Komputer for Alle 1998 #6/1998 CD 6 (Gul).iso/web/ffa/wwwenv~1.org/arrs/digest/news45~9.htm/text0000.txt

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>The Japan Times
3 July 97
Environmental groups worry about bay's wildlife

     Environmental groups expressed concern about the potential negative
effects oil spilled from a supertanker in Tokyo Bay would have on animal
life and tidal flats in the area.

     Fish usually breed and mature in the shallows, so the spill could
significantly effect them  and the animals that feed on the fish, said
Tatsuo Nakai, director of education and  communication for the Nature
Conservation Society of Japan. In addition, unlike an ocean oil spill, Tokyo
Bay is almost enclosed, limiting the flow of water between the  Pacific
Ocean and the bay so that the oil will remain there for a long time, Nakai said.

     There are fears the tide flats in the bay, which are home to a diverse
and very fragile  ecosystem, may be at risk, he said.

     Tidelands are very sensitive to oil spills, said Yukihiro Kominami, of
the Wild Bird  Society of Japan. "If the oil is carried in by the tide, it
will cover a greater area and seep into the ground in three or four hours,
damaging the tide flat ecosystem," Kominami said. Unlike the oil spill off
of Fukui Prefecture in January from the wrecked Russian tanker Nakhodka, the
number and variety of birds in the Tokyo Bay area is comparatively small
this time of year, Kominami said.

     However, migratory birds, which stop at the tidal flats en route from
Asia to Australia, are due to arrive in August, and if the tide flats are
damaged it may affect them adversely, Kominami said. "If oil washes ashore
with the tide, it will surely cause damage," he said, explaining that worms
and other creatures that serve as food for the birds may die, and if they
don't, they may sicken animals higher in the food chain that  eat them.

     "It is difficult to predict what the effects on the environment will
be," said Tomohiro  Shishime of the Environment Agency's Water Quality
Bureau. The agency, however,  has been monitoring the air since the accident
and said it has returned to normal.
According to the agency, the density of nonmethane hydrocarbon, which
includes toxic benzene, temporarily rose to as much as 20 times the normal
figure at three observation sights in Urayasu and Ichikawa, both in Chiba
Prefecture, shortly after the oil started spilling. The agency was checking
the air quality every hour at six locations on Tokyo Bay but will now rely
on information drawn from various local monitoring stations.


Date: Fri, 4 Jul 1997 13:07:01 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (PH) Primates for prince as Pattens slip quietly away
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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>Hong Kong Standard
4 July 97

Primates for prince as Pattens slip quietly away

BRITAIN'S Prince Charles received a pair of endangered Philippine tarsiers
from first lady Amelita Ramos on Thursday in a ceremony at the presidential
palace in Manila.

He arrived after a three-day voyage on the royal yacht Britannia with Hong
Kong's last governor, Chris Patten.

The prince's two wide-eyed, squirrel-sized creatures will not be heading
back to Britain as he soon turned them over to a local group, the Philippine
Tarsier Foundation, for safekeeping on his behalf.

The heir to the throne had a 10-hour stop in Manila before flying back to
London.

Mr Patten, who left the yacht before the prince, did not make any statement
when he arrived.

He, his wife and three daughters hurriedly boarded a van that took them to a
private plane.

The Pattens are believed to be staying at the exclusive Amanpulo resort on
Pamaikan island, Palawan, part of a chain of resorts owned by a wealthy
Indonesian family.

Prince Charles, flanked by President Fidel Ramos and his wife, received the
two tarsiers from acovered basket and briefly held one of them in the palm
of his hand before returning the animal to its
caretaker.

The ceremony at the Malacanang Palace was intended to show Prince Charles's
continuing concern for wildlife conservation as well as the planned signing
of an order by Mr Ramos, declaring the Philippine tarsier a protected species.

The Philippine tarsier, a species of the world's smallest primate, survives
only on a few islands and has been endangered by the destruction of
old-growth forests. - Agencies

Date: Fri, 4 Jul 1997 00:55:47 -0700 (PDT)
From: David J Knowles <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [EU] Beef fraud re-opens row with Europe
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
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>From The Electronic Telegraph - Friday, July 4th, 1997

Beef fraud re-opens row with Europe
By Toby Helm, EU Correspondent, in Brussels

A BELGIAN "beef mafia" has exploited lax controls at British ports to
smuggle out at least 1,600 tons of meat in contravention of the European
Union's export ban, according to Brussels.

Disclosures about the gang's activities follow warnings about illegal
exports issued by the European Commission on Wednesday. They have led to new
fears over the safety of meat on sale on the Continent and caused the
Spanish government to impose an import ban on beef from Belgium.

