Population, Family Planning,
& Ecology News Digest
Archives May 2000 - August 2000
August 30, 2000 Associated Press
Global Warming a Threat.
Global warming could fundamentally transform a third of the world's plant and animal habitats by the end of this century, estimated 20% of the species in the Arctic and northern latitudes could die out due to shrinking habitat, said a report by World Wide Fund for Nature - known as the World Wildlife Fund in the US and Canada. "As global warming accelerates, plants and animals will come under increasing pressure to migrate to find suitable habitat," said the report's co-author, Adam Markham, executive director of the U.S.-based group Clean Air-Cool Planet. Walrus and polar bear populations could disappear and New England may become stripped of its spruce and fir forests. The northern latitudes of Canada, Russia and Scandinavia could lose 70% of their habitat, and Iceland 82%. In Russia, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Iceland, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Georgia - and in seven Canadian provinces and territories, more than half the existing habitat is at risk. In the U.S. states of Maine, New Hampshire, Oregon, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, more than a third of habitat is in danger. Parts of Alaska and Eurasia had warmed in winter months by as much as 11 degrees in the last 30 years. Coastal and island areas would be at risk from warming oceans and rising waters. Levels of carbon dioxide are now about 30% higher than pre-industrial levels, and could hit double the pre-industrial level by 2050.
August 22, 2000 ENN.com
Study finds benefits in natural crop
Some Chinese farmers have abandoned planting single types of rice in
their paddies and adopted a more natural, mixed variety harvest. They
were rewarded with bigger harvests and no longer had to spray
expensive fungicides. Seeing their neighbors achieve larger harvest
and saving money on fungicide, farmers from 10 townships joined the
experiment in 1999, bringing the total area of diverse planting to
8,255 acres. Although the sticky rice yields a larger return, it is
susceptible to fungus which is often controlled with expensive
chemicals. "I think our goal should be to fool with Mother Nature as
little as possible," Mundt said. "Sometimes there is a simple
fundamental fix that makes a whole lot more sense than going for a
real high-tech system." -rvs
August 14, 2000 The Jakarta Post
Jakarta: Warning for Teenagers.
Women who have children between the ages of 20 and 34 years of age are two
times less vulnerable than women who have children
when they’re 15 to 19 years old. Raditya Wratsangha
of the Indonesian Family Planning Association and a
gynecologist says that the babies of teenagers were
usually more weaker than babies born to women aged 20
to 29, especially those 5 years of age and younger.
The World Health Organization (WHO) figures that there
are about 4.2 million women in Asia each year that
have abortions. Ninuk Widyantoro, a psychologist at
the Indonesian AIDS Foundation said that most
teenagers from Indonesia receive very little
information about sex, “Parents are worried that
discussing contraceptives with teenagers could cause
the teenagers to do something improper…” m.o.
August 14, 2000 Christian Science Monitor
Abortion Debate Divides Mexico.
Under Mexican law, states have exempted cases of rape and mother's well-being from the abortion ban. Earlier this year when a 14-year-old rape victim was denied an abortion, the abortion debate reached a focal point. Abortion was outlawed this month in the state of Guanajuato even in cases of rape. Abortion has emerged as a surprise summer litmus test of where the new government stands on women's rights. President Fox served there as governor in the 1990s. Legislators from Fox's Catholic-leaning National Action Party (PAN) were the ones who pushed for the law. Some opponents fear that Fox will ban abortion for the whole country. Fox insisted that a similar initiative at the national level would not be coming from his government. The Party of the Democratic Revolution center-left (PRD) government of Mexico City proposed several amendments to city laws to widen abortion rights. It is estimated that 1 million or more illegal abortions are carried out each year, making abortion the fourth-highest cause of death among Mexican women. Some Mexican states guarantee a right to life beginning at conception and others abortions after bearing three children. rvs
August 22, 2000 New York Times
Zimbabwe: Battling AIDS in Africa by Empowering Women
In Africa, AIDS is mainly heterosexually transmitted and 25 to 30% of the population is infected with H.I.V. Dr. Nancy Padian, an epidemiologist and director of research for the AIDS Research Institute of the University of California at San Francisco, has found that persuading people to use condoms is far easier than originally thought: more than half the uninfected women who come to regular family planning clinics in Harare are able to persuade their male partners to use them. Padian is also trying to encourage them to
use female methods of contraception: female condoms, spermicides, diaphragms. Women are taught to negotiate strategies. In role-playing strategies they are presented with
obstacles and have to work out ways to overcome them. They are encouraged to talk about sexual activity with their partners, and taught that
these discussions are healthy. Factors contributing to the higher susceptibility to AIDS are: the higher prevalence of other sexually transmitted diseases, the lack of male circumcision, (a factor in the man's susceptibility) and poor health due to infection from parasites, poor nutrition, etc. African men often have multiple partners and still have their monogamous partner. Women are generally monogamous with the exception of those in the sex trade. Another factor is the practice of "dry sex," which women believe that men prefer. Micro loans, which are small loans to women to help them start businesses of their own, economically empower women, which helps them negotiate sexual activity.
August 23, 2000 Post-Soviet Press
Russia: Is Government Ready to Tackle Demographic Crisis?
In special parliamentary hearings, Russia's decline in population was discussed. According
to the RF State Statistics Committee, in 1992 Russia's permanent population was 148.7 million people, while at the beginning of 2000 it was only 145.5 million, decreasing by 2%. Last year it decreased by 768,400 people, or by 0.5%. During January and February 2000, Russia's population fell by 157,800, which is 13.6% higher than the decrease
for the same period of 1999. Life expectancy is down to 59.8 years for men and 72.2
years for women. Recently, there were 2-3 times more deaths than births in 27 regions, 3 deaths per birth in 10 provinces, and in one Province, four deaths per birth. The
number of babies born in 1998 declined by nearly 50% compared to 1987, and
dropped another 5.3% from 1998 to 1999. Second and third child births are almost halved. Only 1.3 million of 4 million pregnancies end in births. Normal births account for 31.8%, and in some regions only 25%. Infertility occurs among 15% of married couples. One third of newborns has defects. The number of people who died in 1999 was 7.6% greater than in 1998. this Russion supermortality is caused by mass impoverishment, domestic civilian conflicts and a sharp rise in disease. The main causes of death among the working-age
population are accidents, poisoning, and injuries. The underlying causes are: protracted social and economic crisis, unemployment, chronic delays in the payment of wages, salaries, pensions and social-welfare benefits, the decreased affordability of medical care and medicines, prolonged psychological stress, uncertainty about one's future and the future of one's children, and the criminalization of society. The death rate of 15 to 19 year olds has increased by 40%. At this rate, only 54% of today's 16-year-old boys will live to retirement age. 100 years ago, 56% of men lived until age 60. Only 10% to 12% of the younger school children are healthy, 8% in the middle grades, and 5% in the upper
grades. 50% of teenagers aged 15 to 17 suffer from chronic ailments.
August 29, 2000 World Watch Institute
Climate Change Has World Skating on Thin Ice
The discovery of water at the North Pole shocked many researchers recently, adding more evidence that not only is the ice covering the Earth melting, it is melting more rapidly than previously thought. At current rates of melting, scientists project that in fifty years the Arctic Ocean will be ice free during the summer as these ice sheets have already declined 42% in the past 40 years. Greenland is also in crisis as it loses more ice at lower levels, with more than 51 billion cubic meters of water each year being swept away (the equivalent of the annual flow of the Nile River). Antarctica, the continent on at the South Pole roughly the size of the US, appears to have a stable ice covering, but scientists predict that won't last. As the ice shelves surrounding this continent continue to disappear at a faster rate, losing 3,000 square kilometers from 1997 to 1998, researchers report that temperatures at the South Pole have risen 2.5 degrees Celsius (4.5 degress Fahrenheit) since 1940. Studies also show that snow and ice are retreating from the world's main mountain ranges: the Rockies, Andes, Alps, and the Himalayas. The Alps alone are a cause of concern, with a shrinkage of glacial area topping 40% since 1850, leading many to predict that glaciers will disappear from the mountains in the next century. These alarming conclusions are not surprising, as Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius warned in the early 1900's that burning fossil fuels could raise levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) and cause a greenhouse effect. Statistics bear his warnings out, as in the past 40 years atmospheric levels of CO2 have grown from 317 parts per million (ppm) to 368 ppm, and temperatures since 1975 have increased from 13.94 degrees Celsius to 14.35 degrees. Such minor fluctuations in temperature have devastating effects, such as increasing precipitation in mountainous regions while decreasing the snow, resulting in more flooding, shrinking snow/ice masses, and less snowfall to run into rivers during dry seasons. Studying the Himalayas, with the third largest massive snow/ice mass in the world, is telling; should ice there continue to melt at current rates, the hydrology of several Asian countries including Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Thailand, Viet Nam, and China will be severely affected and these populations will be foced in-land to regions which are already overcrowded. Through a concerted effort to lower atmospheric CO2 levels, human populations can take control of the increasing greenhouse effect. Most crucial, perhaps, is the removal of fossil fuel burning as a major energy source, and recent efforts by some automobile companies indicate that a shift towards hydrogen-powered cars might begin in the next few years.jb
August 25, ENN
Endangered Species: State Parks Threatened by the Maw of Sprawl
In a report released by the National Park Trust, urban sprawl and lack of federal funding are major threats to more than 10.8 million acres of American land which contain 3,266 state parks. According to this report, "Legacy: The Crisis on Our Parks," over 62,013 acres of state park land in 10 states are threatened by development and residential sprawl. "What we need are big dollars to save the Etowahs all over the country," claimed director of the Department of State Parks, Recreation, and Historic Sites in Georgia, Bert Weerts. Weerts, citing that the once-lovely Etowah Indian Mounds Historic site northwest of Atlanta once overlooked rolling pastures and tree-lined foothills, reports that now all that can be seen from the important mounds are houses, schools, and increased traffic. The National Park Trust's report concludes that state parks provide solitude, recreation, living laboratories, inspiration to artists, and much-needed habitat for plants and animals. As well, they site important connections to cultural, historical, and natural places for a community. Additionally, in the spirit of American capitalism, these sites produce an income and increase local land values. Weerts concludes. "We need to put pressure on the legislators to put more land aside. It would be nice to have a little more money available to acquire buffers for parks that are most threatened. We can't save everything, we just try to do what we can with the money that's available." jb
August 15, 2000 The Bakersfield Californian
Natural Gas Prices Seen Rising 50% or More
For who use natural gas to heat their homes, this winter's heating bills could be 50% higher than last season's, warns the US Department of Energy. The rise in prices is indicative of a falloff in production, short supplies, and high demand by industry and electric utilities. Spot wholesale prices for natural gas have already doubled from a year ago, averaging from $3.50 to $4.50 per thousand cubic feet. The result is that utility companies will pass their increased costs on to consumers, and residents of the Midwest, Ohio valley, and Northeast are warned that they will see heating bills skyrocket. Those trying to fall back on oil for heat won't fair any better, as the Dept of Energy also predicts steep prices in store for those customers as well. Heating oil prices topped $2 a gallon in New England and other parts of the Northeast last winter but are expected to be higher this year as production of heating oil drops. "There is a risk of price spikes similar to last winter in the Northeast for heating oil as well as for diesel fuel if inventories are not built up to adequate levels by the end of the year," stated a Dept. of Energy report. Recent higher demand for gasoline has meant that refineries have concentrated more on this fuel, and less on producing heating and diesal oils. Natural gas has faired no better in recent years, as the demand for the fuel has increased 10% this year alone. The cleaner-burning fuel is getting harder to come by, and the American Gas Association reported that for the week ending July 28, 2000 there was 1,920 billion cubic feet of natural gas in storage, 17% (386 billion cubic feet) less than for the same time last year or enough to run America's appetite for natural gas for five days. jb
August 21, 2000 Christian Science Monitor
A Kenyan 'Guiding Light,' With Moral Lessons.
"Ushikwapo Shikamana" is a soap opera in Kenya aimed at getting people
to talk more openly about social issues in Kenya, such as family planning,
AIDS, drug abuse, female genital mutilation, and forced marriage. It focuses on social issues like AIDS, drugs, and family planning. It's title means "If assisted, assist yourself." Population Communications International, a nongovernmental organization
(NGO) in New York, has sponsored the show since 1998 here in Kenya and has used the soap opera medium in Brazil, Mexico, India, and just this summer in China. In countries like Kenya, contraception and other sensitive subjects, like whether girls have the right to be educated, can often be best tackled through fictional drama. Once they have seen the show, women are more likely to discusss touchy topics with their children and husbands. The soap's action takes place in three settings: Langoni, the prototypical rural village; Kanyageni, an urban slum; and posh Ulimboni. In Langoni, men control the women and girls, with female circumcision, early marriage, and lots of children the norm. Kanyageni faces problems of crime, drug abuse, prostitution, and poor housing. The characters all have connections back to Langoni.
August 21, 2000 Deutsche Presse-Agentur
India Not to Use "Coercive" Methods to Control Its Population.
In reply to a suggestion that a law be enacted to bar people who have more than two children from standing for parliamentary and state legislative seats, the Health Minister of India, C.P. Thakur, told parliament that the government will use "persuasive methods" rather than coercive to encourage parents to have small families. Although India became one of the first nations in the region to adopt a family planning program, in 1951, the program got off to a sluggish start, picked up speed in the 1960s, but taking a dive, in the 1975-77 years when then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed emergency rule, with sterlisation camps and forced vasectomies. India has now abolished targets for family planning service providers and switched to programmes within the larger context of reproductive health
care.
August 23, 2000 PAI/Reuters
Scarcities of Water, Crop and Forest Land Projected.
According to recent projections by Population Action International, the number of people living in countries facing serious shortages in water will increase four-fold in the next 25 years, bringing totals from the modern 505 million to more than 2.4 billion. This announcement was made in PAI's booklet called "People in the Balance: Population and Natural Resources at the Turn of the Millenium," which examines six natural resources in their current and projected states. Robert Engelman, lead author of the report, says that while population growth seems to be slowing down, "we can't take this trend for granted. Hundreds of millions of people, most of them in developing countries, still lack access to basic health care, including family planning. We must do more to change this, beginning today - not in some future decade. People's lives hang in the balance." The PAI report finds that carbon dioxide emissions have increased, with the US contributing more than 20% of total greenhouse gas production despite the fact that the country holds only 5% of the world's people. Another finding was the decline in global fish production, and the increased reliance on aquaculture which now provides one fish of every three consumed. PAI revealed that one-fifth of the 6 billion humans on earth live in 12% of the land surface in areas which have the highest density of biodiversity, and in these tight areas population growth is 1.8% annually, higher than the 1.3% overall world rate. A final conclusion was that 420 million people live in countries that have only .07 hectare of cultivated land per person, the absolute minimum parcel size capable of providing someone with an annual vegetarian diet devoid of chemicals and fertilizers. However, this number is projected to increase to between 557 million and 1.04 billion in the next 25 years. Confirming that each nation must do their part to prevent overpopulation and resource depletion, PAI calls for universal access to basic reproductive care, universal access to secondary school education, and more economic opportunities for women. Despite confirmation of these goals at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo, financial resources to achieve these goals have been short in coming, with PAI citing the US in particular as failing to meet any of its commitments.jb
August 20, 2000 ENN/AP
Warmer Weather Melts North Pole Ice.
*
For the first time in 50 million years, visitors to the North Pole can see
water. A mile-wide stretch of water at the top of the world is visable as a hole in the the thick ice that usually covers the Arctic Ocean at the North Pole. The water could be the result of global warming. *Link requires subscription (free)
August 22, 2000 ENN/Reuters
World Farm Area Could Support 10 Billion People, Experts Say.
*
Current world cropland has the potential to support up to 10 billion people,
almost twice the world's population, but disease, weather problems and water
shortages ravage food production, according to Hartwig Geiger, professor of
genetics at the Hohenheim University.
"More than 50% of the yield potential is lost to diseases, weather
conditions, a shortage of water and inadequate research." Hubert Spiertz,
another geneticist, warned that the full yield potential of the world's
farmed areas could never be realized. Geiger said that the development of
genetically modified (GM) crops can provide answers to malnutrition problems
such as a shortage of provitamin A, from which125 million children worldwide
suffer, leading to blindness in the worst cases. Where rice is the staple
diet, shortage of porvitamin A is common. The failure to feed a growing
population in a sustainable way would lead to "enormous environmental
damage, social dislocation and reduced economic growth that will affect the
whole world." *Link requires subscription (free)
August 17, 2000 Oil and Gas Journal
Developing Nations' Energy Consumption Declines.
Joanne Disan, director of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs'
Division for Sustainable Development, told the the United Nations Committee
on Energy and Natural Resources that energy consumption in the world's
developing countries has declined 2.3% over the last year, "seriously"
hampering economic and social development performance in these nations. In
contrast, increased consumption was among Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, where energy demand stuck to a
10-year growth trend. OECD countries currently represent almost 60% of total world commercial energy demand.
August 17, 2000 BBC Online
Carbon at 20 Million Year High.
Carbon dioxide is at a 20 million-year high, but in the last 60 million
years there were even higher levels, say Dr. Paul Pearson of the University
of Bristol and professor Martin Palmer of London's Imperial College in the
journal Nature. The level of greenhouse gases would be equal to
double the level of pre-industrial carbon dioxide concentrations by 2030,and
triple by 2100, if current trends continue. According to a Calgary Herald
Aug 18 article, NASA scientist James Hansen this week released a paper
showing that carbon dioxide caused by human use of fossil fuels is not the
leading cause of global temperature change. Rather, methane,
chlorofluorocarbons and soot are the real culprits, he said. Hansen noted
that reducing these pollutants would be relatively inexpensive and would
deliver immediate health benefits.
August 20, 2000 New York Times
US: Gore Would Give More UN Support Than Bush.
Based on a comprehensive questionnaire on topics involving US participation
in the international community, a report from Campaign for UN Reform says
that US Vice President Al Gore would give more unqualified support to the
United Nations than his opponent for the US presidency, Texas Governor
George W. Bush. Bush said he would never place US troops under UN command
and would pay US debts to the UN only after reforms are enacted and US dues
lowered. Gore said it is time that the United States pay its UN dues "in
full, on time and without conditions." Gore also expressed support for the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women,
the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Law of the Sea Treaty and the
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, which the US Senate rejected last year.
August 21, 2000 Singapore Straits Times
International Scrooge.
An editorial in the Singapore Straits Times says that while the United
States will spend $310 billion on its military in 2001, it spends only $10.4
billion (or just 0.11 per cent of its GDP)
on international development and humanitarian aid.
"Its failure to support the UN adequately ... undermines the international
body's operations, including peacekeeping missions that the US wishes it to
undertake." Each American contributes only about US $29 to foreign aid.
August 12, 2000 Alternatives for Simple Living
Environmentalism for People of Faith.
Known widely as simply Alternatives, the group Alternatives for Simple
Living was founded in 1973 as a non-profit organization dedicated to
equipping "people of faith to challenge consumerism, live justly and
celebrate responsibly." An active and progressive group dedicated to leading
an international fight against consumerism, Alternatives has focused on
rescuing Christmas from the clutches of big business, who they believe
"usurp our holy day" and "exploit people and the environment." jb
August 27, 2000 Business Wire
Record Levels of Foreign-born in NYC.
A human tidal wave has added one million immigrants to New York City in the
last 10 years. Foreign-born residents are now 40% of the total of the
population, according to new United States Census Bureau figures. In 1990,
foreign-born residents were only 28%. The new figures come from a
15,417-household survey taken in 1999 by the Census Bureau. Without
immigration, NYC's population would be shrinking. Another sampling shows
that 54% of children through the age of 18 are either foreign born or
have foreign-born parents. Dr. Philip Kasinitz, a sociology professor at
Hunter College said "Absent immigration, we would be seeing a very different
New York, with neighborhood abandonment and depopulation." [This may be
true, but can the U.S. environment afford more people? More people consume
more electricity and fossil fuels, use more water, and require more building
materials. Sprawl results from overcrowding and lack of open space in the
cities.]
