Archive - Jun 11, 2009

• Protests over Amazon oil projects spread through Peru
• Profile of Rick Boucher; a negotiating force shaping landmark climate change bill
• Lawmakers had investments in firms bailed out by Congress
• Pacific Ocean ecosystems hurt by global warming
• Portland musicians want fair pay to play

• World Health Organization declares flu pandemic
• Palestinian territories see first case of H1N1
• Environmentalist disappointed in new mountain top removal mining rules
• Judge hands NY Senate to Republicans

Go to your local coffee shop, and you can probably find Fair Trade coffee.  Fair Trade certification lets you know that the farmers were paid a decent wage for their work.  But can you get the same guarantees for the musician playing at the coffee shop?  A union in Portland, Oregon, is launching a campaign to ensure working musicians earn a living wage for their labors as well.  Deena Prichep reports.

Baby shellfish off the coasts of Oregon and Washington may be global warming's canary in the coalmine.   Hatchery production declined this year by 80% due to ocean acidification, which occurs when the ocean absorbs billions of tons of carbon from the atmosphere.  Marine chemists have been studying changes in the ocean´s acid levels for decades but it´s only recently that their findings are pointing to serious changes in marine ecosystems.  Martha Baskin has the story.

Virginia Democrat Rick Boucher is at the center of shaping landmark climate change legislation, that could be approved by congress this summer.  The bill squeaked through the House Energy Committee in May and will make its way to the House floor this month.But depending on who you ask, Boucher is either a skillful negotiator that brings people together or a sellout to energy companies.  Yanmei Xie reports from Capitol Hill.

Congressional disclosure forms reveal that some key lawmakers had investments in the financial firms they voted to bail out. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi defends the investments and denies any conflict of interest. FSRN's Karen Miller reports.

Protests are taking place across Peru today, in solidarity with indigenous peoples who oppose oil drilling in the Peruvian Amazon.  Clashes between protesters and police turned deadly last Friday, with the number of protestor deaths still a matter of dispute.  Today, protesters are blocking roads in northeast Peru and unions are staging a march in the capital city of Lima.  President Alan Garcia says the socialist government of neighboring Bolivia is behind the protests, but critics blame Garcia for the current situation, saying he mishandled the initial protests and used excessive force