36-03/05/2005

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36-03/05/2005

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CHEMICALS - AIR POLLUTION

Story from BBC NEWS:
Published: 2005/02/21 Air pollution causes early deaths
Air pollution is responsible for 310,000 premature deaths in Europe each year, research suggests. A study by the European Commission calculated that air pollution reduces life expectancy by an average of almost nine months across the European Union. Poor quality air is thought to result in more than 32,000 premature deaths in the UK each year alone. Experts say many of these deaths could be avoided if measures were put in place to cut pollution levels. ... The figures show every European takes on average half a day off sick a year due to illnesses linked to air pollution - costing the economy more than 80bn euros (£5.5bn). The main threat to health is posed by tiny particles known as particulate matter, which can penetrate deep into the respiratory tissue, and even directly into the bloodstream. They are emitted by traffic (particularly diesel engines), industry and domestic heating. Ozone produced when sunlight reacts with pollutants emitted by vehicle exhausts is also a major cause of respiratory disease. ... http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/4283295.stm

***

Published: 2004/06/23 Poor air 'harms lungs of unborn'
By Alex Kirby, BBC News Online environment correspondent in Budapest, Hungary Air pollution can damage the lungs of children even before birth, the World Health Organisation says. A report to be published later this year will say animal studies confirm findings that pollutants can impair lung growth in the womb. The pollutants responsible are particulates, tiny fragments of soot emitted mainly from vehicle exhausts. The WHO says the findings are significant, and show the need for urgent action to protect foetuses. http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/health/3832183.stm

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&md5=3068c5d8c88e40d724380ed60150f9db

6) Prevalence of Chronic Diseases in Adults Exposed to Arsenic-Contaminated Drinking Water http://snipurl.com/a4xq
[redirects to the long URL: http://www.ajph.org/cgi/content/abstract/94/11/1936maxtoshow=&HITS=1&hits=1&RESULTFORMAT=&andorexacttitle=or&title

abstract=arsenic&andorexacttitleabs=and&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1098998803325_1815&stored_search=&FIRSTINDEX=&fdate=10/12/2004&usestrictdates=yes&journalcode=ajph&ct

7) Arsenic contamination of groundwater and its health impact on residents in a village in West Bengal, India. http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15682249

8) Testing groundwater for arsenic in Bangladesh before installing a well http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15682249

9) A new metabolic pathway of arsenite: arsenic-glutathione complexes are substrates for human arsenic methyltransferase Cyt19; http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15526190

10) Arsenic exposure exacerbates atherosclerotic plaque formation and increases nitrotyrosine and leukotriene biosynthesis;
      http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15519606

11) Equilibrium, kinetic and mass transfer studies and column operations for the removal of arsenic(III) from aqueous solutions using acid treated spent
        bleaching earth. http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15515273

12) The microbial arsenic cycle in Mono Lake, California, pdf file from one of the authors, Dr.Ronald S. Oremland, at roremlan@usgs.gov

13) Dissimilatory Arsenate Reduction with Sulfide as Electron Donor: Experiments with Mono Lake Water and Isolation of Strain MLMS-1, a
      Chemoautotrophic Arsenate Respirer. , pdf file from one of the authors, Dr.Ronald S. Oremland, at roremlan@usgs.gov

14) Reliability of a commercial kit to test groundwater for arsenic in Bangladesh http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15667109

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CHEMICALS - MERCURY POLLUTION

Mount Sinai Study Shows Impacts of Mercury Pollution on the Health of our Children and the American Economy http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=43611

2/28/2005
NEW YORK, Feb. 28 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Reductions in IQ due to mercury pollution affect between 300,000 and 600,000 American children each year and will cost the United States an estimated $8.7 billion in lost earnings annually (range: $2.2-$43.8 billion), according to a new study by scientists at the Mount Sinai Center for Children's Health and the Environment in New York, released today in Environmental Health Perspectives
http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/members/2005/7743/7743.pdf ), the
peer- reviewed journal of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. The Mount Sinai study, "Public Health and Economic Consequences of Methyl mercury Toxicity to the Developing Brain," is the first study ever to be published in a peer-reviewed medical journal that has examined the magnitude of the impact on America's children of the loss of intelligence (IQ) caused by mercury pollution. It also the first study to ever quantify the economic costs of these impacts. The loss of IQ due to methyl mercury toxicity affects between ten and fifteen percent of the four million children born in America each year. While not all of this damage can be prevented, the study found that coal-fired power plants which produce 41 percent of mercury emissions nationwide cause some $1.3 billion of the economic loss. Throughout the 1990's, the Environmental Protection Agency made steady progress in reducing mercury emissions from power plants. However in 2003, citing the high costs of pollution abatement, the Bush Administration backed away from this good work and proposed the "Clear Skies Act." Passage of the "Clear Skies Act" would relax controls on power plant emissions and permit twenty-six tons of mercury to be released each year into the atmosphere through 2010, a total of 156 tons or 312,000 pounds. Current provisions under the Clean Air Act allow only five tons/year of mercury emissions from power plants by 2008. The uncontrolled emissions that would be allowed under "Clear Skies" will contaminate rivers, lakes and the oceans, keep mercury levels in fish high, and leave children vulnerable. "As pediatricians, we worry about the potential damage to each affected child," said Dr. Leo Trasande, the study's lead researcher, and Assistant Director of the Center. "Moreover, beyond the harm to individual children, lie enormous socioeconomic consequences. The significant impact that "Clear Skies" could have on the economic health and security of the United States should be considered in a careful debate on mercury pollution controls before "Clear Skies" becomes law." "If mercury emissions are allowed to remain at high levels," said Dr. Philip Landrigan, Director of the Center and Chairman of Community and Preventive Medicine at Mount Sinai, "children will continue to suffer loss in intelligence and disruptions of behavior. Most of these effects will last a lifetime and are likely to cost this nation far more than the costs of installing flue gas filters to prevent mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants." The Center for Children's Health and the Environment is the nation's first academic research and policy center to examine the links between exposure to toxic pollutants and childhood illness. CCHE was established in 1998 within the Department of Community and Preventive Medicine of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. The mission of the Center for Children's Health and the Environment (CCHE) of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine is to protect children against environmental threats to health. The abstract of the article is available at http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2005/7743/abstract.html

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CHEMICALS – PESTICIDES

Tuesday, February 15, 2005
Green tea from China found to be contaminated with alarming levels of pesticides China is angry over a test of its green tea exports that turned up alarming levels of pesticides. But rather than turning to its agricultural practices
and limiting the use of pesticides, China is attacking the testing methods used to detect the pesticides in the first place. http://www.newstarget.com/001426.html