August 1, 2000 ENN
Appetite for Bush Meat Increases
*
Basic survival drives human populations to use what naturally occurs around
them. In the eastern and southern African countries of Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana,
Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe, more and more people are suffering
from poverty and famine and are consequently turning to wild animals as an
economic resource and a source of food, resulting in a serious decline in
wildlife populations outside protected areas, according to a report entitled
Food For Thought: The Utilization of Wild
Meat in Eastern and Southern Africa from TRAFFIC, a wildlife
trade-monitoring program sponsored by WWF Worldwide Fund for Nature and IUCN
- the World Conservation Union, Thousands of species, from insects to
rodents to elephants, are killed for their meat, including once taboo and totem species
such as zebras and hippos." In six of the seven countries surveyed, bush
meat was substantially cheaper than domestic meat. "Geographically, bush
meat research has also focussed on western and central Africa, leading many
to perceive bush meat use as a tropical forest phenomenon (that mostly
effects primates)" said Sabri Zain, communications manager for TRAFFIC.
*.Link
requires subscription (free)
August 9, 2000 Santa Maria Times GNP and
Nature
by Bill Denneen.
We evolved in a 'natural world'. We are a product of this 'natural world'.
We are creating a different/plastic/synthetic world that is very different
from that in which we evolved. Our GNP looks great. Our prosperity couldn't
be better.
We are liquidating our 'natural capital'---the resources and ecosystem
services that make possible all of life----the habitat in which our species
evolved.
Is this the direction/limb that we want to be on?
August 9, 2000 Opinion
What Has Gore Done on Environmental Issues?
by Ned Grossnickle.
Gore pledged at the 1994 Cairo Conference that the US would do their
fair share to support international family planning which would be $800 -
$900 million/year.
August 10, 2000 Agence France Presse
Ethiopian Population Grows By Nearly Three Percent
Abdullahi Hassen, of the Ethiopian Central Statistics Authority said the
current growth rate was 2.92%, down from 3.9%. The country's estimated
population of 62 million people would rise to 83.5 million by the year 2010
and 129.1 million in 30 years. Such growth will pose a treat to providing
adequate health and education services, employment and housing.
Environmental degradation would speed up. Fertility rates have dropped from
6.9 children in 1994 to 6.5 children in 2000. Ethiopia is the third most
populous country in Africa, after Nigeria and Egypt.
August 11, 2000 Agence France Presse
Does the World Have the Will To Feed the Hungry?
Despite the fact that the global population is growing fast and is expected
to top eight billion by 2030 and 9 billion by 2050, the United Nations Food
and Agriculture organization (FAO) says the world has the resources and the
know-how to feed everyone, but half a billion people will go hungry and many
millions will starve to death due to war, politics and economics, more than
climate change, natural disasters or plagues. FAO reports that the numbers
of undernourished people in developing countries has declined from 960
million (or 37% of the global population) to 790 million (18%) in 1996. FAO
says that cereal production is growing faster globally than the world
population. The world can produce enough food for each person to have a
quota of 2,720 kilocalories per capita per day, although in sub-Saharan
Africa, the average is only 90 calories above the agreed critical threshold
of 2,100. The French relief organization Action Against Hunger (ACF) says
"Famine is no longer a result of natural disaster. The map of great famines
exactly matches that of wars." Conflicts over land or resources such as
diamonds, oil and water are likely to continue preventing the even spread of
food supplies. "In the Vanni region of Sri Lanka, the population is on the
brink of starvation, because the government has banned the use of fertilizer
for the reason that it could be used by the Tamil Tiger rebels to make
bombs. In Iraq, because President Saddam Hussein has not complied with
western demands, 1.4 million Iraqis have died including 500,000 children,
the UN estimates. Unknown numbers of Chinese peasants go hungry and Cubans
and North Koreans are on rations of 500 calories a day due to the political
isolation of their governments. In addition, the strain on fresh water
reserves is expected to increase by 40% over the next 20 years, and age-old
tension between dry countries is likely to be exacerbated. Even if food
needs are met, there is growing concern that the environment will continue
to deteriorate as a result of pollution, erosion and deforestation, making
land, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, increasingly unproductive.
Technical advances such as genetically modified foods and increasingly
efficient farming methods make the outlook for industrial food production
hopeful. [Not all would agree with FAO's optimism and many wonder what the
world will do for fertilizer when petroleum becomes less accessible, and
what will happen when overpumped aquifers can no longer support crops. See
April 4 article by David Pimentel: Ten Billion Mouths to Feed]
August 9, 2000 Africa News
Tanzania; 50,000 Kids Die Yearly Due To Insufficient Breast Feeding
If a child is well breast-fed in the first months, without additional foods,
except for medicine prescribed by doctors, diseases like diarrhea and air
borne diseases are less likely to attack, says Dr. Ali Mzige, director for
preventive services in the Ministry of Health. Dr. Aaron Chiduo, the
Minister of Health, emphasised that children have a right to breast feed.
However, "Despite the fact that breast feeding is the only ideal way to feed
the majority of infants, it has been learnt from research findings that
there are possibilities of transmitting HIV infection from mother to child
through breast feeding," he stressed. If a mother is HIV-positive, the
average risk for HIV transmission through breast-feeding is 10-20% or
one in seven children. The level of HIV/AIDS is much higher in maternal
clinics where up to 36% of expectant mothers is proven HIV positive, and in
Dar Es Salaam, over 50% of women admitted to hospitals are HIV-positive.
Recent surveys revealed that 529 women die out of 100,000 giving birth every
year because of excessive bleeding after birth, unsafe abortion,
hypertensive disorders and abstracted labor. Other causes are disease like
malaria, hepatitis, HIV/AIDS and anemia, which are aggravated by pregnancy.
Also 150 children out of 100,000 born die before they reach five years,
often from diseases like malaria, HIV/AIDS, diarrhea pneumonia, and
malnutrition. Declining literacy among community and again especially among
women, has reduced their ability of health seeking behavior. Despite
significant improvements in life expectancy, infant mortality and
immunization coverage since independence, gains are being eroded, partly as
a result of the AIDS epidemic. Infant mortality (86 per 1000 live births),
under-five mortality (144 per 1,000 live births) and maternal mortality (530
per 100,000 live births) are considered to be very high. The total fertility
rate is 5.6 and contraceptive prevalence rate remains very low at 12% for
modern methods. Per capita spending on health is only $3.5 a year.
August 9, 2000 Agence France Presse
Thailand Registers Slowest Population Growth in Decades
Thailand's population, now at 60.6 million, is growing by only 1.05% a year,
the lowest rate since the census started in 1960, the National Statistics
Office (NSO) said. In 1990, growth was reported at 1.96% a year. Several
Thai pundits have questioned whether the country will be able to care for
its rapidly growing elderly population, particularly since Thailand has less
state social welfare than Japan. [But with a bigger population, will there
be enough resources to handle the needs of the population?]
August 9, 2000 AP
Teen Births Drop to Lowest Rate in 60 Years
Teens are more terrified than ever of sexually transmitted diseases, and
they are putting
off starting families to take jobs with good pay available in the booming
economy . Their birth rates are the lowest in at least 60 years and both
religious groups that push abstinence and advocates for contraceptives and
sex education in schools are taking the credit. The National Center for
Health Statistics reported that the birth rate for teenagers has fallen 20%
in the last 10 years. Among girls ages 15 to 17, the rate fell 6% from 1998
to 28.7 births per 1,000 today. Among black teens, the rate dropped a
dramatic 38% from 1991 to 1999. Clinton consequently urged Congress to
approve $25 million for what are being called "second-chance homes," where
teen parents can live and get job counseling and learn parenting skills.
July 29, 2000 ENN
Gas-busters: Algae Comes to the Aid of Coal-Fired Plants
Algae, sunlight and photosynthesis can be used to absorb carbon dioxide from
the combustion of coal and lower emissions from an average-sized power plant
by 20%, according to a team of scientists at Ohio University who have
received a $1.07 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. Carbon
dioxide resulting from the coal burning is force through tubes of running
water as it passes through the smoke stack. The combination of carbon
dioxide and water creates bubbly bicarbonates, ions that form when carbon
dioxide is made soluble in water. The water is then forced through a series
of screens covered with living algae exposed to sunlight filtered by a
special system of solar panels, satellite dishes and fiber optic cables. The
filtering system was developed by scientists at the Oak Ridge National
Laboratory. "The algae basically drink the bicarbonates," said David
Bayless, lead researcher on the project. Oxygen is the by-product and the
expended algae can be used as fuel for biomass incinerators or as
fertilizer. A blue-green algae able to survive in the almost-boiling water
of hot springs in Yellowstone National Park was used in the process. [Coal
burning is one of the leading causes of greenhouse emissions]
July 27, 2000 ENN
Extinction Traced to Methane Burp
Many forms of life, including 80% of some deep-sea species, suddenly
vanished 183 million years ago. In an article published in the journal Nature, huge
reservoirs of methane trapped beneath the ocean floor rapidly escaped during
prehistoric volcanic-caused global warming and depleted much of the sea's
oxygen, according to new research by Stephen Hesselbo, an Oxford University
researcher. The study also raised questions about the stability of today's
sea floor reservoir of methane hydrate, which the federal government plans
to study as a possible energy source. "How easy it is to release the methane
that is there," Hesselbo said. Methane hydrate is formed beneath the sea
floor when algae from the surface dies and sinks. Beneath the ocean floor,
methane exists in an ice-like state but is susceptible to changes in
pressure and temperature. Researchers believe that during the Jurassic
period carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases were spewed into the
atmosphere by massive volcanic eruptions, warming the subocean floor by deep
ocean currents, which in turn freed the methane from its suboceanic cage.
The methane then used the oxygen in the water or atmosphere to form carbon
dioxide, accelerating the global warming. The release was estimated to be
20% of the present-day 14,000 billion tons of gas hydrate on the sea floor.
The event took place over 5,000 years. [Other governments, including the
Japanese, are also studing this possibility. Harvesting the methane also has
a potential for releasing it into the atmosphere. But, as our huge
population uses up available petroleum, the attention of energy hogs will
turn to risky alternatives.]
July 31,2000 The Fresno Bee, CA
Yosemite Sewage Pollutes Merced River.
On July 27th a blocked pipe at the National Park Service waste-water
treatment plant caused sewage to pour into the river. This is the fifth
occurrence in 16 months - this time up to 200,000 gallons. Vistors 12 miles downstream have been warned not to swim, fish or go in the water. The malfunction occurred while a
rebuilt section of the line was being tested. The waste water from
showers, bathrooms and other places in the park, packed up through a storm
drain and out through a manhole. The sewage spills related to construction
last year dumped a total of 50,000 gallons of sewage water into the
protected Merced River. The river is protected under the Wild and Scenic
Rivers Act. rvs
July 21, 2000 ENN
Iceman Cometh to Greenland; Sea Level Rises.
Ice around Greenland’s ice sheet is melting at a rate of three feet a
year, enough to raise sea level 0.005 inches annually according the
experts at NASA’s Wallops Island Flight Facility (WIFF). This rise will
not threaten coastal regions but shows that the ice sheets are changing.
Although the margins of the ice sheet are thinning, the interior is
thickening due to increased global temperature. Greenland’s ice cap is
1,000 miles long, 400 miles wide and two miles thick at the center and
contains the second most amount of freshwater on earth, enough water to raise the sea
level by 23 feet if all of it were to melt. The ice sheet is
an indicator of the global climate change occurring. Currently,
researchers are trying to determine why the ice sheet is thinning and
thickening simultaneously. They wonder if is a natural process or due to
human activities. "With three-quarters of the world’s population living
within a coastal region, this situation needs to be monitored closely,"
said a scientist at WIFF. rvs
July 10-24, 2000 Candadian Business
Running on Empty.
Jim Gray, chairman of Canadian Hunter Exploration Ltd, said that North America is just about to hit the wall on supply and demand for natural gas. The Canadian Energy Research Institute estimates that gas demand for electricity generation could almost triple over the next decade. In three years natural gas has skyrocketed from $1.12 to $5.80 per thousand cubic feet. Since 1986, US imports of Canadian gas have increased fivefold and Canada’s share of the US gas market is expected to climb to 18.4% from 14% in the next five years. Half of the reserves in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, the shallowest and easiest to exploit, have already been drained to warm North American homes. Mike Sawyer, the executive director of the Citizen’s Oil and Gas Council said, "By next winter, gas prices could be 300 to 400 times higher."
July 29, 2000 ENN/Associated Press
Water Temperature Rise Hurts Coral.
Tropical waters in the Northern Hemisphere are heating at a higher rate than
other waters, threatening coral reefs. Scientists from the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Association discovered that tropical waters above the equator are
heating at a rate of 1 F. degree per decade, 10 times the global rate.
Scientists think the increased water temperature is the cause of coral bleaching
over the past decade. Coral bleaching would have a devastating effect on
invertebrates and other organisms who make their homes in coral reefs. rvs
July 27,2000 CNN.com
India Bans Government Employees From Having
Child Servants by AP
In New Delhi, The National Human Rights Commission has placed a ban
on Indian employees employing children under 14 as servants. The
commission had been campaigning for the ban since 1997 although most
Indian states had already imposed the ban. Child labor is popular in
India. Most children are pulled out of school to help their parents
during harvest time. They also work in the textile, construction,
carpet and other industries.-rvs
July 27, 2000 ENN
Tribal Hunters Turn Wildlife Protectors - By Hunting Again.
In the harsh scrub jungle of Dambana in eastern Sri Lanka, hunting has been
banned for more than a decade. But desperate wildlife rangers, unable to
stem the tide of poaching in the scrub jungles of eastern Sri Lanka, have
given the aboriginal Veddah tribe the right to hunt again in the forest
sanctuary. The Veddahs lived by hunting and gathering honey and herbs for
thousands of years, left alone by the goverments which came and went. But
in November 1983, the government told the Veddahs to move. The country's
main river, the Mahaweli, which flows through the tribe's jungles, was
dammed at several points, creating massive irrigation schemes and hydropower
reservoirs. Hundreds of new villages were built along the canals. Farmers
came from afar to take advantage of the government's offer of free land and
houses. Forest cover dwindled. A few large forest areas were declared as
sanctuaries, in order to save the vanishing numbers of elephants, bear and
leopards. The Veddah lands were included in Maduru Oya National Park and
declared off-limits to all hunters. The Veddahs were relocated to the new
agricultural villages. 130 families left the jungle. Stripped of its
traditional guardians, the well-stocked forest turned into a paradise for
poachers, mostly soldiers and policemen from nearby bases, their automatic
rifles mowing down deer and boar at an alarming rate. Nine Veddah families
remained in their mud huts bordering the sanctuary, witnessing the jungle
being denuded of the animals that the tribe depends on for food, and at the
same time harassed or arrested by Wildlife Conservation rangers who tried to
keep them from gathering food inside the park.
Now the Veddahs have permits to hunt for their own food, but are not allowed
to kill animals to sell. In return for the permits, they are asked to help
watch for poachers.
July 31, 2000 ENN
Transpacific Pollution Leaves Thicker and Thicker Trail.
Rising industrialization in Asia is discharging millions of tons of
previously undetected contaminants annually into the winds that travel
across the Pacific Ocean. Every spring there are massive dust storms in Asia
that transport soil across the Pacific to the US, previous research has
shown. Now Thomas Cahill, a researcher and professor emeritus of physics and
atmospheric science at the University of California at Davis and an
international authority on the atmospheric
transport of pollutants has found that "sulfate and organic aerosols are
also present, and in roughly the same amounts." These aerosols are killing
crops, spreading illness in Asia, appear to be adding toxic materials to
waters in America, and they could dramatically alter global climate. Every
year, Asia burns millions of tons of coal in coal-burning power plants and
coal-fired locomotives. Aerosols are also generated from metals production,
vehicle exhaust, home heating, and overtilling of dry-area farmland. The
U.S. has slowed it's annual releases of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere
from about 20 million tons to 13 million tons between 1990 and 2000, while
Asia's has climbed to about 45 million tons. Pollution of the air above the
Pacific ocean, will change the heating/cooling effect of the ocean and
produce changes in the weather. The research project is called the
University of California Pacific Rim Aerosol Network and it works by
determining the origins of these aerosols by finding the unique signature of
their origins in their composition of trace elements, such as nickel,
copper, zinc, arsenic and lead. Aerosols with these unique signatures from
Asia have been detected all the way to the Rocky Mountains in the United
States.
July 27 2000 BBC Online
Forest Fires 'Set to Worsen'
WWF, the global environmental campaign, and the World Conservation Union
(IUCN) Climate change will result in more frequent and stronger El Nino
episodes and consequently more forest fires. The next El Nino weather
disturbance in the Pacific, is due within two years, The recent forest
fires in Greece and Indonesia (1997-1998) are "only a foretaste of a global
disaster waiting to happen". The Greek fires ravaged the Pindos mountains,
home to brown bears, wild cats and wolves, and the island of Samos; nearly
all the forests around Athens have now gone. Political action is urgent.
"Early warning systems need to be built up; agricultural practices need to
be altered; effective enforcement and implementation of national and
international law need to be galvanised." "The fires in Indonesia were and
are arson on a grand scale by landowners wanting to clear forests for
plantations for export crops."
July 28, 2000 National
Geographic
Too Many People
Why do rational adults continue to bring babies into places of starvation?
Many people, "especially in very poor societies, haven't gotten introduced
to the idea that you can do anything about controlling fertility." said
population analyst Tom Merrick of the World
Bank. In the Horn of Africa, 8 million people risk starvation. Three years
of insufficient rains, complicated by two years of war between Ethiopia and
Eritrea,
have devastated the region. Aid workers report rotting corpses, fields of
dead cattle, and weakened children being eaten by hyenas. Nearly 80% of the
livestock in Kenya has died. Since 1991, Somalia has been without a central
government. It is a dangerous place for aid workers because of feuding
warlords. In the long run the land simply can't support the number of people
who are trying to live on it.Population growth has slowed or even stopped in
Europe, North America and Japan, but global population is still rising at a
rate of about 78 million people per year, most of it taking place in the
world's poorest and least-prepared regions. Even HIV/AIDS is not a panacea
for overpopulation. The population of Botswana, where 20% is affected by
HIV/AIDS, is expected to nearly double by 2050. Women are less likely to
have large
families if they have a chance to earn an income. William Ryan of the World
Population Fund says "We estimate that the number of children in many
developing countries would fall by a third if there were access to the kinds
of services that people need."
July 21, 2000 The Oregonian
[Portland] A Growing Problem: Hillsboro Wants Farmland for Housing and
Will Take its Case to the State. Big business and farmers are
coming head to head over land use in the fertile Tualatin Valley west of
Portland, Oregon. Intel has announced plans to put 7,600 new jobs in this
region's already overcrowded town of Hillsboro. More jobs means more people,
but the city is running out of room. "We're basically going to come to a
screeching halt in terms of home-building activity," predicts Hillsboro's
city manager, Tim Erwert. Recent state laws have severely limited the
development of farmland, but that won't stop Intel and other high tech firms
from pushing forward. Threatening legal action against local farmers who
claim that the farmland is too valuable to be covered over
with buildings, Intel argues that workers who live far from their jobs snarl
the traffic by commuting, which in turn leads to short tempers. The legal
suit filed by Intel will go before a state committee by the end of the year.
jb
July 24, 2000 The Nation
Fertility Rates Drop. by Amartya Sen, author of
Development as Freedom, and recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in
Economic Science in
1998. Perhaps the most immediate adversity caused by a high rate of
population growth lies in the loss of freedom that women suffer when they
are shackled by persistent bearing and rearing of children. Global warming
is a distant effect compared with what population explosion does to the
lives and well-being of mothers. Female illiteracy, lack of female
employment opportunity and economic independence contribute substantially to
the muffling women's voices in society and within the family. Not knowing
about family planning or available family planning facilities is also an
important source of helplessness. Cultural and religious factors often force
young women toi accept a subservient position and the burden of constantly
bearing and rearing children which husband or parents-in-law have placed on
them. A long history sanctifies such practices and generates uncritical
acceptance. On the other hand, women's empowerment, through employment,
education, property rights, etc., can lead to the reduction of the fertility
rate. The Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu or Himachal Pradesh have
experienced speedy fertility declines which can be linked to the rapid
enhancement of female education, employment opportunity, and and other
empowerment of young women. The states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and
Rajasthan, on the other hand, give few economic and educational
opportunities to young women and experience high fertility rates. It is
notable that China, where coercive one-child policies were employed,
fertility rates fell from 2.8 to 2.0 from 1979 to 1991, while in Kerala,
where fertility decline was freely chosen, fertility rates fell much faster,
from 3 to 1.8 in the same period. In Kerala, the rate of expansion of female
literacy has also been faster than China's, and consequently, Kerala's
infant mortality rate has continued to fall fast while it has not in China,
where it is now double Kerala's, even though they were roughly even in this
respect in 1979. [This is an excellent article and deserves a full read.
