The Right's Inability to Grasp Climate Change May Be Funny, But It's Also Very Dangerous

AlterNet / By Daniela Perdomo

The so-called Snowpocalypse has brought out the...

More Evidence of Link Between Parkinson's and Pesticides

OnEarth - Feb 4 - 2010

The evidence that environmental factors....

Walmart to Gauge "Sustainability" in Canada

Staff- Manitoba Co-Operator

2/11/2010

Canada's Walmart stores are going to be the chain's first outside the U.S. to adopt the company's "sustainable...

Global Warming an Olympic Worry, says Rogge

AFP | February 8, 2010

VANCOUVER – Global warming is starting to worry the International Olympic Committee, with concern mounting over how it might affect future Games.

IOC president Jacques Rogge said it was an issue discussed in meetings on Monday ahead of the Winter Olympics here, with the issue of Cypress Mountain , just outside of Vancouver , highlighting the problem.

The mountain is the site for the freestyle and snowboard events but has been plagued by a drastic lack of snow caused by the warm temperatures which have seen Vancouver enjoying unseasonal highs of around 10C (50F).

Lorry loads of snow have been carted in to the venue and media banned from visiting in an effort to get it ready in time.

"Global warming of course is a worry, it is a worry for the entire world," Rogge said.

"It might affect, in the long-term, the staging of Winter Games but I can tell you that today in the evaluation committee meeting we asked for statistics.

"It is very clear that we want to know what the snow conditions are in a particular resort. Of course, this is not a guarantee for the future.

"But we are doing good research on this. There is also the improvement in artifical snow machines and everything that has been put in place in Cypress Mountain , for example, to alleviate changes in meteorology."

Rogge said global warming would be a key issue examined in awarding any future Winter Olympics.

"Global warming is definitely a factor that must be taken into account in Olympic preparations," he said.

"In awarding the event to a host city, we must look at the climate and snow conditions and geography, as well as ways to alleviate any lack of snow."

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Editor's note: Perhaps the best way to avoid worries over snow at Olympic venues is to cancel the Olympics! Sending millions jetting to the Olympics half way round the world every two years is, surely, in itself, climate-changing! When are guys like Rogge going to get these cause-and-effect relationships? l.p.

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"With respect to environmental impact, all Olympic Games leave a very large footprint. Thousands of people flying in from all over the world, along with local transportation and the infrastructure that must be created, mean a lot of carbon emissions get spewed into the atmosphere" David Suzuki

Have Farm Chemicals Ruined Another Life?

                                          by Larry Powell

Oh look! What the world needs now!
Yet another "crop protection" product!
A PinP photo.

I met him recently at a family event.  Since he prefers not to be identified, I'll call him "James," which is not his real name.

James moved slowly with the use of a cane; a distinguished looking senior with graying hair.

At dinner, he shared bits and pieces of his personal story with me. 

It was both amazing and tragic.

He had worked for a number of years in the farm chemical industry in western Canada. Industry "experts" convinced him at the time that the chemicals he was working with were so safe, "I would have drunk them if they had asked me to!" 

Turns out, he didn't have to. 

James is convinced that, merely inhaling their fumes over the years was enough to change his life forever. And not for the better. 

Later, at my request, James sends me a hand-written letter, going into more detail. In 1960, in a small southern prairie town, he was training to become a grain elevator manager. At that time, the chemicals he handled included 2-4-D. That's a weed killer heavily used in farming all over the world for more than half a century. 

Various studies have linked it to a wide range of adverse human health effects. It is related chemically to Agent Orange, widely used by the US military against the enemy in Viet Nam.

James says, at the time, there was no storage space for the chemicals so they were kept in his office, where he breathed in their fumes.

Later, at another location and another job in the same province, he went to work spraying roadsides, using products that "Were hard to get for the average home owner." 

He then moved to another area of the province where many different crops were grown. There, he says, a surprising number of new chemicals, including bug-killers and fungicides, were "big sellers." He describes fumes from the huge chemical warehouse at that location as "almost putrid."

And there, he actually lost his sense of smell. 

In 1991, he was gripped with full-bodied seizures and tremors. He was forced to retire and lost his driver's license, which he has never gotten back.

The Medical Establishment Turns its Back 

Several visits to a big city hospital turned up nothing. Finally, a full medical team of specialists "Grilled me for six hours," James remembers. He gave them a list of every chemical he had ever handled, sold or otherwise come into contact with and the companies which sold them to him. 

Then, they dropped a bombshell.

The specialists asked "'What would you do if we told you it was definitely the chemicals which caused your medical problems? 

"I explained it would be very nice to receive workers' compensation for this. They put their heads together and, after a short conference, they asked if I would go after the chemical company responsible. My answer was 'yes.' They then informed me that, if litigation ever took place, they would not help me! 

"This was a real slap in the kisser as this was totally unexpected." 

James's motor skills have been damaged and walking is a real effort. His memory has also been damaged. People who obviously know him say "hello," but he has no idea who they are.

