The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established on December 2, 1970 to consolidate in one agency a variety of activities to ensure environmental protection. Since its creation, EPA has been working for a cleaner, healthier environment for the American people. EPA's mission is to protect human health by safeguarding the air we breathe, water we drink and land on which we live.

“Environmental protection, what they do is a disgrace,” Mr. Trump said after the election. “Every week they come out with new regulations.”

Scott Pruitt, who was picked by President Trump to run the Environmental Protection Agency has a blueprint to repeal climate change rules, cut staffing levels, close regional offices and permanently weaken the agency’s regulatory authority.

“Here’s my impression about Pruitt: I don’t think he’s going in there to blow up the agency, I think he’ll be very careful to make sure they’ve done everything legally to cross all the t’s and dot all the i’s.” - Jeffrey Holmstead, a senior E.P.A. official during the George W. Bush administration.

Myron Ebell, a climate-change denier who led Mr. Trump’s E.P.A. transition team proposed to slash the E.P.A.’s staff by two-thirds, to 5,000 from about 15,000. The president has promised also to “eliminate” former President Barack Obama’s major environmental regulations, including a global warming rule and another major regulation to curb pollution in lakes, streams and rivers.

"The Obama climate plan is aimed at transforming the nation’s electric power system, driving it away from fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy. It would most likely close most of the nation’s approximately 600 coal-fired power plants and replace them with wind and solar facilities, aiming to cut 2005 levels of greenhouse gas pollution nearly a third by 2030. Mr. Pruitt’s draft climate rule is designed to leave most coal-fired power plants open, but require them to install energy-efficient technology to slightly lower their emissions."

As Coral Davenport says for the New York Times: "But in Mr. Pruitt, who is expected to be confirmed by the Senate this week, the president has tapped a surgeon, not a butcher, to fulfill those pledges. As much as anyone, Mr. Pruitt knows the legal intricacies of environmental regulation — and deregulation. As Oklahoma’s attorney general for the last six years, he has led or taken part in 14 lawsuits against the E.P.A."

The full article can be found here: Scott Pruitt Is Seen Cutting the E.P.A. With a Scalpel, Not a Cleaver

The official 'Rogue' Facebook page of the National Park Service has posted this:

"Action Item: Scott Pruitt, leader of the EPA. who was assigned by Trump has created plans to abolish the EPA. He created a blueprint to repeal climate change rules, slash the EPA’s staff by two-thirds, close regional offices, and permanently weaken the agency’s regulatory authority. It's time to stand up against Scott Pruitt. Call your representative and senator at (202) 224-3121. Also, we tagged Scott Pruitt above feel free to post your opinion on his Facebook, he disabled the ability to post on his wall so try to utilize the comment section on his post."

Please call your representative and senator at (202) 224-3121.

Here is some advice: "For everyone calling, only senators get to vote on cabinet nominees. Also, if you want to bypass the switchboard and go straight to your elected officials, text your zip code to 520-200-2223. You'll get a text back with everyone's contact info!"

Here is a site from where you can get the necessary information too: http://www.phoneyourrep.com/

The official page of Scott Pruitt is here: https://www.facebook.com/ScottPruitt/. You can leave him a comment under a picture, since he disabled the posting feature.

Newest update is available here: Working another angle.

Here is the newest update: Bears are fed BUT...........

The media release from Cee4Life organization on this issue can be found here: https://www.cee4life.org/media-release/

After reading the media release from Cee4Life my opinion of whether the Bandung Zoo should be closed or not has not changed. In my opinion every zoo should be closed. What is the purpose of zoos? To help animals? To care for animals? Or is it profit and entertainment?

As Cee4Life said themselves:

'While the enclosures are not ideal, the animals are being fed and have received Veterinary aid since May 2016. Cee4life will endeavor to monitor the progress of the animals over the coming months to reassure the public that the animals are in good health. It was also found that even if the authorities wish to relocate the animals, there is simply no facility or sanctuary to house these animals at this time.'

Ok, they are fed (they say so by providing one or two pictures). Still, as Cee4Life says, they don't have a good enclosure to live in? Point is, they never will. It's a zoo! Zoos will never meet the necessary requirements for an animal. Because it is not a natural environment, it is not the wild where they belong. It doesn't give them the freedom they were born with and deserve to have.

