«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»«°»^«°»^«°» M A K I N G I N D I A G R E E N Vol. 1, No.2 «°» February 1, 2001 Priya Shah, Editor, mailto:Priya@makingindiagreen.com «°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»«°»^«°»^«°» Privacy Policy: Our subscriber list is confidential and we respect your privacy. This newsletter is distributed by subscription only. All subscription and unsubscription information can be found at the end of this issue. «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» In This Issue: «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» «» Editorial «» News Digest «» Your Green Recipe «» MIG Features: The genie in the test tube «» Guest Article: Wheat grass - A panacea of life Author: Dr. Sharad Nayampally (N.D.) «» Green Tips: «» Contact Details «» Subscribe/Unsubscribe «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» To bring electricity to your doorstep, it takes a minimum investment of around Rs.3 to 4 crores per megawatt. A lot of it is in foreign exchange. Saving one unit of electricity is cheaper than generating one unit of electricity. Source:Department of Energy Conservation, Ministry of Power - India «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Editorial «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» *And now every mother Can choose the colour Of her child That's not nature's way Well that's what they said yesterday There's nothing left to do but pray* - Lyrics from *Virtual Insanity* by Jamiroquai (Kay/Smith,1996) The face of the new biology is beginning to assume a sinister definition with the new genetic technologies that have invaded our soils, our food, our lives. Two recent developments in particular, have brought humanity a step closer to creating a *genetically improved* human being. The birth of the world's first genetically modified primate - a monkey called ANDi (for *Inserted DNA*, written backwards) - involved inserting a gene at the egg stage, so that it is passed on to offspring. The next step, say critics, would be a genetically modified human. In the second development, the UK became the first country to legalise the creation of cloned human embryos, for the purpose of harvesting stem cells - which could then be grown into compatible tissues for transplant. Critics believe it could pave the way to allowing cloning for reproductive purposes. For many of us, genetic engineering of humans seems repugnant, or at least something to be viewed with caution, but it does have many supporters. The celebrated British physicist Dr Stephen Hawking, is one of them. Recently, he told an audience in Mumbai that, *Genetic engineering will happen in the next millennium whether we want it or not.* Dr. Hawking believes that the complexities of the human race would require improved humans to meet new challenges. Is a future with genetically engineered human beings then inevitable? Could it be that the ultimate goal of evolution is the creation of a species that is able to direct its own evolutionary future? More importantly, is the human race ready to take over the job from Nature? The development of *improved humans* would create social and political problems, in relation to normal or *unimproved* humans, believes Dr. Hawking. Are we, as a society, prepared for the consequences? Genetic engineering is a powerful technology that has great potential for good - from life-saving gene-therapy to bioremediation of environmental pollution. But in its application, some of which are outlined in this issue's feature article, also lies great potential for harm - to our health and to the environment. Do we know what we're getting into? And where should we draw the line? Shouldn't we be allowed to make our own choices instead of letting others make them for us? Its time we took a stand and played a proactive role in decisions that involve the future of the human race. «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» News Digest «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» AUSTRALIAN RESEARCHERS STUMBLE ON DEADLY GENE Australian scientists developing a biological contraceptive to halt mouse and rat plagues have unearthed a deadly new gene with profound implications for biological warfare. The contraceptive was being developed, with goal of suppressing the plagues of mice and rats, that affect between 100,000 and 500,000 hectares of grain crops each year, and are increasing in frequency due to changes in farming practices. Scientists were trying to develop a genetically modified virus that would boost the level of the animal's immune response, so that it blocked reproduction - a process known as immuno-contraception. They found that introducing an extra gene in a mousepox virus, for a substance called interleukin-4, which affects the immune system, suppresses that part of the mouse's immune system which deals with viruses - the cell-mediated response. As a result, lab mice normally resistant to the virus died. Furthermore, the gene diminished the efficacy of vaccines used to protect mice, by about half. The scientists are concerned that in the wrong hands, the technique could be used to strengthen biological weapons based on viruses which affect humans, and are calling for the global Biological Weapons Convention to be strengthened as a result of the discovery. "The best protection against any misuse of this technique was to issue a worldwide warning. We also want researchers to use this new knowledge to help design better vaccines, " said CRC director Dr Bob Seamark. A report on the discovery will be published in the Journal of Virology's February issue. Full text: http://ens.lycos.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-17-10.html PESTICIDES IN THE NEWS Insecticide Causes Mad Cow Disease Pharmaceutical interests in the UK are ignoring new scientific research that shows the insecticide used in the UK government's own warble-fly campaigns triggered the UK surge of 'Mad Cow' disease, says a new report. Of greater concern is that some lotions for scabies and head lice are now priming children and adults, for CJD and Alzheimers in later life. Full text: http://eionews.addr.com/epaper/eio001213.htm Combination of Pesticides Linked to Parkinson's Disease Here is another reason to watch what you eat. Two commonly used agricultural pesticides, when found together in humans who have been exposed to them, may lead to Parkinson's disease, a new study suggests. The report, published in the Dec. 15 issue of Neuroscience, provides the strongest evidence to date that human-induced environmental factors play a role in the development of the fatal disease. The research team examined the effects on mice of two widely used agricultural chemicals - the herbicide, paraquat, and the fungicide, maneb - both of which are known to affect the neuro-transmitter network in mice. The findings could be a warning signal that current environmental investigations on the health effects of pesticides do not cover enough ground, said the researchers. Full text: http://ens-news.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-03-06.html Pesticides linked to Gulf War illness Field sanitation sprays and other pesticides could be among thepotential contributing agents to some of the undiagnosed illnesses reported by Gulf War veterans, according to new research. It points to pesticides in a class known as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors - both organophosphates and carbamates - as being linked to the symptoms of Gulf War illness. Armed Forces personnel who served in the Gulf War in 1990 and 1991 have been complaining of health problems ever since. Gulf War veterans have died, been paralyzed, had children with birth defects, have emitted semen which burns their wives, and have been disabled with nausea and chronic fatigue. Full text: http://ens.lycos.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-15-03.html DELHI ALLOWS POLLUTING INDUSTRIES TO REOPEN In a decision which angered not only environmentalists but also some government officials, India's capital district of Delhi, the fourth most polluted city in the world, allowed 372 of the 650 industrial units served with a closure notice for pollution in December, to reopen. In September 1999, India's Supreme court issued a directive to close down all units whose effluents were turning the Yamuna River into an open sewer. The Supreme Court's deadline for the installation of the effluent treatment plants ended on November 1, 1999. The chairman of the Delhi Pollution Control Board (DPCB), Rajiv Talwar, justified the decision saying that the units were allowed to reopen and start functioning only after they had provided photographs or had given affidavits stating that they were no longer polluting. But such assurances mean little in the face of accusations that a large number of polluting industries have furnished the exact same photographs to prove installation of the treatment plants. Environmentalists scoffed at the government's reassurances of better monitoring, saying that such promises have been made umpteen times by successive ministers without results. While the political wrangling continues, Delhi's ten million residents are faced with an environmental debacle. Delhi's drains are choked and overflowing, garbage lies piled and spread at every corner. Travellers on the road in the evening appear to drive through a tunnel of smoke. Yamuna, the river which was once the lifeline