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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-0617 Documents Submitted at Mtg Hello. My name is Tamsin Taylor and I live at 580 Mountain Meadows Drive, Ashy Oregd am also involved with Southern Oregon Climate Action Now's Divestment Project. I am involved with two foundations that are dealing with divestment issues. I would like to comment on what the information already presented means to Ashland and what the City Council can do. First, the Local Government Investment Pool (LGIP), in which Ashland invests, includes fossil fuels. On October 31, 2013, this included $172.8 million in fossil fuel holdings (out ofa total investment of $32 billion.) This means that money from the City of Ashland is invested in fossil fuels. Second, the City of Ashland can take steps to "minimize their contribution to global warming" by joining other cities in Oregon who are signing a resolution to urge the Short Term Investment Board, the Retirement Board of the Public Employee Retirement System, and Ted Wheeler, Oregon State Treasurer, to review holdings in fossil fuel companies, cease investments in fossil fuel companies, and to seek investment opportunities in sustainable energy sources. Winston will explain how this can be done. :~Pdm~q 0744 66- lpt) b(G Y1` Hello. My name is Winston Friedman and I live at 935 Oak Street, Ashland, OR 97520. I am also involved with SOCAN's divestment efforts. We have a resolution that we would like the City of Ashland to consider. [Pass out resolution] I would like to call your attention to the "Recitals" on this resolution. RECITALS: A. On May 15, 1990 Ashland City Council endorsed the Valdez Principles. These state that "by endorsing these Principles, we publicly affirm our belief that the City of Ashland, Oregon, has a direct responsibility for the environment. We believe that we must conduct the public's business as responsible stewards of the environment and seek goals only in a manner that leaves the Earth healthy and safe. We believe that the City must not compromise the ability of future generations to sustain their needs." B. In 2013 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report found that human influence has been detected in warming of the atmosphere and the ocean, in changes in the global water cycle, in reductions in snow and ice, in global mean sea level rise, and in changes in some climate extremes. Additionally, it is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century. C. In 2009, through the Copenhagen Accord, all governments in the world that were represented agreed that any warming above a 2°C (3.6°F) rise would be unsafe. Furthermore, scientific analyses suggest that humans can only pour about 565 more gigatons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere to maintain this limit. D. In 2009 the "Unburnable Carbon" report by NOAAs Carbon Tracker Initiative reported that fossil fuel companies possess known fossil fuel reserves that would release approximately 2,795 gigatons of COZ if they are burned. This is five times the amount that can be released without exceeding the 2°C limit of warming identified at Copenhagen. E. In 2013, the World Bank Report, "Turn Down the Heat: Climate Extremes, Regional Impacts, and the Case for Resilience" endorsed the conclusion of the Copenhagen Accord and further stated that rising global temperatures increasingly threaten the health and livelihoods of vulnerable populations. The City of Ashland, by supporting this resolution, urges the board of the LGIP, the board of Oregon Public Employee Retirement System, and Ted Wheeler, Oregon State Treasurer to take action to Divest from Fossil Fuels. We look forward to hearing your response to our request. A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Ashland RECITALS: A. On May 15, 1990 Ashland City Council endorsed the Valdez Principles. These state that "by endorsing these Principles, we publicly affirm our belief that the City of Ashland, Oregon, has a direct responsibility for the environment. We believe that we must conduct the public's business as responsible stewards of the environment and seek goals only in a manner that leaves the Earth healthy and safe. We believe that the City must not compromise the ability of future generations to sustain their needs." B. In 2013 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report found that human influence has been detected in warming of the atmosphere and the ocean, in changes in the global water cycle, in reductions in snow and ice, in global mean sea level rise, and in changes in some climate extremes. Additionally, it is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century. C. In 2009, through the Copenhagen Accord, all governments in the world that were represented agreed that any warming above a 2°C (3.6°F) rise would be unsafe. Furthermore, scientific analyses suggest that humans can only pour about 565 more gigatons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere to maintain this limit. D. In 2009 the "Unburnable Carbon" report by NOAAs Carbon Tracker Initiative reported that fossil fuel companies possess known fossil fuel reserves that would release approximately 2,795 gigatons of C02 if they are burned. This is five times the amount that can be released without exceeding the 2°C limit of warming identified at Copenhagen. E. In 2013, the World Bank Report, "rurn Down the Heat: Climate Extremes, Regional Impacts, and the Case for Resilience" endorsed the conclusion of the Copenhagen Accord and further stated that rising global temperatures increasingly threaten the health and livelihoods of vulnerable populations. SECTION 1. IN RELATION WITH RESPECT TO THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT POOL (LGIP) THE ASHLAND CITY COUNCIL URGES THE SHORT- TERM FUND BOARD TO: . 1. review the LGIP investment portfolio to identify any holdings that include direct or indirect investments in fossil fuel companies. 2. immediately cease any new investments by LGIP in fossil fuel companies or in commingled assets that include holdings in fossil fuel companies. 3. identify any investments in commingled funds that include fossil fuel companies and contact the fund managers to request that the fossil fuel companies be removed from the funds. 4. within 5 years insure that none of its directly held or commingled assets include holdings in fossil fuel public equities and corporate bonds as determined by the Carbon Tracker list. Proposed by the SOCAN Divestment Project Team to the City Council of the City of Ashland, June 17, 2014 5. prepare a report and options for investing the fund in a way that further maximizes the positive impact of the fund by seeking investment opportunities to prepare for the consequences of burning fossil fuels or help mitigate its effects including, but not limited to, clean technology and renewable energy, sustainable companies or projects, and sustainable communities. We further urge that investment policies be developed and enacted that support local projects and local jobs. Finally, we request that a timeline be developed for implementing the findings of said report in a manner consistent with the City of Ashland's fiduciary responsibility and the Valdez Principles. 6. publicly release quarterly updates detailing progress made towards full divestment. SECTION 2. IN RELATION WITH RESPECT TO THE PUBLIC EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM (PERS) THE ASHLAND CITY COUNCIL URGES THE RETIREMENT BOARD OF THE OREGON PERS TO: 1. review the PERS investment portfolio to identify any holdings that include direct or indirect investments in fossil fuel companies. 2. immediately cease any new investments by PERS in fossil fuel companies or in commingled assets that include holdings in fossil fuel companies. 3. identify any investments in commingled funds that include fossil fuel companies and contact the fund managers to request that the fossil fuel companies be removed from the funds. 4. within 5 years insure that none of its directly held or commingled assets include holdings in fossil fuel public equities and corporate bonds as determined by the Carbon Tracker list. 5. prepare a report and options for investing the fund in a way that further maximizes the positive impact of the fund by seeking investment opportunities to prepare for the consequences of burning fossil fuels or help mitigate its effects including, but not limited to, clean technology and renewable energy, sustainable companies or projects, and sustainable communities. We further urge that investment policies be developed and enacted that support local projects and local jobs. Finally, we request that a timeline be developed for implementing the findings of said report in a manner consistent with the City of Ashland's fiduciary responsibility and the Valdez Principles. 