After refusing to give firm details 24 hours earlier for fear of disrupting
police inquiries, European Commission officials said 700 tons of the beef
had recently been seized by officers in Holland.

The other 900 tons was thought to have been passed on to Russia and Egypt to
collect export subsidies. It is believed that those responsible cut off the
British stamps on the consignments, restamped them as Belgian and gave them
false Belgian papers.

The sale of British beef abroad is in breach of an export ban imposed by
Brussels in March last year after evidence was found of a possible link
between the "mad cow disease" BSE and a fatal brain condition in humans.

Dagmar Roth-Behrendt, a German Euro-MP, who chairs a European Parliament
committee investigating the BSE crisis, said it seemed that a Belgian
company was set up last year to profit from sales of banned British beef.

Meat was smuggled out of Britain to Holland with the intention of selling it
on. Once it reached the Continent the beef became eligible for EU export
subsidies.

Jack Cunningham, the Agriculture Minister, has written to Emma Bonino, the
commissioner for consumer affairs, expressing his concern over her claim on
Wednesday that checks at British ports have been "manifestly inefficient".

A Commission spokesman said legal proceedings were now being considered
against Britain for failing to ensure that the beef export ban was enforced.
Ultimately this could lead to a case against the Government in the European
Court of Justice in Luxembourg.

However, no legal measures were being considered against Belgium or Holland.
A British official in Brussels said British authorities conducted
twice-monthly spot checks on loads for export. Loads were also inspected
when there was reason for suspicion. Mrs Bonino maintains that checks should
be routine procedure.

David Brown, Agriculture Editor, writes: British officials were furious with
Brussels yesterday for wrecking an undercover investigation into illegal
beef shipments.

One official said: "The last thing we wanted to do was alert people that we
were on to them. The impression has been given that Brussels had found
something we didn't know about. That is rubbish."

⌐ Copyright Telegraph Group Limited 1997.

Date: Fri, 4 Jul 1997 00:55:50 -0700 (PDT)
From: David J Knowles <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: [CA] Boom remains around Greenpeace ships
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

>From News Waves (Southam News Site) - Thursday, July 4th, 1997

Boom remains around Greenpeace ships

VANCOUVER - A log boom hemming in two Greenpeace ships remained in place
Thursday
after the harbormaster's concerns about the safety of the boom were put to rest.

The boom, rigged Wednesday by woodworkers in retaliation for Greenpeace
anti-logging
protests, prevented one of the environmental group's ship from leaving to
protest the
Alaskan oil industry.

The harbormaster ordered the logs removed as a safety measure but IWA-Canada
president
Dave Haggard said the union has given commitments to release the log booms
quickly if
there is any danger.

The harbormaster has also supplied union protesters with a radio for
communication on the
emergency channel.

The union said it plans to maintain the picket line until woodworkers are
paid for wages lost
during anti-logging protests earlier this summer.

Greenpeace has asked for a meeting with the IWA but Haggard refused.

"I don't return calls to environmental terrorists," he said. "They know the
conditions that
we're prepared to meet with them and sit down and talk to them and discuss
their issues and ours.

"And we haven't been instructed by anybody in our office or by our members
to change that
position and we don't intend to."

Greenpeace called a news conference Wednesday to announce the departure of
its Arctic
Sunrise, but found the ship encircled by a log boom and without a legally
required ship's
pilot.

Information picket signs carried by IWA members kept away the ship pilots
who normally
escort large vessels out of the harbor.

The Arctic Sunrise was used to help Greenpeace supporters board a log barge
on the central  B.C. coast last month. Tied up beside it was the Moby Dick,
a Greenpeace ship that assisted  in last month's logging-road blockades near
Bella Coola, B.C.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------
[Update - The Artic Sunrise started up its engines late Thurday evening and
it appeared the crew was going to make an attempt to breakout of the
blockade. After 20 minutes, however, the engines were stopped and the
blockade continues.

I will be trying to talk to someone from Greenpeace tomorrow (Friday).]

Date: Fri, 4 Jul 1997 10:23:35 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail], [e-mail]
Subject: Re: Court Takes Up Mall Speech Case
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

For the rest of the story, please note that the real reason this matter got
into court is because one student at Hamline University School of Law took
the time to work with Freeman Wicklund, an excellent activist from the Twin
Cities.  This student helped Freeman put together a brief during her summer
(known as recooperation time) after her first year of law school.  That
caring student, Stephanie Miller, has yet to be formally thanked for her
efforts.  Honestly, if it weren't for her interest this case could not exist.
 It certainly couldn't have proceeded to the attention of Larry Leventhal, a
civil rights attorney at Wounded Knee.  And guess who helped Larry Leventhal
with his brief?  So this post is to honor the "middle-man" (middle-woman?)
who made the 6 AM meetings with Larry and the 9 PM meetings with Freeman --
with precious little help from the Minnesota Civil Liberties Union.  I hope
you make history, Red.  I was proud to be there.

