What's New on the 'Net:
The Environment and Natural Resources & Campaign 2000
Robert D. Duval and Rebecca Barrett-Duval
With the turn of the new millennium, environmental issues continue to emerge as major policy questions of critical importance. Global warming, biodiversity, deforestation and many other issues have moved to the front stage of policy debates across the globe. We need a substantial knowledge base to assess these problems, and the Web is an invaluable resource when researching environmental policy issues.
Environmentalists, environmental organizations, and environmental agencies have always been quick to utilize the World Wide Web. The combination of a technically oriented staff and the desire to provide information on geographic and environmental systems led to an early adoption of the Web as a vehicle for getting the various agents and agencies' missions out online. In fact, one of the very earliest government information servers of any type was the U.S. Geological Survey. Appearing in1994, its site was the best overall government information site on the Web. Their site has reverted back into a U.S. Geological Survey information and program specific web site. We mention it first, because it was one of the 'first.'
U.S. Geological Survey
We will return to the other Department of the Interior sites shortly after we begin our tour of environmental information
on the Web. In so doing, we provide a cursory glance at the rather large number of governmental programs that regulate
and protect the environment and the country's natural resource heritage. Indeed, the number of sites relevant to
the environment and natural resources is so large and diverse that we can provide simply a large compendium of
links in this issue, and we only scratch the surface at that!
We must make one last comment about environmental Web sites before starting our exposition. You are encouraged to take your time and really browse many of these pages because they are often visually stunning. We hope you find them as enjoyable as we have.
Federal Government Agencies
The place to start is actually the newest of the federal environmental agencies. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency provided the home for most of the programs and offices that protect our environment. As its name indicates, the U.S. EPA is charged with protecting the environment. It has many bureaus and programs that provide information on the Web, including:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
U.S. EPA Organization Chart
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/organization/
EPA Regional Offices
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/locate2.htm
Region 1 - Boston
Region 2 - New York
Region 3 - Philadelphia
Region 4 - Atlanta
Region 5 - Chicago
Region 6 - Dallas
Region 7 - Kansas City
Region 8 - Denver
Region 9 - San Francisco
Region 10 - Seattle
Offices and Programs
Office of the Administrator
http://www.epa.gov/adminweb/index.htm
Office of Administration and Resources Management
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/OARM.html
History Office
Human Resources and Organizational Services
Office of Air and Radiation
http://www.epa.gov/oar/oarhome.html
American Indian Environmental Office
Chief Financial Officer
Office of Enforcement & Compliance Assurance
http://es.epa.gov/oeca/index.html
Office of Environmental Justice
http://es.epa.gov/oeca/main/ej/index.html
Office of Inspector General
Office of International Activities
Office of Policy
http://www.epa.gov/oppe/oppe.html
Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances
http://www.epa.gov/internet/oppts/
Office of Research and Development
Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response
Office of Water
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
While the EPA is charged with protecting the environment, the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) is the principle agency that manages the country's resource wealth. This management takes the form of conservation, protection and resource management and development. As a result, the DOI has very diverse roles within its program structure. On the one hand, it promotes and sets aside wilderness preservation areas. On the other hand, it manages lands and forests for logging and mining. Its diverse programs also require diversity in its Web presence.
Department of Interior
Bureau of Indian Affairs
http://www.doi.gov/bureau-indian-affairs.html
Bureau of Land Management
Minerals Management Services
Bureau of Reclamation
http://www.usbr.gov/main/index.html
National Park Service
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
U.S. Geological Survey
DOI Policy, Management and Budget
http://www.doi.gov/policy-management-budget.html
DOI Territorial and International Affairs
There are also environmental offices within the Department of Commerce.
Department of Commerce
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
U.S. National Ocean Service
National Marine Fisheries Service
Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research
NOAA Research Laboratories
National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service
National Weather Service
Other divisions within the federal government have interests in the environment. Among the more notable are:
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
The White House
The Presidents Council on Sustainable Development
http://www.whitehouse.gov/PCSD/
There are also some educational Institutes which warrant mention under federal agencies, including:
The National Center for Atmospheric Research
The Smithsonian Institute
Conservation and Research Center
The National Science Foundation
Biocomplexity in the Environment
http://www.nsf.gov/home/crssprgm/be/
Global Climate Change Research Programs
The most striking aspect of these federal agencies is that they represent just a small portion of the many federal
programs, divisions, and offices that provide policy and information on environmental issues. Almost every one
of these links has bureaus and substantive program offices within it. A thorough listing of every environmental
office and program would be well beyond this article's scope. The environment was among the early issues to utilize
the Web for information support and delivery, and it retains this strong presence.
