From: stvjas@meteor.wisc.edu (Stephen Jascourt)
Newsgroups: rec.birds
Subject: Re: Voice of America station in Israel.
Date: 26 Aug 92 23:30:35 GMT
Followup-To: sci.environment
Organization: University of Wisconsin, Meteorology and Space Science

There has been some controversy without any knowledgable discussion 
concerning the affect a Voice of America transmitter has on bird migrations.
An explanatory follow-up posting to sci.environment would be appreciated, as
that is where this discussion came from. Thanks.

Stephen Jascourt   stvjas@meteor.wisc.edu
----------------------------------------
>In article <1992Aug25.150214.492@vms.huji.ac.il> rashty@vms.huji.ac.il writes:
>>Subject : Voice of America in Israel Southern Desert - Jordan Valley.
>>
>>The American have decided to build up a transmition station for the Voice of
>>America in the Jordan Valley (Israeli territory), This transmition station was
>>meant to broadcast to the soviet Union and other eastern-europe countries.
>>The decision to build this station was taken before the new changes in the
>>Soviet Union accrued.
>>In this days this decision is becoming reality since the Bush administration
>>for some unknown reason want's to continue with this plan, The transmition
>>station will be 300. meters hight and will release a huge amount of energy.
>>The damage is both to the people around who are mostly farmers leaving in a
>>Moshav (some sort of a community life in israel) and also to the nature.
>>
>>The jordan valley is the main migration root for more than a billion birds who
>>travel each year from AFRICA to EUROPE, many birds watchers come to observe
>>this spectacular sine each year and this new transmition station is a big threat
>>to the birds migration , Think about it that if the birds migration from
>>africa to europe will be harmed many birds that are rare today will be
>>disappeared !!!. The second harm is to the area around since the transmition
>>station is going to be build on about 8000 donams of beuttiful desert land, The
>>Israeli desert is quit small and very unique, This transmition station is
>>threatening one of the last places of butty with have in this desert.
>>
>>I'm calling anyone who has interest to help us with our struggle which is not
>>a local struggle for my test but an international one on the future of birds
>>in this region of the world .
>>The decision to build the station was taken long time ago, This day there in no
>>reason to build it but the beocreacy make it impossible to stop the decision.
>>There are a lot of demonstration in israel about this plan but we need an
>>international help of environment organization to make the u.s government change
>>the decision and by that save the future of birds, nature and man in the area.
>>I think that the struggle is not lees important then the struggle about whales
>>or other animals in other parts of the world.
>>If you have any hand in an environment organization or you can write to your
>>representative please do so and help us with our struglee.
>
>Dudu, I suggest you take a deep breath, calm down, and go have a nice
>long talk with someone in your electrical engineering department, or
>a radio engineer. The station is not a threat to the birds or the
>human population. It probably *is* an eyesore in the desert. If you
>want to protest it on esthetic grounds, that's fine. But get a better
>grasp of the scientific facts before shouting about health effects or
>bird kills.
>
>Gary