What you can do to help prevent NJ parks from being closed down: Sign Petitions with Links Posted Below and if you are able to take the free bus from Round Valley to Trenton Rally to make your voice heard and protest these New Jersey Park Closings, contact Ellis at sreellis@msn.com and let them know you are from the Sierra Club and that you heard about this invitation from the Sierra Club or contact Ellis for listing of free buses from other parks as well. More INFO below:
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NJ parks dept and employees need our help to prevent the closure of Round Valley and other parks this summer. The threatened closures are Trenton's idea of getting public attention to budgetary shortfalls, rather than reigning in unjustifiable pet projects.
Please Email your dissatitisfaction TODAY to Governor Corzine at www.nj.gov/governor/govmail.html or call 609-292-6000. To contact your legislature, input www..njleg.state.nj.us/
GO TO THE RALLY ON APRIL 23rd in TRENTON
(for details please see e-mail below from the Park Service)
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "ELLIS R" <sreellis@msn.com>
Date: Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:52:58 -0400
As you may know, several state parks are slated of closure or reductions in service. To see the plan, visit:
http://www.njparksandforests.org/parks/fy09_parks_and_forestry_proposed_budget_summary.pdf

Many, many people will not have access to NJ's beautiful open spaces if this plan is enacted!!

While Spruce Run is slated to be open, there will be increased pressure on park staff and resources as patrons who would visit other parks will come to Spruce Run. The same will be true at the parks that remain open.

What can I do to help, you may wonder. The CWA is spearheading an effort to stop these closures and ensure the the public has access to the parks. Below is a link to a petition that you can print and have signed. Mail it directly back to the address at the bottom as the CWA is scheduling a press event to deliver stacks of the petitions to Trenton.
http://www.cwa1037.org/petition.pdf

Also, on Wed April 23rd there will be a rally in Trenton. The CWA is paying for busses for union members, seasonal park staff and members of affliliated organizations to ride to Trenton together. There will be a bus (or more if necessary) departing from every park slated for closure. The busses need to be filled and signups are on going through Friday. If you are interested in riding down to the rally from Round Valley (thats the bus I am taking), please email me ASAP so I can let the person coordinating the bus know. For those of you in college and are interestd in going but are closer to another park, let me know and I can help to arrange this too.

Thanks in advance for your support of the Park Service.

-Becky Williams-Ellis

PS Any email correspondance related to the petition or rally, please use this email address which is my family's account.

Hello!
Over the past three years more than one million harp seals where killed (most between
2-WEEKS and 3 months of age)these pups are brutally murdered every year in the annual, government-sanctioned commercial seal hunt - all for the sake of fashion, vanity, politics, money and greed.

Polls consistently show that most Canadians oppose this 'hunt', but still the Canadian government and fishing industry refuse to end it.

This senseless killing MUST STOP NOW! This hunt it's extremely cruel, barbaric, unethical and inhumane.

Canada's seal hunt is the largest commercial hunt of marine mammals on the planet.
This year , for first time , I have the honor to host the first New Jersey Walk for Seals , a walk to protest , to inform and educate others about the hunt.
PLEASE SAVE THE DATE! , Sunday March 15, 2008, coinciding with The International Day of Protest Against Canada's Seal Hunt .
Please help me spread the word and join me in the Seal Walk!
Thank you for your support!
Marcelo Hoynowski

Chelo93nj@aol.com

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Join Us March 15th, 10 AM at Cranford's Nomehagen Park.

Website: www.MyPointIs.net

Join Us in Montclair for
North Jersey Green Drinks!!!

Thursday, Feb. 28th 7-10 PM at
South Park Bar & Grill
30 South Park Street, Montclair, NJ
www.northjerseygreendrinks.com
WHAT:
Every month, environmentally conscious people, from a variety of different backgrounds, meet up for a drink and to network with other like-minded people in a casual and informal setting. It's a great chance to relax, meet new people, develop new ideas, find employment, make friends, catch up with old business contacts, develop new business contacts, and talk about environmental issues.
It's an international concept. Read more on the website: www.greendrinks.org

WHERE:
South Park Bar & Grill, 30 South Park Street, Montclair, NJ 07042
tel: (973) 744-0402
www.southparkbargrill.com

COST:
Free !!!

$1.50 Yeungling & Coors Light Drafts

* * * * *

CONTACT:
To get onto the email circulation list or for more info. email Jim at:
green@northjerseygreendrinks.com.

So that you may recognize him, Jim's photo is at: http://environment.meetup.com/219/members/4130467/

FEEL FREE TO BRING GUESTS AND TO FORWARD THIS INVITE TO YOUR FRIENDS.

* * * * *

For Directions Go To:
http://www.southparkbargrill.com/directions.html

Feb. 2nd Alaskan Activist Training Program ? Contact Julia Shaw at Julia@AlaskaWild.org or more info directly below:

Alaska Wilderness League * * *
ACTIVIST TRAINING SERIES

Join Alaska Wilderness League and activists from Pennsylvania and New Jersey for an engaging and informative training on critical issues that are facing Alaska?s public lands, unique species, and native communities and what you can do to help.

Who: Anyone who is concerned with the issues facing Alaska or who wants to learn more. The training is free and open to the public. Please RSVP.