As P Holmes said, we need to keep the pressure on. There is a list of countries in the update that support Indonesia. Please take some time to voice your opinion regarding this cruel treatment of animals in the zoo.

'Please do not let Cee4Life derail our efforts/movement to bring about change for the animals in Bandung Zoo and all the other zoos in Indonesia. We must keep the pressure on. Please continue to share and let the world know what is happening to the poor innocent animals that are being kept in disgusting hell holes against their will and abused. Please boycott all zoos and, boycott Indonesia. I know some disagree with boycotting Indonesia. Please know that sometimes it is the only way. I am not asking for boycotting of the people of Indonesia.'

Reminder: Here is the change.org petition:

Shut down the Bandung Zoo now!

and the petition from care2.com:

President Widodo, Shut down Bandung Zoo now.

The article where you can find the video from the zoo: Shocking video shows skeletal sun bears BEGGING visitors to feed them junk food - as they are trapped and starving in an Indonesian zoo

In the first few days of his new role as President of The United States, Donald Trump has managed to make a number of decisions that affect, and sadly not in a good way, people, animals and the environment.


On Monday, he reinstated the Global Gag Rule. The Mexico City police, or the global gag rule is an executive order that prevents international health organizations from providing abortions to patients, mentioning abortions to the people they treat, or lobbying against local abortion restrictions. If they break that rule, they will not receive U.S. foreign aid. This rule only impacts non U.S. based organizations that receive U.S. funding.

The Gag Rule makes it also difficult to access contraception. When George W. Bush reinstated the Gag Rule in 2001, "shipments of U.S.-donated condoms and contraceptives completely ceased to 16 developing countries, primarily in Africa. Family planning providers in another 16 countries lost access to condoms and contraceptives as a result of their refusal to accept the policy’s restrictions."


Since women cannot have abortions from qualified practitioners, they seek illegal abortions, which can have grave health consequences. The World Health Organization documented, 21.6 million women have unsafe abortions each year, with 18.5 million of them occurring in developing countries and 47,000 of those women die from those unsafe abortions annually.

"A 2011 study found the Gag Rule to be associated with increased abortion rates in sub-Saharan African countries... Abortion rates began to rise noticeably only after the Gag Rule was reinstated in 2001." - PAI (An expert in Family Planning)

Original article: "The Global Gag Rule is much more than a piece of political theater — it has real world impact, and devastating consequences."

Please sign and share this petition: Trump: Reverse the Global Gag Rule

2. Horse Soring Ban Put on Hold

President Donald Trump has issued a memorandum for all unpublished rules to be withdrawn and sent back to the relevant agency for review. Amongst them is a regulation aiming to end the practice of horse "soring". One week before President Barack Obama left office, the Department of Agriculture announced that it had finalized a new regulation to update the Horse Protection Act. To become effective, the rule must be published in the Federal Register.



The practice of soring involves placing chains, caustic chemical agents or other devices on the legs and hooves of Tennessee walking horses and similar breeds. The devices are used to inflict pain so that when the animals’ hooves touch the ground, they kick up their feet higher and faster than normal, producing an exaggerated version of their natural high-stepping gait. The practice is often used to give horses an advantage in show competitions,

Original article: Trump administration places horse 'soring' ban on hold

It is still to be seen if Trump will accept this ban. We can at least hope, right? Right?

3. Trump Reverses Obama Orders on Keystone XL, Dakota Access Pipelines

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump has signed executive actions to advance approval of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines. He shortened the regulatory process for pipeline construction as well as the environmental-review process. "If we intend to fix our country, our bridges, our roadways, we can't be in an environmental process for 15 years,". The construction on both pipelines is planned to begin after renegotiations. He said the projects will be massive job-creators but he did not acknowledge the potential environmental or human impact of the construction.

