IN BRIEF.

THE ARTISTS' GREEN ORCHARD

When the 175-acre Villa Montalvo estate in Saratoga was bequeathed to the state of California in 1930, the owner stipulated that the new park continue nurturing music, art, literature and architecture. One result was the creation, in 1942, of the oldest artists' residency program west of the Mississippi.

In 1998, Villa Montalvo's board of trustees decided to double its intellectual harvest by replacing a defunct orchard of plums with 700- to 900-square-foot cottages customized for specific artists. The new Orchard of Artists project will increase annual residencies from 30 to nearly 70, while simultaneously serving as a model of green design using next-century concepts of creativity and collaboration.

Coordinating eight different architects to make use of environmentally friendly design principles in the construction of 10 cottages and a commons on an historic landmark site, within a limited budget, was an ambitious undertaking. "This is a groundbreaking effort both literally and figuratively," acknowledges Don Stastny of Portland, Oregon-based StastnyBrun Architects, designer of the memorial for the Oklahoma bombing. "It's intended to be a textbook case of 21st century design."

"We're standardizing construction as much as possible with such different buildings, while trying to achieve maximum long-term energy efficiency among old-growth trees and heritage plants," explains Stastny. Green elements include high fly ash content concrete, energy-efficient windows, recycled insulation, soy-product countertops and farmed wood beam construction--not the usual supplies found at home improvement stores.

Green resource planning consultant Larry Strain of Siegel & Strain Architects in Emeryville, California recommended farmed wood as it minimizes pollution and encourages lumber companies to engage in greener practices. Also incorporated will be a natural sound barrier for the composers' cottages and solar collectors and passive lighting for the visual artists' dwellings.

"Paint and carpet choices are crucial," Strain says, "but the cabins must also meet the artists' needs. We're striving to go beyond what's state-mandated to choose the most durable, cost-efficient materials, such as metal roofs which last 50 years instead of 20." Going green has helped build community support, with over $2.1 million of the $6 million campaign already raised. Groundbreaking took place in the late summer of 2000, and completion will occur by the end of 2001.

"Although these are extremely contemporary buildings, especially compared to the original Villa built in 1912, both the Heritage Committee and City Planning Committee members approved the plans `as is' on the first presentation--a record here in Saratoga," says a grateful Stastny. For at least another century, artists will be able to follow their muses within a sustainable environment of natural beauty, CONTACT: Villa Montalvo Orchard of Artists Residency Program, [phone], www.villamontalvo.org.

--Michelle C. Crowe

IN THE YEAR OF THE DRAGON

Ironically, China's only real dragon--the Chinese alligator--may become extinct in the wild in 2000, otherwise known as the Year of the Dragon. One of only two remaining alligator species in the world, this reptile has the dubious distinction of being the planet's most endangered species.

The Chinese alligator--called "Tu Long" or "earth dragon"--and the mythical beast that became an Imperial symbol have many similar physical characteristics, says Dr. John Thorbjarnarson, a biologist and crocodile specialist at the Wildlife Conservation Society.

About half the size of their American counterparts, Chinese alligators have long been considered agricultural pests, says Thorbjarnarson. Hunted and killed because their burrows interfered with irrigation systems, today Chinese alligators in the wild number only 150.

The disappearance of the Chinese alligator in the wild might just be inevitable, says Thorbjarnarson. But the picture is not as dismal as it might seem. In an effort to prevent the extinction of the species, the government has been raising and breeding the reptiles in captivity with positive results. The Anhui Research Center for Chinese Alligator Reproduction has been home to 8,700 alligators, according to Wang Zhibao, an administrator at the State Forestry Department in China.

Following the successful examples of the California condor and the black-footed ferret, Chinese alligators bred in captivity will be released in a suitable habitat, says James Perran Ross, executive officer of the Crocodile Specialist Group at the World Conservation Union. "Although reintroduction has not been attempted before with the Chinese alligator, other crocodilians raised in captivity have adapted well in the wild," says Ross. "There is no reason to believe it would be any different with the Chinese alligator."

