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SAFER WORLD a private independent international internet information network www.safer-world.org/ 13//02/08/2003 |
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Dear subscribers, Best wishes, good health and peace for the world Ingrid Scherrmann SAFER WORLD is a private independent international internet-network for a safer environment. ============================================= ACTIVE From P A N U P S Pesticide Action Network Updates Service What Ozone Layer? U.S. Wants to Use More Methyl Bromide February 7, 2003 Take Action: Contact U.S. legislators to stop a dangerous methyl bromide amendment to a bill currently being considered by the U.S. Congress. Visit: http://www.panna.org/billboard/billboard_030207.dv.html The Bush administration has approved requests for the continued use of methyl bromide, a potent ozone-depleting pesticide that is slated to be phased out in 2005 under an international treaty. Should the U.S. exemptions be approved by international reviewers, repair of the damaged ozone layer could be postponed for years. ============================================= ACTIVE - SMOKEFREE LAWS New Jersey, Maryland, and Vermont Introduce Smokefree Laws Legislation will cover all workplaces, including restaurants, bars, and casinos Governments nationwide are considering the following question: "Who deserves a smokefree workplace?" Quickly, they are coming to the same conclusion that ALL workers deserve a smokefree workplace. Tobacco smoke causes cancer, heart disease, and respiratory illness. ALL workers deserve protection from it. Smokers have every right to hurt themselves, but they have no right to hurt others." If you would like to send an ez-letter in support of smokefree NJ, MD, or VT, go to: For New Jersey: http://www.smokefree.org/NJ For Maryland: http://www.smokefree.org/MD For Vermont: http://www.smokefree.org/VT Smokefree workplace legislation happens when enough people stand up and demand that their legislators take action. If legislation does not happen, it is because we, the voters, are not making ourselves heard. Your support is greatly appreciated. Together we can make ourselves heard and win smokefree workplace legislation. Joseph W. Cherner, President -- The list of smokefree cities is growing. Four of the ten largest cities in the United States (New York, Los Angeles, Boston, and San Francisco) have now passed smokefree workplace legislation for ALL workers (including office, restaurant, bar, bingo, bowling, and nightclub workers). In 2003, we will continue to fight for smokefree workplace legislation in cities where workers still have to breathe smoke to hold a job. Several big cities, including Chicago, Denver, Dallas, and Bloomington will be voting shortly. To send letters of support, go to: Chicago: http://www.smokefree.org/Chicago Denver: http://www.smokefree.org/Denver Dallas: http://www.smokefree.org/Dallas Bloomington: http://www.smokefree.org/Bloomington If you would like to send a letter of support for smokefree workplace legislation in other places, go to www.smokefree.org ============================================= ACTIVE - INDIA-Bhopal Toxic waste from Bhopal disaster scene returned to Dow Chemical in Europe Dow talks of building trust while thousands are poisoned A clever "return to sender" activist action! Bhopal activists delivered 18 barrels of toxic waste from the Bhopal site to Dow's European headquarters. http://www.mad-dow-disease.com ! Despite growing evidence that Union Carbide cut safety measures at its Bhopal plant that it insisted on at its sister plant in the U.S., and knew of the contamination at the Bhopal site, Dow continues to claim that Union Carbide "has done what it needs to do to pursue the correct environment, health and safety programs" in Bhopal. See www.greenpeace.org or 'Poison Papers' at www.bhopal.net (2) See the new Greenpeace report see http://archive.greenpeace.org/reports/bhopal.pdf For guidelines on how to clean up Bhopal see http://archive.greenpeace.org/reports/cleanup.pdf ============================================= ACTIVE - GERMANY -Freedom of Information law From Walter Keim: In a seminar last summer lawmakers and journalist analysed the failure of the draft Freedom of Information law for Germany: http://www.message-online.de/4_02/42_cario.html Some of the reasons for the failure were:
The lawmakers were honest enough to tell, that they will not try again, if there is not more interest and pressure from the public. The Green Parties votes encreased from 6,7 % to 8,6 in last automs election. It seems this kept Freedom of Information on the agenda. Will the international community be silent about this development? I am waiting for the results of my petitions to the European parliament http://home.online.no/~wkeim/petition_un.htm and German parliament: http://home.online.no/~wkeim/petition_ifg.htm. Meanwhile I am drafting a letter to the Chancellor of Germany: http://www.aitel.hist.no/~walterk/filer/kanzler-en.htm who has the power to give guidelines. Who is responsible for the lack of freedom of information: http://home.online.no/~wkeim/I_accuse.htm
http://home.online.no/~wkeim/patients.htm Warum sind Patientenrechte defizitär in Deutschland? : http://home.online.no/~wkeim/anklage.htm
