UN News May 28 and 29

GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT HOLDS TALKS WITH SENIOR GERMAN OFFICIALS

Climate change, biological diversity and United Nations reform have been high on the agenda during official talks so far on the current three-day visit to Germany by General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim.

Mr. Kerim met today with Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and the two men discussed various UN reform initiatives, including proposals to re-shape the size and nature of the Security Council, according to a spokesperson for the Assembly President.

They also talked about efforts to achieve the globally agreed anti-poverty targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Yesterday Mr. Kerim met with Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul to talk about economic development in poor countries, climate change, the current global food crisis, UN relief efforts in Myanmar in the wake of this month’s devastating cyclone and the concept of a “responsibility to protect” vulnerable populations from harm.

The Assembly President is scheduled to give a lecture tonight in Essen to the Policy Forum of the Ruhr Region on the work of the UN to combat and mitigate the effects of climate change.

He travels to Bonn tomorrow to attend a high-level segment of the conference of the parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. After leaving Germany, Mr. Kerim will then visit Albania for talks with senior officials in the small European country.
2008-05-27 00:00:00.000

FURTHER SHARP INCREASES IN GLOBAL FOOD PRICES ‘LIKELY’ – UN REPORT
New York, May 28 2008 1:00PM
Further sharp price hikes and continued volatility in markets for food supplies appear to be likely for the next few seasons, according to a report released today by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in the run-up to a summit on the global food crisis which is being held in Rome early next month.

FAO lists 22 countries that it says are particularly vulnerable to food price increases because of high levels of chronic hunger and because they are net importers of both food and fuel. The report cites Eritrea, Niger, Comoros, Haiti and Liberia as being especially at risk.

“We hope that world leaders coming to Rome will agree on the urgent measures that are required to boost agricultural production, especially in the most affected countries, and at the same time protect the poor from being adversely affected by high food prices,” said FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf.

The report says that increases in domestic food prices, even by moderate rates of 10 to 20 per cent, can have immediate negative impacts on poor households that spend a large part of their income on food staples.

Protecting the most vulnerable in rural and urban areas will require targeted direct food distribution, food subsidies and cash transfers, as well as nutritional programmes including school feeding, FAO says.

The agency also calls for the distribution of seeds, fertilizers, animal feed to small-scale farmers through vouchers or smart subsidies.

FAO has appealed for $ 1.7 billion to provide seeds, fertilizers and other inputs to boost production in low-income and food deficit countries.

The report argues that high food prices represent an excellent opportunity for increased investments in agricultural research and infrastructure, noting that support should focus on the needs of poor farmers, many of whom farm in increasingly marginal areas.

Participants at the 3-5 June summit will discuss how agriculture can be harnessed to produce enough food to meet the demands of the world’s growing population. Many Heads of State and Government , as well as Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the heads of many UN organizations and the Bretton Woods institutions, will attend the event.

The new international task force – brings together the heads of key UN agencies, the International Monetary Fund the World Bank and other international experts – on the global food crisis, chaired by Mr. Ban, is due to present its action plan.

Meanwhile, it was announced today that Spanish football captain and FAO Goodwill Ambassador Raúl González has been awarded the Spanish prize for solidarity in sports.

Mr. González has donated the $47,000 prize money to the FAO’s Telefood Fund which provides micro-finance to poor farmers around the world.
2008-05-28 00:00:00.000

FOOD PRICES WILL REMAIN HIGH OVER NEXT DECADE, UN REPORT SAYS
New York, May 29 2008 3:00PM
In the next 10 years food prices will remain well above the levels of the last decade, according to a report issued today by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development .
The report says that current high prices will hit the poor and hungry the hardest and calls for the urgent mobilization of humanitarian aid as well as a greater focus on boosting agricultural production in the longer term.

“Coherent action is urgently needed by the international community to deal with the impact of higher prices on the hungry and poor,” Jacques Diouf, Director-General of the FAO said at a press conference launching the report in Paris.

“Today some 862 million people are suffering from hunger and malnourishment – this highlights the need to re-invest in agriculture. It should be clear now that agriculture needs to be put back onto the development agenda.”

Using prices corrected for inflation, the report says that over the next decade rice and sugar prices will increase by less than 10 per cent, wheat by less than 20 per cent, butter coarse grains and oilseeds will rise 30 per cent, and vegetable oils over 50 per cent.

High oil prices, changing diets, urbanization, economic growth and expanding populations are underlying factors behind the rise in food prices, according to the report.

The FAO and OECD also cite growing demand for biofuel as another factor forcing up prices, saying that world ethanol production has tripled between 2000 and 2007 and is expected to double again in the next decade. Climate change, low stock levels and speculation could also add to price volatility.

In Rome, starting 3 June, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will chair a three-day summit on the global food crisis, bringing together the heads of key UN agencies, as well as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank , along with Heads of State and Government.
2008-05-29 00:00:00.000

AFRICA’S EFFORTS TO TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE RECEIVE $92 MILLION BOOST – UN
New York, May 29 2008 8:00PM
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Japan today announced a new $92 million initiative to help Africa adapt to global warming.

“Climate change is one of the most critical issues that governments and citizens around the world need to address,” said Olav Kjorven, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of Bureau for Development Policy.

The programme, announced today during the high-level Fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), will be launched in August.

The UNDP/Japan initiative seeks to help governments revise their current anti-poverty strategies to come into line with climate change’s potential effects on development.

“As a result of climate change, many African countries will experience increased water scarcity and worsened health and food security,” Mr. Kjorven said, stressing that global warming threatens economic and social progress.

“Unless we act now, climate change may threaten everything we will attempt to achieve in the future,” he added.

Of the $92 million, $11 million will be allocated to projects in collaboration with the UN Children’s Fund ,the UN World Food Programme and the UN Industrial Development Organization.

UNDP and Japan have joined forces in the past on successful projects, in countries such as Afghanistan and Sudan and in the areas affected by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
2008-05-29 00:00:00.000

Grist News - May

Mary, Mary, Too Contrary
Bush admin ousts top EPA official over Dow Chemical pollution case

The Bush administration forced out the U.S. EPA's top Midwest regulator on Thursday, after months of contention over a pollution case involving Dow Chemical, the Chicago Tribune reports. Mary Gade, who was appointed by President Bush in 2006, had been tussling with Dow over plans to get the company to clean up extensive dioxin pollution that it dumped into Michigan waterways for decades. Dow asked EPA headquarters to intervene in the dispute, and top deputies to EPA chief Stephen Johnson repeatedly questioned Gade about the case. Then she was stripped of her authority and told to quit or be fired. "There is no question this is about Dow," Gade said. "I stand behind what I did and what my staff did. I'm proud of what we did."

source: Chicago Tribune
see also, in Gristmill: Shades of U.S. attorney scandal
additionally in Gristmill: 'At the pleasure of the president.' Who's looking into the circumstances of the Gade firing?

It's Like a Glow-in-the-Dark Gold Rush
Projected nuke-power renaissance spurs U.S. uranium-mining bonanza

Due to the escalating price of uranium, a flurry of uranium-mining claims has been staked in the United States recently, with one of the greatest concentrations around the Grand Canyon in Arizona. On public lands within five miles of Grand Canyon National Park, there are now 1,100 uranium-mining claims, compared with just 10 in January 2003. One proposed uranium mine just three miles from a popular Grand Canyon lookout has been stalled due to a lawsuit from green groups, but the bonanza of claims continues in the area and in four other states in the U.S. West. There are now over 43,000 total uranium-mining claims in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming -- a 1,900 percent increase since 2001. Uranium is both toxic and radioactive and mining it can contaminate water supplies, but the uranium-mining and nuclear power industries have been spinning it as an environmental plus, saying it's all part of the wonderful process that brings clean, safe nuclear power to the masses.

The Gray Area
Gray wolves under attack, groups want them re-listed

Saying that their concerns about trigger-happy hunters have been validated, 12 conservation and animal-rights groups have sued to get gray wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains re-listed as an endangered species. The 1,500 wolves that roam through Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho were delisted on March 28 and can now be shot in those states; a total of 37 have been killed in the last month. Conservation groups filed suit Monday, saying that the wolf population should be 2,000 at a minimum to protect genetic diversity. But federal biologists have a goal of maintaining a minimum population of 300 wolves, and predict that even with willy-nilly killing, the population will stabilize well above that goal in the next few years.