6. publicly release quarterly updates detailing progress made towards full divestment. SECTION 3. THE CITY OF ASHLAND URGES THE OREGON STATE TREASURER TO: 1. stimulate, support, and supervise all actions identified in Sections 1 and 2 above. - . Proposed by the SOCAN Divestment Project Team to the City Council of the City of Ashland, June 17, 2014 Good Evening. My Name is Elizabeth Hallett and I live at 938 Mountain Meadows Circle, Ashland, Oregon 97520. I am actively involved in Southern Oregon Climate Action Now. I am representing those here tonight who are also concerned about this issue. Please raise your hand if you are here tonight in support of Divestment from Fossil Fuels. I want to thank all members of the counsel for this opportunity to speak to an issue dear to my heart and crucial to the future of the human race. Following the Exon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24, 1989, the Ashland city Council, along with many other communities, signed on to the Valdez Principles. As part of these principles, The City of Ashland affirmed their belief that the city "has a direct responsibility for the environment" when they signed the Valdez Principles in 1990. In Section 1 of the Valdez Principles, we identified that we would "strive to eliminate the release of any pollutant that may cause environmental damage to air, water, or earth or its inhabitants. In Section 4 of the Valdez Principles, we pledged to "make every effort to use environmentally safe and sustainable energy sources to meet our needs. We will invest in and promote energy efficiency and conservation in our operations and that of our citizens." This means that we should consider our actions so we leave a livable planet for our children and grandchildren., and for some of us, great grandchildren, and their descendants. Let's take a long view. As a citizen, I also have concerns about the Fossil Fuel Industry. Specifically, the fossil fuel industry's business plan to dump five times more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than our scientists say we safely can and still keep global warming below the tipping point of 2'Centigrade (that's 3.6'Farenheit). ALSO We should NOT be investing in companies that are spending millions of dollars lobbying against clean energy solutions and millions more funding climate denial and anti-science think tanks. (over) My name is Donna Swanson. I live at 863 Plum Ridge Drive in Ashland. I am a volunteer with Southern Oregon Climate Action Now and I would also like to thank you for this opportunity to speak. I would like to share actions others have taken about this issue. In Oregon, cities and counties have realized that local action must be taken to combat this global issue. The Eugene City Council, on January 13, 2014, unanimously voted to alter the city's investment strategy, to divest all Eugene's holdings in fossil fuel companies! The initiative was brought to the council by Mayor Kitty Pierce. In Portland Mayor Charlie Hales appointed an advisory committee charged with making recommendations to City Council on how to incorporate socially responsible criteria in the City's direct investment in corporate securities. Their recommendations will be submitted to Council by July 31, 2014. Additionally, the Benton County Board of Commissioners passed a resolution encouraging local governments, Oregon State University Foundation, State of Oregon, Oregon Investment Council and PERS Board of Trustees to carefully monitor investment holdings and to invest in alternative energy sources. Nationally and Internationally, • 11 colleges and universities have committed to pursue fossil fuel divestment, • 26 cities have pledged to take action, • 29 religious institutions, and • 27 foundations have taken steps to divest from fossil fuels. Thank you for your attention. Hello. My name is Tamsin Taylor and I live at 580 Mountain Meadows Drive, Ashland, Oregon and am also involved with Southern Oregon Climate Action Now's Divestment Project. I am involved with two foundations that are dealing with divestment issues. I would like to comment on what the information already presented means to Ashland and what the City Council can do. First, the Local Government Investment Pool (LGIP), in which Ashland invests, includes fossil fuels. On October 31, 2013, this included $172.8 million in fossil fuel holdings (out ofa total investment of $32 billion.) This means that money from the City of Ashland is invested in fossil fuels. Second, the City of Ashland can take steps to "minimize their contribution to global warming" by joining other cities in Oregon who are signing a resolution to urge the Short Term Investment Board, the Retirement Board of the Public Employee Retirement System, and Ted Wheeler, Oregon State Treasurer, to review holdings in fossil fuel companies, cease investments in fossil fuel companies, and to seek investment opportunities in sustainable energy sources. Winston will explain how this can be done. (over) Hello. My name is Winston Friedman and I live at 935 Oak Street, Ashland, OR 97520. I am also involved with SOCAN's divestment efforts. We have a resolution that we would like the City of Ashland to consider. [Pass out resolution] I would like to call your attention to the "Recitals" on this resolution. RECITALS: A. On May 15, 1990 Ashland City Council endorsed the Valdez Principles. These state that "by endorsing these Principles, we publicly affirm our belief that the City of Ashland, Oregon, has a direct responsibility for the environment. We believe that we must conduct the public's business as responsible stewards of the environment and seek goals only in a manner that leaves the Earth healthy and safe. We believe that the City must not compromise the ability of future generations to sustain their needs." B. In 2013 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report found that human influence has been detected in warming of the atmosphere and the ocean, in changes in the global water cycle, in reductions in snow and ice, in global mean sea level rise, and in changes in some climate extremes. Additionally, it is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century. C. In 2009, through the Copenhagen Accord, all governments in the world that were represented agreed that any warming above a 20C (3.6°F) rise would be unsafe. Furthermore, scientific analyses suggest that humans can only pour about 565 more gigatons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere to maintain this limit. D. In 2009 the "Unburnable Carbon" report by NOAAs Carbon Tracker Initiative reported that fossil fuel companies-possess known fossil fuel reserves that would release approximately 2,795 gigatons of COz if they are burned. This is five times the amount that can be released without exceeding the 2°C limit of warming identified at Copenhagen. E. In 2013, the World Bank Report, "Turn Down the Heat: Climate Extremes, Regional Impacts, and the Case for Resilience" endorsed the conclusion of the Copenhagen Accord and further stated that rising global temperatures increasingly threaten the health and livelihoods of vulnerable populations. The City of Ashland, by supporting this resolution, urges the board of the LGIP, the board of Oregon Public Employee Retirement System, and Ted Wheeler, Oregon State Treasurer to take action to Divest from Fossil Fuels.. We look forward to hearing your response to our request. m~ blx q ~h 7// L/ 7f"ivl My name is Donna Swanson. I live at 863 Plum Ridge Drive in Ashland. I am a volunteer with Southern Oregon Climate Action Now and I would also like to thank you for this opportunity to speak. I would like to share actions others have taken about this issue. In Oregon, cities and counties have realized that local action must be taken to combat this global issue. The Eugene City Council, on January 13, 2014, unanimously voted to alter the city's investment strategy, to divest all Eugene's holdings in fossil fuel companies! The initiative was brought to the council by Mayor Kitty Pierce. In Portland Mayor Charlie Hales appointed an advisory committee charged with making recommendations to City Council on how to incorporate socially responsible criteria in the City's direct investment in corporate securities. Their recommendations will be submitted to Council by July 31, 2014. Additionally, the Benton County Board of Commissioners passed a resolution encouraging local governments, Oregon State University Foundation, State of Oregon, Oregon Investment Council and PERS Board of Trustees to carefully monitor investment holdings and to invest in alternative energy sources. Nationally and Internationally, • 11 colleges and universities have committed to pursue fossil fuel divestment, • 26 cities have pledged to take action, • 29 religious institutions, and • 27 foundations have taken steps to divest from fossil fuels. Thank you for your attention. Mdtt4 *#7 eC- b4c Lrn Good Evening. My Name is Elizabeth Hallett and I live at 938 Mountain Meadows Circle, Ashland, Oregon 97520. I am actively involved in