International Governmental Agencies
International Agencies are also well represented on the Internet. The United Nations is clearly the place to begin,
with several international conventions and programs which have influenced environmental policy all the way to the
local level.
U.N. Environment Programme
UNEP Conventions
Biodiversity
Desertification
Migratory Species
Montreal protocol
http://www.unep.ch/ozone/home.htm
Framework Convention on Climate Change
UNEP Programs
Chemicals
Economics Trade and the Environment
Information Unit for Conventions
http://www.unep.ch/iuc/index.html
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
http://www.unep.ch/jeu/home.htm
Needless to say, a full exploration of the environmental regulatory agencies of foreign nations is well beyond
the scope of this issue. The interested reader is, however, directed to some general listings of environmental
agencies abroad.
Foreign Government Environmental Agencies
http://online.awma.org/gad/foreign.htm
Data Services
Like test and visual information pages, data resources on the environment abound on the Web. Many provide useful information for the user. These resources provide point-and-click data collection in a matter of minutes that would have required many hours of library research and telephone calls only a couple of years ago.
U.S. EPA databases
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/Data.html
Envirofacts
http://www.epa.gov/enviro/index_java.html
Geographic Information Systems Tools
http://www.epa.gov/epahome/gis.htm
Environmental Information Management System
http://www.epa.gov/eims/eims.html
Surf Your Watershed
UNEP Global Resource Information Database
http://www.grid.unep.ch/gridhome.html
USGS Water Resources of the United States
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Geographic Information Systems & Spatial Data
http://www.fws.gov/data/gishome.html
CIESIN (Center for International Earth Science Information Network)
http://www.ciesin.org/index.html
CIESIN Metadata Resources
http://www.ciesin.org/metadata.html
CIESIN Data Resources
http://www.ciesin.org/data.html
Although navigating among these resources requires some skill and practice, for the user looking for specific geographical
information, the Web is rapidly becoming a reliable and extensive resource.
West Virginia State Agencies
The predominance of environmental web sites at the national and international level carries on down to the state level. West Virginia has many valuable resources on the Web.
West Virginia Division of Environmental Protection
WVDEP Organizational Structure
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/org.html
WVDEP Programs and Offices
Abandoned Mine Lands & Reclamation
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/aml/index.html
Information Technology
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/iso/index.html
Administration
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/admin/index.html
Air Quality
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/oaq/index.html
Mining & Reclamation
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/mr/index.html
Director's Office
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/director/index.html
Oil & Gas
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/og/index.html
Public Information Office
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/pio/index.html
Environmental Enforcement
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/ee/index.html
Waste Management
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/wm/index.html
Environmental Remediation
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/oer/index.html
Water Resources
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/wr/index.html
Pollution Prevention Services
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/p2/
One Stop Grant
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/onestop/
Total Maximum Daily Load Program
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/tmdl/index.html
Public Empowerment Program
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/pubemp.html
The WVDEP also provides online data resources.
WVDEP Online Data Resources
http://www.dep.state.wv.us/mapping.html
Like the federal government, West Virginia has charged the Division of Environmental Programs with protecting the
environment and the Division of Natural Resources with managing and conserving the environment.
Division of Natural Resources
Wildlife
http://www.dnr.state.wv.us/wvwildlife/default.htm
Fishing
http://www.dnr.state.wv.us/wvfishing/default.htm
Hunting
http://www.dnr.state.wv.us/wvhunting/default.htm
Parks and Forests
Wonderful WV (Magazine)
News
http://www.dnr.state.wv.us/news.htm
Other sites of note in West Virginia include:
Solid Waste Management Board
http://www.state.wv.us/swmb/default.htm
Materials Exchange
http://www.state.wv.us/swmb/exchange/default.htm
The West Virginia Development Office
Recycling Directory
http://www.wvdo.org/recycling/index.htm
Energy Efficiency Program
http://www.wvdo.org/community/eep.htm
These will no doubt grow in prominence, and we can anticipate that local agencies will also emerge as important
sources of environmental information in the near future.
