3/10/01
12:15:08 PM
DEMOCRATS FLOUNDER WITHOUT CLINTON by Charles Schenk:
"Life without Bill Clinton is not going especially well for the Democratic party so far, at least. Republicans won a substantial victory when the House voted to cut federal income taxes by $1.6 trillion. The bulk of the money will go to the same wealthy interests who bankroll the Republicans' election campaigns. Given the poor quality of the economic assumptions that lay behind the tax cut proposal, defeating it should have been a slamdunk for the Democrats."
Read the entire article at http://www.SchenkReport.com
3/10/01
12:08:25 PM
ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE (ENS)
"We Cover the Earth For You"
EU PROBED AS GERMAN WETLANDS SAGA GETS MURKIER
BRUSSELS, Belgium, March 9, 2001 (ENS) - In seeking to promote Airbus Industrie's expansion plans, did the German government unduly influence the European Commission by asking it to exempt important wetlands from international protection? A Swedish Member of the European Parliament is trying to find out.
For full text and graphics, visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-09-11.html
OFF ROAD VEHICLES CREATE CONFLICT IN CALIFORNIA
By Cat Lazaroff
DAVIS, California, March 9, 2001 (ENS) - Many public lands in California, ranging from national forests to wilderness areas, are becoming too damaged - and in some cases too dangerous - for the public to enjoy, finds a first of its kind report. The study by the California Wilderness Coalition blames dirt bikes and other off road vehicles for damaging and despoiling the state's public lands.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-09-06.html
LANDSLIDES THREATEN MACHU PICCHU, WARNS GEOLOGISTS
MACHU PICCHU, Peru, March 9, 2001 (ENS) - Machu Picchu, the ancient Incan fortress in the Peruvian Andes, is in imminent danger of being destroyed by landslides, according to Japanese geologists.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-09-10.html
RECORD FLOODS CLAIM SEVEN LIVES IN UKRAINE
KIEV, Ukraine, March 9, 2001 (ENS) - Rapidly melting snow and heavy rain caused the Tisza River and its tributaries to rise to record levels, provoking some of the worst flooding in Central Europe in decades. Wide areas in the river basin region common to Hungary, Romania and Ukraine have been affected, forcing whole communities from their homes.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-09-01.html
ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE AMERISCAN: MARCH 9, 2001
Lead Exposure at Work Impairs Mind, Body
Brownfields Legislation Passes Senate Committee
Former Reagan Interior Official to Serve Again
Settlement Will Reduce Lake Okeechobee Pollution
Tests Find Biotech Ingredients in Kellogg's Products
Western Governors Support Energy Development on Public Lands
Shareholders Challenge BP Amoco Over Arctic Drilling
Minnesota Protects Millionth Wooded Acre
For full text and graphics, visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-09-09.html
3/9/01
9:00:57 PM
Subject: Dolphins - Stop the slaughter
The Slaughter of 17 000 dolphins is ready to begin. Fishermen in central Japan are set to begin hunting dolphins, an annual event which comes around every autumn. This year, however,the activity might trigger controversy after the recent international outcry over Japan's whaling program.
The dolphin hunting season officially got under way on Sunday in the small port town of Taiji the traditional home of Japanese whaling - some 450km southwest of Tokyo. Poor weather has prevented fishermen from going out to sea so far, but they plan to catch a total of nearly 2 400 dolphins and smaller species of whales during the season, which runs until the end of April, a local official said.
Both whaling and dolphin hunting are traditions that date back hundreds of years in Japanese society. But unlike Japan's whaling programme, which Tokyo says is for scientific research purposes, dolphins are hunted purely to provide meat for consumption, a Fisheries Agency official said. The hunt was being carried out in accordance with International Whaling Commission (IWC) rules, according to the Fisheries Agency official, adding that strict quotas were set each year. In addition to Taiji, dolphin hunting is allowed at several other ports and a total of nearly 17 000 dolphins are caught every season.
Copy this entire mail, paste it into a new mail (to keep the formatting neat), add your name,city, country and email address and send it to anyone that you think will feel the same.
If you find that your name is at number 100, please forward the entire petition to the following address: stoptheslaughter@hotmail.com <mailto:stoptheslaughter@hotmail.com>
Every time I receive 100 names I will forward them to various organisations such as Green Peace in order to help them in their fight against this sort of atrocity. Thanks for your concern!
3/9/01
8:57:06 PM
DAILY GRIST 09 Mar 2001 Environmental news from GRIST MAGAZINE <http://www.gristmagazine.com>
1. I LOVE PARRIS IN THE SPRINGTIME Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening (D) today created the country's first statewide commission to ensure that poor and minority communities don't bear the brunt of environmental pollution. Glendening said, "There are communities that tend to be politically less powerful because the family members are too busy struggling for survival. And as a result, they get dumped on." The 15-member Commission on Environmental Justice and Sustainable Communities will include representatives from businesses, environmental groups, and relevant communities, as well as state environmental, health, and planning officials. It will make annual recommendations to the governor, but it will have no regulatory power.
straight to the source: Washington Post, Daniel LeDuc, 09 Mar 2001 <http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A44257-2001Mar8.html>
straight to the source: Baltimore Sun, Joel McCord, 09 Mar 2001 <http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-md.justice09mar09.story>
2. WHEN IS A CARIBOU AN ALBATROSS? Caribou-in-the-Arctic could quickly become President Bush's gays-in-the-military, writes David Helvarg in Grist. Everywhere the president looks, he seems to find justifications for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Bush might even see Puffy's shooting trial in New York as reason to drill for oil and gas in Alaska. That's no surprise, given that Bush's administration is filled with veterans from the oil and gas industries. But the president's advisors are doing him a disservice, setting him up for a big political defeat. Read more on the Grist Magazine website.
read it only in Grist Magazine: Arctic Refuge could become Bush's gays-in-the-military -- by David Helvarg <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/imho/imho030901.stm>
3. J. GILES BANDIT The Bush administration announced yesterday that the president will nominate coal and energy industry lobbyist J. Steven Giles to serve as second-in-command at the Interior Department. Giles first got to know Interior Secretary Gale Norton when both worked at the Interior Department during the Reagan era; back then, Giles helped oversee mining and water issues. Most recently, he has been found lobbying for such clients as the National Mining Association, Occidental Petroleum, and the Edison Electric Institute. Enviros had been hoping that John Turner, who headed the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service during Bush the Elder's administration and now leads the Conservation Fund, would get the nod for deputy Interior secretary.
straight to the source: Denver Rocky Mountain News, M.E. Sprengelmeyer, 09 Mar 2001 <http://insidedenver.com/drmn/politics/article/0,1299,DRMN_35_108128,00.html>
straight to the source: Denver Post, Mike Soraghan, 09 Mar 2001 <http://www.denverpost.com/news/news0309n.htm>
4. I, I WILL SURVIVE Zed is just growing accustomed to Hollywood fame with his show "Global Warming Survivor." All of L.A. is ablaze with his name -- but Zed is in for a shock. Join Zed, last of his species, in "Bright Lights, Dark City."
catch it only in Grist Magazine: The latest in the comic adventures of Zed, last of his species http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/zed/zed030901.stm
5. U. BE ILLIN' The U.S. EPA has a new target for its investigations -- universities and colleges that aren't complying with environmental laws. "Our inspectors have not been on one campus where they have not found serious problems," says Rene Henry in the EPA's Philadelphia office. For example, Boston University was fined $750,000 in 1997 after a tank leaked 1,000 gallons of oil into the Charles River. Last December, the University of Hawaii was hit with the largest penalty ever issued by the EPA to a university: $1.7 million for hazardous waste violations. EPA spokesperson Mark Merchant said the agency started focusing on schools because pollution from industrial sources has been greatly reduced.
straight to the source: Las Vegas Sun, Associated Press, 07 Mar 2001 <http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/bw-other/2001/mar/07/030808485.html>
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Also in GRIST MAGAZINE today:
Traveling riverside blues -- a day in the life of Owen Lammers, Glen Canyon Action Network <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/week/lammers030801.stm>
Insane in the Ukraine -- a cartoon by Suzy Becker <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/ha/ha030501.stm>
Anti-environmentalism as a way of life -- Dubya's pro-industry policies aren't only about the money -- by Jon Margolis in our opinions section <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/imho/imho022101.stm>
3/9/01
8:53:40 PM
Public Citizen
The Domenici Deception: Nuclear Energy Bill Is an Atomic Waste
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A sweeping nuclear energy bill introduced this week in the Senate would promote an increased reliance on nuclear power under the guise of environmentalism and would improperly give the nuclear industry a $100 million subsidy, according to Public Citizen's analysis of the bill.
Promoting nuclear power is risky because questions about its safety still abound and we still cannot guarantee safe storage of nuclear waste for the duration of its hazardous life.
The bill, introduced by Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) and entitled "The Nuclear Energy Electricity Supply Assurance Act of 2001," would encourage the construction of new nuclear plants, subsidize the completion of unfinished reactors that have lain fallow for years and promote the development of reactor designs that lack containment structures to prevent the release of radiation into the environment and surrounding communities.
"Senator Domenici's nuclear energy bill is yet another misguided attempt to subsidize this most dangerous and unforgiving technology," said Wenonah Hauter, director of Public Citizen's Critical Mass Energy and Environment Program. "It is thoroughly irresponsible to promote the use of nuclear power when there is still no technically feasible means of assuring that long-lived radioactive wastes can be isolated from the environment. Further, this will do nothing to solve the current predicament we have with rising electricity costs."
The Domenici bill also would approve a shift from formal hearings - which give the public the right to obtain documents through discovery and to cross-examine hearing participants - to informal hearings, in which the public can do neither. This would curtail the ability of citizens to adequately participate in the licensing hearings on a proposed "high-level" waste repository at Yucca Mountain, in Nevada, and on safety issues at more than 100 U.S. nuclear reactors.
"Senator Domenici wants to turn Americans into second-class citizens by limiting our public hearing and participation rights," said James Riccio, senior analyst for Public Citizen's Critical Mass Energy and Environment Program. "Shielding the nuclear industry from public scrutiny will further undermine confidence in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the industry. If the nuclear industry cannot withstand the rigors of formal hearings, their reactors and nuclear waste dumps should not be built."