***

From P A N U P S (Pesticide Action Network Updates Service )
Resource Pointer #379 How Safe is the Industrial Food Supply? February 25, 2005 For copies of the following resources, please contact the appropriate publishers or organizations directly. *Bad Taste: The Disturbing Truth about the World Health Organization's Endorsement of Food Irradiation, 2002* Public Citizen and Global Resource Action Center for the Environment. Examines the implications of a WHO declaration that food "treated" with ionizing radiation is safe for human consumption. Considers whether the agency's decision has corrupted the integrity of its analysis of the safety and wholesomeness of irradiated foods. 43 pages. Available as a free download at http://www.citizen.org/cmep/ or http://www.gracelinks.org/nuke/food/ Contact Public Citizen, 1600 20th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009; phone (202) 588-1000; email: mailto:member@citizen.org.
*Diet for a Dead Planet, 2004* Christopher Cook. Argues that our conventional food system has contributed to a staggering array of social, economic, and environmental epidemics. Corporate control of farms and supermarkets combined with ineffective regulation and misplaced export subsidies have produced an unhealthy and unsustainable harvest. The author applauds the movement for organics, farmers‚ markets, and slow food and argues that a transformation of the U.S. food system is imperative. 326 pages. $24.95. Contact The New Press, 38 Greene Street, 4th floor, New York, NY 10013; phone (800) 233-4830; fax (212) 629-8617; website http://www.thenewpress.com/ *Food, Inc: Corporate concentration from farmer to consumer, 2003* Bill Vorley. Examines the impacts of the growing concentration of corporations who trade, process, manufacture and sell agricultural goods. The report also points to policies that can ensure more equitable trading relationships and provides options for re-balancing the markets. 89 pages. Available as a free download at http://www.ukfg.org.uk/ Contact UK Food Group, PO Box 100, London, SE1 7RT; phone (44 20) 7523-2369; fax (44 20) 7620-0719; email: mailto:ukfg@ukfg.org.uk.
*Not on the Label, 2004* Felicity Lawrence. Looks at some of the most popular foods and the process they have gone through to end up on the table. Considers how beef waste ends up in chicken, why a third of apples are thrown away, and why bread is full of air and water. Examines the social, environmental, and economic consequences of the global industrial system of food production and the negative health consequences for the buying public. 272 pages. £7.99. Contact Penguin Direct, Pearson Customer Operations, Edinburgh Gate, Harlow, Essex, CM20 2JE; fax 0870 850-1115 (for UK orders only); website http://www.penguin.co.uk/ email mailto:orders@penguin.co.uk.
*Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism, 2003* Marion Nestle. Argues that century-old laws for ensuring food safety no longer protect our food and that ensuring a safe food supply involves politics. Demonstrates that powerful food industries oppose safety regulations, deny accountability, and blame consumers when something goes wrong. Safe food requires government and industry to act in the public interest, and consumers to exert democratic rights as citizens. 350 pages. $27.50. Contact California-Princeton Fulfilment Services, 1445 Lower Ferry Road, Ewing, NJ 08618; phone (800) 777-4726; fax (800) 999-1958; website http://www.ucpress.edu/ email mailto:orders@cpfsinc.com.

February 18, 2005
Farm Worker Tests Reveal Routine Pesticide Exposure
On February 8, 2005, national and state farm worker organizations highlighted some very disturbing medical monitoring results in Washington State. Their report, "Messages from Monitoring," looks at the first year of data from a Washington State program that tests farm workers who regularly handle organophosphates (OPs) and carbamates (CBs), both of which are neurotoxic pesticides. The report shows that one in five workers tested experiences significant inhibition of cholinesterase--an enzyme essential to proper nervous system function--and faults both state and federal agencies for failing to protect farm workers.

*

Resource Pointer #378 February 16, 2005
Children's Environmental Health
For copies of the following resources, please contact the appropriate publishers or organizations directly.

*GreenCare for Children, 2004* Grassroots Environmental Education. A study of environmental hazards in schools and childcare settings that details the presence of substances--specifically pesticides, lead, and indoor air quality factors--that are known or suspected to cause harm. The authors demonstrate that children are frequently exposed to environmental hazards that may be preventable, and that childcare providers need the training and tools necessary to prevent this harm to our most vulnerable population. 46 pages. Available as a free download at http://www.greenchildcare.org/ . Contact Urban-Ag Ecology, attn: Phil Boise, 41 Hollister Ranch, Gaviota, CA 93117, phone (805) 567-1420; fax (805) 567-1420; email pboise.ipm@earthlink.net .

*Our Children At Risk, 2004* Video. Grassroots Environmental Education. Explores the latest scientific research linking environmental toxins to children's health outcomes. Based on interviews with leading experts in the field, this program informs parents about the risks toxins pose to children and suggests precautions to take in homes, schools and communities. 30 minutes. $14.95. Contact Grassroots Environmental Education, 52 Main Street, Port Washington, NY 11050; phone (516) 883-0887; fax (516) 944-6586; website http://grassrootsinfo.org/; email info@grassrootsinfo.org .

*Pediatric Environmental Health 2nd Edition, 2003* American Academy of Pediatrics. Created as a tool for physicians to identify, treat, and prevent pediatric environmental health hazards. This 2nd edition updates and expands the scope of the original publication with 10 new chapters on emerging environmental threats, and updated content for a wide range of health hazards. 721 pages. $44.95. Contact The American Academy of Pediatrics, 141 Northwest Point Boulevard, Elk Grove Village, IL 60007-1098; phone (847) 434-4000; fax (847) 434-8000; website http://www.aap.org/bookstore/; email pubs@aap.org .

*Safer Schools: Achieving a Healthy Learning Environment Through Integrated Pest Management, 2003* School Pesticide Reform Coalition and Beyond Pesticides. Intended to inform the school community members and activists, policy makers and pest management practitioners who are all critical in implementing effective Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs in schools. The report explains what an IPM program is and why it is necessary; highlights 27 school districts and individual school IPM policies and programs; and, outlines the basic steps to getting a school IPM program adopted. 52 pages. Available as a free download at http://www.beyondpesticides.org/ . Contact School Pesticide Reform Coalition; c/o Beyond Pesticides, 701 E Street S.E. Suite 200, Washington DC 20003; phone (202) 543-5450; fax (202) 543-4791; email info@beyondpesticides.org .

*

February 11, 2005 A Valentine for Flower Workers

Shortly before one of the biggest flower-giving holidays of the year, flower workers in Ecuador have petitioned their government for permission to establish an industry wide union. Their request has been denied twice before by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Labor, so the workers are also turning to consumers in the U.S., where half of Ecuador's flowers are sold, asking PANUPS readers to urge Ecuadorian officials to certify the union. A link at the end of this article opens a sample email to the Ministry of Labor in Quito. The flower workers have chosen to name their new union for Valentine's Day, Federación de Trabajadores Floricultores 14 de Febrero, a testament to the significance of consumer purchases on this day.