Unfortunately, it is not on-line. Look for The Nation, No. 4, Vol. 271; Pg.
16 ; ISSN: 0027-8378 at your library.]
July 22, 2000 London Guardian
Washington will Miss Greenhouse Target.
The United States has admitted that it can not, and perhaps will not, reach the greenhouse gas reduction target accepted at the 1998 Kyoto climate conference. In a recent statement by American under-secretary of global affairs Frank Loy the US confirmed that unless Europe gives way and allows the US to purchase "carbon credits" the country, which produces 25% of the world's carbon dioxide emissions, will not meet its obligations. According to the Kyoto conference, signing countries agreed that they would cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 7% before 2010. Loy cites that the growing economy in the US prevents reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, and instead wants to excuse American discrepancies by purchasing credits from nations who produce less than this projected amount of carbon dioxide. Tony Juniper of Friends of the Earth responded to this attitude saying, "The US is doing tricks with arithmetic rather than deal[ing] with some of the fundamental problems of profligate use of fossil fuels." Loy did admit, however, that there was growing concern in the US over pollution and global warming. Citing a recent announcement from NASA that a warmer earth is eroding more than 50 billion tons of water a year from the Greenland ice sheet, he confirmed that the American government was dedicated to attempting greenhouse gas reductions. Such statistics, however, feed into the increasing concern that melting ice sheets will have devastating effects on the earth's climate. Research suggests that over the past one hundred years, the sea level has risen about 23 cm, covering once dry low elevation levels. jb
July 18, 2000 ENN
Plant Oils Give Petroleum a Run for the Money.
With the impending crisis foretold by the world's over-reliance on non-renewable resources such as petroleum, farmers are stepping forward with their own solution. Pointing out that plant oils and fats have the same base chemical structure as petroleum, Professor Bernard Tao of Purdue University calls this agri-solution "the obvious substitutes." Fossil fuels were plants millions of years ago, and Tao explains that the essential ingredient of both petroleum and plant oils is hydrocarbon, a carbon atom surrounded by hydrogen atoms. Gasoline ranges from between 7 and 10 hydrocarbons in length, with diesel fuel coming in at 15 carbons long, while plant oils are 14 to 18 hydrocarbons long. This means that if plant oils are to be used as a fuel source, modern gasoline engines are not going to
be able to handle the change. However, Tao cites that the shorter a chain of carbons is, the more explosive the fuel can be, and thus suggests that perhaps tropical crops like coconuts, which have shorter stands of hydrocarbons when compared to wheat or corn, be
transgenetically modified to create oils closer to the 8-carbon ideal. Further, Tao points out that most petroleum is used into create inks, paints, and coatings, espousing a belief that plant oils could easily replace fossil fuels in these products, as was the case before World War II. In the move from a black gold economy to a green gold economy, Tao concludes that the need for petroleum is never going to go away, thus confirming that monitoring and reducing the use of existing petroleum is crucial. jb
July 1, 2000 eMagazine
American Rivers: Damning the Dams
Dams on many North American rivers are causing native freshwater species, including several varieties of fish, mussels, crayfish, frogs, and snails, to go extinct as fast as those living in tropical rainforests. In a study entitled "America's Most Endangered Rivers of 2000" by conservation group American Rivers, 13 American rivers face serious immediate environmental threats, 8 of which are on the list due to dams. Washington's lower Snake River tops the list for the second year, being cited again due to four dams on the river operated by the Army Corps of Engineers. These dams have transformed the once free flowing river into a series of slackwater ponds, thereby bringing salmon and steelhead to the brink of extinction. Rebecca Wodder, president of American Rivers, says, "We have blocked the flows, straightened the curves and hardened the banks of thousands of miles of waterways. By changing the most fundamental qualities of rivers--their natural shapes and flows--we've made it difficult for them to support life." The National Hydropower Association claims that hydropower dams produce pollution-free power while enhancing biodiversity and improving habitat. However, Anthony Ricciardi, a freshwater biologist at Canada's Dalhousie University, is unimpressed with this assertion, citing that dams pose a major problem for the ecological health of rivers, and contribute to other problems. "We also have to look at water quality, organic and chemical pollution and runoff from streets and yards," he says. "The invasion of exotic species--the zebra mussel for example--is also something that has to be addressed." Ricciardi also points out that if current trend in river and wildlife destruction continue, more species will be lost in the next 100 years then during the past century. jb
July 1, 2000 eMagazine
India: A Dramatic Decline Needless Alarm over Population.
India is not China. As the world's largest democracy, we have some constraints. We can't adopt draconian measures. Sanjay Gandhi tried to innovate. That cost his mother her power and the country a perfectly innocuous term, called family planning. The expression continues to be taboo even today, reflecting a part of our psyche. Can well-intended proposals like that put forward by Dr J V Narlikar for reducing the number of parliamentary seats in the states which have not been able to check their population, be rammed down the throats of those who make up nearly half of India? Prof R D Karve, the pioneer of India's birth control movement, said "No one will practise birth-control to meet the danger of growth in population. People will practise it for their individual good". People will resort to family planning if they perceive it to be safe, if they think it satisfying, if they consider it beneficial to themselves. In Andhra Pradesh fertility has declined sharply despite the fact that the female literacy is among the lowest in the country and the per capita income in AP was also lower than the national average. Today in India, both in the urban and rural parts of every state without exception, birth rates are declining, though in varying degrees. The rate at which people are choosing to have smaller families is faster than the pace at which the death rate is decreasing. We are moving towards a fertility replacement level as opposed to towards population disaster.
July 20, 2000 Jakarta Post
Jakarta:Family Planning Program Not Yet Popular
Among Men Of the over 27.7 million active members of family
planning program across
the country only about 2% are men, according to the National Family Planning
Board (BKKBN). Men often support the state-sponsored family planning
program, but their participation is low due to lack of information, the lack
of services and facilities for men. Condoms are perceived as reducing sexual
enjoyment, and are associated with immorality. Vasectomies are even more
unpopular due to ignorance of the procedure and worries that something could
go wrong or of not being able to perform following the surgery. A vasectomy
involves minor surgery with a low possibility of failure and will not affect
a man's sexual activity and desire. It is also less complicated than a
tubectomy.The failure rate, however, is 5 to 9%. Out of 27.1 million women
who are taking part in the program, over 9.7 million prefer injections,
while 7.7 million take pills, 5.2 million use IUD, 3.1 million use implants,
1.2 million prefer tubectomy and 9,957 use vaginal contraceptives.
Pakistan's contraceptive prevalence survey in 1994-1995 showed that out of
17.8% of those taking part in family planning program, 14.1% of them were
using male contraceptive methods. Bangladesh studies showed a 11.9% male
usage. "We aim to increase men's participation in the family planning
program to 10% by the year 2005," said a spokesperson for the BKKBN.
July 20, 2000 BBC News
'100% Success' for Male Pill Trial
Clinical trials in Scotland, China, South Africa and Nigeria of a male
contraceptive pill suggest it is 100% effective, with no harmful
consequences, and could be available within five years, Edinburgh University
scientists say. The contraceptive, developed by Dutch firm Organon,
introduces the male sex hormone testosterone and desogestrel which stop the
production of sperm into the blood stream.
July 19, 2000 World Watch
Right Whale Battles Brink of Extinction and Entanglement in Fishing
Gear.
The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) announced today that the
North Atlantic Right Whale continues to battle with extinction. Their
numbers are currently less than 300. These whales suffer from entanglement
in disused or abandoned fishing gear, as well as life-threatening injuries
from collisions with boats. IFAW's research team is involved in
dis-entangling the whales from the lines and other cast-off gear, as well as
completing a study involving the deployment of accoustic underwater bouys,
which record the sounds of the whales and boats. "If we do not act now, the
North Atlantic right whale may become extinct in our lifetime," said Jared
Blumenfeld, IFAW Director of Habitat for Animals. mc
July 17, 2000 PR Newswire
American Life League: USAID Responsible for AIDS Epidemic, AIDS
Orphans; Genocide Hidden in AIDS Relief Package.
[Can you believe this?] "For the past few decades, funding for condom
distribution abroad has fueled the spread of the HIV/AIDS virus," said the
American Life League, attacking Clinton's $54 million HIV/AIDS relief
program for Africa-a program titled "Leadership and Investment in Fighting
an Epidemic," or LIFE. "AIDS mortality
has skyrocketed over the past decade and a half, concomitant with USAID's
massive condom distribution campaign. ... by occasioning promiscuity under
the false guise of 'safe sex,' condom distribution has created genocide in
the name of AIDS relief. .. By USAID's own admission, over one billion
condoms have been provided to men, women and adolescents throughout the
developing world over the past few decades." [Didn't the Catholic Church
inhibit the use of condoms until the epidemic was well under way? How can
only one billion condoms (many of them never used) distributed between a
billion young couples in the third world over several decades possibly
promote any significant degree of promiscuity? What should they do - the
millions of wives who need protection from AIDS because of the acts of
errant husbands?]
July 18, 2000 World Watch
Himachal Set to Achieve Zero Population Growth.
The fertility rate in Himachal has declined to 2.14 in 1998 from 2.97 in
1992 and the growth rate is expected to reach zero by 2015. The region has
large Gujjar population which was basically a nomadic tribe with a migratory
lifestyle. The state had enacted a law which debars candidates having more
than two children from contesting Panchayati Raj institution elections. The
state had also introduced incentives for panchayats which recorded the
lowest birthrate in the form of a cash award of Rs one lakh for local
development work annually. Chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said that female
education should become the focus of population control efforts and added
that Himachal had the unique distinction of making education for girls free
till the university level. The mean marriage age for girls was 20.5 years in
Himachal and the sex ratio had increased to 1019 in 1999 as compared to 976
in 1991.
The state is spending Rs 140 crores in the health sector. "There are 3100
health institutions in the state providing family planning services, but the
difficult topography, inhospitable terrain and want of communication
facilities were affecting accessibility to the services," Dhumal said.
July 19, 2000 Sierra Nevada Forest
Protection Campaign
Fisher Headed for Extinction in Sierra Nevada.
The fisher, an old-growth forest dwelling carnivore, is
headed for extinction. The Forest Service's plan does not provide enough
protection to save the fisher from extinction or avoid having the fisher
listed as an endangered species. It has been eliminated from the northern
and central Sierra, isolating fisher in the southern Sierra from fisher in
northern California. This isolation, in combination with a small population
size and continued habitat loss, places the southern Sierra population of
the fisher in immediate danger of extinction. The fisher is a major predator
in the area and may keep rodent populations in check. A relative of the mink
and otter, it has a long, slender body with short legs, a long bushy tail,
and it runs in a bounding gait, with
their front feet leaping forward together, followed by the back feet, and
walks on the whole foot, unlike other carnivores.
July 18, 2000 Agence France
Presse
Thailand to Start Sex Education from Kindergarten Level.
Thailand will implement a new program aimed at curbing teenage pregnancies
and AIDS
infections. According to Suwanna Vorakamin of the public health ministry's
family planning and population control unit, teachers would be trained to
tackle sex education frankly
and scientifically, which would help erase the taboo on discussing sex in
public. Reaching children at a young age would enable them to delay the
start of sexual activity and eliminate the risk of unwanted pregnancy once
they became teenagers. Sex education was vital in reducing the rate of
abortions and HIV-AIDS transmission Thailand, where the disease has so far
infected nearly one in 60 people.
July 18, 2000 New York
Times
Shortchanging Foreign Aid. The House foreign aid bill which
was passed last week allows an overall allocation that is far too low to
meet American foreign policy objectives, and President Clinton has
threatened to veto it. Both the House bill and the Senate version that
passed in June are nearly $2 billion below the White House request for
fiscal 2001. The House version cuts the contribution to development loans by
40%, reducing basic infrastructure loans to the poorest countries.
International women's health
programs will not be adequately funded, and peacekeeping and nuclear
nonproliferation funding would be reduced. The House bill also contains a
provision that would deny assistance to foreign NGOs that use their own
money to provide abortions or engage in political debate to change abortion
laws. The Clinton administration accepted a one-year restriction as part of
a deal with Congressional Republicans to pay back dues owed to the United
Nations. The House bill maintains funding for international family planning
at $385 million, which is 30% below 1995 levels, before Congress slashed the
program. However, the House did approve an amendment to increase funding to
$225 million for debt
relief for the world's poorest nations. The poorest nations are now spending
up to 60% of their budgets to service debt on old loans, and are unable to
direct scarce resources toward health and social investments that can reduce
poverty. [Americans spend less than an average of $5 a year per capita on
foreign aid and less than $1.50 in foreign family planning assistance].
July 12, 2000 ENN
Health Care Without Harm Commends Ann Arbor's Decision to Ban
Sales of Mercury Fever Thermometers.
For decades, mercury has been used in thermometers and other products made
by humans. With the demand for medical technologies due to the increasing need
of medical facilities to facilitate the overwhelming sick, came pollution
and more sickness. The mercury contained in thermometers is deadly, causing
sickness in humans and the other organisms in the environment. Since mercury
accumulates in the muscle tissue of fish and mammals, advisories in many
U.S. states recommend against fish consumption of over one meal of sports
fish per week.
Now, cities, such as Ann Arbor, Michigan are banning the manufacturing,
selling, or importing of mercury contained thermometers. With this ban,
Ann Arbor is taking a step to prevent further pollution. As research is
conducted, new laws are being passed to
reduce the amount of pollution that we as humans are causing to the
environment. Ann
Arbor has taken a step to solving one problem caused by the increasing
number
of humans. BP
July 11, 2000 AP
New campaign to promote U.S. support for global family
planning.
A five-year multimillion-dollar education campaign, named PLANet, has been
funded by The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, to get the American
public and the U.S. Congress to expand access to reproductive health care
and contraceptive services around the world. "Family planning is the key to
saving the lives of mothers, children and
planet Earth" is the message to be sent in television, newspaper and
magazine advertisements. Amy Coen, president of Population Action
International, said "The simple truth is that a lot of couples don't plan
their families because they can't," .. "150 million married women in the
developing world would use family planning services if
they were available. They are not." Family planning could save about three
million
children's lives a year, by helping women to space births by at least two
years, and save the lives of some of the 600,000 women who die every year
from the complications of pregnancy and childbirth. World population grows
by almost 80 million people per year. Slowing population growth will protect
the environment and allow developing countries to invest in education, jobs
and health care. The participating organizations are Population Action
International, Planned Parenthood, National Audubon Society, CARE, and
Communications Consortium Media.
July 6, 2000 Talk Back Live
Interview with Ralph Nader.
Question from Battista: "What would you do about the influx of illegal
aliens?"
Nader answers: "The employers who want illegal aliens to come so they can
exploit them at cheap wages and not have to pay any benefits because the
workers can't object, they're illegal, we have to enforce the law against
these employers, No. 1. ... No. 2, if we had a more decent foreign policy
toward Mexico and Central Mexico where we sided with the peasants and the
workers once in a
while instead of the oligarchs and corrupt government, there wouldn't be
such a desperate economic condition for these desperate people to move north
and expose their entire lives to crossing the border like that. And third, I
don't think this country should be engaged in a brain drain of highly
talented scientists and computer specialists from Third World country that
desperately need them in order to bring them here instead of paying American
specialists an adequate wage. And that's what's called the high-brow part of
the immigration issue. We are hogging too much talent from other countries
where these countries and their peoples need their
entrepreneurial, their scientific and their technical talents. So we need to
pay attention to that."
July 13, 2000 Worldwatch
20th Century Power System Incompatible with Digital Economy.
Power interruptions due to the vulnerability of central power plants and
transmission lines cost the United States as much as $80 billion annually,
reports the Worldwatch Institute in Micropower: The Next
Electrical Era. "The kind of highly reliable power needed for
today's economy can only be based on a new generation of micropower devices
now coming on the market. These allow homes and businesses to produce their
own electricity, with far less pollution." Fuel cells, microturbines, and
solar roofing, are as small as one-millionth the scale of today's coal or
nuclear plants-and produce little if any of the air pollution of their
larger cousins. Wind power, small geothermal, microhydro, and biomass
systems also hold important roles in the emerging decentralized electricity
system. Located close to where they are used, small-scale units can save
electricity consumers millions of dollars by avoiding costly new investments
in central power plants and distribution systems. The First National Bank
of Omaha, in Omaha, Nebraska, hooked its processing center up to two fuel
cells that provide 99.9999% reliability. Widespread adoption of micropower
in the U.S. could cut power plant carbon dioxide emissions in half. In
developing nations, small-scale power could lower carbon emissions by 42%
relative to large-scale systems. In rural regions, where 1.8 billion people
still lack access to electrical services, small-scale systems are already
economically superior to the extension of transmission lines-and
environmentally preferable to continued reliance on kerosene lanterns and
diesel generators. Many electric utilities, however, perceive micropower
systems as an economic threat and often place barriers in the way of
micropower. In the developing world, the opportunity to leapfrog technology
exists, but will outdated central power plants win out?
July 13, 2000 Earthtimes
Marking World Population Day, UN highlights India's Adverse Sex Ratio
.
A UN Population Fund's (UNFPA) representative in India says that, although
progress has been made in promoting family planning and reproductive health,
overall population trends show the country is hardly a role model: India's
greater number of males would indicate discrimination against women, from
depriving girls of food, education and health services to killing of female
babies and fetuses. There are 1069 males for every 1000 females, compared
with 1049 in Bangladesh, 1072 in Pakistan and 1081 in China. The world
average is 1015 males for every 1000 females. While illegal, ultrasound is
being used to determine the sex of the child and, in prosperous northern
states, female fetuses are sometimes aborted. The result is a higher sex
imbalance in the north. India's population has grown by 1.64% in each of the
last five years, a rate that is lower than Pakistan's, Nepal's, Bangladesh's
and most of sub-Saharan Africa, but higher than the world average of 1.33%.
After seven years of languishing, a draft Population Policy was adopted in
February. Most states of India have their own population policies. India has
made progress in increasing the number of medically supervised births,
boosting the use of contraceptives, lowering infant mortality and enrolling
girls in primary schools. But little progress has been made in reducing
maternal mortality and increasing literacy among adult females.
July 12, 2000 Newsweek
Ex-INS Officials Call for Amnesty.
Three former Immigration and Naturalization Service district directors felt
there was a need for an amnesty program, claiming that the country's economy
was booming and there were unfilled jobs in many sectors. [If the economy
is booming, why do we need more jobs?] The amnesty program would legalize 5
- 8 million newcomers to the country. About 3
million undocumented immigrants benefited from the 1986 amnesty. Lobbying
efforts will take place next week in Washington, with a march on Capitol
Hill on July 20. "Surely the INS directors are aware of what a disaster the
last amnesty was," said a spokesman for Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), chairman
of the House immigration subcommittee. "Experts called it the biggest
immigration fraud in the United States ... Amnesty is a clear motivator for
illegal aliens. If we want more illegal aliens, grant amnesty." [Note: the
population growth rate of the U.S. is about 1%, which will lead to a
doubling of the population in 70 years. A large part of the population
growth is due to legal and illegal immigration.]