The Domenici bill would extend the Price Anderson Act, which indemnifies the nuclear industry against the financial consequences of a nuclear accident. The bill also would encourage the construction of more reactors while limiting the liability of the nuclear industry in the event of an accident. The bill would allow foreign corporations to own and operate nuclear reactors in the United States, which would mean that U.S. taxpayers would be subsidizing foreign corporations while exercising limited controls over their operations.
"I fail to see why the American taxpayer should indemnify foreign corporations whose nuclear reactors threaten the lives and livelihoods of American citizens," Hauter said. "Foreign and domestic corporations that expose the public to the risk of a nuclear disaster should be held financially accountable for their actions. Shielding nuclear corporations from the consequences of their actions will only result in more dangerous nuclear plants and waste dumps."
The Domenici bill also would create an Office of Spent Nuclear Fuel Research to promote dangerous and discredited technologies such as the reprocessing of radioactive waste, which would cost $10 million alone in 2002.
"This does nothing to solve the nuclear waste problem but instead introduces a host of new environmental and safety problems," Hauter said. "It merely serves as a smokescreen to mask the problems that would be exacerbated by the increased reliance on nuclear power that this bill promotes."
The bill's proposed remedy for the failure of electricity deregulation - taxpayer subsidizing of the operation of more nuclear reactors - simply would complicate this country's self-inflicted power crisis, Hauter said. By propping up a dangerous and failed technology, the legislation ignores proven alternatives such as wind, solar and energy conservation, she said.
"The massive subsidies and radioactive waste clean-up costs are so staggering that nuclear power will only increase already sky-high wholesale electricity prices," Hauter said. "The prescription for the failure of electricity deregulation is to re-establish public authority over profiteering power producers."
Finally, the overarching problem with the bill is that nuclear reactors are neither clean nor safe, Riccio said. For Senate Republicans to promote nuclear power as environmentally friendly is at best deceptive and constitutes the worst kind of corporate welfare, he said.
Public Citizen is a consumer advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit
www.citizen.org
3/9/01
8:50:09 PM
EcoNet News
This Week's Headlines and Alerts from EcoNet
http://www.igc.org/igc/gateway/enindex.html
Utah Wilderness Update
In this issue: We ask your help in kicking off the America's Redrock co-sponsor drive for the 107th Congress, give a rousing thank you to activists who are working hard to protect the land and bolster the growing ranks of supporters nationwide, and provide some opportunities in Utah for you to get more involved in the quest to preserve our remaining wild redrock canyons and deserts. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enalerts/984098373/index_html
U.S. Taxpayers Pay to Have Their National Forests Logged
The American people paid loggers some $126 million in 1998 to log their National Forests. The fact that such massive subsidies are allowed to continue - and go unreported for so long - is completely unacceptable. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enalerts/984097913/index_html
Orepac Targeted for Its Contribution to BC Rainforest Destruction
Interfor is currently clearcutting the largest unprotected temperate rainforest in the world, known as the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia, Canada. "Orepac is an accomplice to Interfor's ecological crimes in the Great Bear Rainforest," said Aaron Jackson, Director for the ForestEthics markets campaign in the U.S. against Interfor. "As the exclusive wholesale distributor of Interfor's wood in the Pacific Northwest, Orepac bears a heavy responsibility for Interfor's destruction of First Nations homeland, Spirit Bear habitat and salmon streams." Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enalerts/984097725/index_html
Join Sun Peaks Ski Resort Resistance
One of the many threats to our Secwepemc way of life, which is affecting us today, is the expansion plan of Sun Peaks Ski Resort. This resort is located within our traditional territory and within our 1862 Neskonlith Douglas reserve. This expansion would have devastating effects on our way of life in these mountains. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enalerts/984097557/index_html
Stop Mobile Chernobyl and Nuke Dumps on Native Lands!
Commemorate Earth Week 2001 and the 15th Anniversary of Chernobyl with speakers, workshops, non-violence trainings, rallies, and press events in numerous cities across the U.S. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enalerts/984097254/index_html
Forest Guardians: EPA Rejects New Mexico Water Quality Standards
In the shadow of a lawsuit challenging their adequacy, the Environmental Protection Agency has disapproved of numerous key provisions of the New Mexico water quality standards, concluding each failed to comply with the minimum standards of the federal Clean Water Act. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enheadlines/984096523/index_html
Mexican Loggers Said to Wipe Out 22 Million Butterflies
To regain protected forest land, loggers may have deliberately wiped out some 22 million Monarch butterflies which migrate annually from Canada to Mexico for the winter, a top environmentalist said on Tuesday. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enheadlines/984096179/index_html
US Government Sued over Failure to Disclose Trade Documents
As concerns increase over a proposed trade agreement for the Americas, an environmental law organisation here has filed suit against the US government to force it to disclose recent trade proposals concerning the accord that would expand trade throughout the hemisphere. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enheadlines/984096013/index_html
Kenya Losses Global Award
Kenya's decision to hive off 68,000 hectares of its remaining indigenous forests to settle landless people has cost it a global conservation award it had won in recognition of its campaign against ivory trade in the 1990s. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enheadlines/984095856/index_html
Financial Institutions Deforest Indonesia, Threaten Other Rainforests
Irresponsible financial institutions are the engine driving the growth machine devouring the World's ecosystems. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enheadlines/984095723/index_html
Deforestation in Philippines Preview of Things to Come
The Philippine forests are rapidly disappearing. By 2025, there may be no virgin forests, many forestry experts predict. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enheadlines/984095372/index_html
Sudden Oak Death Microbe Afflicts New Victims
The microbe responsible for devastating coastal oak forests in California continues to spread to other species. One species of the microbe - phytophthora - is already responsible for Port Orford Cedar die-off. Experts can not rule out spread of virulent California strain to Douglas Fir and redwoods, according to S.F. Chronicle Science Page article. Read More...
http://headlines.igc.apc.org:8080/enheadlines/984007504/index_html
3/9/01
8:45:30 PM
ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE (ENS)
"We Cover the Earth For You"
BEETLES, HABITAT LOSS FORCE RELOCATION OF ENDANGERED BIRDS
WINCHESTER, Kentucky, March 8, 2001 (ENS) - In a drastic move aimed at protecting a highly endangered species, federal and state authorities plan to begin relocating endangered red-cockaded woodpeckers from southern pine beetle infested habitat on the Daniel Boone National Forest in Kentucky as early as next week. The project will remove all remaining red-cockaded woodpeckers in the state.
For full text and graphics, visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-08-06.html
LAST SEEN 1918, AUSTRALIA'S CRANBROOK PEA IS BACK
PERTH, Australia, March 8, 2001 (ENS) - A plant presumed extinct for more than 80 years has been rediscovered by a Western Australian farmer.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-08-10.html
INQUIRY LAUNCHED INTO LONDON'S NUCLEAR TRAINS
LONDON, United Kingdom, March 8, 2001 (ENS) - Nuclear waste transported by rail through London is to be investigated in an inquiry aimed at discovering the level of radiation coming from trains.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-08-11.html
EUROPEAN ENVIRONMENTAL PLAN LACKS TARGETS, TIMETABLES
BRUSSELS, Belgium, March 8, 2001 (ENS) - Environment ministers from across Western Europe today launched a concerted attack on the lack of clear policy targets and timetables for action in the European Commission's new proposal for a Sixth Environmental Action Programme (6EAP).
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-08-02.html
HIGH ALERT CALLED ON TRAFFICKING IN WILD SPECIES
CAMBRIDGE, United Kingdom, March 8, 2001 (ENS) - Wildlife poachers and smugglers, beware! TRAFFIC has mapped out a new three year strategy to protect the most endangered wildlife and fragile ecosystems from predatory traders.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-08-01.html
ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE AMERISCAN: MARCH 8, 2001
$20 Million Pledged to Buy Back StarLink Seed
Greenpeace Cofounder Supports Biotech
Fisheries Service Approves Innovative Salmon Plan
PCBs in Spokane River Fish Call For Caution
American Rivers: Hydropower Industry Must Pay Its Share
Florida Gathers Seeds to Save Endangered Bromeliads
Puerto Rico Approves First Caribbean Habitat Conservation Plan
Universal Makes $100,000 Brockovich Donation to UCLA
For full text and graphics, visit:
http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-08-09.html
SEND NEWS STORY TIPS TO news@ens-news.com
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http://store.yahoo.com/cgi-bin/clink?aromaleighinc+7aYfPY+index.html
Startech Environmental Unveils First StarCell Hydrogen System At Shareholders Meeting
WILTON, CT, Mar. 8 -/E-Wire/-- Startech Environmental Corp, (Nasdaq: STHK), the world leader in plasma waste remediation and recycling technology, unveiled its first commercially-sized StarCell(TM) system for inspection by its shareholders at the Company's annual shareholder meeting yesterday. The system on display, will produce about 30 cubic feet of hydrogen per minute. The StarCell unit shown measures 2 feet wide by 8 feet 6 inches long and is 6 feet 8 inches high.
/CONTACT: Robert L. DeRochie, VP of Investor Relations of Startech Environmental Corp, 203-762-2499, starmail@startech.net/
/Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/113537.html
or fax, 800-758-5804, ext. 113537/
www.startech.net/
http://ens-news.com/e-wire/Mar01/08Mar0109.html
TO ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:
New Organization Formed to Protect Winter Wildlands Winter Wildlands Alliance Preserves the Human-Powered Snow Sports Experience
BOISE, ID, Mar. 8 -/E-Wire/-- Snow sports enthusiasts today announced the formation of Winter Wildlands Alliance, a new national nonprofit organization that preserves winter wildlands and a quality human-powered snow sport experience on public lands. Formerly known as the Backcountry SnowSports Alliance, the Winter Wildlands Alliance represents non-motorized winter recreationists and wilderness activists alike, and brings a national voice to the need for separate use areas and monitoring of motorized regulations on public lands.
/CONTACT: Sally Grimes of Winter Wildlands Alliance, 208-336-4203, sally@winterwildlands.org/
www.winterwildlands.org/
http://ens-news.com/e-wire/Mar01/08Mar0108.html
2001 Disaster-Recovery Sourcebook Now Available
New, 2001 Edition of the Disaster Recovery Yellow Pages(tm)Begins Shipment - Coincides with yet Another Disastrous Season
NEWTON, MA, Mar. 8 -/E-Wire/-- The updated, "New Century" 2001, Edition of the Disaster Recovery Yellow Pages(tm), by The Systems Audit Group, Inc. has begun shipping, coincidentally during one of the most disastrous seasons in recent history.