of the capital, today is virtually dead. AS BUSH TAKES OVER, ENVIRONMENTALISTS FEAR THE WORST For U.S. environmentalists, it was an ill wind that blew on 20 January 2001, when George W. Bush took over. With Bush's emphasis on low fuel prices and a reduction in American dependence on oil imports , greens foresee soaring pollution and drilling rigs springing up across protected lands. "It seems like it's going to be open season on the environment," says Mark Helm of Friends of the Earth. During campaigning, Bush said Kyoto was unfair to the US, and questioned the science of global warming. After talks broke down at the climate negotiations in November, Texas environmentalist Pete Altman warns that from now on foreign negotiators "should just assume they are negotiating with Exxon". Bush's support for other energy technologies - wind, biomass and solar power - might make a dent in the projected 35 per cent increase in American carbon emissions by 2010, but nobody is betting on the US meeting its Kyoto reduction targets. Bush's nominees, Norton and Abraham, have backed demands to open up large areas of American public lands to miners, loggers and oil companies. Top of their shopping list is the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. Many of Clinton's last-minute environmental decisions have already been overturned and there are fears that more environmental regulations will be ditched. Full text: http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns22747 MAD COW DISEASE CALLED INTERNATIONAL THREAT The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization is warning countries around the world - not just those in Western Europe - about the risk of mad cow disease. The Organization recommends adoption of surveillance and monitoring systems to detect the disease in cattle herds, meat industries and animal feed operations. Mad cow disease is officially known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). This disease has been linked to a fatal brain disease in humans called new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (nvCJD). Little is known about the actual mechanism for transmission of the disease, but the currently held belief is that the disease agent jumps to humans who eat infected meat products. Alarm about the disease's potential has been largely confined to Western Europe up to now, but the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has issued its warning to all nations. All countries which have imported cattle or meat and bone meal from any Western European countries, particularly the United Kingdom, during and since the 1980s, can be considered at risk, the FAO wrote in a release on Friday. Within countries, FAO recommended applying the so called Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point system (HACCP) which aims at identifying potential problems and taking corrective measures throughout the food chain. The FAO and WHO are now finalizing work on a 'Code of Practice for Good Animal Feeding' to ensure that animal products do not create risks to consumers. Full text: http://ens.lycos.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-29-08.html POPS TREATY TO PROTECT ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH It was good news for the environment when delegates from 122 countries ended a week of negotiations in Johannesburg, South Africa, with agreement on an international treaty to eliminate persistent organic pollutants (POPs). The treaty identifies an initial list of 12 POPs slated for elimination, with various phase-out timetables for each chemical. An official signing ceremony will be held in Stockholm, Sweden in May 2001, and the treaty will go into force when ratified by 50 countries. This initial list, which includes nine pesticides, will be expanded over time according to criteria set forth in the treaty. One of the most controversial issues in the final negotiations was how the "precautionary principle" would appear in the treaty, and specifically what role it would play in the addition of new chemicals. The compromise reached involves the adoption of both a precautionary approach and a rigorous scientific review of health effects of chemicals being considered. The treaty also includes provisions for financial and technical assistance to developing countries to meet treaty obligations. A limited public health exemption for continued use of DDT to control malaria was put in place, along with strong incentives to develop and adopt safer alternatives. NGO representatives following POPs issues are pleased with the strength of the POPs treaty, they note that agreement on the treaty text must be seen as the beginning rather than the end of the treaty process. These NGOs urge civil society to maintain pressure on their governments to ensure that the treaty is ratified and implementation initiated as soon as possible. Full text: http://www.gnet.org/Coldfusion/News_Page2.cfm?NewsID=13978 2001 TO BE INTERNATIONAL BIODIVERSITY YEAR The first year in the new millennium is being celebrated as International Biodiversity Observation Year (IBOY). The move will see an international team of researchers from the Natural Resource Ecology laboratory at Colorado State University in the US and other global organisations masterminding a wide range of projects to study biodiversity across the world. IBOY activities will focus on over 40 international research projects designed to make available important new information on biodiversity. These will range from surveys of life in the canopies of tropical forests to the production of the first atlas of marine life. The scientists claim that the limited awareness of biodiversity and its connections to everyday lives undermines the ability of the public and policymakers to make decisions on sustainable development. The scientists have committed to ensuring both 2001 and 2002 are breakthrough years, vowing to dramatically increase communication of their findings about the status of biodiversity and its connection to human welfare. About 1.75 million species have been described, but scientists estimate that there are over 12 million species still to be described. According to the scientists taking part in the IBOY programme, a third or more of all species could be on a path to extinction within the next few decades. The IBOY team is not providing funding for the projects, but will publicise them and provide opportunities for contact and collaboration between science, education and the media. A World Biodiversity Summit is also planned for late 2002, to provide a showcase for the new information generated in IBOY, and opportunities to learn about biodiversity. Full text: http://www.edie.net/news/Archive/3657.html PEAT BOG ENZYME PREVENTING GLOBAL RELEASE OF CO2 The activity of a single enzyme, phenol oxidase, in peat bogs from Scotland to Siberia is the only thing preventing a massive release of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, says a British scientist. But global warming could transform it from a planet-saver to a planet-wrecker, warns Chris Freeman, a biologist at the University of Wales, Bangor and discoverer of the crucial role of the enzyme. Peat bogs in northern latitudes contain an estimated 455 billion tonnes of carbon in the form of buried plant matter - equivalent to 70 years of industrial emissions. Many climate models predict that global warming will cause peat bogs to dry out. If so, says Freeman, there would be a catastrophic release of CO2, sending temperatures soaring yet further. Until now, scientists have been unclear why buried plants inside wet bogs do not decompose. Now he and his colleagues have revealed that phenol oxidase is the key. In a wet bog, the enzyme is largely inert and the phenolic compounds it would otherwise destroy can build up. These compounds prevent bacteria from decomposing the organic material. But if the bog dries out, the enzyme activates and destroys the phenolic compounds, triggering decomposition. Full text: http://www.newscientist.com/dailynews/news.jsp?id=ns9999316 DEATH TOLL CLIMBS IN INDIA'S WORST EARTHQUAKE At least 25,000 people have died and many thousands more are critically injured and missing as a result of an earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter Scale that shook western India on Friday, India's 52nd Republic Day. The epicenter of the earthquake was located 13 miles northeast of Bhuj in Gujarat State, India. Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh were also affected. Indian officials estimate that some 200,000 people have been left homeless. Bhuj, with a population of 150,000, is the worst affected city where 10,000 people have reportedly been killed. In Bhuj, 50 percent of buildings have been destroyed and 95 per cent are no longer habitable. There is no electricity and no water in the entire town of Bhuj. The cities of Rajkot and Patan have also been severely affected. Several aftershocks, the strongest of the series measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale, are hampering rescue and relief activities. The earthquake has caused an oil slick around the country's busiest port of Kandla posing a major threat to the environment. The government of India has decided that while there will be no appeal for assistance, all offers made voluntarily will be gratefully accepted. India has received offers of assistance from a large number of foreign countries and aid agencies. The earthquake was the most powerful to strike India since August 15, 1950, when an 8.5 magnitude earthquake killed 1,538 people in northeastern Assam state. Full text: http://ens-news.