Staff - MB Co-Operator - 11/19/2009Photo courtesy of ChrisD.ca
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Manitoba Extends Stubble-Burning Permit Requirement
Staff - MB Co-Operator - 11/19/2009Photo courtesy of ChrisD.ca
The War on Soy: Why the 'Miracle Food' May Be a Health Risk and Environmental Nightmare
By Tara Lohan, AlterNet. Posted No. 21, 2009.Vegetarians aren't the only ones who should be concerned; there's soy in just about...
Soy fields encroachinig
on the Amazon jungle.
Courtesy of Mongabay
Friday, November 20, 2009
The Tragedy of Drive-'Thrus'
A favourite spot for millions of North Americans - the "Drive-thru." Often with their motors running, occupants eat/drink in their vehicles, even tho they could just as quickly (esp. when it's busy) park, actually turn off their motors & be waited on in the comfort of the restaurant. Estimates on the number of tonnes of greenhouse gasses needlessly produced in this way, are not available. l.p.
New Trends Report: Fuel Economy Increases as CO2 Decreases
November 20, 2009 - EPA
Report tracks a five-year upswing in fuel efficiency
WASHINGTON - For the fifth consecutive year, EPA is reporting an increase in fuel efficiency with a corresponding decrease in average carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions for new cars and light duty trucks. This marks the first time that data for CO2 emissions are included in the annual report, “Light-Duty Automotive Technology, Carbon Dioxide Emissions, and Fuel Economy Trends: 1975 through 2009”.
“American drivers are increasingly looking for cars that burn cleaner, burn less gas and won’t burn a hole in their wallets,” said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “We’re working to help accelerate this trend with strong investments in clean energy technology – particularly for the cars and trucks that account for almost 60 percent of greenhouse gases from transportation sources. Cleaner, more efficient vehicles can help reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil, cut harmful pollution, and save people money -- and it’s clear that’s what the American car buyer wants.”
For 2008, the last year for which EPA has final data from automakers, the average fuel economy value was 21.0 miles per gallon (mpg). EPA projects a small improvement in 2009, based on pre-model year sales estimates provided to EPA by automakers, to 21.1 mpg.
The report confirms that average CO2 emissions have decreased and fuel economy has increased each year beginning in 2005. Average CO2 emissions have decreased by 39 grams per mile, or 8 percent, and average fuel economy has increased by 1.8 mpg, or 9 percent, since 2004. This positive trend beginning in 2005 reverses a long period of increasing CO2 emissions and decreasing fuel economy from 1987 through 2004, and returns CO2 emissions and fuel economy to levels of the early 1980s.
The report also provides data on the CO2 emissions, fuel economy and technology characteristics of new light-duty vehicles including cars, minivans, sport utility vehicles, and pickup trucks.
The latest CO2 emissions and fuel economy values reflect EPA’s best estimates of real world CO2 emissions and fuel economy performance. They are consistent with the fuel economy estimates that EPA provides on new vehicle window stickers and in the Fuel Economy Guide. These real world fuel economy values are about 20 percent lower, on average, than those used for compliance with the corporate average fuel economy program under DOT.
More information on the trends report: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fetrends.htm
R348
Report tracks a five-year upswing in fuel efficiency
“American drivers are increasingly looking for cars that burn cleaner, burn less gas and won’t burn a hole in their wallets,” said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “We’re working to help accelerate this trend with strong investments in clean energy technology – particularly for the cars and trucks that account for almost 60 percent of greenhouse gases from transportation sources. Cleaner, more efficient vehicles can help reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil, cut harmful pollution, and save people money -- and it’s clear that’s what the American car buyer wants.”
For 2008, the last year for which EPA has final data from automakers, the average fuel economy value was 21.0 miles per gallon (mpg). EPA projects a small improvement in 2009, based on pre-model year sales estimates provided to EPA by automakers, to 21.1 mpg.