July 13, 2000 Earthtimes
US Pays UN $135m, But is Still Biggest Debtor.
Owes More Than $1.5 Billion
The United States paid the United Nations $135 million yesterday, reducing
its longstanding debt for peacekeeping operations. Washington disputes the
$1.5 billion amount. Japan owes a reported $164.2 million for the regular
budget. Germany, France, Italy and Russia are also in arrears. Cash flow
problems resulting from members' nonpayment causes regular budgetary
shortfalls and a deficit of $800 million needed to reimburse more than 72
nations that have provided troops and equipment for peacekeeping operations.
Although critics of the UN have alleged waste and corruption as causes of
the UN's massive debt, its budget has been trimmed by more than $100 million
and 1,000 staff positions have been cut since Kofi Annan became
secretary-general more than three years ago.
July 13, 2000 Financial
Times
Summers Hits at Congress over Debt Relief Level
In a vote on July 12, the US House of Representatives left the US debt
relief figure at $69 million,
rejecting an amendment to that would have added $390 million over the next
two years for international debt relief. Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers
and Gene Sperling, President Bill Clinton's economic adviser, said that this
would fall short of US obligations under the Highly Indebted Poor Countries
(HIPC) initiative launched last year by the world's richest countries. "We
are richer than ever before and we are growing faster than ever before,"
Summers said. US officials are concerned that other nations may use this as
an excuse to back down from their own promises, threatening the collapse of
the whole initiative.
July 13, 2000 Washington
Post
Study: Anti-AIDS Gel Spreads Virus Instead
UNAIDS Warns Against Use Of Common Spermicide
A study presented at the13th International AIDS Conference, which involved
990 prostitutes in four African and two Asian cities showed that a common
spermicide, nonoxynol-9, may increase the chance of infection from the HIV
virus rather than help prevent it. Women at risk of contracting HIV should
not use it. "If you use nonoxynol-9 in a high-risk situation, you are
probably wasting your money, and you may be wasting your life," Dr. Joseph
Perriens of UNAIDS warned.
July 13, 2000 Washington
Post
AIDS Spurs a Crisis of Orphanhood Across Africa
.
The crisis of AIDS orphans in Africa will continue to grow for at least a
generation, according to a study released by the US Agency for
International Development. One in seven children under 15 in sub-Saharan
Africa will have lost a parent to AIDS by 2010. Ten years ago, 4% of
children in sub-Saharan Africa had one or both parents. Approximately 20% of
those cases were due to AIDS. This year, 6% of children will be orphans,
with AIDS causing 47% of the cases.
July 13, 2000 Washington
Post
Discussion on Safe Motherhood Held: 70% of Women Suffer from Malnutrition in
Bangladesh,
according to a UN Population Fund (UNFPA) country representative. Also,
violence against women, including domestic violence, is a serious problem in
Bangladesh. Professor Nurun Nabi said that ensuring reproductive rights and
safe motherhood should include population planning, education, poverty
alleviation, gender equality and male participation.
July 12, 2000 Mumbai Indian
Express
India: Bombay Population Projected To Hit 27M By 2015
Bombay's substandard housing is putting people at risk, said a city official
following the death of 50 people in a mudslide. The population of Bombay,
India's largest city, will almost double to more than 27 million people by
2015, according to UN projections released recently. Migrants are drawn by
financial and entertainment industries, overtaxing the ability of the aging
city's infrastructure to cope with increasing demands for water, health,
housing, transport and education. More than half of Bombay residents sleep
on the sidewalks or in cramped brick and tin huts lining the streets. During
the monsoon shanties built alongside high-rise buildings are flooded with
filthy water from
choked drains. 60% of
Bombay residents are eligible for family planning programs, but people fail
to understand the situation due to high illiteracy rates, and high infant
mortality rates means that people aren't interested in limiting the number
of children they lose so many at a young age. "People come here to work
because in Bombay they can do any odd job anywhere and their stomach can be
filled," said one midwife. "But in a few years, there will not be any place
to walk on the streets, there will be so many people and huts". The World
Bank is assisting a population project in the states of Assam, Rajasthan and
Karnataka.
July 12, 2000 Responsible Choices Action
Network House Rejects Coburn Mifepristone (RU-486)
Amendment.
The House rejected (187-182) Rep. Tom Coburn's
(R-OK) amendment to the House Agriculture Appropriations bill that
would have prohibited the FDA from testing, researching, developing,
or approving any drug that induces an abortion. Previously, in 1998
and 1999, Rep. Coburn was successful in passing his amendment.
July 10, 2000 Population Action
Network
U.S.
House of Representatives to Vote Soon on International Family
Planning.
As early as this week, [maybe Thursday] the U.S. House of Representatives
will
consider legislation that includes funding for international
family planning programs. Family planning empowers women and
helps protect the environment by allowing women to choose
smaller families and manage natural resources more
sustainably. Click above to take action!
July 7, 2000
The Hindu
Ecological Access to Food and Water: A Major Environmental
Challenge.
"A hungry people listens not to reason nor cares for justice, nor is bent by
any prayers" said Roman philosopher Seneca, 2,000 years ago, . There is
little use in preaching ecology and inter-generational equity to the nearly
billion children, women and men who will go to bed partially hungry tonight.
Agricultural scientist Dr. M. S. Swaminathan advocates a four-point action
plan to provide a community-led food security program that protects the
ecological foundations essential for sustainable food and water security.
The world's population was only 940 million in 1798 when Thomas Malthus
expressed his apprehensions about human ability to produce food to match the
needs of increasing human numbers. At that time, Marquis de Condorcet, a
French mathematician, remarked that the population will stabilise itself if
children are born not for mere existence, but for "happiness", meaning
social, economic, educational and ecological "happiness". Even though the
global population has now reached over six billion, Malthusian fears were
not realized because of tehnological advances which kept the growth rate of
food production above population growth rates. It has become apparent,
however, that the very progress in agriculture has, in several areas of the
world, eroded water security, owing to the unsustainable exploitation of
groundwater and inadequate efforts in storing rainwater. In addition, food
security challenge shifted from physical to economic access to food at the
end of the 20th century. Due to a famine of jobs, at least 300 million in
India suffer from poverty induced hunger and every third child born is
underweight (below 2.5 kg) due to maternal and foetal undernutrition. Such
low birth weight children suffer from handicaps in brain development, an
irony since this century has been christened as "Knowledge and Innovations
Century". Today in the developing world, annual imports less exports of
cereal grains amounts to 88 million tonnes at a cost of US$14.5 billion, and
the demand is expected to increase at least by 40% in the next twenty years.
Milk and meat have been imported in large amounts since the early 1970s and
this is expected to increase eight fold between 1995 and 2020. In the
meantime, per capita arable land and irrigation water availability is
shrinking while biotic and abiotic stresses are increasing. Food imports by
countries have the same impact as importing poverty and unemployment. Modern
industry promotes jobless economic growth. On the other hand, agriculture,
agro-processing and agri-business foster job-led economic growth. The
population supporting capacity of major ecosystems has already been exceeded
in most developing countries. Population pressures are particularly high
near megabiodiversity regions where land, water, flora, fauna and atmosphere
support systems are all in distress. The challenges during this century will
be both economic and ecological access to food. Swaminathan's four point
action plan for food security includes an 1) Integrated Natural Resources
Management (INM) through local level socio-demographic charters at the
grassroots (village) level, 2) Integrated Gene Management, 3) Community Food
and Water Security System, and 4) Restructuring global institutions. INM:
The major purpose of a village level socio-demographic charter is to
sensitise the local community on the population supporting capacity of their
ecosystem, with components including a) Environment management to prevent
loss of top soil, depletion of ground water, pollution of lakes and rivers,
deforestation, loss of grazing lands, conversion of forests into
agricultural land and air pollution, with water harvesting, watershed
management and the efficient and economic use of water to receive highest
priority; b) Hygiene and housing: safe disposal and recycling of garbage,
sewage and human waste; c) Health security, which would include reproductive
health issues like maternal and child health care services, reproductive
health education, tuberculosis and AIDS prevention and care, provision of
safe and affordable contraception, prevention of infant mortality; d)
Education: higher enrolment in primary schools, and more education of the
girl child; e) Nutrition security: balanced diets and safe drinking water.,
including nutritional supplementation of pregnant mothers and children under
five and to eliminating micro-nutrient deficiencies. f) Gender code: to end
gender inequity and discrimination including adverse sex ratios, inequitable
property rights, dowry, female foeticide and infanticide, higher female
mortality and morbidity, higher female illiteracy, feminisation of poverty
and food insecurity for women. The role of women in the conservation and
improvement of agrobio-diversity will be given explicit recognition. India's
national bio-diversity legislation, the Plant Variety Protection and
Farmers' Rights Act, now before Parliament, provide for recognising and
rewarding the contributions of tribal and rural families to genetic
resources conservation (biodiversity) and improvement. Community seed banks,
supported by microcredit, and grain banks operated by a self-help groups
need to be established. In the re-negotiated World Trade Agreement,
industrialised countries should make provision for recognising and rewarding
primary conservers of bio-diversity and holders of traditional knowledge,
mostly found in developing countries and indigenous communities. Breeders'
and farmers' rights should be protected with intellectual property laws.
April 10, 2000 SIECUS
Increased Efforts to Support Contraceptive Care.
A formally popular birth control method, the Today Sponge, may soon be back
on drugstore shelves. Five years ago the sponge was removed from store
shelves because manufacturing plants had high levels of bacteria. The patent
was purchased by Allendale Pharmaceutical Company. FDA approval of the
proposed new plant and packaging is pending. A high demand for the sponge is
expected: it can be purchased without a prescription, is portable, and can
remain in the vagina for up to 24 hours. However, it is only 90.8% effective
and does not protect against STDs.
May 30 through June 9, 2000
CCMC
Women 2000, also known as Beijing+5, brought thousands of
women and men from 185 countries to a United Nations General Assembly
Special Session evaluating women's progress worldwide since the 1995 Fourth
World Conference on Women in Beijing. Leaders from the United States and
around the world, including hundreds of representatives of non-governmental
organizations (NGOs), held panels, workshops and special events throughout
New York City.
July 3, 2000 Times Of India
50 Years From Now, It'll
Be a Grey India.
By 2051, only 19% of the country's population would be up to the age of 14
years. Currently this group constitutes almost 38% of the population. The
median age will rise by 17 years from 21 years now to 38 years in 2051.
Couples are opting for one child, or at the most two - and with advancement
in health services, will experience an increased life expectancy. According
to the Population Foundation of India, a voluntary organisation working in
association with the Union government, about 15% of the population will be
over the age of 65 by 2051. By then, India will have an evened out sex
ratio, which was 108 males per 100 females in 1991. The total fertility rate
- number of children per woman) in India would is expected to come down to
2.52 between 2011 and 2016, and is expected to reach 2.1 in 2026. [Note: click here for more information on greying
populations]
June 28, 2000 AP Writer
Kansan Sponsors More Restrictions on Aid for Coercive Family
Planning
The "Tiahrt Amendment," named for conservative Rep. Todd Tiahrt, R-Kan.,
bans
U.S. aid to foreign governments that force women to be sterilized, have
abortions or use contraceptives. The $13.3 billion foreign aid bill passed
recently in the House Appropriations Committee ordered the U.S. Agency for
International Development's inspector general to investigate potential
violations of the ban. The panel was, however, "pleased" and "encouraged" by
U.S. AID's extensive efforts to ensure that population programs remain
voluntary. A human rights watchdog office, funded by the U.S. and Peruvian
governments, reported a handful of instances where a woman was sterilized
without her consent, or was refused her baby's birth certificate until she
agreed to be sterilized, or in which women were sterilized by doctors who
had been drinking liquor. At least two women died, and in several cases
doctors were indicted for criminal injury. "I think the days of having
programs in developing countries which are coercive are - I won't say gone,
but at least in the countries we work in, they don't exist," said Duff
Gillespie, U.S. AID deputy assistant administrator of population, health and
nutrition. Planned Parenthood Federation of America says the program is not
and never has been needed and say that Tiahrt is working to undermine family
planning programs, with a voting record in opposition to programs and
statutes that would expand family planning services.
June 30, 2000 NWF
Call to Action from National Wildlife
Federation. It is vital that your Senators and Representative
hear from you now! It is more important than ever to highlight the
fundamental role that international family planning assistance plays in
protecting the health
of women, children, families, and the environment. Population growth
drives deforestation, causes the pollution of air, water and soil, and
results in the fragmentation of wildlife habitat, which forces many species
to the brink of extinction. Slowing population growth, protecting the
health of woman and children, promoting democracy, and preserving
our natural environment is crucial to the global community.
June 29, 2000 UNFPA
July 11 - World
Population Day
Saving Women's Lives is the theme of World Population Day, 2000,
sponsored by the United Nations Population Fund.
June 29, 2000 Financial
Times
World Needs GM Crops, Says UN Food Chief.
UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Director-General Jacques Diouf
yesterday said he supports the use of genetically modified plants and
animals in order to feed an ever-expanding world population. The estimated
800 million hungry people in the world could be fed with conventional crops
if they were evenly distributed to developing countries, but a shortage of
arable land will make it impossible to feed a world population that is
expected to peak at 9 billion people without genetically engineered crops
that require less pesticide, need less nitrogen and phosphorous to grow and
offer poor people improved nutrition, such as added vitamins or metal
elements like chromium, zinc and manganese. unw
June 29, 2000 Financial
Times
Earth Charter to be Launched Today.
The Earth Charter Initiative,
which codifies principles for sustainable development, was 28 years in the
making. The launch of the document occured in the Netherlands, the main
Western country that "kept faith" in this "troubled project." The charter
was supposed to have been agreed to at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de
Janeiro, but disagreements between developed and developing countries on
issues such as reproductive health stymied consensus. Steven Rockefeller, a
philanthropist who chaired the charter's drafting committee, will begin a
campaign for an international covenant based on the charter, to be adopted
by the UN General Assembly in 2002. The charter contains 16 main principles
to be promoted by businesses as a measure of sustainable development. The
first four guiding principles are: Respect earth and life in all its
diversity; Care for the community of life with understanding, compassion and
love; Build democratic societies that are just, participatory, sustainable
and peaceful; and Secure Earth's bounty and beauty for present and future
generations.
unw
June 29, 2000 Pew Center
Forests: Report Explores Role In Mitigating Climate Change.
Land Use and
Global Climate Change: Forests, Land Management and the Kyoto
Protocol, (pdf) a report released by the Pew Center on Global Climate Change
says that forests and soils could play a major role in helping reduce the
risks associated with climate change and direct reductions of greenhouse gas
emissions. The Kyoto Protocol encourages countries to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions from fossil fuel combustion. It also encourages emissions
reduction through planting trees, reducing deforestation and improving
management of agricultural soils -- measures known collectively as Land Use,
Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF). The language in the Kyoto Protocol
lacks of functional definitions" for common words such as "forest" and
"reforestation," the report said. Also, the impacts on various countries
will depend on the nature of their forests. "Key rules have been left
undecided, allowing countries to push for interpretations that may weaken
commitments made under the Protocol," said Eileen Claussen, president of the
Pew Center. unw
June 29, 2000 Agence
France-Presse
UNDP: Human Development Report 2000
Released Today.
The 11th annual Human Development Report, commissioned by the UN Development
Program, ranks 174 countries on life expectancy, education and income. UNDP
officials hope that the report will allow countries to take a closer look at
their progress on human rights and development. No drastic changes occured
from last year. Canada is ranked as the top country in terms of life
expectancy, education and income. Norway, the United States, Australia and
Iceland are ranked second through fifth, while Niger and Sierra Leone are
again at the bottom of the list. Japan and Belgium dropped slightly from
fourth and fifth, to ninth and seventh, respectively. 176 countries
participated, with 12 unable to provide the necessary information. The 48
poorest countries account for less than 0.4% of global exports. The combined
wealth of the world's 200 richest people hit $1 trillion in 1999, while the
combined income of the 582 million people living in the 43 least developed
countries was $146 billion; To achieve universal provision of basic services
in developing countries would cost an additional $80 billion annually;
Civil wars in the past 10 years have killed 5 million people worldwide; More
than 30,000 children die per day from mainly
preventable diseases; Each year, 40 million births worldwide are not
registered; Between 85 million and 115 million girls and women have
undergone some form of female genital mutilation; Estimates show one in
three women have been subjected to violence in an intimate relationship;
Worldwide, women occupy only 14% of parliamentary seats; In 1999, nearly 90
journalists and media people were killed while doing their jobs; In 1900, no
country had universal adult suffrage, while almost all countries do today.
unw
June 27, 2000 Associated
Press
Panel Declines Abortion Limits Ease.
A House committee declined on Tuesday to ease limitations on U.S. support
for international family-planning organizations that advocate abortion
rights, language which was included in a $13.3 million foreign aid bill. The
decision was reached by a 34-26 mostly party-line vote. The controversy has
in past years has held up payment of nearly $1 billion in back U.S. dues to
the United Nations. Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y. sought passage of an amendment
that would modify the current law to allow U.S. support of non-governmental
organizations that use their own, separate funds to lobby for changes in
abortion laws.
The House bill does not yet have a number. The Senate foreign aid bill is S.
2522.
June 26, 2000 The Washington
Post
Group to Pay Addicts to Take Birth Control.
A California-based group, Children Requiring A Caring Kommunity (CRACK),
will make a provocative offer to Washington's drug addicts: obtain long-term
birth control and get $200 in cash. Placards advertising the program will be
placed in 500 Metro buses. The Washington DC effort will be headed by
Melanie Folstad, who adopted a low birth-weight baby delivered by a
drug-addicted D.C. woman who was being held in jail. The campaign started in
Anaheim and has spread city by city to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix,
Seattle, Kansas City, Chicago and other cities. The program has been called
simplistic, racist and dehumanizing, taking advantage of drug abusers with
mental illnesses, making them even more vulnerable to the influence of easy
cash. 236 women and one man have collected the reward so far. Barbara
Harris, the group's founder, figures the program is trading a small sum to
pay to avoid the greater cost of coping with abandoned children. Most of
CRACK's board members are black. Harris is married to a black man with whom
she raised six biracial children before adopting four African American
siblings of the same drug-addicted mother. Folstad's adoptive son and two
other children she is now adopting are African American. Planned Parenthood
says that "We believe that any program that offers cash as an incentive to
take birth control or become sterilized is inherently coercive." Harris
wonders how "vulnerable women can make a rational decision to have a free
abortion when they are under the influence of drugs?" The program rewarded
237 drug addicts, whose history before treatment revealed 1,501 pregnancies,
527 of which ended in abortion. Of the 966 completed pregnancies, 117
infants were stillborn and 39 died after delivery. Among the 810 children
who survived, 537 are in foster care. Of the participants, 101 were white,
102 - black, 25 - Hispanic, 3 - Indian, and 6 - biracial. Under the CRACK
program, 117 had a tubal ligation, 67 took Dep-Provera, 23 had an IUD, and
the only participating man had a vasectomy.
June 22, 2000 PAI
House Subcommittee Holds at $385 Million, Continues Gag Rule
Restrictions.
Joint study projects 100,000 deaths prevented by restoring aid to 1995
levels. On June 20, the Foreign Operations Subcommittee of the
House Appropriations Committee marked up the FY 2001 foreign assistance
bill, failing to match either the Senate-passed level of $425 million for
international family planning (population) assistance, or the
Administration's request of $541.6 million. Equally disappointing was the
decision by subcommittee chair Sonny Callahan (R-AL) to keep in the bill
last year's controversial policy rider aimed at limiting speech around
abortion issues in other countries (by foreign organizations with their own,
non-U.S. money). This decision flies in the face of the widely-reported plea
made by House GOP leaders last month to keep spending bills free of divisive
policy amendments.
June 23, 2000 The Washington
Post
The Abortion Pill.