The perfect blooms that workers in Ecuador and other Central American countries grow, cut, and pack for export rely on intensive use of highly hazardous pesticides. The International Labor Rights Fund (ILRF) reports that two thirds of Colombian and Ecuadorian floriculture workers experience health problems as a result of their work. Child labor is increasingly common in the sector. According to the International Labor Organization, fully 20% of workers in Ecuadorian floriculture are children and more than 70% of floriculture workers in Colombia and Ecuador are women. The ILRF reports that illegal pregnancy tests are often required at the time of hiring, and pregnant workers are fired. Some plantations force workers to work overtime without overtime pay before flower-giving holidays, and have fired workers for union organizing activities. Plantations increasingly hire workers through sub-contractors, who provide less training, transportation, and benefits than workers hired directly. Subcontractors are also able shift workers from one plantation to another to avoid union organizing efforts.

An industry wide flower worker union would provide workers with the collective strength to counter these abuses. Currently, workers at only four of Ecuador's 300 flower companies have managed to organize unions. Those four existing unions have joined the petition for an industry wide federation, understanding that it will make them all stronger.

Floriculture workers in Colombia have a sector wide union, Untraflores, which brought international attention to the pesticide poisoning of 200 workers at a large floriculture facility near Bogotá in 2003 (see PANUPS, Workers Poisoned in Colombia, December 11, 2003, http://www.panna.org/resources/panups/panup_20031211.dv.html). Late last year Untraflores gained certification for the first local union of flower workers at a Dole plantation in Colombia. Since it was certified, the new union has gained members and none have been fired, despite management threats.

If certified, Federación de Trabajadores Floricultores 14 de Febrero would represent flower workers at any plantation in the country, and enable single workers to join. In the absence of a sector wide organization, at least 25 workers at a facility need to petition to form a union. While organizing themselves into a union, workers are the most vulnerable to firing or other repercussions for union activity.

In 2002 and again in 2003 floriculture workers petitioned the Ecuadorian Minister of Labor for permission to form a union, as allowed under the Ecuadorian Labor Code. The Minister denied both requests on technical grounds. The ILRF reports that the Labor Ministry asked Expoflores, the association of Ecuadorian flower producers and exporters, to weigh in on the workers' request. "The exporters' association," argues ILRF "should not have the right to deny the workers the freedom to form this type of union."

On February 9, 2005, workers applied for a third time, and have asked consumers around the world to send a Valentine to the Ecuadorian Minister of Labor, urging him to allow the Federación de Trabajadores Floricultores 14 de Febrero to represent all of the nation's floriculture workers.

Visit our new Action Center to email your letter/Valentine to Quito
Sources: International Labor Rights Fund, Fairness in Flowers Campaign,PANUPS, Action Alert, Workers Poisoned in Colombia, December 11, 2003, Floriculture: Pesticides, Worker Health & Codes of Conduct, June 12, 2002, Behind the Flowers, the Workers' Rights, Cactus, Bogotá, Colombia, http://www.cactus.org.co.

*
Back issues of PANUPS are available online at: http://www.panna.org/resources/panups.html
To comment, send an email to: panna@panna.org
To subscribe, send a blank email to: PANUPS-subscribe@topica.email-publisher.com
Pesticide Action Network North America (PANNA), 49 Powell St., Suite 500, San Francisco, CA 94102 USA Email: panna@panna.org Web: http://www.panna.org

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COUNTRIES - EUROPE

3-3-2005

Tobacco: Event: Help EU anti-smoking campaign
Logos available in NL, DE, EL
Risk Assessment: Scientific Committee on Health and Environmental Risks: Questions: Request for a scientific opinion:
RPAâ€™s report â€œPerfluorooctane Sulphonate â€“ Risk reduction strategy and analysis of advantages and drawbacks. Additional questionsâ€
Risk Assessment: Inter-Committee Coordination Group:
Minutes of the 3rd plenary meeting of the Inter-Committee Coordination Group (15th December 2004)
Risk Assessment: Scientific Committee on emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks: Minutes of the 2nd Plenary meeting of the Scientific Committee on emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks, Brussels, 27 October 2004
Risk Assessment: Scientific Committee on emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks: Minutes of the 3rd Plenary meeting of the Scientific Committee on emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks, Brussels, 16 December 2004

and more under http://europa.eu.int/comm/health/

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CONVENTION - ITALY

From AMICA
Libertas UDC Section of Sortino
International Convention - Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS)
"Rare organic origin illness", Sunday March 20th, 2005 -- hours 09:30
Italy -- Piazza M. Josè, Sortino (SR), Sicily, Italy

More at the site: www.infoamica.org e-mail: mirares@tiscali .

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INTERNET

Speeches and articles from Ingrid Scherrmann http://www.safer-world.org/e/Scherrmann/IS.htm

MCS (Multiple Chemical Sensitivity): challenges for patients, medicine, politics and society 14. November 2002, MCS, 1. Fachdialog , Diplomatische Akademie Wien organizer: seibersdorf research & Bundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft (Ministry for agriculture, forestry, environment and water supplyl) http://www.safer-world.org/e/Scherrmann/challenges.htm
There you find the text in htm and in pdf. And the ppt (Power Point Presentation) in pdf.

You find the text also under http://peacejournalism.com

original: Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS): Herausforderungen für Patient, Medizin, Politik und Gesellschaft. Rede beim 1. Fachdialog zu MCS in Wien. (14. 11. 2002), veranstaltet vom Bundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft, von Seibersdorf Research, und mit Unterstützung der AGU (AerztInnen für eine gesunde Umwelt) , under http://www.safer-world.org/d/Scherrmann/skript/herausforderungen.htm

Wrong conclusions drawn from biased valuations made in the assessment of MCS (only in German)
Original: Falsche Schlussfolgerungen durch einseitige Bewertung der Evidenz bei der Beurteilung von MCS. In umwelt·medizin·gesellschaft | 17 | 2/2004 http://www.safer-world.org/d/Scherrmann/skript/folgen.htm (in the Journal "Environment-Medicine-Society")

Environmental Research: Quo Vadis? (only in German)
Original: Umweltmedizinische Forschung: Wie weiter? Fachgespräch zu MCS im Umweltbundesamt (German Governmental Environment Agency) am 4. September 2003 Organisation und Durchführung: Umweltbundesamt und Robert-Koch-Institut In umwelt·medizin·gesellschaft | 16| 2/2004 und unter www.safer-world.org/d/Scherrmann/skript/wuensche.htm
und http://www.umweltdaten.de/daten/mcs/11-Scherrmann.pdf