http://home.online.no/~wkeim/petition_eu.htm ============================================= CHEMICALS - ACRYLAMIDE 2003-02-04 Acrylamide in foods: No grounds to sound the all clear after new Swedish
study Acrylamide was classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as "probably carcinogenic for man". In the European Union acrylamide is classified in Category 2 - carcinogenic substances. This substance triggers cancer in animal experiments and damages the genotype. Classification in category 2 means that acrylamide should also be considered as carcinogenic for man. Even before the new Swedish study, studies in humans were available for acrylamide in which an increased cancer rate had been found. These studies, like the new Swedish study, do not provide any grounds for the all clear. The fact that no carcinogenic effect was identified in any of the studies is not evidence that there is no such effect. In order to clarify the extent to which acrylamide is involved in the cancer, extremely large numbers of persons and data are required on the total acrylamide uptake of the persons examined. None of the studies has fulfilled this requirement up to now. New scientific findings are continuously assessed by the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment. If they should lead to a deviating assessment of the health risk for consumers from acrylamide, then BfR will immediately inform the general public. ============================================= CHEMICALS - ARSENIC Environmental Daily News ISSUE 1357 - 7 JANUARY 2003: EU bans arsenic in wood preservatives The European Commission yesterday announced a ban on the use of arsenic in wood preservatives, except for a restricted number of industrial applications. The ban, to be in place by 30 June 2004, will also apply to treated wood. Arsenic is the latest substance to be added to a list regulated under the EU‘s 1976 chemicals‘ marketing and use directive (ED 06/01/03 http://www.environmentdaily.com/articles/index.cfm?action=article&ref=13564 .) The Commission proposed the ban in 2001 after scientists recommended tougher restrictions on wood preservatives containing arsenic because of its genotoxic and carcinogenic nature (ED 11/12/01 http://www.environmentdaily.com/articles/index.cfm?action=article&ref=11217 ). Article available: http://www.environmentdaily.com/articles/index.cfm?action=article&ref=1 ============================================= CHEMICALS - ASBESTOS - NEW BOOK Fatal Deception by Michael Bowker. New book on the ongoing asbestos tragedy. ============================================= CHEMICALS -ENDOCRINE DISRUPTERS Environmental Estrogens and Other Hormones Web Site http://www.som.tulane.edu/ecme/eehome/ Center for Bioenvironmental Research at Tulane and Xavier Universities http://www.cbr.tulane.edu ============================================= CHEMICALS - ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMICALS 3 new reports: toxics, exposure and health: - Second National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals (CDC).See: http://www.mapcruzin.com/news/rtk020103a.htm - Toxic Releases and Health: A Review of Pollution Data and Current Knowledge on the Health Effects of Toxic Chemicals (USPIRG). See: http://www.mapcruzin.com/news/rtk020103c.htm - Body Burden: The Pollution in People (EWG)´ See: http://www.mapcruzin.com/news/rtk020103b.htm CDC REPORT OUT ON BODY BURDEN OF CHEMICALS The entire Center for Disease Control (CDC) report is online at www.cdc.gov/exposurereport . The report shows the results of blood and urine testing for 116 chemicals in the human body. Of note is that children showed higher levels of pesticides in their bodies. A 6 page summary can also be downloaded. These test results will help with future medical and scientific research. Chemicals stored in body fat are not included in the body burden results. February 1, 2003, Boston Globe; Page A1 http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/032/nation/CDC_says_toxin_levels_falling_but_seeks_risks+.shtml ============================================= CHEMICALS - FOSSIL FUELS http://members.aol.com/DonationDrive/AHandAllergicResponse.html Residues of Fossil Fuels (Aromatic Hydrocarbons)Increase Allergic Responses Breathing Easier. UCLA researchers have joined the effort to establish a connection between the residues of fossil fuel combustion [aromatic hydrocarbons, such as the propellant solvent xylene which, according to the label, composed at least half of the Diazinon formulation used on the SBU campus] and an epidemic of respiratory allergies... For the information on the complete research study, please see the complete article at http://www.research.ucla.edu/chal/28.htm For more information on the Aromatic Hydrocarbons such as the xylene used on the SBU campus, please see the Aromatic Hydrocarbon and Other Toxic Solvents Information Page. ============================================= CHEMICALS - FRAGRANCES Fragranced Products Information Network This site provides Information on health, environmental, social, economic and regulatory concerns related to fragrance and scented products. http://www.fpinva.org/Newsletter/FpinNewDec02.htm --- EUROPE Scientific Committee on Cosmetic Products and Non-Food Products intended for Consumers - Opinion concerning 2,4-dichlorobenzyl alcohol (DCBA) colipa n° p74, adopted on 10 January 2003 by means of the written procedure http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/sccp/out189_en.pdf - Opinion concerning the determination of certain formaldehyde releasers in cosmetic products, adopted during the 22nd plenary meeting of 17 december 2002 http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/sccp/out188_en.pdf - Opinion concerning a clarification on the formaldehyde and para-formaldehyde entry in Directive 76/768/EEC on cosmetic products, adopted during the 22nd plenary meeting of 17 december 2002 http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/sccp/out187_en.pdf - Opinion concerning amendment to entry n° 419 of annex II to Directive 76/768/EEC on cosmetic products, adopted during the 22nd plenary meeting of 17 december 2002 http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/sccp/out186_en.pdf - Updated basic requirements for toxicological dossiers to be evaluated by the SCCNFP revision 17 december 2002, adopted during the 22nd plenary meeting of 17 december 2002 http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/sccp/out185_en.pdf Scientific Committee on Cosmetic Products and Non-Food Products intended for Consumers - Assessment strategies for hair dyes, adopted during the 22nd plenary meeting of 17 December 2002 http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/sccp/out184_en.pdf Scientific Committee on Cosmetic Products and Non-Food Products intended for Consumers - Minutes of the 21st Plenary Meeting, Brussels, 17 September 2002 http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/sccp/out190_en.pdf ============================================= CHEMICALS - LEAD Jersey takes lead in confrontung autism. Researchers are challenging assumptions about the disorder December 29, 2002 BY CAROL ANN CAMPBELL ´Star-Ledger Staff http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-5/1041146027292410.xml ============================================= DISEASE - GULF WAR ILLNESSES Possible clue to Gulf War illnesses From Brian Cabell and Ted Rubenstein, CNN Washington Bureau, Friday, January 17, 2003 Gulf War veterans suing companies for chemical exports DALLAS, Texas (CNN) - As U.N. inspectors search Iraq for weapons of mass destruction - including chemical weapons - a U.S. researcher may be on the way to unraveling the mystery of Gulf War illnesses, and he says the ailment may be linked to low levels of chemical agents. http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/01/17/gulf.war.illness/ ============================================= DISEASE - VASCULITIS Extract from Bill Rea, M.D., Prof., Dallas, Texas, USA, Angiologe, From his volume 3: "In the chemically sensitive patient vascular injuries associated with chemical insults manifests in a variety of signs and symptoms. The clinical picture is mainly dependent upon the types of vessels involved (vein, capillary or large or small artery), the numbers of vessels involved, the intensity and duration of the pollutant stimuli present and the strength of the nutrient-derived vessel repair mechanism. The spectrum of of injury can range from a very mild localized edema to a major end-organ failure with loss of limb or loss of life to any problems in between..... Vasculitis: "The clinical syndromes produced by pollutants are myriad. Some are namedand others are not. Discussed separately in the remainder of this chapter are vasculitis, small vessel vasculitis, large vessel vasculitis, carotid spasm , Raynaud's Disease, hypertension, hypersensitive vasculitis, periarteriitis nodosa, SLE, Wegener's granulomatosis, rheumatoid vasculitis, eosinophilic vasculitis, recurrent phlebitis , and cardiac arrhythmias and dysfunction, coronary spasm, abdomen and renal vessels, peripheral vessels" Vasculitis "Many necrotizing and nonnecrotizing vasculitides are directly caused or closely associated with immunopathogenic mechanism and environmental triggers." "Usually pollutants triggering vasoactive amines are involved." Collagen Diseases "There are many "therapeutic agents" known to be related to SLE or lupus-like-syndrome. Chemical triggering of lupus-like syndrome has been well established in the literature." .... "There is an impressive number of associated signs and symptoms related to the environmental maladaptation syndrome occurring during the patient's lifetime. Each patient averaged more than ten distinct recurrent signs and symptoms. ......" (from USA resp. Toxdoc) Gernot Schwinger, M.D., ES, Germany, EU ============================================= ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION Mobile phones damage key brain cells and could trigger the early onset of Alzheimer's disease, a study suggests. Researchers in Sweden have found that radiation from mobile phone handsets damages areas of the brain associated with learning, memory and movement. The study, which was carried out on rats, is the latest twist in the long-running debate over whether mobile phones are a health risk. We have good reason to believe that what happens in rat's brains also happens in humans Prof Leif Salford, Lund University... http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2728149.stm Sutherland Shire Environment Centre (in Sydney, Australia): http://www.ssec.org.au/ They have an Electromagnetic Radiation (EMR) sub-committee which should be able to provide some useful info. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2728149.stm --- Environmental Health Perspectives Nerve Cell Damage in Mammalian Brain after Exposure to Microwaves from GSM Mobile Phones Leif G. Salford, Arne E. Brun, Jacob L. Eberhardt, Lars Malmgren, Bertil R.R. Persson, doi: 10.1289/ehp.6039 (available at http://dx.doi.org/ ) 29 January 2003, Full Article in PDF Abstract The possible risks of radio-frequent electromagnetic fields for the human body, is a growing concern for the society. We have earlier shown that weak pulsed microwaves give rise to a significant leakage of albumin through the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Now we have investigated whether a pathological leakage over the BBB might be combined with damage to the neurons. Three groups of each 8 rats were exposed for 2 hours to GSM mobile phone electromagnetic fields of different strengths. We found, and present here for the first time, highly significant (p<0.002) evidence for neuronal damage in both the cortex, the hippocampus and the basal ganglia in the brains of exposed rats. This EHP-in-Press article has been peer-reviewed, revised, and accepted for publication. The EHP-in-Press articles are completely citable using the assigned DOI code for the article. This document will be replaced with the copyedited and formatted version as soon as it is available. Through the DOI number used in the citation, you will be able to access this document at each stage of the publication process. Environ Health Perspect doi:10.1289/ehp.6039. [Online 29 January 2003] http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2003/6039/abstract.pdf ============================================= FOOD EUROPE: International Food Safety Issues - Codex Alimentarius : CCFL - Codex Committee on Food Labelling (updated) http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/ifsi/eupositions/ccfl/ccfl_index_en.html --- From P A N U P S Pesticide Action Network Updates Service Eating Organics Cuts Kids' Pesticide Loads January 31, 2003 A University of Washington study analyzed pesticide breakdown products (metabolites) in pre-school aged children and found that children eating organic fruits and vegetables had concentrations of pesticide metabolites six times lower than children eating conventional produce. The study compared metabolite concentrations of organophosphorus (OP) pesticides (a class of insecticides that disrupt the nervous system) in the urine of 39 urban and suburban children aged 2 to 4 years. The researchers' findings point to a relatively simple way for parents to reduce their children's chemical loads--serve organic produce. ... Related News: The U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC)'s Second National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals, released January 30, 2003, has more information on pesticide metabolites. See http://www.panna.org/campaigns/docsPops/docsPops_030130.dv.html, and watch for next week's PANUPs. Sources: Organophosphorus pesticide exposure or urban and suburban pre-school children with organic and conventional diets, Cynthia L. Curl, Richard A. Fenske, Kai Elgethun, Environmental Health Perspectives, October 13, 2002, National Institute of Environmental Sciences, EHP Online, http://www.ehponline.org; Do You Know What You're Eating? February 1999, Consumers Union of United States, Inc, http://www.consumersunion.org/food/do_you_know2.htm ; Pesticide residues in conventional, IPM-grown and organic foods: Insights from three U.S. data sets, Food Additives and Contaminants, May 2002, http://www.consumersunion.org/food/organicsumm.htm Web: http://www.panna.org --- P A N U P S, Pesticide Action Network Updates Service February 5, 2003 Resource Pointer #308 (Organic Farming)Web: http://www.panna.org ============================================= LAWCOURT California Judge Approves Landmark Warning on Mercury Use in Dentistry. --- From P A N U P S, Pesticide Action Network Updates Service Banana Workers Win Against Dow, Shell & Standard Fruit January 6, 2003 In December 2002, a Nicaraguan judge ordered three U.S. companies, Dow Chemical, Shell Oil Company and Standard Fruit (Dole Food Company in the U.S.), to pay US$490 million in compensation to 583 banana workers injured by Nemagon, an extremely toxic soil fumigant that has sterilized thousands of Central American banana workers. The pesticide, used to control burrowing rootworms or nematodes, is also known to cause impotence, depression and is suspected in increased rates of stomach cancer. ... Web: http://www.panna.org --- From CBGnetwork: Press release 21st January 2003 Historic claim against PCB producers City of Oslo demands 7 million Euro from Bayer AG, Solutia and Kaneka in compensation for harbour clean-up The City of Oslo, Department of Environment, has directed a claim of 7 million Euros to three multinational chemical companies responsible for severe contamination with Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in the Oslo fjord. - A historic claim. This is an important step towards establishing the principle of extended producers' responsibility, says Tom Erik Okland (1) of Friends of the Earth Norway. FoEN has advocated the principle for several years. About half of the PCBs in Oslo harbour have been traced back to German chemical giant Bayer AG. The rest originates from two other producers, Belgium based Solutia (chemical division of multinational Monsanto) and the Japanese Kaneka Corporation. In a letter to Bayer AG the City of Oslo has asked for a compensation of 3.5 million Euro to cover part of the clean-up of heavily contaminated sediments in Oslo harbour. Similar claims have been addressed to the two other companies. Bayer AG has replied Oslo City that they will look into the claim. Kaneka has denied any responsibility. Solutia has not yet responded. Wide parts of the Norwegian coast are heavily contaminated with PCBs. This is well documented by Norwegian Pollution Control Authorities and Friends of the Earth. In several areas the use of seafood is restricted or forbidden. The massive clean-up operations necessary are estimated to cost a total of 3.5 billion Euro. Oslo City is backed up by Friends of the Earth Norway, Norway's largest environmental organisation and environmental lawyers and experts. Tom Erik Okland, of Friends of the Earth Norway commented: - A Norwegian lawsuit will be considered if the PCB-producers do not voluntarily participate in the cost-sharing scheme. Our investigation has firmly established that the main sources of PCBs to Oslo harbour have been ship painting and sandblasting at the shipyards. The named PCB-producers supplied PCBs for ship paint, but failed to inform the shipyards about the environmental hazards involved. Such information could have prevented most of the PCB-pollution along the coast. CBGnetwor: The Coalition against BAYER-dangers has been monitoring the BAYER Corporation for more than 20 years. Anyone who has information on possibly illicit activities of BAYER - please let us know. www.CBGnetwork.org CBGnetwork@aol.com Fax: (+49) 211 333 940 Tel: (+49) 211 333 911, please send an e-mail for receiving the English newsletter Keycode BAYER free of charge. ============================================= POWER STATIONS Power Stations Threaten People and Wildlife with Mercury Poisoning Global Study of This Hazardous Heavy Metal Released UNEP's Governing Council 3 to 7 February Nairobi, 3 February 2003 ? Mercury poisoning of the planet could be significantly reduced by curbing pollution from power stations, a new report released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) suggests. The report, compiled by an international team of experts, says that coal-fired power stations and waste incinerators now account for around 1,500 tons or 70 percent of new, quantified man-made mercury emissions to the atmosphere. The lion's share is now coming from developing countries with emissions from Asia, at 860 tons, the highest. "As combustion of fossil fuels is increasing in order to meet the growing energy demands of both developing and developed nations, mercury emissions can be expected to increase accordingly in the absence of the deployment of control technologies or the use of alternative energy sources," says the report. Artisinal mining of gold and silver, which is happening in an increasing number of less developed nations, is another significant source of mercury pollution, releasing an estimated 400-500 tons of mercury annually to the air, soils, and waterways. Mercury is used to extract these precious metals from ores, resulting in elevated exposures and risks for the miners and their families, as well as contamination of the local and regional environment. Once in the atmosphere, this hazardous heavy metal can travel hundreds and thousands of miles, contaminating places far away from the world's sites where the pollution was originally discharged. Reducing other pollution from power stations may also reduce the threats from mercury to humans and wildlife in indirect but equally important ways. Temperature can also influence releases of mercury from contaminated sediments and soils into rivers, lakes and other freshwaters, the report suggests. Here it can convert to methylmercury, one of it's most poisonous and hazardous forms, and build up in fish and other aquatic life forms with potentially harmful impacts on adults and infants. Numerous studies have linked brain damage in babies to mercury poisoning of their mothers as a result of eating contaminated fish. Fish is still a beneficial food, and low to moderate consumption is considered safe and a healthy dietary practice. However, people who eat higher amounts of contaminated fish or marine mammals such as seals, may be at risk of mercury poisoning. Most people are primarily exposed to methylmercury through eating contaminated fish. However, additional mercury exposures can occur through dental amalgams and certain occupational activities. Also, personal use of skin lightening creams and soaps, mercury use for religious, cultural and ritualistic purposes, use in some traditional medicines, use of vaccines and some