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EarthWINS Daily 5.11
October 17, 2000
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 22:06:44 -0500
From: EarthWINS-Daily@earthwins.com
Please pray for peace
Contents
1. Wisconsin: Rio Algom gone-Billiton urged to abandon
Crandon-news release
a. Rio Algom is gone; South African miner Billiton new
owner
of Crandon project
b. Honor The Earth Tour in Wisconsin Wednesday and Thursday
2. Ugandan officials try to contain Ebola outbreak
3. Town of Addison, Wisconsin to decide whether to build
state's largest
wind farm
4. Coal Sludge spill in Kentucky
5. SIGN ON LETTER---Russian Forests Threatened
6. Excerpts from ENN Headlines
7. Excerpts from Planet Ark
8. What Local Folks Can REALLY Do About Corporate Power
9. Alarming rise in CO2 concentrations presents continuing
global challenge
10. Australia: Aboriginal adaptations
*************************************************
1. Wisconsin: Rio Algom gone-Billiton urged to abandon Crandon-news release
From: Burroak15@aol.com
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 19:45:56 EDT
Hi folks, note the calendar items (after the news release)
about the Honor The Earth tour with the Indigo Girls, Annie
Humphrey, Jackson Browne and Winona LaDuke appearing
in Stevens Point on Wednesday and Keshena on Thursday.
Also, the Town of Nashville Local Agreement Hearing is on
Thursday too.
Sorry for any cross-posting.
-----------------------------
a. News Release
Mining Impact Coalition of Wisconsin
and Midwest Treaty Network/Wolf Watershed Educational Project
Rio Algom is gone; South African miner Billiton new owner
of Crandon project. Wisconsin groups urge Billiton to quit project
and demand Wisconsin DNR halt permitting activities
For immediate release, October 16, 2000 Contacts:
Dave Blouin, Mining Impact Coalition of Wisconsin, 608-233-8455
<burroak15@aol.com>
Zoltan Grossman, Wolf Watershed Educational Project, 608-246-2256
<mtn@igc.apc.org>
Marc Gonsalves, Senior Manager Corporate Affairs, Billiton Plc
Tel (London): 011 +44 20 7747-3956,
Email: mgonsalves@billiton.com,
Website: http://www.billiton.com
Madison - With the buyout of Rio Algom by London-based South African
mining company Billiton set to be concluded at midnight today, Wisconsin
environmental and conservation organizations renewed the call for Wisconsin
DNR to halt the Crandon mine permitting process and urged Billiton
to abandon
attempts to permit the proposed mine. Billiton Chairman Brian
Gilbertson
recently said that Billiton would dispose of Rio Algom's "non-core"
gold and
uranium assets but requests for information on Billiton's plans for
the
Crandon project indicate that the company is unwilling to commit to
any
particular course such as keeping the project, dropping the permit
application or
selling the project.
Last week, South African mining company, Billiton Plc. announced that
it had
acquired 95% of the outstanding shares of Canadian mining company Rio
Algom Ltd. Billiton set an October 16 deadline for Rio Algom
stockholders
to tender their shares to Billiton. The result is that as of
midnight
tonight, Billiton will control Rio Algom. Billiton will
become the fifth
company or partnership of companies in 25 years to own the Crandon
deposit.
1975-Exxon Coal and Minerals, 1992-Exxon and Phelps Dodge, 1994-Exxon
and Rio Algom, 1998-Rio Algom (Exxon still holds a small royalty interest),
2000-Billiton
Wisconsin groups opposed to the mine have urged Billiton to abandon
Crandon due to:
-- the inability of prior companies to demonstrate the ability to operate
the mine safely or to gain approvals to mine in the last 25 years;
--- the proposed mine's proximity to extremely sensitive resources
such
as the wild rice beds at Mole Lake and the Wolf River;
--- the lack of local approval for the proposal. At the mine
site itself,
the Mole Lake Sokaogon Chippewa community and the town of Nashville
oppose the proposed mine. Below the mine, every community on
the Wolf
River down through the Menominee Nation oppose the proposed mine;
--- continued opposition by Wisconsin tribes, labor, environmental
and
conservation groups and efforts to ensure that the use of cyanide in
mining is banned in the state and
--- the strong upsurge in anti-corporate sentiment in rural Wisconsin,
including the powerful campaign to stop the Duluth/Wausau transmission
line that would provide power via a feeder line to the Crandon mine.