Environmental Organizations
As with government agencies, there are many, environmental organizations to browse. Many of these sites are by environmental activists and many more are by interest groups covering diverse topics bridging across several categories. As a result, we provide no sub-categorizations or issue specific lists in this article. To do so would inadvertently force some groups into too restricted a classification. You are encouraged to browse these sites to ascertain the rich diversity of these organizations.
Environment and Natural Resources Interest Groups
American Coastal Coalition
http://www.coastalcoalition.org/
American Land Rights Association
The Cousteau Society
http://www.cousteausociety.org/
Ducks Unlimited
Earth Day Network
http://www.cfe.cornell.edu/EarthDay/
Earth First!
Earth Watch
EcoNet
http://www.igc.org/igc/gateway/enindex.html
Envirolink
Environmental Defense Fund
Friends of the Earth
Green Parties of North America
Greenpeace International
The Izaak Walton League of America
http://www.iwla.org/siteindx.htm
League of Conservation Voters
National Audubon Society
National Fish and Wildlife Federation
National Wilderness Institute
National Wildlife Federation
Natural Resources Defense Council
The Nature Conservancy
Rachel Carson Council
http://members.aol.com/rccouncil/ourpage/rcc_page.htm
Rainforest Action Network
Resources for the Future
The Sierra Club
State Public Interest Research Groups
Student Environmental Action Coalition
Surfrider
Union of Concerned Scientists
The World Conservation Union
World Resources Institute
World Wildlife Fund
Worldwatch Institute
There are many other environmental policy centers and institutes. It is difficult to ascertain who should be included,
and no matter how we draw the line, someone will be offended. Here are some of the more interesting sites:
Center for Clean Air Policy
Climate Institute
Pew Center on Global Climate Change
Environmental Businesses
There are far to many links to environmentally related businesses to list them all. Here is a good place to start:
A&WMA Environmental Businesses
http://www.awma.org/awma/links/cmpny.htm
Most environmental sites tend to be sponsored by either government agencies or interest groups, plus a small private
sector consisting of engineering firms, manufacturers of pollution control equipment, and consultants. There are
few, if any, large corporations that are strictly environmental in scope. This is not to say that corporations
have no environmental interests. Many do, and many take a positive and active role in the protection and management
of environmental resources and ecosystems. It is simply that environmental issues generally are associated with
regulatory interests and interest groups. In other words, there are organized environmental interests, but few
organized "anti-environmental" interests.
News, Newsletters and Magazines
Environmental issues are of sufficient interest that several online news services have developed. These provide a broad range of environmental reporting.
Earth Times
E - The Environmental Magazine
http://www.emagazine.com/index.shtml
Environmental News Network
National Park Magazine
The Planet
http://www.sierraclub.org/planet/
Professional Associations
While we can provide a modest number of professional associations that have some interest in the environment, there are actually only limited number of professional organizations which might be clearly classified as environmental
Air & Waste Management Association
American Society of Civil Engineers
American Water Works Association
Association of Environmental Engineering Professors
http://bigmac.civil.mtu.edu/aeesp/aeesp.html
Association of Environmental and Resource Economists
National Association for Environmental Management
Other Guides to the Environment
Needless to say, we have provided only a cursory glance at the web of information available on the Internet. There are many other guides that you can turn to for further information. Many of these will provide the issue area specific organization that we choose not to follow here, so we strongly recommend that you examine these sites for the wealth of information, issues and perspectives that abound out there.
About.com (Formerly The Mining Company)
http://environment.miningco.com/mlibrary.htm
Academic Info on Environmental Studies
http://www.academicinfo.net/environst.html
Argus Clearinghouse - Environment
http://www.clearinghouse.net/cgi-bin/chadmin/viewcat/Environment
Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN)
Environmental Organization Web Directory
Environmental Resources on the Internet
http://www.southampton.liunet.edu/library/environ.htm
Galaxy Directory - The Environment
http://www.einet.net/galaxy/Community/Environment.html
Yahoo! Environment and Nature
http://dir.yahoo.com/Society_and_Culture/Environment_and_Nature
Campaign 2000
While this issue of "What's New on the 'Net" has focused on the environment, we also need to turn to another timely topic - elections in the year 2000. As the election season reaches its peak with the primaries, we feel that it is important to provide some general information on what is available to the concerned voter on the Web. There are many campaigning sites worth examining. In fact, the Web is becoming increasingly a vehicle for campaigning, and to some degree fund raising.
