United Nations Tackles Ocean Plastic Pollution

Posted on February 27, 2017 by GarryRogers

GR: There is growing realization that waste plastics including everything from packaging to the microfiber fabrics used in clothing, are harming wild plants and animals. An earlier petition campaign and many other reports have finally been heard. It’s good to see the UN tackling the problem.

Erik Solheim, head of UN Environment

“BALI, Indonesia, February 26, 2017 (ENS) – An unprecedented global campaign to eliminate major sources of marine litter within five years was launched this week by UN Environment, the United Nations agency formerly known as UNEP. The campaign is targeting microplastics in cosmetics and single-use plastics such as straws, bags and packaging materials.

SolheimUN Environment chief Erik Solheim of Norway (Photo courtesy World Bank)

“It is past time that we tackle the plastic problem that blights our oceans, said Erik Solheim of Norway, the former Norwegian environment and development minister who now heads UN Environment. “Plastic pollution is surfing onto Indonesian beaches, settling onto the ocean floor at the North Pole, and rising through the food chain onto our dinner tables. We’ve stood by too long as the problem has gotten worse. It must stop.”

“Introduced at the Economist World Ocean Summit in Bali, the UN’s new #CleanSeas campaign is urging governments to adopt plastic reduction policies.

“Ten countries have already joined the campaign with far-reaching pledges to turn the plastic tide.

“Indonesia has committed to slash its marine litter by a massive 70 percent by 2025.

“Uruguay will tax single-use plastic bags later this year, and Costa Rica will take measures to reduce single-use plastic through better waste management and education.

“The campaign is targeting industry with the message that it’s important to minimize plastic packaging and redesign products, and is calling on consumers to change their throwaway habits before irreversible damage is done to the oceans.

This Laysan albatross died from dehydration or starvation after swallowing plastics at sea. Laysan is one of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in the Pacific Ocean. On nearby Midway Atoll, some 200,000 albatross chicks die each year from consuming plastics that block or perforate the stomach, esophagus or gizzard. (Photo by Duncan)

“Each year, more than eight million tonnes of plastic ends up in the oceans, wreaking havoc on marine wildlife, fisheries and tourism, and costing at least $8 billion in damage to marine ecosystems. Up to 80 percent of all litter in the oceans is made of plastic – items such as plastic bottles, bags and cups.” –Environmental News Service (Continue reading: – UN Campaigns to ‘Turn the Tide’ on Ocean Plastics | ENS.)

‘Extremely High Levels’ Of Toxic Pollutants Found In Deepest Parts Of World’s Oceans

Posted on February 14, 2017 by GarryRogers

GR: We can reverse some of our environmental impacts by removing toxic waste and restoring native species. However, some of the things we’ve done seem irreversible. Here’s a report on deep-ocean pollution that, like climate change, is another of the marks of our presence that will persist long after we’re gone. The subtitle sums it up: “There’s literally no escaping mankind’s mess.”

Alan Jamieson/Newcastle University Hirondellea gigas are voracious scavengers that consume anything that comes down from the surface.

“Not even the very deepest, darkest depths of Earth’s oceans can escape mankind’s legacy of toxic pollution.

“In a shocking discovery highlighting the interconnectedness of our planet, scientists have detected “extremely high levels” of organic chemicals in the fatty tissue of amphipods, a type of crustacean, living in Mariana trench ― the deepest part of the world’s oceans.

Garbage in the Pacific Ocean (Huffington Post).

“We still think of the deep ocean as being this remote and pristine realm, safe from human impact, but our research shows that, sadly, this could not be further from the truth,” study author Alan Jamieson, a marine ecologist at Newcastle University in Britain, said in a statement.” –Chris D’Angelo (More: ‘Extremely High Levels’ Of Toxic Pollutants Found In Deepest Parts Of World’s Oceans | The Huffington Post.)

100,000 may have died but there is still no justice over Indonesian air pollution

Posted on February 4, 2017 by GarryRogers

GR: No family should have to endure such heartbreak because some company is pursuing profits at all costs. The tragedy extends even farther than reported here. People can breath through a rag and clean their food. Wild animals can do neither. Moreover, the smoke is from burning wildlife habitat. It’s no surprise that the World Wildlife Fund reports global loss of 60% of all the Earth’s animals since 1970. The total loss is expected to reach 67% by 2020.

“It started with a mild cough. Muhanum Anggriawati was just 12 years old when the cough began, transforming within weeks into a violent hacking that brought up a yellowish-black liquid.

“At the end of last year, her father told an Indonesian court how she had been taken into hospital, and treated with oxygen therapy, then with a defibrillator. Nothing, however, had worked. After a week on a breathing machine, she died in the hospital, her lungs still full of the foul mucus.