Southern Oregon Climate Action Now. I am representing those here tonight who are also concerned about this issue. Please raise your hand if you are here tonight in support of Divestment from Fossil Fuels. I want to thank all members of the counsel for this opportunity to speak to an issue dear to my heart and crucial to the future of the human race. Following the Exon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24, 1989, the Ashland city Council, along with many other communities, signed on to the Valdez Principles. As part of these principles, The City of Ashland affirmed their belief that the city "has a direct responsibility for the environment" when they signed the Valdez Principles in 1990. In Section 1 of the Valdez Principles, we identified that we would "strive to eliminate the release of any pollutant that may cause environmental damage to air, water, or earth or its inhabitants." In Section 4 of the Valdez Principles, we pledged to "make every effort to use environmentally safe and sustainable energy sources to meet our needs. We will invest in and promote energy efficiency and conservation in our operations and that of our citizens." This means that we should consider our actions so we leave a livable planet for our children and grandchildren., and for some of us, great grandchildren, and their descendants. Let's take a long view. As a citizen, I also have concerns about the Fossil Fuel Industry. Specifically, the fossil fuel industry's business plan to dump five times more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than our scientists say we safely can and still keep global warming below the tipping point of 2'Centigrade (that's 3.6'Farenheit). ALSO We should NOT be investing in companies that are spending millions of dollars lobbying against clean energy solutions and millions more funding climate denial and anti-science think tanks. Gmail - MONSANTO'S POISON + FOOD WE EAT = EXACTLY WHAT YOU EXPECT' Page 1 of 3 *%'/i`t tN V ,judy kerstetter <uk tr@gmail.com> MONSANTO'S POISON + FOOD WE EAT = EXACTLY WHAT YOU EXPECT Em~ Sat, May 17, 2014 at 1:20 PM To: "ukrstttr@gmail. com" <ukrstttr@gmail.com> Tell the EPA and FDA: Immediately suspend Monsanto's Roundup herbicide. Petition to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy and FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg: Evidence is mounting that the massive use of glyphosate, also known as Monsanto's herbicide Roundup, is making us sick at alarming rates. Immediately suspend the use of glyphosate. Automatically add your name: i a o In case you weren't sure yet if the massive use of the herbicide glyphosate - also known as Monsanto's Roundup - was cause for concern, here's the sobering takeaway from an MIT senior ST, researcher who just conducted a review of the stuff: "I'm certain at this point that glyphosate is the most important dkll, factor in an alarming number of epidemic diseases."' 1 1 The introduction of Roundup in 1973 has corresponded with a rise in R,61 P conditions including celiac disease (gluten intolerance), autism, Alzheimer's, diabetes, obesity, pancreatic cancer, thyroid cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Parkinson's and others 2 And its use - along with the rates of many of these diseases - has gone stratospheric over the last 15 years, with the approval of Monsanto's GMO "Roundup Ready" crops specifically engineered to tolerate massive exposure to glyphosate. Roundup is now used all over the world on staple crops like wheat and soy, and has become the most widely used herbicide.in the US. Despite these trends, the EPA and FDA still consider glyphosate to be relatively safe and harmless - based largely on unpublished, industry-produced studies. That position is looking increasingly dangerous, and possibly wrong. Tell the EPA and FDA: Immediately suspend the use of Monsanto's Roundup until it can be proven safe. Click here to automatically sign the petition. Of course -just because two trends match does not mean those two things are related. And in the https://mail. google.com/mail/u/0/?ui=2&ik=7bad63 8bc7&view=pt&search=inbox&msg=1... 5/27/2014 Gmail - MONSANTO'S POISON + FOOD WE EAT = EXACTLY WHAT YOU EXPECT Page 2 of 3 eyes of t`e`scientific process, just because something looks, swims and quacks like a duck, doesn't make it a duck. But in the case of glyphosate, there are many reasons to believe it could be related to higher incidence of many diseases. Glyphosate doesn't just kill weeds. It is an antibiotic (which kills the gut bacteria that make up a significant portion of our immune system and digestive function), a chelator (which strips the body of nutrients needed to fight disease other essential functions), an endocrine disruptor (which affects hormones and leads to birth defects), and impairs the liver's ability to detox (allowing heavy metals to build up in our bodies). And we put nearly two hundred million pounds of the stuff on our food every year! Even worse, the so-called "inactive" ingredients in Roundup may be amplifying the toxic effects of glyphosate by orders of magnitude. One new study found Roundup's overall concoction to be up to 100 times more toxic than glyphosate alone.' Yet Roundup's approval is based on tests of only glyphosate, and does not take into account it's possible interaction with other chemicals EPA considers safe. Another recent study has challenged Monsanto's claim that glyphosate doesn't accumulate in our bodies the cornerstone of our government's finding that Roundup is safe finding glyphosate levels in breast milk up to 1,600 times higher than the level Europe allows for individual pesticides.' Part of the challenge in finding an absolute link is that long range controlled studies are difficult to conduct - partially because of Monsanto's efforts to control research money and block information. So we, in effect, have become the subjects of Monsanto's Roundup experiment. There is ample evidence to suggest that this backward system of pesticide approval may be having terrible implications for our health. The EPA and FDA should immediately suspend the use of Roundup. Click here to automatically add your name. Thanks for taking action for our health. Elijah Zarlin, Campaign Manager CREDO Action from Working Assets Automatically add your name: a a~ t •~1. Learn more about this campaign 1. "Your Food Is Poisoning You," Outside, May 12, 2014 2. "Is Monsanto's Roundup linked to a deadly kidney disease?," Grist, May 1, 2014 3. "Major Pesticides Are More Toxic to Human Cells Than Their Declared Active Principles," Bio Med Research International, February 26 2014 4. "World's Number 1 Herbicide Discovered in U.S. Mothers' Breast Milk," Sustainable Pulse, April 6, 2014 ' Share on Facebook Post to your wall Tweet this I Post to Twitter © 2014 CREDO. All rights reserved. To change your email or mailing address, please click here: https:/Iact.credoaction.com/me/update/? https:Hmail.google.com/mail/u/O/?ui=2&ik=7bad63 8bc7&view=pt&search=inbox&msg=1... 5/27/2014 Your ,Food Is Poisoning You Performance Plate OutsideOnline.com http://www.outsideonline.con/fimessibodywork/perforTnance-plate... Regime Q s ~Gi G ~iG~ILam- ! r__'d 0^~ (/temp i $-f~- LIVE BRAVELY /ORbn Promo 0 { Bodywork (http://www.outsideonline.el~eptness/bodywork) Want more Outside? UKE US on Facebook. PERMRMANCE PLATE MONDAY, MAY 12, 2ot4 Your Food Is Poisoning You For years, an underground movement has claimed that the very food we eat-by virtue of the pesticides and herbicides we so commonly use-is poisoning us. Until now, they've been (at best) ignored and (more often than not) mocked. Suddenly though, it looks like the joke has been on us all along. By: DEVON JACKSON (HT rP://W W W.OUTSIDEONLINF.COM/AUTHOR-BIOS/DEVON- JACKSON.HTML) as m 3 urrt III 'c ~ '.Ll z Ty. II as ~~t s h ~xs I + 1~ .tea Can you trust the food you eat? Photo: Chafer Machinery (https://www.Hiclu.com/photoslcbafermachineryf)/Micla• T here's a scene in Close Encounters of the Third Kind (http://www.imdb.com/title /tt007586ol) where the Air Force subjects Richard Dreyfus and his fellow Third 1 of 26 6/16!2014 4:15 PM Your Food Is Poisoning You Performance Plate I OutsideOnline.com http://www.outsideonline.com/fitness/bodywork/performance~lafe... Encounterers to the media. The press conference is actuallygoing prettywell, the4mGdia seem to z. q be on the verge of believing these people-until one of them, a bearded old termie e'(Roberts typ Blossom) launches into a speech about how he once saw Bigfoot. Credibility: shot. Such is the case, too, with people who've been trying to link celiac disease (and other ills) with the use of the herbicide glyphosate. Despite having long been treated like Bigfoot believers by their opponents, their research is now gaining widespread attention. More importantly, there's a growing sense that the science has reached a tipping point: Glyphosate cannot be recognized as harmless. "I'm always suspicious of these consensuses on [the safety of] agriculture chemicals-they almost always fall apart over time, and that may be happening with glyphosate," says author and food activist Michael Pollan. Introduced by Monsanto in the early 1970S under the trade name Roundup (and used primarily back then as a weed killer), glyphosate is now used throughout the world on wheat and soy crops and since 2007 it has been the most widely used herbicide in the U.S.