Getting Hard to Carrion
Wild Asian vultures going the way of the dodo

Wild Asian vultures are likely going the way of the dodo, a new study says. The white-backed vulture population has plunged by nearly 99.9 percent in India since 1992, and two other vulture species have seen a drop of 97 percent, say researchers publishing in the Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. Researchers blame diclofenac, a drug given to livestock and ingested by the birds when they snack on carrion. Unless diclofenac is banned and more birds are able to be bred in captivity, the vultures will be extinct within a decade, say researchers. The vulture decline is already a public-health problem in India: less vultures means more animal carcasses rotting in the open, which in turn has caused more disease and rabies in rats and stray dogs.

Lipstick Bungle
An interview with Stacy Malkan, co-founder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics

They say beauty is only skin deep -- but even that may be too deep for safety, as emerging studies show. With products like lipstick, lotion, and deodorant shown to contain carcinogens and other toxics, is anyone safe? Stacy Malkan, co-founder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics and author of the new book "Not Just a Pretty Face", talks with Katharine Wroth about her own Aqua Net-infused past, the advice she gives to men and women alike, and the most shocking thing she's seen the beauty industry do.
new in Grist: An interview with Stacy Malkan, co-founder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics

Quote of the Week
"So I hope that this film will help others to connect the dots the way it helped Tipper and me to connect the dots on the relationship between mountaintop removal -- which is a crime and ought to be treated as a crime -- and the results of burning [coal] without regard to the future, which also ought to be treated as just an unacceptable practice."
-- Al Gore, presenting the "Reel Current Award" to director Michael O' Connell for his film Mountain Top Removal

A penny saved ... Note to Bush, media: Opening ANWR cuts gas prices one cent in 2025.by Joseph Romm

Emetic Justice
Polar-bear listing would hurt the poor, says industry

If the U.S. Interior Department decides this week that polar bears are threatened with extinction, litigation will be immediate from a group arguing that bear protection will "result in higher energy prices across the board, which will disproportionately be borne by minorities." So says Roy Innis, chair of the Congress for Racial Equality -- a recipient of ExxonMobil funding that has recently aligned itself with anti-enviro activists. Industry groups will rely heavily on the CRE lawsuit to "give us a very high-visibility national media platform on day one," wrote Jim Sims of the Western Business Roundtable in an email obtained by Mother Jones. Sims said that the CRE can help fight and "quite possibly reverse" a protective ruling. Fox News' Sean Hannity has promised prominent airtime for Innis, and a 15-city bus tour will promote the lawsuit. Sims continued in his email, "We should be able to very quickly take over this issue from the radical enviro groups and place it squarely where it belongs: on the negative impacts this decision will have on the poor."

MTBE Cool
Big Oil will shell out for groundwater cleanup

Some of the nation's largest oil companies will over the next 30 years have to pay to clean up groundwater befouled with gasoline additive MTBE. In settling a suit brought by 153 public water providers in 17 states, a dozen companies -- including BP, Shell, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron -- will also have to pay a total $423 million cash. If approved, the settlement will be "a step in the direction of making the parties responsible for the contamination pay for it rather than the folks who drink the water and pay the rates," says an attorney for the plaintiffs. Well, most of the responsible parties anyway -- six defendants, including Exxon Mobil, did not agree to settle. MTBE, which began to be added to gasoline in 1979 to increase octane levels, is a possible carcinogen and can give water the taste and odor of turpentine. It is now banned in 23 states, and oil companies stopped using it in 2006. Estimates of the cleanup cost have reached $30 billion.

Where in the World?
Brazilians and Indians are the greenest, says survey

Brazilians and Indians are the most eco-friendly folks in the world, and Canadians and Americans are the least, according to a new survey done by the National Geographic Society. Consumers in 14 countries, representing more than half of the world's population and about three-quarters of its energy use, were ranked on their sustainability in the areas of housing, transportation, food, and consumer goods. Brazil and India tied for the win with a score of 60 on the sustainable-consumption scale, followed by China, Mexico, Hungary, Russia, a tie between Great Britain and Germany and Australia, Spain, Japan, France, Canada, and the United States. NGS admits that the high scores of poorer countries are likely a product of necessity rather than choice -- yeah, ya think? It plans to conduct the survey annually and watch trends over time.

Bad News, Bees
Honeybee hives in U.S. seeing continued decline, survey says

Honeybee populations in the United States continued their decline last year, according to a survey of bee health by the Apiary Inspectors of America. U.S. commercial beekeepers saw the loss of 36 percent more hives than last year. "For two years in a row, we've sustained a substantial loss," said Dennis van Engelsdorp of AIA. "That's an astonishing number. Imagine if one out of every three cows, or one out of every three chickens, were dying. That would raise a lot of alarm." According to the survey, some 29 percent of the bee decline was caused by colony collapse disorder, a mysterious and devastating phenomenon that causes adult bees to abandon their hives. Last week, Pennsylvania's agriculture secretary announced a $20,000 boost to CCD research at Pennsylvania State University. Earlier this year, ice-cream maker Haagen-Dazs also made quite a buzz when it pledged $250,000 in CCD research funds to Penn State and the University of California at Davis. Bees typically pollinate about $14 billion worth of U.S. crops a year.

Be Like NikeBig biz ranked on greenness

Takeaways from a new ranking of eco-friendly practices in big biz: Consumer companies are getting greener, but there's plenty of ground to gain. In its second annual scorecard, nonprofit Climate Counts ranked 56 companies on their measurement, reduction, and disclosure of greenhouse gases. Eighty-four percent of the companies scored higher this year than they did in 2007, but the average score was still only 40 out of a possible 100. At the top of the list were Nike with 82, Stonyfield Farm with 78, and IBM with 77; Google was most improved, jumping from 17 points in 2007 to 55 in 2008; and Jones Apparel Group, Burger King, Darden Restaurants, and Wendy's were the bottom-dwellers, receiving big goose eggs. Climate Counts distributes pocket-sized versions of its scorecard in hopes that consumers will consider the rankings when wielding purchasing power.

Trouble in Paradise
Ouster of Sierra Club's Florida leaders stirs up a storm of controversy

The national board of the Sierra Club recently suspended the elected leaders of its Florida chapter for four years -- an unprecedented move for an organization with a long history of grassroots democracy. The board says the Florida leadership was crippled by infighting and factionalism. The expelled leaders say they were targeted for opposing the national board's positions on biofuels and a Clorox endorsement, and they compare the board's actions to a "massacre" and "the crimes of the Bush administration." Emily Gertz sorts through charges, counter-charges, and heated rhetoric.

Farm Team
Timothy LaSalle of Rodale on the surprising climate benefits of organic farming

You already know that organic agriculture yields pesticide-free products that are better for you and for the planet. But did you know it could play a key role in carbon sequestration and battling climate change? Anna Lappé talks with Timothy LaSalle of the Rodale Institute about why farmers could be climate-change heroes, which fungi could save the world, and how he surmounted his own chemical-saturated past.

Do Me a Fava. Umbra on soil health.
Word puzzles. Washington Post reporter not allowed to say what he knows about climate legislation costs.by David Roberts
Better homes and gardens. The NYT on urban farming.by Tom Philpott

Katrina Kids' Lung Problems

Why is Formaldehyde still allowed to be used in this country?

Kids in Katrina trailers may face lifelong ailments
By JOHN MORENO GONZALES,AP
Posted: 2008-05-28 01:29:50
BAY ST. LOUIS, MISS. (AP) - The anguish of Hurricane Katrina should have ended for Gina Bouffanie and her daughter when they left their FEMA trailer. But with each hospital visit and each labored breath her child takes, the young mother fears it has just begun.

"It's just the sickness. I can't get rid of it. It just keeps coming back," said Bouffanie, 27, who was pregnant with her now 15-month-old daughter, Lexi, while living in the trailer. "I'm just like, `Oh God, I wish like this would stop.' If I had known it would get her sick, I wouldn't have stayed in the trailer for so long."

The girl, diagnosed with severe asthma, must inhale medicine from a breathing device.

Doctors cannot conclusively link her asthma to the trailer. But they fear she is among tens of thousands of youngsters who may face lifelong health problems because the temporary housing supplied by the Federal Emergency Management Agency contained formaldehyde fumes up to five times the safe level.

The chemical, used in interior glue, was detected in many of the 143,000 trailers sent to the Gulf Coast in 2006. But a push to get residents out of them, spearheaded by FEMA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, did not begin until this past February.

Members of Congress and CDC insiders say the agencies' delay in recognizing the danger is being compounded by studies that will be virtually useless and the lack of a plan to treat children as they grow.

"It's tragic that when people most need the protection, they are actually going from one disaster to a health disaster that might be considered worse," said Christopher De Rosa, assistant director for toxicology and risk assessment at the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, an arm of the CDC. "Given the longer-term implications of exposure that went on for a significant period of time, people should be followed through time for possible effects."