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-29-01.html TIME RUNNING OUT ON ENVIRONMENT, REPORT SAYS A new report from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health warns that we are running out of time to protect the environment. According to the report, the rate of global consumption is the major threat to the environment. Resources are being consumed far faster than they can regenerate. This leads to water shortages, soil exhaustion, deforestation, air and water pollution and the degradation of coastlines. The signs of degradation are everywhere in the world. Unclean water kills more than 12 million people every year, and air pollution claims the lives of another 3 million. Nearly half of the world's original forest cover has been lost. Every year, nearly 40 million acres are cut, bulldozed or burned. Two out of every three living species are estimated to be in decline. "Without practicing sustainable development, humanity faces a deteriorating environment and may even invite ecological disaster," note Don Hinrichsen and Bryant Robey, authors of the report. The report notes that slowing population growth would buy time to protect natural resources and give families in developing countries a chance to raise their standard of living. Stabilizing population growth is the key to halting the wholesale destruction of the planet, the report maintains. Full text: http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/2001/01/01182001/enviroforecast_41407.asp?site=email POLITICAL LEADERS FACE HISTORIC EVOLUTIONARY CHOICES Political leaders around the world have an unrivalled opportunity for making historic, even evolutionary choices regarding economics, ecology, and the fate of the planet as a whole, according to a new report by the Worldwatch Institute, State of the World 2001. Many life support systems around the world are at risk of long-term damage, caused by factors such as climate change, pollution, and human population increase, says. Environmental degradation is even leading to more severe natural disasters, which have cost the world $608 billion over the last decade. This means that political leaders have to decide whether to move forward rapidly with the building of a sustainable economy, or whether to risk undermining it by allowing increasing human numbers and greenhouse gas emissions, and the loss of natural systems. The report states that signs of accelerated ecological decline have coincided with a loss of political momentum on environmental issues. Will the world will be able to turn these trends around before the economy suffers irreversible damage? In particular, the nine large developing or industrial nations that are the most important players in both environmental and economic terms, hold the key. These 'E9 countries' consist of China, India, the US, Indonesia, Brazil, Russia, Japan, South Africa, and the European Union. In order to prevent future failure of international environmental agreements which are currently hampering progress, State of the World calls for stronger enforcement of treaties, and for increased North-South co-operation particularly among the E9 countries. In particular, the Institute is concerned about the effect of the new US administration. "The US has the world's largest economy and its environmental impact is second to none, so the signal it sends is crucial," says Flavin. "The question now is one of leadership," he added. "Will the United States lead the world to a sustainable economy in the twenty-first century - as it led the way through global crises in the last century? Or will it be left to other countries to show the way to a sustainable economy in the new millennium?" Full text: http://www.edie.net/news/Archive/3709.html GREENPEACE CALLS FOR BAN ON "FRANKENBUGS" Greenpeace urged a global ban on the release of genetically engineered insects, following a Wall Street Journal report that U.S. Department of Agriculture scientists and other researchers are poised to begin field experiments of genetically engineered "Frankenbugs." While proponents of genetic engineering claim these altered insects will solve pest and medical problems, Greenpeace cautioned that unanswered questions about this radical new technology could lead to unexpected side-effects that could devastate the environment and threaten human health. Insects are being engineered to cause fatal abnormalities in crop pests or to be flying syringes that vaccinate people with every bite. Yet once released into the environment, the unintended side effects, or "biological pollution" from genetically engineered insects could lead to even greater problems than those they are intended to resolve. GE insects once released cannot be recalled, nor can their further development and mutations be controlled. Many insect pests are known to have spread globally through international trade and tourism. "Any release of genetically engineered insects is inherently a global release and must therefore be dealt with by the international community," said Greenpeace Genetic Engineering Specialist Charles Margulis. "Every exterminator can tell these genetic tinkerers how difficult it is to eliminate troublesome insects even from a single house," said Margulis. "Given the potential for massive and irreversible global environmental and health consequences, governments must take scientific precautions and ban the release of any genetically engineered insects." Full text: http://www.enn.com/direct/display-release.asp?id=3221 CLEAN-BURNING FUEL READY TO BECOME COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE BioOil, a clean-burning fuel which could replace natural gas, diesel and other fossil fuels in the multi-billion dollar industrial fuels market, is now ready for early commercial applications, following successful combustion testing, say its developers. According to DynaMotive Technologies Corporation, a Canadian -based technology company, customers for BioOil fuels could potentially include local, regional and international energy users such as electrical utilities, forest companies, oil and gas producers and manufacturing companies. The company describes its innovation as a waste to energy technology that converts forest and agricultural waste into liquid BioOil - a renewable alternative to fossil fuel for generating power in diesel engines, boilers and gas turbines. According to DynaMotive, the fuel is low in emissions and is greenhouse gas neutral. DynaMotive has set itself the target of becoming the world leader in the development of technology to produce competitively priced liquid fuels from biomass. In December, the company announced the completion of the construction of its BioOil pilot plant, with a processing capacity of 10 tonnes of biomass feedstock per day. Full text: http://www.edie.net/news/Archive/3748.html UK LEGALIZES CLONING OF HUMAN EMBRYOS The United Kingdom has become the first country to legalize the creation of cloned human embryos, after the House of Lords voted to relax government regulations. Pro life groups and religious leaders had appealed to the Lords to reject regulations that will allow scientists to clone human embryos up to 14 days old. Cloning bypasses the normal reproductive process to produce genetically identical individuals that share the same DNA. An embryo is a fertilized egg up to eight weeks of development. The 1990 Human Fertilization and Embryology Act has limited British scientists to research on donated embryos up to two weeks old for studies on fertility, contraception, miscarriage and congenital disorders. The Human Genetics Advisory Commission and the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, called for the law to be relaxed to allow the use of early stage human embryos for stem cell research. Stem cells are the body's "master" cells, which can develop into any of the body's specialized tissues, such as blood, bone, organs, muscles and nerves. Embryos are a mass of stem cellsthat evolve into a fetus by specializing to create a nervous system, spine and other features. Scientists want to take stem cells from the embryo prior to this development and direct their growth to build any desired cell or tissue type for transplant. This process, known as therapeutic cloning, could revolutionize the treatment of burns, spinal injuries and degenerative conditions such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease. An embryo cloned from a patient would yield stem cells, which could be used to grow tissue compatible with the patient, overcoming the problem of transplant tissue rejection. Despite the term "human cloning," the vote will actually make reproductive cloning of babies - whereby an embryo clone is produced and planted into a woman's womb - illegal. The UK's Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child called cloned human embryo research destructive and criticized the new regulations. "Research on cloned embryos will involve the creation of human beings who will be plundered for their cells and be killed in the process. It is also a step on the way to allowing cloning for reproductive purposes." Full text: http://ens.lycos.