The report confirms that average CO2 emissions have decreased and fuel economy has increased each year beginning in 2005. Average CO2 emissions have decreased by 39 grams per mile, or 8 percent, and average fuel economy has increased by 1.8 mpg, or 9 percent, since 2004. This positive trend beginning in 2005 reverses a long period of increasing CO2 emissions and decreasing fuel economy from 1987 through 2004, and returns CO2 emissions and fuel economy to levels of the early 1980s.
The report also provides data on the CO2 emissions, fuel economy and technology characteristics of new light-duty vehicles including cars, minivans, sport utility vehicles, and pickup trucks.
The latest CO2 emissions and fuel economy values reflect EPA’s best estimates of real world CO2 emissions and fuel economy performance. They are consistent with the fuel economy estimates that EPA provides on new vehicle window stickers and in the Fuel Economy Guide. These real world fuel economy values are about 20 percent lower, on average, than those used for compliance with the corporate average fuel economy program under DOT.
More information on the trends report: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fetrends.htm
R348
Note: If a link above doesn't work, please copy and paste the URL into a browser.
Statisticians Reject Global Cooling
By SETH BORENSTEIN - The Associated Press - Oc 26-'09
WASHINGTON — Have you heard that the world is
now cooling instead of...
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Biotech Crops Cause Big Jump in Pesticide Use-Report
Tue Nov 17, 2009 - By Carey Gillam
KANSAS CITY, Nov 17 (Reuters) - The rapid adoption by U.S. farmers of genetically engineered corn, soybeans and cotton has promoted...
KANSAS CITY, Nov 17 (Reuters) - The rapid adoption by U.S. farmers of genetically engineered corn, soybeans and cotton has promoted...
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
Why Bees Vanish
ISIS Press Release 16/11/09
***************
A film that tries to get to the bottom of
the mystery of the disappearing bees with some success
Sam Burcher
l.p. PinP photo
The Vanishing of the Bees [1] is the cinematic equivalent of “Watch with Mother” about the importance to the planet of the honeybee. It patiently unravels the mysterious Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) implicated in the mass disappearance of honeybees from their hives across the world. Bees have one of the most important jobs in nature. Without their busy pollination of plants and flowers we would lose one in every three bites of the food that we eat (see Box 1).
approximately one third of hives have collapsed over the last two years. These losses are attributed to CCD and account for the loss of around 800 000 colonies in 2007 and a staggering 1 million colonies in 2008. A Steering Committee has been set up to monitor the progress of CCD [5]. Bee losses have also been reported around the world in Argentina, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Greece and Spain.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Bees are big business, and their industry, worth billions of dollars, is teetering on the brink of collapse. In the USA, commercial beekeepers transport hives around the country so that the bees can pollinate apples, blueberries, cranberries, raspberries, oranges and pumpkins. The annual Californian almond bloom demands almost all the commercial bees to pollinate the nut harvest. Since CCD has decimated the native bee population, the importation of bees from Australia to pollinate food crops has become the norm. The prime suspect in CCD is the introduction of a relatively new class of pesticides called neonicotinoids [6] (see Mystery of Disappearing Honeybees SiS 34). Neonicotinoids are systemic pesticides that remain in the leaves, pollen and nectar throughout the plants lifecycle. The link to CCD was first noticed in France where honeybee losses were observed and honey production dropped from 40 000 to 25 000 tons between the years 1995-2001. These events occurred after a particular neonicotinoid called imidacloprid was applied as a seed dressing to sunflower crops [7] (see Requiem for the Honeybee SiS 34).