/CONTACT: Steven Lewis 617-332-3496 DRYP@Javanet.com/
http://ens-news.com/e-wire/Mar01/08Mar0104.html
3/9/01
8:10:11 PM
Real Goods
Federal Power Agency Issues Largest Wind Solicitation Ever
WASHINGTON, D.C. February 23, 2001 -- The Bonneville Power Administration's (BPA) decision to solicit proposals Feb. 21 for 1,000 megawatts (MW) of new wind energy generating capacity is a "major breakthrough" for the increasingly-competitive clean energy technology, the Washington, D.C.-based American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) said today. The BPA request for proposals (RFP) is a clear signal that the federal agency recognizes the potential of wind energy to provide near-term, stablely-priced electricity supplies as California and the Pacific Northwest grapple with gyrating energy prices and power shortages, AWEA said. It said the new wind plants that should result within two to three years, more quickly than other new power plants can be built, would provide enough electricity for 150,000 households or 400,000 people.
According to BPA, "Wind projects are particularly attractive because they can come online in a relatively short time (24 to 30 months), offer power that is competitively priced with other sources such as combustion turbines, are relatively easy to site and expand, have low environmental impacts (including no carbon emissions) and are highly desirable to buyers of 'green' power." Wind energy has attracted increasing attention in recent years as the fastest-growing energy source worldwide, expanding at an average clip of 29% over the past five years.
Interesting Tid-bits About Wind Energy
Total worldwide wind capacity today is approximately 17,000 MW, enough to generate about 34 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity each year. This is about the same amount of electricity as 5 million average California households (containing 12.5 million people) use.
Wind energy was the world's fastest-growing energy source during most of the 1990s,expanding at annual rates ranging from 25% to 35%. In 2000, about 3,500 MW of new wind capacity (close to a $4 billion investment) was installed around the world, but only 53 MW of that total, or a little more than 1%, was installed in the U.S. However, AWEA expects as much as 2,000 MW of new wind capacity to be installed in the U.S. this year.
Leading states in terms of installed wind capacity today are California (1,646 MW), Minnesota (272 MW), Iowa (242 MW), and Texas (188 MW).
U.S. wind potential is enormous -- many times the amount installed. California's potential, for example, is conservatively estimated at 5,000 MW of wind capacity. Other western states have much larger potential -- e.g., Wyoming has more than 10 times California's. The U.S. is, quite literally, a "Saudi Arabia of wind," with vast resources throughout the Plains states.
Declining costs: The cost of producing electricity from wind energy has declined by more than 80%, from about 38 cents per kilowatt-hour in the early 1980s to a current range of 3 to 6 cents/kWh (levelized over a plant's lifetime). In the not-too-distant future, analysts believe, wind energy costs could fall even lower than most conventional energy sources, reaching an unsubsidized cost of 2.5 cents/kWh.
Incentives for Small Wind Turbines: Tax incentives or rebates help make the purchase of a small wind turbine for household use more attractive to potential buyers. California currently provides a rebate of up to 50% of the purchase price of a small turbine, and that has helped to sharply increase demand for the units in the state.
Jobs: Every 100 MW of wind development creates about 500 job-years of employment. Installation of 2,000 MW will result in 10,000 job-years.
Stable electricity prices: A recent study (January, 2000) found Iowa's electric utility customers could save over $300 million over a 25-year period if a proposal to meet 10% of the state's electric demand through wind energy is adopted. The savings result because the cost of fossil fuels is expected to rise over time, while wind's costs decline. Savings in California, where prices have skyrocketed because of supply constraints, would be enormous.
Reduced emissions of pollution and greenhouse gases: A single 660-kW wind turbine will displace emissions of 1,100 tons of carbon dioxide (the leading greenhouse gas), 6 tons of sulfur dioxide (the leading component of acid rain), and 4 tons of nitrogen oxides (the leading component of smog) every year, based on the U.S. average utility fuel mix. 375 acres (more than half a square mile) of forest would be needed to absorb the same amount of CO2.
Environmental Organizations Call Daimler's UNIMOG A "Daimlersaurus"
The Sierra Club and Worldwatch Institute today questioned Daimler Chrysler's decision to market the mega 4x4 vehicle, the Unimog, in the United States. The Unimog, a converted German military vehicle manufactured by Freightliner, a subsidiary of Daimler-Chrysler, bombed in the European market but will be sold as a luxury vehicle in the US later this year.
Standing 9 feet 7 inches tall, 7 feet 6 inches wide, weighing 12,500 pounds, the Unimog out sizes even General Motors' Hummer and Ford's Excursion, which caused public outrage over commercial vehicle sizes a few years ago and won the Sierra Club's Exxon Valdez Award for Environmental Destruction. "With just five percent of the world's population, the United States already uses more than one third of the world's transport energy," said Worldwatch Institute President, Christopher Flavin. "At a time when oil prices and global temperatures are rising, car manufacturers should be investing in a new generation of efficient hydrogen-fuelled cars rather than another round of gas-guzzling dinosaurs."
Currently U.S. cars and light trucks produce more global warming pollution than all but four countries, mainly because U.S. auto makers build big, inefficient vehicles. If its hauling capacity were one pound more than its 26,000 pounds, the driver would require a Commercial Truck Driver's License. And the Unimog gets a mere 10 miles per gallon-even worse than the 13mpg achieved by many gas-guzzling SUVs.
Switching from driving an average new car to a 13 mpg SUV for one year will waste more energy than: Leaving a refrigerator door open for 6 years Leaving a bathroom light burning for 30 years or Leaving a color television turned on for 28 years
Seattle Experiments with BioDiesel
Seattle may soon have a new tool to combat energy crunches - at a reduced cost to the environment. In addition to bus, truck and utility-vehicle fleets, the Puget Sound area maintains an extensive marine industry, state ferry system and three of the country's largest military bases, all of which rely on diesel fuel. The cost to the environment is considerable. Last year Seattle fell out of compliance with the Clean Air Act on two days.
To reverse that trend, the city is launching a pilot program that will test the capacity of biodiesel fuel to curb air pollution without compromising operations. The action comes on the heels of a recent report from the Renewable Energy Policy Project, which found that diesel generators are a significant source of pollution in the United States and that reliance on them is growing. State officials project a 40 percent increase in the number of diesel-powered engines in California over the next 20 years.
In 1996, diesel generators provided 102,000 megawatts of power in the United States. With a 1.7 percent annual rate of growth, they are expected to provide at least 127,500 megawatts of power by 2010, releasing large amounts of carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide into the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. "The total pollution from these generators almost equals that of all nitrogen oxide emissions from electric power plants in New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey combined," said Virinder Singh, director of the Renewable Energy Policy Project and lead author of the report. Nitrogen oxide is a major cause of urban smog and a contributor to respiratory problems in humans and wildlife, Singh noted.
While the report supports a number of alternatives to diesel power generators, including wind power and solar power, biodiesel may be the best immediate means to cleaner energy. While micro-turbines, solar photovoltaics, wind turbines and fuel cells require new pieces of equipment, biodeisel use does not. Produced from vegetable oil, sewage plant waste and even fast-food grease, biodiesel can be used anywhere that diesel is used. Supporters of biodiesel point out that it comes from domestic agricultural sources and therefore supports American farmers and relieves dependence on foreign oil.
A recent University of California at Davis study found that biodiesel reduces cancer-causing risks associated with diesel by 90 percent. In recent years the price of biodiesel has dropped from $1.20 above the cost of diesel to 10 to 30 cents above the cost. Last November the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved a $300 million program encouraging the production of biodiesel and other alternative fuels. (source: Environmental News Network)
3/9/01
7:55:36 PM
BIODEMOCRACY NEWS
Issue # 32 March, 2001
by Ronnie Cummins
A publication of the Organic Consumers Association
<www.organicconsumers.org>
3/9/01
7:53:32 PM
Male vs Female!
An English teacher was explaining to his students the concept of gender association in the English language. He noted how hurricanes at one time were given only female names, and how ships and planes were usually referred to as "she." One of the students raised her hand and asked, "What gender is a computer?"
The teacher wasn't certain. So he divided the class into two groups: males in one, females in the other, and asked them to decide if a computer should be masculine or feminine. Both groups were asked to give four reasons for their recommendations.
The group of women concluded that computers should be referred to as masculine because:
1. In order to get their attention, you have to turn them on.
2. They have a lot of data but are still clueless.
3. They are supposed to help you solve your problems, but half the time, they ARE the problem.
4. As soon as you commit to one, you realize that, if you had waited a little longer, you could have had a better model.
The men, on the other hand, decided that computers should definitely be referred to as feminine because:
1. No one but their creator understands their internal logic.
2. The native language they use to communicate with other computers is incomprehensible to everyone else.
3. Even your smallest mistakes are stored in long-term memory for later review.
4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you find yourself spending half your paycheck on accessories for it.
3/9/01
7:43:11 PM
Geophysical Condition
1: Earth's Rising Base Frequency: Earth's background base frequency, or "heartbeat", (called Schumann resonance, or SR) is rising dramatically. Though it varies among geographical regions, for decades the overall measurement was 7.8 cycles per second. This was once thought to be a constant; global military communications developed on this frequency. Recent reports set the rate at over 11 cycles, and climbing. Science doesn't know why, or what to make of it. Gregg Braden found data collected by Norwegian and Russian researchers on this; it's not widely reported in the U.S. (The only reference to SR to be found in the Seattle Library reference section, is tied to the weather. Science acknowledges SR as a sensitive indicator of temperature variations and worldwide weather conditions. Braden believes the fluctuating SR may be a factor in the severe storms, floods, and weather of recent years.)
Geophysical Condition
2: Earth's Diminishing Magnetic Field: While earth's "pulse" rate is rising, her magnetic field strength, on the other hand, is declining. According to Professor Bannerjee of the University of New Mexico, the field has lost up to half its intensity in the last 4,000 years. And because a forerunner of magnetic polar reversals is this field strength, Prof. Bannerjee believes that another reversal is due. Braden believes that because these cyclical Shifts are associated with reversals, Earth's geological record indicating magnetic reversals also marks previous Shifts in history. And, within the enormous time scale represented, there were quite a few of them.