Life with Chemical Sensitivity (only in German)
Leben mit Chemikalienunvertraeglichkeit. In Umwelt-Medizin-Gesellschaft 13. Jahrgang, Ausgabe 2/2000 under www.safer-world.org/d/Scherrmann/skript/leben.htm

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LAW

From Joe Cherner

Georgia State Senate Passes Smokefree Workplace Bill
The right to breathe clean air supersedes the right to pollute, says sponsor A statewide smokefree workplace bill won approval in the Georgia State Senate on Wednesday after a lengthy debate. Georgia's senators voted 44-7 in favor of the bill.
*
Minnesota Senate Committee Passes Smokefree Workplace Bill Governor Pawlenty says he will enthusiastically sign smokefree workplace legislation
*
Utah Poised to Become Nation's 8th Smokefree Workplace State Decision rests with the Utah House of Representatives

To search the JoeCherner-announce archives, go to: http://smokefree.net/JoeCherner-announce/messages

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RACHEL'S ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH NEWS

January 6, 2005
Published March 3, 2005 Globale Liberation Part 1
This is an odd sort of book review. This week and next, we reprint excerpts from an essay by Patrick Reinsborough, one of the founders of the smartMeme collective, a group whose work we hold in very high regard (http://www.smartMeme.com).
This original essay "Decolonizing The Revolutionary Imagination: Values Crisis, the Politics of Reality, and Why There's Going to Be a Common-Sense Revolution in This Generation," originally appeared in David Solnit (editor), Globalize Liberation (San Francisco: City Lights Book, 2004), pgs. 161-211.
The entire text of Patrick's essay can be found at http://www.rachel.org/library/getfile.cfm?ID=508
If you like what you read here, go out and buy this book because it is filled with other gems. Hats off to editor David Solnit for gathering the best of the best into this path-breaking book.

*

#806 December 9, 2004 Published Feb. 15, 2005
Editor's introduction: As I head off to The Daniel Pennock Democracy School to learn more about the work of Tom Linzey and the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (http://www.celdf.org) and expand my idea bank, I've been enjoying the texts that arrived by mail as homework-in-advance. One of them is this wonderful essay by Jane Anne Morris, titled, "Help! I've Been Colonized and Can't Get Up...." I had to share it with you. Many readers will recall Jane Anne's previous work in Rachel's #488, #489 and #501.

Jane Anne points out that this essay was originally written for the Earth First! Journal (http://www.earthfirstjournal.org/efj/) which is why, she says, it emphasizes environmental activism. It could apply equally well to almost any other work for social change.

Speaking of environmental activism, if you've been thinking about the "Death of Environmentalism," as I have, you might want to consider signing up for a weekend Democracy School yourself, or arrange for a session in your home state. To see a schedule of future sessions go to http://www.constitution411.org/natl_dem_schl/main/schedule_ds.html.

To read more about "The Death of Environmentalism," including the original essay by that title and several responses to it, go to http://www.rachel.org/library/getfile.cfm?ID=505 and then follow the debate on the Grist Magazine ("A beacon in the smog") web site http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2005/1/13/134030/929 . --P.M.

"Help! I've been colonized and can't get up...."
Take a Lawyer and an Expert To a Hearing and Call Me In a Decade
by Jane Anne Morris*

A third of your friends are locked down in an old growth grove or at a corporate headquarters, with law enforcement officers rubbing pepper spray in their eyes. Another third are preparing testimony so you can be persuasive at a generic regulatory agency hearing while you're begging them to enforce a tiny portion of our laws. The third third are trying to raise money to pay lawyers to get your friends out of jail (after they've been released from the hospital) or take the regulatory agency to court (after it declines to enforce the law). …

***

Environmental Research Foundation E-mail: erf@rachel.org
Subscriptions are free. To subscribe, send a blank Email to join-rachel@gselist.org . Spanish edition: The Rachel newsletter is also available free in Spanish; to subscribe, send a blank Email to join-noticias@gselist.org . Back issues in English and Spanish.
Past issues are on the web at http://www.rachel.org in plain-text and PDF formats.
To start your own free subscription to Rachel's, send a blank email to join-rachel@gselist.org

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RADIATION

Fury over council-approved mast http://omega.twoday.net/stories/529173/
Phone mast applications can slip through the net http://omega.twoday.net/stories/529158/
Residents protest at mobile mast http://omega.twoday.net/stories/529231/
Radiation Research Trust-NEWSLETTER FEBRUARY 2005 http://omega.twoday.net/stories/529479/
Municipalities recruit the public to fight against cellular antennas http://omega.twoday.net/stories/525092/
Warning signals: Phone mast health shock http://omega.twoday.net/stories/529135/
Mike Brookes warns directly of the likelihood of litigation http://omega.twoday.net/stories/525660/
Sensitivity to non-ionising radiation in Ireland - Dreadful suffering engendered by emissions http://omega.twoday.net/stories/512554/
Proof of mobile health risk http://omega.twoday.net/stories/513848/

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More SCIENCE

Paracetamol use in pregnancy linked to childhood asthma. 24/01/2005

Women who take paracetamol during the later stages of pregnancy are more likely than those who never take it to have children who suffer from asthma. Newly-published research suggests that as much as 7 per cent of childhood asthma might be linked to the use of paracetamol by mothers during the later stages of pregnancy. Dr Seif Shaheen from Kings College London says that while paracetamol is still the preferred painkiller for women during pregnancy, it would be prudent (as with all medications in pregnancy) not to take it unnecessarily, especially after the 20th week. His report, published in the journal Clinical and Experimental Allergy, is based on the experiences of 8,500 families taking part in the Children of the 90s study at the University of Bristol. Of those children - 12.5 per cent were reported as having asthma at six years of age.Full article at: http://www.alspac.bris.ac.uk/press/paracetamol_asthma.shtml

***

1: Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2004 Dec;207(6):563-9.Related Articles, Links Communication problems with environment-related health disorders as illustrated by a multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) chatroom. Jaks H, Hornberg C, Dott W, Wiesmuller GA. Institute of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine, University Hospital Aachen, Germany.