-and the growing target of research linking it to a variety of illnesses. "Since Monsanto fast introduced Roundup into crops in 1994, there's been a rise in autism and other diseases," says Stephanie Seneff, a senior research scientist at the Nt]'1 f'omputcx Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (http://people csaiLmit edu/_ sen and co-author with Anthony Sa_mspl a retired environmental scientist of the recent review claiming that Roundup leads to celiac disease (http Il y mo h Learthnews.com/real-food/gluten-intolerance- from-roundup-herbicide-zwOZ14o2zkin.aspx#axzz2yKrgmSKh) . "I'm certain at this point that [!nging yphosate is the most important factor in an alarming number of epidemic diseases." Diseases from autism, Alzheimer's, and diabetes to pancreatic cancer, thyroid cancer, n-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Parkinson's disease and-wait for it-the ongoing collapse of bee lonies. But where then, beyond the work of Seneff and Samsel, is the proof? Well, there isn't much hard evidence (only two long-term studies on the health effects of the chemical have been v conducted). And for a complicated set of reasons. For one, historic Uy people who've . challenged the biotech industry have been systematically discredited, says Pollan. "as we learned recently about I yrone Haves, the UC Berkeley herpetologist who ran afoul of Syngenta. (http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/02/10/14O21ofa_fact_aviv?currentPage=all)" Also, there's the just-as-hard-to-prove theory that no one wants to bite the hand that feeds them. "Some of our scientists are the ones who are the most difficult-and the biggest impediment to better research-because they're funding is dependent on the very same agrichemical companies like Monsanto that are producing Roundup " says Dr. Don Huber, professor emeritus of plant 2 of 26 6/16/2014 4:15 PM Yottr.F,pod Is Poisoning You I Performance Plate I OutsideOnline.com http://www.outsideonline.com/fitnessibodywork/performance-plate... pathology at Purdue University (who for years consulted with Monsanto scientists). "They're not about to go in a different direction from the people who've been funding them." Others agree. Many of them levelheaded, despite coming off like Oliver Stone. "Monsanto and these other companies are doing an excepfimallv >;ood job at blocldn¢ all information and data on the subject from public discourse," stresses Dave Schubert, professor and head of the Salk Institute's Cellular Neurobiology Laboratory (https://www.salk.edu/faculty /cellular_neurobiology_laboratory.html). "There is indeed an enormous amount of published data showing that Roundup is very nasty \L stuff, particularly at the levels currently being used (ten times more than before genetically / modified, herbicide-resistant crops) and the extent of human exposure in food-a greatly allowed increase by the EPA to reflect increased use." Not everyone, however, is so convinced-though many are still intrigued by a possible link. "Samsel and Seneff have produced a series of plausible hypotheses," says Sheldon Krimsky, chairman of the Council for Responsible Genetics and Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University (http://en.wfl ipedia.org/wiki/Tufts_University). "But that is all they are: hypotheses." Indeed, Krimsky himself, as sober as he remains in his reception to Samsel and Seneffs study, cites a chapter from Earth Open Source's 2012 paper, "GMO Myths and Truths (http://earthopensource.org/files/pdfs/GMO_Myths_and_Truths /GMO_Myths_and_Truths_1.3b.pdf)," in which, among many other things, glyphosate is called "toxic," Roundup's marketing campaign as a "safe" herbicide is "based on outdated and largely unpublished studies by manufacturers," glyphosate's acceptable daily intake level in the U.S. and Europe is "inaccurate and potentially dangerously high," and "the added ingredients (adjuvants) in Roundup are themselves toxic and increase the toxicity of glyphosate by enabling it to penetrate human and animal cells more easily." If Bigfoot's still a bit fuzzy, consider these words from Dr. Alessio Fasano, founder of Massachusetts General Hospital's Center for Celiac Research, in a 2011 interview with the gluten-free website livingwithout.com (http://www.livingwithout.com/issues /4_15/ga_au9sep1l-2554-1.htm1): "Gluten and autism, gluten and schizophrenia-is there a link or not?" he asked rhetorically."I have a hard time believing that gluten has absolutely nothing to do with these behaviors." Many, though, do. "There is no link between Roundup and celiac," says Dr. Stefano Guandalini, founder and medical director of the University of Chicago's Celiac Disease Center 3 of 26 6/16/1014 4:15 PM Your Food Is Poisoning You I Performance Plate I Outsideonline.com http://www.outsideonline.com/fitness/bodywork/performance Cafe... (http://www.cureceliacdisease.org/), in response to Samsel and Seneffs review. "The whole story is preposterous and finds a cause/effect relationship when there is none." Other critics have been harsher, while supporters embrace the review as evidence of what's been plaguing them and/or their children. Already an emotional issue, celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder of the small intestine that affects upwards of 3 million people in the U.S. alone. It is triggered by gluten, the protein in wheat, barley, and rye. As yet there is no cure. linidng celiac disease to glyphosate also stems on the belief (and a growing body of scientific literature that seems to back it up) that glyphosate, and aminomethylphosphonic acid, or AMPA, the compound glyphosate breaks down into as it decays, affects the balance of our gut microbials. These changes to our bacteria can then lead to disease, obesity, autoimmune deficiencies-and maybe even the bee-colony collapse. "You have this very broad, extremely powerful broad-spectrum chelator that causes a tremendous level of dysbiosis," says Dr. Huber. "When you disrupt your intestinal microflora, you're not a happy individual." Or healthy. Part of the reason it's so easy to castigate Samsel and Seneff (and others like them) with the bigfoot brush is that, as they admit, many of their observations are anecdotal and their research is based on making correlations. Seneff graphed Roundup and its use in corn and soy and the rise of celiac disease (and other autoimmune disorders) and came up with A + B = C. "People have been trained to dismiss these types of correlations, but they're there," asserts Seneff, a senior research scientist at MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (http://www.csail.mit.edu/). "The data are there. You just have to connect the dots." And the picture she has painted-glyphosate leading to celiac disease and a plethora of other maladies and autoimmune diseases-is far from pretty. (Michael Hansen, a senior staff scientist with Consumers Union (http://consumersunion.org /experts/michael-hansen/), denied that the dots match up so well. "If you don't understand biology, you'd go, Wow! They match up perfectly. If you do understand biology, those graphs don't show anything. They're nonsense.") "They looked at the biochemical impact of glyphosate relative to the biochemical impact of various diseases and found a perfect fit-they didn't have any problem connecting the biochemical dots," explains Dr. Huber, who warns that our "wake-up call" is just around the corner. In the meantime, while Samsel and Seneffs review may not yet be fully accepted, their work, and others', should lead to better, more convincing studies, something both Dr. Huber and Krimsky agreed is worth pursuing. And Hansen, who's still leery of embracing any link to celiac 4 of 26 6/16/2014 4:15 PM Youi Faod Is Poisoning You I Performance Plate I OutsideOnline.com http://www.outsideonline.com/fimess/bodywork/performance-plate... • disease, notes that there are "absolutely potential adverse health effects from glyphosate," but that the strongest data is in cases of birth defects and non-Hodgkins lymphoma. "There are growing suspicions that this supposed non-toxic pesticide is more toxic than we realized. Especially when used with the 'inert ingredients' it comes with-surfactants that help the chemical force its way into plant tissues,' says Pollan. "There are also reports on illness around the big round-up soy fields in Brazil and Argentina. To me it seems like a lot of smoke and I wouldn't be surprised to find fire." Until then, voices in the wilderness like Samsel and Seneff and Dr. Huber will continue to