The abortion pill RU 486 (also known as mifepristone) has been available to
women in much of Europe for more than a decade, and it recently became
available in Spain, the Netherlands, Australia and Israel. It has been used
by more than 500,000 women around the world, with only a small percentage of
women reporting excessive bleeding or other complications. It works by
blocking growth of the placenta. Given to a woman up to the 49th day of
pregnancy (in most countries), it is followed in 24 to 72 hours by a second
drug, misoprostol, which triggers contractions. The combination was deemed
"approvable," four years ago by the FDA. Twice a rider has been attached to
the House version of the agricultural appropriations bill which forbids the
FDA from testing, developing or approving "any drug for the chemical
inducement of abortion." The amendment passed the House by three
votes last year, but was dropped in the conference committee. Abortion
advocates are concerned by restrictions that may be placed by the FDA upon
RU 486, for example: only doctors trained in providing surgical abortions
would be allowed to prescribe the drug. Another drug, methotrexate, approved
for use as a chemotherapy agent by the FDA in 1953, has been used to induce
thousands of abortions in
recent years. Once a drug is approved for one use, physicians can use it for
other kinds of treatment. RU 486 is 95% to 97% effective compared with 90%
to 92% for methotrexate, and it acts much more quickly and predictably. [In
early pregnancy, the embryo is the size of a grain of rice. kgp]
June 22, 2000 PAI
ALERT: Funding for International Family Planning Needs Your Help.
June 21, 2000 Christian Science
Monitor
A Thousand Years of World Population. How Many People Does it Take to
Change the World? With six billion people and counting,
Planet Earth faces crossroads on coming to terms with population growth.
The world population remained relatively static at 300 million from AD 1
until a 1,000 years later. But in the last 500 out of humankind's 50,000
years, humanity's prospects improved: harvests grew with the introduction of
crop rotation and fertilization, and very rudimentary health measures were
put into practice. Because of lower death rates, mothers began to see more
of their children survive into adulthood. The Industrial Revolution boosted
incomes and made food cheaper. Famines had less impact when trains were able
to bring in excess grain. Cities started treating sewage and providing clean
drinking water. Good health "exploded" and life expectancy rose. Nicholas
Eberstadt, a demographer at the American Enterprise Institute, said "It's
not because people started breeding like rabbits. It's that they stopped
dying like flies." About 1780, about the time of Malthus' dire predicitons,
families in Europe began cutting back the number of children they had,
raising fewer children not because of disease or famine but because they
chose to - perhaps because more children were more expensive to raise, and
when city life and education became a factor, fewer children meant a better
life for the family. But, like braking a speeding train, slowing population
growth can be difficult. While population growth has gone through
demographic transition in Europe and the U.S., the spread of public
sanitation, and introduction of antibiotics and other medicines to the third
world has caused population to boom there. But even there, birth rates are
now dropping: Asia has gone from an average of 5.7 children to 2.6 today.
While it took the US 200 years to go from a birth rate of 7 to 2,
Bangladesh has [nearly] done that in 20 and Iran has more than halved its
fertility rate in only ten years. Some countries have been slow in reducing
their birth rates. If such nations don't take the next step in the
demographic transition, they will quickly overwhelm their resources and,
perhaps, the world's.
June 21, 2000 World Watch
Population Growth Sentencing Millions to Hydrological
Poverty
At a time when drought in the United States, Ethiopia, and Afghanistan is in
the news, it is easy to forget that far more serious water shortages are
emerging as the demand for water in many countries simply outruns the
supply. Water tables are now falling on every continent. Scores of countries
face water shortages as water tables fall and wells go dry. Governments can
no longer separate population policy from the supply of water. Most of the
estimated 3 billion people to be added in the next 50 years will be born in
countries already experiencing water shortages, lacking enough water to
drink, satisfy hygienic needs, and to produce food. In the following
water-short countries, population will grow in 50 years by large numbers:
India will add 519 million (half again), China 211 million, Pakistan 200
million (now at 151 million), and Egypt, Iran, and Mexico, will increase by
half again. China, India, Saudi Arabia, North Africa, and the U.S. overpump
and deplete aquifers at 160 billion cubic meters annually. Since it takes it
takes 1,000 tons of water to produce 1 ton of grain, this 160-billion-ton
water deficit is equal to 160 million tons of grain or one half the U.S.
grain harvest. 480 million of the world's 6 billion people are being fed
with grain produced with the unsustainable use of water. 70% of the water
consumed worldwide is used for irrigation, 20% by industry, and 10% for
residential purposes. But agriculture almost always loses to industry. The
1,000 tons of water used in India to produce 1 ton of wheat worth perhaps
$200 can also be used to expand industrial output by easily $10,000, or 50
times as much. In the American West, the sale of irrigation water rights by
farmers to cities is an almost daily occurrence. Migration to cities means
that residential use of water triples due to indoor plumbing. The average
U.S. diet which includes meat requires 800 kilograms of grain per person a
year, compared to 200 kilograms for people eating starchy diet in India and
other countries. Four times the consumption of grain equates to 4 times as
much water. Water short countries that have begun to industrialize are
finding it is better to import grain than to grow it. If we decided abruptly
to stabilize water tables everywhere by simply pumping less water, the world
grain harvest would fall by some 160 million tons, or 8%. Recommendations
are to eliminate the water subsidies that foster inefficiency, raise the
price of water to reflect its cost, and shift to more water-efficient
technologies.
June 19, 2000 ENN
New Analysis
of World's Ecosystems Reveals Widespread Decline.
A pioneering analysis of the world's ecosystems reveals a widespread decline
in the condition of the world's ecosystems due to increasing resource
demands. The analsysis, by the World Resources Institute (WRI) warns that if
the decline continues it could have devastating implications for human
development and the welfare of all species. The analysis examined coastal,
forest, grassland, and freshwater and agricultural ecosystems. The health
of the each ecosystem was measured, as based on its ability to produce the
goods and services that the world currently relies on. These goods/services
include production of food, provision of pure and sufficient water, storage
of atmospheric carbon, maintenance of biodiversity and provision of
recreation and tourism opportunities. The analysis shows that there are
considerable signs that the capacity of Earth's ecosystems to produce many
of the goods and services we depend on is rapidly declining. To make matters
worse, as our ecosystems decline, we are also racing against time since
scientists lack baseline knowledge needed to properly determine the
conditions of such systems. MT
June 15, 2000 NY Times
As Atlanta Grows, Water Evaporates in Wilting Drought.
The Gulf Coast of Florida is experiencing the driest spring in a century.
The National Drought Monitor lists the crescent from Tampa to New Orleans as
experiencing extreme drought. West Texas and northwest Missouri, as well as
parts of the West and Midwest have experienced a similar lack of rain. Yet
the Atlanta
region is adding nearly 100,000 people a year, more than a million people in
those 14 years, most of the growth in suburban areas, where the lawns need
watering, swimming pools need filling, air-conditioning demands high
reservoir levels for hydroelectric, and people like to take numerous
showers. Cotton and peanut farmers in the south are impacted, having to
irrigate earlier this year than ever. Water tables are falling, and ponds
aren't filling. Some parts of Georgia have received less rain in the last 25
months than at any time in recorded weather history. The regional climate is
changing in a profound way, moving from many years of stability with
predictable rainfall to a far more variable climate that will veer between
years of plenty and years of scarcity, says Dr. David E. Stooksbury, the
state climatologist. Watering restrictions are in effect and are likely to
be tightened as the drought goes on. Similar water restrictions involving 26
cities and counties were applied during the 1986 drought. Lawns went brown
and trees toppled. The state is seriously considering a total watering ban
in the northern region if the drought continues. The Atlanta Regional
Commission says the demand for water is expected to increase by 50% by 2020,
which will never be met without a 10% cutback in water use.
June 15, 1998 Forbes Magazine
Cheap Oil: Enjoy it While it Lasts!. [This is an old article, but significant in that it is from an oil industrialist and worth repeating.]
Not this year, nor the next, but maybe as soon as five years hence [from 1998], oil prices will start to rise, says Franco Bernab, chief executive of the Italian oil company ENISpA. Well before 2010, he believes, the world will be vulnerable to 1970s-style oil shocks. Bernab is a former economics professor and in the 1970s was a senior economist at the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development. OPEC and countries like the Soviet Union overstate their reserves because they use the concept of geological reserves [everything that might be in the ground] rather than the West's concept of economically producible reserves," he said. jh
June 11, 2000 ZPG Alert
Emergency Contraceptives Are Safe, Effective and Prohibited at All
Wal-Mart Pharmacies.
As a matter of company policy, Wal-Mart doesn't carry emergency
contraceptives (EC). This ban was extended from the contraceptive Preven to
include Plan B when it was approved recently by the FDA. EC, like other
contraceptives, prevents pregnancy. Unlike other contraceptives, EC only
works within 72-hours AFTER sexual intercourse - after a condom breaks, or a
birth control pill is forgotten. About half of all unintended pregnancies
occur because of some type of contraceptive failure, which could happen to
anyone who's sexually active. In many areas, 24-hour Wal-Marts are the only
drugstores in town. There are an estimated 3 million unintended pregnancies
and 800,000 abortions that occur each year in the United States.
June 11, 2000 ENN
Where Bacteria Meet the Beach.
*
In 1998, California beaches statewide were closed for a total of 3,273 days
- compared
with 745 days in 1991, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Most of the closures were due to sewage spills and urban runoff (muck that
runs off from streets, rooftops and lawns). The growing populations and
aging sewer systems add to the problem. Improved bacteria-level monitoring
and heavy El Nino rainy seasons have also contribute to the increase in
closures. California's 740-mile coast has more than 50,000 visitors and
annually, which generates $14 billion, a fifth of California's total $67.9
billion travel and tourism industry. A new law says that coastal counties
must test ocean water weekly from April to October, to see if bacteria and
pathogen levels are low enough to allow swimming and fishing. *.Link
requires subscription (free)
 |
| click on
pic |
June 10, 2000 ENN
Deforestation May Be Starving Songbirds.
Fragmented forests may not provide enough food for certain songbird
populations, according to a recent study of the nesting and feeding habits
of the eastern yellow robin in southeastern Australia by zoologist Liana
Zanette. Comparing smaller areas in fragmented forests to larger, less
fragmented, areas, the researchers found that female robins received 40%
fewer feeding visits from their mates, leaving the nest more frequently and
subjecting the fledglings to predators. Females bred three weeks less on
average, the eggs were lighter, and nestlings were cheated on dinner and
had a smaller body mass.
June 9, 2000 ENN
Kyoto Provision: Spare the Forests, Boost the Economy.
Imagine a world in which humans combat global warming, conserve the rain
forest and fill the coffers of developing countries all at once. Claire
Kremen, a conservation biologist at Stanford University in Palo Alto says in
Science that proposed provision in the Kyoto Protocol that would
allow wealthy countries to receive credit for financing rain forest
conservation in
developing countries would also eliminate the economic incentive to sell the
forest to logging concessions." Developing countries practice conservation
usually don't get aid, and could "make more money by logging."
June 8, 2000 ENN
Famine-struck North Korea Reports Another Drought.
*
North Korea, already dependent on international food aid for survival,
reported another drought has hit all parts of the impoverished country,
devastating the spring crops. Temperatures in the main rice growing
provinces have been six to nine degrees higher than normal for this time of
year. Rainfall has been only 20-30% of the average. An estimated 2 million
people have died from malnutrition and related diseases since 1995. Pastures
have dried up fodder for domestic animals is short. Pyongyang plans to ask
for another $250 million under a plan to achieve food self-sufficiency in
2002. The latest harvest yielded 3.4 million tons of milled grain, which
combined with 800,000 tons of foreign grain equaled 5 million tons - half a
million tons short of the level needed to support the
population. *.Link requires subscription (free)
June 8, 2000 ENN/AP
India, Africa Keys to World Population Growth.
*
Trends in India, Africa, and Europe will be important in determining how
fast the world's population grows. India may add a second billion people in
another 100 years, according to a report by the
Population Reference Bureau. If the Indian government is successful in
boosting literacy rates and sexual education among females, the population
growth will decrease faster. Africa has 13% of the world's population, and
69% of the world's HIV or AIDS cases. Still, the population of the African
continent is expected to rise from 800 million now to 1.8 billion in 2050,
because the fertility rate of 38 births per 1,000 people is still much
higher than the mortality rate of 14 deaths per 1,000. Also, 43% of the
continent's population is under age 15. Europe's population is expected to
decrease from 728 million now to 658 million by 2050, due to declining birth
rates. The U.S. population is expected to rise from 275 million now to 403
million by 2050, due to an overall positive economic forecast and continued
immigration.
*.Link
requires subscription (free)
June 13, 2000 Times of
India
India: Iodine Deficiency Disorders on the Rise.
200 million people in India are at risk of iodine deficiency disorders
(IDD), according to iodine disorder expert Dr. G. Ramakrishna Rao. IDD can
result in goiter, abortion, stillbirth, mental retardation, deaf-mutism,
dwarfism, neuro-motor defects, leg weakness and spasticity. 60 million
suffer from endemic goiter, and 9 million have mental handicaps. Iodine
deficiency can be due to poor dietary habits or the presence of
goitrogenic substances in vegetables, Rao said. Iodine is found in seafood,
cod liver oil, milk, meat, vegetables and cereals, and is added to salt as
iodized salt. The government hopes to reduce IDD to below 10% by year-end
through an awareness campaign and to phase in the use and sale of iodized
salt
June 11, 2000 ENN
Seaweed Smothers Marine Life Along Florida Coast.
Caulerpa verticillata, a noxious seaweed, has become spread into new
habitat off the coast
of southern Florida and is choking the coral reef ecosystem that has
flourished there for millions of years. Caulerpa generates toxins, which
makes it
inedible to the herbivorous fish of the reef. Plants and animals of the reef
ecosystem that can't move
eventually die. Bioversity is threatened by an ever-expanding monoculture of
waving
seagrass. Intense use of fertilizers, burning of fossil fuels, and
sewage treatment plants have doubled the amount of high-nutrient nitrogen
being released
into the ecosystem in the last several decades, says Brian LaPointe, a
marine ecologist. Algae thrives on high levels of nutrients and use up
available oxygen and destroy or drive away other marine life.
Reefs need low-nutrient situations. "The Everglades restoration, which is
expected to cost about $8 billion, is focused solely on reducing the
phosphorus runoff from sugar cane farms." ... "The more phosphorus you
remove, the more nitrogen is left and that affects the biogeochemistry of
the coastal waters." Also, gases from deep-injection sewage wells (there are
many in Florida) are suspected to be migrating upward and being released
near the surface of the reefs, which is fertilizing the Caulerpa.
June 10, 2000 UN Wire
Beijing+5: Contentious Session Yields Final Document On Women.
Delegates to the U.N. from over 180 countries agreed to accelerate measures
to combat domestic violence, including marital rape, sex trafficking and
honor killings, and to tackle the impact of HIV/AIDS and globalization on
women. Last week's special session was a five-year review of the historic
Fourth World
1995 Beijing Conference on Women. No progress was made on such issues as
access to safe abortion, sexual rights, sexual orientation and equal rights
of inheritance. But UN Assistant Secretary-General Angela King, said she
was encouraged by the progress made. 2,300 international delegates and some
2,000 representatives of grassroots organizations attended. The final
document
calls on governments to set a target date of 2005 to eliminate the
gender gap in primary and secondary
education, calls for 50% literacy and compulsory education for all girls and
boys by 2015, and seeks to further strengthen the Beijing platform in the
areas of violence against women, trafficking in women, health, education,
human rights, poverty, debt and globalization, armed conflict, sovereignty,
land and inheritance rights for women, political participation and
decision-making.
June 12, 2000 CNN
Federal Report on Global Warming Predicts Widespread Impact on
U.S.
A government report entitled "Climate Change and Our Nation,"
projects an increase in average U.S. temperatures of between 5 and 10
degrees Fahrenheit over the next century and that global warming will
produce widespread changes in the U.S. climate in future decades.
Drought-like conditions will hit every region of the country, sea levels
will rise and urban populations may wilt under searing temperatures. The
report predicts disproportionately hotter cities from both global warming
and the urban heat-island, more extreme precipitation and faster
evaporation, leading to greater frequency of drought and/or floods,
extensive damage to some ecosystems, rising sea levels in coastal areas and
shrinkage of coastal wetlands, more heat waves, and increased crop yields
(but pests, droughts and floods could reduce these yields). Coastal areas,
maple-sugar producers, alpine meadows, and ski resorts resorts will suffer.
Water will become a key concern: droughts, floods, declining snow packs and
water quality, and possibly greater water use conflicts could become even
more common problems than they are today. A joint press release
from the Environmental Defense, National Environmental Trust, Natural
Resources Defense Council, Union of Concerned Scientists & World Wildlife
Fund was also published on this important report.
June 12, 2000 Asia Pulse
Indonesia: Legislators Ask Conoco To Stop Oil Exploration.
The legislative council of Indonesia's Irian Jaya province asked the
US-based Conoco to stop its oil exploration in a world heritage site, the
Lorentz
National Park. It is feared that Conoco's activities would harm flora
and fauna and melt the ice covering Mt. Cartenz. The national park is
located on nearly 1.5 million hectares of land owned by six districts in
Indonesia.
June 8, 2000 Times of India
Water: Call Issued To End Water Privatization.
At the annual P-7 summit held in Brussels by the European Parliament's
green group, representatives from Senegal, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Palestine and
Bolivia, Burkina Faso and Madagascar, considered to be the world's poorest
countries, said water should be considered a human right and not a
commodity. The World Bank and World Trade Organization privatization
policies encourage multinational companies to find ways to control water
resources, but this exacerbates water shortages worldwide, says honorary P-7
president Vandana Shiva.
June 9, 2000 Chicago
Tribune
Women's Conference Decries Lack of Progress Since 1995.
At the conference called Women 2000: Gender, Equality, Development and
Peace for the 21st Century, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright called
for a global effort to eliminate trafficking in women, which, she said was
"distorting economies, degrading societies, endangering neighborhoods and
robbing millions, mostly women and children, of their dreams." 200,000
Bangladeshi women have been sent to Pakistan during the past 10 years. The
Center for the Study of Intelligence estimated that 45,000 to 50,000 women
and children enter the U.S. annually as slave laborers or sweatshop workers.
50,000 women from the Dominican Republic work in the sex trade in Latin
America and Europe, according to estimates from the International
Organization for Migration. Women are sent from Ethiopia illegally to
neighboring countries and to Middle Eastern nations such as Lebanon.
Ethiopia passed a law in 1998 forbidding this practice, but enforcement has
been difficult. Once the women get there, their passports are taken away
from them, and they can't get back home. 5,000 to 7,000 Nepalese women are
sent to India annually,
mostly as prostitutes. An estimated 220,000 Nepalese women are living in
India as a result of trafficking. Other women at the conference decried
female genital mutilation and circumcision, which persist in Ethiopia and
other African countries. An estimated 2 million women and girls undergo
genital mutilation each year, and about 132 million have been mutilated in
28 African countries, according to the World Health Organization.
June 6, 2000 China Online
China's Arable Land Shrinks in 1999.
According to a report by China's State Environmental Protection
Administration, China's arable land shrank by 842,000 hectares in 1999.
24.4% of the shrinkage was due to agricultural construction projects, 46.9%
to ecological damage. 12.8% to agricultural restructuring, and 16% to damage
by natural disasters. On the other hand, and increase in arable land by
405,000 hectares was accomplished by land reclamation, reorganization and
restoration, leaving a net loss of 437,000 hectares, which was 175,000
hectares more than the 1998 figure. JH
June 6, 2000 ENN
Dramatic Island Fox Decline Urges ESA Listing.
For 16,000 years the island fox successfully inhabited the Channel Islands
offshore Southern California. In the past five years, four of the six island
fox populations have declined by 90%.