The problem of communication in treating multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) was analysed and evaluated using the documentation of an MCS chatroom which was set up in April 2001 following the TV programme Gesundheitsmagazin Praxis (Health Magazine: Practice). Approaches were developed for solving communication problems in the chatroom. A total of 490 cases were evaluated, most of which (355) were directly or indirectly affected, 76 came from self-help groups and 10 were from 4 guest experts invited by ZDF (Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen, Second German TV channel). Of these 4 experts, 2 were environmental medicine specialists, 1 psychosomatics expert and 1 psychiatrist. Fourty-nine of the cases included a petition for chatroom participants to join a class-action law. Aside from exchanging basic information on MCS, frequent topics of discussion on the air were the assessment of physicians, clinics, self-help groups and experts. The participants also expressed their views on problems with society, politics, the economy, science and social security. Another common topic was communication in the chatroom itself, which for the most part consisted of sarcasm and insults, which were cause for conflicts in the chatroom. These communication problems led to the conclusion that a chatroom is not the best medium for discussing MCS. If a chatroom is to be used profitably to this end, it is imperative to have a well-defined organisational framework which allows the exchange of current, scientifically accurate information while keeping discussions from escalating and degenerating into arguments.PMID: 15729837 [PubMed - in process] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15729837

Comment Scherrmann: I was writing also sometimes in this forum with my full name. It was a forum after a TV-report about MCS.

People were very angry about the report, about the moderation and about the situation in Germany. One day the forum was deleted without an accurate explanation.

People were very angry for the moderators did not answer and it was clear, that they were "experts" who learned from Barrett, Gots, Staudenmayer, ...

My paper "Wrong conclusions drawn from biased valuations made in the assessment of MCS" is a rebuttle about an article from Hornberg, Wiesmueller et al.

I analysed the references from Hornberg and Wiesmueller, the linguistic pecuilarity, the onesited references, the role of governmental agencies, ... And I also wrote some thoughts about the consequences of this view of MCS and what we need to do.

***

1: Dtsch Med Wochenschr. 2005 Feb 18;130(7):329-32.Related Articles, Links
[Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) - a case series.
[Article in German]
Wiesner G, Pedrosa Gil F, Nowak D. Institut und Poliklinik fur Arbeits- und Umweltmedizin, Klinikum der Universitat Munchen, Innenstadt.
Summary. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The phenomenon of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity which generally cannot be explained organically is frequently associated with psychic impairment. This case series deals with the question if in addition to a standardized interview a routine psychiatric-psychosomatic examination alters the classification if a patient suffers from symptoms compatible with MCS or not. METHODS: Nine consecutive outpatients (m = 3, f = 6, mean age 44 yrs) of the environmental medicine centre were investigated. Somatic diseases were evaluated by standard medical procedures and emotional disturbances were assessed by the Munich Composite International Diagnostic Interview (M-CIDI) and a psychiatric-psychosomatic examination. RESULTS: In all but one patients emotional disturbances (F-codes of the ICD-10) were diagnosed by the M-CIDI and the psychiatric-psychosomatic examination. The diagnoses of the M-CIDI and the psychiatric-psychosomatic examination often did not match. MCS was ruled out in seven patients. CONCLUSIONS: According to the criteria defined by Cullen (5), emotional disturbances must be ruled out before MCS is diagnosed. Therefore, an examination by a specialist in psychiatry or psychosomatics is mandatory because evaluation solely based on the M-CIDI is insufficient. Performing a routine psychiatric-psychosomatic examination, MCS could be ruled out much more often than previously. PMID: 15712020 [PubMed - in process] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15712020

Comment Scherrmann: Always the same conclusion at studies form the German environmental medicine at the universities. I do not know here the references, but it is usual to quote Gots, Staudenmayer, Barrett, .... and Hornberg, Wiesmueller, ...

printed in bold from Scherrmann.

***

EHP Monthly Table of Contents (here not completed) - The March issue of Environmental Health Perspectives

Correspondence
* Pesticide Spraying and Health Effects
* Pesticides and Health Effects: Karpati et al. Respond
* "Epidemiology of Health Effects of Radiofrequency Exposure"
* Epidemiology of Radiofrequency Exposure: Ahlbom et al. Respond
* Listing Occupational Carcinogens
* David Rall and the National Toxicology Program
* Potential Selection Biases

Environews
Forum
* Streamside Solution
* Genes and Sensitivity
* Investigating Indoor Air
* New Chlorpyrifos Link?
* EHPnet: Great Lakes Information Network
* The Beat

NIEHS News
* Headliners: Lead Accumulation May Lead to Cataracts
* Beyond the Bench: Tox-in-a-Box

Articles
Urinary Trivalent Methylated Arsenic Species in a Population Chronically Exposed to Inorganic Arsenic Olga L. Valenzuela, Victor H. Borja-Aburto, Gonzalo G. Garcia-Vargas, Martha B. Cruz-Gonzalez, Eliud A. Garcia-Montalvo, Emma S. Calderon-Aranda, and Luz M. Del Razo p. 250
Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica Dust in the United States, 1988-2003 Abdiaziz Yassin, Francis Yebesi, and Rex Tingle p. 255
Intersexuality and the Cricket Frog Decline: Historic and Geographic Trends Amy L. Reeder, Marilyn O. Ruiz, Allan Pessier, Lauren E. Brown, Jeffrey M. Levengood, Christopher A. Phillips, Matthew B. Wheeler, Richard E. Warner, and Val R. Beasley p. 261
Mercury in Commercial Fish: Optimizing Individual Choices to Reduce Risk Joanna Burger, Alan H. Stern, and Michael Gochfeld p. 266
PCB Exposure and in Vivo CYP1A2 Activity among Native Americans Edward F. Fitzgerald, Syni-An Hwang, George Lambert, Marta Gomez, and Alice Tarbell p. 272
Binding of Estrogenic Compounds to Recombinant Estrogen Receptor-alpha: Application to Environmental Analysis Arnaud Pillon, Anne-Marie Boussioux, Aurélie Escande, Sélim Aït-Aïssa, Elena Gomez, Hélène Fenet, Marc Ruff, Dino Moras, Françoise Vignon, Marie-Josèphe Duchesne, Claude Casellas, Jean-Claude Nicolas, and Patrick Balaguer p. 278
Occupational Exposure to Carbofuran and the Incidence of Cancer in the Agricultural Health Study Matthew R. Bonner, Won Jin Lee, Dale P. Sandler, Jane A. Hoppin, Mustafa Dosemeci, and Michael C. R. Alavanja p. 285
Association of Ambient Air Pollution with Respiratory Hospitalization in a Government-Designated "Area of Concern": The Case of Windsor, Ontario Isaac N. Luginaah, Karen Y. Fung, Kevin M. Gorey, Greg Webster, and Chris Wills p. 290
Necessity to Measure PCBs and Organochlorine Pesticide Concentrations in Human Umbilical Cords for Fetal Exposure Assessment Hideki Fukata, Mariko Omori, Hisao Osada, Emiko Todaka, and Chisato Mori p. 297
Effects of Air Pollution on Heart Rate Variability: The VA Normative Aging Study Sung Kyun Park, Marie S. O'Neill, Pantel S. Vokonas, David Sparrow, and Joel Schwartz p. 304
The Role of Syntrophic Associations in Sustaining Anaerobic Mineralization of Chlorinated Organic Compounds Jennifer G. Becker, Gina Berardesco, Bruce E. Rittmann, and David A. Stahl p. 310
Comparison of Biostimulation versus Bioaugmentation with Bacterial Strain PM1 for Treatment of Groundwater Contaminated with Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE) Amanda E. Smith, Krassimira Hristova, Isaac Wood, Doug M. Mackay, Ernie Lory, Dale Lorenzana, and Kate M. Scow p. 317
Acceleration of Autoimmunity by Organochlorine Pesticides in (NZB times symbol NZW)F1 Mice Eric S. Sobel, John Gianini, Edward J. Butfiloski, Byron P. Croker, Joel Schiffenbauer, and Stephen M. Roberts p. 323
Assessment of Estrogenic Endocrine-Disrupting Chemical Actions in the Brain Using in Vivo Somatic Gene Transfer Vance L. Trudeau, Nathalie Turque, Sébastien Le Mével, Caroline Alliot, Natacha Gallant, Laurent Coen, Farzad Pakdel, and Barbara Demeneix p. 329

