TARGETS OF OPPORTUNITY.

New York's Island Estates, a luxury real estate development and perceived example of urban sprawl, was the victim of eco-terrorism last winter (see "Burning Down the Houses," Currents, May/June 2001). Some self-proclaimed members of the shadowy Earth Liberation Front (ELF) have been arrested and admitted to starting the fires that destroyed the half-built homes. However, the Long Island sprawl appears to be just one among many targets of the eco-vigilantes. Since the fires in Long Island last December, a sport-utility vehicle dealership and a logging company in Oregon, and a research farm in Idaho, have been victims. Jerry Koppenjan, a spokesperson for Seminis Incorporated, the research farm that had been conducting experiments on genetically modified pea plants, says, "When research farms are victims of an attack, research is delayed and ultimately farmers and consumers are at a loss for better products and new technology." CONTACT: Earth Liberation Front, [phone], www. earthliberationfront.com.