D'Arcy Kemnitz

n a message dated 97-07-04 05:32:58 EDT, you write:

<<
        By CHRIS TOMLINSON
        MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Malls have been called the town squares of
  our times, but don't climb atop a soapbox and start stirring up the
  shoppers with a fiery oration.
        Mall owners contend the complexes are private property and not
  subject to the constitutional guarantees of free speech.
        Some free speech advocates argue that the Mall of America - the
  largest shopping and entertainment complex in the country - should
  be given the same status as other public spaces.
        ``The place for fun in your life should also permit the exchange
  of ideas,'' said attorney Larry Leventhal, who represents animal
  rights protesters arrested at the mall.
        Four members of the Animal Liberation League were arrested on
  May 19, 1996, for holding signs and passing out literature
  protesting fur sales outside Macy's department store. They were
  charged with criminal trespass.
        They claim the arrests were a violation of their rights to free
  speech.
        Even though Minneapolis spent $186 million to help build the
  $700 million mall, city officials and the mall's management believe
  it is private property.
        ``The individual's constitutional right is directly antagonistic
  to the purpose of the private institution, which is to make a
  profit,'' said Sandra Johnson, an assistant city attorney
  prosecuting the case.
        In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that malls are private
  property and not public places, but did allow state courts to rule
  differently. Minnesota courts have never ruled on this issue.
        Hennepin County District Court Judge Jack Nordby, who heard
  arguments Thursday, did not immediately issue a ruling. >>

Date: Fri, 4 Jul 1997 11:01:24 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Lori Gauthier (Kentucky, USA)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

The lady who has been rescuing animals from the Kentucky floods is in URGENT
need. She's getting ready to be evicted from her grooming shop. Why? Because
many,  many of the animals she rescued and had people fostering/adopting them
have been RETURNED to her. And, the vets have stopped helping her. Since the
publicity has died down, people in that area have laid everything back in her
lap. One of our NOAH members talked to her last week, and she NEEDS HELP,
financially, AND:  Preventatic collars, LICE MEDICINE, and products to get
the fleas off the animals.  I don't have her address with me at home, so if
any of you still have her address,  please post it for those on here who
would like to help her out again.
Thanks!!! This is an urgent, urgent situation.


Sherrill
Date: Fri, 04 Jul 1997 10:09:21 -0700
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: More deaths linked to Mad Cow Disease
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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Two more deaths in Britain linked to ailment similar to madcow disease

Agence France-Presse

LONDON (July 3, 1997 8:50 p.m. EDT) - Two more people have died from the
brain disorder believed to be linked to so-called madcow disease,
bringing the total deaths in Britain from the ailment to 18, the health
ministry said Thursday.

One more case has also been diagnosed of the new variant of the fatal
Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD-nv), but the patient is still alive, the
ministry said.

The victims are believed to have been infected by eating beef products
contaminated by bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), an epidemic of
which in Britain has caused British beef exports to be banned.

Only one other confirmed death from CJD-nv outside Britain has occurred
in France.

=============================================================

This may turn out to be the proverbial tip of the iceberg: the
incubation period for CJD-nv may be as long as 20-30 years.

Andy
Date: Fri, 04 Jul 1997 10:10:37 -0700
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: 94 deaths linked to cancer drugs
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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94 deaths in Japan linked to cancer drugs

The Associated Press

TOKYO (July 3, 1997 01:20 a.m. EDT) -- At least 94 people have died from
the side effects of a drug used against colon, lung and cervical cancer,
the government announced Wednesday, refusing to disclose details on the
circumstances until August.

Doctors demanded that the Health and Welfare Ministry release more
information about the deaths associated with irinotecan hydrochloride.

The ministry said Tuesday that of 5,430 cancer patients treated with the
drug since April 1994, at least 39, or 0.72 percent, have died from its
side effects.

In addition, another 55 patients died during the clinical testing before
it went on the market, said ministry spokesman Hiroshi Yamamoto.

"It's a shocking figure," said Dr. Masanori Fukushima, head of internal
medicine at Aichi Cancer Institute in central Japan, who earlier said at
least 50 people had died during the testing.

Yamamoto said the drug was approved for use because the benefits
outweighed the risks.

"It was a balance between the potential benefit and the harm. And in
this case we found there would be more benefit," he said.