Workgroup Report
Summary of a Workshop on the Development of Health Models and Scenarios: Strategies for the Future Kristie L. Ebi and Janet L. Gamble p. 335
Environmental Medicine
Article
Vascular Dysfunction in Patients with Chronic Arsenosis Can Be Reversed by Reduction of Arsenic Exposure Hiroshi Yamauchi, Guifan Sun, Takahiko Yoshida, Hiroyuki Aikawa, Wataru Fujimoto, Hiroyasu Iso, Renzhe Cui, Michael P. Waalkes, and Yoshito Kumagai p. 339

Children's Health
Articles
Children's Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds as Determined by Longitudinal Measurements in Blood Ken Sexton, John L. Adgate, Timothy R. Church, David L. Ashley, Larry L. Needham, Gurumurthy Ramachandran, Ann L. Fredrickson, and Andrew D. Ryan p. 342
Asthma and Farm Exposures in a Cohort of Rural Iowa Children James A. Merchant, Allison L. Naleway, Erik R. Svendsen, Kevin M. Kelly, Leon F. Burmeister, Ann M. Stromquist, Craig D. Taylor, Peter S. Thorne, Stephen J. Reynolds, Wayne T. Sanderson, and Elizabeth A. Chrischilles p. 350
Home Dampness and Molds, Parental Atopy, and Asthma in Childhood: A Six-Year Population-Based Cohort Study Jouni J. K. Jaakkola, Bing-Fang Hwang, and Niina Jaakkola p. 357
Racial Differences in Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke among Children Stephen E. Wilson, Robert S. Kahn, Jane Khoury, and Bruce P. Lanphear p. 362

http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2005/113-3/toc.html

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end of newslettter /English/36

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***

Prenatal Exposure to Air Pollution Associated With Genetic Abnormalities Linked to Cancer, Study Says
18 Feb 2005 Nonsmoking New York City women who are exposed to high levels of air pollution while pregnant are more likely to give birth to infants with genetic abnormalities linked to cancer than nonsmoking women who were exposed to lower levels of air pollution, according to the findings of a study announced on Tuesday and scheduled to be published in the February issue of the journal Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention..., the AP/Long Island Newsday <http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--nypollution-babie0215feb15,0,122013.story?coll=ny-region-apnewyork> reports. Dr. Frederica Perera, director of the Center for Children's Environmental Health <http://www.ccceh.org/> at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and senior author of the study, and colleagues studied 60 pregnant nonsmokers living in the low-income New York City neighborhoods of Harlem, Washington Heights and South Bronx. The women wore air monitors during the third trimester of their pregnancies to measure their exposure to combustion-related pollutants, most of which are caused by vehicles (Matthews, AP/Long Island Newsday, 2/15). When the women's infants were born, researchers analyzed chromosomes collected using their umbilical cord blood and discovered a significant association between the level of prenatal exposure to pollutants and genetic abnormalities, according to Perera (Kranes/Deligiannakis, <http://www.mailman.hs.columbia.edu/>New York Post <http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/40682.htm>, 2/16). Infants born to women with the highest levels of exposure to air pollutants had about 50% more genetic abnormalities than infants born to women with lower levels of exposure to the pollutants, the New York Daily News <http://www.nydailynews.com/02-16-2005/city_life/story/281460p-241103c.html> reports. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=20152

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CHEMICAL - ARSENIC

Arsenic articles and news from Suiling Wang and Deborah Elaine Barrie

1) Capacity of Lemna gibba L. (Duckweed) for uranium and arsenic phytoremediation in mine tailing waters
     http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15696706

2) Calcite, a filter for water-borne arsenic? An experiment at the InstitutLaue-Langevin raises great hopes. http://www.innovations-report.com/html/reports/environment_sciences/report-40159.html

3) Ion Exchange Deploys Arsenic Removal Technology in West Bengal http://www.presstrust.com/article43408.html

4) Accumulation of arsenic in Lemna gibba L. (duckweed) in tailing waters of two abandoned uranium mining sites in Saxony, Germany http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15589251

5) Arsenic, microbes and contaminated aquifers http://urlsnip.com/112926 redirects to the long url [ http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6TD0-4F0GBWM-1&_coverDate=02%2F01%2F2005&_alid=241380492&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_qd=1&_cdi=5184&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000051262&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=1069146&md5=3068c5d8c88e40d724380ed60150f9db

6) Prevalence of Chronic Diseases in Adults Exposed to Arsenic-Contaminated Drinking Water http://snipurl.com/a4xq
[redirects to the long URL: http://www.ajph.org/cgi/content/abstract/94/11/1936maxtoshow=&HITS=1&hits=1&RESULTFORMAT=&andorexacttitle=or&titleabstract=arsenic&andorexacttitleabs=and&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1098998803325_1815&stored_search=&FIRSTINDEX=&fdate=10/12/2004&usestrictdates=yes&journalcode=ajph&ct ]

7) Arsenic contamination of groundwater and its health impact on residents in a village in West Bengal, India. http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15682249

8) Testing groundwater for arsenic in Bangladesh before installing a well http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15682249

9) A new metabolic pathway of arsenite: arsenic-glutathione complexes are substrates for human arsenic methyltransferase Cyt19; http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15526190

10) Arsenic exposure exacerbates atherosclerotic plaque formation and increases nitrotyrosine and leukotriene biosynthesis;
      http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15519606

11) Equilibrium, kinetic and mass transfer studies and column operations for the removal of arsenic(III) from aqueous solutions using acid treated spent
        bleaching earth. http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15515273