"The South African Billiton corporation should realize that it will
be
entering a hornet's nest in Wisconsin if it chooses to continue the
Crandon mine," said Zoltan Grossman of the Wolf Watershed Educational
Project. "The project is a risky investment because of all its
potential
obstacles at the local, state, tribal, and federal levels. The
company can
cut its losses now by writing off the Crandon mine as a doomed venture."
"Should Billiton try to permit Crandon, they will be pouring money down
the
same black hole that other companies have so far.," said Dave Blouin
of
the Mining Impact Coalition of Wisconsin. "The fact that Rio
Algom has
wasted $65 million on the proposal so far and can't get it permitted
after
25 years suggests that the task is impossible."
Wisconsin groups are demanding that DNR discontinue the permitting
process due to the uncertainty of Billiton's plans and the change of
control
over the proposed Crandon mine. "We had no confidence in Rio
Algom's
plans for the proposal and since Rio Algom no longer exists, DNR should
use common sense and halt the permitting of the mine," said Blouin.
Background:
Billiton was spun out of South African mining giant Gencor as Gencor's
offshore arm of the company in 1997. Royal Dutch/Shell formerly
owned
Billiton until 1994 when Gencor took it over. Gencor through the mid-1990's
was one of four South African mining "houses" which dominated the
economy and accounted for more than 75% of South Africa's mineral
production. The majority of Billiton's current assets are South
African
mines and smelters. At the height of international pressure against
South
Africa over Apartheid in 1991, Billiton disposed of all of its U.S.
gold
projects.
The Crandon proposal's former owner, Rio Algom (through its Nicolet
Minerals
Co.), stated previously that the buyout would not affect Crandon project
plans.
The South African mining houses were operated by the white minority
and benefited from Apartheid's labor laws, pass laws, forced removals
and cheap labor system. In addition, South African regulatory
control
over the environmental practices of mining was nearly non-existent
and
is currently described as chaotic. In 1995, the mining industry
was
reported to be directly responsible for 100% of highly toxic, 78% of
toxic,
and 66% of slightly toxic pollutants entering South Africa's waters.
The
South African mining industry's record of worker health and safety
can
only be described as horrific. Conservative estimates of mineworker
deaths have numbered in the hundreds annually for at least the last
30
years.
Billiton mining track record: http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/billiton.html
Correspondence between Wisconsin mine opponents and Billiton:
http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/billiton_letters.html
Bidding War for Rio Algom: http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/noranda.html
Background on Crandon mine proposal: http://www.treatyland.com
Mineworker death and injury statistics: South African Chamber of Mines,
http://www.bullion.org.za
Extensive Background on Mining, Business and Apartheid
Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) submission to the
Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings on Business and Apartheid:
http://www.cosatu.org.za/docs/trc-sub.htm
Or COSATU: http://www.cosatu.org.za/index.html
National Union of Mineworkers (South Africa): http://www.num.org.za
South Africa Truth and Reconciliation Commission: http://www.truth.org.za/
Billiton Plc., 1-3 Strand, London, WC2N 5HA, United Kingdom, fax: +44
20
7747-3903
-------------------------------------------------------------------
b. Honor The Earth Tour in Wisconsin Wednesday and Thursday
The Crandon mine proposal and the Duluth to Wausau power transmission
line to the Crandon mine will be addressed by national recording artists
Indigo Girls, Annie Humphrey and Jackson Browne and Green Party Vice
Presidential candidate Winona LaDuke at Honor The Earth concerts scheduled
for:
Wednesday, Oct.18, Stevens Point, WI. 7:30 p.m., Quandt Fieldhouse,.
UW-Stevens Point, and
Thursday, Oct.19, Keshena WI, 7 p.m. at Menominee High School,
Menominee Reservation, Keshena.
Additional details: www.honorearth.org
Town of Nashville Local Agreement Hearing in Crandon Thursday
Thursday. Oct. 19, Crandon. 10 a.m. at the Forest County Courthouse
in Crandon on Hwy. 8.
Town of Nashville Local Agreement court hearing before Circuit Court
Judge Janine Geske. Nicolet Minerals has sued the Town of Nashville
over
Nashville's rescission of a"Local Agreement" that gave approval for
Crandon
mine. Nashville rescinded the agreement because it did not protect
the
health and environment of the town.