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-23-11.html DIOXIN NAMED A KNOWN CARCINOGEN Dioxin - already blamed for a host of ills ranging from immune system suppression and infertility to learning disabilities - has now been officially linked to cancer. The National Toxicology Program announced last week that dioxin has been added to a federal list of substances "known to be human carcinogens." "This report shows that dioxin threatens the health of every American," said Lois Marie Gibbs, executive director of the Center for Health, Environment and Justice, when the story was leaked last year. "Dioxin from incinerators, paper mills and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic production is getting into our bodies through the food we eat." The National Toxicology Program's listing of dioxin in the "known" category is based on evidence from studies in humans that indicate that exposure to dioxin can cause cancer. Dioxin is no longer produced commercially, but is still a byproduct of many industrial processes. It has been found as a contaminant in some herbicides and pesticides and is also formed during the incineration of waste. Dioxin levels in the bloodstreams of Americans have declined in recent years as a result of environmental controls, but the toxin is still widespread in the environment and can be found in very small amounts in the general population. The Report on Carcinogens is a cancer health hazard identification document that lists substances that may pose a cancer risk to humans. But the report does not assess the conditions under which subtances may pose a risk, so the report is not intended to show which substances might pose a cancer risk to individuals in their daily lives. Full text: http://ens.lycos.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-24-06.html UN WARNS AGAINST COMPLACENCY AS DEFORESTATION SLOWS The global rate of forest loss has slowed to nine million hectares per year, according to the latest global forest assessment by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The Rome based agency has carried out global forest assessments for 50 years. Its latest study shows a rate of forest loss 20 per cent lower than the last global figure reported in 1995. Forests are disappearing most rapidly in Africa and Latin America while in Asia, the reduction of natural forests is largely compensated by new plantation forests. In Europe and North America the forest area is increasing, the survey shows. Overall, the world contains around 6,000 square meters of forest per person. The figure is falling by 12 square meters every year. The survey's findings show some countries still have high levels of deforestation, mainly because of conversion of forests to other land uses. But other countries show significant increases in forest cover through plantations or natural regrowth. "These differences cannot be explained by population pressure on forests alone," said FAO director general, Dr. Jacques Diouf. "Rather they are apparently the results of economic developments at large, and national forest or land use policies. "These preliminary results do not mean that the battle against deforestation is over, and a reduction in deforestation must not be used as an excuse for unsustainable forest practices," said Hosny El-Lakany, assistant director general of the FAO Forestry Department at the time. "It does show, however, that the long-term efforts of FAO and others to build awareness of and capacity for sustainable forest management are worthwhile and should be reinforced." Full text: http://ens.lycos.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-24-11.html OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE OF GLOBAL WARMING After the release of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's report on global warming -- the strongest scientific evidence ever linking climate change to man's activities -- environmentalists and scientists say the time has come for President Bush to come up with a policy to address this slow-moving ecological crisis. The study predicts that the Earth's temperature could increase up to 10.4 degrees Fahrenheit over the next century. In fact, it says we just exited the warmest decade in the last 140 years. Scientists predict rising temperatures will cause sea levels to rise, displacing millions of people living in low- lying regions such as Bangladesh. While there's been little doubt that the climate is indeed warming -- glaciers are retreating, sea levels are rising, precipitation is changing -- there have been some high-profile skeptics, Bush included. They question the science linking this general warming trend to things that humans do, such as burning fossil fuel, which releases carbon dioxide. The new report states emphatically that "most" of the warming, especially over the last 50 years, is attributable to human activity, and not to natural occurrences such as normal climate variations from one decade to another, changes in sunlight or volcanic activity, which can cool the atmosphere. Experts hope the new report will be enough to persuade President Bush to take action. Full text: http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2001/01/26/global_warming/index.html?CP=MOR&DN=310 HINDU PILGRIMS RISK DISEASE BY IMMERSION IN SACRED GANGES Seventy million people are expected to immerse themselves in the waters of the Ganges River during Maha Kumbh Mela, or Great Sacred Jug Festival. Hindus believe the immersion will purify their souls, but Indian and international environmentalists are warning that this holiest of rivers, though once revered for its purity, is now terribly polluted. Untreated raw sewage enters the river at Varanasi and at many other places in the Ganges River which is home to nearly one-tenth of the world's population. In the past 50 years, thousands of industries have been built along the Ganges River. Tanneries, chemical plants, textile mills, distilleries and slaughter houses discharge untreated wastewater through a myriad of open drains and canals. Despite a misguided and expensive government program launched in the 1980s, the Ganga Action Plan (GAP), only a small fraction of sewage receives treatment before entering the river. The GAP has wasted millions of dollars on energy intensive wastewater treatment plants that have failed due to inadequate power supply, sub-standard construction and lack of trained personnel. Millions have been spent setting up a wastewater treatment plant in Varanasi that does not work. Local advocates are proposing the use of simpler wastewater treatment systems that take into account local conditions. Full text: http://ens-news.com/ens/jan2001/2001l%2D01%2D19%2D01.html UNEP: GREEN ENERGY COULD SAVE CLIMATE, FORESTS, WILDLIFE Accelerating the introduction of environmentally friendly energy such as solar, wind and wave power is one of the most pressing issues of the new millennium, the head of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) told a meeting of the G-8 countries on renewable energy. Green energy must be put at the heart of sustainable development if the threats of climate change and the need to tackle poverty and ill health in the developing world are to be truly addressed. "Sustainable development, or not cheating on your children, means things like ensuring our ever growing cities function as stimulating and vibrant places to live and work; to ensuring that the poorest people in the world are not forced to chop down forests full of precious wildlife for wood to cook or keep warm," he says. "I cannot frankly see how these problems can be overcome without the widespread introduction of non or lesser polluting forms of energy which conserve the planet's finite resources of coal, oil and other fossil fuels," Toepfer says. UNEP believes that turning the promise of green and less polluting energy plans into installed facilities, able to bring heat and light to rural communities or help pump water to rural communities and rapidly expanding cities, may hinge on developing a pioneering network of advice centers across Asia, Africa and Latin America. Full text: http://ens-news.com/ens/jan2001/2001L-01-10-01.html HOW 'GREEN' POLITICS KILLS CHILDREN IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES According to the World Health Organization, malaria affects some 500 million people each year and kills up to 2.7 million annually, amounting to one child every 20 to 30 seconds. "When Politics Kills: Malaria and the DDT Story", shows that much of this loss of lives could have been prevented if DDT had not been abandoned in most of the developing world. "Malaria infection rates are surging worldwide, killing children and their mothers in Africa, Asia and Latin America in shocking numbers," said Dr. Roger Bate, co-author of the new report and chairman of the Save Children from Malaria coalition. "DDT is our most effective weapon in the fight to prevent malaria. When used in limited amounts in homes to drive out mosquitoes, DDT saves innocent lives." Many countries, especially in the developing world, have come under intense pressure from international environmental agencies to give up DDT or face losing aid grants. "In Africa, a child dies of malaria every 15 seconds. Restrictions on DDT usage will ensure that children die every day even though we have the means to prevent it," says Dr. Bate. "Political leaders and environmental groups from the developed world should consider the human impact of their decisions in countries that face the scourge of malaria every day." Full text: http://www.enn.com/direct/display-release.asp?id=3234 