Officials plan in August to elaborate on Wednesday's revelations and are
now discussing ways to stop further deaths, said Yamamoto.

The drug is sold under two brand names -- Topotecin, made by Daiichi
Pharmaceutical Co., and Campto, made by Yakult Honsha Co.

Ministry officials and the pharmaceutical companies said irinotecan can
cause a sudden reduction in the number of white blood cells, damage to
blood cells and symptoms such as severe diarrhea and
pneumonia.

"The clinical testing proved that our products have severe side effects.
So we have warned the doctors to be aware of the risk," said Daiichi
Pharmaceutical spokesman Toshio Takahashi. "I'm afraid our products are
often used inappropriately."

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the drug last year for
colon cancer treatment.

Yakult said its product is exported to the United States and Europe as
Camptosar under licensing with Pharmacia & Upjohn, Inc. and
Rhone-Poulenc Rorer, Inc., but there have been no reports of deaths
there resulting from side effects.

Some doctors have warned of what they called abnormal mortality rates
from unintended effects of the drug.

Fukushima said some victims could have been saved if anti-side effects
drugs, such as colony stimulating factor, had been approved for use
under health insurance policies.

The Health and Welfare Ministry said colony stimulating factor is
approved in Japan but health insurance does not cover its use for
certain types of cancer.

In Japan, unlike in the United States, health insurance cannot pay for
particular drugs unless approved for that use by the Health Ministry.

Fukushima said health insurance does not cover use of CSF for colon
cancer treatment, for which irinotecan hydrochloride is most effective.

Tuesday's disclosure is the latest embarrassment for the ministry, which
already is under fire for a delay in banning untreated blood products.
The deaths of 2,000 hemophiliacs from AIDS have been blamed on the
delay.

A former senior official at the ministry was arrested in October in
connection with the scandal.