Additional details: http://www.nashvillewiundersiege.com
----------------------------------------------
Dave Blouin, coordinator
Mining Impact Coalition of Wisconsin
PO Box 55372
Madison, WI 53705-9172
www.miningimpacts.net
*************************************************
2. Ugandan officials try to contain Ebola outbreak
October 16, 2000
Web posted at: 5:21 PM EDT (2121 GMT)
http://www.cnn.com/2000/HEALTH/10/16/uganda.ebola.un.02/index.html
************************************************
3. Town of Addison, Wisconsin to decide whether to build
state's largest
wind farm
Last Updated: Oct. 12, 2000 at 4:44:09 a.m.
http://www.jsonline.com/WI/101200/wi--windfarm1012004449.asp
*************************************************
4. FWD from NWF: Coal Sludge spill in Kentucky
From: Burroak15@aol.com
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000
Another issue in the production of electricity by burning coal is the
source
of coal. Mountaintop removal in West Virginia is already well-known
for its
impacts on the environment. Another impact: a coal sludge spill now
threatens
human and wildlife health in Kentucky. Story at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/10/15/national/15SLUD.html
Coal Sludge Blankets Kentucky Countryside
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
INEZ, Ky., Oct. 14
**********************************************
5. SIGN ON LETTER---Russian Forests Threatened
Date: Wed, 11 Oct 2000 11:12:09 -0700 (PDT)
From: Global Response <globresponse@igc.apc.org>
Newsgroups: en.alerts
From: Global Response <globresponse@igc.org>
Subject: SIGN ON LETTER---Russian Forests Threatened
Dear Members of Global Response's "Quick Response Network:"
Please sign on to a letter to Russian government authorities, below,
to
support demands made by Russian environmental organizations.
This Action follows a Global Response letter campaign in September,
where
we tried -- unsuccessfully -- to convince the World Bank to withhold
funding for Russia until the Russian Federal Forest Service and State
Committee for Environmental Protection are reinstated.
To sign on to the letter, please send an email to:
prasmussen@igc.org (Pat Rasmussen, American Lands Alliance)
Give your name, affiliation, city, state, and country -- and do this
before
Oct. 26.
Thanks for supporting our Russian friends and colleagues who are working
so
hard to prevent destruction of Russia's remaining forests.
--Paula Palmer, Global Response
SIGN ON LETTER TO THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT IN SOLIDARITY WITH OUR RUSSIAN
COLLEAGUES
Background:
In May of this year, Russian President Putin abolished the country's
Federal Forest Service and State Committee for Environmental Protection.
In so doing, Putin placed the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources,
which has a tradition of aggressive resource exploitation, in charge
of
the abolished agencies' environmental protection functions. With this
move, Russia's system of independent government environmental
enforcement was effectively halted. Despite this draconian move, seven
days later the World Bank approved a $60 million loan to the abolished
Forest Service, then, on September 13, announced the approval of $200
million in loan guarantees to Russia's coal and forestry sectors.
In July, over 60 Russian environmental leaders, including former
environmental advisor to Boris Yeltsin, Alexei Yablokov, sent a letter
of protest over the situation to World Bank President James Wolfensohn.
"It was demolished," Washington Post later quoted Yablokov saying about
the environmental agency abolishment.
Four months after the agency abolishments, there is ample evidence that
the reform effort is damaging the country's already compromised ability
to protect the environment. There have been numerous staff cuts. Some
employees of the agency have changed their stand on issues in order
to
retain their jobs in the Ministry of Natural Resources. For instance,
one regional head in Kamchatka recently abandoned his support for a
United Nations program protecting two key salmon watersheds that are
also coveted by the Ministry of Natural Resources for their gold and
gas
deposits. The reason, local activists say, is that he is concerned
about
keeping his job under the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Meanwhile, Russia's leading environmental law firm, Ecojuris, is suing
the government, calling the agencies' abolishment unconstitutional.
"By
supporting the abolishment of these agencies and the inferior
restructuring of their functions under the Natural Resource Ministry,
the World Bank is undermining environmental protection and the
rule of
law in Russia," said Jozsef Feiler, Policy Coordinator, CEE Bankwatch
Network.
Alarmed by the dangerous direction the government is taking, Russian
NGOs throughout the country are gathering signatures to initiate a
Referendum, demanding that the Russian government:
1) Restore an independent Federal Forest Service;
2) Restore an independent environmental protection agency; and
3) Allow no movement of nuclear waste into Russia from abroad.
Russians must gather 2 million signatures by October 26. Currently they
have over 1.5 million.
