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AR-NEWS Digest 617
Topics covered in this issue include:
1) Vegetarian diet 'won't cut risk of heart disease'
by Vadivu Govind
2) (MY) Call to curb use of banned pig-fattening drug
by Vadivu Govind
3) New danger for Aids patients: Cat-scratch fever
by Vadivu Govind
4) Britain turns to nature for new super combat gear
by Vadivu Govind
5) Shipment of animals from Moscow to Indonesia
by Vadivu Govind
6) (TW) Anti foot-and-mouth disease package unveiled
by Vadivu Govind
7) (AU/HK) New drug to fight bird flu
by Vadivu Govind
8) NEW MEXICO COLD SNAP KILLS 3,000 CALVES
by STFORJEWEL
9) Fwd: MORE ELK SLAUGHTER
by STFORJEWEL
10) Wrong title: Shipment of animals from Moscow to Indonesia
by Vadivu Govind
11)
by "Paul Wiener"
12) [SPA] Spanish governement confer awards to bullfighters
by 2063511 <2063511@campus.uab.es>
13) hong kong to slaughter all chickens
by NOVENA ANN
14) FARM BUREAU POLICIES
by STFORJEWEL
15) (CN) Guangzhou excels in producing foodstuff
by jwed
16) Subscription Options--Admin Note
by allen schubert
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 14:48:03 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Vegetarian diet 'won't cut risk of heart disease'
Message-ID: <199712280648.OAA28024@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
>The Electronic Telegraph
28 Dec 97
Vegetarian diet 'won't cut risk of heart disease'
By Victoria Macdonald, Health Correspondent
CLAIMS by vegetarians that their diet is healthier than
that of meat eaters are dismissed in a study which shows no difference in
the levels of heart disease.
In a study of more than 11,000 people over 13 years,
scientists have found that non-meat-eaters consume enough animal fats to
affect their health. The results show that the difference in heart disease
levels between meat-eaters and vegetarians is "statistically
insignificant", they said. The news, coming just after Christmas turkey
meals, will be a blow to non-meat-eaters who claim they are warding off disease.
The study, carried out by the Imperial Cancer Research Fund,
set out to discover which types of food increase the risk of heart disease
and which
elements of a vegetarian diet reduce the risk. The scientists, based at
Oxford University, looked at the health records of the men and women
aged between 16 and 80, dividing them into meat-eaters, vegetarians,
semi-vegetarians and vegans, who eat no dairy products.
The group was described as "health-conscious" with diets
based on
recommended intake levels rather than the relatively high saturated-fat diet
typical of most affluent societies. Dr Tim Key, of the Research Fund's
cancer epidemiology unit, said the study showed that there was a direct link
between eating animal fats and heart disease. "Until now the direct evidence
of a link between animal fats and heart disease has not been borne out,
although people have suspected it for the past 30 years."
The Vegetarian Society dismissed the findings, published
in the journal Heart, and said that other studies had found that there was
a 30 per cent
reduction in ischaemic heart disease - where there is a blockage - in
vegetarians compared with meat eaters. But Dr Key and his colleagues
claim that vegetarians do eat animal fats in cheese, milk and eggs, and in
such quantities that it puts them at risk.
The study did show that the propensity of vegetarians to
eat nuts may have a protective effect. But even this was treated with
caution. Dr Key said that there appeared to be reduced mortality in people
who ate nuts five times or more a week compared with those who ate them
less than once a week.
This could be explained by the fact that nuts are a good
source of vitamin E and other antioxidants, which "clean out" the system.
Dr Key added: "One's interpretation is that there is no point giving up meat
and replacing it entirely with cheese, eggs and milk because that is not going
to reduce the risk of heart disease. "Meat tends to get a bad press,
certainly recently, as being a particularly risky food. But what people think
about food goes in fashion.
"Twenty years ago it was eggs and cholesterol, until it
was found that the level of cholesterol in the diet bore no relation to
what was found in the blood."