Original article: Trump Reverses Obama Orders on Keystone XL, Dakota Access Pipelines

The Standing Rock Sioux and other tribes are organizing actions to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline. In December 2016, after nearly a year of protest at the Standing Rock Camps and around the world, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) announced its decision to not approve an easement that would allow the Dakota Access Pipeline to cross the Missouri River at Lake Oahe in North Dakota. The Corps also declared that it would require an Environmental Impact Statement to analyze alternate routes for the pipeline and to conduct a more rigorous environmental review. The Corps published its Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS in the Federal Register last Wednesday, January 18: Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement in Connection With Dakota Access, LLC's Request for an Easement To Cross Lake Oahe, North Dakota

Chairman Archambault (the tribal Chairman of the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota) has issued a letter to the President: http://standwithstandingrock.net/letter-president-trump/

For more updates and ways to help visit their official site: http://standwithstandingrock.net/
Also visit this site: http://lakotalaw.org/ where you can submit your comment to the DAPL Environmental Report.




4. Trump Administration Orders Media Blackout at EPA

The Trump administration has gagged employees at two federal agencies. Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Agriculture are now blocked from communicating with the public and the press. But not just that, at the EPA, grants and contract budget have also been frozen. Scientists at the research division of the US Department of Agriculture are no longer allowed to communicate with the public about taxpayer-funded research.

The EPA is responsible for passing and upholding regulations on issues such as clean air and water and the carbon emissions responsible for global warming. The USDA is less politically sensitive than the EPA, though it does do some research into genetically modified food and pesticides and it has used research money to investigate how to cut down methane, a greenhouse gas that is a major cause of climate change.

Many Departments have made Rogue Twitter Accounts:

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: https://twitter.com/TheAltEPA
U.S. Department of Agriculture: https://twitter.com/altusda
U.S. Food and Drug Administration: https://twitter.com/alt_fda
U.S. Forest Service: https://twitter.com/AltForestServ
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration: https://twitter.com/RogueNASA
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services: https://twitter.com/AltHHS

There will be a Science March on Washington.

"Although this will start with a march, we hope to use this as a starting point to take a stand for science in politics. Slashing funding and restricting scientists from communicating their findings (from tax-funded research!) with the public is absurd and cannot be allowed to stand as policy. This is a non-partisan issue that reaches far beyond people in the STEM fields and should concern anyone who values empirical research and science. 

There are certain things that we accept as facts with no alternatives. The Earth is becoming warmer due to human action. The diversity of life arose by evolution. Politicians who devalue expertise risk making decisions that do not reflect reality and must be held accountable. An American government that ignores science to pursue ideological agendas endangers the world."

If you want to directly help, visit this page: ttps://goo.gl/forms/zAdY02dBEz3Ykii42
Official Science March blog: http://www.scientistsmarchonwashington.com/
Official Twitter page: https://twitter.com/ScienceMarchDC
Official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1862739727343189/


5. Don't Let Trump Kill the Endangered Species Act

"With Republicans in control of Congress, the Endangered Species Act is on the chopping block! House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop has said he “would love to invalidate” the law. Other Republican lawmakers would like to limit logging restrictions under the act, stop lawsuits to protect species, or force one species off the list for every species added to the list.

Wolves are in the cross-hairs because Republicans are pushing to open up trophy hunting, and lawsuits from environmental groups have been the wolves' last defense. Additionally, salmon, walrus, wolverines and other important species would be at risk under a weakened ESA because the protection of their habitat is opposed by energy, mining, logging and agricultural industries."

Please sign and share this petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/263/711/826/defend-endangered-species-dont-defang-the-esa/

After Trump's decisions, activists from Greenpeace have put up a 70ft banner inscribed with the word “resist” near the White House on Wednesday morning. The message is: Resistance to Trump's climate denial, racism, misogyny, homophobia and bigotry.


You can follow their official site: http://www.greenpeace.org/ and twitter page: https://twitter.com/Greenpeace for more news and updates on how to help. They have started also a hashtag Resist Often. Use #ResistOften.

Here is a link on ways you can stay politically informed, contact senators and representatives etc.
Flex your political activist muscles with these resources

A video footage of malnourished sun bears has been put online few days ago showing these bears begging the visitors of the Bandung Zoo, where they are living, for food. The article can be found here: Shocking video shows skeletal sun bears BEGGING visitors to feed them junk food - as they are trapped and starving in an Indonesian zoo

470,162 supporters have signed the petition "Shut down the Bandung Zoo now!" on change.org to stop this abuse and shut down the zoo for good.

