NASA PLANS RISKY PLUTONIUM LAUNCHES

from Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space

A protest on January 7 higlighted opposition to NASAÕs planned New Horizons launch that carried 24 pounds of radioactive plutonium on board.

NASA acknowledges in their Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the New Horizons mission that there was a 1 in 300 chance of an accident resulting in release of the plutonium.

In the event of such an accident the EIS states that the deadly plutonium could be carried by winds for a 60-mile radius throughout Central Florida. Clean-up costs for a plutonium accident would range from $241 million to $1.3 billion per square mile.

NASA has plans to expand the numbers of nuclear launches in the coming years. The DoE is now planning a $300 million expansion of their laboratory in Idaho just to make more plutonium for space missions.

For more information check the Global Network website at: http://www.space4peace.org. Contacts: Bruce Gagnon (207) 729-0517, Maria Telesca (Florida) (321) 632-5977.

Seattle and Portland among safest U.S. cities for pedestrians

Below are some tips for safer strolling in any city

from the Tia Foundation

Safe Kids Worldwide ( www.safekids.org/index.html) has released their report on the safest cities for pedestrians with one million or more people. The top five are Austin, Texas; Seattle, Washington; Portland, Oregon; San Francisco, California; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The most dangerous five are Memphis, Tennessee; St. Louis, Missouri; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; San Antonio, Texas; and Houston, Texas

Safe Kids also makes the following recommendations to help make streets safer.

Education and Empowerment

¥Urge parents to participate with their children in school-based pedestrian safety activities like International Walk to School Day.

¥Encourage parents to walk or bike with their children to school, if possible, to decrease traffic congestion and increase safety.

¥Create public information campaigns that promote the importance of supervising children crossing the street until the age of 10.

¥Remind parents that they are also drivers who should obey traffic laws.

¥Provide schools with resources to teach children about pedestrian safety.

¥Teach children pedestrian safety tips.

¥Begin ÒWalking School BusÓ programs or others that provide adult supervision along school routes, and encourage parents and neighbors to keep areas surrounding schools safe for child pedestrians.

Engineering and Environment

¥Encourage an assessment of pedestrian conditions in residential areas.

¥Provide school administrators with resources to evaluate school grounds and surrounding areas for pedestrian-related dangers.

¥Join SAFE KIDS coalitions and other advocacy groups working to improve pedestrian environments through traffic calming.

¥Alert local/state transportation and public works departments of environmental dangers to child pedestrians, such as broken sidewalks and crossing signals.

¥Advocate for lower speed limits in school zones and residential areas.

¥Designate more funds dedicated to improving pedestrian environments.

Enforcement

¥Establish and enforce lower motor vehicle speed limits, especially in residential areas and near schools where children are pedestrians. Promote and enforce existing pedestrian right-of-way and jaywalking laws.

The Tia Foundation may be reached at Tia_Foundation@yahoo.com.