12) The microbial arsenic cycle in Mono Lake, California, pdf file from one of the authors, Dr.Ronald S. Oremland, at roremlan@usgs.gov

13) Dissimilatory Arsenate Reduction with Sulfide as Electron Donor: Experiments with Mono Lake Water and Isolation of Strain MLMS-1, a
      Chemoautotrophic Arsenate Respirer. , pdf file from one of the authors, Dr.Ronald S. Oremland, at roremlan@usgs.gov

14) Reliability of a commercial kit to test groundwater for arsenic in Bangladesh http://highwire.stanford.edu/cgi/medline/pmid;15667109

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CHEMICALS - MERCURY POLLUTION

Mount Sinai Study Shows Impacts of Mercury Pollution on the Health of our Children and the American Economy http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=43611

2/28/2005
NEW YORK, Feb. 28 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Reductions in IQ due to mercury pollution affect between 300,000 and 600,000 American children each year and will cost the United States an estimated $8.7 billion in lost earnings annually (range: $2.2-$43.8 billion), according to a new study by scientists at the Mount Sinai Center for Children's Health and the Environment in New York, released today in Environmental Health Perspectives
(http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/members/2005/7743/7743.pdf), the
peer- reviewed journal of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. The Mount Sinai study, "Public Health and Economic Consequences of Methyl mercury Toxicity to the Developing Brain," is the first study ever to be published in a peer-reviewed medical journal that has examined the magnitude of the impact on America's children of the loss of intelligence (IQ) caused by mercury pollution. It also the first study to ever quantify the economic costs of these impacts. The loss of IQ due to methyl mercury toxicity affects between ten and fifteen percent of the four million children born in America each year. While not all of this damage can be prevented, the study found that coal-fired power plants which produce 41 percent of mercury emissions nationwide cause some $1.3 billion of the economic loss. Throughout the 1990's, the Environmental Protection Agency made steady progress in reducing mercury emissions from power plants. However in 2003, citing the high costs of pollution abatement, the Bush Administration backed away from this good work and proposed the "Clear Skies Act." Passage of the "Clear Skies Act" would relax controls on power plant emissions and permit twenty-six tons of mercury to be released each year into the atmosphere through 2010, a total of 156 tons or 312,000 pounds. Current provisions under the Clean Air Act allow only five tons/year of mercury emissions from power plants by 2008. The uncontrolled emissions that would be allowed under "Clear Skies" will contaminate rivers, lakes and the oceans, keep mercury levels in fish high, and leave children vulnerable. "As pediatricians, we worry about the potential damage to each affected child," said Dr. Leo Trasande, the study's lead researcher, and Assistant Director of the Center. "Moreover, beyond the harm to individual children, lie enormous socioeconomic consequences. The significant impact that "Clear Skies" could have on the economic health and security of the United States should be considered in a careful debate on mercury pollution controls before "Clear Skies" becomes law." "If mercury emissions are allowed to remain at high levels," said Dr. Philip Landrigan, Director of the Center and Chairman of Community and Preventive Medicine at Mount Sinai, "children will continue to suffer loss in intelligence and disruptions of behavior. Most of these effects will last a lifetime and are likely to cost this nation far more than the costs of installing flue gas filters to prevent mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants." The Center for Children's Health and the Environment is the nation's first academic research and policy center to examine the links between exposure to toxic pollutants and childhood illness. CCHE was established in 1998 within the Department of Community and Preventive Medicine of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. The mission of the Center for Children's Health and the Environment (CCHE) of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine is to protect children against environmental threats to health. The abstract of the article is available at http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2005/7743/abstract.html

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February 18, 2005
Farm Worker Tests Reveal Routine Pesticide Exposure
On February 8, 2005, national and state farm worker organizations highlighted some very disturbing medical monitoring results in Washington State. Their report, "Messages from Monitoring," looks at the first year of data from a Washington State program that tests farm workers who regularly handle organophosphates (OPs) and carbamates (CBs), both of which are neurotoxic pesticides. The report shows that one in five workers tested experiences significant inhibition of cholinesterase--an enzyme essential to proper nervous system function--and faults both state and federal agencies for failing to protect farm workers.

*

Resource Pointer #378 February 16, 2005
Children's Environmental Health
For copies of the following resources, please contact the appropriate publishers or organizations directly.

*GreenCare for Children, 2004* Grassroots Environmental Education. A study of environmental hazards in schools and childcare settings that details the presence of substances--specifically pesticides, lead, and indoor air quality factors--that are known or suspected to cause harm. The authors demonstrate that children are frequently exposed to environmental hazards that may be preventable, and that childcare providers need the training and tools necessary to prevent this harm to our most vulnerable population. 46 pages. Available as a free download at http://www.greenchildcare.org/ . Contact Urban-Ag Ecology, attn: Phil Boise, 41 Hollister Ranch, Gaviota, CA 93117, phone (805) 567-1420; fax (805) 567-1420; email pboise.ipm@earthlink.net .

*Our Children At Risk, 2004* Video. Grassroots Environmental Education. Explores the latest scientific research linking environmental toxins to children's health outcomes. Based on interviews with leading experts in the field, this program informs parents about the risks toxins pose to children and suggests precautions to take in homes, schools and communities. 30 minutes. $14.95. Contact Grassroots Environmental Education, 52 Main Street, Port Washington, NY 11050; phone (516) 883-0887; fax (516) 944-6586; website http://grassrootsinfo.org/; email info@grassrootsinfo.org .

*Pediatric Environmental Health 2nd Edition, 2003* American Academy of Pediatrics. Created as a tool for physicians to identify, treat, and prevent pediatric environmental health hazards. This 2nd edition updates and expands the scope of the original publication with 10 new chapters on emerging environmental threats, and updated content for a wide range of health hazards. 721 pages. $44.95. Contact The American Academy of Pediatrics, 141 Northwest Point Boulevard, Elk Grove Village, IL 60007-1098; phone (847) 434-4000; fax (847) 434-8000; website http://www.aap.org/bookstore/; email pubs@aap.org .

*Safer Schools: Achieving a Healthy Learning Environment Through Integrated Pest Management, 2003* School Pesticide Reform Coalition and Beyond Pesticides. Intended to inform the school community members and activists, policy makers and pest management practitioners who are all critical in implementing effective Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs in schools. The report explains what an IPM program is and why it is necessary; highlights 27 school districts and individual school IPM policies and programs; and, outlines the basic steps to getting a school IPM program adopted. 52 pages. Available as a free download at http://www.beyondpesticides.org/ . Contact School Pesticide Reform Coalition; c/o Beyond Pesticides, 701 E Street S.E. Suite 200, Washington DC 20003; phone (202) 543-5450; fax (202) 543-4791; email info@beyondpesticides.org .