Formaldehyde is classified as a probable carcinogen, or cancer-causing substance, by the Environmental Protection Agency. There is no way to measure formaldelhyde in the bloodstream. Respiratory problems are an early sign of exposure.

Young children are at particular risk. Thousands who lived in trailers will be in the prime of life in the 10 to 15 years doctors believe it takes cancer to develop.

FEMA and CDC reports so far have drawn criticism.

A CDC study released May 8 examined records of 144 Mississippi children, some of whom lived in trailers and others who did not. But the study was confined to children who had at least one doctor's visit for respiratory illness before Katrina. It was largely inconclusive, finding children who went to doctors before the August 2005 storm were still visiting them two years after.

A bigger, five-year CDC study will include up to 5,000 children in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas, and CDC officials said it should begin next year. But members of Congress point to the decade or longer it could take for cancer to develop and say a five-year look is inadequate.

"Monitoring the health of a few thousand children over the course of a few years is a step in the right direction, but we need commitment," said Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss.

Thompson has introduced legislation to force FEMA and CDC to provide health exams for trailer residents who believe formaldehyde made them ill. The bill is similar to $108 million legislation for workers who labored at the World Trade Center site.

Arch Carson, professor of occupational medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, said preliminary exams alone for trailer residents could cost more than the trade center bill. But he said class-action lawsuits over the formaldehyde - at least one has been filed - could be even more expensive, costing many billions of dollars.

"It would be best for the government to get its act together now," Carson said.

More than 22,000 FEMA trailers and mobile homes are still being used in Mississippi and Louisiana.

FEMA and the CDC say they will create a registry of those who stayed in trailers for possible future study. But they admit that the task of keeping track of everyone is made difficult by the rush to get families into other housing.

The parents of McKenzie Whitney, a 1-year-old girl with wavy auburn hair, are running low on money and options for caring for the sick girl.

Born into a FEMA trailer, McKenzie was out of the dwelling in August 2007 after a 10-month stay. Her mother, Kacey Whitney, 22, a housekeeper, and her father, Kevin Whitney, 30, a maintenance man, juggle the pressures of post-hurricane life with tending to the child.

"Sunday night when I was going to work, as I was walking up to the front door, she just threw up. She had a fever. We went to the hospital and they wound up keeping her overnight," the girl's mother said. "She's always had a cold, always."

Like Lexi, McKenzie is treated with a nebulizer, a boxy breathing machine that turns medication into mist. It is prescribed to patients with moderate to severe symptoms, and requires children to inhale for 20 minutes.

Dr. Shama Shakir, a Bay St. Louis pediatrician who treats Lexi and Kacey at the Coastal Family Health Center, said that before the storm she prescribed nebulizers about twice weekly. Lately, she is doing so up to 12 times a week.

"You give them the most potent steroids, the most potent antibiotics, and still they have the symptoms," Shakir said. "I worry about what will become of these children long-term."

Deven Galloway, 27, lived in a FEMA trailer in Bay St. Louis for seven months with 4-year-old son DeReion. The boy uses a nebulizer for asthma.

"One day he was like, `I'm going to take more so I can go ahead and be finished for a long time,"' said his mother. "I had to tell him it didn't work that way."


Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
05/28/08 01:29 EDT

Good Spring

A picture of our back yard May 5.

So far it is a great spring. Yes, the weather has been incredibly odd, but generally speaking, it's been good.

My vitamin D production is beyond last year's already (read, "sun tan"), and it isn't June. That's a good thing.

I'm both ahead and behind in my outdoor projects, but that's ok. It evens out in the end.

I've started my composting with the assistance of a lawn care service. As soon as I know which one, I'll put the info on here. LOL - I truly don't know the name of the business, but he does the lawn of the church next door. He's thrilled to be getting rid of his grass clippings, and I'm thrilled to be getting them.

Oh - I checked - half-life of herbicide ON the plants is a max of 2 weeks. In the soil, up to 2 months. Pesticide, 1 month and 6 months respectively. With grass, and how rapidly it grows, neither will be on for more than 1 week. So - I'd say 75% of the clippings I get are fine. And with my using them mostly in the compost, there will be absolutely new worries. So, while truly organic would be nice, this is a great second place in my book.

This is a compilation photo. Each bin is about 3' cube. 1 is 4', but that's no big deal. The far left is compost from 2 years ago that has been used. The days are marked to give an idea of how quickly compost can be made. They all started out the size of Day 1 - at far right. Second from the left is 7 days old - like peas porridge. LOL

I'm doing my compost differently than most recommend. I'm adding half green, half brown (leaves from the property). When it compacts to half of original volume, I'm turning it and adding half grass clippings again (or weeds/deadheading/ thinning, etc.). When compacts to half volume, will add it to another pile to make into full volume. If and when that compacts to half volume, I'll turn it and add more grass. That should get me to the right ratio of green:brown. Then, in fall, combine all piles into 1 large and let it sit to cold-compost over the winter. Seeds shouldn't stand a chance that way.

I've added grass clippings to last years compost in 1 large pile, and will sift that out in a couple of weeks to use in flower beds.

Have just planted some of my veggie garden. 4 rows of beets and chard. I'm late with the chard, but had to wait until someone else cultivated the garden. It drives my vertigo wild. Tomatoes are in. Fence is up. String beans are tomorrow. Will be done with that very very soon. Woohoo!

1 flower bed is complete and ready to mulch. Hoping to have another one ready tomorrow. I may be exhausted until October, but I'm not arguing it. It's what keeps me sane.

Be A HyperMiler Conserving Fuel

5/25/08 Comments on AC use reducing mileage: Very interesting
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_393.html

Wayne Gerdes knows how to wring a gas tank dry. He can squeeze 84 miles per gallon from your standard-issue Ford Ranger pick-up. He once averaged more than 100 mpg during the course of an entire summer. And while behind the wheel of a hybrid electric Honda Insight, he coaxed the vehicle into yielding an astonishing 180.1 mpg. Gerdes can do these seemingly impossible things with a car because he is one of a rare breed of drivers known as "hypermilers."

In Pictures: Ten Fuel-Saving Tips from a Hypermiler

These drivers are "completely obsessed" with getting good gas mileage, says Bill Robbins, spokesperson for an annual event called Hybridfest in Madison, Wis., which celebrates hybrid cars and all things related to reducing fuel consumption.

Gerdes, of Wadsworth, Ill., admits to this obsession without hesitation.

He isn't trying to get merely good gas mileage. Or even great mileage. He's intent on achieving hypermileage.

He uses specialized driving techniques that can double the normal gas mileage for any car, including non-hybrids. Some techniques are simple, even self-evident. Don't let your car idle excessively. And don't waste gas by accelerating up to red lights and stop signs.

Other techniques get a little more technical. For instance, putting the lowest weight oil in your car helps it work more efficiently. "This allows for better kinematic viscosity," says Gerdes, "which means that it's easier to pump oil through the engine, and the engine moves against itself easier."

Then, there are the more advanced techniques. Techniques with names like pulse and glide, warp stealth and ridge riding. Gerdes doesn't like to talk too much about these because, if performed improperly, they can actually be dangerous. If you're intrigued by the names, not to mention the potentially stratospheric mileage that can result, he recommends seeking out an instructor to show you how advanced hypermiling is done.

As his enthusiasm might suggest, Gerdes isn't just a hypermiler. He's the hypermiler.

"He's the man who coined the term 'hypermiler'!" says Robbins, the Hybridfest spokesperson.

Gerdes came up with the neologism during that extraordinary 100-plus mpg summer. "I live and die for this stuff," says Gerdes, who works at a nuclear power plant which, he points out, provides energy without emitting carbon dioxide. He'll go to almost any length to emit as little CO2 as possible himself and help others to do the same.

Gerdes spreads the hypermiling gospel through instruction. At this summer's Hybridfest, which drew extreme mileage enthusiasts from around the country, Gerdes and others that share his passion put on a clinic to help attendees practice what the hypermilers preach. In one exercise, Gerdes guided a driver through some basic techniques in a standard Honda Accord, and the driver extracted 51.2 mpg from a car that the EPA rates at 24 mpg city and 34 mpg highway.

The Hybridfest also puts hypermiling skills to use in the name of competition. In the MPG Challenge, drivers try to get the best mileage over a 20-mile course, an event that Robbins describes as "NASCAR in reverse." Last year, it was on this 20-mile circuit that Gerdes hit the 180.1 mpg mark on his way to victory.

Even though the MPG Challenge is a competition, it's not a particularly cutthroat one. A lot of the entrants were already friends, having met on Gerdes' Web site, CleanMPG.com, where they share fuel-saving tips and tricks. Before this year's contest, Gerdes said, "I'm looking forward to the challenge -- the field is thick with great drivers, and they are all my friends, so I'll be happy with whoever wins." This year's victor was Bill Kinney, who averaged 168 mpg. Gerdes finished second with 146 mpg.