The creator of the petition, P Holmes, has updated the supporters on the latest response of Animal Asia, regarding the issue. Here is the whole update: https://www.change.org/p/president-widodo-shut-down-the-bandung-zoo-now/u/19105016

And an other update can be found here: https://www.change.org/p/president-widodo-shut-down-the-bandung-zoo-now/u/19113806

The ultimate goal to shut down the zoo is a longer process, but if we keep at it, I do think it will be possible to do so. But the first goal is to relocate these bears to a sanctuary where they can have a normal and healthy conditions for life.

A second petition can be found on care2.com: President Widodo, Shut down Bandung Zoo now. Please sign and share.

 'Sun Bears kept in the Bandung Zoo are so hungry they eat their own feces. One of the zoo’s giraffes suddenly died and was found to have 40 pounds of plastic trash in its stomach. The Bandung Zoo has been coined Indonesia’s “death zoo” and must be shut down immediately.'

'We saw a sun bear eating its own dung but when we contacted the zoo's officers they told us the bear was medicated and we weren't allowed to see it.'


Please help close this zoo by signing this petition: https://www.change.org/p/president-widodo-shut-down-the-bandung-zoo-now?source_location=minibar

And please share it with others.

'These beautiful creatures should not be allowed to spend one more day at this terrible facility where they are forced to live between concrete walls, with no proper shelter and absolutely no food and water.'

A new study that was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, which was led by a team from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), Panthera and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) states that there are only an estimated 7,100 cheetahs left in existence in the wild globally, and they are all in danger.

“This study represents the most comprehensive analysis of cheetah status to date. Given the secretive nature of this elusive cat, it has been difficult to gather hard information on the species, leading to its plight being overlooked. Our findings show that the large space requirements for cheetah, coupled with the complex range of threats faced by the species in the wild, mean that it is likely to be much more vulnerable to extinction than was previously thought,” - Dr. Sarah Durant, ZSL/WCS lead author and Project Leader for the Rangewide Conservation Program for Cheetah and African Wild Dog.


In the past Cheetahs have ranged widely throughout Africa, the Middle East and southwestern Asia. Sadly, they have suffered from various threats: habitat loss, fragmentation, conflicts with humans, a loss of prey, being hit by vehicles and by the illegal cheetah trade, because of the demand for their skin and parts and for live cheetahs who are sold as exotic pets.


Global Warming is another threat for these wild animals: Is Global Warming Affecting the Cheetah’s Ability to Reproduce?

The goal to help them consists of on-the-ground efforts: protecting habitat, working with governments of cheetah range states and providing incentives for local communities to work toward coexisting with cheetahs. These efforts will require public support, political will and a lot of funding.

“We’ve just hit the reset button in our understanding of how close cheetahs are to extinction. The take-away from this pinnacle study is that securing protected areas alone is not enough. We must think bigger, conserving across the mosaic of protected and unprotected landscapes that these far-ranging cats inhabit, if we are to avert the otherwise certain loss of the cheetah forever,” - Dr. Kim Young-Overton, Panthera’s Cheetah Program Director.


For more information and ways to help the Cheetahs, visit Panthera and Wildlife Conservation Society.

Panthera’s Cheetah Program has the goal to protect Cheetahs by addressing direct threats to them, their prey base, and their habitats. They gather critical ecological data by surveying and monitoring populations and their prey, collaborating with local law enforcement officials and partners, and working with local communities to mitigate conflict and create cheetah-positive landscapes within communities. Panthera’s approach to protecting cheetahs has a dual focus: developing a program in Africa that can eventually be expanded across the cheetah’s African range and focusing on the small remaining population of Asiatic cheetahs in Iran.

Wildlife Conservation Society is using scientific study to discover what wildlife species need in order to thrive. They invest in stopping threats and they target wide-ranging species because of their intrinsic value and because they are vital to ecosystem health. You can help them protect Cheetahs by donating to their cause: BIG CATS IN CRISIS.

Also check out Range Wide Conservation Program for Cheetah and African Wild Dogs.

Full article: World’s Fastest Land Animal is Now Racing Extinction