Thursday, 19 Jul 2001

A Bee in Their Bonnet

The chair of the current climate change conference, Dutch Environment Minister Jan Pronk, said yesterday that his "hopes are growing day by day" that an international agreement would be reached. But others at the conference in Bonn, Germany, were far more pessimistic about a positive outcome. It's not just environmental groups that are pulling for an agreement. One of the profound shifts in the climate debate, writes Elliot Diringer from Bonn, is that some leading corporations are now pushing for concrete steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Read more from Diringer, a veteran environmental reporter now with the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, on the Grist Magazine website.

Peasant Hunting

A Mexican court on Tuesday rejected the appeal of two jailed environmental activists, Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera. The activists, who led peasant farmers to protest against rampant logging in Mexico's southern state of Guerrero, have been sentenced to seven and 10 years in prison, respectively, for drug and weapons charges. Supporters say the two were tortured into confessing to the charges, and the case has provoked an international outcry. The Guerrero appeals court rejected testimony that the men were tortured, and lawyers for the activists said the decision effectively ruled out further appeals in Mexico. Alejando Queral of the Sierra Club said, "This is going to have an extremely chilling effect on other environmentalists in Mexico."

The Great Brain Robbery

Eating fish tainted with PCBs may cause memory loss and brain damage in adults, according to a study of Michigan residents. The study by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of the first to suggest that PCBs in fish may have health implications for all adults; state fish advisories until now have focused on protecting pregnant women, fetuses, and young children. Michigan ships Lake Michigan whitefish and lake trout to restaurants all over the country without health warnings for PCBs, mercury, or other pollutants.

Out of the Frying Pan ...

Teflon frying pans are great for eggs over easy, but their nonstick coating can release chemicals into the environment that may take centuries to break down, according to a study published today in the journal Nature. A University of Toronto research team found that Teflon emits trifluoracetate (TFA) when heated to extremely high temperatures. Once released, TFA seems to collect in wetlands. As levels of the pollutant build up over time, scientists speculate that TFA may pose a problem to plants. A spokesperson for DuPont, which makes Teflon, said Teflon wasn't normally heated to the temperatures the researchers studied, making the findings questionable.

You Can't Hide Your Lion Eyes

At least 35 sea lions were found dead and mutilated in Ecuador's Galapagos Islands on Sunday. Acting on an anonymous tip, officials of the Galapagos National Park discovered the bodies washed up on the beach, with their teeth and genitalia removed. Authorities suspect that the sea lions were killed to sell the body parts as aphrodisiacs in Asia. Sea lions have no natural predators and generally aren't afraid of humans.

Extermi-nation

U.S. House Republicans are threatening to exterminate a proposal that would require school districts to notify parents of pesticide use on school grounds. Senate leaders added the measure to President Bush's education bill after consulting with educators, environmentalists, and representatives of the pesticide industry. Some pesticide manufacturers and school officials argue, however, that the measure would discourage pest control and increase costs and legal liability at schools. More than 30 states have similar pesticide-notification regulations on the books.