The benefits of hypermiling are fairly apparent. "For the most part, hypermiling encourages non-aggressive driving," says Geoff Sundstrom, director of AAA Public Affairs. "Driving the speed limit and not speeding up to stop signs are all good things -- these are things that we teach new drivers."

However, when pushed to the extreme, even elementary techniques can become dangerous. Driving too slowly below the speed limit can cause other drivers to become more aggressive and perform unsafe maneuvers, and the technique of using one's brakes sparingly to conserve energy can lead to drivers rolling through stop signs. "When taken to an extreme, hypermiling can become a very selfish endeavor," Sundstrom says. "The bottom line is: Saving fuel and conserving energy are important, but so is safety -- and preventing crashes."

Then there's the questionable method of positioning one's automobile directly behind a large vehicle (such as an 18-wheeler) to catch its draft and reduce drag, which, Sundstrom says, "is called tailgating!"

But there are ways to reap the benefits of hypermiling while still driving safely. Gerdes suggests 10 things that the average driver can do to maximize fuel economy. All of them are applicable to real-world driving conditions, and none of them require the purchase of a hybrid, although surely that will help your numbers. Click on the link to the slideshow to see 10 fuel-saving tips from a hypermiler.

UN News May 23, 24

BAN KI-MOON HAILS $500 MILLION OFFER BY SAUDI ARABIA TO DEAL WITH FOOD CRISIS
New York, May 23 2008 2:00PM
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed Saudi Arabia’s landmark offer to contribute $500 million to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to help with efforts to combat the global food crisis.

In a statement issued by his spokesperson today, Mr. Ban said the offer, made under the guidance of King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, means the WFP has achieved its target of $755 million to deal with the recent surge in food and fuel costs.

“The Secretary-General notes that this contribution of an unprecedented size and generosity comes not a moment too soon, given the needs of millions of people dependent on food rations,” the statement added.

Earlier this month the UN relief chief, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs John Holmes, announced that $100 million is being reserved from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to tackle the immediate issues stemming from the food crisis.

Next month the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will host a major summit at its Rome headquarters to discuss how agriculture can be harnessed to produce enough food to meet the demands of the world’s growing population.
2008-05-23 00:00:00.000

UN-BACKED GLOBAL FUND AGAINST KILLER DISEASES HAILS JAPANESE DONATION
New York, May 23 2008 7:00PM
The United Nations-backed Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria today welcomed Japan’s announcement that it will donate $560 million starting next year, which takes the Asian country’s total contribution so far to nearly $1.5 billion.

The new contribution means the Global Fund – created in 2002 – has now raised over $20 billion to invest in hundreds of different treatment and prevention programmes fighting the three diseases around the world.

Programmes backed by the Fund are estimated to have already provided AIDS treatment to 1.4 million patients and TB treatment for 3.3 million people. They have also distributed 46 million insecticide-treated bed nets to prevent malaria.

The Fund’s Executive Director Michel Kazatchkine praised Japan, which is now the third biggest contributor, for its ongoing support.

“These new resources will help to save millions of lives, strengthen health systems in developing nations and bring the world hope that further substantial impact against the three diseases will be achieved in the coming years,” he said.
2008-05-23 00:00:00.000

UN News May 22

LOSS OF ANIMAL SPECIES AND CROPS IS ‘DEVASTATING’ – SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN
New York, May 22 2008 1:00PM
The extinction of animal species, as well as the reliance on a narrow range of crops, is a major threat to the planet’s development and security, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today in a statement to mark the International Day for Biological Diversity.

“This Day serves as a reminder of the importance of the Earth’s biodiversity, and as a wake-up call about the devastating loss we are experiencing as irreplaceable species become extinct at an unprecedented rate,” he said.

About a fifth of domestic animal breeds are at risk of extinction, with an average of one lost each month, and out of the 7,000 species of plants that have been domesticated over the 10,000-year history of agriculture, only 30 account for the vast majority of food consumed every day.

“Relying on so few species for sustenance is a losing strategy,” the Secretary-General said. “Climate change is complicating the picture,” he added, saying that livestock production accounted for more greenhouse gas emissions than transport.

“In a world where the population is projected to jump 50 per cent by the year 2050, these trends can spell widespread hunger and malnutrition, creating conditions where poverty, disease and even conflict can metastasize.”

In a separate statement marking the Day, from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Convention on Biological Diversity, the CBD’s Executive Secretary Ahmed Djoghlaf said: “If current extinction rates continue, it will be hard to provide sufficient food for a global population that is expected to reach nine billion by mid-century.”

At the ongoing meeting on the CBD in Bonn, Germany, delegates are deciding on measures that would move the world closer to the globally-agreed goal of reversing the loss of biodiversity by 2010. Under the Convention, countries are working to protect soil biodiversity, curb the loss of pollinators, and maintain the variety of foodstuffs needed to ensure proper food and nutrition.
2008-05-22 00:00:00.000

UN News May 20

FOOD CRISIS, CLIMATE CHANGE AND INFLUENZA ARE MAIN THREATS TO HEALTH, SAYS UN
New York, May 19 2008 6:00PM
The global food crisis, climate change and pandemic influenza are the main threats to human health, according to the United Nations World Health Organization.

“These three critical events, these clear threats to international security, have the potential to undo much hard-won progress in public health,” WHO Director-General Margaret Chan said today in Geneva.

Speaking at the opening of the 61st session of the World Health Assembly, which is WHO’s supreme decision-making body, Ms. Chan said the organization had identified 21 “hot spots” around the world which are already experiencing high levels of acute and chronic malnutrition. As part of the international task force on the global crisis caused by soaring food prices, WHO is aiming to guide priority action, she said.

Ms. Chan added that an estimated 3.5 million deaths a year are caused by undernutrition, and that poor households spend on average between 50 and 75 per cent of their income on food. “More money spent on food means less money available for health care, especially for the many millions of poor households who rely on out-of-pocket payments when they fall ill.”

On climate change, she said that more droughts, floods and tropical storms would add to the demands for humanitarian assistance and would result in a growing number of environmental refugees. “Again, the poor will be the first and hardest hit. Climate change is already adding an additional set of stresses in areas that are already fragile, with marginal livelihoods and thin margins of survival when shocks occur.”

Ms. Chan described pandemic influenza, potentially set off by the spread of bird flu to humans, as the “third global crisis looming on the horizon.” She said that “the threat has by no means receded, and we would be very unwise to let down our guard, or slacken our preparedness measures.”

“As with climate change, all countries will be affected, though in a far more rapid and sweeping way,” she added.

The week-long session of the World Health Assembly will also discuss female genital mutilation (FGM) and the harmful use of alcohol.
2008-05-19 00:00:00.000

BIODIVERSITY KEY TO TACKING GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS – UN AGENCY
New York, May 19 2008 12:00PM
Just 12 crops and 14 animal species provide most of the world’s food, and this lack of diversity means that the food supply has become more vulnerable and less sustainable – according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

“The erosion of biodiversity for food and agriculture severely compromises global food security,” FAO Assistant Director-General Alexander Müller said today. “We need to strengthen our efforts to protect and wisely manage biodiversity for food security,” he added.

Speaking at the beginning of a global conference on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Bonn, Germany, Mr. Müller called on the international community to intensify its commitment to integrating food security and biodiversity concerns.

FAO also raised the alarm about a worldwide decline in biodiversity. It estimates that the genetic diversity of agricultural crops has declined by 75 per cent over the last century and that hundreds of the 7,000 animal breeds registered in FAO databases are threatened with extinction.

FAO says that less genetic diversity means that there are fewer opportunities for the growth and innovation needed to boost agriculture at a time of soaring food prices.

Related: 26700
2008-05-19 00:00:00.000

The Heptillion Factor

Heptillion! If I'm right, that's 1 x 10 to the 13th!

Why am I so aghast at heptillion?

Aphids. 1 aphid, along with its following generations, can equal 1 heptillion in a season. Holy Shamoly!

I just read this last night in my Organic Gardening mag. Today, I went out to do some heavy duty pruning on my Korean Spice Viburnum. And what does it have? Aphids!

Heptillion!

I pruned most of the aphids off anyway, but then blasted the bush with water about 3 times over.

Heptillion!

One of my chickadees was watching from a nearby tree.

Heptillion honey! You'd never go hungry! Eat them! Eat the aphids! Heptillion!

The wild part is, if they get knocked off their host plant, they'll most likely starve before they find a new host plant. This is why a good blast of water is so effective.

