(For Immediate Release – August 28, 2017, Hagåtña, Guam) August 24th marked 30 days since Prutehi Litekyan: Save Ritidian met with Governor Eddie Baza Calvo to urge him to generate a legacy of safeguarding Guam’s environmental and cultural resources by taking all necessary steps to halt the construction of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Live Fire Training Range Complex (LFTRC) at the Northwest Field located above Litekyan. Time is running out as the contract for this project has been awarded and it could be just a matter of days before bulldozers are set to destroy over one thousand acres of irreplaceable pristine primary limestone forest - some of the last remaining forest of this kind on Guam. Members of Prutehi Litekyan highlighted the serious threats surrounding the construction of the LFTRC at Northwest Field at their meeting with Governor Calvo on July 24 at his conference room in Adelup. “Now more than ever, we need our Maga'låhi to stand up for the rights of our people and to protect our island. Please do not allow this irreparable damage to take place. Please do not let this destruction become a part of the legacy of your administration,” Sabina Perez stated. In response, the Governor offered the following: • The Department of Defense is in breach of the Programmatic Agreement • The Governor would consider canceling the Record of Decision • The Governor invited Prutehi Litekyan:Save Ritidian to speak with his attorneys regarding the lawsuit in the Northern Marianas Islands • The Governor invited Prutehi Litekyan:Save Ritidian to attend monthly meetings and to provide updates to his office • The Governor's staff would review and consider a draft Executive Order provided by Prutehi Litekyan:Save Ritidian to halt the construction of the Live Fire Training Range • The Governor would consider a request for a site visit to inspect the boundaries of what is at stake at Northwest Field. To date, Prutehi Litekyan has requested for updates and a follow-up meeting with the Governor. In response to Prutehi Litekyan’s appeals, Guam Buildup Office Coordinator, Robert Crisostomo stated that the Governor’s office placed the “interests and concerns of Prutehi Litekyan as a high importance item.” He has also stated that he “will work with the front Office on the most opportune time based on the Governor's hectic schedule” and arrange for a site visit. Prutehi Litekyan: Save Ritidian is organizing a peaceful protest on Tuesday August 29, from 3:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in front of the Governor’s complex in Adelup. All Island residents are invited to attend and show their support - specifically those concerned about the environment, cultural resources, and access are encouraged to join in. Members hope that the demonstration will help promote awareness and visibility among local officials and the visiting federal delegation that includes an Undersecretary for the U.S. Department Defense and U.S. Fish and Wildlife. After hosting several demonstrations, Prutehi Litekyan has garnered over 4,000 signatures on its online petition and about another 1,000 signatures on paper petitions, and the numbers keep growing. The construction would have several devastating impacts to the area, which is a home and foraging area for vulnerable endangered and endemic species, including the Mariana Eight Spot butterfly, their host plants, and the largest colony of fruit bats on Guam. The Surface Danger Zone (SDZ) over Litekyan will also severely limit access to sacred and historical sites that are invaluable to the people of Guam as cultural, educational and archaeological resources, and further displace original landowners from their ancestral lands. For more information, email save.ritidian@gmail.com. Prutehi Litekyan: Save Ritidian, a direct action group dedicated to the protection of natural and cultural resources in all sites identified for DOD live-fire training on Guam, opposes the establishment of any military firing range, stands in solidarity with Guardians of Gani’, PaganWatch, Tinian Women’s Association, and Alternative Zero Coalition by preventing environmental degradation and destruction on sacred and native lands, and promotes the continued pursuit for return of ancestral lands.