ‘Threats’ on horizon Survival program to grow By LESLIE FARRIS Of the Emerald Next year will be a particularly challenging one for conserva tionists, and the University Sur vival Center plans to do a little challenging of its own, says Steve Kramer, the center’s new director. "It will be a big year because Reagan and company have been making a lot of threats, and next year they’ll try to put those threats into action,” Kramer says. ’’We'll have to work to protect the Clean Air Act, the Marine Mammal Pro tection Act, public lands, and keep the community and campus informed." Kramer says he hopes to expand Survival Center programs so that more students can get involved To help in crease their volunteer force, the staff plans to conduct more SEARCH classes and to expand Project Intercept, their campus wide recycling program. The center’s long-range goal is to fund many of its programs through Project Intercept, which came out ahead on its budget this year, Kramer says. He also hopes to devise some sort of campus-wide conserva tion plan to cut down on the use of electricity and paper. “This is supposed to be an environmentalist’s campus, yet it doesn’t accept responsibility for a lot of the waste it generates,” he says. "In the EMU, it’s Styrofoam cups or nothing. They’re not taking into account the total expense — the cost of making them and throwing them away.” As usual, the center will be active during the primary elec tion. Kramer says they may have to battle uranium mining, her bicides and sagebrush rebels among others. “The present administration seems to believe that a vote for it was a vote against the environ mental movement. I don't think the public feels that way, and the Survival Center’s job, along with other environmental groups, is to not let the present administration tear apart all the good that's been done.” In addition to Kramer, 1981-82 Survival Center staff members will include Matt Holmes as assistant director, Jeff Strang as energy coordina tor, Norman Babcock as legislative coordinator, Wendell Belknap as wildlife coordinator, Jennifer Holmes as wildlife and desert management coordina tor, Rick Paschal as public wildlands coordinator, Mike Parr as recycling and Project Intercept coordinator, Liza Scully as recycling education coordinator, Jenny Bell as office manager, Brooks Dareff as edi tor of The Oregon Advocate, and Sheri-Lyn Scully as media coordinator. CASH For Textbooks Mon.-Fri. Smith Family Bookstore 768 E. 13th 1 Bl. From Campus Ph 345-1651 boo Pavilion.^ Serving: Fast Lunch, Best Chinese Food, Inexpensive. Open 10:30-4:00 Mon-Fri 1275 Alder St. v. / You’re never too old or too far out of condition to shape up. To prove it, we're offering a 20% discount off any individual, student or family member ship. This offer is limited to member ships purchased between June 1st and June 15th 1981. So. Sign up! PACIFIC NAUTILUS Shape up! Conditioning Center anc* SAVE.