Heptillion!

They birth live aphids - 3 or 4 a day! And they're already full of aphids to give birth to as soon as they mature.

Heptillion!

If you haven't guessed, it's a new found respect.

Wild Alert News May Update

The Arctic Refuge was named one of the "Seven Wonders of America" by Good Morning America this week. That was welcome news to those of us who have worked to protect this unparalleled place.

Despite its wonders, the Refuge remains a prize coveted by the oil industry. Both President Bush and Sen. Domenici (R-NM) have pushed recently for opening the Refuge to oil development. Gas from the Refuge would do nothing to allay our costs at the pump, but development there would destroy a world-class breeding and nesting ground and sanctuary for more than 250 species of animals.

See below for how you can help fend off this latest threat to the Refuge, and to learn about recent successes we've had, with your help.

Best wishes,
Kathy Kilmer

P.S. To view the GMA broadcast about the Arctic Refuge, click here:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/7Wonders/Story?id=4795592&page=1

Don't Pass up this Million Dollar Opportunity

Wouldn't it be nice if you could suddenly make double the difference in protecting America's wildlands?
A couple of generous donors will match your gift dollar-for-dollar, in a one million dollar challenge grant. Why? Because they share your passion about protecting America's wilderness, and they are well aware that the Bush Administration can do some serious damage in its final days. This is when our work to save places like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is most urgent.
Give today to see your donation go TWICE as far. And thank you!
Take Action
Arctic Refuge Under Fire, Again
As gas prices continue to rise, the volume is being turned up on demands to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, expand offshore oil and gas activity, and pursue environmentally hazardous oil shale and tar sands technologies.
Drilling in the Arctic Refuge will do nothing to solve America's energy problems, but could do lasting harm to this place.
Please take a moment to ask your senators to oppose any proposal to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling.
Inside Story
And the Survey Says...
As a WildAlert subscriber, you are passionate about wildlife and the great outdoors. You love to visit wilderness, hike and camp or work in your garden and watch birds. Mobilizing with others to protect wilderness is a winning strategy for you.
That's just a part of what we've learned from this year's WildAlert survey, with its record 24,000 responses. Here's more: Most subscribers have spoken out via email about wilderness issues. A growing number are eager to help by making phone calls, posting information to blogs, and getting involved in other ways.
Your thoughts and opinions help to shape our strategies, and we'll be seeking more from you in the future. Thank you!
News
New Washington Wilderness for the 21st century
America's brand new wilderness, dubbed Wild Sky, can be found on the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest north of Seattle. It's Washington's first newly-designated wilderness in more than 20 years. It includes pristine lowland valleys, large stands of old growth forests and a handful of Washington's famous wild rivers. This is the culmination of a multi-year effort, and the WildAlert community has played an important role in gaining passage for this bill. Truly, this is something to celebrate!
Learn more.
Public Overwhelmingly Opposes Oil & Gas Drilling in Utah's Famed Nine Mile Canyon
Learn more.
House Passes Major Land Conservation Initiative
Bill would make the National Landscape Conservation System permanent.
Learn more.
PBS Features Alaska Wilderness
A new video about Gates of the Arctic National Park in Alaska will be shown on many PBS stations this summer. The park's creation was due in part to the actions of Wilderness Society giants Bob Marshall and Mardy and Olaus Murie. If you'd like to see it, go to your PBS station's web site and search on "Gates of the Arctic."

UN News May 17

PARTICIPANTS AT UN-BACKED MEETING AGREE TO WORK TOWARDS RULES ON BIOSAFETY
New York, May 17 2008 6:00PM
More than 2,000 participants attending a week-long biosafety meeting that wrapped up yesterday have agreed to work towards legally binding rules for liability and redress for potential damage caused by the movements of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) reports.

The participants at the fourth meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, held in Bonn, Germany, and said to be the largest ever gathering on the issue, have reached a deal on both a timetable and a framework for negotiating the rules and procedures.

The contents of the legally binding instrument for liability and redress for the GMOs, also known as living modified organisms (LMOs), will now be discussed at the next meeting of the parties to the Protocol, itself a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity. That meeting is scheduled to take place in October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan.

Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary to the Convention, welcomed the agreement, calling it "great news for the biodiversity family."

While GMOs or LMOs have the potential to increase agricultural yields and to grow in habitats otherwise unfavourable to crops, there are also widespread concerns that they might pose major threats to local ecosystems and therefore biodiversity.

UN News May 14 Billion Tree Campaign

‘BILLION TREE CAMPAIGN’ BLOSSOMS TO SEVEN TIMES ITS SIZE, UN AGENCY SAYS
New York, May 13 2008 3:00PM
A grassroots campaign to plant trees around the globe has announced that it is raising its target from 1 billion trees to 7 billion trees, the United Nations <" http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=535&ArticleID=5806&l=en">announced today.

The campaign, which is under the patronage of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and Kenyan Green Belt Movement founder Professor Wangari Maathai and Prince Albert II of Monaco, also announced today that in 18 months it has seen two billion trees planted, double its original target.

The campaign was launched by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) in 2006 as a response to the threat of global warming.

UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said today: “Having exceeded every target that has been set for the campaign, we are now calling on individuals, communities, business and industry, civil society organizations and governments to evolve this initiative on to a new and even higher level by the crucial climate change conference in Copenhagen in late 2009.”

Tree planting remains one of the most cost-effective ways to address climate change. Trees and forests play a vital role in regulating the climate since they absorb carbon dioxide. Deforestation, in turn, accounts for over 20% of the carbon dioxide humans generate, rivaling the emissions from other sources.

Trees also play a crucial role in providing a range of products and services to rural and urban populations, including food, timber, fibre, medicines and energy as well as soil fertility, water and biodiversity conservation.

In terms of geographic distribution, Africa is the leading region with over half of all tree plantings. Regional and national governments organized the most massive plantings, with Ethiopia leading the count at 700 million, followed by Turkey (400 million), Mexico (250 million), and Kenya (100 million).

The two billionth tree was put into the ground as part of an agroforestry project carried out by the UN World Food Programme (<"http://www.wfp.org/english/">WFP). It has now planted 60 million trees in 35 countries to improve food security.
2008-05-13 00:00:00.000

UN News May 13

MARSHALL ISLANDS ACCEDES TO FIVE UN TREATIES ON MARINE POLLUTION AND SAFETY
New York, May 12 2008 5:00PM
The Marshall Islands, one of the world’s major shipping nations, has acceded to five important International Maritime Organization http://www.imo.org/home.asp IMO conventions that aim to discourage environmental pollution and promote safety on the high seas, the United Nations agency announced today.

The Pacific island nation has acceded to the International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-fouling Systems on Ships 2001 (known as the AFS Convention) and to the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage 2001 (Bunkers Convention).

The AFS Convention requires parties to the pact to ban or restrict the use of harmful anti-fouling systems on ships flying their flag, operating under their authority or entering their ports, shipyards and offshore terminals. The Marshall Islands’ accession means 30 States comprising 49.17 per cent of the world’s fleet in tonnage have now ratified the treaty, which will enter into force on 17 September.

The Bunkers Convention aims to ensure that prompt and adequate compensation is available to people who suffer damage caused by oil spills when carried as fuel in ships’ bunkers. That pact enters into force on 21 November.

The Marshall Islands has also acceded to the 1996 Protocol to the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter 1972 (1996 London Convention Protocol).

This protocol, which entered into force in March 2006, bans the export of wastes to non-parties for the purpose of dumping or incineration at sea, except for emergencies. It has now been ratified by 35 States that collectively control 29.73 per cent of the world’s fleet.

In addition, the Marshall Islands is now a party to the Protocol of 2005 to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation 1998 (2005 SUA Convention) and the Protocol of 2005 for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Fixed Platforms Located on the Continental Shelf (2005 SUA Protocol).

Neither the convention nor the protocol is yet in force, but they are aimed at broadening the list of offences at sea to include terrorist offences and at introducing measures for the boarding of ships when there are reasonable grounds to suspect that the ship or someone on board has or is about to be involved in an offence.

IMO, which is based in London, is the UN agency with the responsibility for the safety and security of shipping and the prevention of marine pollution by ships.
2008-05-12 00:00:00.000

UN News May 12

UN-BACKED SUMMIT TO SPOTLIGHT PRIVATE SECTOR’S ROLE IN TACKLING CLIMATE CHANGE
New York, May 12 2008 4:00PM
The United Nations will take part in a global meeting next year to assess how a new global climate change policy can also address the needs of the business community, it was announced today.

The World Business Summit on Climate Change, which will take place next May in Copenhagen, Denmark, seeks to ensure that the successor pact to the Kyoto Protocol will provide the right incentives to slash greenhouse gas emissions.

