Februarv/March 1983 RAIN Page 3 you have any notions of good topics, literature, and organizations we may want to note. Pictured on this month's cover is one of the Southeast Asian community garden sites in Portland which RAIN helped develop. We are now coordinatPeace Poster in Russia The January 1982 issue of RAIN described the work of Diane and Joel Schatz. Well- knoum to readers ofRAIN as the creators of our Ecotopia posters, Diane and Joel have been working for over a year on their most recent effort, the visualization ofthe theme "if peace broke out, what would it look like?". Not ones to stand back politely on the sidelines, they went to the top to gain international support for their project. As a reward for such unexpected behavior they got a response, clearance from the Russian embassy inviting them to bring their project to Moscoiv. ing a series of workshops for the Southeast Asian refugee population, about such topics as energy conservation, food production and consumer awareness. This winter too, RAIN and Oregon lost a dear friend; former governor Tom McCall, who died at the age of 69, after impact will be broad and deep. If every American would take the initiative in reaching out to our supposed "enemies," certainly we would have fewer of the imaginary boundaries that seem to divide us. Thank you again for keeping me in touch with your energetic and encouraging activities. Please let me know if I can be of further assistance. Kind regards. Sincerely, Mark O. Hatfield United States Senator November 23,1982 Dear Joel and Diane: Many thanks for your most recent letter concerning your exciting new media project, "What Would the World Look Like if Peace Broke Out?" I am enthusiastic, it goes without saying! If you do with this what you did with November 1,1982 Dear Mr. Joel Schatz, On behalf of Mr. O. Tryanovsky, the USSR Permanent Representative to the UN, I would like to confirm the receipt of Your letter dated September 13,1982. I can assure You that the Soviet several years of strugging with cancer. He was one of those rare political leaders who gained strength and wisdom as he grew older. We will sorely miss him, and hope in our way to carry on some of the battles he waged during his life. Government and people completely share Your concern about the growing danger of nuclear catastrophe and will spare no effort to prevent it by bringing the arms race to an end. As to the request to provide You with names and addresses of leading Soviet experts to contribute ideas to Your interesting project I have the honour to advise You to contact the following Soviet nongovernmental organization that could provide You with the above said information: Soviet Peace Committee 129010U-10 36, Mira pr. Moscow, USSR Sincerely Yours, A. Khudiakov Press-attache Permanent Mission of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics to the United Nations Packaging Laws Elections this year brought disappointment for Washington and California bottle bill advocates. Bottling companies came out in force in the California campaign investing $6 million versus the proponents' $800,000. Jerry Powell, publisher of Resource Recycling magazine in Sacramento and recycling policy expert, was impressed with the well-organized pro-bill campaign and believes that its defeat was due largely to the opposition's tactics to confuse the issue. Anti-bill media coverage included a television ad in which five Oregonians voiced their opposition to Oregon's bottle bill — all five were discovered to work for a bottling company in Portland. In Washington, recyclers organized to defeat the bill to protect their buy-back recycling centers. Their success was abetted by their insistence that the bill would threaten jobs. Good news for the bottle bill from around the country included elections in Massachusetts where strong public support squelched the beer wholesalers' attempt to rescind the bill; Maine passed the bill 4 to 1; the Environmental Planning lobbyists in New York provided a decisive victory there; and a coalition of well-organized hunting and fishing groups passed the bill in Michigan to control litter. Soft drink and beer wholesalers are expected to propose alternative national legislation which would impose a product charge on glass containers. This front end charge would pre-pay the disposal cost for non- recycled material and subsidize the recycling industry. In Portland, a Citizens' Party leader, Stan Kahn, has designed a packaging law which would require all packages to be clearly labelled as redeemable, recyclable, non-recyclable, toxic, or compostable and taxed accordingly. The wholesale tax would provide subsidies for recycling efforts, establish a revolving loan fund, and encourage industries to use recyclable materials. This innovative packaging law is part of Mr. Kahn's Citizens Initiative Campaign which includes plans for school decentralization and neighborhood government tax reform. — PF
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