What: An interactive training that will explore both current legislation affecting Alaska?s wild lands as well as methods to reach out and make a difference in your own community. Director of Field Operations for Alaska Wilderness League, Liz VanDenzen, will share strategies for successful grassroots organizing.

Where: Ethical Society of Philadelphia, 1906 South Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia, PA 19103- call or email Julia Shaw for directions

When: Saturday February 2nd 10:00 am ? 2:00 pm. Lunch will be provided. Coffee and pastries will be served at 9:30 am.

Please Call 215-985-2732 or email julia@alaskawild.org for more information or to sign up
________________________________________
ALASKA
WILDERNESS
LEAGUE
JULIA MILLAN SHAW
New Jersey
Field Staff
1520 Locust St, Ste 810
Philadelphia, PA 19102
Tel: 215-985-2732
Cell: 856-278-2373
www.AlaskaWild.org
Your Land.
Your Voice.

Hi Gang, Sorry for the late notice, but I've been hyper-busy ... if you're able to go to Marlboro Township for the Beaver Rally & Hike tomorrow please feel free to let me know how it went, or post photos and also later next month, Feb. 10th there will be a Beaver Ice Walk in Sterling Forest - if interested contact me and I'll send out info.
Thanks,
Diana Christine
732-764-9073

Info Below for tomorrow's Beaver Rally & Hike
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NJARA will be attending this rally and encourages anyone in the area to join us. See related article below.
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Hello Animal Lover friends:

Saturday, January 19 at 1:00 PM we are planning a rally to erect a "Save the Marlboro Beavers" display and take a a hike along Deep Run Brook to extend posting of No Trapping signs. Last year trapping killed six (6) beavers from the stream, and this year we are fighting to stop the trapping and trespassing.

Bring boots (waders are not necessary) for hiking and an optional walking stick for balance in the uneven swamp footing. For the artistic visitor, colorful waterproof paint would be helpful for decorating our walking planks. Cameras to photograph beaver constructions and altered trees are welcomed. The trail is clear and well-marked with planks as needed to traverse water.

All visitors can have mulled cider or other hot beverages to warm up indoors. We will tell how we used the Open Public Meetings Act to obtain information about last year's beaver trapping from the NJDEP Division of Fish and Game plus Marlboro Township. Then we shall show the endearing movie Grey Owl starring Pierce Brosnan which tells how beavers became protected in Canada.

Please come and enjoy the fun. The Flynn's beaver haven is located at 254 Tennent Road in Morganville (Marlboro Township) about one mile northwest of the NJ Route 18 intersection. We hope to see you there.

For the Beavers,
Len & Ginny Flynn
lenflynn@verizon.net

http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080118/NEWS01/801180404/1004/NEWS01

Man plans rally for beavers
By Alesha Williams Boyd ? FREEHOLD BUREAU ? January 18, 2008

MARLBORO ? Leonard Flynn is eager to save the township's beavers, even if the neighbors don't share his enthusiasm.

He has touted the benefits of beavers since discovering a dam in November 2005 in the stretch of Deep Run Brook that runs through the backyard of his Tennent Road home.

But Flynn, 61, said he hasn't seen much of his furry friends lately, possibly because of a site-specific permit the state Department of Environmental Protection granted in 2006 authorizing trapping of up to 10 beavers at Deep Run Brook. Six were trapped and killed from Marlboro's stretch of Deep Run, the largest with a 73-inch pelt, Flynn said.

Flynn, who has posted signs delineating his property and warning trespassers to stay away, said he plans to hold a rally Saturday to protest trapping at Deep Run Brook, particularly in his own backyard.

"There's no reason to try to exterminate this beaver population," Flynn said. "On the contrary, we should let it grow. Clearly, beavers can live here successfully if they're left alone. (The DEP's policy) is not population control; that's a policy of extermination."

He said dams built by beavers make ponds and lakes that nurture fish, frog and dragonfly populations around Deep Run. Those creatures also control mosquito populations, Flynn said.

Other residents weren't so pleased with their neighbors in nature. They say they asked for the DEP to get involved and issue the permit because of flooding from the brook, a problem they believe the beavers' dam exacerbated.

"Since the beavers are gone, the (additional) flooding's gone," said Mark Maurer, 59, who owns a 10-acre farm on Tennent Road.

Maurer said he complained to DEP officials about the problem and allowed a trapper onto his property to capture beavers during the 2006-07 beaver trapping season. The season extends from Dec. 26 through mid-February. He did not know how many had been caught.

"The water table was 3 feet higher than it had ever been, starting when the beavers moved in," Maurer said.

DEP spokeswoman Karen Hershey said it was unclear whether a permit had been issued for the Deep Run Brook area for the 2007-08 trapping season.

The DEP issues permits by lottery, Hershey said, but she added that if there is a public safety issue or complaints about damage beavers caused in a specific area, "we will issue permits outside the season or provide site-specific permits."

Flynn claims his efforts have brought the flooding under control. He installed a pipe, known as a "beaver deceiver," through the dam in summer 2006 to stop flooding. The "deceivers" allow water to flow through the dam without alerting beavers that a hole needs patching, but he said a second pipe, which he installed in winter 2006, has been effective.