⌐ Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 14:50:16 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (MY) Call to curb use of banned pig-fattening drug
Message-ID: <199712280650.OAA11599@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>The Straits Times
23 Dec 97
Call to curb use of banned pig-fattening drug
JOHOR BARU -- The Johor Livestock and Poultry Farmers Association has
urged the Health Ministry to act against farmers who use the banned Beta
Agonist drug used to fatten pigs.
Its acting head for the pig-farming section, Mr Lim Oh Pah, claimed
that while only one of the eight pig farmers in Johor had been found to
be using the drug, it was widely used in other states.
He called on the authorities to conduct a nationwide check to ensure
the pig-farming industry was free from the dangerous substance.
Mr Lim said that although the drug was banned, irresponsible farmers were
still using it so they could make quick profits.
He said the drug would not only jeopardise consumers' health but also
hurt the business of farmers who do not use the drug.
He said pigs injected with the drug were sold cheaper as farmers could
profit on the extra weight while those not injected were slightly more
expensive and smaller in size.
He said even butchers preferred to sell pork which had been injected
with the drug. "They say the meat is easier to cut and is more popular
with customers because it is more tender and cheaper." -- NST.
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 14:50:43 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: New danger for Aids patients: Cat-scratch fever
Message-ID: <199712280650.OAA20835@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>The Straits Times
27 Dec 97
New danger for Aids patients: Cat-scratch fever
BOSTON -- The bacteria responsible for cat-scratch fever and for trench
fever, which felled more than a million soldiers during World War I, may
be responsible for an often-overlooked illness among Aids patients,
according to a study in Thursday's New England Journal Of Medicine.
A team led by University of California San Francisco researcher Dr Jane
Koehler studied 49 patients with a recurrent infection known as
bacillary angiomatosis-peliosis. Most also suffered from Aids.
In 53 per cent of the cases, the infection came from the flea-spread
bacteria on a cat's claw that causes cat-scratch fever. In the others,
the trench fever bacteria was responsible. -- Reuters.
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 14:50:50 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Britain turns to nature for new super combat gear
Message-ID: <199712280650.OAA09198@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>The Straits Times
28 Dec 97
Britain turns to nature for new super
combat gear
LONDON -- The British soldier of the 21st century will be
protected from enemy fire and the elements with the help of
revolutionary materials modelled on nature's defence systems, said a
newspaper report yesterday. The application of nature's smarter
ideas to military equipment has so intrigued the Ministry of Defence
that it has awarded special contracts to the centre for biomimetics at
Reading University to study the possible applications of plants,
animals and even insects, The Times said.
Biomimetics is the science of mimicking nature's best designs.
It is intended that by 2010, every combat soldier will have only three
layers of clothing, instead of the present seven, to cater for all
weather conditions, the Times said.
To that end, biologist Julian Vincent and composite materials engineer
George Jeronimidis, co-directors of the five-year-old centre, are
examining the way in which plants cope with different climatic conditions.
"Plants have a very effective mechanism for moving water out, including
leaves that have holes which open and close," The Times quoted Dr
Vincent as saying in its Internet edition.
"Plants don't walk around and they don't have brains, so they are much
simpler than animals to study. They can move certain bits and they can
control their temperature.
There are a lot of good ideas that come out of plants which may provide
the solution for combat clothing of the future."
The researchers are also looking at pine cones which have a simple but
reliable way of responding to changing humidity. As humidity drops, the
scales open and vice versa.
What is planned is an artificial fibre system based on the mechanism of
the pine cone.
If the centre for biomimetics succeeds, the Times said, the
revolutionary fibre system could be incorporated into fabrics which
would be able to change their "breathability".
The cockroach is also under the microscope to see if its simple sensor
devices can be recreated for the benefit of key weapon systems, such as
fighter aircraft.
"Insects have achieved fine sensing systems which we could try to adapt
for defence purposes," Dr Vincent said.
He and Professor Jeronimidis have also been asked to design novel
energy-absorbing material.
They began by studying the structure of nutshells, including the hazel
and brazil, but are now focusing on the antler bone.
They are enthusiastic about the prospects of taking "what we need" from
the structure to create a light, flexible, impact-absorbent material.
Antlers have been fine-tuned by nature to absorb violent impact during
the rutting season, and the researchers are convinced that they can
produce a composite material based on the same structure.