Along with the <" http://www.unglobalcompact.org/">UN Global Compact – the world body’s voluntary corporate citizen initiative – the gathering will be convened by the Copenhagen Climate Council, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the Pew Center on Global Climate Change.

Organizers expect hundreds of top executives, government officials, leading experts and heads of civil society to attend to assess how the private sector can play a role in addressing global warming through innovative business approaches, new joint ventures and the development of low-carbon technologies.

The World Business Summit is expected to produce recommendations to be forwarded onto world leaders negotiating a successor pact to the <" http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/items/2830.php">Kyoto Protocol, expiring in 2012. Those talks are scheduled to wrap up at a key UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (<" http://unfccc.int/2860.php">UNFCCC) in December 2009, also to take place in Copenhagen.
2008-05-12 00:00:00.000

THOUSANDS GATHER FOR MEETING ON UN-BACKED TREATY ON BIOSAFETY
New York, May 12 2008 8:00PM
More than 3000 participants from 147 countries have assembled in Bonn, the former German capital, for the start of a week-long <" http://www.cbd.int/mop4/">meeting on how to improve their commitments to ensuring the safe use of modern biotechnology as outlined under a United Nations-backed treaty.

The fourth meeting of the parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, itself a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity, began today in Bonn, according to a <"http://www.cbd.int/doc/press/2008/pr-2008-05-12-mop-en.pdf">news release issued by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).

The agency said that one of the priorities of this week’s meeting will be to try to reach agreement on international rules on liability and redress for potential damages caused by the movements of living modified organisms (LMOs), often known as genetically modified organisms.

Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary to the Convention, urged the delegates at the meeting to “seize the moment” and reach agreement.

“You are mandated to fulfil the requirement, set out in Article 27 in 2000, when the Protocol was signed,” he said. “In doing this, you will ensure the effective implementation of the Protocol.”

Participants at the conference in Bonn will also discuss other issues, including finding ways to finance the continued work of the Protocol and assessing the socio-economic impact that LMOs have on biodiversity.
2008-05-12 00:00:00.000

UN News May 8

USING ART TO INSPIRE ACTION ON THE ENVIRONMENT – NEW UN CAMPAIGN
New York, May 7 2008 4:00PM
Art can be a catalyst for environmental action – that’s the message today from a United Nations seminar and exhibit which are bringing together artists from around the world.

Mia Hanak, Founding Executive Director of the Natural World Museum, which is co-sponsoring the events in New York, said that, “art is a vehicle for environmental action and social change. Our collective goal is to ignite people’s passion for being a part of the global solution and together inspiring people to take bold actions in finding new ways to embrace sustainable lifestyles.”

The seminar and art exhibition are also sponsored by the UN’s Environment Programme (UNEP) and Department of Information (DPI), under the title, “art changing attitudes toward the environment.”

Seven artists from different regions of the world are exhibiting photographs focusing on the environment at UN Headquarters in New York until the end of May.

Indian-born photographer Subhankar Banerjee has photographed the Arctic region over the past eight years and said today that the area suffered from negative perceptions as a “hostile wasteland” and that its indigenous peoples had also suffered from intolerance. “I hope that my work would help unlearn many of these intolerances against a whole part of our planet and our indigenous friends who call this home,” he said.

The events are part of the http://www.un.org/Pubs/chronicle/tolerance/seminar.html
Unlearning Intolerance Seminar Series which was initiated by the UN in 2004. Eric Falt, Director of Outreach with DPI, said that the aim was to “examine intolerance, as well as to explore ways to promote respect and understanding among peoples.”

“In previous years,” he said, “the series has focused on anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, genocide and the role of the media in promoting tolerance.”

Ms. Hanak said, “We are sending out a call to action through the arts to break down our barriers and activate environmental and social transformation. We can each do our part in turning the tide in public awareness - and just remember one person can make a difference and together we can create change.”
2008-05-07 00:00:00.000

MIGRATORY BIRDS THREATENED BY CHANGING ENVIRONMENT, UN WARNS
New York, May 8 2008 6:00PM
Numbers of migratory birds – considered to be some of the best gauges of the state of global biodiversity – are plunging in the face of a changing environment, the United Nations Environment Programme (<"http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=535&ArticleID=5803&l=en">UNEP) warned today.

Marking World Migratory Bird Day, the agency said that the decline is being recorded for many species along all of the main migration corridors, which birds utilize on their journeys, spanning thousands of miles, between their breeding and wintering grounds.

“Migratory birds are some of the most extraordinary creatures on the planet and in many countries bird watching is an economically important leisure and tourism activity,” said UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.

“But migratory birds are more than this. Their dependence on healthy habitats and ecosystems makes them among the key indicators as to whether the international community is truly addressing the decline and erosion of the planet’s nature-based assets.”

The Day – focusing on the theme “Migratory Birds – Ambassadors for Biodiversity” – will be marked on the weekend of 10-11 May with concerts, films and other public events to highlight the ever-increasing threat to migratory birds and to global biodiversity.

Although the reasons behind the drop in numbers of migratory birds are complex and are specific to certain species, the overall decline is a reflection of the larger environmental problem tied to the global loss of habitats and biodiversity.

UNEP noted that 41 per cent of the 522 migratory waterbird populations on the routes linking Africa and Eurasia are witnessing their populations drop, and it has been reported that numbers of migratory songbirds using the same corridors are also on the decline.

Meanwhile, numbers of Boreal birds in the Western Hemisphere, such as the Canadian Warbler, which migrate from northern Canada to South America, are plummeting because they are losing their forest breeding grounds.

Vulnerable to changes in the environment, migratory birds are dependent on stop-over sites to rest and refuel as they make their long voyages, but these locations are threatened or disappear as a result of agricultural, urban, infrastructural and industrial development.

Climate change also plays an important role, as climbing global temperatures result in larger deserts and more frequent storms, which could lead to rising sea levels and impede migration.

Using Supermarket Waste To Compost

5/7/08 Well, I'm back with an update. I went to my local grocery - the one I am confident I could get to daily, if necessary. I spoke with the produce manager and others before me have ruined it for the rest of us. They used to give to a pig farmer, who tried to steal good produce by hiding it under the stock loss as he hauled it away.

I was amazed, stunned, taken aback. It remains amazing what people are willing to do when given some well meant assistance.

So, I moved on to plan B. I went online to my local freecycle and barter groups. Asked if anyone knew of or were a lawn service business who paid dumping fees at the county dump to get rid of the yard waste. If they were, they are more than welcome to dump the clippings and such here for me to compost. I have a 5 bin system set up now, and can expand, if needed. Thus far, 2 have contacted me. Here's hoping!

3/14/08
A Study on average back yard composting of both waste produce and wax coated cardboard successfully
http://www.cwc.org/organics/org935fs.pdf

PA farmer working with Wegmans
http://www.newfarm.org/depts/talking_shop/0304/pasa.shtml

Wasted Food.com
http://www.wastedfood.com/2007/03/

What is bringing this little ditty about is a project I am hoping to take on this year. Ha! We'll see.

I have a small grocery store not a half-mile from my home. I am hoping to convince the manager to give me the compostable waste from the store. I'm planning on taking it home, chopping it up (designing a chopper) and having multiple series of bins to do hold the compost.

It'll be a full year process from start to finished product. It'll be hot compost piles during the summer, and then all will be collected into a single large pile for cold composting over the winter.

Hopefully my brother is working on the design for the chopper as we had agreed, resulting in his wife getting half of all compost I make for her greenhouse/flower biz.

I'm thinking sort of a nut chopper deal that could basically be inserted in a 5-gallon pail. Fully manual - I want this to be as green as I can make it.

I know I can't label this as organic compost. But since I'm not selling it, I'm not nearly as concerned about that as I am having stuff needlessly end up in the landfill.

If I'm successful, I'll work on helping others set up similar composting bins to use in conjunction with their local grocery.

L

An Opinion I Agree With

What American would take this job, much less be able to live on it? Use this the next time people complain about immigrants taking American jobs.Migrant tomato workers-Their payday: about 45 cents for every 32-pound bucket of tomatoes they pick. That comes to about $50 for every two tons picked. On average, these workers earn less than $10,000 a year.

Hedge fund managers pay only a 15 percent tax rate on their billions in loot, while middle-class working families pay a rate up to 25 percent.

The next time you open a can of tomatoes, think about the migrant workers who picked them. And think about what it says about the morality of our economic system when one man - who makes money by betting against a rising economy - takes home a paycheck equal to that of 370,000 tomato workers who labor in the hot sun every day to put food on our tables.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/j-richard-cohen/workers-at-bottom-of-food_b_100205.html

And my 2 cents worth - we could have prisoners do the work, but it's already been established it's a violation of their rights and cruel and unusual punishment.

