February 13, 2002
Wednesday

There's been a lot of talk about terrorist activity against the United States. Let's not forget that eco-terrorists here at home are every bit as dangerous and unpatriotic as terrorists abroad. They purposely wreak havoc on our nation's forests, destroy property, and damage American livelihoods without remorse. Eco-terrorism is a threat to American safety throughout the United States.

Congress must stand united in the message that America will not tolerate terrorism in any form. Eco-terrorist groups like the Earth Liberation Front and the Animal Liberation Front express their beliefs with violence. They have cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars. They have come close to costing human life and will likely do so in the near future. In October 1998, ELF arsonists torched a ski lodge in Vail, Colorado, causing more than $12 million dollars in damage. They warned frightened tourists to stay away from Vail for their own safety - a threat that implies injury or death. This must stop.

Eco-Terrorism Facts:

• The ELF claims to have caused more than $40 million in damage in North America since 1997.
   
• Media reports implicate the two groups in nearly a dozen acts of domestic eco-terrorism since Sept. 11. The most recent act of eco-terrorism for which ELF claims credit was on Jan. 29, 2002. The group set firebombs at the site of the Microbial and Plant Genomics Research Center under construction on the University of Minnesota's St. Paul campus.
   
• Last year, FBI Director Louis Freeh identified radical eco-terrorist organizations such as ELF as one of America's primary domestic terrorism threats.
   
• While radical eco-terrorist organizations, like ELF, claim they don't want to hurt people, law enforcement officials say it is only a matter of time before someone is injured or killed.
   
• In a statement following ELF's famous 1998 torching of a Vail Resorts ski lodge in Colorado, spokesperson Craig Rosebraugh said, "For your safety, we strongly advise skiers to choose other destinations until Vail cancels its inexcusable expansion."
   
• Violence is the first and only answer for eco-terrorists. ALF's mission statement advocates, "Animal Liberation - by whatever means necessary." On ELF's website, there are tutorials such as, "How to Set Fires With Electrical Timers."
   

Eco-Terrorism Figures:

• October 30, 1996. Arson destroyed U.S. Forest Service Oakridge Ranger Station near Eugene, Oregon. Cost estimate: $5.3 million.
   
• June 2, 1998. Two USDA wildlife stations destroyed by arson in Olympic National Forest. Cost estimate: $1.9 million.
   
• October 19, 1998. In Vail, Colorado on the White River National Forest, Two Elk Restaurant, Ski Patrol and four lifts torched by ELF in protest of a ski-area expansion by Vail Resorts. Cost estimate: Reports range from $12 to $26 million.
   
• Dec. 27, 1998. Medford Fire ravages the headquarters of U.S. Forest Industries. Cost estimate: $700,000.
   
• Dec. 25, 1999. Arson in Monmouth, Oregon levels Boise Cascade timber management office. Cost estimate: $1 million.
   
• July 20, 2000. Near Rhinelander, Wisconsin, ELF cuts down thousands of experimental trees bred naturally to grow faster and resist diseases, and spray-painted vehicles at a U.S. Forest Service research station. Cost estimate: $1 million.
   
• Jan. 2, 2001. Glendale, Oregon fire ignited by ELF arsonists guts offices of Superior Lumber Co., the town's largest employer. Cost estimate: $400,000.
   
• June 1, 2001. University of Washington Center for Urban Horticulture firebombed by ELF. Cost estimate: $5.3 million.
   

Today, our nation is suffering from the consequences of terrorist activities that have taken the lives of thousands of our families and friends. I believe we must be more vigilant against organizations that promote violent actions to achieve their political means. A bombing campaign led by the ALF and ELF was once compared to terrorism caused by the Irish Republican Army. Terrorism within our own borders must not be tolerated any more than terrorism from abroad.

Note: Alaska Congressman Don Young denounced eco-terrorist tactics and lawlessness in our nation's forests following yesterday's hearing before the Forest and Forest Health Subcommittee of the House Resources Committee.

 

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