other pharmaceuticals containing mercury preservatives (such as Thimerosal/Thiomersal) and mercury in the home and working environment can contribute to elevated exposures. A study of women in the United States, also cited in the new report, has found that about 1 in 12, or just under five million have mercury levels in their bodies above the level considered safe by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Just three years ago, the United States Research Council estimated that about 60,000 babies born each year in the U.S. could be at risk of brain damage with possible impacts ranging from learning difficulties to impaired nervous systems. However, based on more recent exposure data published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, some scientists think the number of at risk babies could be as high as 300,000. Globally the number could run into the millions. Klaus Toepfer, UNEP's Executive Director, said: "Mercury is a substance that can be transported in the atmosphere and in the oceans around the globe, travelling hundreds and thousands of miles from where it is emitted. It has long been recognised as a health hazardous substance". For example the Mad Hatter, of Alice in Wonderland fame, was so called because hatters used mercury to strengthen hats and were once exposed to high levels of mercury vapours. "This new report, requested from UNEP by governments two years ago, shows that the global environmental threat to humans and wildlife has not receded despite reductions in mercury discharges, particularly in developed countries. Indeed it shows that the problems remain and appear, in some situations to be worsening as demand for energy, the largest source of human-made mercury emissions, climbs," he said. "There are many compelling scientific, environmental and health arguments for curbing pollution linked with energy production. The mercury report gives us another compelling reason to reduce society's dependence on carbon intensive energy supplies," added Mr Toepfer. Acid rain, again often the result of power station pollution, may be aggravating the problem. High levels of acidity in rivers, lakes and streams, also appears to trigger releases of mercury from soils and sediments and its conversion into methylmercury. The findings may explain why so many fish in parts of the world where acid rain has been an issue are contaminated. For example in southern and central Finland, an estimated 85 per cent of pike weighing a kilo or more, have methylmercury concentrations that exceed international health limits. Other important sources of mercury releases include cement production, chlor-alkali production, crematories, manufacture of electrical switches, thermometers, fluorescent lamps, dental amalgams and rubbish tips containing wastes such as old batteries and other mercury-containing products. Slash and burn agriculture and the clearing of forests may be increasing releases of mercury to rivers. Meanwhile, mercury contamination in parts of Europe may be affecting the tiny organisms that regulate the fertility of soils, says the study. This may also be having an indirect effect on climate change as soil microorganisms play a key role in the storage of carbon from the atmosphere. These are some of the findings to emerge from the global study of mercury carried out by experts for UNEP. The report is being presented to environment ministers from across the world who are attending UNEP's Governing Council, and will form the basis for political decisions that will set the course for global action on mercury for years to come. The Council is meeting at the organization's headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, from 3 to 7 February 2003. The findings also come in advance of World Water Day, which happens on 22 March and is being organized by UNEP. It will be celebrated at the World Water Forum taking place in Kyoto, Japan. Here the findings will have special significance. Several thousand people were made ill or died in Japan in the 1950 and 60s as a result of eating seafood heavily contaminated by mercury in Minamata Bay. The experts who have compiled the report are asking governments attending the GC to consider a list of options for addressing the dangers of mercury. These include reducing risks by reducing or eliminating the production, use and release of mercury; substituting other non-mercury based products and processes; launching talks for a legally-binding treaty; establishing a non-binding global programme of action; and strengthening cooperation amongst governments on information-sharing, risk communication, assessment and related activities. They also recommend around a dozen "immediate actions" including public awareness programmes targeted at sensitive populations such as pregnant women; waste disposal facilities for the safe destruction of obsolete, mercury-containing pesticides and pollution control technologies for power stations. ... For the Governing Council and a copy of the full report see http://www.unep.org and for World Water Day see www.waterday2003.org (UNEP News Release 2003/08) ============================================= end of newsletter/English/13
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