The San Miguel Island fox has dropped from 400 individuals in 1994 to 50 in
1998 to 15 in 1999. Only five of the remaining foxes are males, which means
the genetic diversity of the subspecies even under the most optimistic
conditions will be severely depleted. Only one San Miguel Island fox remains
in the wild. In the same time period, the Santa Rosa Island and Santa Cruz
Island fox populations have been reduced to less than 100. In only one
year, 1998, the Santa Catalina fox may have declined by up to 90%, the
researchers say.
The conservation group and the Institute
for Wildlife Studies have filed a formal petition with the U.S.
Fish & Wildlife Service to list the four imperiled subspecies as
"endangered" under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
Canine distemper virus (introduced by domestic dogs), the introduction of
habitat-degrading pigs, and the newly begun predation by golden eagles are
factors.
Recovery efforts require heavy funding. An ESA listing would guarantee that
more federal dollars are committed to the fox's survival, which is
desperately needed to stave off extinction. MC
May 31, 2000 Wall
Street Journal
Cambodian "Beer Girls" Contribute To Spread HIV/AIDS.
In Cambodia and other South Asian countries, women who serve beer products
in restaurants often have sex with customers to supplement their income. 40%
of almost 400 beer girls surveyed by the Cambodian government admitted to
accepting money or gifts in exchange for sex, and many also reported low
rates of consistent condom use during commercial sex. 19% of "indirect
commercial sex workers,"
including beer girls, have HIV. Beer companies usually deny that their girls
are engaging in sex with their customers. Poor education and years of
isolation following Cambodia's Khmer Rouge regime have contributed to
ignorance of HIV/AIDS. Geoff Manthey, director of the Joint UN Program on
HIV/AIDS in
Cambodia, recommends that the beer companies provide sex education and free
condoms to the women, but one Cambodian distributor said that "It's like
saying it's OK to sleep with a customer."
June 1, 2000 Female Health Company
release
Female Condom: Ghana Marks Introduction Of Contraceptive.
The female condom was introduced in Ghana last month, marking the
culmination of a venture between the country's Ministry of Health and other
international and local organizations, including the Joint UN Program on
HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), the Ghana Social
Marketing Foundation and the Society of Women and AIDS in Africa. Ghana's
first lady Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings said that the female condom offers
women control over their reproductive health. Women have trouble getting
their partners to use male condoms. More than 3,000 medical and non-medical
health providers have been trained to offer the female condom.
May 30, 2000 UN Release
UN Secretary General Sees No Easy Solutions, Calls For More Efforts.
Marking today's celebration of World Environment Day, UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan set four priorities to reverse the "deeply
troubling trends" as "humans continue to plunder the global environment." A
major public education effort for corporations and
consumers is the first priority, with schools and civil society groups
having a role to play. Environmental issues should be "better integrated
into mainstream economic policy," using "green
accounting." Governments must enforce environmental agreements that they
create, cutting subsidies that sustain environmentally harmful activities
and to devising incentives for markets to be more environment-friendly.
Annan also asked for more "sound" scientific information, to help in better
policy-making In an <
i>Earth Times commentary, Anan writes that "Never in the history of
mankind have we done so much, in so little time, to destroy the wonderful
ecosystem that sustains us." Environmental issues, Annan says, are
inextricably linked to peaceful coexistence, international cooperation and
economic development.
May 31, CNN
Philippines: Loggers Reportedly Threaten Biodiversity.
The Sierra Madre is the Philippines' largest remaining forest habitat. Here
there are the majority of plant and animal species unique to the
Philippines. But loggers smuggle timber from the forest; residents near the
forest are asking for further development; and increased mining and road
construction could further endanger the forest. "If we lose the Sierra
Madre, then there's no way Philippine biodiversity can survive the next 10
years," according to Perry Ong of Conservation International. If a proposed
measure passes congressional approval, much of the forest will become a
national park. Once the most diverse in all of Southeast Asia, Philippine
forests have significantly declined in the past 100 years, mostly due to
commercial logging and clearing
for agriculture.
June 5, Washington Post
Congo Civil War Endangers Great Apes. War and deforestation
in Central Africa are causing great ape populations - bonobos, orangutans
and mountain gorillas - to plummet. . "The most
acute problem" facing the bonobo is the civil war in the Democratic Republic
of the Congo, where forest land is occupied by thousands of soldiers and
displaced villagers. After peace comes, the timber will be a threat, with
production expected to multiply by 3,000%
in the next few years.
June 5, 2000 ABC World News
Tonight
International Women's Conference Reviews Progress and
Failure.
Women from 187 countries came together in New York to review and assess the
progress made from the women's conference five years ago in Beijing, China.
In an interview by Jackie Judd, Hillary Clinton said: "We can redeem the
promises of Beijing for our daughters and our granddaughters." 10 million of
the world's poorest women have now received microloans, loans as small as
$200. Other interviewees included: Mario Bello (Nigeria), Linda Tarr-Whelan
(United Nations Commission On Women), Mpule Kwelegobe (Botswana), June
Zeitland (Women & Environmental Development Organization). In another
article (The Christian Science Monitor, June 6, 2000), the Beijing
agenda called for inheritance rights for women (still denied in much of the
world), the condemnation and criminalization of rape during wartime; greater
educational and economic opportunity for women; more political
participation, such as service in legislatures; and greater choice in
matters of childbearing. "Some religious groups were disturbed by the
emphasis on contraceptive rights. Declarations about
economic and political rights of women met deep cultural resistance in some
societies. These tensions won't soon be erased. Clearly, many practices that
restrict women, often tied to religious traditions, will have to give way
before the inexorable rightness of affording half the human race a wider
path toward self-realization."
June 1, 2000 The Guardian (UK)
Report on Forests Suppressed.
A report from the World Resources Institute and the World Wide Fund for
Nature (WWF) warns of the destruction of tropical forests by multinational
companies, but has been suppressed for three years by the European
Commission and WWF. The report originally named companies who would bribe or
bully their way to lucrative logging concessions, but it has been watered
down because WWF feared that some of the governments concerned, particularly
Malaysia, would close down WWF offices. Many of the companies named were
Asian. Iinvestments are concentrated in countries with generally weak or
outdated environmental and social laws and little enforcement capacity.
Many of the countries suffer severe economic difficulties with large foreign
debts, high inflation and unemployment. Decisions are often made by a small
group of powerful people or clans within the government that look at the
forests as a source of personal revenue. The logging causes careless damage
to the surrounding forest. The roads built allow entry of commercial hunts,
farmers, miners and others who cause further environmental damage. The
companies frequently end up in violent clashes with local people and native
tribes. The main donors to these countries - the World Bank, the
International Monetary Fund, Japan, the EU, France, Germany, Britain and the
US, fail to enforce their own rules to promote forest conservation and
responsible management, then induce countries to sell their forests for a
quick cash return to pay off debts to Western countries.. Much of the
remaining virgin primary forests in the Caribbean rim, Central Africa and
Pacific will be lost within five to 10 years, due to the expansion of
unsustainable logging operations. . The authors of the report recommended an
an end to EU aid and a moratorium on all further logging in 11 countries -
Cameroon, Gabon, Congo-Brazzaville, the Central African Republic, Equatorial
Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo in central Africa; Belize,
Surinam and Guyana in the Caribbean rim; and Papua New Guinea and the
Solomon Islands in the South Pacific rim. The moratorium would last until
bribery scandals are investigated and proper environmental standards
enforced.
June 2, 2000 NWF
National Wildlife Association Asks for Your Help in Population and
Environmental Issues.
Environment activists have come out in force to show their
dedication to population and environment issues. In March,
over 100 activists came to Washington DC for the fourth
annual Capitol Hill Days, co-sponsored with ZPG, National
Audubon Society, and the Sierra Club, to discuss the
importance of universal access to family planning services
for the health and well being of people and the planet. More recently, NWF
activists met in Ohio and Georgia for
activist training programs to learn more about the history
and status of family planning funding, how they can more
effectively communicate with Congress, and ways to reach
out to others in their communities. If you are interested
in learning more about these training programs and how it
might be possible to hold one in your community, please
contact Wendy Steinhacker, Population Field Organizer, at
734-769-3351 or steinhac@nwf.org. ... NWF has produced a new
brochure highlighting NWF's program's activities as well as
how people can get more involved. If you are interested in
receiving these materials, please contact them at
population@nwf.org, or 202-797-6617, or write to 1400
16th Street, NW, Suite 501, Washington, DC 20036. International family
planning assistance plays a vital role in protecting the health of women,
children, families, and the environment. Population growth drives
deforestation, the pollution of air, water and soil, and the fragmentation
of wildlife habitat that can lead to extinction. Slowing population growth
is vital to the well-being of our global community. Call or write your
Representative and tell them to co-sponsor HR 3634, the Saving Women's Lives
through
International Family Planning Act of 2000. The bill, which
currently has 114 co-sponsors, removes the restrictive
language included in the FY 2000 appropriations bill and
includes the following funding: .. $366 million for the United Nations
Environment Program ... $35 million for the United Nations Population Fund
(UNFPA) ...$541 million for family planning activities and other population
assistance through the United States Agency for International Development
(USAID). You can reach your legislators by calling the Capitol Hill
Switchboard at (202) 224-3121.
May 25, 2000 ABC News
More U.S. Drought, Floods as Climate Warms.
January-April were the hottest ever in 106 years of U.S. record keeping,
according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
However, U.S. farmers could face even hotter temperatures and devastating
economic losses in the next few decades, says a new report by weather
experts from Harvard, Colombia and Iowa State universities. Global warming
is predicted to be responsible for more severe floods, droughts and
possibly tornadoes. Temperatures are predicted to increase by 2 to 7
degrees Fahrenheit by 2100. Global precipitation is also expected to
increase 5 to 15% during the same period of time. The researchers predicted
that Des Moines would have 2 times the number of days above 90 degrees F. by
2100. Corn and soybean wither and die after a short exposure to 95 degree F.
temperature. Wheat does not flower or pollinate above 86 degrees for more
than 8 hours. Weeds, crop disease and pest infestation can increase with
climate changes. Up to 42% of major U.S. crops could be lost due to pest
infestation. Drought costs American farmers and ranchers $6 billion to $8
billion each year, more than damage from floods or hurricanes. Total
estimated damages from the 1988 drought in the US were $56 billion. JH
May 30, 2000 NBC Today Show
Jane Fonda Discusses Her Campaign To Teach Sex Education To
Adolescent Girls Around The World In a TV broadcast interview
with anchor Matt Lauer, former actress Jane Fonda tells about her trip to
Nigeria. She tells how the International Women's Conference five years ago
in Beijing, China, produced a platform of action to improve the lives of
women and girls. Now world governments at the UN are trying to determine
what progress has been made and how to move the agenda forward. To help the
process along, Ms. Fonda went to Nigeria with staff of the International
Women's Health Coalition to make a short documentary focusing on adolescent
girls. She had already been involved in efforts to reduce the numbers of
teen pregnancies in Georgia. Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa.
There are high incidences of rape, sexual abuse, poverty, and unwanted
pregnancy. "Girls are married off, 10, 12, 14 years old to much older men.
Sometimes they have their first menstruation in the homes of their husbands.
They have children when they're just little girls," she said. Many are
illiterate, uneducated, and it's hard for them to earn a living.
Appropriate information about sexuality tends to make them postpone the time
when they will become sexually active, if they're virgins. "If they're
already sexually active, it will cause them to engage in safe sex - if the
program is well-designed." For an Earthtimes interview with Jane Fonda, click here.
May 30, 2000 Seattle
Post-Intelligencer
UN Help Needed to Stem Agricultural Land Erosion.
Satellite photos from space have revealed an alarming depletion of
agricultural lands across the globe. The International Food Policy Research
Institute, a UN affiliate, says that mearly 40% of the planet's farmland is
seriously degraded. More, not less, arable land is needed to feed Earth's
growing population. Degradation comes from soil erosion from improper
farming practices, hardening of soil from repeated treatment with chemicals,
nutrient depletion and excess salinity. The images show details down to 250
acres. They reveal that 75% of all farm land in Central America is seriously
degraded, compared with 20% in Africa and 11% in Asia.
May 21, 2000 Africa News
UNIDO Supports Women's Industrial Projects In Sudan.
The UN Industrial Development Organization will donate $600,000 to support
women's industrial projects in Sudan as well as programs aimed at
eliminating health hazards resulting from cement dust at a cement factory.
May 21, 2000 UNICEF
Humanitarian Crisis Looming in Eritrea
Nearly 1 million people have been displaced within the last week of fighting
between Ethiopia and Eritrea, many already suffering from drought-related
hunger and illness. Nearly half of Eritrea's 3.1 million may be in need of
an international aid, including a quarter of a million children under the
age of 5. Sudan also has several hundred thousand refugees already in Sudan
as well, although press reports indicate that as many as 70,000 have crossed
the border. Repatriation of Eritrean refugees has been put on hold. As many
as 200,000 Eritreans refugees are coming into Sudan. Although the WFP is
trying cope with the growing numbers of refugees, shelter and sanitation are
inadequate, and refugees are facing the added possibility of starvation.
May 31, 2000 PRI The World
Russia: Population To Fall One-Third In 50 Years.
A researcher with the Russian Academy of Sciences says if the current trends
continue, by mid-century Russia could have 22 million less people than today
-- about 15% less than its current population. "A third of young families
are putting off having a baby by three years, another third have put it off
indefinitely," she said. The decline in birth rates has coincided with the
dissolution of the Soviet Union. The only group whose numbers are rising are
ethnic Russian immigrants returning to the country. Three million people
have already returned to Russia since the breakup of the Soviet Union, but
migration won't be able to compensate for the dramatic decline in Russia's
population.
May 21, 2000 Toronto National
Post
Global Warming Theories Criticized.
A panel of scientists criticized the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC) for its stand on evolving world weather. A British energy and
environment consultantsaid that the IPCC model that has no demonstrable
forecasting skill. The forum was put on by the Cooler Heads Foundation, a
group of mostly conservative think tanks that oppose expensive strategies to
combat global warming. A particular target of their criticism is the 1997
Kyoto Protocol, an amendment to the UN Framework Convention on Climate
Change. UN figures show that the Earth's average surface temperature will
rise by 1 to 3 degrees Celsius over the next century, compared to a climb of
2.75 to 5 degrees since the last Ice Age, 20,000 years ago. The UN panel
warns that this kind of temperature hike will wreak havoc with the world's
weather by melting the polar ice caps and causing worldwide flooding.
May 31, 2000 UNICEF press release
UNICEF Report Outlines Global Epidemic of Domestic
Violence.
(pdf)
Five years after a conference in Beijing that called for global action to
end violence against women, a new report, Domestic Violence
Against Women and Girls, reveals that there are 60 million fewer
women in the world today than would be expected. The discrepancy is
attributed to sex-selective abortion, female infanticide, violent acts, and
inferior access to food and medicine, and is most often found in South Asia,
North Africa, the Middle East and China. Violence to women includes physical
beatings, acid throwing, honor killings and lack of access to medical care.
Such violence cuts across culture, class, education, income, ethnicity and
age in every country. 20% to 50% of girls and women have experienced
physical violence from a family member or intimate partner, and between 40%
and 60% of known sexual assaults occur within the family and are committed
against girls under age 16. About two million women a year undergo genital
mutilation. Nearly 14 million women are infected with HIV, with the rate of
infection rising. Often the infection comes from a regular partner and often
negotiating safe sex is difficult. In Sri Lanka, the number of suicides
among girls and women aged 15 - 24 is 55 times greater than the number of
deaths due to pregnancy and childbirth. In Egypt, 35% of women surveyed said
they were beaten by their husband at some point during their marriage; In
Nicaragua, 52% of women said they were physically abused by a partner at
least once; In South Korea, 38% of women said they were abused by their
husband; and In the United States, 28% of women reported at least one
incident of physical violence from an intimate partner. UNICEF says civil
society should support legal literacy, education and employment
opportunities for women, which would help curb the violence. The agency
accuses governments of doing too little to stop violence against women.
"Governments should ensure that there is no impunity for the perpetrators of
domestic violence and that incidents of family violence are investigated and
punished," wrote UN special rapporteur Radhika Coomaraswamy.
May 30, 2000 NY Times/ABC News
Japan:
Incentives Offered To Reverse Falling Birthrate. The average
birthrate for a Japanese woman was just 1.38 in 1998, Japan's record low and
among the lowest in the world. The Bandai Corporation, a toy company, has
begun offering its employees $10,000 for every baby born after their second
child. The government and employers are attempting to reverse record-low
birthrates, but most Japanese feel that it's just too difficult and
expensive to have more than two children. Previous initiatives for
encouraging births have included making it more economical to raise children
-- extending flexible work hours, family leave and child care and offering
cash and monthly subsidies. Japanese government officials deny, however,
that such offers are directly intended to promote childbirth. In a related
article, Japan Headed For World's Highest Percentage Of
Elderly, Japan is concerned that declining birthrates and an
aging population will curb economic growth, as there will be fewer workers
to support the elderly. Government officials said that by 2005, the
percentage is expected to reach 19.6%, the highest in the world, surpassing
Sweden, currently at 17%. $99 billion has been set aside for solutions to
the aging problem. The median age is expected to raise from 41 to 49. Life
expectancy for women, at just over 84 years, is the world's highest.
May 30, 2000 UN report
Ecosystems: UN Report Outlines Threats To World
Environment.
The UN will release a report on global ecosystems this coming September.
TIME magazine, which had an exclusive advance looks, says the report shows
that half the world's wetlands have been lost in the past century, 58% of
coral reefs are imperiled by humans, 80% of grasslands are suffering from
soil degradation, 20% of drylands are in danger of becoming deserts and
ground water is being depleted worldwide. TIME says the document makes for
"sobering reading." The $4 million study is the outcome of a program called
Pilot Analysis of Global Ecosystems (PAGE)
May 30, 2000 NY Times/ABC News
North America: Report Shows Reversal Of Progress On
Pollution.
Pollution levels rose 1.2% overall in North America between 1995 and 1997,
reversing progress made in previous years and possibly raising health risks,
according to a report released yesterday by the Commission for Environmental
Cooperation (CEC) and created by NAFTA, North American Free Trade Agreement.
About 15% of the releases were carcinogens released directly into the air.
On-site pollution releases decreased 9% during the two-year period. 20,555
facilities were monitored, but in Mexico, the monitoring system is still
being set up. The figures also did not include information on power plants
and coal mines. The full report is here.
May 22, 2000 UN Press Release
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan Calls US Foreign Aid Level
"Shameful".
The US is "shameful" for skimping on foreign aid while it is enjoying
unprecedented
prosperity. Too many developing countries do not have funds for basic
education and health
because they lack trade outlets and are burdened by foreign debt. Nearly
half the world's population lives on less than $2 a day, and some 1.2
billion people, including 500 million in Asia and 300 million in Africa,
live on less than $1 a day. The United States is the second highest
contributor in foreign aid after
Japan, spending close to $9 billion a year. But that amounts to only 0.1% of
US GNP, putting the US in last place compared to aid relative to GNP from
Japan, western Europe and Canada.
May 22, 2000 AP
HIV/AIDS: US Experts Developing Oral Vaccine.
An oral AIDS vaccine is under development at the University of Maryland's
Institute of Human Virology, and could undergo human trials in Uganda in as
few as 18 months.
The vaccine could cost $1 or less per dose. In Uganda, millions are infected
with HIV and can't afford
expensive treatments. The vaccine utilizes salmonella bacteria. A small
number of Kenyan prostitutes did not become infected by HIV, despite
repeated exposure. It was found they had a strong response by certain immune
cells, and the vaccine helps stir up production of those cells
May 17, 2000 Panafrican News
Agency
South African AIDS Crisis Worse Than Estimated.
According to the The South African Institute of Race Relations, 6 million
people may be HIV-positive by year-end, and 17% of the population would be
HIV-positive by 2006. 250,000 South Africans may die from AIDS this year.
