Friday, 30 Apr 1999

Don't Worry, the Frogs Are Just Bored

An outbreak in recent years of deformities in frog legs may be caused by a simple parasite found in nature rather than by chemical pollution, according to two new studies published today in the journal Science. The new research, conducted on Pacific tree frogs in California, suggests that limb deformities are caused by a tiny parasitic worm that bores into tadpoles and disturbs the cells responsible for leg growth. "This is very good news, because the alternative is just a catastrophe," said Stanley Sessions, chief author of one study. Still, the researchers emphasized that their findings did not rule out the possibility that chemical pollutants or increasing ultraviolet light caused by a thinning ozone layer could be contributing to deformities in other locations.

New Nukes Nuked

China has squelched plans to begin any new nuclear power projects in the next three years because the Asian economic crisis has cut into electricity demand, a Chinese nuclear industry official said yesterday. But the halt is expected to be temporary. "This does not mean bleak prospects for nuclear power development in China," the official said. China has two nuclear power stations in operation and two more under construction; when those two are finished in 2006, nuclear power will account for 3 percent of China's total power output.

A Grisly Bill for Grizzlies

Rep. Helen Chenoweth (R-Idaho) is pushing forward with a bill that would restrict the federal government's ability to close forest and logging roads, mandating more public participation in the process. The U.S. Forest Service has closed or plans to close hundreds of miles of road in an eastern Idaho national forest to protect grizzly bears, elk habitat, and water quality, angering off-road vehicle users in Chenoweth's district.

Doggy Don't

Mexico City's horrendous air pollution problem is being exacerbated by dog doo. More than 2 million dogs live in Mexico City's inner Federal District and deposit at least 353 tons of waste a day, the vast majority of which is not scooped up by pet owners. The waste dries into dust that combines with particles from factories, erosion from dried lake beds, and hydrocarbons from car exhaust to form noxious particulate pollution. The dog-doo dust and other particulates settle on food sold at the city's 13,000 open-air food stands. Ozone is still the worst air pollution threat in the city, but particulates are gaining.

Cloak, Dagger, and Turtle

A shroud of secrecy surrounds information about the northern bog turtle, a threatened species that makes its home in meadows from Massachusetts to Maryland, prime suburb territory. Its presence has delayed road and water projects in Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Michael Klemens, who is developing a federal plan to save the species, thinks it could be a mascot of the anti-sprawl movement. Aside from being threatened by development, the turtle is a favorite among poachers, who can get $1,500 a piece for the four-inch turtles. Researchers and state governments diligently protect their info about the turtle so it doesn't get into the wrong hands.

Greens Seeing Red over Redwoods

The war between environmentalists and the logging corporation that owned the treasured Headwaters grove of ancient redwoods in northern California has been one of the nastiest altercations in American environmental history, reports the Washington Post in a long feature story. A controversial deal was struck last month in which the government paid half a billion dollars to the buy the disputed area; however, environmentalists continue to have grave concerns about land still owned by the company but not included in the deal. And they also worry that streams of human visitors to the Headwaters tract, which is now public property, will degrade the area.