CAMPUS/AREA UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN Thursday, March 13. 1997 3A Haskell Wetlands lawsuit filed Plaintiffs want to halt trafficway construction Two KU students and KU Environs were among the plaintiffs who filed a lawsuit yesterday in U.S. District Court against county, state and federal officials and organizations. Let us help you with your thesis and dissertation binding and graduation announcement needs 843-4600 512 E. 9th By Paul Eakins Kansan staff writer The completion of the statement is necessary for the county to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act. By beginning construction without completion of the statement, the federal laws of NEPA are being violated, the plaintiffs said at a press conference yesterday. The purpose of the lawsuit is to stop construction of any portion of the eastern leg of the South Lawrence Trafficway, which is supposed to pass through the Haskell Wetlands along 31st Street. The plaintiffs want to stop the county from buying land and from buying the 265,000 cubic yards of fill needed for the road until after the completion of a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, court documents said. The statement was started by a company which was contracted by the Kansas Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration. The statement was never finished. The statement would assess what effects the trafficway would have on the Haskell Wetlands and the Baker Wetlands farther south. A court date has not been set, but plaintiff Jason Daniels, Colby sophomore, said trafficway If future lawsuits are filed, the plaintiffs could get some help from the Sierra Club. opponents would not give up. "This is the first step in a series," Daniels said. "Future lawsuits would be all-encompassing, addressing all of the violations." Charles Benjamin, legislative coordinator for the Kansas chapter of the Sierra Club, said the organization agreed with the lawsuit and may participate in future legal action. "We think that the NEPA process needs to be completed," Benjamin said. "They are trying to circumvent it by pretending that the federal government is not involved." The plaintiffs also discussed the religious rights of Haskell students and faculty and other Native Americans. The medicine wheel, a place of worship located in a wooded area north of 31st Street near the Haskell campus, is used for religious purposes. "I would not be exaggerating to say that a member of KU Environs uses the wetlands every day of the year." Daniels said. "The trafficway will do irreparable harm to the wetlands area here," said Stanley Ross, plaintiff and Haskell Indian Nations University alumnus. "We are asking that the federal NEPA process be continued and completed." Native Americans already can hear the noise from 31st Street while they are praying, said plaintiff Pemina Yellow-Bird, Lawrence resident. Daniels said the trafficway would cause damage to the most diverse natural area in Douglas County and building it would harm the educational uses of the wetlands, which are used by both Haskell and KU students. Eric B. Howell / KANSAN "We've listened to sirens, trucks and cars zooming by while we're in there praying," she said. And with the trafficway there, the noise would double, intruding into their prayers. Plaintiff Anjanette Bitsie, Lawrence junior and Haskell alumna, said the wetlands contained the few places Haskell students could go to practice their religion properly. Jason Daniels, Colby sophomore, speaks to the cameras at the South Lawrence Traffick lawsuits press conference. The conference was held yesterday on 31st Street between Louisiana and Haskell streets. LAWRENCE PRINTING SERVICE "Here in Lawrence, this is the only spot," she said. Professors from around the nation and the University of Kansas will gather on campus to discuss political and economic trends in Latin America. Latin-American conference to talk trends A federally funded conference sponsored by the Center of Latin American Studies at the University will take place on March 14 and 15 in the Kansas Union. By Umut Bayramoglu Kansan staff writer Vill Holliday, Lawrence graduate student, said the conference should provide students, teachers Political, economic issues will be focus "We will have graduate students defending their dissertations and professors with published articles and books on Latin-American issues," he said. "I think this conference will not only help KU students update their knowledge on Latin America but also give them information for their term projects," he said. and business people with current information about Latin-American countries. Holliday said 200 people were expected to attend. Holliday said the conference would start at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow with an optional workshop on conservation and environmental development in Latin America. "We made the workshop optional so that people still feel welcome to the sessions on Saturday," he said. "We picked Trudeau as the keynote speaker because he has a lot experience on the turmoil Guatemala went through," Holiday said. Robert Trudeau, professor of political science at Providence College in Rhode Island, will give the keynote address, Guatemalan Peace Accords: Implications for a Democratic Future. Trudeau is the author of Guatemalan Politics: The Popular Struggle For Democracy. the conference, from 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, will include Marc Becker, Lawrence graduate student and leader of the session about ethnic movements in Latin America, said he was interested in attending the other presentations. three sessions: transitions from dictatorships to democracies, national identity and the North American Free Trade Agreement Bryant Freeman, director of Haitian studies, said his presentation would include information about recent U.N. interventions in Haiti and other Haitian problems that have affected the United States. Registration is free for KU students and faculty and $15 for the public. For more information, contact Holliday at 864-4213. FOR MORE INFO & TICKETS CALL 858-4623 MEN ADMITTED AFTER 10:00 Get your artwork in front of KU! SUBMIT YOUR ARTWORK FOR THE SPRING STUDENT SHOW IN THE KANSAS UNION GALLERY. DROP WORK OFF THIS WEEK IN THE SUA-OFFICE TO THE SUA-FINE ARTS COMMITTEE. THE SHOW WILL RUN MARCH 15-22, 1997. MORE THAN ONE PIECE MAY BE DISPLAYED ACCORDING TO SPACE AVAILABLE. CALL 864-3477 FOR MORE INFO AND CHECK OUT WWW.UKANS.DU\~SUA FOR OTHER UPCOMING SUA EVENTS. 5 pc Chicken Nuggets Only 99ยข Free Hash Brown with any two Egg Sandwiches Hurry In! 9th & Iowa - CORRECTION: The March 12 paper advertised the incorrect Shabbat Dinner time. The correct meeting time is Friday at 5:30 p.m.