proselytize about the evils of their personal Bigfoot, and hope to prove Pollan right, and vindicate their theories. "The proof isn't there," says Seneff, "but the innuendo is." f y Nunn Takes an F~tergy Shot Mills Ban: Proposing Dumb Laws (lt /www.outsideonline.com/fitness bodywork (http://www.outsideonline.com/fitness/bod rk /per ance-plate/Noun-energy=l ara-goucherhtmlj /performance-plMe/Milk Ban-14ow- gly- Want to get Outside more? Sign up for our newsletter and get the latest fitness tips, expert gear reviews, the best travel advice, and more. SIGN UP! By submitting above, you agree to the Outside privacy policy (http://www.outsideonline.com/i)rivaev-policv/Mariah - Media-Network-LLCs-Privacy-Policv.html) 5 of 26 6/16/2014 4:15 PM Re.ee -*I V olumei Publishing Corporation BwMed Research International Volume 2019, Article ID 179691, 8 pages C hupJld Aciorg/10.1155/2014/179691 Hindawi Research Article Major Pesticides Are More Toxic to Human Cells Than Their Declared Active Principles Robin Mesnage,' Nicolas Delarge,' Joig Spirous de Vend6Mois,2 and Gilles-Eric Sbralini' University of Caen, Institute of Biology, CRIIGEN and Network on Risks, Quality and Sustainable Environment MRSH-CNRS, Esplanade de la Pais, 14032 Caen Cedes, France 2 CRUGEN, 40 rue Monceau, 75008 Paris, France Correspondence should be addressed to Gilles-Eric Seralini; cnigen@unicaen.fr Received 28 October 2013; Accepted 11 December 2013; Published 26 February 2014 Academic Editor: Bruno C. Cavalczmi Copyright ® 2014 Robin Mesnage et aL This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited Pesticides are used throughout the world w mixtures called formulations. 'j11adjuvants, which are often kept confidential and are called inerts by the manufacturing companies plus a declared active rminciple which j ,~Ilv to ted alone We tested the toxicity of 9 pesticides, comparing active principles and their formulations, on three human cell lines (HepG2, HEK293, and JEG3). Glyphosate, isoprotmon, fluroxypyr, pirimicarb, imidadoprid, acetamiprid, tebuconazole, epoxiconnole, and prochloraz constitute, respectively, the active principles of 3 major herbicides, 3 insecticides, and 3 fungicides. We measured mitochondrial activities, membrane degradations, and caspases 3/7 activities. Fungicides were the most toxic from concentrations 300-600 times lower than agricultural dilutions, followed by herbicides and then insecticides, with very similar profiles in all cell types. Despite its relatively benign reputation, Roundup was among the most toxic herbicides and insecticides tested Most importantly, 8 formuiations out of 9 were up to one thousand times more toxic than their active principles. Our remits challenge the relevance of the acceptable daily intake for pesticides because this norm is calculated from the toxicity of the active principle alone. Chronic tests on pesticides may not reflect relevant environmental exposures if only one ingredient of these mixtures is tested alone. 1. Introdaction so-called active AP glyphosate [11 and are better candidates for secondary side effects. This may explain in vivo long-term Pesticides are used throughout the world as mixtures called toxicity from 0.1 ppb of the formulation and other toxicities formulations. They contain adjuvants, which are often kept that were not explained by a consideration ofglyphosate alone confidential and are called inerts by the manufacturing [2-5]. These adjuvants also have serious consequences to the companies, plus a dedazed active principle GAP) which is' health of humans and rats in acute exposures [6, 71. These the only one tested in the Inns .t to to cam) re=laW I findings prompted us to investigate the presence of simila Rests performed on mammals. This allows the calculation toxic molecules in other classes of pesticides. of the acceptable des ly intake (ADD the level of exposure The regulatory system assumes that the AP designed to that is claimed to be safe for humans over the long term- specifically target plants, insects or fungi is the most toxic and_iusr;f,_ cs rhe.nr zen a of residues of these o~e sticides t compound of a formulation to nontarget species. Thus long- le" levels in the environment and organisms. Only term regulatory tests are performed on this substance alone. the AP and one metabolite are used as markers, but this does In this paper, we tested to what extent the AP or adjuvants not exclude the presence of adjuvants, which are cell pene- in present formulations account for the toxicity of 9 major trams. Our previous investigation showed unexpected APs pesticides: 3 herbicides, 3 insecticides, and 3 fungicides. for human cell toxicity in the adjuvants of glyphosate-based We have thus selected 9 APs of herbicides, insecticides, herbicides [1]. Ethoxylated adjuvants found in glyphosate- or fungicides of different classes (Table 1) used for agri- based herbicides were up to 10.000 times more toxic than the cultural or domestic purposes, from the major pesticides t~ 7 t BioMed Research international in toxicological evaluations of glyphosate-based herbicides. herbicide Roundup: Environmental and Molecular Mutagene- . However,~rLndu9 was found in this experiment to be us, P vol. Walsh, 31, lsh, no. 1C, C. pp. McCormick, 55-59,1998C- Martin, and D. M. Stocco, 125 ti - ho te. Moreover, de rte [51 R red n 3 by far the most toxic amore "Roundup inhibits steroidogenesis by disrupting stviron ental it -cute regulatory (SCAR) protein expressions Environmental s re man th herbicides an d insecticides tested. This inconsistency Health Perspectives, al. 108, no. 8, pp. 769-776,2000. T proudfoot, and J- A. Vale, °Glyphosate between scientific fact and industrial claim maybe attribute [6] S. M. Bradberry, A. hOsa to huge economic interests, which have been found to falsify poisoning," Toxicological Reviews, vol. 23, no. 3, pp. 159-167, health risk assessments and delay health polity decisions [41]1 [71 AAdam A. Ma zuk H A Rahman, and M. A. Aziz "The oral in n rl i ion• our results challenge the relevance of the ADI, because it is calculated today from the toxicity of theand inratracheal toxicities of ROUNDUP and its components Torualagy,vo139,no3,Pp AP alone in vivo. An "adjuvant factor' of at least a reduction m rats; vererutary and Human by 100 can be applied to the present calculation of the ADI if 1,1997 181 European Commission, "The use of plant protection products this is confirmed by other studies in vivo. As an example, the present ADI for glyphosate is 0.3 ppm; for glyphosate-based in the European Union, 2007, http://cpp.eurostat.ec.europa herbicides it would be 3 ppb or less. However, this will never X111 [91 US EPA, "Pesticide Industry Sales and Usage," 2012,hVtpJ/www replace the direct study of the commercial formulation with its adjuvants in regulatory tests. Anyway, an exposure to a .epa.gov/0pp000011pestsales/. hosate; in [10] A. Szekacs and B. Darvas, "Forty years w single formulated pesticide must be considered as n, the study y su Herbicides-Properties, Synthesis and Control of Weeds, M. N. A. In addition, e s to an active principle and the e adjuvants. ith g1yP of combinatorial effects of several APs together may be very E,-G. Hasaneen, Ed., InTech, Rijeka, Croatia, 2012. till commissariat General an Develo ement Durable, Les Pesli- 7tudes et Docuhtems, Paris, s its adju secondary if the toxicity of the combinations all each these f e factors odes Dares Les Mdieax atigues, its aduvants is neglected or unknown. Even if al were known and taken into account in the regulatory process, France 2010 r human health and ecological risk this would not exclude an endocrine-disrupting effect below [iZj F R Durkin "Fluroxypy the toxicity threshold. The chronic tests of pesticides may assessmentreport, SERA TR-052-13-03a, USDA Forest service, ental exposures if only one Washington, DC, USA, 2009. not reflect relevant environmental - [131 J, Vera Candioti, G. S. Natalie, S. Soloneski, A. E. Ronco, and ingredient is tested alone. M. L. Larramendy, "Sublethal and lethal effects on Rhin- ell, Arenarum (Ahura, Bufonidae) tadpoles exerted by the C.Ouffict of interests pirimicarb-containing technical form 249-255, insecticide AficidaV Chemosphere, vol. 78, no. 3, pp The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests 1141 M. L. Ambrose, Characterization of the I dd Facaity of regarding the publication of this paper. Acetaniipnd Under Field and Laboratory Conditions, US, 2003. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 1151 L. Dicks."Bees, lies and evidence-basedpolicy," Na Acknowledgments ture,voL 494, no. 7437, p. 283, 2013. 