Ottawa: Arctic Council to Meet Wednesday

B. McPherson

The eight nation Arctic Council will reconvene on May 15^th to discuss security, sustainability, environmental protection and development. The nations which have coast lines on the Arctic Ocean formed the Council in 1998 in the face of the warming Arctic and threats and opportunities that an ice-free ocean would present.

In addition to the eight nations with coastlines on the Arctic – Canada, USA, Russia, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Denmark(Greenland) – there are six nonvoting members who represent indigenous people and their interests. Observer status has been granted to eight nations. 14 other nations have applied to sit as nonvoting observers at this conference.

Some of the nations applying for status are puzzling at first glance, but the expected natural resources that lie under the ice have some already rumbling that they deserve a share of those riches – natural gas and oil. This year China, Japan, S.Korea, India, Italy, Singapore and the EU have all applied.

The Arctic is expected to be ice-free in the summer by 2050. This will create issues of sovereignity, security, environmental protection, transportation and search and rescue capability.  Canada has a long coastline, 162 000 km but a small population. Currently the federal government has committed to building a deep water port at the cost of at least $5.3 billion.  New ships capable of handling the harsh waters need to be built as well. Aircraft currently fly mercy missions, but planes are 5 to 6 hours away from the Arctic.

The Canada is split on the direction that the country should take as the Arctic changes. The Conservative government with Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq(Nunavut) seem to be taking a pro-business approach. Environmentalists fear that a free hand will be given to oil exploration corporations with little to ensure that spills and pollution will not occur.

There are wide opinions and stances with regard to the future of the Arctic Ocean and the plants and animals that live there. Disagreement has been common. Last November the Russian component banned its indigenous representative from participating. 

It is imperative that fuzzy borders are firmed up and soon. While the 322km(200 mile) control zone is recognized and accepted, there is dispute about how far continental shelves extend under the waters.  Overlapping claims are also a consideration. For instance, Canada and the US have overlapping claims where Alaska and the Yukon abut. Greenland and Canada are also close. Adding to the tangle is the fact that the US has declined to sign the UN Convention on the Laws of the Sea.

Two thirds of the ocean lie in international waters. The average depth of the water is a little over 1000 metres, a depth that modern offshore drill rigs can handle easily. The Arctic is warming faster than any other place on Earth and the future opportunities and problems are rushing at us with warp speed.

California: Citrus Trees Threatened by Greening Disease

B. McPherson

 

California is the latest state to be hit with the invasive fly that carries what is called Greening Disease. It was first identified in March of 2012 and has citrus growers on high alert. The culprit spreading the disease is a tiny flying insect, a psyllid fly. It has established itself in Florida where it was discovered in the citrus groves in 1998. Now California is fighting the difficult battle against this unwelcome pest from Asia.

The fly damages the citrus tree in two ways. It sucks juices from the new growth, leading to stunted and deformed growth. More seriously, it carries a bacterium that causes the greening disease. There is no treatment and no cure. Citrus trees must be cut down and destroyed to slow the spread of the disease. Once they are infected with Candidatus liberbacter, they are doomed in any case. Once infected any fruit produced is deformed, small and has a bad taste.

Humans have aided the spread of the disease as well. The 1998 infestation was discovered originating in commercial nursery plants. As well, Texas has sourced the pest to nursery stock. Transferring grafts from an infected tree to a non-infected one will also spread the disease. 

Florida orchardists have used pesticides to prevent infection of their trees. A systemic poison, Admire(imidacloprid) is used. Also neonicotinoids and pyrethroids may be applied. Florida has imported and released two parasitic wasps to try to control the flies. Ladybugs have proved to be voracious eaters of the insects as well.

This multi-million dollar invasive species has spread around much of the tropical and sub-tropical fruit growing areas. Australia and the Mediterranean are the only citrus growing areas without it.

Next time you return from an overseas trip and are asked to declare plant or animals material that you might be bringing with you, cooperate and tell the truth. The cost to growers and ranchers from introduced pests is enormous. If you don’t care about the producers, big or small, think about your own pocketbook. If California and Florida lose many of their citrus trees to this latest invader, your food bill will be greater.

For detailed information on the psyllid fly, the Universityof California has an excellent page.

Other names for Greening Disease: Huanglonglbing, yellow dragon disease

Enbridge Violates National Safety Rules, Says Not to Blame

B. McPherson

The biggest petroleum pipeline corporation in Canada, Enbridge, has safety deficiencies in 117 out of 125 pump stations across Canada according to the National Energy Safety Board. It is a requirement that each pump station have emergency power backup to operate shut-down procedures. You may recall that it took Enbridge hours to shut down the pipe spewing bitumen into the Kalamazoo River. Eight stations across the country complied with that safety regulation.

Of the 125 stations inspected, 83 lacked an emergency shut-down button. These regulations have been in place for at least 14 years. The regulation requiring an emergency shut-down button has been on the books since 1994.

For its part, spokesman for the pipeline company, Graham White, said that it is a matter of interpretation of the rules. Battery power was in place at the stations, but this is deemed insufficient. The corporation has since installed the emergency equipment and is working towards complying with the electrical backup regs. They have until 2016 to complete compliance.