Bayer CropScience, the manufacturer of neonicotinoids with silly names such as “Gaucho” and “Poncho” say that imidacloprid is safe. Despite this, Gaucho is now banned in Italy, France,
Germany and Slovenia, but not in the USA, Canada, or the UK. In 2008, the American Beekeepers Federation officially refuted bad beekeeping practices being blamed for the
decline of the honeybee by bringing a civil law suit against Bayer, which is still ongoing. They are not alone. A German organization called Coalition against Bayer Dangers is suing
the company for marketing dangerous pesticides and thereby causing the mass death of bees all over the world [8]. An annual turnover of nearly 800 million Euros makes neonicotinoids one of Bayer's most important products. "This is the reason why Bayer, despite serious environmental
damage, is fighting against any prohibitions," says Coalition spokesman Philipp Mimkes. Bayer AG, the parent company of Bayer CropScience is responsible for the development of the drug heroin (diacetylmorphine) which was sold as an over the counter cough medicine under the Bayer trademark up until World War I [9]. Concern about the relationship between the chemical corporations and the environmental agencies is described in the film as, “The fox guarding the hen house.” For example, the only scientific research submitted to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the safety of neonicotinoid sprays was done by Bayer’s own toxicologist. This research took the form of a three day trial of imidocloprid, which was fed to the bees in a sugar solution. No tests were required on the bee brood in its developmental stage, or on the pollen, or on honey, and the results of the feeding trial were revealed at
Bayer’s discretion.
Read the rest of this article here: http://www.i-sis.org.uk/WhyBeesVanish.php
======================================
If you like this original article from the Institute of
Science in Society, and would like to continue receiving
articles of this calibre, please consider making a donation
or purchase on our website
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cutting edge science, and to promoting social accountability
and ecological sustainability in science.
If you would like to be removed from our mailing list
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===========================================
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The Institute of Science in Society, PO Box 51885, London
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telephone: [44 20 8452 2729] [44 20 7272 5636]
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MATERIAL ON THIS SITE MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED IN ANY FORM WITHOUT EXPLICIT PERMISSION. FOR PERMISSION, PLEASE CONTACT ISIS at
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***************
A film that tries to get to the bottom of
the mystery of the disappearing bees with some success
Sam Burcher
-----------------------------------------------------
Box 1
Box 1
What you need to know about bees
********************************
The UK bee economy is worth £165 million annually [3]. The British Beekeeping Association (BBKA) estimates that it would require 30 million humans to take over the job of pollinating British crops. DEFRA (The Department of Food and Rural Affairs) claim that CCD has not yet hit the UK. However the BBKA’s survey says that thirty three percent or one in three of the UK’s 240 000 beehives were lost in the winter and spring of 2008. This compares to a previous annual average of five to ten percent losses. Buglife-The English Conservation Trust - has published a report which says that neonicotinoids do damage honeybee health. Buglife, ISIS, The Soil Association and The Pesticides Action Network (PAN) have all called for a suspension of all products containing neonicotinoids in outdoor environments [4]. Worldwide bees pollinate some ninety commercial crops including fruits, vegetables and alfalfa, a major food source for cattle. In China, in the province of Sichuan, pear trees have been pollinated by hand after the overuse of pesticides in the 1980’s wiped out the honeybee population. In the USAapproximately one third of hives have collapsed over the last two years. These losses are attributed to CCD and account for the loss of around 800 000 colonies in 2007 and a staggering 1 million colonies in 2008. A Steering Committee has been set up to monitor the progress of CCD [5]. Bee losses have also been reported around the world in Argentina, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Greece and Spain.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Bees are big business, and their industry, worth billions of dollars, is teetering on the brink of collapse. In the USA, commercial beekeepers transport hives around the country so that the bees can pollinate apples, blueberries, cranberries, raspberries, oranges and pumpkins. The annual Californian almond bloom demands almost all the commercial bees to pollinate the nut harvest. Since CCD has decimated the native bee population, the importation of bees from Australia to pollinate food crops has become the norm. The prime suspect in CCD is the introduction of a relatively new class of pesticides called neonicotinoids [6] (see Mystery of Disappearing Honeybees SiS 34). Neonicotinoids are systemic pesticides that remain in the leaves, pollen and nectar throughout the plants lifecycle. The link to CCD was first noticed in France where honeybee losses were observed and honey production dropped from 40 000 to 25 000 tons between the years 1995-2001. These events occurred after a particular neonicotinoid called imidacloprid was applied as a seed dressing to sunflower crops [7] (see Requiem for the Honeybee SiS 34).
