(click on article to read) Three sites remain radioactive from Bosnian War ENVIRONMENT BRIEFS

Three sites remain radioactive from Bosnian War Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Nov. 13 (ENS)– Three sites in Bosnia-Herzegovina that were targeted with weapons containing depleted uranium (DU) during the mid-1990s are still radioactive enough to pose a risk to human health, a team of 17 experts from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) said Tuesday. A depleted uranium shell In response to a request by the Council of Ministers of Bosnia-Herzegovina, a team assembled by the UNEP Post Conflict Assessment Unit carried out its scientific investigation in October. Using sensitive instruments to measure surface radioactivity at 14 sites, the UNEP team confirmed the presence of radioactive “hot spots” and pieces of DU weapons at three locations — the Hadzici tank repair facility, the Hadzici ammunition storage area and the Han Pijesak barracks. In addition to the 14 sites that were examined, the team could not enter one site on its list due to safety concerns over nearby landmines. The team took some 200 environmental samples — including 47 surface soil samples, three full soil profiles, three penetrators, one full DU bullet, 24 air samples, 42 water samples, and samples of lichen, bark, moss, mushroom and vegetables — to be analyzed for radioactivity and toxicity at laboratories in Switzerland, Italy and the United Kingdom. To view the reat of this article, please go to: ens-news.com

ENVIRONMENT BRIEFS Soybeans contaminated by ‘pharmcrops’ ordered destroyed US officials have ordered 500,000 bushels of soybeans, worth $2.7 million, destroyed after the crop was contaminated by maize genetically engineered to produce an experimental drug. A Nebraska state field where an experimental bipharma maize was grown the year before, now planted with soybeans, was discovered to have maize gone to seed amongst the soybean crop. ProdiGene, a Texas biotech company that produces plant-made pharmaceuticals and industrial products, was told to remove the plants. But when inspectors returned a month later, they found that the maize was still there and the field had been harvested. All of the soy went to a single storage facility and officials were able to prevent it from entering the human or animal food chains. The USDA has reportedly refused to reveal the chemical or drug that was genetically engineered in the GM maize. In another ProdiGene test site regulators forced the company to incinerate 155 acres of maize surrounding the field test site for the same reason: biopharma maize from the previous year’s experiment had begun to grow. (IPS) Forest activists shut down Citibank Activists from the Rainforest Action Network (RAN) blockaded a Citibank branch in Washington, DC’s financial district Nov. 14 to protest the environmental destruction the group said is caused by Citibank’s lending practices. At the same time, RAN activists blockaded every Citibank branch in the San Francisco financial district, as well. To view the reat of this article, please go to: ens-news.com   Defense bill includes exemption for military The 2003 Defense Authorization Bill sent to President Bush Nov. 13 includes a provision to exempt the military from the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The measure includes a provision sought by the Bush administration that would allow the killing of migratory birds on 25 million acres of land controlled by the military. The Bush administration had requested an exemption for the military from a variety of laws, including the Endangered Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, Clean Air Act and Superfund. To view the reat of this article, please go to: ens-news.com Pro-industry senator to chair environment committee Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) will take over leadership of the crucial Environment and Public Works Committee, which reviews almost all major legislation concerning conservation and environmental enforcement. He will succeed Senator Jim Jeffords, I-VT. The League of Conservation Voters, a nonprofit group which monitors the environmental voting records of all Congress members, gave Inhofe a 0 percent rating for his lifetime voting record, noting his support for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and opposition to increased fuel efficiency standards. Toxic areas, poor neighborhoods coincide in Phoenix Bob Bolin and Edward Hackett, sociology professors working with the Arizona State University’s Center for Environmental Studies, say a clear pattern of association exists in the Phoenix metropolitan area between socioeconomic characteristics, the presence of contamination sites, and volume of emissions. To view the reat of this article, please go to: ens-news.com

 

 

 

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