3/9/01
7:24:41 PM
Planet Ark World Environment News
Doing environmental research? Search our news archives at: http://www.planetark.org/searchhome.cfm
Alaska governor wants big share of oil royalties - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10041
USDA panel to discuss air pollution from livestock farms - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10052
Senators urge Bush to enforce oxygen fuel rule in California - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10051
Greenpeace urges FDA, Kellogg to recall corn dogs - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10050
Senator seeks more US reliance on nuclear power - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10033
UPDATE - StarLink bio-corn seen unlikely in food after milling - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10034
Kellogg products said to show StarLink traces - paper - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10048
US corn exports cut by StarLink biotech saga - USDA - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10038
US green group sues USTR for trade talk papers - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10045
TVA mulls reviving mothballed Ala. nuclear power plant - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10053
UPDATE - UK petrol still world's dearest despite tax cut - UK http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10044
UK's Brown offers tax relief for green energy - UK http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10043
EU bank may help Russia to curb Baltic pollution - SWEDEN http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10037
FEATURE - Poland's ailing farms may have eco-chance - POLAND http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10049
Latvia PM says wants oil spill deal with Lithuania - LATVIA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10042
German Greens to take chance with new leftist leader - GERMANY http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10046
German activists occupy nuclear waste loading site - GERMANY http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10036
German power industry's CHP plan gets initial nod - GERMANY http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10030
Metals recycling policy seen moving forward in EU - FRANCE http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10029
Aluminium supply abundant long term - industry group - FRANCE http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10032
EU scrap vehicle directive will shake up recycling - FRANCE http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10031
Ditching Finn nuclear plans would raise bills - industry - FINLAND http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10035
Motorbikes face tougher EU emissions limits from 2003 - EU http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10039
EU could ratify climate pact by next summer-Sweden - EU http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10047
UPDATE - EU could ratify climate pact by July 2002 - Sweden - EU http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10040
3/9/01
7:22:42 PM
FAIR
Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting
Media analysis, critiques and news reports
ACTION ALERT: ABC Gives Drug Industry View on AIDS Drugs Dispute
On its March 7 broadcast, ABC's World News Tonight tried to give its viewers some background on the legal battle over pharmaceutical patents and AIDS drugs in Africa. But viewers only heard from one side in the debate: the drug companies and their supporters.
The report, by ABC's Deborah Amos, relied on three sources: a spokesperson from the South African Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, the executive vice president of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) and an analyst from the Cato Institute, a conservative-libertarian think tank. All three promoted the same theme: Drug companies should not be blamed for trying to protect their patents.
Excluding critics in this dispute is baffling. Activists from around the world are gathered in South Africa now, as 39 pharmaceutical companies have taken the South African government to court over its plan to allow production of generic versions of AIDS drugs, a practice known as compulsory licensing. The activists argue that the escalating health crisis in Africa, where 25 million people are estimated to be HIV positive, gives the government the right to pursue such a policy, which they say is completely legal under current international trade laws.
Experts who represent this point of view are readily available to the media: The Institute for Public Accuracy, a D.C.-based press advisory group, issued a press release on March 6 offering interviews with prominent critics of the drug industry's position
(http://www.accuracy.org/press_releases/PR030601.htm ).
A shorter companion segment, by correspondent Jim Wooten, did describe the human cost of high drug prices in Malawi, but did not include any drug industry critics who might have explained how AIDS medicine could be made affordable.
This isn't the first time ABC has presented mainly the drug company view on this issue. On July 8, 1999, World News Tonight aired two segments that essentially argued that making cheaper drugs available would have little impact on public health in African countries. The segments were dominated by sources from the pharmaceutical industry and its supporters, though one South African government official was quoted criticizing the drug companies.
(See http://www.fair.org/activism/aids-africa.html .)
In his March 7 introduction, ABC anchor Peter Jennings called the story of AIDS in Africa "one of the profound questions of our time." Unfortunately, ABC sought the answers from only one side of the dispute.
ACTION: Please contact ABC World News Tonight and encourage them to include critics of the pharmaceutical industry in their ongoing coverage of the AIDS crisis in Africa.
CONTACT Peter Jennings ABC's World New Tonight 47 W. 66 St., New York, NY 10023 Phone: 212-456-7777 Fax: 212-456-4297 mailto:peterjennings@worldnewstonight.abcnews.com
ABC News: mailto:netaudr@abc.com
As always, please remember that your comments will be more effective if you maintain a polite tone. Please cc fair@fair.org with your correspondence.
Read the transcripts of the ABC reports at:
http://www.fair.org/activism/abc-aids-transcript.html
3/9/01
7:17:53 PM
THE LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER
Senate votes to OK study of industrial hemp
By John Cheves
FRANKFORT - The tall, skinny hemp plant, a cousin to marijuana that is used to produce a wide variety of products, is poised to return to Kentucky soil.
The Senate voted 26-11 yesterday for House Bill 100, which would permit Kentucky's college agricultural programs to grow industrial hemp and study its potential value as a crop. Depending on the results of those studies, hemp could return to private farms and offer an alternative for beleaguered tobacco farmers, supporters said.
So far, no college has expressed an interest in growing hemp, but that could change if the bill becomes law, said George Graves, spokesman for the Council on Postsecondary Education.
Federal and state drug laws passed a half-century ago linked hemp and marijuana and prohibited the growth of either plant. Currently, only Hawaii grows hemp for academic research, but more than a dozen other states have considered similar legislation.
House Bill 100 will go to a House-Senate conference committee for minor revisions before it goes to Gov. Paul Patton, who will sign it into law, a spokesman said.
Yesterday's vote was a hard-fought victory for hemp advocates, who lobbied for similar bills without success in recent years. They won this year after convincing the Kentucky State Police and the governor that the academic study of hemp would not serve as a cover for marijuana production.
"There's a lot of misinformation out there," said Sen. Joey Pendleton, D-Hopkinsville. "This is only a study of industrial hemp."
Some Senate Republicans were skeptical, attributing much of the bill's support to the "marijuana subculture." Groups that favor marijuana legalization hope hemp production will make it more difficult to enforce drug laws, and maybe even weaken the public's opposition to marijuana, they said.
Industrial hemp and marijuana are separate subspecies of Cannabis sativa L. Marijuana has from five to 20 times the level of tetrahydrocannabinol, orTHC, a mind-altering substance that can relax users when ingested.
But the two plants appear similar enough that hemp fields could camouflage marijuana, critics said. And even a trace of THC from hemp food products would show up as marijuana in drug tests, rendering urine tests useless, they added.
"Legalizing hemp is legalizing marijuana. It's a stepping stone," said Sen. Vernie McGaha, R-Russell Springs.
House Bill 100 sets strict and potentially expensive rules for hemp growth. Colleges would apply to the Council on Postsecondary Education for the right to participate. In exchange, colleges must agree to obey federal laws, which call for fences and guards to monitor any property where hemp is grown. They also must notify local and state police about the size and location of their hemp crops.
Additionally, the bill creates a 17-member Kentucky Industrial Hemp Commission to report to the governor and legislators on the progress of hemp research.
It's not known how many of the state's colleges would apply to grow hemp. Kentucky State University in Frankfort might participate if the cost and space demands are not burdensome, and if qualified researchers are available on staff, said Harold Benson, director of the school's land-grant agricultural program.
"It would be something we would consider," Benson said. "It would not necessarily be placed at the forefront of our agricultural research farm."
A 1998 study by the University of Kentucky found that hemp could be a profitable crop for Kentucky. Various industries could support the cultivation of 82,000 acres of hemp in the United States, with a profit of $220 to $605 per acre, according to the study, which was sponsored by the Kentucky Hemp Museum and Library.
"There certainly is a market there. Whether there is enough of a market for 20 states to do it, I don't know, so it seems important for Kentucky to get in on the front end," said UK economist Mark Berger, co-author of the study.
Hemp grown in other countries is used in many products, including paper, rope, clothing, food and automobile parts. Prior to the laws that prohibited its production, Kentucky was the nation's leading hemp producer. Among the local landmarks depicting the hemp plant is the Bourbon County courthouse dome.
"We've got a large part of our populace who either remember growing hemp or remember their fathers growing hemp," said Andy Graves, president of the Kentucky Hemp Growers Cooperative.
3/9/01
4:02:05 PM
Was the Seattle-Vancouver earthquake triggered by environmental war?
EcoNews Service
VANCOUVER, BC - Was the Seattle-Vancouver earthquake of 28 February 2001 triggered - accidentally or on purpose - by new, secret electromagnetic weapons?
The Vancouver-based author of EARTH CHANGES (Universebooks.com), environmentalist Alfred Webre, believes the deep, magnitude 6.8 earthquake may have been triggered by electromagnetic (EM) events. Other researchers, including members of the ELFRAD Group, which monitors electromagnetic (EM) events, note that HAARP, a U.S. electromagnetic (EM) weapons system in Alaska, - or some other EM source piggy- backing on HAARP's signal - may have inadvertently or intentionally affected the earthquake.
In the mid-1990s, despite the strong opposition of Congressman Ronald V. Dellums (Dem.-Calif.) the U.S. Congress narrowly approved HAARP, in the face of studies showing HAARP's negative environmental impacts. The U.S. Navy assured Congress that HAARP would not trigger climate change or seismic events like the Seattle-Vancouver earthquake. Now, if it can be established that HAARP - or some other EM installation - had a role in causing this earthquake, the U.S. domestic and international repercussions of this finding could be profound.
In the aftermath of the Seattle-Vancouver quake, a Yakima valley, Washington researcher, writing agreed with Webre's analysis that earthquakes can be triggered by electromagnetic EM warfare. He stated, "Like the weather and the oceans, the mantle beneath the floating tectonic plates also involve convection cells, but in a plastic medium that sets up wave patterns that may be modified by superimposition of additional waves."
Electromagnetic (EM) weapons can possibly trigger cataclysmic earth events. EM fields can superheat the ionosphere, devastating magnetic bands around the earth, and in turn causing massive disruption of the earth's Tectonic plates. A January 17, 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan may have been triggered by clandestine deployment of EM weapons. EM strategic warfare includes weather, climate and earth event warfare. Researchers have reported the use of EM weapons in anti-population mind-control operations over major cities.