The number of deaths from AIDS will increase by an estimated 180% over the
next five years, with 700,000 deaths by 2005. More than one-third of
semi-skilled and unskilled workers are expected to be infected with HIV
within five years. The government estimates that 10% of the country's 42
million people are infected with HIV. ... (Agence France-Presse) The US
Agency for International Development (USAID) on Tuesday pledged $250 million
to South Africa over the next five years to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS,
improve access to health care, education and housing, and to strengthen the
South African justice system and create more jobs.
May 19, 2000 UN NewsService
Sex Trafficking: Bosnia and Herzegovina has become a
significant destination for women trafficked from Eastern Europe and forced
into prostitution, according to a
new UN report. Llaw enforcement efforts and policies of the Bosnian
government are
replete with "obstruction, obfuscation and simple passivity" and that "law
enforcement is often complicit, either overtly or by silence and failure to
act" against sex trafficking.
May 17, 2000 Karachi Dawn Dawn
Pakistan: Minister Promises Women's Development.
A Pakistani minister in charge of women's development said last week that a
UN Development Program initiative has become an important part of Pakistan's
national action plan for women and that Pakistan is committed to
ensuring empowerment and development for women.
May 22, 2000 Planet Ark
U.S., China Sign Environment Cooperation Accord.
China and the US have signed a joint statement pledging greater
cooperation on environmental issues such as climate change. Both countries
recognize their ability to "achieve sustained economic growth while
protecting the environment and taking
actions to combat climate change." US Vice President Al Gore said, "I am
particularly pleased that the Chinese government is declaring a new
willingness to work with us in the
international effort to address climate change" Jennifer Morgan of the World
Wildlife Fund said, "China's pledge to move toward less carbon-intensive
fuels shows an increased level of the
participation in the climate debate that we have never seen before"
May 22, 2000 NY Times
Guatemala : Migrants Endanger Parks And Historic Ruins.
A population boom in Guatemala's Peten region has led to a rise in
widespread fires and deforestation, but the government lacks the money and
manpower to extinguish the blazes and arrest perpetrators. The area may
loose 125,000 acres of forest if rains do not come.
The Peten region covers one-third of the country and features the
environmentally fragile jungles of the Maya Biosphere Reserve and the El
Ceibal national park, which contains Mayan ruins. But the area's population
is estimated to have grown from 20,000 in 1960 to almost half a million
people, in part due to peasants returning from exile in Mexico after the
end of Guatemala's 36-year civil war in 1996. Squatters setting fires,
slash-and-burn farming, poachers smoking
out prey, and poor peasants who hope to be hired onto fire brigades are
blamed.
May 28, 2000 Independent News
GM Genes Can Spread to People and Animals.
A three-year study at the University of Jena in German found that bees
ingest engineered genes from oilseed rape. The finding was accomplished by
examining the bacteria in the guts of young bees who were feed the pollen
gathered by the bees from the crop. The food industry in Europe has now made
it clear that they will not buy any of the crop. The UK Agriculture Minister
advised farmers to plough in the crop at a cost estimated at ?3m, saying
they should instead seek redress from Advanta, the company who sold them the
GM contaminated seed. JH
May 25, 2000 EESI
Social And Economic Inequities Impeding Global Environmental
Action.
>From a new study by the Worldwatch Institute, Vital Signs 2000: The
Environmental Trends That Are Shaping Our Future ... 45% of the income
from nearly $41 trillion of goods and services in 1999 went to the 12% of
the world's people who live in western industrial countries. Per capita
paper use in industrial nations is 9 times higher than in developing
countries. The number of cars per person is about 100 times higher in North
America, Western Europe, and Japan than in India or China. 87% of all
Internet users live in industrial countries, but fewer than 1% of the
people in China, India, or the continent of Africa are online." Third World
debt hit a new high of $2.5 trillion in 1999, with some of the world's
poorest nations devoting 30% of their national budgets to debt servicing.
Women make up more than two-thirds of the illiterate population and
three-fifths of the poor. The richest nations cannot insulate themselves
from emerging global threats. The resurgence in tuberculosis (TB) may kill
an additional 70 million people by 2020. A catastrophic decline in
amphibians is wiping out a rich source for new medicines. The warming
atmosphere has spurred more severe weather events, including the December
1999 storms that caused nearly $10 billion in damage in Central and Western
Europe. Although recent research has confirmed that a number of pesticides,
industrial compounds, and other chemicals can interfere with human and
animal endocrine systems, more than 1,000 new chemicals are introduced to
the global market each year without testing for these effects. Although
emissions from fossil fuel burning fell 0.2% in 1999, the growth in motor
vehicle production, and erosion of fuel efficiency due to surging sales of
sports utility vehicles (SUVs), thwart a more substantial decline.The AIDS
epidemic is particularly devastating in Sub-Saharan Africa, where it now
causes one out of five deaths each year. Average
life expectancy there is expected to plummet from a high of 59 years in the
early 1990s to 45 years in this decade. On the good side, renewable energy
and efficiency, as well as an increase in the more sustainable organic
farming, are on the increase. The study recommends that environmental taxes
(such as fossil fuel taxes) be boosted above the 3 percent of worldwide tax
revenue they now generate if they are to halt global environmental decline.
Also, international treaties can help to push reforms forward: The 1987
Montreal Protocol on ozone depletion is an example of one of the worlds more
successful pacts.
May 25, 2000 EESI
Climate Change and U.S. Agriculture: The Impacts of Warming and Extreme
Weather Events on Productivity, Plant Diseases, and Pests
A recent academic study has found that: ..Since the 1970s, the United States
has experienced greater variability in crop yields, which are, in part,
climate-related. ...Extreme weather events have caused severe crop damage in
the United States over the past 20 years. ...Since the early 1970s, the
ranges of several important U.S. crop pests have expanded and pest damage
has increased, which may be partly the result of changing weather patterns.
...Climate change may reduce crop yields significantly in some U.S.
agricultural regions, directly because of warmer temperatures and an
increased incidence of extreme weather events, and indirectly, because of
greater infestations by weeds, plant diseases, and pests. ... Climate
change, with preferential warming at high latitudes, could shift the optimal
production ranges for specific crops, thereby lessening the comparative
advantage that the United States now enjoys in international agricultural
markets. ...Greater climate variability will make U.S. agriculture
increasingly unstable, and U.S. farmers may find that the past is a less
reliable predictor of the future. The report was released by the Center for
Health and the Global Environment at Harvard Medical School, the Center for
Climate Systems Research at Columbia University, Iowa State University, and
the Environmental and Energy Study Institute.
May 16, 2000 UNEP
June 5th - World Environment Day Message from UNEP.
This is the first World Environment Day of the Third Millennium. Millions
of people on every continent celebrated the dawn of this new millennium. It
is time to realize how closely we are interconnected with our fellow human
beings. About 20% of the planet's people lack access to safe drinking water
and 50% lack adequate sanitation. Weather events worldwide are becoming more
frequently extreme. Land fertility is declining. Land degradation is
increasing. The rapid growth of urbanization is causing massive air
pollution. Nitrogen pollution is compromising terrestrial and aquatic
ecosystems, as well as contributing to global warming. Over 80% of the
planet's forests have been destroyed or degraded, a quarter of the world's
mammal species are at serious risk of extinction, and biological diversity
is disappearing at an alarming rate. More than half the world's coral reefs
are threatened by human activities, and marine fisheries are being
over-exploited to the point that their ability to quickly recover is in
doubt. The world's population has now passed six billion, and the majority
of these people live in poverty. Meanwhile, the share of the planet's
resources being used by the affluent minority is also growing. These two
issues -- the poverty of the majority and the excessive consumption of the
minority -- are driving the forces of environmental degradation. In the new
millennium, we need global cooperation that promotes sustainable
development. Global agreements that ensure trade and environment policies
are mutually supportive must succeed in
helping the poorest of the poor in the world. They must also succeed for the
sake of the environment.
May 16, 2000 ENN Direct
Increasing Carbon Dioxide Threatens Coral Reefs.
Researchers at Columbia University's Biosphere 2 Center have determined that
increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere may cause more
harm to marine coral reef communities than previous research had indicated.
Dr. Christopher Langdon of Columbia's Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory and
his research team believe that coral growth could be reduced by as much as
40% from pre-industrial levels over the next 65 years. "This is the first
real evidence that increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have a
negative impact on a major Earth ecosystem," says Langdon. By mid-century,
increasing levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, caused primarily by the
burning of fossil fuels, are expected to reduce by 30% the carbonate ion
concentration of the surface ocean. The research shows that this will cause
a significant reduction in calcification rates for the coral and coralline
algae. Langdon believes the results of his research have some important
implications. Coral reefs are natural breakwaters protecting tropical
islands and other coastal areas from beach erosion. The impacts are much
greater than previously believed, leading to increasing vulnerability of
many reefs to other man-caused sources of stress, like over-fishing or
pollution.
May 17, 2000 Planned Parenthood
Action Alert! House Amendment to Block RU486!
Before Congress goes home for the Memorial Day weekend, the
House will vote on an amendment blocking the final approval
of mifepristone (RU-486). Rep. Tom Coburn (R-OK) has
offered an amendment to the Agriculture Appropriations
bill, which would prohibit the FDA from testing,
developing, or approving any drug that induces an abortion,
specifically mifepristone. However, this amendment would
potentially stop innovations in chemotherapy and anti-ulcer
medication, which have the side effect of inducing abortion.
A vote on this issue is expected by next Monday. Go to
http://www.plannedparenthood.org/rchoices/lac/take.html to
learn more about this bill and to send a letter to your
representative against this (Coburn) amendment today.
May 16, 2000 PanAfrican News Agency
Over 14 Million Congo Citizens Face Nutrition Deficiency.
A least 14 million out the population of the Democratic Republic of Congo,
estimated at between 46-48 million, suffer from extreme nutritional
deficiency, according to Michel Kassa of the UN Development. Children were
particularly hit by the war-induced phenomenon. He emphasised that the
situation in the country was one of the most pathetic and complex in the
African region, with massive violations of the population's rights. Since
August 1998 when rebels backed by Rwanda and Uganda, the war's first victims
have been the civilian population, unlike classical warfare. Poor
infrastructure problems made it virtually impossible to reach vulnerable
groups. 10% of the displaced people in the North-Kivu region were
practically cut off from access to medical care or food and were thus dying
in the forests from hunger and disease. According to UNDP estimates, the
ongoing war had caused a rise in maternal mortality, which now stands at
1,800 per 100,000 births, making it the third or fourth highest death toll
in the world.
May 16, 2000 Associated
Press/Johannesburg Business Day
HIV/AIDS to Stunt Botswana's Economy.
Botswana's AIDS epidemic will cost almost one-third of the country's
economic potential in the next 10 years, according to a government report.
Botswana currently has one of the world's highest HIV-infection rates, with
20% of its 1.5 million citizens testing positive for the virus. 25% of all
economically active adults are expected to lose an income earner to the
disease. Government revenue is also expected to drop over the next 10 years,
while expenditures will rise, creating a budget deficit of 21%. The epidemic
is expected to reduce annual gross domestic product growth by 1.5% and cause
a shortage of skilled workers. "Per capita household income for the poorest
quarter of households is expected to fall by 13% while every income earner
in this category can expect an extra four dependants as a result of
HIV/AIDS," the report said. [Despite the losses expected due to AIDS,
Botswana's population is expected to double by 2050.]
May 14, 2000 Panafrican News
Agency
Morocco: Maternal Mortality Is 25 Times Higher Than Europe.
At least 228 women die per 100,000 births in Morocco during childbirth,
partly due to to hemorrhaging, hypertension and infections, according to
figures released Sunday at a meeting of the International Planned Parenthood
Federation in Rabat. Morocco's rate is 2-3 times higher than some Arab
countries and 25 times higher than in Europe. Meanwhile, the average
fertility rate dropped from 7.2 in 1962 to 2.8 in 2000, while contraceptive
use rose from 19.4% in 1980 to 58.8% in 1997. Worldwide, more than 580,000
women die during pregnancy and delivery each year, 99% of them in developing
countries. Of the more than 580,000 deaths during pregnancy or delivery each
year world-wide, 99% occur in developing countries.
May 15, 2000 Earth Times
Trafficking of Women in Africa Rising with Little Notice from
Officials
From the immigration/exploitation department: The problem of
sex trafficking has received particular attention in Asia and Eastern
Europe, but women in Africa are also vulnerable to sex trafficking and
immigrant smuggling rings because many are poor and uneducated, a study by
the Young Women's Christian Association has found. African women are
trafficked for prostitution, domestic work and marriage to Europe, Asia and
Australia. Many risk prosecution as illegal immigrants, and a large number
suffer various forms of violence. Young African women are particularly at
risk because their parents or guardians lack the capacity to educate them.
Many end up as prostitutes because they are deceived into believing they
will receive a high-quality education abroad.
In Zambia, the YWCA is currently working in more than 32 communities to help
spread awareness of the problem and assist survivors of sex trafficking. The
YWCA is a Christian organization dedicated to empowering women to challenge
all forms of gender based discrimination against women and wants to educate
women that such violence prevents them from realizing their potential as
full human beings and from contributing fully to the advancement of
themselves, their families and their country. From the Philadelphia
Inquirer, May 12 2000 ... Of the thousands of immigrants and asylum
seekers in Europe, between 175,000 and 300,000 are sold into sex slavery,
bought by criminals for $1,000 to $5,000. Many end up in the United States.
A large number of sex slaves and prostitutes come from Asia and Thailand,
more and more are coming from Central and Eastern Europe ... and a growing
number of them are very young. From the Toronto National Post, May 17,
2000 ... Canada has become a destination for women and children smuggled
from poor nations and a transit point for those going to the United States.
Government estimates say underworld sex traffickers earn up to $400 million
each year from operations in Canada.
May 15, 2000 Earth Times
Illegal Routes Thrive on Hopes of Millions.
They come (by boat) every night with the rhythm of the tides. Iraqis.
Albanians. Chinese. Moldovans. Pakistanis. They are part of a $7 billion
worldwide people-smuggling industry. More than four million people a year,
most relying on criminal syndicates and circuitous routes, are funneled from
poor and war-ravaged corners of the globe toward the prosperity of the West.
Long a problem for the United States, illegal immigration is becoming a
crisis in Europe. Every year, 500,000 to 800,000 illegal immigrants and
asylum-seekers trek into the continent. Their fates are tied to Russian,
Chinese and Eastern European crime clans that run violent smuggling networks
that charge immigrants $250 to $5,000 each. The International Centre for
Migration Policy Development in Vienna estimates that for every illegal
immigrant arrested at border crossings, two more successfully sneak past
police. For Germany, one of the most popular destinations, that means that
for the 292,584 immigrants arrested at the borders between 1990 and 1998,
about 600,000 others slipped in.
May 16, 2000 UNEP Press
Release
UN Inter-agency Working Group In Discussions On Sustainable Water Use In
Africa.
Water is becoming one of the most critical natural resource issues in
Africa. The African continent is one of the two regions in the world facing
serious shortages. More than 300 million people in Africa still lack
reasonable access to safe water. In sub-Saharan Africa, only about 51% of
the population have access to safe water, and only 45% to sanitation. A
two-day meeting at UNEP will focus on promotion of equitable access to
water; sustainable use of freshwater; meeting urgent water needs to assure
household water security, assure water for food production, managing water
for African cities. UNEP is co-chairing the meeting with the World Bank and
the World Meteorological Organization.
May 15, 2000 BBC Online
Climate Change Could Cost England, Wales $1.8 Billion.
According to a report by the UK Department of the Environment, Transport and
the Regions, extreme weather conditions brought on by global warming could
force England and Wales to spend nearly $1.8 billion over the next 50 years
on protection measures, such as constructing stronger defenses against river
and estuary flooding. Flowers such as the Snowdon lily, birds like the
dipper and snow bunting and arctic alpine species could disappear
altogether. The government already requires water companies to produce
25-year water resource strategies that account for climate change. Work is
also underway on a guide for land planning use, which identifies areas that
need to be adapted to global warming. Meanwhile, a writer in Vancouver
Sun, May 17, 2000, Ken Drushka, criticizes global warming
alarmists: "The prophets of doom, with which our age is
drastically overpopulated, have outdone themselves in the creation of
apocalyptic scenarios that range from the flooding of all coastal cities to
the creation of vast deserts in the Canadian boreal forest." Drushka remains
uncertain whether global warming is real, or just the "bleating of ...
hysterics."
May 16, 2000 AP/SanFrancisco
Chronicle
Columbian Court OKs Oil Project On Tribal Land.
A Colombian court gave approval Monday to US oil company Occidental
Petroleum Corporation to drill near U'wa tribal lands, overturning an
earlier moratorium resulting from the tribe's protests. The project could
yield up to 1.4 billion barrels of crude oil and bring the Colombian
government revenues of $900 million annually. The U'wa maintain an ancient
belief that oil exploration is equivalent to sucking dry the "blood of
mother earth."
May 9, 2000 Houston Chronicle
Catholic Church Returning to Mexican Politics.
Mexico's Roman Catholic Church is using this year's presidential election to
try to nudge its way back into the country's political mainstream. In the
mid 19th century President Benito Juarez passed stiff anti-clerical laws to
curb the enormous power and wealth of the church. All church property
belonged to the government. Laws prohibited priests and nuns from wearing
their vestments in public and from voting. Religious services outside
churches were forbidden by the constitution. In 1992, legal reforms eased
some of the restrictions. But the strict separation of church and state
persisted. Some polls suggest that 70% of Mexicans believe the church should
still stay out of politics. Church officials say they want to curb the
government's support of birth control, and that they want religious
education will be allowed in public schools and the church to be able to own
radio and television stations.
CCMC KG
May 12, 2000 CFFC release
Vatican: Effort To Revoke UN Observer Status Angers Bishops.
The National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) slammed Catholics for a Free Choice (CFFC), which is campaigning to have the Holy See's permanent observer status at the United Nations revoked.
NCCB President Joseph Fiorenza called the CFFC "an arm of the abortion lobby" and said the group's
effort "has ridiculed the Holy See in language reminiscent of other episodes
of anti-Catholic bigotry that the Catholic Church has endured in the past."
CFFC President Frances Kissling charged that Catholic
bishops "are willing to coerce pregnancy and childbirth by denying women and
men access to contraceptive methods the church has banned"
May 3, 2000 ENS
People of India Parch, Perish in Severe Drought.
An estimated 50 million people and 100 million head of cattle are suffering
from an extreme drought in the already arid regions of India. The most
damaging effect fo water scarcity is that crops have failed for the second
consecutive year now. The water shortages are occuring in traditionally dry
regions, central and western parts of the country.
Social conflicts over the diminishing water supply abound. A number of
farmers have ingested pesticide to end their misery. Police open-fired on
people rioting over the water crisis. More than 1,000 women laid siege to a
district administrative council president's office in protest.
For several years, drought and prolonged dry spells have afflicted the
inhospitable and harsh environment of the dryland regions, which constitute
nearly 70 percent of the country's cultivable lands. Traditional forms of
water storage and harvesting have vanished, and rural irrigation has been
completely taken over by an inefficient government machinery, so whatever
available ground water was left has been exploited indiscriminately. MT
May 10, 2000 Heres2Houston
Oil Prices Force Coast Guard Cuts.
For those who think the world may be running low on oil, here's something
to worry about: High gas prices are the forcing the U.S. Coast
Guard to cut its operations by 25% and reduce its ship and aircraft patrol
in 26 states including Texas.
May 9, 2000 NPR
The Myth of Overpopulation. (Real Audio clip). This
belongs in the naysayer department: Commentator Dinesh D'Souza
challenges the notion that the world is threatened by overpopulation. He
cites dropping birth rates, and the availability of land, and he suggests
the best contraceptive is actually economic growth -- that wealthier
families have fewer children. You can comment on the commentary at: All
Things Considered, NPR, 635 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC, 20001;
Fax 202/414-3329; Phone 202/414-2000; E-mail atc@npr.org.
May 8, 2000 Reuters
Belgium to Put Windmills at Sea in Green Energy Bid.