Dr Vincent said: "What we're interested in is the way things are put
together in nature,not the materials themselves.
"After all, nature only has half a dozen starting materials, such as
water, protein, calcium salts and sugar-based polymers, whereas there
are thousands of man-made starting materials." Under another contract,
awarded by the MoD's Defence Evaluation Research Agency, they are
studying how wood absorbs energy for applications for the Armed Forces.
Wood can be damaged by impact without shattering.
Dr Vincent said: "Soft pine can be toughened even further by drilling
carefully designed holes in it."
One application could be for armoured vehicles. Now they can be protected by
adding steel plates, but this is very heavy. He added: "For us, in terms
of energy input, material
is cheap but shape is expensive, while in nature, material is expensive
and shape is cheap. In other words, nature spends more time on design,
and perhaps we should as well."
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 14:50:59 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Shipment of animals from Moscow to Indonesia
Message-ID: <199712280650.OAA17521@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>The Straits Times
28 Dec 97
For this flight we will be serving grass
MOSCOW -- Like a modern-day Noah's Ark of the skies, a Russian airline
needed the world's largest cargo plane to carry a menagerie of animals
including four giraffes from Prague to Indonesia, an official said on
Friday.
"Our An-124-100 freighter delivered 68 animals from Czech zoos,
including four giraffes, zebras, antelopes, crocodiles and
hippopotamuses for Safari national park in Surabaya, Indonesia, where
they will live in natural conditions," said Ms Anna Krasnova, a
spokesman for cargo airline Volga-Dnepr.
The giraffes made the two-day journey in special open boxes which
allowed them to stretch out their necks towards the spacious 4.4-m high
ceiling.
"All the animals arrived at the destination in good condition despite the
long-distance flight with a stopover in Pakistan," she added.
Ms Krasnova said that the customer -- Taman Safari Indonesia -- was
hoping to fly in more animals in the future. -- Reuters.
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 14:51:04 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (TW) Anti foot-and-mouth disease package unveiled
Message-ID: <199712280651.OAA24354@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>CNA Daily English News Wire
COA UNVEILS ANTI-FMD PACKAGE
Taipei, Dec. 26 (CNA) The Council of Agriculture (COA) has crafted a package
of measures to eradicate the food-and-mouth disease (FMD) in two stages.
The council invited health officials, academics and hog industry
representatives to review its draft anti-FMD package on Friday.
According to the package, the COA expects to completely stem recurrence of
any FMD infection within a year.
The COA is also scheduled to finalize marking of all healthy pigs with
ear-tags before the end of May next year.
COA officials said all pigs raised at ranches around the island must be
vaccinated against the deadly disease and marked with ear-tags before next May.
The officials said the COA will join forces with local infectious disease
control units and hog farmers associations to form joint inspection panels.
Such joint task forces will intensify spot checks at hog ranches, pork
wholesale markets and meat processing facilities to ensure that local pig
farmers properly and regularly vaccinate their swine in order to fend off
the recurrence of an FMD epidemic on the island. The COA will aslo establish
a national pig industry databank to facilitate monitoring of hog ranches.
The COA will compensate pig farmers who have had their swine vaccinated
regularly but their pigs are still infected the virus again. According to
government regulations, all FMD-infected pigs must be
slaughtered.
Taiwan's hog ranches were hit by an FMD epidemic in mid-March, the first
time in nearly five decades. Since them, all local swine have been
vaccinated, but several FMD cases were reported againt early this month. COA
officials said a large-scale FMD epidemic is unlikely to outbreak here
again. It will take at least a year to prevent recurrence of sporadic FMD
cases, and it will need three to four years for Taiwan to be drop from the
list of FMD-stricken areas. (By Sofia Wu)
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 14:51:32 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (AU/HK) New drug to fight bird flu
Message-ID: <199712280651.OAA25238@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>CNA Daily English News Wire
AUSTRALIA DEVELOPS NEW DRUG TO FIGHT `BIRD FLU' IN HONG KONG
Canberra, Dec. 26 (CNA) Australian scientists have developed a new drug
capable of fighting the "bird flu" that has so far killed four people in
Hong Kong.