--By MARI YAMAGUCHI, Associated Press
Date: Fri, 04 Jul 1997 12:08:22 -0700
From: Persephone Moonshadow Howling Womyn <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: FWD: Rachel #553: Let's Stop Wasting Time
Message-ID: <3.0.32.19970704120819.0080b530@206.184.139.138>
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>>Received:  by rachel.clark.net (UUPC/extended 1.12r);
>           Thu, 03 Jul 1997 15:50:08 -0400
>Date: Thu, 3 Jul 97 15:50:07 -0500
>From: Peter Montague <[e-mail]>
>Subject: Rachel #553: Let's Stop Wasting Time
>To: [e-mail]
>Sender: [e-mail]
>Reply-To: Peter Montague <[e-mail]>
>
>=======================Electronic Edition========================
>.                                                               .
>.           RACHEL'S ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH WEEKLY #553           .
>.                      ---July 3, 1997---                       .
>.                          HEADLINES:                           .
>.                    LET'S STOP WASTING TIME                    .
>.                          ==========                           .
>.               Environmental Research Foundation               .
>.              P.O. Box 5036, Annapolis, MD  21403              .
>.      Fax [phone]; Internet: [e-mail]       .
>.                          ==========                           .
>.  Back issues available by E-mail; to get instructions, send   .
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>. Subscribe: send E-mail to [e-mail] .
>.  with the single word SUBSCRIBE in the message.  It's free.   .
>=================================================================
>
>LET'S STOP WASTING OUR TIME
>
>The mainstream environmental movement spends its time urging
>government to regulate corporations that are making people sick
>while poisoning the planet's air, water, and soil.  Regulation is
>what mainstream environmentalists aim to do.  They gather data,
>write reports to show how bad things have gotten, and then they
>ask government regulators to modify the behavior of the
>responsible corporations.  In Washington, D.C., and in all 50
>state capitals, hundreds or thousands of environmentalists toil
>tirelessly year after year after year, proposing new laws, urging
>new regulations, and opposing the latest efforts by officials
>(corporate and governmental) to weaken existing laws and
>regulations.  They write letters, meet with agency personnel,
>publish pamphlets and hold conferences, prepare testimony for
>subcommittees, serve for years on citizen advisory boards, create
>"media events," mail out newsletters and magazines, organize
>phone trees to create awareness and raise funds.  They pore over
>immense volumes of technical information, becoming experts in
>arcane sub-specialties of science and law.  They work hard, much
>harder than most other people.  When they find that their efforts
>have been ineffective, they redouble their efforts, evidently
>hoping that more of the same will work better next time.
>Environmental Defense Fund, Natural Resources Defense Council,
>Sierra Club, Audubon, National Wildlife Federation, The
>Wilderness Society, The Environmental Working Group, and many
>others that make up the mainstream environmental community are
>well-intentioned, earnest, and diligent.  They are also, it must
>be admitted, largely ineffective.
>
>An eye-opening new book describes the nearly-complete failure of
>all our attempts to regulate the behavior of the chemical
>corporations. TOXIC DECEPTION, by Dan Fagin and Marianne
>Lavelle,[1] is subtitled "How the Chemical Industry Manipulates
>Science, Bends the Law, and Endangers Your Health."  In his day
>job, Dan Fagin writes for NEWSDAY (the Long Island newspaper) and
>Marianne Lavelle writes for the NATIONAL LAW JOURNAL.  Both are
>award-winning investigative reporters, and this book shows why:
>it is thorough and thoroughly-documented, even-handed, careful in
>its conclusions, and absolutely astonishing in how grim a picture
>it paints of our corporatized democracy.  Even those of us who
>study chemicals-and-health full-time have never put all the
>pieces together the way these two have.
>
>The book is organized as a case study of only four dangerous
>chemicals: atrazine, alachlor, perchloroethylene and formaldehyde.
>
>** Atrazine is a weed killer used on 96% of the U.S. corn crop
>each year.  Introduced in 1958, some 68 to 73 million pounds were
>used in 1995, making it the best-selling pesticide in the nation.
>Atrazine interferes with the hormone systems of mammals.  In
>female rats, it causes tumors of the mammary glands, uterus, and
>ovaries.  Two studies have suggested that it causes ovarian
>cancer in humans.  EPA categorizes it as a "possible human
>carcinogen."   Atrazine is found in much of the drinking water in
>the midwest, and it is measurable in corn, milk, beef and other
>foods.
>
>** In 1989, Monsanto introduced Alachlor, a weed killer that
>complements atrazine.  Atrazine is best against weeds and
>alachlor is best against grasses.  Often both are applied at the
>same time.  Alachlor causes lung tumors in mice; brain tumors in
>rats; stomach tumors in rats; and tumors of the thyroid gland in
>rats.  It also causes liver degeneration, kidney disease, eye
>lesions, and cataracts in rats fed high doses.  Canada banned
>alachlor in 1985.  EPA's Science Advisory Board labeled alachlor
>a "probably human carcinogen" in 1986.  In 1987, EPA restricted
>the use of alachlor by requiring that farmers who apply it must
>first take a short course of instruction.  Much of the well water
>in the midwest now contains alachlor and its use continues
>unabated.
>
>** Perchloroethylene ("perc") is the common chlorinated solvent
>used in "dry cleaning" (which is only "dry" in the sense that it
>doesn't use water).  In the early 1970s, scientists learned that
>perc causes liver cancer in mice.  Workers in dry cleaning shops
>get cancer of the esophagus seven times as often as the average
>American, and they get bladder cancer twice as often.  A few
>communities on Cape Cod in Massachusetts have perc in their
>drinking water; a study in 1994 revealed that those communities
>also have leukemia rates five to eight times the national
>average.  Perc is ranked as a "probable human carcinogen" and we
>all take it into our homes whenever we pick up the dry cleaning.
>
>** Formaldehyde is a naturally-occurring substance present in the
>human body in very small quantities.  Mixed with urea,
>formaldehyde makes a glue that handily holds plywood and particle
>board together.  Mixed with a soap, urea-formaldehyde makes a
>stiff foam that has excellent insulating properties.  After the
>oil shortage of 1973, Americans began to conserve fuel oil by
>tightening and insulating their homes, and it was then that
>people discovered that formaldehyde can be toxic.  In tens of
>thousands of individuals, urea-formaldehyde has caused flu-like
>symptoms, rashes, and neurological illnesses.  In some people, it
>triggers multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), a life-long,
>debilitating sensitivity to many other chemicals, including
>fragrances and perfumes. In recent years, scientists have
>confirmed that formaldehyde causes rare nasal tumors in mice and
>in industrial workers exposed to high levels of formaldehyde gas.
>It is also linked to brain tumors in people exposed to it on the
>job (embalmers and anatomists).  It is ranked as a "probable
>human carcinogen" in humans, and we are all widely exposed to it
>through cabinets, furniture, walls and flooring.
>
>TOXIC DECEPTION documents how the manufacturers of these
>chemicals --and thousands of others like them --have managed to
>keep their dangerous, cancer-causing products on the market
>despite hugely expensive government regulatory efforts, civil
>litigation by citizens who feel victimized, investigative news