Scientific observers and short wave radio operators now state that unusual electromagnetic (EM) broadcasts preceded the Seattle- Vancouver earthquake. One researcher who actually monitored the EM broadcasts prior to the earthquake states, "Could the abnormal activity on 3.39 MHz February 20 and prior be linked to the Seattle quake? If so, why would HAARP (supposedly funded by U.S. sources) be used to create quakes or other assorted EM mayhem on U.S. property? I picked up a signal so strong it went right off the S meter on my SW set at that frequency at 6:00 am on Feb 20th. Took an audio sampling of half an hour but can't make hide or hair of what HAARP is broadcasting, just that it's STRONG."
One example of how earthquakes (and climate shift including so- called global warming) can be triggered is HAARP, a U.S. military electromagnetic EM installation located in Alaska, and part of a global network of U.S. (and other nations') military electromagnetic weapons. HAARP and its EM network are designed to turn the entire ionosphere into a giant anti-submarine and anti-missile antenna.
Environmental impact studies show that HAARP - and EM environmental weapons deployed secretly by many nations - could superheat the ionosphere, and substantially damage or destroy it in a runaway ecological process.
Seattle-based researcher Kent Steadman notes EM activity just prior to and during the earthquake. "COINCIDENCE? Date: 2/27/01 9:54:34 PM Pacific Standard Time [hour prior to quake] . Washington, Yakima Valley: On the dial at WX Air VHF band around 153 we are getting the strangest signal. Anyone else hearing it or no what it is. HAARP maybe?"
Steadman continues, "Date: 2/28/01 7:21:39 PM Pacific Standard Time. Does anyone have recording of 153 MHZ signal? I helped install seismic monitoring stations in California in early 90's. They are designed as early warning system in detecting earth movements prior to big quake. Several of these were in the 153-154 band. They send data, but during a big shift they send a screeching sounding data burst. Let me know what you find out."
Ominously, two earthquakes along the North American-South American Pacific Rim occurred just following the electromagnetic EM environmental war signals - The Seattle-Vancouver earthquake, and an earthquake off Central America. Were these triggered by the same signals? The director of the ELFRAD group that monitors EM electromagnetic activity, including HAARP and other EM weapons writes, "Date: 2/28/01 1:55:52 PM Pacific Standard Time. Thought you might find this file interesting. It is a 21-hour recording starting this morning at 0001 hrs. We recorded intense activity from .02 to .036 hertz 473 minutes prior to the Washington quake. Actually this was a double boomer, because 4 minutes earlier there was also a quake registering 5.4 off the coast of Central America. Also am including a [picture] during the same time period for yesterday so that you can compare with no major quake."
Faced with the information on EM Environmental war and earthquakes, another researcher with the ELFRAD group wrote, "I take back my former statement that all earthquakes are natural. After reading the following article and tying this information in with Russian predictions of major earthquakes in Kamchatka this year, I'm ready to believe we're in for a lot of trouble..." The researcher then cites environmental war analysis also covered in EARTH CHANGES on possible tectonic warfare earthquakes:
http://www.cheniere.org/misc/brightskies1.htm
Other researchers have found that the HAARP electromagnetic (EM) signal is carrying within it another hidden signal, whose frequency has been shown to affect the limbic system in the human brain, which manages emotions and mood and is a target of mind control intrusions. Some researchers have stated that mood management of human populations may be happening through these hidden EM frequencies. On February 17, just 11 days prior to the Seattle earthquake, according to ELFRAD".9 Hz signal, which as we've discussed, may be related to limbic (emotion) activation in the brain, occurred during the transmission, lasting a very unusual 42 minutes from 1200 hrs to 1400 hrs UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) on Saturday, 17 Feb 2001."
During the 1990s, the US Congress held hearings on HAARP's environmental impact statement. Former Congressman Ronald V. Dellums (D-Calif) strenuously objected to giving HAARP a Congressional go-ahead. HAARP's environmental impact statement showed that possible environmental mishaps like the Seattle-Vancouver earthquake might result. Despite these obvious large-scale hazards, the U.S. Navy then insisted that HAARP's electromagnetic (EM) broadcasts were safe and would not produce runaway tectonic or atmospheric impacts.
If the Seattle-Vancouver earthquake is in any way shown to have been affected by HAARP broadcasts - accidentally or intentionally - the environmental, social, and political consequences to the U.S. environmental EM war programs will be profound. These include incalculable domestic consequences for the U.S. Navy and the Bush Administration's plans for an expansion of electromagnetic EM weapons systems. In addition, HAARP's negative environmental impacts are of such an unprecedented scale that they would constitute blatant violations of the 1977 United Nations Treaty against Environmental Modification. Blatant U.S. violations of this treaty could result in a major embarrassment and isolation of the United States in the world community.
EcoNews has published a series of award winning articles on the HAARP environmental impact statements by Earth Island, an environmental think tank.
Author Webre also interprets seismic events like the Seattle- Vancouver earthquake in a startling new light of Environmental War and Global Earthquakes. Writing in EARTH CHANGES, Webre analyzes tectonic and environmental warfare through the disciplines of catastrophic geology, seismology, vulcanology, parapsychology, and public interest policy analysis. Webre has developed a new field theory explaining how an age of global earthquakes might be fulfilled - not by earth system mechanics, but by the deployment of a new generation of electromagnetic weapons, used in environmental warfare.
EARTH CHANGES includes leading edge alternative science in, and integrates the prophetic traditions of many cultures with modern science. Prophetic traditions, ranging from the Mayan calendar, to indigenous Native- American-First Nations prophecy converges on cataclysmic earth changes accompanying a transition of earth into a millennial society. Analysis of the written precognition of psychics such as Edgar Cayce and Michel de Notredame (1503-1566) reveals that "terrible new weapons," with characteristics similar to EM environmental weapons, may have caused the cataclysmic earth changes. The Mayan calendar, which divides time into galactic-based long cycles or tuns of 26,000 years, predicts that the galactic tun-cycle ending on December 22, 2012, may be accompanied by catastrophic earth changes, as well as initiation of cosmic consciousness among humankind.
Author Alfred Webre, a Yale Law School graduate, is a former member of the Governor's Emergency Task Force on Earthquake Preparedness, State of California, and author of a classic work on Earth Changes, THE AGE OF CATACLYSM (G.P. Putnam's Sons 1974).
Read EARTH CHANGES http://www.universebooks.com/sampleearthchanges.html
http://www.ecologynews.com/cuenews12.html
CONTACT: 604-733-8134
EcoNews Service Econews@ecologynews.com
3/9/01
3:57:21 PM
DAILY GRIST
Environmental news from GRIST MAGAZINE
<http://www.gristmagazine.com>
1. THE BLESSED ... Peter Illyn is a man with a plan -- and a llama. He wants to save the environment one soul at a time, following the Christian rock festival circuit and preaching a green gospel. Illyn, with his llama in tow, is one member of a new army of "faith-based" environmentalists crusading to green America's religious communities. These true believers have the potential to turn a conservative audience on to conservation. Indeed, religious leaders have lent valuable moral credence to such green causes as saving salmon in the Columbia River in the Northwest and protecting roadless areas in national forests. Still, Illyn and his brothers and sisters in arms have learned that God-fearing folk are none too different from the secular masses in some ways -- general apathy for the issues and widespread misinformation are among the obstacles facing the crusaders.
straight to the source: Outside, Bruce Barcott, Mar 2001
http://www.outsidemagazine.com/magazine/200103/200103christian1.html
2. ... AND THE DAMMED Construction of a $3.9 billion dam in Malaysia is expected to resume soon despite harsh criticism from environmentalists and human rights groups. The Asian financial crisis halted work on the Bakun Dam in the late 1990s, but the Malaysian government said this week that it wants to move forward with the project. The dam would flood more than 187 square miles of rainforest and displace nearly 10,000 indigenous people. Sam Hiu, spokesperson for groups opposing the dam, said, "While the rest of the world moves forward with alternatives to large dams, it is utter folly and backward of Malaysia to go ahead with Bakun."
straight to the source: Planet Ark, Reuters, Wong Choon Mei, 08 Mar 2001 <http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10022>
3. A DOG-EAT-CORN-DOG WORLD In the first federal bailout related to genetically engineered food, the U.S. Agriculture Department announced yesterday that it will buy as many as 400,000 bags of corn seed that contain the genetically modified (GM) corn variety StarLink. Using up to $20 million in funds normally lent to farmers facing natural disasters, the government will compensate seed companies for corn that was inadvertently contaminated with StarLink, most likely through the drift of pollen from other cornfields. StarLink has not been approved for human consumption, but the corn has still made its way into numerous food products, prompting nationwide recalls. Just this morning, Greenpeace said StarLink has been found in frozen corn dogs made by Kellogg's. The U.S. EPA said yesterday that it would no longer approve GM products for use as animal feed unless they were also safe for human consumption.
straight to the source: Washington Post, Marc Kaufman, 08 Mar 2001 <http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37085-2001Mar7.html>
straight to the source: Los Angeles Times, Associated Press, Philip Brasher, 08 Mar 2001 <http://www.latimes.com/wires/wpolitics/20010308/tCB00V8713.html>
do good: Take action and tell Kellogg's you don't want GM foods on your plate <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/dogood/food.stm#frankenfoods>
4. EXPLORATORY COMMITTEE The governors of Alaska, Montana, and Wyoming told the U.S. House Resources Committee yesterday that they would welcome more oil, gas, and coal exploration in their states. The committee's chair, James Hansen (R-Utah), agreed with them that policies discouraging energy exploration on federal lands have contributed to the energy problems facing California and other parts of the country. Environmentalists were not invited to testify at the hearing.
straight to the source: Salt Lake Tribune, Brent Israelsen, 08 Mar 2001 <http://www.sltrib.com/03082001/utah/77644.htm>
5. PUT THIS IN YOUR PIPELINE AND SMOKE IT Guess what? A survey paid for by oil-happy Sen. Frank Murkowski (R-Alaska) found that 75 percent of Alaskans support opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling. Environmentalists are also confronting another problem -- industry says many more pipelines need to be built to boost the amount of natural gas available to customers. Greenies tend to favor gas over oil because it burns more cleanly, but they fear the Bush administration will overlook environmental concerns in siting additional pipelines.
straight to the source: Anchorage Daily News, Ben Spiess, 08 Mar 2001 <http://www.adn.com/business/story/0,2641,246439,00.html>
straight to the source: New York Times, Douglas Jehl, 08 Mar 2001 <http://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/08/national/08PIPE.html>
Just drain it -- a day in the life of Owen Lammers, Glen Canyon Action Network <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/week/lammers030701.stm>
Cattle prod -- why we need to push livestock off public lands, in our opinions column <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/imho/imho022500.stm>
On the road -- and wishing I'd left my car at home -- by Ed Begley, Jr. <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/maindish/begley020200.stm>
3/8/01
3:33:19 PM
Pakistan considers arming subs with nuclear missiles
By ZAHID HUSSAIN, Associated Press
KARACHI, Pakistan
- In what could indicate that Pakistan is ready to deploy nuclear weapons, its navy said Thursday it may put nuclear missiles on its submarines.