Pending cabinet approval, Belgium may build a wind energy park in the North
Sea, producing renewable energy that would harness the power of winds racing
across the sea between Belgium and Britain. Following the example of
Denmark, a world leader in renewable energy and offshore wind farms, they
would play a major part in achieving the government's aim of getting 3.5% of
the country's electricity consumption from renewable sources.
May 8, 2000 Agence France
Presse
Norway Rates Highest, Niger Lowest for Mother, Child
welfare.
Save the Children released a study rating 106 countries, including 20
industrialized and 86 developing countries, by the wellbeing of their
mothers and children. Criteria used to rate mothers' were health, access to
medical care, maternal mortality rates, contraceptive use, literacy, and
participation in national government. For children, the criteria were infant
mortality rates, primary school enrollment, nutrition and access to safe
water. Women in Niger have a one-in-nine risk of dying due to complications
in pregnancy or childbirth. Confirming earlier findings, female education
and use of family planning were found to be the most important factors in
the wellbeing of mothers and children. Levels of national wealth were not
always reflected in mothers' welfare. Kuwait, for example, ranked third overall in terms of Gross Domestic Product per capita, but was in 50th place, out of the 106 countries, in terms of mothers' well-being. Costa Rica, while only 35th in
terms of GDP per capita, was 12th in terms of mothers' well-being. The U.S.,
the richest nation, tied in fourth place in the rankings for overall
maternal well-being, but dropped to 15th on children's well-being. Norway
had the top combined ranking for both mothers' well-being and children's
well-being, and was followed by Canada, Australia, Switzerland, the US, and
the Netherlands. Niger, in last place, came after Mali, Guinea, Burundi,
Ethiopia and Chad. Other findings: just 6% of women in the bottom 10 countries use modern birth control; one of every eight children born in the bottom 10 countries will not live to reach his or her first birthday. MacCormack, a representative of Save the Children said: "US funding for overseas humanitarian development assistance on a per capita basis is less than any other industrialized nation, and represents less than half of one percent of the total US budget."
May 10, 2000
NNI/KarachiDawn
Pakistani Women Suffer from the Highest Maternal Mortality Rate in the
South Asian Region. 71% of Pakistani women do not receive
antenatal and childbirth care from trained attendants. The UN World Food
Program (WFP) increased the number of visits by women to some 700 health
centers in rural areas by offering edible oil. The WFP also uses edible oil
to encourage poor families to send their girls to school. About 50,000 girls
in 20 poor districts regularly attend 900 primary schools, bring home edible
oil for 20 days attendance each month.
May 10, 2000 Reuters
Drought Forcing Millions to Move.
In Afghanistan, civil strife and low food production last year exacerbated
an already-precarious situation. Now, large numbers of people have
lost their wheat crops to the drought, the FAO said. Lacking water and feed, many
herds of livestock have died, and many people have migrated to urban areas
in search of food and water (FAO release, 11 May). A UN report yesterday said the entire population of the Registan desert in southern Afghanistan has fled after their water sources have dried up. About 300,000 families were evacuated by the ruling Taliban militia to adjacent districts. UN officials also reported that the mortality rate among livestock in the worst-affected areas was "in the range of 50% to 60%."
The situation is no better in Kandahar, where water tables continue to drop. 90% of the local population depends on the wells (Agence France-Presse/ReliefWeb, 10 May). The United Nations says $1.8 million is needed in Afghanistan just for short-term measures to counter the drought, and additional resources will be needed over the next 12 to 18 months. The UN plans to have a detailed one-year strategy by the end of May, but it urged immediate action on drinking water, emergency rations and livestock feed (Kate Clark, BBC Online, 9 May). ... Meanwhile, in Pakistan, the drought has devastated the country's largest province, Baluchistan, and Sindh province in the south. Conditions are expected to worsen, with little rain in the forecast. Several hundred people have died from the drought, and several million livestock are in trouble (FAO release). Pakistani officials said yesterday that the current drought
is the worst in the country's history and that millions of people are being forced to
leave their homes More than 3 million people are at risk in Baluchistan and Sindh,
and officials predict there will be no rain in Baluchistan before December.
In the face of the worsening drought, UN resident coordinator Francesco Bastagli said Iran is ready to accept foreign aid for only the second time in the country's history. Footage was shown of dead camels lying in the streets. Water is being rationed in the Khorasan province, where 10,000 houses in 75 villages are bereft of water supplies. Tankers are supplying water (BBC Online, 10 May). A terrible drought last year, which led to 25% less wheat production, has made this year's drought even worse. Meanwhile, an estimated 10 million people in India are being affected by "serious water shortages" in more than half the 18,000 villages in Gujarat. The majority of reservoirs in northern and western areas have gone dry, and well-water levels have dropped. Many families in the worst-affected areas are trying to migrate to other areas, the FAO said In Iraq, the Tigris and Euphrates rivers have dropped to about 20% of their average flow, placing constraints on irrigation. Last year, similar drought conditions and pest and weed infestations reduced cereal output by about 40% compared to the previous five-year average, and the effect on livestock was "very serious," the FAO said In Jordan, prospects for this year's wheat and barley crops are "poor" in the wake of a drought last year which reduced wheat and barley harvests by 88%. Sheep farmers are among those hardest-hit by the drought.
May 10, 2000 Reuters
Worries, Not Celebration, as India Hits a Billion.
As far back as 1952, India was among the first countries to launch a
state-sponsored family planning program when its rapidly growing population
was about 360 million. Since then the population has almost tripled. At its
current rate of 1.91% (15.5 million people a year) is double that of
China's, and India could overtake China by 2045 as world's most populous
country, according to Population Foundation executive director K.
Srinivasan. "While the global population has increased threefold during
this (20th) century, from 2 billion to 6 billion, the population of India
has increased nearly five times from 238 million to 1 billion", according to
a government report. India failed to rein in its population because of a
disastrous experiment with forced sterilization during the two-year
emergency rule in the 1970s when then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi suspended
civil rights. Demographer Ashish Bose said that "Forced sterilizations did
permanent damage to the family planning policy. As a result, family planning
became a dirty word in India." The policy also failed because it was too
target-oriented and because sharp declines in death rates were not
accompanied by a similar drop in birth rates. Most family planning in India
equates to female sterilization, the result of target fulfilling. This year
the government announced a new population policy not bound by numerical
targets but offering incentives for two-children families and for delaying
marriage, and aims to bring fertility rates down to replacement levels by
2010 and achieve what it calls a stable population by 2045. This follows an
earlier shift in emphasis from demographic control to health care and
education of women, but in India, men continue to determine reproductive
choices. With the new policy, the focus is on the role and responsibility of
men. Although India has cut its fertility rate to 3.3 children per woman
from six in 1951, and the birth rate has declined to 26.4 from 40.8 per
1,000, the UNFPA warns that the alarming growth levels are putting intense
stress on the country's already creaking infrastructure and stretching food.
About half of India's adults are illiterate, a third live below the poverty
line and more than 15 percent of children under the age of 15 suffer from
malnutrition.
May 10, 2000 Reuters
Indian Population Clock Stops Short of One Billion.
A population clock in the heart of the Indian capital has stopped ticking
just days before it was set to cross the one-billion mark. A new clock in in
the works, hopefully before India's billionth citizen is predicted to be
born at 12.56 p.m on May 11. Set up on a billboard by the UNFPA at a busy
road crossing, the digital counter is supposed to serve as a reminder of the
need to control population growth.
May 10, 2000 Reuters
The Birth Control Pill Celebrates Forty Years of Fame.
An estimated 468 million American women have taken the Pill since its
introduction. Today, more than 16 million American women use the birth
control pill. It is credited as one of the most significant advancements for
the women's movement and in medicine. Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical introduced
the first low-dose pill.
Before the development of the Pill, women tried a variety of "nature's
elixirs" as contraceptive methods. They drank mercury, swallowed carrot
seeds, ingested diluted copper ore, or drank a brew of beaver testicles
soaked in alcohol. In the late 1930s, researchers discovered how estrogen
and progesterone work in the body to suppress ovulation. In 1956, Dr.
Gregory Goodwin Pincus created the first Pill with government funding and
help from birth control
advocates Margaret Sanger and Katherine McCormick. It wasn't until four
years later, however, that the FDA gave the Pill its stamp of approval for
use as a method of birth control.
May 10, 2000 Reuters
U.S. Pledges AIDS Drug Help for Sub-Saharan Africa.
Retreating from a controversial policy pushed by U.S. drug makers, President
Clinton promised U.S. officials would not stand in the way of countries that
sought to obtain less costly, generic AIDS medication for their poorest
citizens as long as the measures complied with the World Trade
Organization's agreement on intellectual property - giving countries more
leeway to pursue less expensive medicines. The spread of AIDS had reached
crisis levels in sub-Saharan Africa, with more than 20% of adults are infected with
the HIV virus in some areas.
May 10, 2000 Reuters
People of India Parch, Perish in Severe Drought.
Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee sought to mitigate human
suffering arising from one of the worst droughts to hit the country. An
estimated 50 million people and over 100 million head of livestock are
suffering from thirst and hunger. Crops have failed for the second
consecutive year. Water sources in the traditionally dry central and western
regions are severely depleted. In Gujarat, police had to open fire on people
rioting for drinking water. More than 1,000 women, carrying empty vessels on
their heads, laid siege to a district office. In Orissa, villagers in the
worst affected areas have migrated to neighbouring states looking for work.
The dryland regions constitute nearly 70% of the country's cultivable lands.
Monsoon rains are being called "normal" for 12 years in a row, but failure
of rains in certain pockets and the continuing dry spell had simply gone
unreported. The ground water level in some regions has dipped as low as
1,200 feet below the surface. However, a number of oases still dot the
scorched landscape: the villages where the natural resources have been by
the communities using simple and effective methods
like a series of small water storage tanks, recharging of village wells
whose water percolates into the ground and replenished the underground
reservoir for drinking and irrigation. The government has a sufficient food
grain stock of 26 million tonnes and a massive relief operation has been
launched to combat the disaster. Food, fodder and water is being moved to
the affected areas.
May 9, 2000 E-Wire
Fuel Cells May Power the Future, But What Will Be the Fuel?
Fuel cells promise to produce the world's electricity, heat and cool its
homes, and power its automobiles within the next 10 to 20 years. Fuel cells
can run on a wide variety of fuels including gasoline, natural gas, methanol
and hydrogen, but not all alternatives effectively reduce pollution and
global warming gases. Dr. Robert J. Wilder, Conservation Director at Pacific
Whale Foundation, in a column for Engineering News-Record, advocates
the use of cleanly produced hydrogen, using only hydrogen plus oxygen from
the air to produce electricity like a battery. Yet better than a battery,
fuel cells will go on making power as long as supplied with a fuel. Only
water vapor is released. Hydrogen can be generated cleanly a number of ways,
including splitting water by using renewable solar, or wind power. An option
to store hydrogen could be the use of metal hydrides that work like sponges
and allow gaseous hydrogen to be held at low pressure. Fascinating ideas
like making hydrogen from algae on your pond or panels on your roof, and
storing it in space-age nanotubes to run your home and car without
pollution, lay out the sort of future one hopes gets here as soon as
possible, notes Wilder. As a bridge to the more advanced hydrogen
technologies, natural gas, already available in many homes, could be used to
produce hydrogen which could then power homes with little pollution.
Consumer friendly methanol fuel is also being considered, but converting it
would still result in 24% unwanted carbon-dioxide emissions.
May 6, 2000 Sierra Club
Contact Your Represenative to Support Democracy.
The Global Democracy Promotion Act of 2000 (H.R. 4211) has been introduced
by Representatives Lowey, Pelosi, Shays, and Greenwood. This bill reaffirms
the U.S. commitment to free speech and democratic values, abroad as well as
at home. It also addresses the heart of the Global Gag Rule restrictions
which would be unconstitutional in the United States because they violate the right to
freedom of expression and ability to advocate on behalf of one's beliefs.
The bill's sponsors seek to educate their colleagues about the fundamental
principles at stake in international family planning funding and the need to
defeat the Global Gag Rule. H.R. 4211 will stop foreign non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) from being forced to relinquish their right to free
speech in order to participate in U.S. supported family planning programs.
It will also stop foreign NGOs from being barred from U.S. supported family
planning programs solely because they provide legal health services with
their own money. TAKE ACTION Call your Representative to state your support
for this pro-democracy legislation. Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121.
May 3, 2000 UPI/UNWire
India's Population Predicted to Hit Billion Mark May 11.
India grows by about 18 million people a year, and is the world's second
most populated country after China. India is one of the most crowded
countries on earth, with an average of 300 people per square kilometer,
according to the UNFPA.
May 5, 2000 Reuters Health
Sterilization Leading Form of Birth Control in US.
Tubal ligation and vasectomy are more popular than the birth control pill,
and, surprisingly, one third of all tubal ligations performed are done on
single women. At the time of sterilization, women had an average age of 30
and 2-3 children. 11,000,000 US women of reproductive age have undergone
tubal ligation, while only 4.21 million American women have a partner who
has had a vasectomy. The 10-year cumulative failure rate of of tubal ligations are
only 18.5 per 1,000 women, but for these failures, the risk for ectopic (or
tubal) pregnancies was high.
May 5, 2000 Reason
Naysayer's Corner:
Earth Day, Then and Now - The Planet's Future Has Never Looked
Better. Thirty Years ago, 20 million Americans participated in
the first Earth Day on April 22, 1970 - this event provoked a torrent of
apocalyptic predictions. Three decades later, of course, the world hasn't
come to an end; if anything, the planet's ecological future has never looked
so promising. The prophets of doom were not simply wrong, but spectacularly
wrong. (This is a lengthy article which
includes a good history of the environmental movement worth reading, but the
author conveniently ignores many facts.
May 3, 2000 UPI/UNWire
Africa: Birth Rate Drops In Sub-Saharan Region.
According to a study from Pennsylvania State University, sub-Saharan
fertility rates have dropped considerably in the past decade, especially in
urban areas. Until the late 1980s, sub-Saharan Africa was the only major
region worldwide where fertility rates remained high and showed no signs of
falling. Reasons for the drop include lower infant and child mortality,
higher education levels, delayed marriage and increased use of
contraception, researchers said. The population growth rate is now at 3% per
year.
May 3, 2000 UPI/UNWire
GMOs May Pose New Risk to Endangered Plants, Animals. William
Brown, a science adviser to Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, told a
National Academy of Sciences panel that genetically engineered organisms
(transgenic fish and plants) could inadvertently alter the environment much
like invasive, non-native species. For example, in Maine, if transgenic fish
grown in aquaculture farms were to escape, the less than 200 remaining
Atlantic salmon living in Maine rivers could be quickly wiped out.
May 2, 2000 Gulf News
U.S. faces Tight Natural Gas Supply.
From the Un-sustainability Department:
Driven by dwindling natural gas production and rapidly rising demand from new power plants in the United States, energy analysts are forecasting lean supplies over the next year are likely to keep gas prices near historical highs. Natural gas demand experienced an unexpected 2.5% gain in 1999, and another 3-4% rise is predicted for next year. JH
May 2, 2000 JHU/CCP
As The Pill Turns 40, More Women Than Ever Use It
Forty years after oral contraceptives were first introduced on May 9,
1960, more than 100 million women rely on them, making them the most
popular contraceptive method in 78 of 150 surveyed countries,
according to a new report from the Johns Hopkins School of Public
Health. Outside of China and India, the pill is the most popular contraceptive
method, used by some 12% of married women, according to the latest
issue of Population Reports, the quarterly journal published by the
Johns Hopkins Population Information Program. (In China and India
family planning programs have emphasized long-term or permanent
methods.) Outside Eastern Europe and Asia, an estimated 36%
of sexually active unmarried women in developed countries use this
method. For country-by-country statistics on oral contraceptive use, go to
http://www.jhuccp.org/pr/a9/a9suptab.stm
May 2, 2000 World Watch
Falling Water Tables in China May Soon Raise Food Prices Everywhere. By Lester A. Brown
In 1999 the water table under Beijing fell by 2.5 meters (8 feet). Since 1965, the water table under the city has fallen by some 59 meters or nearly 200 feet, warning China's leaders of the shortages that lie ahead as the country's aquifers are depleted by overpumping. In the northern part of the country, the demand for water outstrips the supply, water tables are falling, wells are going dry, streams are drying up, and rivers and lakes are disappearing. The south, with 700 million people, has 1/3 of the nation's cropland and 4/5 of its water. The north, with 550 million people, has 2/3 of the cropland and 1/5 of the water. The water table is dropping by 1.5 meters a year under the North China Plain, which stretches from just north of Shanghai to well north of Beijing and produces 40% of China's grain. By 2010, China's population is projected to grow by 126 million, and the World Bank projects that China's water demand will increase by 60% for urban usage, and by 62% for industrial usage. In China almost 70% of the grain harvest comes from irrigated land, whereas in the US, it is only 15%. In China, a thousand tons of water produces one ton of wheat, worth perhaps $200. The same water used in industry will expand output by $14,000-70 times as much. The Yellow River, a major river, ran dry for the first time in thousands of years in 1972, failing to reach the sea for some 15 days. Until 1985, it then ran dry intermittently. After 1985, it has run dry each year; in 1997, it failed to
reach the sea for 226 days. China is not alone in facing water shortages. Other countries where water scarcity is raising grain imports or threatening to do so include India, Pakistan, Iran, Egypt, Mexico, and dozens of smaller countries. But only China-with nearly 1.3 billion people, a fast-growing economy, and a
$40-billion-plus trade surplus with the United States-has the potential to disrupt world grain markets. In short, falling water tables in China could soon mean rising food prices for the entire world.
Spring 2000 Rand Press Release
Do Public Attitudes Toward Abortion Influence Attitudes Toward Family Planning?
Understanding that American legislators who tend to vote against abortion are also less likely to support international family planning programs, Rand sought, in a poll of over 1,500 people, to determine if these legislators were representing their constituency. They found that attitudes towards abortion actually exert only "minor influence" in America's attitude towards family planning. 52% of those interviewed believed family planning did not include abortion, while 46% said it did. Only 33% thought birth control included abortion. Current U.S. laws define family planning as excluding abortion, and will not provide aid to other countries which will be used to conduct abortions in those countries. 80% of the American public polled supported US funding for voluntary family planning programs in other countries, with another 86% favoring family planning services for poor women. Abortion caused more concern with the interviewees, of which 22% believe it should be legal in any circumstance. Another 62% believed abortion should be legal in special circumstances, and 15% held the opinion that all abortions should be illegal. As for overseas funding of abortions, the public remains divided with 50% in favor of US funding for abortions in developing countries and 46% against. In analyzing the polls, Rand had two major conclusions. First, they found that only about half the public believes that abortion reflects a lack of access to family planning services. Second, they found that of the 46% opposing funding for overseas abortions, 2/3 support funding for family planning. As for lessons learned, Rand believes that there were three: 1. the public lacks a clear grasp of what family planning means and whether abortion is included; 2. that public policy discussions should separate family planning and abortion in order to produce policies which better reflect public opinion; 3. the public needs to be better educated on the research evidence that suggests better family planning services reduce the number of abortions. jb
May 12, 2000 ENN
Soot Eats Clouds, Turns Up Global Thermostat.
Coal-burning power plants, diesel-burning vehicles, dung burnt for heating and cooking - are sources of soot, which reduces cloud cover and enhances global warming, according
to a report in the March 10 issue of Science magazine. Pollution over the Indian subcontinent is one large source identified by Andy Ackerman, a scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California. With less cloud cover reflecting sunlight back to space, increased solar energy reaches Earth's surface and the lower atmosphere, causing a warming of the atmosphere and oceans, a warming that is three to five times greater than that of the greenhouse effect attributed to carbon dioxide emissions since the Industrial Revolution of the 1800s. When soot aerosols such as sulfates and sulfuric acid from lead smelters and oil refineries increase the number of tiny water droplets in clouds, the droplets can no longer coalesce to form rain. However, the aerosol pollutants also reflect sunlight back to space, rendering a cooling effect on Earth that may cancel out the warming effect of greenhouse gases.