The very cause of the reptile's demise--agriculture--is also producing possible solutions. Sediments from deforestation and cultivation have created two sites along China's coast near the mouth of the Yangtze River. These new islands and wetlands are potential environments for reintroducing the Chinese alligator to the wild. But funding to support reintroduction programs is desperately needed.

Jim Darlington, senior keeper at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm in Florida, says adults especially are drawn to the Chinese alligator. He believes it might be the alligator's small stature, compact snout or their "puppy-dog" eyes that attract mature audiences. Or perhaps, adults are more likely to appreciate the fact that without swift and steady intervention, their children will never have the opportunity to observe these regal reptiles in the wild. CONTACT: The Wildlife Conservation Society, [phone], www.wcs.org.

--Diane Marty

PRICKLY POACHERS

For many people, cacti are to plants what bulldogs are to house pets--the ugliest examples of the species. But people afflicted with cactophilia are nevertheless drawn to the plant, says Tony Mace, webmaster of the Cactus and Succulent Plant Mall. Mace estimates that there are 500 cactus clubs and over 40,000 collectors worldwide.

Some enthusiasts will go to any lengths--even unlawful ones--to own threatened and endangered cacti. Poaching of the large, much-coveted saguaro may involve the cover of darkness and flat-bed trucks with hydraulic lifts. The sheer size of a healthy saguaro coupled with an elaborate identification system makes this theft tricky. But big risks come with big bucks. The black market cacti can fetch as much as $100 per foot with extra bonuses for each" "arm," says Ted Cordery, the endangered species coordinator for the Bureau of Land Management in Arizona.

Another--just as likely--victim is the Peebles Navajo cactus, says Cordery. Although the thumb-sized plant is rather nondescript, cactus lovers covet this diminutive plain Jane. Smaller pilfered plants, though less profitable, are much more difficult to trace. "We know that plants completely endemic to a specific area appear far from their native habitat," says Dr. Mark Dimmitt, the director of natural history at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. "The conclusion is obvious, but I don't know what the poachers' methods are."

Surprisingly, cacti purchased at nurseries cost buyers a mere $20 per foot, according to Dimmitt. And indigenous specimens--subjected as they are to harsh weather conditions and activities of animals--rarely look as nice as their greenhouse counterparts, he adds.

So, why do some collectors still prefer the wild plants? Like owners of stolen art, some people perceive pilfered plants as status enhancers and evidence of a vicariously dangerous hobby. But their fun maybe seriously endangering the cacti's continued existence in the wild. "There are several examples in which a population of rare cacti was discovered, and poachers took it to the point of extirpation within a year," Dimmit says.

No doubt that as long as there are buyers, there will be poachers--but miscreants should think twice. If caught, cactus rustlers will be charged with at least a misdemeanor and possibly a felony, says Bill Kendall, a native plant and cultural resource officer with Arizona's Department of Agriculture. And groups as diverse as Department of Public Safety officers, town marshals and National Park Service rangers collaborate to protect these native treasures. CONTACT: Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, [phone], www.desertmuseum.org.

-- Diane Marty

A BREATH OF AIR IN HARLEM

In the 1930s, Robert Moses, New York City's master planner, stripped Harlem of open space land along the Hudson River, replacing public access to the waterfront with the Harlem River Drive. In rather sharp contrast, Moses' engineers simultaneously created Riverside Park further south for the benefit of the white middle class.

Seventy years later, the state of New York finally built a waterfront park for Harlem, known as Riverbank. Was it restitution for what had clearly been discriminatory planning? It depends on your point of view.

Riverbank is certainly an engineering marvel. The park sits on the roof of North River Sewage Treatment Plant, a 28-acre concrete leviathan along the Hudson. North River processes the sewer slop of most of Manhattan's west side, replacing direct dumping. The plant has won awards for helping clean the river, and the park has given much-needed recreational opportunities to asphalt-bound city dwellers.