Such a move would increase tension with nuclear neighbor India. Both exploded nuclear devices in 1998 and declared themselves nuclear powers.
"Pakistan may equip its submarines with nuclear missiles to defend its key naval installations," said navy spokesman Roshan Khayal.
It's not known how many nuclear weapons or the type that India and Pakistan possess. But Pakistan recently added three French submarines to its fleet - all capable of carrying nuclear warheads, Khayal said.
Most analysts do not believe either country has yet deployed nuclear weapons or developed nuclear warheads for their missile systems. Both have, however, tested medium- and long-range missiles capable of hitting deep within each other's territory.
Pakistan did not offer a time frame for putting nuclear missiles on submarines.
On Wednesday, Rear Admiral Afzal Tahir, deputy chief of naval staff, said India has ambitions to nuclearize its submarine fleet and Pakistan has to keep pace.
"Nuclear weapons have fundamentally changed the dynamics of the military equation in the region and Pakistan has to prepare itself to meet any aggression," Tahir said.
"The threat primarily emanates from Indian submarines which are capable of striking shore targets with missiles," he said.
Pakistan and India have gone to war three times since British rule of the Asian subcontinent ended in 1947. The development of nuclear weapons on the subcontinent raised fears among the international community that another war in the region could result in the use of nuclear weapons.
Both countries have been pressed by a worried world to halt their nuclear programs and not develop nuclear weapons. The two say they want a minimum nuclear deterrent, but neither country has spelled out what that would mean and how many weapons that would involve.
India earlier released proposed plans for its nuclear development, which also called for the deployment of submarines equipped with nuclear weapons.
The two countries share access to the Arabian Sea. Karachi is Pakistan's biggest city, manufacturing and industrial hub and a major port on the Arabian Sea.
3/8/01
3:31:48 PM
STOP MOBILE CHERNOBYL & NUKE DUMPS ON NATIVE LANDS!
The nuclear power industry, with shameful environmental racism, has targeted the tiny, impoverished Skull Valley Goshutes Indian Reservation in Utah for its "Private Fuel Storage" national dumpsite. This proposed "interim storage site" for high-level atomic trash could launch the Mobile Chernobyl -- thousands of waste shipments across dozens of States -- beginning as early as 2003. The nuclear industry claims the Skull Valley dump would just be "temporary," for they have full confidence that the federal government will open the permanent national dump site on Western Shoshone Indian land at Yucca Mountain, Nevada -- yet more environmental racism!
Commemorate Earth Week 2001 and the 15th Anniversary of Chernobyl
April 25th speakers, workshops, non-violence trainings
APRIL 26TH -- NATIONAL DAY OF ACTION rallies & press events in numerous cities across the U.S.
To find out about the action nearest you, contact Kevin Kamps at Nuclear Information & Resource Service, phone (202) 328-0002, e-mail: kevin@nirs.org. Look soon for additional information, fact sheets, petitions, and a flyer you can adapt for local use on our web site:
www.nirs.org
Here is a list of events already being organized:
Coordinated events around the country are being targeted at each of the 8 nuclear utility companies that comprise the Private Fuel Storage consortium that is pushing the dump:
1. MICHIGAN & OHIO: Civil disobedience at American Electric Power's Cook reactors in Michigan on April 26th; simultaneous rally at AEP headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. (contact Kevin Kamps, NIRS, ph. 202.328.0002; Chris Williams, Citizens Action Coalition of Indiana, 317.205.3535)
2. MINNESOTA: Rallies at Xcel Energy's shareholders meeting on April 25th and at Xcel's Headquarters on April 26th, both in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Diana McKeown, Clean Water Action, 612.623.3666)
3. WISCONSIN: Caravan along transport routes near the Dairyland reactor and rally at Private Fuel Storage's national office, in LaCrosse, WI. (contact Kevin Kamps at NIRS for local WI contact information)
4. CALIFORNIA: "The Great American Write-In," a letter-writing marathon to Southern California Edison's CEO as well as to government officials in southern California, April 21st. (contact Kevin Kamps at NIRS for local California contact information)
5. GEORGIA: March, delivery of petitions, and press conference in downtown Atlanta at the Carter Presidential Library calling upon Southern Company to withdraw from PFS the weekend after April 26th (Glenn Carroll, Georgians Against Nuclear Power, 404.378.9542; Mary Olson, Nuclear Info. & Resource Service southeast office, 828.251.2060)
6. NEW JERSEY: April 26th Chernobyl commemoration at GPU Nuclear's (now, Amergen's) Oyster Creek reactor in New Jersey (Norm Cohen, UNPLUG Salem Campaign, 609.601.8583)
7. NEW YORK: Earth Day/April 22nd rally in New York City against Consolidated Edison's membership in PFS. (contact Kevin Kamps or Cindy Folkers at NIRS for local specifics and NYC contacts)
8. FLORIDA: Rally in Florida against Florida Power & Light's involvement with PFS (contact Kevin Kamps at NIRS for local Florida contacts)
In addition:
UTAH: April 26th musical concert, march, and candlelight vigil, downtown Salt Lake City, at the railroad tracks along which the high-level nuclear waste would travel to Skull Valley. (Jason Groenewold, Citizens Against Nuclear Waste in Utah, c/o Families Against Incinerator Risks, ph. 801.364.5110)
April 26th events in other transport corridor States, such as Nebraska.
Please dissemenate this as widely as possible.
3/8/01
3:30:13 PM
Planet Ark World Environment News
Doing environmental research? Search our news archives at: http://www.planetark.org/searchhome.cfm
California lawmaker opposes cuts to energy conservation funds - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10021
Senator seeks more US reliance on nuclear power - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10026
UPDATE - There's money in saving the world - Blair - UK http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10023
French EDF plans 13 pct nuclear cost cut by 2002 - UK http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10025
Mexico loggers said to decimate butterflies - MEXICO http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10018
Malaysia Bakun dam development costs questioned - MALAYSIA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10022
Two tigers die of natural causes in Indian park - INDIA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10027
UPDATE - German coalition at odds on energy taxes - GERMANY http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10020
Czechs to shut nuclear reactor for fixing valves - CZECH REPUBLIC http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10024
Prairie deer dying from brutally cold Canadian winter - CANADA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10028
RWE hopeful Germany will scrap CHP quota plan - BELGIUM http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10019
3/8/01
3:26:46 PM
ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE (ENS)
"We Cover the Earth For You"
BALANCE OF POLITICAL WILL TIPS SCALE OF CLIMATE CHANGE
GENEVA, Switzerland, March 7, 2001 (ENS) - Global warming can be conquered, an international panel of scientists reported Monday, but development paths leading to low greenhouse gas emissions "depend on a wide range of policy choices and require major policy changes in areas other than climate change."
For full text and graphics, visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-07-01.html
HABITAT REPAIRS LURES SALMON BACK TO CLAYOQUOT
By Neville Judd
UCLUELET, British Columbia, Canada, March 7, 2001 (ENS) - Rick Telford was a little surprised when he stumbled on naked revelers in Virgin Falls, last January 1. It may have been mild, but the glacier fed waters are still frigid six months later on Canada Day.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-07-10.html
BLAIR SEES UK LEADING GREEN INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
LONDON, United Kingdom, March 7, 2001 (ENS) - UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has announced a further £100 million (US$147 million) to support renewable energy technology in what green groups described as his strongest environmental speech yet.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-07-11.html
MEXICO OPENS NATIONAL CRUSADE FOR FORESTS AND WATER
By Susana Guzman
MEXICO CITY, Mexico, March 7, 2001 (ENS) - The new Mexican government is going all out to protect the country's dwindling forest and water reserves - even threatening to use the armed forces in the protection of these resources. To create awareness of the importance of forests and water, Mexican President Vicente Fox today launched the National Crusade for Forests and Water in Pátzcuaro, Michoacán.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-07-02.html
REHABILITATING THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED
By Cat Lazaroff
ARCATA, California, March 7, 2001 (ENS) - Logging roads built on steep, forested slopes can send tons of sediment into downslope waterways, smothering aquatic species and changing the course of streams. But the effects need not be permanent, shows a new study by a research geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-07-06.html
ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE AMERISCAN: MARCH 7, 2001
Timber Subsidies Reach Record Levels
Suit Challenges Aerial Wildlife Shooting
New Lamp Sheds Light on Energy Efficiency
Act Now to Save Pacific Fish, Coalition Urges
Comments Needed on Proposed MOX Facility
Vulnerable Today, Endangered Tomorrow
March Proclaimed Seagrass Awareness Month
Nature Mops Up
For full text and graphics, visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-07-09.html
SEND NEWS STORY TIPS TO news@ens-news.com
Oil-Rich Dubai, Starting Point of BMW LH2 10-Car World Tour, Considers Hydrogen
RHINECLIFF, NY, Mar. 7 -/E-Wire/-- Oil-producing Dubai, a key commercial and technological crossroad in the Persian Gulf region, is taking its first cautious steps towards the eventual production of renewable hydrogen in close cooperation with car maker BMW. If the strategy takes hold and succeeds, it could mark a revolutionary shift in the world's system of energy distribution. It could signal the beginning of a shift away from carbon-based fuels to solar-derived renewable energy among the world's principal producers of petroleum.
/CONTACT: Peter Hoffmann, 845-876-5988, Fax: 845-876-7599, email: hfclettr@idsi.net/
http://www.hfcletter.com/letter/march01/
http://ens-news.com/e-wire/Mar01/07Mar0107.html
Wind Energy's Costs Hit New Low, Position Wind as Clean Solution to Energy Crisis, Trade Group Says
WASHINGTON, DC, Mar. 7 -/E-Wire/-- Electricity from large new wind farms proposed in the Western United States will be generated at record-low costs, establishing wind energy as a source of electricity that can play a significant role in stabilizing electricity prices while offsetting pollution associated with conventional electricity generation, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) said today.
