GreenWatch

Air is a shared. Eventually pollutants travel and disperse affecting air quality far from their generation. Scientists at the University of Maryland have developed a way to measure atmospheric ammonia using data generated by NASA satellites. The scientists point out a troubling increase in atmospheric ammonia over the past four years. The areas showing the greatest increases were the USA, Europe, India and China. Much of the increase is blamed on agricultural practices which use large amounts of fertilizer, those which generate large amounts of animal waste and climate warming that increases soil temperatures. In the USA some of the increase may be attributed to the vigorous efforts to control acid rain. As the acid rain has come under control, atmospheric ammonia may increase. Why should we care about ammonia in the air? Because too much can cause a lot of harm. One of the authors of the study, Russell Dickerson, was quoted in the NASA news release – “ It has a profound ...

B. McPherson The development of genetically modified field crops is a lucrative business. Monsanto corporation is often cited as the entity responsible for the proliferation of GM field crops. It is a leader in this industry, but there are many others eager to cash in on the bonanza. Sometimes that eagerness combined with crop losses in normal plants pushes GM seed release before it has been independently tested for health and environmental risks. Information is now available that puts a shadow on the Bangladeshi government’s approval of four varieties of GM eggplant(brinjal) seeds. That eagerness to release Bt brinjal(eggplant) to farmers may come with health impacts. The Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute(BARI) has admitted that there were no independent health/toxicity tests done before the release of the seed. The reason, or excuse, given was that there were no suitable labs available. Instead, BARI relied on information released by the corporation that had p...

B. McPherson Demand to know the truth about GM food and forage crops. The UK is currently wrestling with the issue of whether to allow the commercial planting of genetically altered or genetically modified(GM) field crops. To this end, the central government has commissioned a study authored by independent scientists to advise them. According to the Daily Mail, the scientists advised the UK government in November to fast track the introduction of GM seeds in time for the spring sowing. With this information made public this March some investigation was done on the backgrounds of the five authors of the study. Their conclusions: All five authors are respected leaders in their area of study. All five authors have commercial ties to the GM industry. The “independent” scientists: ·          Professor Sir David Baulcombe, Cambridge University, consultant for Syngenta ·          Professo...

B. McPherson Are you ingesting nanoparticles with your tasty lunch? What the heck is a nanoparticle? It’s something that is definitely smaller than a bread box. What the heck is a bread box? Never mind, it was in use when food was food. Back to the subject – a nanoparticle is a piece of matter that is smaller than one billionth of a metre(about 39 inches) across. Nanoparticles occur naturally. They are present in wood smoke and industrial by-products. Now clever researchers have found ways to produce nanoparticles tailored to do specific jobs. Some of the jobs these tiny bits of matter do involve the cosmetic and food industries. This is a new and exciting branch of science. When substances are reduced to a few molecules, they behave differently that when they are a more substantial size. Uses for this new area are being found almost daily. One of the areas with much potential is the food industry. The American Food and Drug Agency(FDA) is aware of the possible rami...

B. McPherson One might ask why two poisons are now being sprayed on our food crops. While the federal officials would say that routine reviews are done on pesticides the cynic would say that they were pressured into it by the Ecojustice Foundation . The Pest Management Regulatory Agency has announced that they will review the safety of 383 products that contain 23 active ingredients. These are chemicals currently in use in Canada. While many of these chemicals have exotic sounding names, one, 2,4-D is familiar to farmers and householders alike. It is used on golf courses and GM food crops to kill broadleaf plants. This plant hormone causes broad leafed plants to outgrow their roots. This is the major ingredient in Agent Orange. It has become the go to chemical to kill broad leaf weeds. According to the American EPA, the annual usage in that country is 46 million pounds of 2, 4-D. While the links between 2,4-D exposure  and cancer, kidney failure, spontaneous abor...

B. McPherson The US Food and Drug Administration is proposing a change in how antibiotics are used in the agriculture industry. If accepted, sweeping changes will be made in the way food animals are raised in the USA.   You may have noticed TV ads recently touting fast food outlets bragging about their meat being antibiotic and hormone free. Few people realize that the majority of antibiotics produced today are given to food animals, not because the animals are sick, but because the judicious application of antibiotics promotes faster growth and more efficient use of animal feed. The constant low-level dosing of animals destined for the dinner plate has resulted in the gradual loss of effectiveness of medically important antibiotics. Bacteria are adept at adapting to changing conditions and dosed at low levels can fairly quickly develop resistant strains. Tetracyclines, penicillin, azithromycin are unable to curb many bacterial infections due to overuse, mainly in the a...

B. McPherson Brazil may be the first country to defy the 13 year UN moratorium on the commercial sale of terminator seeds. This would be the “thin edge of the wedge” to gradually collapse the ban on the engineered seeds.   Terminator seeds are those engineered to produce a crop but the seeds from the crop will not germinate or sprout if planted. So if a farmer buys a GM seed that also has the terminator trait, he cannot save seed and avoid buying seed from the corporation next planting. That is bad enough but many of the crops that are GM spread their pollen via insects, other animals and the wind spreading their traits to non-GM fields. The spread of terminator traits would be disastrous to organic and more traditional farmers, forcing them to purchase seed from corporations. It would eventually drastically reduce the biodiversity of food crops as seed houses sell what is commercially viable. The Judicial Commission is meeting this week to review their decision about ...

B. McPherson A group of 85 scientists, academics and physicians have issued a statement that there is no consensus on the safety of GM foods. This move was prompted by claims from some scientists and GM Corporations that the food is safe. The statements made by the supporters of the biotech food are not scientifically based. Here is what one scientist had to say about the claims: Another signatory, Professor C. Vyvyan Howard, a medically qualified toxicopathologist based at the University of Ulster, said: “A substantial number of studies suggest that GM crops and foods can be toxic or allergenic, and that they can have adverse impacts on beneficial and non-target organisms. It is often claimed that millions of Americans eat GM foods with no ill effects. But as the US has no GMO labelling and no epidemiological studies have been carried out, there is no way of knowing whether the rising rates of chronic diseases seen in that country have anything to do with GM food consumption ...

B. McPherson Is this the future of our food? In an end around move, the Democratic representative, Senator Barbara Mikulski, has championed a clause buried in the US budget that would negate the powers of the judiciary when it comes to banning the planting of certain GM(genetically modified) crops. In the past, some judges have stopped or slowed the release into the environment of GM seeds. The new rider inserted into law will allow transgenic seeds to be planted before the US Department of Agriculture has assessed their environmental impact.  The rider pertains to transgenic crops that have been deregulated by the USDA but then had that approval overturned by a judge — a scenario that has occurred with genetically engineered alfalfa and sugar beets. In such a situation, the agency “shall” immediately issue permits or a partial deregulation order that would temporarily allow farmers to continue growing and selling the crop until USDA is done re-evaluating it...