'Ihe authors. acknowledge the Regional Council of Low [161 y. Aliouane, A. IC Fl Hassant, V. Gary, C. Amrengaud, M. Normandy for Robin Mesnage fellowship and the Charles Lambin, and M. Gauthier, "Subchronic exposure of honeybees Leopold Mayer (FPH) and Denis Guichard Foundations, to sublethal doses of pesticides: e ffvol, 28, no 1, pp 133121- together with CRIIGEN, for structural support They are mend Taxirn]agy and Chemistry. equally thankful to Malongq Lea Nature, and the JMG 2009. ervi [171 Agropages, "Triazole Fungicides Insight-Market ovew, Foundation for their help. 2013, http://wwwagropages.com/BuyersGuide/category/Tria- zole-Fungicides-Insight.htmiosmmnl. o[0xictty References [181 R. J. Letcher, I. Van Holsteijn, H. Drenth et al., °Cyt and aromatase (Cyp19) activity modulation by organochlorines ill R. Mesnage, B. Bernay, and G. E. Seralini, "Ethoxylated adju- in human placental JEG-3 and JAR choriocarcinoma cells" Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, vol. 160, no. 1, pp. 10-20, vants of glyphosate-based herbicides are active principles of human cell toxicity, Toxicology, vol. 313, no. 2-3, pp. 122-128, 1999. [191 C. Urani, M. Doldi, S. Crippa, and M. Camatini, "Human- 2013. [2) G. E. Seralini, R. Mesnage, N. Defazge et aL, "Answers to critics: derived cell lines to study xenobiotic metabolism,' Chem- there is a long term toxicity due to NK603 Roundup- phere, vol . 37, no. 14-15, pp. 2785-2795,1998. why s G. Lemmen, B. Carlsson et al., "Interaction tolerant genetically modified maize and to a Roundup herbi- [201 G. G. Kuiper, J. tide; Food and Chemical Toxicology, vol. 53, pp. 461-468,2013- of estrogenic chemicals and phytoestrogens with estrogen 131 C. Gamier, C. Dumont, N. Benachour, E. Clair' M. Chagnon, receptor p, Endocrinology, vol. 139, no. 10, pp- 4252-4263,1998. and G. Seralini. °Gyyphosate-based herbicides are toxic and [yj J. Krijt, I. Van Holsteijn,1. Hassing, M. Voktrka, and B. I Blaa endocrine disruptors in human cell lines, Toxicology, vol. 262, oboes, "Effect of diphenyl ether herbicides and oxadiazon on porphyrin biosynthesis in mouse liver, rat primary hepatOcyte no. 3, pp. 184-191,2009. culture and HepG2 cells," Archives of Toxicology, vol. 67, no. 4, [4] M. Peluso, A. Munnia, C. Bolognesi, and S. Parod , °32P-post- 255-261,1993. labeling detection of DNA adducts in mice treated with the pp. r ' - ~ ~bC+c- 3arv~ 17 June 2014 To the Ashland City Council- On May 28, 2014, the members of the Conservation Commission voted unanimously to provide you with this letter documenting our full support for divestment for the City of Ashland. We were originally approached by Southern Oregon Climate Action Now (SOCAN) on the issue of divestment and guided them to go directly to the Council with their request. The Commission is concerned about the potential impacts of climate change on human health, economic stability, infrastructure, natural resources, social equity, global security, and, most importantly, the well-being of future generations. In light of these concerns, all actions by the City Council to study and implement divestment strategies are supported by the Conservation Commission. Divestment sends a strong message that the City of Ashland supports a clean energy future and strong action against climate change. Thank you for the opportunity to bring this urgent issue forward for consideration. Sincerely, Marni Koopman, Chair of the Ashland Conservation Commission On behalf of the Conservation Commission: Roxane Beigel-Coryell, Vice Chair, SOU Representative Tom Beam, Commissioner Risa Buck, Recology Ashland Service Area Representative Jim Hartman, School District Representative Jim McGinnis, Commissioner Shel Silverberg, Commissioner Mark Weir, Commissioner resident ®bama is right: We should be ashamed of gun violence Milwaukee Journal Sentinel And now, with the defeat of the have a monopoLv on crazy people." Yet The following editorial appeared No. 2 Republican in the House, Eric "we're the only developed country" in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Cantor, the chances of anything getting that repeatedly has such terrible acts. Friday; June 13: done are even slimmer. Cantor, a "There's no place else like this," the Virginia Republican, who some critics president said. e should be ashamed of the said was too soft on defending gun This does not mean the end of the W shooting after shooting on our rights as well as immigration reform, Second Amendment. We can respect W streets and in our schools. We lost in a stunning. upset to a tea party gun and hunter rights and still curb should be ashamed that Congress sits candidate in a GOP primary Tuesday. gun violence. Australia has done it. on its hands and does nothing to curb His defeat likely will both embolden Other countries have done it. the slaughter. It's fear of the political clout of the That was how President Barack the tea party wing of the Republican National Rifle Association and gun Obama characterized the issue of gun Party and make any remaining . manufacturers that is the biggest violence in a discussion with Tumblr establishment Republicans more factor in Congress' failure to act. founder. David Karp the other day, and cautious. That means little action Obama also noted that although polls the president got it exactly right. on issues such as gun control and show that a majority of Americans . Eighteen months ago, 20 children immigration reform. support steps to control guns, they were murdered in a grade school in "The country has to do some soul- don't feel passionately enough about Connecticut - and nothing was done searching on this. This is becoming it to punish lawmakers who disagree. to expand background checks or limit the norm," Obama said Tuesday. "Our "Until that.happens, sadly, not that weapons clips., Since then, there have levels of gun violence are off the charts. much is going to change." been 74 shootings at schools - the There's no advanced developed country Obama called the failure to achieve latest last week in Oregon left two dead on Earth that would put up with this." reasonable gun restrictions the biggest and one wounded - and still nothing Yes, mental health is an issue frustration of his presidency. It should is done. And that's just schools; that related to violence, and we have be the biggest frustration for all doesn't count the shootings in theaters, to find better ways of dealing with Americans. Voters need to not only temples, churches and incidents such it. But other countries have people' support tighter gun control; they need as the recent Las Vegas spree that left with mental illnesses and don't have to get angry with politicians who refuse two police officers, a Walmart customer shootings on this scale. As Obama to act. And then punish them at the and the two shooters dead. said, "The United States does not polls. wm~~A W/ AN ORDINANCE RESTRICTING OPENLY CARRYING LOADED FIREARMS IN PUBLIC PLACES (Agenda Item XII; June 17, 2014 City Council Business Meeting) I have carefully reviewed this proposed ordinance. Based on approximately forty years of gun ownership and my understanding of the law and the nature of litigation, I offer the following comments for the Public Record: 1) SECTION 3. Exceptions; Strike clauses I and J. Reason: Transporting loaded guns in a vehicle is unwise and dangerous. Never, have I or any of my fellow shooters ever transported loaded guns in our vehicles, whether in the trunk/ storage area (which is where guns belong) or in the passenger area (which is where guns don't belong). This is common sense, for a number of obvious reasons. One reason would include serious vehicle accidents wherein guns could either be stolen or accidentally discharged and the other reason is the risk of misperception by third parties. A visible gun can invite trouble. I understand that the City cannot control all behavior. However, I'm concerned that these two exclusions could be interpreted as negligence and would invite a lawsuit in the event an incident should occur. 2) The proposed ordinance language remains silent on police enforcement powers. I am concerned that 'probable cause' could be interpreted by our City Attorney in such manner as to completely dilute the purpose of the ordinance. Therefore, I strongly urge specific language that fully authorizes police officer discretion to inspect weapons of anyone falling under the ordinance. Reason: With rare exception (a single shot bolt-action rifle with the bolt thrown open), it's virtually impossible to discern a loaded gun from an unloaded gun without an inspection. Chambered live rounds can also be overlooked when magazines are detached from ACPs or assault-style rifles. I am aware that our City Attorney has expressed concern over 'gun rights' groups filing lawsuits against this proposed ordinance, should it be passed. Providing that it is consistent with that of Portland and the other Oregon cities', I do not empathize. The Oregon Supreme Court has already made a clear point in upholding these ordinances. In conclusion, I would like to point out that Ashland's failure to pass a serious ordinance consistent with Portland and the other Oregon cities' is what could actually invite serious litigation against the City. To be illustrative, all it would take is a single incident of a tourist/ open carrier 'confrontation gone bad' for a lawsuit, not to mention irreparable commercial damage to Ashland as a tourist destination. Of course, the potential of resident initiated litigation should also not be dismissed. Respectfully Submitted, ANDREW KUBIK (1251 Munson Drive, Ashland, OR 97520) To: The Mayor and Members of the City Council, Ashland, Or. May 2014 Fro : Rochelle Newman Artist and Professor emerita 819 Pavilion Ashland, Or. 97520 Re: A Wish List WISH......... In these divisive times, I wish for reasonable discourse not righteous wrath. 