WERC Highlights -- October 1999

White Abalone Media Event: USGS marine biologist Kevin Lafferty was among scientists interviewed by writers for CNN, Ventura County Star, San Jose Mercury News, and the Long Beach Press Telegram. They were aboard a research vessel from which the scientists launched a two-man submarine to search for white abalone in the first stage of a cooperative attempt at restoring this rare abalone's populations. (Kevin Lafferty, Santa Barbara, CA, 805-893-8778) Official news release

Legacy of Human Occupancy Marks California Deserts: USGS scientist Jeff Lovich was interviewed by NPR, San Francisco Chronicle (AP), the San Bernardino Sun, and Riverside Press-Enterprise regarding the first major review of human impacts on the Mojave and Colorado deserts, published in the journal Environmental Management. Lovich and his coauthor examined more than 150 studies by university and government scientists, finding that large parts of these deserts have been negatively affected by human activities over the past century. (Jeff Lovich, Riverside, CA, 909-787-4719) Official news release

World Turtle Crisis Again in News: USGS scientist Jeff Lovich, was interviewed by the Philadelphia Inquirer regarding the survival crisis of the world's turtles, announced recently by leading international turtle experts. (Jeff Lovich, Riverside, CA, 909-787-4719)

California Shrubland Fires Again in News: The newspaper of the Society of American Foresters, The Forestry Source, cited urban sprawl as the cause behind these fires in a recent story on USGS scientist Jon Keeley's study that exonerates fire suppression as the cause of large shrubland fires in southern and central coastal California. (Jon Keeley, Three Rivers, CA, 559- 565-3170) Official news release

Tamarisk Usurps Water in Riparian Habitats: USGS scientist Jeff Lovich was interviewed for the fall issue of Aqueduct 2000, the magazine of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, about tamarisk, an exotic shrub that has displaced native shrubs and trees along riparian corridors in the Southwest. (Jeff Lovich, Riverside, CA, 909-787-4719)