ELF STRIKES AGAINST URBAN SPRAWL IN SAN DIEGO: FOUR HOUSES BURNED TO THE GROUND IN ACTION AGAINST "DEVELOPMENT DESTRUCTION"

September 19, 2003
For Immediate Release
CALIFORNIA - Through media reports, the ELF Press Office has been made aware of an Earth Liberation Front action against urban sprawl in the early morning hours of September 19, 2003. Although the ELF Press Office has received no communications about this actions from the persons responsible, a banner found at the site of the fires reading "Development destruction. Stop raping nature. The ELFs are angry," indicates a claim of responsibility by ELF activists. The fires broke out at approximately 4 a.m. in the upscale Carmel Valley neighbourhood of San Diego, California.
The fires took out four houses under construction in two parts of the neighbourhood and caused an estimated $1 million in damages. This is the fifth action in 2003 against urban sprawl known to have been the work of the Earth Liberation Front. Other occurences of ELF actions in response to the encroachment of luxury housing on wild space since January 1st include fires in San Diego, California (August); Chico, California (June); Macomb County, Michigan (June), and Superior Township, Michigan (April).
Although there has been no statement by ELF activists about the most recent actions in San Diego, a communique sent after the fires in Macomb County read in part, "For too long, we, the people... have allowed our magnificent forests to be levelled and shipped off, our water to be poisoned and now, greed driven developers are trying to marginalize off the last green spaces and habitat of our unknown Edens." It is clear from past statements and recent actions of the ELF that urban sprawl has become a central issue in the struggle to protect the earth.
The Earth Liberation Front is an international underground organization that uses direct action in the form of economic sabotage to stop the destruction of the natural environment. Since 1997, the ELF in North America has caused over $100 million in damages to entities who profit from the destruction of life and the planet.
Any communications received by the ELF Press Office will be forwarded on to interested members of the press.
The Earth Liberation Front Press Office is an autonomous entity that serves to publicize news and actions of the ELF, as reported through news media or by anonymous communications from the individuals involved in activities.