Attention of the Energy Board focussed on the eastern Enbridge pipelines as talk emerged about possibly sending dilbit to Canada’s east coast.  The uncovering of deficiencies in the safety regulations of this pipeline company will probably lead to closer scrutiny of others transporting petroleum products across the country.

Yesterday protesters delayed traffic near Hamilton, Ontario, to distribute pamphlets and stage a mock clean up of spilled oil. They were trying to bring attention to the proposal to reverse the flow of product in Pipeline 9 to carry dilbit to refineries on the east coast. 

Enbridge is proposing the building of the Northern Gateway Pipeline to take dilbit from the Alberta oil sand deposit to the west coast of British Columbia. It has met with stiff opposition. The province will be holding an election on May 14^th and the person expected to become the next premier has declared that he will not allow it to be built. 

If you build it, it will leak.

US Ag-Gag Laws Can Be Dangerous to Your Health

B. McPherson

 This past week saw prosecutors in Utah first charge, then drop the charges is what is seen as the first attempt to criminalize someone under the little known Ag-Gag laws being enacted in many states. This incident involved a woman who had heard cruelty stories about a slaughterhouse in Draper City. She went to look for herself, remaining on the road allowance, but could clearly see some of the activity. She was repulsed by what she saw, activated the camera on her cell phone and starting recording. The plant manager ordered her to stop and she refused, stating that she was on public land. Cops were called and they backed up the woman. Later she was charged under the Utah legislation that prohibits the filming of animal abuse of farmed animals.

Many of us have seen the videos on PETA’s site of animals in factory farms living in horrendous conditions. Gratuitous violence against animals from chickens to milk cows has been uncovered. Evidence presented of slaughterhouses processing animals too sick to stand, into the human food chain has led to massive recalls of beef. Sometimes change for the better occurs when a strong light is shone onto the floors of the meat, egg, milk factories.

Many of the places operating animal factories are not clean. Cattle in feed lots are often hip deep in their own manure. Pigs may never see the sky in their lifetimes and the filth that the breeding sows must endure before they in turn enter the food chain endangers those who consume their flesh, both from the increased chances of feces from their hide contaminating the meat and from the routine use of antibiotics to fight infections that breed antibiotic resistant bacteria.

Some factory farms ignore or skirt antipollution laws. Think about how much poop a five hundred pound pig will produce in a day and then multiply it by 5 000. That’s quite a disposal problem. While responsible factory operators will respect the environment, those that are not need to be outed.

Yet the very laws being enacted in many US states are protecting the bad actors. Whether we care about animal welfare or not, the Ag-Gag laws endanger the health of the public.

Some people are taking action to try to stop the insidious erosion of food safety in the US. There is a petition started to stop thespread of Ag-Gag laws. If you care about what you eat, you might wish to sign it.

The Humane Society of the United States has come out strongly against the enactment of Ag-Gag laws.

The HSUSA has outlined why these pernicious laws need to be revoked.

“Anti-whistleblower bills effectively block anyone from exposing animal cruelty, food-safety issues, poor working conditions, and more, by way of the following:

 Banning taking a photo or video of a factory farm without permission,

Essentially making it a crime for an investigator to get work at a factory farm, or

Requiring mandatory reporting with impossibly short timelines so that no pattern of abuse can be documented.”

States with Ag-Gag Laws in Effect: Utah, Iowa, Missouri

States with Ag-Gag Laws Pending: Arkansas, California, Indiana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Tennessee, Wyoming, Vermont. Pennsylvania also makes it a crime to post videos of factory farms on the net.

EU Honeybees Get Reprieve

B. McPherson

The EU has taken steps to slow the decline of the honeybees by banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides. The ban will last for two years. The vote for the ending use of neonicotinoids was split, so the time will be used to investigate their effect on the honeybees which have had catastrophic declines.

Delegates from the UK voted against the ban, citing lack of good scientific evidence. The ban will not affect this year’s planting, but start in December. 

Ontario farmers are being urged to work with bee keepers in that province to mitigate bee deaths. Corn seed is routinely coated in the pesticide. The whole plant then carries the poison. Some speculate that the dust from the pesticide becomes airborne and poisons the bees. European researchers found that a high percentage of dead bees contained traces of the pesticide.

Honeybees are important pollinators of crops. Their work is worth billions of dollars in increased food production. While there are many other insects, birds and mammals that also do this job, honey bees have been domesticated. Research on wild pollinators is pointing to a decline in our other helpers as well.

Not all the blame for the decline of the bees can fall on pesticides. Hive collapse has been blamed on parasites, stress and microwaves. The varroa mite, a tracheal mite, a parasitic fly are just a few of the dangers the little honey makers face. The  relatively recent practise of renting the use of bee hives to pollinate crops has the little insects moved throughout the summer, stressing them as they adapt to new surroundings. Another new problem for the bees may be the expanding networks of microwaves. Some researchers have found that placing a cell phone(turned on) in or near a hive will disorient bees and they become lost.

Neonicotinoids are a relatively new insecticide group that mimics the action of nicotine, a well known poison, and is very effective in controlling insects. Using the insecticide makes the whole plant poisonous to insects and makes for a healthy, high yielding crop. They are widely used and banning them will certainly impact on the chemical supply companies.

Pesticide Action Network UK has published a list of brand names that use this insecticide.