Dr. Peter Colman, director of the Biomolecular Research Institute and a
former scientist at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research
Organization (CSIRO), said the new drug -- Zanamavir -- attacks different
strains of the flu virus, including the new strain known as H5N1 which is
currently plaguing Hong Kong.
"The new drug will hit the central region of the virus, stopping the spread
of the virus," he told reporters on Wednesday. "We are cautiously optimistic
(because) the drug has cleared major clinical hurdles and should be
available towards the end of next year," he said.
Colman, who led the 12-member CSIRO team which had been working on the
project for more than a decade, said conclusive clinical trials were being
carried out in North America and Europe.
He said new pandemics of flu arise from major changes or mutations to which
our immune system has little or no resistance.
The new influenza drug was developed by the CSIRO in collaboration with the
Melbourne-based pharmaceutical company Biota, he said.
Mass-circulation newspaper The Australian on Friday quoted Biota chairman
Dr. Hugh Niall as saying: "This is a major advance in the treatment of one
of the world's important diseases. It will have great potential in the
pharmaceutical market."
Reports said 13 people are known or suspected to have contracted "bird flu"
in Hong Kong. Apart from the four who have died, two remain in critical
condition, five are satisfactory and two have
made a full recovery.
Hong Kong health authorities have suspended all imports of chickens from
mainland China --thought to be the source of the flu. (By Peter Chen)
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 02:35:47 EST
From: STFORJEWEL
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: NEW MEXICO COLD SNAP KILLS 3,000 CALVES
Message-ID: <1035e1c.34a60155@aol.com>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
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>From The Denver Post
Denver Colorado
Thursday December 25, 1997
>From "The Nation" column
By the Associated Press
Dexter, New Mexico--
Despite rancher's best efforts, thousands of calves died in their corrals in a
cold snap that dumped more than a year's worth of snow in one week.
The calves, some just a few week's old, were crammed into corrals to protect
them from wind, snow, and rain that froze southeast New Mexico on Monday.
But about 3,000 animals died over the following two days as they huddled
together for warmth about 215 miles east of Albuquerque.
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 02:37:57 EST
From: STFORJEWEL
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Fwd: MORE ELK SLAUGHTER
Message-ID:
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-type: multipart/mixed;
boundary="part0_883294677_boundary"
Typo-ed the address again. Sorry
From: STFORJEWEL
Return-path:
To: ar-news@environlink.org
Subject: MORE ELK SLAUGHTER
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 02:35:22 EST
Organization: AOL (http://www.aol.com)
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
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STATE OF COLORADO STARTS TARGETING ELK POPULATION BOOM
The Denver Post
Denver Colorado
Thursday December 25, 1997
By Charlie Meyers
Western Outdoors Writer
1-800-336-7678
email: newsroom@denverpost.com with your comments
website: http://www.denverpost.com
In one of the boldest moves in its history, the Colorado Division of Wildlife
proposes to sell over-the-counter licenses for cow elk in many major hunting
(killing) areas during the 1998 season. (Note: STFOR: Many of these cow elk
will be pregnant).
A sweeping plan designed to reduce a serious overpopulation of elk in the wake
of a generally unsuccessful 1997 season will be presented to the Colorado
Wildlife Commission at its January 15, 1998 meeting in Denver. Commission
approval is required for all such policy decisions.
Generally, the draft proposal would allow hunter (killers) discretion in
taking (killing) either a bull with 4 antler points or an antlerless elk
(young male or a female) in seven broad geographic regions. Hunters (Killers)
who choose to shoot (kill) a bull elk would be required to observe the
existing antler-ppoint restriction for the appropriate game management unit.
But they also would have the option to take (kill) a cow instead.
This unprecedented arrangement would be in effect only during the 2nd and 3rd
season segments as a hedge against an existing crowding condition in the
first.
Wildlife officials emphasized the change is intended as a one-year experiment
to reduce surging elk numbers in precise locations. Reevaluation will be
conducted after the hunt (slaughter) next autumn.
"We've tried a number of things to bring the population into balance. This is
the next step," said Jim Lipscomb, state terrestrial manager.