>reports, congressional oversight of the regulators, right-to-know
>laws, and hundreds of scientific studies confirming harm to
>humans and the environment.  The book documents how corporations
>buy the complicity of politicians; offer jobs, junkets and
>sometimes threats to regulators; pursue scorched-earth courtroom
>strategies; shape, manipulate, and sometimes falsify science; and
>spend millions of dollars on misleading advertising and public
>relations to deflect public concerns.  In sum, the book shows how
>corporations have turned the regulatory system --and those who
>devote their lives to working within that system --into their
>best allies.
>
>After reading this book, one realizes that the purpose of the
>regulatory system is not to protect human health and the
>environment. The purpose of the regulatory system is to protect
>the property rights of the corporations, using every branch of
>government to thwart any serious attempts by citizens to assert
>that human rights should take precedence.  "At the most
>fundamental level," write Fagin and Lavelle, "the federal
>regulatory system is driven by the economic imperatives of the
>chemical manufacturers--to expand markets and profits--and not by
>its mandate to protect public health."(pg. 13)  Why are so many
>of us still defining our environmental work entirely within the
>confines of this hopeless system?
>
>After 27 years of unremitting, well-meaning attempts to regulate
>corporate polluters, here is our situation:
>
>** The government does not screen chemicals for safety before
>they go on the market.
>
>** Chemicals are presumed innocent until members of the public
>can prove them guilty of causing harm.  Naturally this guarantees
>that people will be hurt before control can even be considered.
>After harm has been widely documented, then government begins to
>gather data on a chemical, but "the agency usually relies on
>research conducted by or for manufacturers when it is time to
>make a decision about regulating a toxic chemical."(pg. 14)
>
>** Industry manipulates scientific studies to reach the desired
>conclusions.  According to Fagin and Lavelle, when chemical
>corporations paid for 43 scientific studies of any of the four
>chemicals (atrazine, alachlor, perc or formaldehyde), 32 studies
>(74%) returned results favorable to the chemicals involved, 5
>were ambivalent, and 6 (14%) were unfavorable.(pg. 51)  When
>independent nonindustry organizations --government agencies,
>universities or medical/charitable organizations (such as the
>March of Dimes) --paid for 118 studies of the same four
>chemicals, only 27 of the studies (23%) gave results favorable to
>the chemicals involved, 20 were ambivalent, and 71 (60%) were
>unfavorable.(pg. 51)
>
>** As of 1994, after 24 years of trying, EPA had issued
>regulations for only 9 chemicals.(pg. 12)  EPA has officially
>registered only 150 pesticides, though there are thousands of
>others in daily use awaiting review by the agency.(pg. 11)  The
>Occupational Safety and Health Administration has done only
>slightly better, setting limits on 24 chemicals after 18 years of
>effort.(pg. 81)
>
>** Close to 2000 new chemicals are introduced into commercial
>channels each year in the U.S., virtually none of then screened
>for safety by government prior to introduction.  When screening
>does occur, it occurs AFTER trouble has become apparent.  All
>together, about 70,000 different chemicals are now in commercial
>use, with nearly 6 trillion pounds produced annually in the U.S.
>for plastics, solvents, glues, dyes, fuels, and other uses.  All
>six trillion pounds eventually enter the environment.
>
>More than 80% of these chemicals have never been screened to
>learn whether they cause cancer, much less screened to discover
>if they harm the nervous system, the immune system, the endocrine
>system, or the reproductive system.  In sum, in the vast majority
>of cases, nothing is known about the health or environmental
>consequences of dumping these chemicals into the environment.
>It's a huge corporate experiment on the public.
>
>The corporations use a single line of defense: we don't know FOR
>SURE how dangerous these chemicals really are.  But this simple
>strategy works perfectly because Congress has placed the burden
>of proof on the public, not on the corporations.  We have to
>prove that we have been harmed.  Because we are all exposed to
>hundreds if not thousands of chemicals each day, pinpointing the
>source of a rash, a headache, or a brain tumor is next to
>impossible. Meanwhile the exposures continue. The dice in this
>game are loaded.  Why do we continue to play?
>
>Instead, why doesn't the environmental movement come together to
>discuss a new strategy --one that asserts the right of a
>sovereign people to control subordinate entities like
>corporations?  We could lawfully shift the burden of proof onto
>the purveyors of poisons.  We could legitimately deny them the
>protections of the Bill of Rights. (Rule of thumb: if it doesn't
>breathe, it isn't protected as a person under the Constitution).
>We could legally define what corporations can and cannot do, JUST
>AS OUR GREAT GRANDPARENTS DID IN THE EARLY DAYS OF THE REPUBLIC.
>(See REHW #488 and #489.)  Such a program would no doubt have
>enormous popular appeal because so many people have been treated
>with injustice and disrespect by one corporation or another in
>recent years.  Why keep wasting our time?  Let's get together and
>focus our energy on DEFINING (not regulating) corporations.  It's
>the only way we'll ever achieve environmental protection.  And it
>would give people some control over their lives once again.
>
>                                                --Peter Montague
>                (National Writers Union, UAW Local 1981/AFL-CIO)
>===============
>[1] Dan Fagin, Marianne Lavelle, and the Center for Public
>Integrity, TOXIC DECEPTION (Secaucus, N.J.: Carol Publishing
>Group, 1996).
>
>Descriptor terms:  chemical industry; regulation; environmental
>movement; edf; nrdc; sierra club; wilderness society; epa;
>environmental defense fund; natural resources defense council;
>formaldehyde; toxic deception; perchloroethylene; perc; alachlor;
>atrazine; ewg; environmental working group; pesticides;
>herbicides; cancer; carcinogens; mcs;
>
>################################################################
>                             NOTICE
>Environmental Research Foundation provides this electronic
>version of RACHEL'S ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH WEEKLY free of charge
>even though it costs our organization considerable time and money
>to produce it. We would like to continue to provide this service
>free. You could help by making a tax-deductible contribution
>(anything you can afford, whether $5.00 or $500.00). Please send
>your tax-deductible contribution to: Environmental Research
>Foundation, P.O. Box 5036, Annapolis, MD 21403-7036. Please do
>not send credit card information via E-mail. For further
>information about making tax-deductible contributions to E.R.F.
>by credit card please phone us toll free at 1-888-2RACHEL.
>                                        --Peter Montague, Editor
>################################################################
>
>
>
>
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~
        "Life shrinks or expands in| <[e-mail]>
           proportion to one's courage."| <[e-mail]>
                 -Anais Nin-| http://www.persephone.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~
My PGP Public Key can be found at:  http://www.persephone.org/PGPKEY.shtml/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~
Date: Fri, 04 Jul 1997 15:53:00 -0400
From: Wyandotte Animal Group <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Cc: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: Lori Gauthier (Kentucky, USA)
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