“Anggriawati is believed to have been one of many victims of the haze, or air pollution, that regularly spreads across Indonesia because of the huge deforestation fires linked to palm oil and other agribusiness.

“The Global Fire Emissions Database reports that in 2015, fires in Indonesia generated about 600m tonnes of greenhouse gases, which is roughly equivalent to Germany’s entire annual output.

“The smoke contains dangerous chemicals such as carbon monoxide, ammonia and cyanide. A study by Harvard and Columbia universities revealed that the haze may have caused the premature deaths of more than 100,000 people in south-east Asia in 2015. The authors estimated that there were 91,000 deaths in Indonesia; 6,500 in Malaysia and 2,200 in Singapore.” –Elodie Aba and Bobbie Sta. Maria (More: 100,000 may have died but there is still no justice over Indonesian air pollution | Global Development Professionals Network | The Guardian.)

The extinction crisis is far worse than you think

Posted on December 19, 2016 by GarryRogers

GR: This CNN Photo/Video/Data essay has high-quality images and interviews. Recommended.

“Frogs, coral, elephants — all are on the brink. Three quarters of species could disappear. Why is this happening? CNN explores an unprecedented global crisis.” –CNN (Continue: The extinction crisis is far worse than you think)

National Lakes Assessment 2012 Key Findings | National Aquatic Resource Surveys | US EPA

Posted on December 8, 2016 by GarryRogers

GR: In a new report, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency says that 40% of American lakes are polluted, and the situation is getting worse. The EPA blames “nutrient pollution,” but I’ll be more clear: The principal cause of American freshwater pollution is farming and the excess fertilizer that washes off the fields or soaks into the ground water. The photo below is from one of my ponds that has excess nitrogen that is probably from the nearby farm.

People can avoid harmful effects of polluted water by staying out of the water, by not eating fish from the water, and by not drinking unfiltered water. Wildlife does not have these options. Animal species that spend all or part of their time in water are leading the way down to extinction. Yay humans!

“Lakes and reservoirs provide many environmental, economic, and public health benefits. We use lakes for drinking water, energy production, food and recreation. Fish, birds and other wildlife rely on them for habitat and survival. In the National Lakes Assessment (NLA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and its partners surveyed a wide array of lakes representative of those found in the U.S., from small ponds and prairie potholes to large lakes and reservoirs. The NLA is part of the National Aquatic Resource Surveys, a series of statistically-based assessments designed to provide the public and decision-makers with nationally consistent and representative information on the condition of the nation’s waters.” (Continue reading: National Lakes Assessment 2012 Key Findings | National Aquatic Resource Surveys | US EPA

US follows Hong-Kong and Taiwan to restrict food imports from Japan over radionuclide contamination concern

Posted on December 1, 2016 by GarryRogers

GR: Be sure to read the comments that follow the article. There are suggestions that the U. S. and E. U. are not really being careful about contaminated food imports.

Fukushima contaminated food (https://usahitman.com/blackout-radiation/).

Photo by: https://usahitman.com/blackout-radiation. Read the story for a list of questionable Japanese foods.

“The United States has recently tightened restriction of food import from Japan. According to Import Alert 99-33 issued by US FDA, a list of Japanese food will be banned unless they pass physical examination, which includes milk, butter, milk-based infant formula, and other milk products; vegetables and vegetable products; rice and whole grain; fish; meat and poultry; venus clam; sea urchin; yuzu fruit; Kiwi fruit. FAD indicates that revision to this import alert is due to radionuclide contamination.FDA says it will continue consultation with Japanese government to ensure products from the affected prefectures do not pose a health risk to US consumers. FDA will continue monitoring the public health risks due to radionuclide contamination, and when appropriate will remove the Import Alert and resume routine coverage of entries.” (Source: http://en.people.cn/n/2015/0509/c98649-8889831.html)

Comments by Christina MacPherson: What is interesting, and what should be also interesting to the American people is that it is China which publishes this article about the US import Alert 99-33 issued by US FDA last April 2015 whereas up to now I have not seen it published/posted by any US media nor website.

“What is also interesting, is it took the Japanese contaminated food repeatedly found in Taiwan and Hong-Kong in last March and April , and well published in the chinese media and websites, for finally the US FDA to wake up after 4 years of lethargy to take some action.

“If things are getting too hot with exports from Tohoku and Kanto contaminated regions to the US, Japan will change the origin address of their products as being from Kansai, Chubu, Chugoku, Shikoku and Kyushu regions…With adequate paperwork, good credible certificates of origin, it will not pass under contamination control, and business will continue as usual.

“Or they will mix a highly contaminated product from one area with a lesser contaminated product from another area, so as to lower the contamination level to become acceptable to the level of acceptable threshold of the US, as they are already doing inside Japan with rice.