VANDANA SHIVA BEATEN BY POLICE IN DAVOS According to a Press Release from Amnesty International, sixteen nongovermental organisations, including AI, Greenpeace and Oxfam, have written today to the President of Switzlerland to express their concern at the Swiss authorities'response to protests at Davos. The meeting of the World Economic Forum has been marred by the arrest and intimidation of people engaging in peaceful demonstrations. The Public Eye on Davos conference participants, including Vandana Shiva -environmental and human rights activist from India - came out to join the street protest and were attacked by police. Vandana Shiva, who attempted to climb over a police barrier, was grabbed and beaten with a baton. For more news go to: http://www.davos.indymedia.org/index.php3?lang=en BIOTECH FOODS RULE FAILS TO PROTECT AMERICAN PUBLIC Consumers concerned about the potential health and environmental effects of genetically engineered foods will not find much to like in new federal regulations released this week. The regulations, which provide guidance for the release and marketing of food developed through biotechnology, do not require labeling or premarket testing of engineered foods. After months of controversy, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released its proposed biotechnology foods rule. But despite receiving tens of thousands of comments supporting mandatory labeling of genetically engineered (GE) foods, the FDA opted to support voluntary labeling guidelines. Labeling of GE foods would be entirely voluntary, and would focus largely on "truth in advertising" requirements that the labels accurately reflect the foods' contents. But the new rule has come under heavy criticism from science and environmental groups who say that the FDA's proposal fails to protect public health and the environment. Labeling of genetically engineered foods is required throughout Europe, and in Japan, Russia, Australia, New Zealand and other countries. The proposed rule, if finalized, would require food developersto notify the FDA at least 120 days in advance of their intent to market a food or animal feed developed through biotechnology. Manufacturers would also need to provide information to demonstrate that the product is as safe as its conventional counterparts, but the FDA did not set out requirements for how that information is obtained. Critics of GE foods and many scientists had pushed for minimum research requirements, such as 90 day safety tests, before new GE foods could be approved for the market. GALAPAGOS SPILL LEAVES FEW ANIMALS HARMED Thankfully, the oil spill in the Galapagos has caused only minimal damage to wildlife, enviros say. The oil tanker Jessica ran aground about 550 yards off the Ecuadorean archipelago and spilled about 185,000 gallons of fuel, but ocean currents have helped the clean-up effort and carried most of the fuel away from the islands, which were first made famous by Charles Darwin. The U.S. Coast Guard said that it would be impossible to move the tanker and that over time the tanker will become an artificial reef and habitat for marine life. The Ecuadorean tanker Jessica ran aground on Jan. 16 off San Cristóbal, the easternmost island in the remote Pacific archipelago known for unique animal species that inspired Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. Most of the fuel had spilled into the water before cleanup crews arrived, sparking fears of an environmental disaster. But currents carried much of the fuel away from the islands, and damage appeared minimal. Only one pelican and two seagulls are known to have died from the spill, while 50 other animals have been found sullied by the fuel. Workers scrubbed them with toothbrushes and returned them to their natural habitats. The Galapagos Islands, 600 miles west of the Ecuadorean mainland, are the country's main tourist attraction. Full text: http://cgi.mercurycenter.com/premium/world/docs/galapagos28.htm FUEL CELLS: THE FUTURE OF ENERGY IS HERE The first widespread application of hydrogen fuel-cell technology might not be in cars but in vacuum cleaners. Industry giant Electrolux said last week that it is close to developing a fuel-cell vacuum that would be lighter than conventional models, much quieter, and, of course, free of a power cord. Even smaller fuel cells could power cellular phones in the near future, providing standby power for six months and talk time of one week. Big advances in pollution reduction are expected when automakers and energy companies begin using fuel cells on commercial scale, but such changes might be 10 years down the road. In one test project in Portland, methane collected from the decomposing waste from a sewage plant is providing hydrogen to power a fuel cell that creates enough electricity for more than 100 homes a year. Fuel cells are like batteries except that instead of requiring a recharge they run off a fuel. The cleanest form is hydrogen, which emits zero pollutants. Using methanol or even gasoline to get hydrogen would not be as clean, but would still be a big improvement over internal combustion engines. Fuel cells power the "Hydrocycle" being developed by a New York company. Manhattan Scientifics CEO Marvin Maslow believes the Hydrocycle would sell well in noisy, polluted cities, particularly in Asia. "In Asian countries such as India, massive amounts of goods are transported every day by scooters driven by heavily polluting two-cycle engines," he said in unveiling the Hydrocycle. "These indicators," he added, "clearly suggest the potential for a low cost, environmentally clean, fuel cell-powered bicycle." Fuel cells could be one of the major links that bridge us from a society that operates on fossil fuels and their pollution liability, to an energy economy that operates on clean-burning hydrogen. Although fuel cells are still too expensive, the move toward the so-called hydrogen economy has started. Full text: http://www.enn.com/news/wirestories/2001/01/01292001/ap_fuelcells_41683.asp?site=email And: http://www.msnbc.com/news/521465.asp CIVILISATIONS DESTROYED BY CLIMATE CHANGE Scientists warn of "unprecedented social disruptions" that could result from global warming, after linking the collapse of societies throughout history to climate change. There is "mounting evidence" that the demise of some civilisations was climate-driven, report Prof Harvey Weiss of Yale University and Prof Raymond Bradley of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Scientists are now able to link the rise and fall of societies recorded in the archaeological record with evidence of the timing and magnitude of climate change held in ice cores, corals and sediments. Prof Weiss said: "We find a very precise coincidence between the abrupt climate changes and the archaeological record of collapse." "These events were abrupt, involved conditions unfamiliar to the inhabitants of the time, and persisted for decades to centuries," say the professors in the journal Science. "They were therefore highly disruptive, leading to societal collapse." The professors suggest that modern societies, faced with prospects of global warming, may not be immune to social disruptions triggered by abrupt climate change. Most of the world's people will continue to be subsistence or small-scale market farmers. But unlike ancient societies, who could migrate to where cultivation of crops was possible, the world is now too crowded for "habitat tracking". The authors say: "We do, however, have distinct advantages over societies in the past because we can anticipate the future using computers," say the authors. We must use this information to design strategies that minimise the impact of climate change on societies that are at greatest risk. This will require substantial international co-operation without which the 21st century will likely witness unprecedented social disruptions. Full text: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=003864436460684&rtmo=kCJAk1Np&atmo=rrrrrrrq&pg=/et/01/1/26/wclim26.html «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Read more of the latest news stories, events and announcements at the website: http://www.makingindiagreen.com «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» Reuse Scrap Paper Before Recycling It Turn scrap paper into a handy scratch pad for making lists, scribbling notes, and doodling. Depending on the size of the scrap paper, cut it in half or quarters. Staple the salvage together, blank side up, to make an eco-friendly notepad. If you have a clipboard, tuck scrap paper under the clip and keep all shapes and sizes effortlessly neat and handy for note taking. «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Your Green Recipe «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» [This is your space. Please send in your questions, ideas or views on practices that make you angry, or that you feel are unsafe or harmful to the environment. It should be accompanied either with your own suggestions or ideas for solutions /alternatives to the problem, or you could have other readers answer your query. Alternatives/solutions to everyday problems that plague us all are particularly welcome. Submissions should be about 50-100 words in length, and should include your contact information (phone number, postal address, e-mail).] «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» MIG Features: The genie in the test tube «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» The worst nightmares of genetic engineering opponents in India seem to be coming true. Asia's burgeoning food market, and declining consumer and farmer confidence in genetically engineered products in Europe, Japan and the United States has made Asia the key target of the biotech industry, according to the international environmental group, Greenpeace. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) will soon hit the urban markets in India, it warns. Americans have been eating genetically engineered food since 1996, and if agrochemical giants like Monsanto have their way, Indian consumers may soon lose their right to choose between genetically engineered and natural produce. Already genetic engineers have produced foods such as strawberries with fish genes, potatoes with chicken genes, and other combinations thatcould never have occurred through natural breeding. There is no evidence that these foods are safe in our diet or the environment in the long run. Dangers to the environment, warn scientists, include the loss of biodiversity, potential dangers to human health, loss of income and opportunities for small farmers, and control of the world food supplies by a few big seed companies. GUINEA PIGS IN A GE EXPERIMENT? While there are serious doubts about how rigorous governments are in their testing requirements for biotechnology products, critics also argue that the safety assessment methods available today are not sufficiently reliable, especially in the case of long-term effects. It was decades before the full dangers of pesticides such as DDT were known, or the ability of BSE (the agent that causes 'mad cow' disease) to also infect humans. Environmentalists demand that the precautionary principle -- that these products are presumed guilty before they are ruled innocent -- be followed, especially in the case of the new, relatively untested genetic engineering technology. Fears that GM food is a "huge experiment with the human race as guinea pigs" are not totally unjustified. Tomatoes, carrotsand cucumbers are some of the products now being produced on a vast scale. In the United States and Canada, genetically engineered potatoes and corn, which produce their own pesticide, are on the market. The long-term effects for entire populations eating foods containing the insect toxin are unknown. A long-suppressed U.S. Government memo dating to 1993 revealed an experiment in which 4 of 20 female rodents fed the FlavrSavr (a GM tomato now owned by Monsanto) suffered gross stomach lesions. In the US, cows were given a genetically engineered hormone, rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone), to produce more milk until fears of a link with breast cancer were reported. No other country besides the U.S. has approved rBGH for use within its borders. Despite these revelations, Indian officials had plans to introduce rBGH, or BST (bovine somatostatin), for use in India. Eating genetically engineered food containing antibiotic resistance genes, could transfer these genes to pathogenic bacteria, that could acquire resistance to valuable antibiotics and become a health hazard. A number of observations have indicated this might indeed occur. Totally unrelated pathogens are now showing up with identical virulence and antibiotic resistance genes. Most GM crops contain genes from non-foodorganisms including viruses, bacteria, insects and exotic animals. It is possible that in crop plants engineered with viral-resistance genes, natural genetic recombination and other biological processes, could give rise to new viruses,that could cause famine by destroying crops, or cause virulent human and animal diseases, say scientists. These fears were reinforced when fragments of viral genes inserted into foods and fed to baby mice, were detected in the mice's brain cells. Genes from Brazil nuts introduced into a soybean, to improve its protein content, unknowingly transferred life-threatening allergens. With 2 percent of adults and 8 percent of children allergic to common foods, consumer advocates argue that GM foods need proper labelling. Labelling GM food as such, will allow food buyers to choose for themselves whether or not to accept this risk. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not require labelling, but labelling of genetically engineered foods is required throughout Europe, and in Japan, Russia, Australia, New Zealand and other countries. Insects are also being engineered to cause fatal abnormalities in crop pests or to be flying syringes that vaccinate people with every bite. Yet once released into the environment, the unintended side effects, or *biological pollution* from GM insects could lead to even greater problems than those they are intended to resolve. For example, the delivery of vaccines by altered insects could not be controlled, leading to harmful or even deadly adverse reactions in sensitive people. Just this month, scientists reported that when they attempted to develop a vaccine by genetic engineering, they accidentally developed a deadly bioweapon instead. RECIPE FOR ECOLOGICAL DISASTER GMOs pose the greatest risks to ecosystems, since they can become dynamic living parts of them. Our current knowledge does not provide us with the means to predict the long-term ecological effects of releasing organisms into the environment. Critics who worry that seeding farmland with transgenic food crops could spread genetic pollution and damage the biosphere are right, says environmentalist and author of *Biotech Century,* Jeremy Rifkin. According to Rifkin, the risks in releasing these GM crops are similar to those in introducing exotic organisms, which could wreak havoc, as there is always a small chance that it will run amok. It's the equivalent of letting the genie out of the bottle. Genetic pollution is irretrievable, as GMOs once released into an ecosystem, can never be recalled. In field tests in Europe, genetically engineered rapeseed plants caused *biological pollution* and spread their mutant DNA characteristics to neighbouring plants. A researcher found that a gene had transferred from GM rapeseed to bacteria and fungi discovered in the gut of honeybees. Industry had previously claimed such a transfer was highly unlikely or impossible. In September 2000, a GM maize variety ("Starlink") banned in the USA for human consumption (because of fears of allergic reactions) but permitted as a livestock feed, showed up in taco shells served at Taco Bell restaurants. The Aventis variety raised new concerns about industry's and government's capacity to regulate and manage GM products. In October 2000, the Taco Bell scandal spread to Kellogg's corn flakes as the giant cereal company closed down one plant for fear that the illicit GE StarLink maize had infected breakfast cereals. Crops engineered to produce their own pesticide have also been found to kill beneficial insects and pollinators such as monarch butterflies, ladybugs and honeybees. The pollen of the GE corn variety known as Bt corn, has been found to be toxic to monarch butterfly caterpillars. A genetically engineered bacterium, Klebsiella planticola, killed wheat planted in test units. Another variety reduced, by half, the amounts of beneficial fungi crucial for nitrogen fixation in the soil. If such an organism survived readily and spread widely, it would be devastating, and would require expensive measures to control. Companies are putting human and bovine genes into salmon in an attempt to produce super salmon. If these fish were released into the ecosystem, the *genetic pollution* they would introduce could destroy the species. SUSTAINABLE FARMING UNDER THREAT Plants engineered for survival and propagation in arid or marginal environments, have the potential to become noxious weeds. If the flow of genes from one plant species to another, mainly through cross-pollination, passed on these *weedy* characteristics to wild relatives of crop plants, the hybrid *superweeds* would resist the herbicides that were designed to kill them -- something biotech companies have ignored as a remote or non-existent possibility. In 1996, the transfer of a gene from a transgenic crop to a wild weed was indeed observed. Another study confirmed the organic farmer's worst nightmare, revealing that GM crops have spawned a new generation of prolific and aggressive superweeds, with inherited resistance to herbicides. Growing herbicide-tolerant GM crops requires the use of toxic weed-killers, and could result in the increased use of these herbicides, which could be harmful in itself. Widespread introduction of these crops and use of herbicides could wipe out indigenous plants, threatening many birds and insects that depend on them for food and cover. Hence, rather than help wean agriculture from its dependence on toxic chemicals, herbicide-tolerant crops will perpetuate and extend the chemical pesticide era and its attendant human health and environmental toll, argue critics. Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), a natural soil microorganism, is the world's most important natural pesticide, used by organic and sustainable farmers worldwide to repel plant pests such as the potato beetle, cotton bollworm, or corn borer. By making this natural pesticide an integral part of cotton and other crops, such as soybeans and corn, Monsanto and other biotech firms have hastened the evolution of Bt-resistant insects, like the diamondback moth, which is reported to have become resistant to the Bt toxin after prolonged exposure. Widespread resistance would affect organic and low-input farming, which rely on the Bt toxin in its naturally occurring, bacterial form, and agriculture would then lose one of its safest, most valuable bio-control agents. Genetic engineering, with its focus on high marketable yield, represents an extension of intensive, industrial agriculture, and therefore reinforces environmentally damaging, non-sustainable farming, say critics. In the long term, it is incompatible with low-input, sustainable farming methods (e.g. Integrated Crop Management), say environmentalists. In addition, since GM crop plants are designed to yield a uniform product (monocultures), promoting them will further aggravate the worldwide loss of agricultural biodiversity, and displace and eradicate traditional cultivated varieties with greater genetic diversity and potentially desirable traits. In India, with its great genetic and specific diversity of crop plants, all these ecological risks will be felt most poignantly. GE V/S TRADITIONAL BREEDING The proponents of genetic modification in agriculture, use two main arguments to justify it. Firstly, they argue, only GE crops can meet the needs of the world's ever expanding population in a sustainable and environmentally conscientious manner. This claim is unproven, whereas extensive studies have shown that with better management of resources and minimal chemical inputs, yields can be tripled using conventional crops. A second, more fundamental point is that GE represents a natural extension of traditional breeding methods, only it is more precise and safer. Critics like molecular biologist Michael Antoniou, would say that this is an oversimplification of the way genes work. Antoniou explains that genes have evolved to exist and work in families. Therefore, the claim that the reductionist approach of GE, which moves one or a few genes between unrelated organisms, is a precise technology, is highly questionable. With traditional breeding methods, different variations of the same genes in their natural context are exchanged. This preserves tight control and complex inter- relationships between genetic and protein functions that are vital for integrity of life as a whole. On the other hand, GE of animals and especially plants, always results in a loss of the tight genetic control and balanced functioning which is retained through conventional cross breeding. It is the imprecise way in which genes are combined and the unpredictability in how the foreign gene will behave, that results in uncertainty, he says. REAPING A BITTER HARVEST Agricultural biotechnology is being sold as a solution to world hunger. But the performance of GE crops has not held up to the exaggerated claims of crop companies. Although genetic engineers like to claim that genetic engineering is an *exact science,* field results tell a different story, and GE crops have produced very variable yields. In the US as well as globally, a pattern of agricultural biotech failures have emerged. *Data from across the world shows that small farms which base their agriculture on many different sorts of farming can be five or 10 times more productive per unit than large monocultural farms,* says Dr. Vandana Shiva. A study of *sticky* rice varieties in China and the Philippines showed that planting a number of diverse varieties increased yields by 89 percent while reducing disease by 98 percent. Their conclusion: diversity outperforms genetically uniform GM varieties. Greenpeace argues that in a predominantly agrarian economy like India's, a monopolistic hold over the farmers' seed systems could have a *devastating impact* on small farmers. The lack of corporate liability or responsibility in the case of contamination of seeds by genetically manipulated varieties is another issue of serious concern, as it would intensify the risk of genetic pollution of India's agro-ecosystems, critics say. In November 2000, the first meeting of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization's Ethics Panel (a group of world-renowned agronomists and ethicists) concluded that GM crops are risky, Terminator technology is immoral; and that patenting genes and other genetic material leads to crop genetic erosion and unacceptable monopoly. BACKDOOR ENTRY FOR BIOTECH? At the recent Bright Sparks Biotechnology tour organised by the British Council in India, several proponents of GE spoke to invited audiences of biotech professionals and scientists, often in closed sessions. *It is alarming to see the manner in which a number of institutions and forums such as these are being indiscriminately used to promote GMO's. Simultaneously, due to very little public awareness on the issue, there is no real debate,* said Michelle Chawla, Greenpeace's Genetic Engineering Campaigner in India. *There is an urgent need to demystify the issue of GMO's to enable citizens to understand and raise issues in forums like this one,* she added. *In India, the Government has already declared biotechnology as a flagship program and is actively promoting field testing of Monsanto's genetically modified cotton. Despite an ongoing Supreme Court case questioning the legality of Monsanto's initial application for field testing, the Ministry of Environment and Forests recently granted permission not only for field testing, but also for seed production. This is in total disregard of the irreversible environmental and human health risks and despite the glaring absence of the capacity to respond adequately to genetic pollution,* says a press release from Greenpeace. Earlier this month, a delegation of 10 judges and scientists from the Maryland-based Einstein Institute for Science, Health and the Courts, a non-profit organisation dedicated to educating the judiciary on scientific issues such as transgenics, raised eyebrows when it visited the Chief Justice of India. The influential Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) recently recommended that India's Supreme Court decide the issue of applying products of genetic engineering, in the wake of the uprooting of Monsanto-Mahyco's cotton plants from a farmer's plot in Karnataka. India is yet to have laws requiring that GE products are suitably labelled to warn an unsuspecting public, as in many other countries. Like many developing countries, we lack the technical, financial, and institutional capacity to address biosafety issues. The possible dangers of genetic engineering are too real to ignore. Its time we as consumers took measures to learn about them, and to demand our right to the kind of choices that will best protect our health and preserve bio-resources for future generations. «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Visit our site http://www.makingindiagreen.com to read the latest news, access a list of resources on genetic engineering and sign campaign petitions for labelling of genetically engineered food. «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» DID YOU KNOW? Houseplants are excellent pollution fighters. The Boston fern efficiently removes the most common toxin, formaldehyde, which is found in everything from facial tissues and carpets to gas stoves and plywood. «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Guest Article: Wheat grass - A panacea of life Author: Dr. Sharad Nayampally (N.D.) «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Rekha, a frail 16- year-old, was suffering from viscositis and was treated at leading hospitals for over a decade. Both her feet were swollen about 4 and a half inches and had turned black and septic with deep wounds. She was in excruciating pain. Dr Nayampally, a physician who treats patients with holistic medicines, immediately put her on wheat grass therapy. After two days of fasting, she was put on wheat grass juice, which was also applied to bandages for her feet. After a month's treatment she was able to run. Dr Arun Karia had undergone several surgeries and chemotherapy sessions and was in severe pain with no hope of recovery. A few weeks of wheat grass therapy and he is a new man today. Similarly, Gopal Seksaria, a businessman with cancer had not been able to fight his cancer despite 10 sessions of chemotherapy. He had become very frail and his body odor reeked of internal decay. He too is back at work. The stories are legion: Sheetal, a 23-year-old, had chronic migraine that seemed to get worse with every year. Whenever she had an attack, she was totally incapacitated and "felt as if a million demons were in my head". After a short period of wheat grass therapy, she seems to have said goodbye to her migraines. Naturopathy is based on the belief that the body has the power to heal itself. But, as George Michael says: "You've got to have faith." Living in hazardous urban environments with pollution, work stress, sedentary lifestyles, rich diets, addictions and growing obesity, we seem to have fallen for the quick-fix solution to modern maladies: popping pills, be it to reduce obesity or induce tranquility. But these shortcuts don't work. Disease attacks when our natural resistance is low. According to the World Health Organization, India is projected to have the fastest-growing population of diabetics in the world. From 1.9 crore in 1995, to 5.1 crore in 25 years, the increase will be a whopping 195 per cent. It's the same when it comes to projections of cancer and