WE CAN HELP BY APPLYING INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE:
SIGN ON to the following letter to the Russian government that
supports
the Russian peoples' demands. To sign on, e-mail your name, organization
(if you have one), city, state and country by October 26 to Pat
Rasmussen <prasmussen@igc.org>
And/or WRITE YOUR OWN LETTER.
SIGN ON LETTER:
Vladimir Putin
President of the Russian Federation
Staraya Pl. 4
103132 Moscow, Russia
FAX: 7-095-206-0766
Egor Stroev
Chairman of the Council of Federation
26 B. Dmitrovka
103426 Moscow, Russia
FAX: 7-095-292-6545
Mr. Genady Seleznev
Chairman of the Duma
Okhotny Ryad 1
103265 Moscow, Russia
FAX: 7-095-292-8600
Mikhail Kasyanov
Prime Minister
Krasnopresnenskaya Nab. 2
Moscow, Russia
Phone: 7-095-205-5055
Dear Sirs,
We, the undersigned environmental organizations and individuals, support
our Russian colleagues' call for restoration of forest protection
agencies independent of the Department of Natural Resources.
Forests of the Russian Federation, which make up more than 20% of the
world's forests, play a very important part in the conservation of
biological diversity, as well as in the regulation of global climate.
Ancient old-growth taiga forests of Karelia, the Arkhangelsk Region,
Komi, old-growth broad-leaf forests in Tula felled-tree barriers of
oak
forests of Chuvashiya represent the last remaining examples of
biodiversity on the ecosystem level, and these forests are unique not
only in Europe but for the whole world community as well. The forests
growing on the shores of Lake Baikal keep this world's largest reservoir
of fresh water clean. The ecosystems of the Usury taiga in the Russian
Far East are home to the largest wild cat in the world - the Amur tiger.
The ecosystems of Russian forests store billions of tons of carbon,
which, if these forests are destroyed by forest fires, diseases and
pest
outbreaks, will be emitted into the atmosphere in the form of carbon
dioxide which is a green-house gas contributing to global climate
change.
These forests provide non-timber forest products that sustain the lives
of indigenous people and local communities who live in them.
The universal importance of conservation of biodiversity and the need
for joint action by the whole world community to address these issues
is
reflected in the Convention on Biological Diversity and ratified by
177
countries and the EU.
We support the initiative of a Referendum by the Russian people that
calls for:
1) Restoration of an independent Federal Forest Service;
2) Restoration of an independent environmental protection agency; and
3) No movement of nuclear waste into Russia from abroad.
We further support the Resolution of the Fifth Biennial Conference of
the Taiga Rescue Network signed in Moscow on September 22, 2000 that
calls for protection of this vast global treasure, the Russian forest.
And we support the July letter of protest sent to World Bank President
James Wolfensohn by 60 Russian environmental leaders, including former
environmental adviser to Boris Yeltsin, Alexei Yablokov. This letter
calls upon the World Bank to halt loans to Russia until independent
environmental protection agencies are re-established.
Sincerely,
Name, Organization, City, State, Country
Pat Rasmussen, Leavenworth Audubon Adopt-a-Forest, Leavenworth, WA USA
CC:
Andrei Kushlin, Russian Forest Project, The World Bank, 1818 H Street
NW, Washington, DC 20433 USA
James Wolfensohn, President, The World Bank, 1818 H Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20433 USA
Klaus Toepfer, Executive Director, UNEP, PO Box 30552, Nairobi, Kenya
William J. Clinton, President, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington
DC 20500 USA
Hamdallah Zedan, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological
Diversity, World Trade Centre, 393 Saint-Jacques Street, Suite 300,
Montreal, Quebec, Canada H2Y 1N9
Mark Malloch Brown, Administrator, UNDP, One United Nations Plaza, New
York, NY 10017 USA
Gerhard Schroder, Office of the Federal Chancellor, Schlossplatz 1,
10178 Berlin, Germany
Dr. Maritta Koch-Weser, IUCN - The World Conservation Union, Rue
Mauverney 28, 1196 Gland, Switzerland
Elisa Peter, Taiga Rescue Network, Box 116, Ajtte S-962 23 Jokkmokk,
Sweden
*********************************************************
6. Excerpts from ENN Headlines
From: newsserver1@enn.com
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 10:32:46 -0600
ENN World Wire News
======================================================================
Monday, October 16, 2000
Email Edition
See what's new on our web site: http://www.enn.com/
MONSANTO BULLISH ABROAD ON BT COTTON
Monsanto has seen the future and believes it is in transgenic
cotton in places as far from home as Pakistan.