*

February 11, 2005 A Valentine for Flower Workers

Shortly before one of the biggest flower-giving holidays of the year, flower workers in Ecuador have petitioned their government for permission to establish an industry wide union. Their request has been denied twice before by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Labor, so the workers are also turning to consumers in the U.S., where half of Ecuador's flowers are sold, asking PANUPS readers to urge Ecuadorian officials to certify the union. A link at the end of this article opens a sample email to the Ministry of Labor in Quito. The flower workers have chosen to name their new union for Valentine's Day, Federación de Trabajadores Floricultores 14 de Febrero, a testament to the significance of consumer purchases on this day.

The perfect blooms that workers in Ecuador and other Central American countries grow, cut, and pack for export rely on intensive use of highly hazardous pesticides. The International Labor Rights Fund (ILRF) reports that two thirds of Colombian and Ecuadorian floriculture workers experience health problems as a result of their work. Child labor is increasingly common in the sector. According to the International Labor Organization, fully 20% of workers in Ecuadorian floriculture are children and more than 70% of floriculture workers in Colombia and Ecuador are women. The ILRF reports that illegal pregnancy tests are often required at the time of hiring, and pregnant workers are fired. Some plantations force workers to work overtime without overtime pay before flower-giving holidays, and have fired workers for union organizing activities. Plantations increasingly hire workers through sub-contractors, who provide less training, transportation, and benefits than workers hired directly. Subcontractors are also able shift workers from one plantation to another to avoid union organizing efforts.

An industry wide flower worker union would provide workers with the collective strength to counter these abuses. Currently, workers at only four of Ecuador's 300 flower companies have managed to organize unions. Those four existing unions have joined the petition for an industry wide federation, understanding that it will make them all stronger.

Floriculture workers in Colombia have a sector wide union, Untraflores, which brought international attention to the pesticide poisoning of 200 workers at a large floriculture facility near Bogotá in 2003 (see PANUPS, Workers Poisoned in Colombia, December 11, 2003, http://www.panna.org/resources/panups/panup_20031211.dv.html). Late last year Untraflores gained certification for the first local union of flower workers at a Dole plantation in Colombia. Since it was certified, the new union has gained members and none have been fired, despite management threats.

If certified, Federación de Trabajadores Floricultores 14 de Febrero would represent flower workers at any plantation in the country, and enable single workers to join. In the absence of a sector wide organization, at least 25 workers at a facility need to petition to form a union. While organizing themselves into a union, workers are the most vulnerable to firing or other repercussions for union activity.

In 2002 and again in 2003 floriculture workers petitioned the Ecuadorian Minister of Labor for permission to form a union, as allowed under the Ecuadorian Labor Code. The Minister denied both requests on technical grounds. The ILRF reports that the Labor Ministry asked Expoflores, the association of Ecuadorian flower producers and exporters, to weigh in on the workers' request. "The exporters' association," argues ILRF "should not have the right to deny the workers the freedom to form this type of union."

On February 9, 2005, workers applied for a third time, and have asked consumers around the world to send a Valentine to the Ecuadorian Minister of Labor, urging him to allow the Federación de Trabajadores Floricultores 14 de Febrero to represent all of the nation's floriculture workers.

Visit our new Action Center to email your letter/Valentine to Quito

For more information on labor conditions at Ecuadorian flower plantations, see the ILRF appeal, http://www.laborrights.org/actions/index.php.

Sources: International Labor Rights Fund, Fairness in Flowers Campaign, http://www.laborrights.org; PANUPS, Action Alert, Workers Poisoned in Colombia, December 11, 2003, Floriculture: Pesticides, Worker Health & Codes of Conduct, June 12, 2002, Behind the Flowers, the Workers' Rights, Cactus, Bogotá, Colombia, http://www.cactus.org.co.
Contact: ILRF http://www.laborrights.org, email, laborrights@igc.org , (202) 347-4100, PANNA.

*
Back issues of PANUPS are available online at: http://www.panna.org/resources/panups.html
To comment, send an email to: panna@panna.org
To subscribe, send a blank email to: PANUPS-subscribe@topica.email-publisher.com
Pesticide Action Network North America (PANNA), 49 Powell St., Suite 500, San Francisco, CA 94102 USA Email: panna@panna.org Web: http://www.panna.org

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COUNTRIES - EUROPE

3-3-2005

Tobacco: Event: Help EU anti-smoking campaign
Logos available in NL, DE, EL
Risk Assessment: Scientific Committee on Health and Environmental Risks: Questions: Request for a scientific opinion:
RPAâ€™s report â€œPerfluorooctane Sulphonate â€“ Risk reduction strategy and analysis of advantages and drawbacks. Additional questionsâ€
Risk Assessment: Inter-Committee Coordination Group:
Minutes of the 3rd plenary meeting of the Inter-Committee Coordination Group (15th December 2004)
Risk Assessment: Scientific Committee on emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks: Minutes of the 2nd Plenary meeting of the Scientific Committee on emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks, Brussels, 27 October 2004
Risk Assessment: Scientific Committee on emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks: Minutes of the 3rd Plenary meeting of the Scientific Committee on emerging and Newly-Identified Health Risks, Brussels, 16 December 2004

You find the text also under http://peacejournalism.com

original: Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS): Herausforderungen für Patient, Medizin, Politik und Gesellschaft. Rede beim 1. Fachdialog zu MCS in Wien. (14. 11. 2002), veranstaltet vom Bundesministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft, von Seibersdorf Research, und mit Unterstützung der AGU (AerztInnen für eine gesunde Umwelt) , under www.safer-world.org/d/Scherrmann/skript/herausforderungen.htm

Wrong conclusions drawn from biased valuations made in the assessment of MCS (only in German)
Original: Falsche Schlussfolgerungen durch einseitige Bewertung der Evidenz bei der Beurteilung von MCS. In umwelt·medizin·gesellschaft | 17 | 2/2004 www.safer-world.org/d/Scherrmann/skript/folgen.htm (in the Journal "Environment-Medicine-Society")

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Comment Scherrmann: I was writing also sometimes in this forum with my full name. It was a forum after a TV-report about MCS.

People were very angry about the report, about the moderation and about the situation in Germany. One day the forum was deleted without an accurate explanation.

People were very angry for the moderators did not answer and it was clear, that they were "experts" who learned from Barrett, Gots, Staudenmayer, ...

My paper "Wrong conclusions drawn from biased valuations made in the assessment of MCS" is a rebuttle about an article from Hornberg, Wiesmueller et al.

printed in bold from Scherrmann.

***

EHP Monthly Table of Contents (here not completed) - The March issue of Environmental Health Perspectives