Nice, huh?

UN News May 7

BUSINESS LEADERS WITH UN GLOBAL COMPACT URGE ACTION ON WATER CRISIS
New York, May 7 2008 12:00PM
Governments of the Group of Eight (G8) countries need to take urgent action on the emerging global crisis in water and sanitation, say business leaders from some of the world’s largest companies who have endorsed the United Nations Global Compact.

In a letter released today by the UN Global Compact Office, the chief executive officers of 19 corporations call on G8 leaders to actively address the issue of water during their upcoming summit in Japan in July. The business leaders are all endorsers of the UN Global Compact’s CEO Water Mandate, which was launched by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon last year.

“It is increasingly clear that lack of access to clean water and sanitation in many parts of the world causes great suffering in humanitarian, social, environmental and economic terms, and seriously undermines development goals,” the letter states.

It is estimated that approximately one billion people lack access to safe drinking water, and 2.6 billion do not have access to adequate sanitation. The letter cites a recent UN Development Report, which argues that the costs to sub-Saharan African economies of not having basic universal access to water and sanitation represent about five per cent of gross domestic product.
“Water is not just an environmental issue – it is a poverty and development issue, an economic issue, and therefore a business issue,” the chief executives state.

The letter notes that in 2000, world leaders committed to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), including a concrete target to “halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation.”

“We are pleased that business leaders have taken the initiative and are urging governments to take seriously this emerging crisis,” said Georg Kell, Executive Director of the UN Global Compact.

The Global Compact pledges participating businesses – now numbering some 3,600 in over 100 countries – to observe principles regarding human rights, labour rights, environmental sustainability and the fight against corruption.
2008-05-07 00:00:00.000

UN News May 5

INDIGENOUS PEOPLES HAVE CRUCIAL ROLE IN CLIMATE CHANGE DEBATE – UN FORUM
New York, May 5 2008 6:00PM
Indigenous peoples have an important role to play in the global response to climate change, given their knowledge and experience with impacts of the phenomenon, and should be included in the international debate on the issue, a United Nations gathering on indigenous affairs concluded.

Climate change was the special focus of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which wrapped up its seventh session in New York on 2 May.

In one of nine texts approved by the 16-member body, a subsidiary of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), the Forum recommended that the international community take serious measures to mitigate climate change, as the survival of the traditional ways of life of indigenous peoples depended in large part on the success of those efforts.

The Forum stressed that indigenous peoples’ traditional livelihoods and ecological knowledge can significantly contribute to designing and implementing appropriate and sustainable mitigation and adaptation measures.

In addition, it recommended that the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and relevant parties develop mechanisms to allow the participation of indigenous peoples in the global debate on the issue, particularly the forthcoming negotiations on a new global climate change agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol – set to expire in 2012.

A working group on local adaptation measures and traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples should be established, the Forum added.

Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, the Forum’s Chairperson, noted that although indigenous peoples were among those most directly affected by climate change, they had largely been kept out of the international dialogue on the issue despite their historical role in resisting oil, gas and coal exploitation and their practice of using their lands, air and forests in sustainable ways, not in pursuit of “giant profits.”

She added that in moving forward, corporations, as well as States, must be guided by the standards set out in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Adopted by the General Assembly last September, the document sets out the rights of the world’s estimated 370 million indigenous people to culture, identity, language, employment, health, education and other issues, and outlaws discrimination against them.

The Forum, which drew the participation of some 3,300 delegates from around the world, also addressed issues such as indigenous peoples in the Pacific region and indigenous languages during its just concluded session.

UN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT MEETING FOCUSES ON BOOSTING GLOBAL FOOD SUPPLY
New York, May 5 2008 8:00PM
The United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) kicked off a two-week meeting today, closely examining the issues underpinning the current food crisis.

“The international community has only belatedly recognized this food crisis, threatening much of humanity,” said Sha Zukang, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs.

He called for long-term planning and analysis of deeper problems that have threatened food security to determine how to avoid such a crisis in the future.

“The basic problem is that agricultural productivity growth has been slowing since the 1970s, even as demand for food has been accelerating,” Mr. Sha said.

The current session – running until 16 May – launches a two-year cycle seeking to tackle topics – including agriculture, land use, rural development, desertification and drought – that are key to boosting the world’s food supply while addressing problems pertaining to poverty, hunger and the environment.

Government officials, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society representatives are among those who will take part in the meeting, and over 50 government ministers are expected to take part in the high level segment from 14-16 May.
2008-05-05 00:00:00.000

UN News May 1 and May 2

WOMEN HOLD KEY TO BREAKING OUT OF GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS, STRESSES MIGIRO
New York, May 1 2008 6:00PM
Not only do women suffer the most from global problems, such as the current crisis arising from the surge in food prices, but they can also contribute the most to its solutions, United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro said today.

In a keynote address to the Women’s Foreign Policy Group in New York, Ms. Migiro pointed out that the world is faced with an “unprecedented” rise of food prices, plunging many developing countries into a crisis that threatens to thwart efforts to achieve the global anti-poverty targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

“The advances we have seen in achieving this collective vision for a better world could all be undermined by rising food prices,” she said.

Highlighting some of the effects of the crisis, Ms. Migiro noted that families that do not have enough to eat are being forced to make terrible choices, such as deciding between food or medicine, or choosing whether to send their children to school or to the fields where they might earn money to help the family.

“And it’s women who are hit the hardest,” she said. “The development emergency engulfing whole communities is taking its heaviest toll on women.”

The crisis has prompted Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to form a new UN Task Force, bringing together heads of UN bodies along with international financial institutions, experts and leading global authorities to address the issue. He has also pointed out that the crisis offers an opportunity to re-invest in agriculture in Africa.

“Helping African farmers can have a decisive impact on women’s lives,” Ms. Migiro said, noting that for the most part it is women – who make up 80 per cent of Africa’s farmers – that are out there under the hot sun, tending the fields and harvesting crops.

“But the same women hit hardest by the food crisis are ready to hit back,” she added, stressing that with the right support, they can move their communities from subsistence farming to commercial farming and even industry. This is crucial not only for the continent but for the world, which is just not producing as much food as it consumes.

“We need to do much more… to empower women. Women can drive the Green Revolution in Africa. They hold the key to breaking out of the food crisis; to educating the young; to peace, progress and prosperity,” the Deputy Secretary-General stated.
2008-05-01 00:00:00.000

CLIMATE CHANGE COULD IMPERIL POVERTY GOALS, ECOSOC HEARS
New York, May 2 2008 6:00PM
The Economic and Social Council ECOSOC should send a strong message that efforts to achieve the anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals MDGs could be reversed if climate change is not addressed, its President Léo Mérorès told Council members today.

In a discussion aimed at exploring the relationship between the development goals and climate change, Mr. Mérorès noted that several countries are off track in achieving the MDGs and said that climate change could further hamper countries’ efforts to make headway.

ECOSOC’s high-level ministerial session this summer will focus on climate change and development, and Mr. Mérorès said ministers should take action on development and climate change.

“In order to achieve the MDGs by the 2015 target date,” he said, “we do not only need to step up our efforts particularly targeted at specific MDGs, but also need to step up our efforts to address the challenge of climate change. Otherwise, we risk seeing hard earned fragile economic and social progress reversed by the negative effects of climate change.”

“Climate change is, fundamentally, a sustainable development challenge,” said Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Sha Zukang, which involves not only environmental protection but also economic and social development.

“While the list of challenges might seem daunting,” Mr. Sha said, “we should firmly reject a ‘gloom and doom’ approach. Today, we have the tools to tackle poverty and climate change in an integrated and balanced way.”

He added that to move forward, it will be necessary “to bridge the divide between actors on the environment and on development which, despite our past efforts, continues to exist.”

Ogunlade Davidson, a co-chair of one of the reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, asserted that there was no question that climate change was occurring, and that despite the claims of climate sceptics, the evidence showed that the cause of climate change was due to human activity, not natural causes.

But he said it was possible to mitigate the emissions that cause climate change, although “not if we continue to do what we are doing.” He said climate policy alone will not solve the climate change policy and that many other policies must be considered, including taxes, subsidies, trade policies, access to modern energy, bank lending policies and insurance policies.
2008-05-02 00:00:00.000

Paper Towel Testing

OK, I admit it: it's not the sexiest product to test. Hard as I tried to convince a recent pair of weekend houseguests to take part in my experiments, they left without touching a single sheet. But paper towels are an everyday item that can make a big impact -- not just on your countertops, but on the planet. (And hey, we can't all get the beer-tasting gig.)