Source: Environmental News Network
http://enn.com/features/2000/10/10162000/monsanto_32437.asp
-------------------------------------------------------------------
WHERE THE YELLOWSTONE BUFFALO ROAM
Buffalo that wander outside of their protected zone in Yellowstone
National Park could be subject to continued elimination
by humans for the next 15 years, conservation groups warn.
Source: Environmental News Network
http://enn.com/news/enn-stories/2000/10/10162000/ybuffalo_32494.asp
-------------------------------------------------------------------
CDC TO REPORT ON CHEMICAL EXPOSURE IN U.S.
A report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
due out in a few months, will tell scientists and the public
how many Americans -- and which ones -- have
unusually
high levels of lead, pesticides and other undesirable substances
in their blood.
Source: Reuters
http://enn.com/news/wire-stories/2000/10/10162000/reu_chemicals_32585.asp
-------------------------------------------------------------------
RUSSIA, U.S. OK POLAR BEAR PROTECTION
The United States and Russia, concluding several years of
negotiations, are signing an agreement today to increase
the protection of polar bears in the Arctic region of northeastern
Siberia and Alaska.
Source: Associated Press
http://enn.com/news/wire-stories/2000/10/10162000/ap_polarbear_32579.asp
-------------------------------------------------------------------
U.N. UNVEILS NEW STUDY ON HUNGER
Somalia, Afghanistan and Haiti rank as the hungriest countries
in the world, according to a new measurement introduced
today by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization.
Source: Associated Press
http://enn.com/news/wire-stories/2000/10/10162000/ap_hunger_32587.asp
-------------------------------------------------------------------
CHEVRON AGREES TO BUY TEXACO FOR $35.1 BILLION
Chevron Corp. reportedly has reached a deal to acquire Texaco
Inc. for about $35.1 billion in stock, creating the world's
fourth-largest oil company.
Source: The Star-Ledger
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune
http://enn.com/news/wire-stories/2000/10/10162000/krt_bigoil_32581.asp
-------------------------------------------------------------------
ENN Multimedia
NEW TECHNOLOGY, OLD PROMISE
Frances Moore Lappé, author and food expert, says we
don't need new ways to produce food. What we really need
are new ways to get food to hungry people. Steve Pomplun
of Earthwatch Radio reports on this interesting perspective
on food shortages. (2 min.)
Source: Environmental News Network
http://enn.com/enn-multimedia-archive/2000/10/10162000/eart_32424.asp
**********************************************
From: "Planet Ark"<admin@listserver.planetark.org>
Sender: mb45665a@webcentral.com.au
Reply-to: admin@listserver.planetark.org
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 13:10:30
Senate passes U.S. water bill opposed by Canada - USA
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=8543
Nuclear dissenter Nikitin says Kursk must be raised - GERMANY
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=8559
France says no to German nuclear waste - minister - GERMANY
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=8546
Thousands protest German nuclear waste transport - GERMANY
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=8545
German minister says education needed on GMO crops - GERMANY
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=8552
Anti-nuclear protest jams entire Austria - Czech border -
AUSTRIA
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=8544
*************************************************
8. What Local Folks Can REALLY Do About Corporate Power
From: the slave <keith_v@yahoo.com>
Date: Sun, 15 Oct 2000 13:18:56 -0700 (PDT)
Dear Coucilmember Daryl Slusher <daryl.slusher@ci.austin.tx.us>
I would like to offer some MORE advice about what citizens can do in
Austin and
other cities to take control of their own lives back.
One thing they can do is take to the streets and reclaim them as their
own.
They can participate in rebellious and liberating protests. They can
take part
in civil-disobedience and direct actions aimed at stopping elites from
destroying our fragile environments and buying-out our Democracty.
They can DEMAND accountability from their elected officials. They can
demand
that Austin City Council explain exactly why APD is participating in
the same
militarization of police that is sweeping the nation. They can demand
that that
City Council demilitarize the police and replace Police Chief Knee,
or the City
Council itself can find itself a subject of protests and actions.
They can DEMAND that all documents pertaining to the F500 and other
such events
be made public, including documents from the APD. They can demand that
we know
how much surveilence is being done on Austin activists and community
groups,
who is doing that, and what other agencies APD is drawing from. Citizens
should
find out not only what police cloak-and-dagger techniques were being
used on
F500 organizers, but if these techniques are being regularly used on
local
groups like Earth First!