/CONTACT: Tom Gray (802) 649-2112, Christine Real de Azua (202) 383-2508/
/Web site: http://www.awea.org/pubs/factsheets.html/
For Full Text Visit: http://ens-news.com/e-wire/Mar01/07Mar0104.html
ZAP Bikes Get a Boost from Washington
WASHINGTON, DC, Mar. 7 -/E-Wire/-- Electric bicycles like the POWERBIKE® from ZAPWORLD.COM (Nasdaq: ZAPP - news) received a vote of approval today at approximately 6:45 p.m. EST from the U.S. House of Representatives.
/CONTACT: Call toll-free at 800-251-4555/
/Web sites: http://www.zapworld.com http://www.zapworld.com/powerbike.html
For Full Text Visit: http://ens-news.com/e-wire/Mar01/07Mar0102.html
3/7/01
9:11:41 PM
Earthnet & All, You LIE!!! The population is increasing by some 83 million people a year. This adds up to one billion a decade. The more people - the more births occur. As medicine becomes more proficient & free to the "poor", LESS deaths occur pushing the population up faster. HAPPY people have babies!!!! If YOU want to support planned wars, euthanasia, & man-made diseases; YOU are SICK!!! That is NOT humane, Christian nor logical. It is just SICK!!! In Jesus' Name, Clifford Catton March 8, 2001 - http://expage.com/godsword
3/7/01
7:00:51 PM
Environmental news from GRIST MAGAZINE
<http://www.gristmagazine.com>
1. FLUTTER, BYE Loggers in Mexico may have poisoned 22 million monarch butterflies in an attempt to gain access to protected forestland, says Homero Aridjis, head of the Mexican environmental organization Group of 100. Aridjis said the butterflies, which migrate each winter from Canada to fir forests in the Michoacan state of central Mexico, were found dead on the ground in the last two weeks, with a smell of pesticides in the air. Mexico last fall expanded the size of the sanctuaries set aside for the butterflies, concerned that illegal logging was devastating monarch habitat. Aridjis said the new decree could have provoked the loggers to poison the butterflies. In other butterfly news, the Center for Biological Diversity is suing the U.S. government to protect the rare Sacramento Mountains checkerspot butterfly as an endangered species.
straight to the source: Albuquerque Journal, Tania Soussan, 07 Mar 2001 <http://www.abqjournal.com/news/268700news03-07-01.htm>
read it in Grist Magazine: Don't let a chance to save the butterfly flutter by -- by Gary Paul Nabhan <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/maindish/nabhan091099.stm>
2. SOMETHING'S ALWAYS HAPPENING AT THE ZHU Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji launched the country's first five-year environmental plan earlier this week, acknowledging the need to balance economic development with environmental concerns. In a speech to China's parliament, Zhu drew attention to forest preservation, desertification, and water shortages. About 400 of China's 668 cities suffer water shortages, and some 700 million of China's 1.3 billion residents drink contaminated water. The five-year plan calls for Chinese industries to have systems in place to recycle 60 percent of the water they use by 2005. It also sets a target of reducing sulfur dioxide emissions by 20 percent in some major cities. Environmentalists predicted the ambitious targets couldn't be met without basic structural and ideological changes in Chinese society.
straight to the source: MSNBC.com, Reuters, 05 Mar 2001 <http://www.msnbc.com/news/539418.asp>
3. MONEY DOESN'T GROW ON LOGS, YOU KNOW The feds lost $126 million from logging on national forests in 1998, according to a draft report released yesterday by the U.S. Forest Service. The agency spent $672 million to administer timber sales that generated only $546 million in revenue. The Tongass National Forest in Alaska led the list of money losers: It cost $35.6 million to run the forest's timber program in 1998, with returns of only $6.5 million. If you're shocked by these numbers, check out this whopper: A "Green Scissors" report by Friends of the Earth, Taxpayers for Common Sense, and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group uncovered 74 wasteful government programs that, if cut, would save a staggering $55 billion a year.
straight to the source: Anchorage Daily News, Paula Dobbyn, 07 Mar 2001 <http://www.adn.com/business/story/0,2641,246071,00.html>
straight to the source: TomPaine.com, 06 Mar 2001 <http://www.tompaine.com/features/2001/03/06/3.html>
4. THE CELEBRATING JUMPING FROG OF RIVERSIDE COUNTY The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service yesterday designated 4.1 million acres as critical habitat for the threatened California red-legged frog. The designation, the state's largest habitat area for a threatened species, spans 28 counties from Northern California to Riverside County near Los Angeles. It requires landowners seeking federal building permits to prove that that their projects won't harm the jumping frog, which was first made famous in a Mark Twain story. The frog has disappeared from 70 percent of its range, with only four regions supporting populations greater than 350.
straight to the source: Los Angeles Times, Annette Kondo, 07 Mar 2001
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/environ/20010307/t000020120.html
5. YACHTSEE! Protesters in a flotilla of six yachts in the South Pacific forced a ship carrying spent nuclear fuel from France to Japan to alter its course yesterday. Greenpeace spokesperson Elisabeth Mealey said the flotilla in the Tasman Sea off Australia had achieved victory by forcing the ship to make the effort to avoid them. The group says the ship is carrying enough plutonium to make 20 atomic bombs. One skipper in the flotilla said the protest movement was gaining momentum, with a local flotilla protest planned this weekend in Fiji.
straight to the source: Planet Ark, Reuters, 07 Mar 2001 <http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10012>
Also in GRIST MAGAZINE today:
Rally the scoops -- a day in the life of Owen Lammers, Glen Canyon Action Network <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/week/lammers030601.stm>
Insane in the Ukraine -- a cartoon by Suzy Becker <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/ha/ha030501.stm>
Cabbage patch kid -- one man taxes his way to a healthy relationship with the earth -- in our Out on Limb column <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/limb/limb101900.stm>
3/7/01
6:50:45 PM
Public Citizen Files False Advertising Complaint Against Irradiated Meat Company
Huisken Calls Its Ground Beef 'Electronically Pasteurized' Instead of 'Irradiated' on Company Web Site
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Public Citizen today filed a false advertising complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against Minnesota-based Huisken Meats Inc., whose Web site tells consumers that its ground beef products have been "electronically pasteurized" instead of irradiated.
Deceptive advertising is illegal under the U.S. Federal Trade Commission Act and is punishable through criminal and civil penalties, including fines, injunctions and corrective advertising.
"The right of consumers to know what they are eating is a right that we will vigorously defend," said Wenonah Hauter, director of Public Citizen's Critical Mass Energy and Environment Program. "Huisken has a responsibility to be honest about the food it is selling to the American people. This responsibility is not merely a legal one, but a moral one as well."
Based in Chandler, Minn., Huisken is one of the nation's largest producers of irradiated food. The company's pre-packaged hamburger patties are reportedly on sale in more than 1,000 stores in 14 states, including California, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Huisken's beef products are irradiated at a facility in Sioux City, Iowa, owned by the Titan Corporation, a San Diego-based defense contractor that uses linear accelerators originally designed for the "Star Wars" program to irradiate food.
Huisken complies with federal law by placing the phrase "Treated by Irradiation" on its ground beef packages. The company's Web site, however, states that its ground beef is "electronically pasteurized." Pasteurization is a completely different process in which food, primarily dairy products, is rapidly heated and cooled. At one point in time, Huisken's Web site said that its ground beef was "irradiated," but the language was recently changed.
In a letter, Public Citizen has asked Huisken President Rod Huisken to change the Web site to comply with federal law.
The labeling of irradiated food has become a controversial issue as more irradiated products have reached the market in recent months. Federal law requires irradiated food to be labeled "Treated by Irradiation," but the law is under review by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The National Food Processors Association and other food industry groups are lobbying the FDA and Congress to allow irradiated food to be labeled "electronically pasteurized" or "cold pasteurized" - a euphemism that does not accurately describe what is done to the food.
When beef is irradiated, it is exposed to the equivalent of 150 million to 233 million chest X-rays. In the process, vitamins, essential fatty acids and amino acids are destroyed. And, irradiation results in the formation of new chemicals that have never been studied for their potential toxicity.
For a copy of Public Citizen's FTC complaint, go to
http://www.citizen.org/cmep/rad-food/LetterHuiskencomplaint.htm.
Public Citizen is a consumer advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C.
www.citizen.org
3/7/01
1:27:47 PM
Have you seen the movie Traffic?
Traffic dramatically shows the failure of the $40-billion-a-year war on drugs. Today we are launching an online drug reform campaign at StopTheWar.com to capitalize on this opportunity to educate and activate millions of Americans about sensible drug policies.
3/7/01
1:04:14 PM
Planet Ark World Environment News
Doing environmental research? Search our news archives at: http://www.planetark.org/searchhome.cfm
US farm groups' wish list - lots more subsidy money - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10010
FEATURE - Oil frenzy in Alaska as Congress debates drilling - USA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10013
Shares nuclear power company British Energy dipped 5.7 percent - UK http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10008
Climate change offers commercial chance - Blair - UK http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10009
UK renewable plans step in right direction - greens - UK http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10015
INTERVIEW - FAO says organic farming can reduce hunger - ITALY http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10011
INTERVIEW - Palacio hopes EU renewable directive ready by June - EU http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10014
UK to begin green certificate trading in April - BELGIUM http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10016
FEATURE - Europe's organic lobby says nature needs nurture - AUSTRIA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10017
Anti-nuclear flotilla claims Pacific victory - AUSTRALIA http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10012
3/7/01
1:02:45 PM
ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE (ENS)
"We Cover the Earth For You"
UK SCIENTISTS LINK POWER LINES TO CHILD LEUKEMIA
LONDON, United Kingdom, March 6, 2001 (ENS) - The possible health effects of living near power lines are being assessed after UK scientists found that children exposed to certain levels of electromagnetic fields for prolonged periods could be at an increased risk of leukemia.
For full text and graphics, visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-06-11.html
EARTH MUST SUPPORT 77 MILLION NEW PEOPLE EACH YEAR
By Cat Lazaroff
NEW YORK, New York, March 6, 2001 (ENS) - World population reached 6.1 billion in mid-2000 and is currently growing at an annual rate of 1.3 per cent, or 77 million people per year, shows a new report by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. The report predicts that population could climb as high as 10,900 million by the year 2050.