At 11:01 AM 7/4/97 -0400, you wrote:
>The lady who has been rescuing animals from the Kentucky floods is in URGENT
>need. She's getting ready to be evicted from her grooming shop. Why? Because
>many,  many of the animals she rescued and had people fostering/adopting them
>have been RETURNED to her. And, the vets have stopped helping her. Since the
>publicity has died down, people in that area have laid everything back in her
>lap. One of our NOAH members talked to her last week, and she NEEDS HELP,
>financially, AND:  Preventatic collars, LICE MEDICINE, and products to get
>the fleas off the animals.  I don't have her address with me at home, so if
>any of you still have her address,  please post it for those on here who
>would like to help her out again.
>Thanks!!! This is an urgent, urgent situation.

Lori's address and phone for any that wish to contribute is:


Lori Gauthier
A Dog's Life
2342 US Hwy 68
Maysville, KY 41056
606-759-4600



Jason Alley
Wyandotte Animal Group
[e-mail]

Date: Fri, 4 Jul 1997 17:57:18 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail], [e-mail]
Subject: [VA] hunting/fishing rights amendment
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Friday, July 4, 1997

Dolan proposes hunting, fishing rights amendment
He seeks attorney general post

ROANOKE -- Democratic attorney general candidate Bill Dolan yesterday
made what he called a ''pre-emptive strike'' against the animal-rights
movement by proposing a state constitutional amendment to protect the
rights of hunters and fishers.

Flanked by state legislators who said they would push for the amendment
during next year's General Assembly session, Dolan said at a news
conference that he is troubled that hunting and fishing restrictions
were approved by voters in five states last year.

''We must act here in Virginia before those who seek to restrict hunting
and fishing set their sights on Virginia,'' Dolan said.

The Arlington lawyer's amendment reads: ''The citizens have a right to
hunt, fish, and take game in a safe manner, subject only to the rights
of the owners of affected real property and to reasonable restrictions
related to harvest, licensure, seasons, limits, and methods, times, and
locations of taking game, and to the health and safety of the citizens
of the Commonwealth, as prescribed by law.''

Del. A. Victor Thomas, D-Roanoke, an enthusiastic sportsman and likely
sponsor of the amendment bill, said legislators will work to put the
pro-hunting language in the state constitution regardless of who is
elected this November. Dolan is running against Republican state Sen.
Mark L. Earley of Chesapeake.

''It will be an issue to be debated next year,'' said Thomas. ''If the
Lord's willing and the creek don't rise, it will be introduced.''

Earley said it was ironic that such a proposal would come from Dolan.