Citizens can DEMAND an open media. They can ask their City Council to
endorse
more free media like Free Radio Austin and that cable providers donate
more
bandwidth to the community as a shared resource as a condition of getting
any
contract with the city.
Citizens can DEMAND that elections be publicly funded and get corporate
money
out of City Hall, their state governments, and the national governments.
They
speak up for Democracy and stop cowering under the power of the Fortune
500 and
their ilk and speak up for a better vision of what Democracy will look
like.
They can start criticizing the cherished "liberal" media or our age
such as the
Austin Chronicle and PBS for their "compromising" vision and reassert
a radical
and uncompromising vision. Citizens can take to heart that all true
change in
this society inevitably finds itself at odds with status quo and meets
with
resistance.
Citizens can do a lot more than your article would seem to suggest.
And I think there are an increasing number of activists in Austin that
are
willing to make that change happend. The Fortune 500 protest wasn't
just a
solitary event aimed at the top 500 corporations, but an event to increase
political awareness and dialouge about radical alternatives to the
same old
status quo of lobbying and letter-writing.
Ongoing struggles with groups like Freeport and Bradley are taking far
too long
to be resolved. These issues should have been taken care of LONG TIME
AGO.
Citizens must strive to empower themselves and make sure these issues
get
resolved in a timely and responsive fashion. Instead of just working
with
corporations, we need to let them know exactly who the boss is around
here: We
The People.
Laterz.
PS. This letter is being cross-posted to several regional email lists.
---------------------------------------
What Local Folks Can Do
Local residents can help to lessen the corporate grip on our lives as
well as
help to improve corporate business practices. The best hopes there
are to: buy
from local and small businesses whenever possible; research corporations
and
buy from those that best practice environmental protection and social
equity
(don't rely on their commercials to find out); work with corporations
when they
are willing to hear and address local concerns; and encourage elected
officials
at every level to insist on more humane and responsible corporate practices.
Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this statement. I hope
my comments
are received in a constructive fashion. I will continue to work in
that spirit
on the local level.
Daryl Slusher
Austin City Council Member
=====
.
[|=-=slave=-=|]
. Free Radio Austin 97.1 http://pirateradio.org/fra
.
.
Fortune 500 Protest http://o13.org
. Austin Independent Media Center: http://austin.indymedia.org
**********************************************
9. Alarming rise in CO2 concentrations presents continuing global challenge
From: "Karen Claxon" <kclaxon@earthlink.net>
Date: Fri, 13 Oct 2000 16:05:01
12 OCTOBER 2000 AT 14:00 ET US
Contact: Margaret Sullivan
msulliv@ur.rutgers.edu
732-932-7084 x633
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Alarming rise in CO2 concentrations presents continuing global challenge
Paul G. Falkowski, a professor at Rutgers' Institute
of Marine and
Coastal Sciences (IMCS) with a joint appointment to the geology
department, is the lead author of an article in the Oct.13 issue of
Science that shows that in the course of the last 200 years, humans
have
significantly altered the global carbon cycle.
Falkowski and his co-authors wrote the article under
the auspices of
the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP), which Falkowski
co-chaired with fellow author R.J. Scholes of the Council of Scientific
and Industrial Research in South Africa. The IGBP Carbon Working Group,
established by the United Nations, met in Stockholm in November 1999
to
study the impact of human activities on the rate of change in
atmospheric CO2. The group examined changes in biogeochemical and
climatological processes along with alterations in international carbon
and nutrient cycles. Comparing contemporary processes with the 420,000
years prior to the Industrial Revolution, they determined that
atmospheric CO2 levels have risen at a rate of some 10 to possibly
100
times faster than at any prior time in the Earth's history.
"As we drift further away from the domain that characterized
the
preindustrial Earth system, we severely test the limits of our
understanding of how the Earth system will respond," write the article's
authors.
"We appear to be fated to continue the increase
in CO2 in the
biosphere unless governments come to terms with new technologies. Human
beings are ultimately responsible for their own fate," says Falkowski.
### Yair Rosenthal, assistant research professor
at IMCS, was also a
member of the IGBP and a co-author of the article.
Falkowski is available for interviews at (732) 932-6555, extension
370.
http://www.eurekalert.org/releases/ru-ari101200.html
*******************************************
10. Australia: Aboriginal adaptations
October 16, 2000
http://www.cnn.com/2000/NATURE/10/16/australia.quest/
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