Big Pharma plays a big part in bee decline
*******************************************
*******************************************
Bayer CropScience, the manufacturer of neonicotinoids with silly names such as “Gaucho” and “Poncho” say that imidacloprid is safe. Despite this, Gaucho is now banned in Italy, France,
Germany and Slovenia, but not in the USA, Canada, or the UK. In 2008, the American Beekeepers Federation officially refuted bad beekeeping practices being blamed for the
decline of the honeybee by bringing a civil law suit against Bayer, which is still ongoing. They are not alone. A German organization called Coalition against Bayer Dangers is suing
the company for marketing dangerous pesticides and thereby causing the mass death of bees all over the world [8]. An annual turnover of nearly 800 million Euros makes neonicotinoids one of Bayer's most important products. "This is the reason why Bayer, despite serious environmental
damage, is fighting against any prohibitions," says Coalition spokesman Philipp Mimkes. Bayer AG, the parent company of Bayer CropScience is responsible for the development of the drug heroin (diacetylmorphine) which was sold as an over the counter cough medicine under the Bayer trademark up until World War I [9]. Concern about the relationship between the chemical corporations and the environmental agencies is described in the film as, “The fox guarding the hen house.” For example, the only scientific research submitted to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the safety of neonicotinoid sprays was done by Bayer’s own toxicologist. This research took the form of a three day trial of imidocloprid, which was fed to the bees in a sugar solution. No tests were required on the bee brood in its developmental stage, or on the pollen, or on honey, and the results of the feeding trial were revealed at
Bayer’s discretion.
Read the rest of this article here: http://www.i-sis.org.uk/WhyBeesVanish.php
======================================
This article can be found on the I-SIS website at
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/
If you like this original article from the Institute of
Science in Society, and would like to continue receiving
articles of this calibre, please consider making a donation
or purchase on our website
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/donations.
ISIS is an independent, not-for-profit organisation
dedicated to providing critical public information on
cutting edge science, and to promoting social accountability
and ecological sustainability in science.
If you would like to be removed from our mailing list
unsubscribe at http://www.i-sis.org.uk/unsubscribe
or email unsubscribe@i-sis.org.uk
===========================================
CONTACT DETAILS
The Institute of Science in Society, PO Box 51885, London
NW2 9DH
telephone: [44 20 8452 2729] [44 20 7272 5636]
Foe email details, see http://www.i-sis.org.uk/contact.php
MATERIAL ON THIS SITE MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED IN ANY FORM WITHOUT EXPLICIT PERMISSION. FOR PERMISSION, PLEASE CONTACT ISIS at
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/contact2.php
Transnationals Contribute To HUNGER
Farmers provide SOLUTIONS
Press release - La Via Campesina (Rome, 15th of No.'09)
Press release - La Via Campesina (Rome, 15th of No.'09)
Nursing a baby in a wellness clinic. (The Nestle corporation has a long and dubious history of discouraging women to breast-feed, so they can peddle their own baby formula and pad their bottom line.)
La Via Campesina is appalled by the arrogance of the private sector and especially Nestlé in pretending to...
Sunday, November 15, 2009
APEC Leaders Douse Hopes on Climate Pact
SINGAPORE (AFP) - Asia-Pacific leaders on Sunday buried hopes a key UN meeting next month would forge...
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Monsanto Wins Legal Battle, May Lose War
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION - By: Laura Rance - 14/11/2009
A few farmers in Ontario are learning the hard way after being found guilty of infringing on Monsanto's...
A few farmers in Ontario are learning the hard way after being found guilty of infringing on Monsanto's...
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Are hungry kids a priority for the Harper government? by Larry Powell The forum (for the riding of Dauphin - Swan River - Neepawa) w...
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by Larry Powell Planet In Peril has sorted through some of the confusion surrounding the absence of Robert Sopuck, the Conservative M...
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Larry Powell Powell is a veteran, award-winning journalist based in Shoal Lake, Manitoba, Canada. He specialize in stories about agriculture...