HOLCIM (HOLNAM): Thanks to all who sent in letters to the Land Reclamation division of the Dept. of Natural Resources (DNR) about Holcim's application to begin open-pit limestone mining on 1,600 acres. The Land Reclamation Commission will take up this matter at its May 23 meeting. We will have carpools for WGNSS members who want to be there. On the Clean Water Commission front, our appeal challenging DNR's issuance of a 401 certification to Holcim was argued by Ryan Furniss of the Environmental Law Clinic at the CWC's meeting in Jefferson City on Feb. 13. The Hearing Officer hired by the CWC has recommended that the 401 certification should be thrown out, which is what we had requested. The CWC tabled the matter until its March 19 meeting. By the time you get this newsletter, the CWC may have decided our appeal. Still pending is a decision by the Corps of Engineers on Holcim's request for a 404 permit and whether the Corps will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.

CHIP MILLS: State Rep. Joan Bray (University City) has introduced H.B. 2040 to give the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) authority to regulate any new chip mills wanting to come into Missouri. This is important legislation, because the Clean Water Commission's moratorium on new chip mills expires in April and we do not know at this point whether the CWC will extend the moratorium or not. Already, thousands of acres in the Ozarks have been clearcut, leaving denuded land with no wildlife and no vegetation. Much of that clearcutting is being driven by the presence of 2 chip mills in Missouri and others in nearby states. Whether you live in Rep. Bray's district or not, please thank her for introducing this legislation: jbray@services.state.mo.us; 201 West Capitol Avenue, Room 412A, Jefferson City, MO 65101; (573) 751-2514. Also, please contact your state representative and urge him/her to support H.B. 2040. The Ozarks are home to 25% of the world's breeding Whip-poor-wills, 17% of Kentucky Warblers, 15% of Summer Tanagers, 14% of Worm-eating Warblers, 13% of Chuck-wills-widows, 9% of Yellow-billed Cuckoos, 9% of E. Wood Pewees and many other Neotropical migrants. (Breeding Bird Survey data). The biodiversity of the Ozarks includes not only birds but also native plants, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, insects, other invertebrates, and aquatic resources, in addition to some of Missouri's most scenic rivers and streams. We cannot afford to lose the Ozarks a second time or watch the Eleven Point, Jack's Fork and other waterways turn brown with soil and sedimentation washing down from clearcut areas.

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