Conventional paper processing is intensive -- not only does the quest for virgin fiber lead to massive deforestation, but the manufacturing process typically involves chlorine, a toxic chemical that releases carcinogenic dioxins and furans. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, the paper industry is the third-largest industrial contributor to global warming.

But recycled paper offers a different route: a Green Seal report [PDF] says if all paper towels were made with 100 percent recycled paper, 1 million tons of used paper would be kept out of the waste stream. With each American using an average of 741 pounds of paper per year, it's time to change how you roll.

To test out a few alternatives, I loaded up on five eco-brands, and threw Bounty into the mix as a control. I then subjected the contenders to a rigorous series of tests: how they tore when dry, how they tore when saturated, how they absorbed a quarter-tablespoon of juice and a quarter-tablespoon of oil, and how it felt when I blew my nose with them.

Things were pretty much neck and neck until the final test. Drawing inspiration from an old Bounty commercial (and a Consumer Reports truth-check of said commercial), I decided to conduct a "bowling ball strength test" -- using a miniature pumpkin instead. This is where my associate and I were really able to see some distinctions emerge.

Here are the results. (And remember, a dishcloth or cellulose sponge may be the greenest choice of all.)

Earth Friendly Products $2.99/67.22 sq ft ($.044/sq ft)Two-ply, 8x11" sheets Green claims: 80 percent post-consumer content, chlorine-free, 100 percent biodegradable

Made in: USA

This family-run company has been making green cleaning products "since before Corvettes had fins." But in all that time, they haven't quite gotten it right: while they have found a way to make their recycled-paper towel feel soft to the touch (a minor miracle in this product category), theirs was the flimsiest of the group, tearing easily when wet and dry, and doing just an OK job soaking up the juice and oil. It also came in second-to-last in the highly revealing mini-pumpkin test.

Seventh Generation Whitened $1.69/45.4 sq ft ($.037/sq ft) Two-ply, 10.8x8.7" sheets Green claims: 100 percent recycled paper (with a minimum 80 percent post-consumer materials); hypo-allergenic; no dyes, inks, or fragrances; whitened without chlorine bleach. Saves natural resources, reduces pollution.

Made in: Canada

You could spend an hour with this towel's packaging alone, which carefully explains how buying recycled, unbleached paper products helps the environment, as well as rolling out plenty of stats on how great life would be if every U.S. household replaced just one 70-sheet roll of virgin-fiber paper towels with recycled (we'd save 544,000 trees!). But how did it perform? It wasn't super-strong in the juice and saturation-tear tests, and was just average in the mini-pumpkin test. It felt thick enough to get the job done, but had a somewhat scratchy texture.

Seventh Generation Natural $2.50/82.5 sq ft ($.030/sq ft)Two-ply, 11x9" sheets Green claims: 100 percent recycled paper (minimum 90 percent post-consumer materials), hypo-allergenic, unbleached, unscented, no dyes

Made in: USA

For some people, these paper towels may be too reminiscent of grade-school bathrooms to feel like a fit in the kitchen -- but don't let the natural color (which "comes from the mix of colors in the cardboard, office waste, and other paper materials recycled into this product") scare you away. This utilitarian entry outperformed its fellow Seventh Generation towel, holding up to water, juice, oil, and mini-pumpkins with ease. Just don't expect to blow your nose with it.

365 Everyday Value $1.39/60.9 sq ft ($.023/sq ft) Two-ply, 11x5.7" sheets Green claims: 100 percent recycled paper (80 percent post-consumer content), whitened without chlorine bleach, fragrance free

Made in: USA

The Whole Foods house brand feels thicker than its eco-competitors, and has those handy perforations that let you use only as much paper as you need. It held up well in the tearing, juice, oil, and nose-blowing tests, but failed miserably in the mini-pumpkin test. Still, with the lowest price point and a surprisingly soft feel, it's not a bad option.

Green Forest $1.79/43.4 sq ft ($.041/sq ft)Two-ply, 11x8.8" sheets Green claims: 100 percent recycled paper (minimum 40 percent post-consumer content), whitened without chlorine, hypo-allergenic, "soft on nature," supports non-profits including a "special partnership" with River Network

Made in: Canada

This Georgia-Pacific offshoot boasts "state-of-the-art papermaking technology" that makes its towels "very bright and extremely soft" -- not "stiff and scratchy" like many eco-brands. But in fact, it was on the scratchy end of the spectrum -- and relatively flimsy, too. Although it held up surprisingly well during the mini-pumpkin test, it fared poorly on the rest, shredding messily when saturated and dripping more than the others after clean-ups. It also has the lowest post-consumer content of the recycled brands.

Bounty $1.99/63 sq ft ($.031/sq ft)Two-ply, 11x11" sheets Green claims: None, though "one sheet keeps working" -- let's hear it for reuse!

Made in: USA

Oh, quilted picker-upper -- why must you be so soft, so thick, so luxurious? And why must you be so ... chlorine bleached? If performance were the sole criterion here, Bounty would win the day. And if "you can reuse it again and again!" counts as a truly green philosophy, I'd even feel OK about that win. But I can't overlook the nastiness of the bleaching process, and the thoughtlessness of using virgin fiber. Sigh.The bottom line: Until Bounty does an about-face on bleaching and recycled-paper content (a girl can dream ...), the winners of my absorption derby are Whole Foods' 365 brand and Seventh Generation's natural option. Aesthetics and availability may well determine which one you choose.

National Drinking Water Week - CDC

National Drinking Water Week --- May 4--10, 2008

This year marks the 100th anniversary of one of the most significant public health advances in U.S. history, the disinfection of drinking water. To highlight the importance of safe tap water and the need to reinvest in water infrastructure, the American Water Works Association and an alliance of other organizations are sponsoring National Drinking Water Week (1).

Safe drinking water is one of the most valuable resources of the United States. During the past century, many improvements in the health of the U.S. population, such as preventing tooth decay through community fluoridation and controlling infectious diseases, can be attributed to improvements in drinking water quality (2). Disinfection has played a critical role in the provision of safe drinking water in the United States since 1908 (3). During 1900--1920, the incidence of typhoid fever in the United States decreased substantially, from 100.0 to 33.8 cases per 100,000 population (4,5). By 2006, incidence of typhoid fever had decreased to 0.1 per 100,000 population (only 353 cases), and approximately 75% of these cases occurred among persons returning from international travel (6,7). This decrease in waterborne illness can be credited to advances in public health, including implementation of drinking water disinfection in community water systems.

The United States has one of the safest public water supplies in the world. Nonetheless, an estimated 4--33 million cases of gastrointestinal illness associated with public drinking water systems occur annually in the United States (8). These estimates do not include illnesses that occur in the estimated 45 million persons served by small or individual water systems (9) or illnesses other than gastrointestinal illness. The continued occurrence of drinking water--associated disease highlights the importance of maintaining and improving the nation's water infrastructure.

CDC activities related to National Drinking Water Week include promoting waterborne disease prevention, reducing the adverse health effects from contaminated drinking water, improving access to safe water internationally, addressing terrorism concerns related to waterborne pathogens, strengthening waterborne disease outbreak surveillance and investigations, and supporting water-related programs at local and state health departments.

Additional information regarding CDC activities is available at http://www.cdc.gov/health/water.htm ,
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/healthywater ,
http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/ehhe/water ,
http://www.cdc.gov/fluoridation ,
http://www.cdc.gov/safewater , and http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/globalhealth/projects/waterplus.htm.
Additional information about National Drinking Water Week is available at http://www.awwa.org/advocacy/dww .

References

American Water Works Association. Only tap water delivers: Drinking Water Week 2007. Available at http://www.awwa.org/advocacy/dww.
CDC. Achievements in public health, 1900--1999: changes in the public health system. MMWR 1999;48:1141--7.
Haas CN. Disinfection. In: American Water Works Association. Water quality and treatment: a handbook of community water supplies. 5th ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill; 1999:14.22--14.30.
US Environmental Protection Agency. The history of drinking water treatment. Available at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/consumer/pdf/hist.pdf.
CDC. Achievements in public health, 1900--1999: safer and healthier foods. MMWR 1999;48:905.
CDC. Summary of notifiable diseases---United States, 2006. MMWR 2008;55:17.
US Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the population for the United States, regions, and states and for Puerto Rico: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2007 (NST-EST2007-01). Available at http://www.census.gov/popest/states/NST-ann-est.html.
CDC. 2006 national estimate of waterborne disease associated with public drinking water. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/healthywater/estimate.htm.
US Environmental Protection Agency. Private drinking water wells. Available at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/privatewells/index2.html.