For full text and graphics visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-06-06.html
ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE AMERISCAN: MARCH 6, 2001
Second Supreme Court Victory for Clean Air
Critical Habitat Designated for Celebrated Jumping Frog
Victims of Stafford Slide Settle Lawsuit
Reduce Asthma By Eliminating Household Allergens, Pollutants
2001 Earthquakes More Deadly - Not More Frequent
Website Offers Energy Saving Tips
Nest Boxes Need Spring Cleaning Too
Environmental Opera Biospheria Premieres
For full text and graphics, visit: http://ens-news.com/ens/mar2001/2001L-03-06-09.html
SEND NEWS STORY TIPS TO news@ens-news.com
Groups Sue Federal Government Over Aerial Gunning of Wildlife
Coalition Demands Environmental and Economic Accountability
WASHINGTON, DC, Mar. 6 -/E-Wire/-- A lawsuit filed in federal court today seeks to stop the aerial gunning of wildlife until the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Wildlife Services program (WS) and the US Department of Interior's Colorado office of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) comply with federal law.
/CONTACT: Andrea Lococo of The Fund for Animals, 307-859-8840; Wendy Keefover-Ring of Sinapu, 303-447-8655; Robin Cooley of the Western Environmental Law Center, 505-751-0351; Camilla Fox of the Animal Protection Institute, 415-945-9309; or Pete Kolbenschlag of the Colorado Environmental Coalition, 970-527-7502/
/Web site: http://www.fund.org
For Full Text Visit: http://ens-news.com/e-wire/Mar01/06Mar0104.html
Napier Environmental Technologies Inc.: Environmental Solution Drives Expansion
VANCOUVER, Canada, Mar. 6 -/E-Wire/-- Napier Environmental Technologies (TSE:NIR. - news) is pleased to announce that its technology for easy, safe and cost effective disposal of waste latex and water based paints is proving very successful with homeowners, the paint industry and government authorities.
/CONTACT: Napier Environmental Technologies Inc., Don Mosher, 604/801-6664, nir@direct.ca, or Napier Environmental Technologies Inc., Robert Carriere, 604/801-6664/
/Web site: http://www.napierenvironmental.com/
For Full Text Visit: http://ens-news.com/e-wire/Mar01/06Mar0102.html
3/7/01
12:52:42 PM
IMMEDIATE ACTION ALERT re CAMPAIGN FINANCE
“Keep the Caps or Kill the Bill!”
Walk with Granny D
Send Bottle Caps to Your U.S. Senators
CLEAN MONEY-CLEAN ELECTIONS CAMPAIGN
ALLIANCE FOR DEMOCRACY
681 MAIN STREET, SUITE 2-16
WALTHAM, MA 02451
jamesace@earthlink.net
Ph: 781-894-1179, Fax: 781-894-0279
www.thealliancefordemocracy.org
3/7/01
12:48:03 PM
Active Denial System
Pentagon Unveils Plans for a New Crowd-Dispersal Weapon
by James Dao
WASHINGTON, March 1 The Pentagon today unveiled what some military officials hope will become the rubber bullet of the 21st century: a weapon that uses electromagnetic waves to disperse crowds without killing, maiming or, military officials say, even injuring anyone slightly.
Known in Pentagon patois as an "active denial system," the weapon is the fruit of 10 years of research and is intended to help American soldiers in the quasi-military roles they have increasingly been asked to play as peacekeepers or police in places like Kosovo and Ethiopia.
As envisioned by its Pentagon designers, the weapon would fire bursts of electromagnetic energy capable of causing burning sensations on the skin of people standing as far as 700 yards away without actually burning them, officials said.
"It's not designed to burn," Col. George P. Fenton of the Marine Corps, director of the Department of Defense's Joint Nonlethal Weapons Program in Quantico, Va., said at a news conference today. "It's a heat-induced sensation." Asked if the weapon was simply a militarized form of a microwave oven, Colonel Fenton said no. He said the new system fires waves that are shorter and at higher frequencies than microwaves. That means, he said, that while the waves could penetrate clothing, they would barely enter the skin, reaching a depth of only one sixty-fourth of an inch. "It's safe, absolutely safe," Colonel Fenton said. "You walk out of the beam and the pain goes away. There are no lasting effects."
The weapon, which to date has cost taxpayers $40 million, already has its skeptics. William M. Arkin, the senior military adviser to Human Rights Watch, described it as a "high-powered microwave antipersonnel weapon" that should be more carefully studied before it is used on crowds containing elderly people, children or pregnant women.
Mr. Arkin said past efforts by the Pentagon to develop "nonlethal weapons" had sometimes proved disastrous. For instance, he said, lasers were widely considered the peacekeeping tool of the future until it was determined that they could blind people.
“If this is a more humane and effective military tool than existing nonlethal weapons, great," Mr. Arkin said. "But they are going to have to prove some things to us first."
Pentagon officials said scientists had been testing the weapon on animals and humans for more than three years without finding any evidence that it caused internal injuries, burns, cancer or eye damage. In more than 6,500 tests on 72 people, only one exposure went awry, the Pentagon officials said, when one person received a "nickle-size" burn on his back after a tester programmed the weapon incorrectly.
"It gave us information that helped us understand how it works," said Dr. Michael Murphy, one of the Pentagon scientists working on the weapon. To show how the system would work, Colonel Fenton brought a miniature version of an electromagnetic "gun" to the news conference, encouraging reporters and other Pentagon officials to stick a finger under the invisible ray and feel the heat. "I feel like a barker at a carnival," said Colonel Fenton, who put his own fingers under the ray repeatedly for television cameras, as he cajoled a balky reporter to try the weapon.
Just one second under the tiny ray created a burning sensation equal to 120 degrees, Pentagon officials said. The officials said that the weapon could beadjusted to heat the skin to temperatures of 130 degrees or higher.
The weapon is still in development and probably will not be ready for deployment by troops for at least five years, Colonel Fenton said. In its current experimental form, the weapon looks like the average backyard satellite dish. The Pentagon envisions a version being mounted on the back of a Humvee, but officials said hand-held or aircraft-mounted versions are under consideration as well.
American troops now typically use tear gas, rubber bullets or beanbags fired from shotguns to disperse crowds. The electromagnetic weapon would be superior to those techniques, Colonel Fenton said, because it would have much longer range. He said the weapon would have helped protect soldiers in Ethiopia, where angry crowds frequently clashed with American troops during a United Nations mission there in 1993.
Michael E. O'Hanlon, a military expert at the Brookings Institution, disagreed. “Everything I know about this weapon suggests this would not have made one iota of difference there," he said. "This may be worthwhile, but we shouldn't delude ourselves into thinking it is the answer."
3/6/01
9:25:01 PM
Environmental news from GRIST MAGAZINE
<http://www.gristmagazine.com>
1. DRAIN, OH! The delicate balance of the Pantanal wetlands in southwestern Brazil may be forever altered by a massive project to straighten and dredge the area's rivers. Powerful commercial interests in Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, and Argentina want to proceed with the Hidrovia project to improve barge navigation through the Paraguay River and other waterways in the region. But environmentalists say that the project would drain the Pantanal's unique network of grasslands, swamps, rivers, and lakes at too fast a rate, turning large areas into deserts and destroying important habitat for fish and birds. Although the Brazilian government has pledged not to endanger the Pantanal, enviros worry it will cave under political pressure.
straight to the source: CNN.com, Gary Strieker, 05 March 2001
http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/science/03/05/brazil.wetlands/index.html
2. BY POPLAR DEMAND Plants may prove to be the most cost-effective and safe tool to clean up toxic sites, scientists say. In a process dubbed "phytoremediation," plants like sunflower, clover, and mustard have been shown to absorb and break down such harmful chemicals as arsenic, zinc, uranium, and lead. "A stand of poplars is a self-assembling, solar-powered, pump-and-treat system," says Steve A. Rock, an engineer with the U.S. EPA. The catch? Plants sometimes clean up sites more slowly than other detox methods, needing several crop cycles to remove pollution. Still, the market appears to like the plant method -- one business analyst predicts the industry will see a dramatic increase in annual revenues to as much as $400 million in 2005.
straight to the source: New York Times, Andrew C. Revkin, 06 Mar 2001 <http://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/06/science/06PLAN.html>
3. GHANA WITH THE WIND Effective and affordable ways to curb climate change exist -- what's uncertain is whether governments have the political will to implement them. So says the latest study by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which was released yesterday in Accra, Ghana. A key step will be to reduce the world's reliance on oil and to shift to renewable energies, the reports says. The report also cites nuclear power as an option because it has low greenhouse gas emissions, although enviros remain adamantly opposed to it for safety reasons. The report isn't hopeful, however, that the necessary changes will occur anytime before 2020.
straight to the source: MSNBC.com, Miguel Llanos, 05 Mar 2001 <http://www.msnbc.com/news/539287.asp>
4. BLAIRINGLY OBVIOUS U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair dedicated more than $146 million toward the development of renewable energy sources yesterday, in an apparent appeal for the green vote in the upcoming election this May. In a speech to the World Wildlife Fund, Blair said, "We can only succeed if we make tackling climate change a commercial opportunity." It was only the second time in four years that Blair has talked about renewable energy, and critics of the Labor Party were quick to dismiss the speech. Tories called it a "pre-election stunt," while Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy said Blair's government has "failed miserably where the environment is concerned."
straight to the source: BBC News, 06 Mar 2001
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk_politics/newsid_1205000/1205018.stm
5. YOU'RE SOAKING IN IT Iowa's 132 lakes are among the water bodies most polluted with fertilizers in the world, according to a study by Iowa State University. Researcher John Downing took three rounds of samples from each of the lakes last summer, and the results turned up heavy concentrations of nitrates and phosphorus, both common ingredients in farm and yard runoff. The nutrients feed algae, which in turn choke off food and oxygen supplies for other plant life and fish. The university has embarked on a five-year study of the lakes.
straight to the source: Des Moines Register, Perry Beeman, 06 Mar 2001 <http://www.dmregister.com/news/stories/c5903220/13992047.html>
Also in GRIST MAGAZINE today:
It's an ecosystem, not a plumbing system -- a day in the life of Owen Lammers, Glen Canyon Action Network <http://www.gristmagazine.com/grist/week/lammers030501.stm>
A personal appreciation of Grist contributor Donella Meadows --