He gets bad tremors daily, although medication keeps them under control. He has chosen not to let us use his real name publicly because "I live quite comfortably now, considering all my ailments and don't want to 'stir up a hornet's nest' this late in life."

Meanwhile, a veteran medical ethicist at the University of Manitoba, Paul Schafer, tells me he has heard similar stories before.

                                                 

                Prof. Schafer, Director of the U of M'sCentre 

                               for Professional and Applied Ethics 

.

Prof. Schafer concludes, "Doctors (and even public health officials) who blow the whistle on industries or industrial chemicals often find themselves embroiled in controversy, which can be career-damaging. Some are brave and speak out; many are cowardly and shut up."

-30-

Author's note: This tragic tale is not inconsistent with others I have heard. Given the unwillingness of much of the medical establishment and sometimes our larger society to "take on" these giant corporations, the companies basically carry on with business as usual, unchallenged and unchecked. 

One farmer I spoke to a few years ago told me his family had been exposed to a stiff dose of chemicals from a nearby farm where crop spray was being applied from the air. He and his family had all gotten sick and he was convinced the spray was the reason. 

A tidbit he did not want me to report on at the time was this. He believed a medical doctor employed by the corporation which made the spray, had actually 'phoned his own family doctor. Why? To convince him their spray was not really the cause. It seemed to work. His doctor, who initially said he believed the spray was to blame, changed his mind. 

Then, there was the time I was kicked out of a veterinary clinic. I wanted to confirm with the vet, anecdotal stories I had heard that several dogs and cats were dying in an area where crops were being heavily sprayed. It was a hostile reception which surprised me and made me feel like asking "Doth thou not protesteth too much?" l.p.

Commercial Fishing Endangers Dolphin Populations, New Study Finds

ScienceDaily (Feb. 5, 2010) — Extensive commercial fishing….

Captive dolphins in a "swim with dolphins" fun park in Mexico. l.p. photo

Tritium Hot Zone Expands

By SUSAN SMALLHEER - Rutland Herald - Vermont

VERNON — The Department of Health said late Monday there appears to be "a very large...

A Green Budget for Canada?

thegreenpages - Canada

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Posted: 07 Feb 2010 07:01 AM PST

Ottawa - In light of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's invitation for input on the upcoming federal budget, the Green Budget Coalition (GBC) is today highlighting its three priority budget recommendations, whose adoption could stimulate over 8,000 new jobs in renewable energy, ensure clean sources of drinking water for millions of Canadians, and help Canada meet its commitment under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity to establish national and regional systems of protected areas.

"These are prime opportunities for Canada to shine on the world stage during the International Year of Biodiversity and in the lead-up to the G8 and G20 Summits," said Barry Turner, Chair of the Green Budget Coalition and Director of Government Relations, Ducks Unlimited Canada.

The Green Budget Coalition comprises 21 of Canada's leading environmental and conservation organizations and has been active since 1999. Its detailed budget recommendations are contained in Recommendations for Budget 2010: Investing in a Prosperous Green Future.

Members of the coalition met with MPs from all political parties and with senior government officials to discuss these recommendations. "We received a positive reception from all of the MPs and officials with whom we met and are optimistic that our recommendations will receive serious consideration as the final budget deliberations take place," said Mr. Turner.

The Green Budget Coalition's 3 priority recommendations for the 2010 federal budget are:

1. Protecting Ecosystems and Biodiversity: In the face of dangerous climate change, and with Canada due to report this year on its progress under the UN Convention on Biodiversity, fund a national ecosystem based adaptation strategy to improve Canada's biodiversity protection on lands and oceans.
2. Investing in Canada's Freshwater Future: Deliver Canada's promised federal water strategy, building upon recent federal actions, by investing in water and wastewater infrastructure, the cleanup of contaminated sediment, and protecting freshwater ecosystems in the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Basin.
3. Re-investing in Renewable Energy: Create at least 8,000 jobs by renewing Canada's incentives for renewable power, establishing green energy bonds and mapping Canada's geothermal potential.

Climate change is a threat to the future of humanity, as Prime Minister Harper has acknowledged. The GBC's recommendations on biodiversity and water highlight some of the key measures required for Canada to prepare for, and adapt to, the impacts of climate change. Strong actions are also required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including investing in clean energy sources, in order to protect future generations and avoid the much greater costs of inaction.

In light of the Copenhagen meetings in December, the GBC is now recommending that the budget allocate new funding, additional to current Overseas Development Assistance commitments, to cover Canada's fair share of the US$30 billion committed in Copenhagen, from 2010 to 2012, in "new and additional resources" to assist developing countries in mitigating and adapting to climate change.

Stress, Depression Take Toll on Farmers

Winnipeg Free Press - By: Laura Rance - Manitoba Co-Operator 6/02/2010

Workshops to focus on growing problem...

Canola swaths in October.
l.p. photo

Los Angeles May Get Mandatory Rainwater Harvesting Law

Does this mean LA is becoming water wise?
feb 5 2010 - treehugger

Coca-Cola Puts on Green Guise for the Winter Olympics

February 5, 2010 by Stephanie Rogers - ecosalon

The 2010 Winter Olympic Games are going...