General Election Pages
C-Span Campaign 2000
http://www.c-span.org/campaign2000/
The Democracy Network (The League of Women Voters)
http://www.dnet.org/index.dnet
West Virginia Page
http://www.dnet.org/My_state/state_home.dnet/WV
Elections USA
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/6228/
ElectNet
West Virginia
http://www.electnet.org/search1.cfm?state=wv
Political Resources, Inc.
http://PoliticalResources.com/
Campaigns On-line
http://PoliticalResources.com/Development/col-bot-99.asp
Politics1
Roll Call
Campaign 2000 Online
http://www.rollcall.com/election/map.html
USElections.com
Although we cannot list all pages for all candidates for all offices, we can provide links to the major contenders
for the Office of President.
Presidential Candidate Home Pages
Democratic Party
Bill Bradley
Al Gore
Lyndon LaRouche
http://www.larouchecampaign.org/
Republican Party
George W. Bush
Alan Keyes
John McCain
Reform Party
Pat Buchanan
Libertarian Party
Slate of Candidates for Libertarian Nomination at Convention
http://www.lp.org/lp-cand-pres.html
Other Political Parties
Politics1's Directory of U.S. Political Parties
http://www.politics1.com/parties.htm
West Virginia Candidate Home Pages
Most of the candidates for statewide office in West Virginia have Web pages. This is marked change from two years
ago. In the future, the Web will become increasingly important, even at the local level. It is the most cost-effective
means of getting information out to the largest audience. Although the Web does not reach everywhere yet, it does
reach a sizable share of the voting public. We expect increased reliance on the Web in the future for campaign
materials and increased sophistication in the way those materials are packaged and delivered.
The major Federal and state elections and candidates with campaign or home pages we are aware of are listed below alphabetically with party affiliation and incumbency status listed. Please let us know of Web pages for other candidates on the ballot and we will revise the Web version of this article to include all candidates for state-wide office with Web pages. Candidates without Web pages are omitted from this list (excepting incumbents). However the state party pages provide links to their respective slates of candidates.
U.S. Representative District I
Richard Kerr (Libertarian)
Alan Mollohan (Incumbent)
(No site available)
U.S. Representative District II
Shelley Moore Capito (Republican)
http://www.capito2000.com/index.html
Bob Wise (Incumbent - Democrat - Running for Governor in 2000.)
Ken Hechler (Democrat)
http://www.kenhechlerforcongress.com/
Jim Humphreys (Democrat)
http://www.jimhumphreys2000.com
Mark Hunt (Democrat)
http://www.huntforcongress.com/
Martha Walker (Democrat)
http://www.marthawalkercongress.com/
U.S. Representative District III
Jay Holcomb (Republican)
http://www.jay2000.org/index1.htm
Nick J. Rahall II (Incumbent)
Governor
Denise Giardina (Mountain Party)
Jim Lees (Democrat)
Bob Myers (Libertarian)
Joseph Oliverio (Republican)
Cecil Underwood (Republican - Incumbent)
http://www.team2000underwood.com/index1.htm
Secretary of State
Ken Hechler (Democrat Incumbent - Running for US Representative Dist II in 2000)
Joe Manchin III (Democrat)
Mike Oliverio (Democrat)
Charlotte Prittt
http://www.angelfire.com/wv/pritt4people/
There are also some political party home pages worth including in this list as well.
Constitution Party (formerly the Taxpayers Party)
National
Democratic Party
National
http://www.democrats.org/index.html
West Virginia
Natural Law Party
National
Republican Party
National
West VirginiaWV Republican Candidates (Not official site)
Reform Party
National
West Virginia
Libertarian Party
National
West Virginia
So, whatever your political party or political persuasion, please browse these sites and vote in the West Virginia
primary on May 9th, 2000!
Having looked at environmental resources on the Web, the next issue of "What's New on the 'Net" in the
West Virginia Public Affairs Reporter will examine energy related sites. Many look at energy and the environment
as mutually antagonistic policy issues. We will explore and compile sites that both compliment the environment,
as well as promote development of energy resources. If you have, or know of, sites that you would like to have
listed, please let us know.
Robert D. Duval Rebecca Barrett-Duval
bduval@wvu.edu rduval@wvu.edu
____________
Robert D. Duval is an Associate Professor of Political Science at West Virginia University. Rebecca Barrett-Duval is a social research consultant based in Morgantown. In addition, they serve as Resident Faculty Leaders at West Virginia University.
Return to the West Virignia Public Affairs Reporter Index