But despite the goodwill, there's definitely something in the air. A smell. At the plant's completion 14 years ago, the air it released stank and sickened area residents. Nationally known Queens College-based scientist Barry Commoner conducted a study that found design defects in the North River plant and indications of harmful sulfur hydroxide and sulfur dioxide emissions, which were exacerbating Harlem's asthma epidemic.

In 1992, the city and state of New York agreed to spend $55 million in a five-year plan to correct design defects and monitor the air. The result? "It still smells, but not as bad as it used to," says Sara Allen, whose apartment is nearby. "Two days ago I had to shut my windows when it came up strong for awhile." Although the plant setup eight air monitors to police dangerous emissions, reporting has been spotty.

"After all these years, we still have not yet had a comprehensive presentation on all the emissions," L. Ann Rocker, Allen's neighbor, wrote in a three-page letter to commissioners. Rocker chairs the North River Community Environmental Review Board (NRCERB), the local watchdog group that attracted Commoner and the Natural Resources Defense Council, prompting the subsequent repairs.

Meanwhile, government authorities are considering ending the air-monitoring system, pending a "a six-year review of technical data," wrote New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner John Cahill to Rocker last March. The six-year review is promised for fall. But as long as sewage flows to Harlem, "Monitoring our air needs improvement and not removal," says Rocker. "The park was an appeasement. But we want to know what we are breathing." CONTACT: New York City Department of Environmental Protection, [phone], www.ci.nyc.ny.us/dep; North River Community Environmental Review Board, [phone].

--Peggy Dye

PARK AND RIDE TO THE PARK

Last May, Zion National Park in Utah initiated a mandatory shuttle bus transportation system for visitors to Zion Canyon, greatly reducing auto access to the most scenic portions of one of America's most prized national parks.

"Zion," a Hebrew word meaning a place of safety or refuge, was the name given to the dramatic red rock canyon by Mormon pioneers in the 1860s. But in recent years, the park has seemed more like a traffic jam than a refuge. With some 2.5 million visitors annually, Zion's beauty and tranquility have been marred by too many automobiles. On a busy holiday weekend, as many as 3,000 vehicles a day may enter the narrow six-mile canyon, competing for some 450 parking spaces. "Frayed tempers, people hollering at each other, people double- and triple-parked, destroying the vegetation ... we just decided that we wanted to restore this place to peace and quiet," says Zion spokesperson Denny Davies.

Zion is one of five parks chosen by the National Park Service to serve as demonstrations for various alternative transportation options. At Grand Canyon, a voluntary-use light rail train is planned for the South Rim area, connecting visitors to trailheads and shuttles. At Acadia, a voluntary shuttle system was initiated on Mount Desert Island last summer. An open-air tram will be used for special events and tours at Golden Gate Bridge. And Yosemite, considered by many to be the crown jewel of America's park system, is experimenting with voluntary shuttles to move visitors into and around the scenic valley. Denali National Park in Alaska also limits auto access.

But Zion's system, the first of its kind in the lower 48 states, is mandatory rather than voluntary: Except for guests and employees of Zion Lodge, all visitors to Zion Canyon must either walk, ride bicycles or take the new shuttles. Visitors park their cars in the nearby town of Springdale or at the new visitor center at the park's south entrance, and ride the free shuttles into the canyon. The propane-powered shuttles will run every 15 minutes during the prime visitation season from April to October; other less-congested areas of the park will remain open to vehicular traffic.

Visitors' comments have been running about four to one in favor of the new system, says Davies. "There's been a lot of effort that has gone into the planning to do this right. One visitor remarked, `It's absolutely fantastic to be up in Zion Canyon again--you can actually hear the birds singing.'" CONTACT: Zion National Park, [phone], www.nps.gov/zion.

--Leslie Pardue