Monday, 23 Oct 2006

Go for Choke

Deliberate forest fires cause choking haze in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia has been suffering through hellish smog over the last few weeks thanks to Indonesian farmers and owners of timber and palm-oil plantations who have set massive fires to clear land. Slash-and-burn practices are illegal in Indonesia, but nonetheless take place every year and rarely result in punishment. This year, the air quality is particularly bad, triggering health problems, causing traffic accidents, forcing children to stay indoors, and putting a damper on outdoor recreation and tourism. James Hosking, a Brit vacationing in Singapore, complained, "I'm supposed to be brown. I told my friends I'd be lazing out by the pool sunbathing. I've been here nine days and I haven't seen an hour of sun." With visibility as low as 650 feet in certain areas, the thick smoke has shut down some airports. The haze -- which experts fear could last until late November -- could cost the region more than $9 billion. Ironically, some of the palm oil that will come from newly cleared plantation land will be used to make "eco-friendly" biodiesel.


You shun pesticides on your food, in your garden, and especially in your home, but when cockroaches come crawling out of nooks and crannies, even the most ardent environmentalist can be tempted to reach for the Raid. Don't do it, says advice columnist Umbra Fisk, who comes to the rescue of a desperate reader with non-toxic tactics for repelling roaches.

License Plates Never Looked So Good

Inmates exposed to toxins in e-waste recycling program, says report

A federal recycling program that uses cheap prison labor to recycle computers and other electronics exposes inmates to unsafe conditions, says a report released by activist and environmental groups last week. Prisoners paid from 23 cents to $1.15 an hour by government-owned Federal Prison Industries, Inc., also known as UNICOR, are potentially exposed to toxins like lead and cadmium, the report charges. "[P]risoners are human beings, too, and they deserve to be protected and to know what they're being exposed to," says Leroy Smith, a former prison health and safety manager who accused UNICOR of providing unsafe working conditions at a California facility in 2001. In summer 2005, the Federal Bureau of Prisons found that at least three UNICOR facilities exposed prisoners and staff members to toxins at levels exceeding federal limits, but claimed the problem had been fixed; this year, the U.S. Office of Special Counsel said that finding was inadequate and called for further investigation. UNICOR claims it follows all health and safety rules.


Bon Appétit Management Co. serves up grub for some 200,000 people every day at various corporate offices, universities, and museums. But these ain't your lunch lady's cafeterias. With the help of Maisie Ganzler, Bon Appétit has turned over a green leaf -- requiring chefs to look for local ingredients and use sustainable seafood. As InterActivist this week, Ganzler chats with Grist editors about her company's Eat Local Challenge, the modern "crisis of flavor," and more. Send Ganzler a question by noon PDT on Wednesday; we'll publish her answers to selected questions on Friday.


As another record-setting wildfire season comes to a close, scientists are trying to get a handle on what's behind the increasing severity of U.S. conflagrations. Is the uptick due to climate change, management techniques, or some combination thereof? Josh McDaniel talks with researchers and land managers to find out where the current thinking lies.

Prancing With the Stars

Celebs gather in Malibu to protest plans for offshore natural-gas facility

Famous beautiful people and other denizens of Malibu, Calif., gathered on a beach yesterday to protest a proposal by energy company BHP Billiton to build a liquefied-natural-gas facility 14 miles off the coast. "We have to use our voices and band together and stop this," said Halle Berry, who was joined by a motley crew of A-listers and old-timers including Pierce Brosnan, Cindy Crawford, Ted Danson, Daryl Hannah, Téa Leoni, Jane Seymour, and Dick Van Dyke. Warning that an LNG terminal could pollute the air, harm marine life, and be a terrorist target, protestors urged California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R), who has veto power, to "terminate" the project. Those clever celebs! Cher, Jamie Lee Curtis, Danny DeVito, Tom Hanks, Olivia Newton-John, Martin Sheen, and Charlize Theron were washing their collective hair and couldn't make it to the beach protest, but have signed a letter opposing the LNG facility.