AIDS. Sounds scary doesn't it? But, as I discovered, there is hope in the form of natural foods that have a miraculous healing power. Even those with a history of neglectful health habits, can begin doing damage control today through something like wheat grass therapy which will not only eliminate toxins from your system, but boost your nutritional and immune status. "Natural foods and exercise help because they reinforce the body's self-healing powers over pernicious systems of medication. The cell-formation process speeds up because natural food has a balancing proportion of energy, vitamins, trace elements, minerals, proteins, starch and fats," says Dr Nayampally. How it works: Pioneered by Dr Anne Wigmore of Hippocrates Health Center, Boston, USA, wheat grass therapy is gaining popularity around the world. Through her arduous efforts she has been able to show its efficacy in fighting killer diseases like cancer as well as in acute and chronic illnesses. Wheat grass, also called sanjivini over here, is exactly what its name suggests, a wheat plant. This is what it does. The seeds are first sprouted and these sprouts are really activated enzymes that make proteins and vitamins. Plants have the power to absorb solar energy from the sun and transfer it to water molecules while releasing carbon dioxide as oxygen into the air. During this process plants become a storehouse of energy in the form of sugar and carbohydrates. Now it is scientifically proved that a molecule of human blood, hemoglobin, and wheat grass chlorophyll, is exactly the same. The only difference between the two is that the color of hemoglobin is red because the center is iron while wheat grass is green because the center is magnesium. The constitution of blood is alkaline and the proportion of hydrogen molecules is 7.4. So is the case with wheat grass. That is the reason it is quickly absorbed in the blood and is beneficial to the body. To look at, however, it looks like any other grass and is sweet, soothing and cooling to taste. There are many other nutritious and prophylactic qualities towheat grass. For starters, it contains all the minerals essential for the body not to mention vitamins such as A, B, C, E, K and laetrile B17. Besides these, it contains carbohydrates, proteins and fat with lots of the all-important chlorophyll. This is a very potent germicide while laetrile seems to have cancer-fighting qualities. The body is like a machine which requires adequate oiling. Wheat grass is the oil that prevents the body from rusting and falling apart. The chlorophyll not only purifies the blood, it also boosts heart function and energizes the body increasing its resistance to disease. This is what invigorates the healing process. According to naturopaths and researchers, wheat grass therapy can cure some 350 diseases from common colds to cancers. If you don't want to buy it from naturopaths who supply it, you can grow your own at home. In this case you can either chew it first thing in the morning or take it as a juice that is most effective. Ideally, combinations of both yields best results. Drink the juice on an empty stomach and chew the grass at any convenient time of the day. But remember not to have any heavy food alongside. Apart from these, it can also be used externally to treat wounds and septic areas. Starting treatment: Do not start treatment without consulting a naturopath. Then, you need to undertake a 48-hour fast to detox the body before the consumption of wheat grass. During this fast have only warm water and juices. Along with this it is necessary to empty the bowels totally with an enema. Thereafter, consume raw foods like fruits and sprouts for a couple of days. Now you are ready to start therapy. Begin with 30 ml and increase it gradually to 300 ml a day, depending on the nature of the disease. According to Dr Nayampally, a regime of 21 days is fine and you can then continue to take a dose of 50 ml to maintain health. But it isadvisable to stop the dose gradually. The detoxification process sometimes causes symptoms like headache and nausea and the dosage can be reduced or stopped for a while in acute cases. Wheat grass juice can be used as an enema or for gargles. According to Prabhakar Pai, who is researching wheat grass: "Besides its therapeutic use, wheat grass has plenty of beauty benefits too." The juice can be used as an anti-wrinkle cream, it helps remove scars and brings a glow to the face. It also arrests the problem of falling hair and premature greying. Apply a paste of juice or wheat grass on the scalp and leave it for an hour. Even if you don't have any problems, take it as prevention against their occurrence! Growing wheat grass: 1.Take seven pots measuring one square foot each with a depth of three inches. You may also use a wooden box or basket or big tins. 2. Fill them with soil that has no chemical fertilizers and is not too sticky. Add some natural manure. 3. Sprout about 100 grams of good quality wheat. This would yield about four to six ounces of wheat grass juice that is sufficient for one person. For sprouting: soak the wheat for about 12 hours. Wrap it in a wet, thick cloth and tie it lightly for another 12 hours. 4. After they have sprouted and shoots begin to appear, sow them in the soil. Spread the sprouted wheat on a soil bed in such a way that each grain is close to the other. Now cover the grains with a thin layer of earth. «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» A computer expert with Hindustan Lever Ltd. in Mumbai, Dr Sharad Nayampally treats patients with holistic medicines, but his true specialty is wheat grass therapy. He can be contacted at the following TEL: 6609697.6497083 E.MAIL: sharad.nayampally@unilever.com pantheon@bol.net.in «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» Did you know that pesticides used in lice-removal formulations could cause CJD and Alzheimers in later life? Here's an inexpensive, natural, alternative medicine formula that mixes with your favorite shampoo. Check it out at: http://hop.clickbank.net/?munchie/vickier «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Green Tips: «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» The seemingly harmless, "pleasing to eye" colours that we use to celebrate Holi, are actually very toxic? This is because of the presence of cheap materials like mica, acids, alkalis, pieces of glass, which not only induce skin disorders like abrasion, irritation, itching but can impair vision, cause respiratory problems and also cancer. The major constituent of the colourants in gulals are mostly heavy metals that are known systemic toxins. Lead is the most dangerous of all the heavy metals found in holi colours. The National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI), Lucknow has developed organic holi colours from vegetable dyes. For those of you who cannot lay your hands on these organic colours, revert to the traditional way and celebrate using tesu flowers. These flowers can be boiled and soaked overnight to get a rich yellow colour. Delhiites can buy these from the Delhi Haat (during Holi) or Chandini Chowk. If you are not able to find these flowers in the market, try out some household recipes and get some nice shades and colors. Boil the petals of marigold flowers or the peels of pomegranate (Anar) and soak them overnight to get yellow colour. For rich magenta red, use beetroot or the stem of castor (Aran) and for orange red try henna leaves (mehndi). You can use turmeric or even red sandalwood powder to make holi pastes. These would not just impart colour but would also be good for skin as they are endowed with some therapeutic values. Let's celebrate holi in an environmentally benign manner and say no to toxic chemicals this year. Source: Toxics Link. «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» Fact: Westerners waste between 30 and 100 gallons of water daily. The average American flushes away more water every day than a Madagascan uses in three months. «»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«»^«» «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Contact Details «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Priya F. Shah, Editor mailto:Priya@makingindiagreen.com http://www.makingindiagreen.com Plot No 45, Lane G, Sector 8, Vashi, Navi Mumbai - 400 703, Maharastra, India 9122-7826746 «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» Subscriptions to this ezine are free. Making India Green is published on the first of every month. Feel free to forward this ezine to anyone you think might enjoy it. Subscribe: mailto:makingindiagreen-subscribe@listbot.com or join online at:http://makingindiagreen.listbot.com/ Unsubscribe: mailto:makingindiagreen-unsubscribe@listbot.com We welcome article submissions on topics relevant to the theme of this newsletter. For information on article submissions, mailto:Priya@makingindiagreen.com with "Article Info" in the subject line. «»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«» «°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°^«°»^«° GET PAID TO SURF, chat, receive e-mail, search, click on links, or do what you normally do online. Join for free and get your own website at: http://www.ghostsurfers.com/priyashah «°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«°»^«° Thanks for reading this issue. For more resources and information on sustainable living, visit us online: http://www.makingindiagreen.com