1 wish to speak across the aisle without epithets of hatred. I wish differences to be respected and similarities to be embraced. I wish to love my neighbors, not fear them. I wish for honest labor, not money payoffs. I wish to feed our families without tainted food and modified additives. I wish to see women that nurture not murder. I wish the rain to bring flowers, not acid run off. A loaded gun does not encourage dialogue, it creates panic. A loaded gun in open carry intimidates by intention. Let my arms embrace the truth, not fire at phantoms. Let my aim shoot straight at issues, not persons. Let my sights be set on healing not destroying. A world like this is worth saving, and we would be saviours. To: The Mayor and Members of the City Council, Ashland, Or. May 2014 Fr : Rochelle Newman, ist and Professor emerita 11-19 a _ Ashland, Or. 97520 Statement #3: NO LOADED GUN CARRY IN ASHLAND! Ashland is an Arts environment: theater, music, visual, dance, food, wine. One of the functions of the Arts is to promote openness of inquiry and dialogue in a thoughtful and respectful manner. Guns close down discussion by their very presence. Ashland is a place of healing: hot springs, a variety of therapeutic modalities, brain balancing and diverse lifestyles. Guns do not heal. -They inflict wounds, both actual and psychological. They destruct--not construct. Aim for discussion. Target corruption: Trigger cooperative action. Do a post=mortem on elections. But do not carry guns in Ashland. Ready Aim... ttmm we said AIM! PlOC- 4 fo117/1~ a Granny Get Your Gun Granny get a gun. Won't you have fun As the good old days return. T I guess we'll never learn. No politician dares to complain As the gun supporters reign. We tolerate random shootings in schools Because the gun supporter rules Now anyone can openly carry a gun. And it seems nothing can be done- Our heroes will be the quickest draw. Feel sorry for the officer of the law. So granny better get your gun. There is nothing else to be done. It's back to the shoot-em-up days. Which brings us into a new national phase. Now carry an unconcealed gun Into a church, bar or place of fun. It's to protect ourselves we are told! So Granny you better be bold!!! MA Dear Mayor & City Councilors, W 5 / I am writing you to encourage full support and adoption of the Planning Commissions proposed 1 ordinance amending the Ashland Municipal Code establishing Medical Marijuana Dispensaries as a special permitted use in Commercial (C-1), Employment (E-1), and Industrial (M-1) Zoning Districts. The Planning Commission has offered an ordinance that is well thought out, has gone through the public hearing process, and balances the needs of citizens who require access to medical marijuana and the traffic related concerns that would impact residential zones. Of particular importance is the need to locate Medical Marijuana Dispensaries adjacent to a boulevard. It is noted in the Planning Commission study session documents that if a dispensary is compared to a pharmacy the traffic generated would be 5-11 cars per hour for every 1000 square feet of floor area. But unlike a pharmacy, a medical marijuana dispensary has the potential to morph into an entirely new business should marijuana legalization occur. With legalization a dispensary would become a full retail operation. Even a lower traffic count convenience market (a reasonable business comparison) generates over 30 car trips per hour for every 1000 square feet of floor area. With the current estimated traffic of a medical marijuana dispensary, and the highly probable exponential increase in traffic with a full retail store, being located adjacent to a boulevard is imperative. Thank you again for all your time and consideration on this issue. William Clary. 460 Williamson Way cu d 1P11-7J1 ' Maria Harris From: Carol Kim [horacekim@hotmail.com] Sent: Tuesday, June 17, 2014 2:09 PM To: harrism@ashland.or.us Subject: Medical Marijuana land use proposal - Williamson Way neighbors Dear Mayor and Councilors, Thank you for the time and thought you're giving to the dispensary issue. Our neighborhood has also worked hard, in good faith, for three months in this public process. In its second reading of the moratorium ordinance, the City Council changed from an earlier plan to require a minimal buffer, just one hundred feet between homes and dispensaries. It recognized the heavy traffic a dispensary could bring to residential streets like Williamson Way, a popular pedestrian and bicycle route. (Besides being narrow, Williamson includes a blind, right-angle turn.) We were grateful when you revised the moratorium to allow dispensaries only on major boulevards. Then the Planning Commission, after additional study and much discussion, unanimously agreed that a permanent land- use ordinance should use the boulevard standard. We believe the draft ordinance they approved is clear, effective, and fair. The planning staff created a map showing the possible locations in green, and there are many. Boulevards are built for high volumes of traffic, with more police, patrols and greater visibility, which the planning commission felt was relevant. We don't think there should be exceptions to the boulevard approach. But downtown is already excluded from both the moratorium and the ordinance proposed by the Planning Commission. If you decide that another location not on a main boulevard is in the city's best interest, please include it explicitly, rather than abandoning the boulevards approach and going back to just a buffer. A 100 foot buffer is grossly inadequate to address the problems the state considered when it banned dispensaries in residential neighborhoods and less than 1,000 feet from schools. In the case of Williamson Way, a 100 foot buffer would allow dispensaries--and their traffic--at several locations in the block just west of our homes. In the future they could locate behind us in Falcon Heights, which cars can reach only using Williamson and Rogue Place. Please vote to approve the draft-land use ordinance supported by the Planning Commission as written. We believe it is in the best interests of our entire community. Thank you. Neighbors of Williamson Way t arc mu,$~a 41117A ~ Maria Harris From: Maria Harris [harrism@ashland. or.us] ( d ` Sent: Monday, June 16, 2014 12:14 PM To: 'April Lucas' Cc: 'Maria Harris' Subject: FW: Council Contact Form - Neal Kinzie - 6/12/2014 April, Please add this to the record. Thanks. Maria Harris, Planning Manager City of Ashland, Community Development Department 20 E. Main St., Ashland, OR 97520 541.552.2045 Tel 800.735.2900 TTY 541.552.2050 Fax This email transmission is official business of the City of Ashland, and it is subject to Oregon Public Records Law for disclosure and retention. If you have received this message in error, please contact me at 541.552.2045. Thank you. From: "Neal Kinzie" <wvista(a--)mind. net> To: council aAashland.or.us Sent: Thursday, June 12, 2014 12:24:18 PM Subject: Council Contact Form - Neal Kinzie - 6112/2014 Name: Neal Kinzie Email: wvista@mind.net Subject: Medical Marijuana Facility Message: Dear Mayor and Council, My name is Neal Kinzie. I have lived in Ashland since 1980 and currently reside at 180 Clear Creek Drive #203. As a long-time resident, business owner and landlord, I completely understand the complicated task of adequately regulating medical marijuana facilities within the city of Ashland. I am writing you today•t o request that the City of Ashland allow state- licensed medical marijuana facilities within Clear Creeks E-1 area, as originally passed by the city council on April 1, 2014. This can be accomplished either by explicitly exempting our area or adding the following language in Section 1 that was removed upon the second reading of the ordinance: #which has any boundary line one hundred (100) feet or less from a boundary line of a lot zoned for residential use.