The broad regions being considered for the special hunt (slaughter) include
north San Juan/Montrose, Steamboat Springs, Middle Park, White River, Piceance
Basin, North Gunnison, and the area west of Walsenburg and Trinidad, Colorado.
Given commission approval, wildlife managers will fine-tune boundaries.
Current regulations would remain in place in North Park, Grand Mesa, south San
Juan, around Craig, Colo and in all of the northeast and southeast regions,
excepting the area near Walsenburg and Trinidad, Colo.
The areas targeted for this special cow reduction (slaughter) currently have
elk populations 25% or more above DOW population objectives, which are based
on balance with available range. Officials estimate Colorado's elk herd at
more than 200,000 animals--approximately 34,000 more than optimum capacity.
"Bringing the population (Slaughtering the elk) down to objective levels will
help reduce the possibility of damage to range and reduce conflicts with
domestic livestock," Lipscomb said.
Earlier this month, DOW issued 1,000 special permits in a herd-reduction
(slaughter) effort in Middle Park, where hunter (killer) success faltered in
October and November. While 1997 harvest (slaughter) figures aren't yet
available, officials strongly believe it lagged far below the record 54,000
elk taken (killed) the previous season.
The commission also will be asked to make a declaration of intent to limit
deer licenses for the 1999 season effectibvely eliminating the historic over-
the-counter tags for buck deer. Coupled with a proposal to significantly
increase license fees in 1999, these porposals spotlight the '98 season as
potentially the last great free-wheeling bargain for Colorado hunters
(killers).
Contact with your comments: John Mumma; Director; Colorado Division of
Wildlife; 6060 Broadway; Denver CO 80210 (303)297-1192; Arnold Salazar;
Chairperson; Wildlife Commission at the same address; Email them:
kim.burgess@state.co.us and bill.haggerty@state.co.us - (In charge of Public
Relations) Website: http://wildlife.state.co.us
Note: Terms in ( ) reflect the proper unsantized terms that should be used
in the article and are inserted by the sender.
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 16:28:17 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Wrong title: Shipment of animals from Moscow to Indonesia
Message-ID: <199712280828.QAA12972@eastgate.cyberway.com.sg>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Sorry, the animals are not from Moscow.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
------
>The Straits Times
28 Dec 97
For this flight we will be serving grass
MOSCOW -- Like a modern-day Noah's Ark of the skies, a Russian airline
needed the world's largest cargo plane to carry a menagerie of animals
including four giraffes from Prague to Indonesia, an official said on
Friday.
"Our An-124-100 freighter delivered 68 animals from Czech zoos,
including four giraffes, zebras, antelopes, crocodiles and
hippopotamuses for Safari national park in Surabaya, Indonesia, where
they will live in natural conditions," said Ms Anna Krasnova, a
spokesman for cargo airline Volga-Dnepr.
The giraffes made the two-day journey in special open boxes which
allowed them to stretch out their necks towards the spacious 4.4-m high
ceiling.
"All the animals arrived at the destination in good condition despite the
long-distance flight with a stopover in Pakistan," she added.
Ms Krasnova said that the customer -- Taman Safari Indonesia -- was
hoping to fly in more animals in the future. -- Reuters.
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 97 03:34:44 -0800
From: "Paul Wiener"
To: "AR-News (to post)"
Message-ID: <199712281134.EAA01788@smtp01.primenet.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
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According to radio news, a veterinary student is suing Foothill College
for its requirement that she disect a fetal pig. She says her religious
rights are being violated and the college failed to provide alternatives.
___________
Paul Wiener
got_the_T-shirt@been-there.com
paulish@cyberjunkie.com
paulish@thepentagon.com
paulish@usa.net
tinea-pedis@bigfoot.com
KJ6AV@callsign.net
- --------------------------------------------------------
http://www.netforward.com/cyberjunkie/?paulish
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Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 18:21:34 +0100
From: 2063511 <2063511@campus.uab.es>
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: [SPA] Spanish governement confer awards to bullfighters
Message-ID: <01IRPTHIXZ300064IZ@cc.uab.es>
MIME-version: 1.0
Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
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Madrid, Spain: The Spanish governement decided yesterday in the last reunion
of the year, confer the gold medal of fine arts to two bullfighters "CURRO
ROMERO" and "SANTIAGO MARTIN, EL VITI". Curro Romero is bullfighter since 40
years and kill many, many bulls. EL VITI was retired since 1979, when he
decided was rearing his own livestock. This decision of Spanish Governement is
very tipical, in 1996, another bullfighter received the gold medal of fine
arts. Many animal rights asociation promovided an action that was send letters
to Jose M¬ Aznar, Spanish prime minister, how protest for this event.
