Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, May 15, 1995 TAG: 9505160014
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CATHRYN MCCUE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Inside every box of animal cookies made by Nabisco - the ones with the string handles that every kid, age 2 to 92, loves - are camels, bears, giraffes, zebras, seals and other common animals.
But start looking for boxes with Siberian tigers, giant pandas, Asian elephants and orangutans - all endangered species.
Nabisco has launched the new series, available only until Aug. 31, to raise awareness of the dwindling populations of some species, and to raise money for special projects.
One of those projects is right here in the Roanoke Valley. Nabisco recently helped Mill Mountain Zoo launch a fundraising campaign for a snow leopard exhibit. For every box of Barnum's Animals of endangered species purchased at a local Kroger or Food Lion, Nabisco will contribute one nickel to the project, up to a total of $2,500.
The total exhibit will cost about $75,000 for a state-of-the-art habitat for the snow leopards. The first pair will come from the Bronx Zoo. Mill Mountain Zoo caretakers will conduct an ongoing breeding program to increase the number of snow leopards, which are native to the Himalayan mountains.
A tree grows in Salem
Valley Beautiful recently awarded $15,000 in grants to numerous organizations for beautification projects.
The largest grant, $7,170, went to Roanoke to buy flowers for the hanging baskets in the central business district. Valley Beautiful has supported this project each year since it began in 1986.
Vinton received $1,875 for its hanging baskets, and Salem received $503 to replace dead trees along Braeburn Drive.
Other recipients include:
Ebenezer A.M.E. Church got $1,500 to plant trees at Layfayette Boulevard and Cove Road in Northwest Roanoke.
Old Southwest Neighborhood Association got $800 to plant trees along Franklin Road.
Clearbrook Elementary School got $500 to establish an arboretum and outdoor environmental education area.
Jobs and the environment
A grassroots environmental group has teamed up with a national labor union to sponsor the second annual Jobs and the Environment training session in Southwest Virginia.
The workshop is designed to bring workers and community activists together to share concerns and build a common agenda toward protecting jobs, people's health, and the environment.
The meeting is scheduled for May 20, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers Union hall in Dublin. The union and the Citizens Clearinghouse for Hazardous Waste are sponsoring the workshop.
Participants will discuss public attitudes toward jobs and the environment, job insecurity and the labor market, chemical exposure in the workplace and in the community, and how to find solutions.
Last year's participants walked away with a better appreciation for how much rank-and-file workers and community activists have in common.
"We've got to save the environment. But instead of shutting plants down, we'd rather clean up the workplace and save the jobs," said Joe Davis, health and safety officer with OCAW Local 3-495.
Environmental meeting
On May 30, the Blue Ridge Environmental Network and the Roanoke River chapter of the Sierra Club will co-host an outdoor picnic meeting at Virginia's Explore Park, starting at 6:30 p.m.
Come see recent improvements to the park and hear from Rupert Cutler, the park's director and chairman of the Virginia Wildlife Society, about the status of the Endangered Species Act in Congress.
The meeting is open to the public. Food and drink will be provided by the Sierra Club, but bring a dish or dessert if you can. The park is located on Rutrough Road: follow the signs from Blue Ridge Parkway milepost 115.
Memo: ***CORRECTION***