# Again, this language was originally included in the first limited moratorium ordinance passed on April 1st. Very telling, the original version of the ordinance passed unanimously as it strikes the proper balance between allowing facilities to provide medical cannabis to patients while taking into account the concerns of neighbors. This also allows owners of E-1 zoned property to feel as if they are not being unfairly restricted on their land use. The Clear Creek area is a natural fit for inclusion. First, and most important, t ',we are insulated from schools and purely residential areas. Additionally, we are rerrioved'from high traffic and we already have a perfect blend of businesses. Clear Creek is home to Chinese medicine, acupuncture, botanical healing, massage therapy and Ashland Alternative Health, a medical marijuana doctors office. A professional medical marijuana dispensary would fit the area, without disrupting existing neighbors. This being said, our plan is to serve the customers who are already coming to this address and visiting Ashland Alternative Health. Our goal is to offer a professional, first class and discrete location for qualified patients to acquire medicine. Just as Ashland Alternative Health has been a model medical marijuana clinic, our facility will be a model medical cannabis facility that utilizes good business practices and good neighbor policies. We have no problem with complying to any additional regulations the City of Ashland may request and truly believe Areg ulation a nd taxation# is our ally. My personal cell phone is listed below. I would like to speak with (or meet with) you regarding this matter at any time before next Tuesdays adoption of the current pending ordinance. My Sincere Thanks, Neal Kinzie 2 June 17, 2014 Dear Mayor, Councilors, and Staff: My name is Nancy Nelson and I live in the Railroad District near the Marijuana Clinic on Clear Creek. For safety reasons I do not want to say my address out loud. Clear Creek Drive is zoned Industrial to my understanding, yet we have several apartment residential units above professional offices. Some of us have grandchildren who visit. I object to the Marijuana Clinic being opened across the street from our residential living quarters since some of us have teenaged grandchildren who visit us. If doctors who are licensed to practice within an Existing Medical Clinic or Hospital wish to take responsibility to be held liable for malpractice suits since it is against federal law for them to prescribe illegal substances. The only place where they should dispense Medial Marijuana for their patients is within the walls of a hospital building and grounds, or an existing Medical Clinic where they have to be covered by malpractice insurance coverage. The city, county, or state that allows federally illegal activities needs to take responsibility for such financial risk and take out insurance coverage if the dispensaries are anywhere within Ashland city limits. Most business owners and residents simply don't want dispensaries in their vicinity. Rural country folk might not care, but go with the mainstream on this one, rather than the fringe element. In 1870 a sign as you entered Dodge City said, "No Firearms". That signage marked the end of the Wild, Wild West 144 years ago. Gun carriers had to get out of Dodge. Your ordinance should prohibit carrying guns in public places. Period The ordinance should go back to the drawing board because of the two exemption clauses. I object to "unless a person had a concealed weapons permit". 1 object to the exemption for guns inside vehicles. A watered down ordinance is unacceptable because there are crackpots in town. On MEMORIAL DAY just prior to CA shootings, I was verbally assaulted on the Plaza by a skinhead who threatened me saying, See I have a gun. Voting is violence. 1 am recording you. I am recording you because I have to tell you first. He seemed angry at me as a woman and I left the Plaza. A shot was also fired near the Co-op one day. The violent people may be on drugs. Respectfully, Nancy Nels~n~ resident Obama is right: We should be ashamed of gun violence Milwaukee Journal Sentinel . And now, with the defeat of the have a monopojy on crazy people." Yet The following editorial appeared No. 2 Republican in the House, Eric "we're the only developed country" in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Cantor, the chances of anything getting !hat repeatedly has such terrible acts. Frid¢y; June 13: done are even slimmer. Cantor, a There's no place else like this," the Virginia Republican, who some critics president said. We should be ashamed of the said was too soft on defending gun This does not mean the end of the shooting after shooting on our rights as well as immigration reform, Second Amendment. We can respect streets and in our schools. We lost in a stunning upset to a tea party gun and hunter rights and still curb should be ashamed that Congress sits candidate in a GOP primary Tuesday. gun violence. Australia has done it. on its hands and does nothing to curb His defeat likely will both embolden Other countries have done it. the slaughter. It's fear of the political clout of the That was how President Barack the tea party wing of the Republican National Rifle Association and gun Obama characterized the issue of gun Party and make any remaining . manufacturers that is the biggest violence in a discussion with Tumblr establishment Republicans more factor in Congress' failure to act. founder.David Karp the other day, and cautious. That means little action Obama also noted that although polls the president got it exactly right. on issues such as gun control and show that a majority of Americans Eighteen months ago, 20 children immigration reform. support steps to control guns, they were murdered in a grade school in The country has to do some soul- don't feel passionately enough about Connecticut - and nothing was done searching on this. This is becoming it to punish lawmakers who disagree. to expand background checks or limit the norm," Obama said Tuesday. "Our "Until that happens, sadly, not that weapons clips. Since then, there have levels of gun violence are off the charts. much is going to change." been 74 shootings at schools - the There's no advanced developed country Obama called the failure to achieve latest last week in Oregon left two dead on Earth that would put up with this." reasonable gun restrictions the biggest and one wounded - and still nothing Yes, mental health is an issue frustration of his presidency. It should is done. And that's just schools; that related to violence, and we have be the biggest frustration for all doesn't count the shootings in theaters, to find better Ways of dealing with Americans. Voters need to not only temples, churches and incidents such it. But other countries have people' support tighter gun control; they need as the recent Las Vegas spree that left with mental illnesses and don't have to get angry with politicians who refuse two police officers, a Walmart customer shootings on this scale. As Chains, to act. And then punish them at the and the two shooters dead. said, "The United States does not polls. (~*Akv'v 4 Dear Mayor and Councilors, do June 17, 2014 Thank you for the time and thought you're giving to the dispensary issue. Our neighborhood has also worked hard, in good faith, for three months in this public process. In its second reading of the moratorium ordinance, the City Council changed from an earlier plan to require a minimal buffer, just one hundred feet between homes and dispensaries. It recognized the heavy traffic a dispensary could bring to residential streets like Williamson Way, a popular pedestrian and bicycle route. (Besides being narrow, Williamson includes a blind, right-angle turn.) We were grateful when you revised the moratorium to allow dispensaries only on major boulevards. Then the Planning Commission, after additional study and much discussion, unanimously agreed that a permanent land-use ordinance should use the boulevard standard. We believe the draft ordinance they approved is clear, effective, and fair. The planning staff created a map showing the possible locations in green, and there are many. Boulevards are built for high volumes of traffic, with more police patrols and greater visibility, which the Planning Commission felt was relevant. We don't think there should be exceptions to the boulevard approach. But downtown is already excluded from both the moratorium and the ordinance proposed by the Planning Commission. If you decide that another location not on a main boulevard is in the city's best interest, please include it explicitly, rather than abandoning the boulevard approach and going back to just a buffer. A 100 foot buffer is grossly inadequate to address the problems the state considered when it banned dispensaries in residential neighborhoods and less than 1,000 feet from schools. In the case of Williamson Way, a 100 foot buffer would allow dispensaries-and their traffic -at several locations in the block just west of our homes. In the future, they could locate behind us in Falcon Heights, which cars can reach only using Williamson and Rogue Place. Please vote to approve the draft land-use ordinance supported by the Planning Commission as written. We believe it is in the best interests of our entire community. From the Rogue/Williamson Way neighbors, including Andrew and Carol Kim and Dave ^ Helmick. ~C.~"e' ~gvtq ~}c~ nuc~