If you would protest for this confer, write to:
JOSE M¬ AZNAR
PALACIO DE LA MONCLOA
28003 MADRID
SPAIN
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 13:12:42 EST
From: NOVENA ANN
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: hong kong to slaughter all chickens
Message-ID:
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit
By KHARK SINGH
.c The Associated Press
HONG KONG (Dec. 28) - The Hong Kong government will begin slaughtering all
chickens in the territory Monday in a drastic move to prevent the spread of a
mysterious bird flu that has killed four people.
The estimated 1.2 million chickens will be buried in three massive landfills,
Stephen Ip, secretary for economic services, told a news conference Sunday.
Geese and other birds will also be killed if they are being kept with chickens
at wholesale markets and shops selling live poultry, because cross-infection
cannot be ruled out, Ip said.
The birds will be gassed with carbon dioxide, which gradually suffocates them.
Farmers at Hong Kong's 199 chicken and mixed poultry farms will be compensated
for their losses, officials at the Agriculture and Fisheries Department said.
Dr. Margaret Chan, director of health, said Sunday there was no indication of
an epidemic of the virus in Hong Kong, and echoed doctors' assurances that it
is safe to eat cooked poultry.
The government also confirmed a 60-year-old woman who died last Tuesday was
discovered to have the flu. That brought the number of confirmed cases to 12,
including four deaths. The number of suspected cases was lowered to eight.
The decision to kill all chickens came after health authorities declared a
chicken farm and part of Hong Kong's largest poultry market as infected areas.
A government statement said blood samples taken from chickens from the Yuen
Long farm near the border with China tested positive for the H5NI virus.
It also said a section of the Cheung Sha Wan wholesale poultry market, the
target of a massive cleanup operation earlier this month, was closed because
veterinary officers found a large number of dead chickens there.
The market used to sell more than a third of the 75,000 chickens imported into
Hong Kong daily from China. Hong Kong halted the chicken shipments from China
last week, pending further investigation and establishment of better testing.
Some vendors were already killing their chickens Sunday and putting them in
plastic bags for collection by government workers, local television reported.
On Saturday, health officials said blood tests have shown that some humans
apparently can develop immunity to the virus. Doctors have discovered
antibodies to the virus in the blood of nine people tested who never became
severely sick. The presence of antibodies means a person has been exposed to
the virus and has developed resistance.
Investigators tested blood from 473 people who may have been in contact with
the first known victim, a 3-year-old boy who died in May, or who may have been
exposed to the virus in a laboratory or hospital.
The tests also indicate that the virus can be transmitted from human to human,
instead of just through birds, said Dr. Keiji Fukuda, an American medical
expert from the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, which analyzed the
blood samples.
Victims stricken with the bird flu show the same symptoms as those suffering
from other kinds of flu, including fever. The virus attacks the respiratory
system as well as other organs, and several of those who died had developed
pneumonia.
In Manila, Philippine President Fidel Ramos directed his country's health and
foreign affairs departments Sunday to closely monitor bird flu cases to
prevent the disease from spreading to the Philippines.
Two Filipino workers living in Hong Kong have been confirmed to have
contracted the flu and have been hospitalized, a statement issued by Ramos'
office said.
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 17:26:05 EST
From: STFORJEWEL
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: FARM BUREAU POLICIES
Message-ID: <5117c774.34a6d1ff@aol.com>
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FARM BUREAU ADOPTS '98 POLICIES
FROM The Elbert County, Colorado News
Thursday, December 18, 1997
Staff Writer-no name given
Voting delegates for Colorado's largest farm and ranch organization have
adopted policies to guide the Colorado Farm Bureau for 1998.