“Regarding imports the US FDA mostly relies on the certificates of origin, not questioning the veracity of the data provided on those certificates, and very seldom monitor the contamination level of all incoming food stocks, only once in a blue moon at random.” –Christina MacPherson (continue reading: US follows Hong-Kong and Taiwan to restrict food imports from Japan over radionuclide contamination concern « nuclear-news).

Big oil v orcas: Canadians fight pipeline that threatens killer whales on the brink

Posted on November 16, 2016 by GarryRogers

GR: Over the brink of climate and biodiversity tragedy, we don’t need any booster jets on the way down. Let’s end these dangerous projects and encourage developers and investors to concentrate on renewable energy. (Follow the link below to see the map for this project.)

Wednesday 16 November 2016 06.00 EST

Big Oil and Extinction of Orcas

“On one shore there are snow-capped mountains. On the other side loom towering skyscrapers. These churning waters off the coast of Vancouver are marked by a constant flow of ferries and containers ships – but they are also home to 80 or so orcas.

“Known as the southern resident killer whales the group has long had a fraught relationship with the urban sprawl they live alongside, leaving them on the knife’s edge of extinction.

“In the late 1960s and early 70s, dozens were captured and sold to aquariums and theme parks around the world. Those who remained were exposed to runoff chemicals used in local industry, making them some of the world’s most contaminated marine mammals.

“But now the orcas of the Salish sea face what conservationists say is their biggest threat to date: an expansion proposal for a pipeline that would snake from Alberta to the Pacific coast.

“Spearheaded by Texas-based energy infrastructure company Kinder Morgan, the C$6.8bn ($5bn) Trans Mountain Expansion project is designed to transport Alberta’s landlocked bitumen to international markets.”–Ashifa Kassam in Vancouver (Continue: Big oil v orcas: Canadians fight pipeline that threatens killer whales on the brink | World news | The Guardian)

In the Birthplace of U.S. Oil, Methane Gas Is Leaking Everywhere

Posted on June 20, 2016 by GarryRogers

An abandoned oil well pipe in Western Pennsylvania. Photographer: Chris Goodney/Bloomberg

Jennifer Oldham, June 20, 2016 —

“Some wells sunk since 1859 leak methane into homes and water
“Citizen scientists” join regulators in race to map lost sites

“Today, about a quarter of the 3.5 million wells across America are active, leaving an inventory of 2.6 million that are no longer in use. The locations of some inactive wells are documented, but little is known of the whereabouts of wells drilled before permitting regulations were enacted 60 years ago. Only 10 percent of abandoned wells are recorded in state databases — meaning there are years of work ahead to locate and plug them. Seth Pelepko of Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection says the agency has plugged only 3,000 such sites in 30 years. Read more: In the Birthplace of U.S. Oil, Methane Gas Is Leaking Everywhere – Bloomberg

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Mark Ruffalo Urges President Obama to Keep Fossil Fuels in the Ground in Gripping New Documentary | Alternet

Posted on June 16, 2016 by GarryRogers

GR.–Mark Ruffalo led the successful effort to ban fracking in New York, proving that celebrities can achieve change.

By Reynard Loki / AlterNet

June 16, 2016.–“I recently attended a film screening of “Dear President Obama, The Clean Energy Revolution Is Now,” a new documentary narrated by actor and activist Mark Ruffalo about the impact of hydraulic fracturing across the United States. Commonly referred to as “fracking,” it is a controversial drilling process to access oil and natural gas—primarily methane—trapped in underground shale deposits. While the fracking boom has created jobs and stimulated the economy, numerous studies have linked it to numerous environmental and health impacts.

“A direct appeal to the president to ban fracking, the film urges Obama (and all elected officials) to join the growing “anti-drilling” movement across the U.S. and accept the reality that the only reasonable energy policy is to leave the majority of fossil fuels in the ground, a position held by many leading scientists.” Continue reading: Mark Ruffalo Urges President Obama to Keep Fossil Fuels in the Ground in Gripping New Documentary | Alternet

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Australia as world’s nuclear waste dump: Should be a federal election issue

Posted on June 11, 2016 by GarryRogers

It is ridiculous to pretend that Australia As World’s Nuclear Waste Dump is “just a State issue” for South Australia.

What about the port for receiving the radioactive trash? – in what State? What about the rail and road transport of radioactive trash? Across which States?

What about Australia as the world’s laughing stock? No other country wants to be the global toxic trash can.

And of those countries that have nuclear power, not one of them has a completed and successfully operating nuclear waste facility for their own radioactive trash, let alone everybody else’s.

Source: Australia as world’s nuclear waste dump: should be a federal election issue – theme for June 16 « Antinuclear

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