"Our policy adoptions process gives farmers and ranchers the opportunity to
identify and speak their minds on the issues facing the agricultural
industry," said the state president, Roger Bill Mitchell, of Monte Vista,
Colorado. "The next step is to go to work to implement these policies at the
local, state, and national levels."
The policies were adopted recently at the Farm Bureau's 79th annual meeting in
Colorado Springs.
Delegates strengthened Farm Bureau's policy on confined animal feeding
operations by stating that farmers and ranchers should not be required to
obtain permits nor construct facilities to control discharge into waters
unless such requirements can be shown to be necessary and effective in
preventing unreasonable pollution of the streams or acquifers.
Delegates also recommended that voluntary, incentive-based best management
practices be the first approach to prevent pollution from feedlots, rather
than more regulatory programs.
Regarding water, the Farm Bureau adopted a new policy supporting the
protection of Colorado's interstate compact fuel entitlements and opposed any
federal action that would jeopardize the state's entitlement.
Farm Bureau delegates called for the overturn of Amendment 1996-14, the ban on
trapping; opposed all new fuel and vehicle taxes; opposed use of impact fees
to control development or land use; and opposed the disposal of any material
from "superfund" clean up sites being added to or used as domestic sludge.
The Farm Bureau is in support of a study to determine the effects of "retail
wheeling" in Colorado; supports the State Department of Agriculture's
"Chemsweep" program for the disposal of waste pesticides; recommends "right to
farm" ordinances that protect agricultural operations; supported voluntary
sales of conversation easements to municipal, county, state, and other
entities to provide open space.
It recommends guaranteed "safe harbor" be offered to private landowners who
voluntarily provide habitat for declining, threatened or endangered species;
and supports hunting and fishing activities as long as these activities do not
infringe on private property rights.
Taxation and water development were featured conference topics during the
meeting. Both opened doors to discussion enabling members to view the issues
from an individual to statewide perspective.
Chairing the tax policy conference was Bob Wiley, Boone, Colorado.
Panelists included State Senator Mike Coffman, R-Aurora, Colo; Chris Ward,
Colorado Legislative Council; and John Riggins, Colorado Association of
Commerce and Industry.
(Don't we always hear these guys yakking about how they're the original and
greatest environmentalists?! Sure doesn't sound like in this article) Direct
your comments and suggestions to: Colorado Farm Bureau; 2211 West 27th Ave;
Denver CO 80212 (303) 455-4553. No email listed on website. Also since these
guys want to implement these policies nationwide, contact your particular
state legislator and federal Congress person.
Date: Mon, 29 Dec 1997 10:42:46 +0000
From: jwed
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: (CN) Guangzhou excels in producing foodstuff
Message-ID: <3.0.5.32.19971229104246.007b2190@pop.hkstar.com>
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Date: 12/29/97 - Copyright⌐ by China Daily
GUANGZHOU (Xinhua) -- Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong
Province, has become more than self-sufficient in the areas of poultry and
meat.
The city has also been self-supporting in aquatic products; the degree of
its self-sufficiency in this sector was only 20 per cent in 1992.
Local statistics indicate that the city's meat output totaled 290,400 tons
last year, double the 1990 figure. The city's 221,800 tons of aquatic
products more than doubled the 1990 total.
In addition to pigs, the city has begun raising cattle, sheep, rabbits and
some rare poultry. To boost yields, the city has introduced improved
varieties of pigs, poultry and fish.
So far, 71 per cent of pigs, 90 per cent of poultry and 80 per cent of fish
are of improved varieties.
Experts said the diversity and high quality of the province's agricultural
products have greatly improved the diet of local residents.
The city has set up 3,009 pig farms, each selling more than 50 pigs
annually, and 2,643 chicken and duck farms, each supplying more than 10,000
chickens and ducks every year.
Every child has the right to a healthy diet - that means no meat.
http://www.earth.org.hk/
Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 23:42:29 -0500
From: allen schubert
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
Subject: Subscription Options--Admin Note
Message-ID: <3.0.1.32.19971228234229.0069dbf4@envirolink.org>
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the usual routine (and preemptive) posting......
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