''He is a longtime supporter of gun control and the limitation of Second
Amendment rights,'' Earley said. ''In this race Dolan seems to be to
suiting up in camouflage, not blaze orange.''

Spokeswoman Anne Kincaid said Earley could not say whether he would
support the proposed amendment without seeing it, but noted he had a
10-year record of strong support for rights of hunters and fishermen in
Virginia.

Dolan and Thomas noted that the animal-rights group People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals is based in Norfolk, and they suggested the
organization would soon open a campaign to restrict hunting in the
commonwealth.

PETA spokeswoman Jenny Woods scoffed at Dolan's proposed amendment and
noted that current Virginia law already bars activists from harassing
hunters.

''Dolan's amendment is nothing but a chest-beating exercise meant to
elicit cheers from those who enjoy torturing animals for fun,'' Woods
said. ''We feel legislation singling out one group for special
protection is unconstitutional, and if we have to we'll challenge it.''

To amend the constitution, the General Assembly must vote to hold a
referendum, wait until after the next statewide election, then vote
again to have the referendum. The amendment is then put before voters.

Dolan said the constitutional amendment doesn't offer any protection to
hunters and fishers not already afforded by current state laws, but
putting pro-hunting language into the constitution would create a higher
hurdle for groups seeking to restrict hunting or fishing in the future.

He noted that eight states held referendums last year on various hunting
restrictions, and the strictures passed in five states. Next year Ohio
voters will decide whether to ban dove hunting.

Alabama is considering an amendment to its constitution giving hunters
more protections against restrictions, Dolan said, and Virginia should
consider doing so as well.

''All over Virginia, there are thousands of mothers and fathers who take
their children hunting and fishing every year,'' he said. ''We need to
make sure this time-honored Virginia tradition is preserved.''

Up to now, ethics reform in government has been the staple of Dolan's
campaign. Yesterday he said the issue of hunters' and fishers' rights
will strike a chord with state voters.

''Lots of people don't hunt or fish,'' he said, ''but they still like
that part of Virginia's history.''
Date: Fri, 4 Jul 1997 18:43:19 -0400 (EDT)
From: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Address for Lori Gauthier
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>

Saucy emailed me Lori's address from her BunnyHuggers' Gazette:

Lori Gauthier
"A Dog's Life"
2342 U.S. Hwy 68
Maysville, KY  41056

PHONE: [phone]

There's also a bank account set up for  the animals' rescue, but I don't have
that address yet.
Again, she needs (DESPERATELY): money, lice medicine, preventic collars, and
flea prevention products.   THANKS!!

-- Sherrill
Date: Fri, 04 Jul 1997 17:14:59 -0700
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: FWD: Sperm whales entangled in fishing nets
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

From: Museo di Storia Naturale <[e-mail]>

Sperm whales entangled in pelagic drifting nets

In a single week two sperm whales still alive have been entangled in
drifting nets in the waters of the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy.
The first has been found during the night of the 9th of June, about 5
miles off the Calabrian coasts. It was 12 meters long; it had a big
portion of the net around the lower jaw and a second one around the
tail. The two portions were connected by a string of net along one side
of the body. As the specimen was particularly restless, two days of work
were necessary to cut the net.

The 14th of June a second sperm whale, a male 10 meters long, has been
found entangled, about 13 miles offshore, in the same area. The net was
around the body and the tail. Even if in this case the specimen was
quiet, many hours occurred to release it. The portion of the net around
the tail weighed more than 100 kilos.

G. Paolillo (representing the Italian stranding network Centro Studi
Cetacei) directed the operations to release the sperm whales, with the
help of the scuba divers of Italian Finance Police.

In this area many striped dolphins, with amputations or clear marks of
entanglement in a fishing net, strand every year in these months. In the
same period many fishing boats using surface pelagic drifting nets to
catch swordfish are working in the area.

The legal length of this kind of net in Italy is <2.5 km; we have no
certainty of its respect, that in any case is not a safety measure for
marine mammals. As the majority of the data that we collect are about
cetacean found stranded on the Italian coasts, a lot of bycatches remain
probably unknown. We think that the few data we have are enough to
produce a big concern on cetacean conservation. In this connection many
environmental associations are asking for the total ban of this fishing
gear.

dr. Michela Podesta'
Centro Studi Cetacei
Museo di Storia Naturale
corso Venezia 55
20121 Milano - Italy
fax:  [phone]
e-mail:  [e-mail]

Michela Podesta'
Museo di Storia Naturale
corso Venezia 55
20121 Milano - Italy
tel. [phone]
fax [phone]
e-mail  [e-mail]
** End of text from cdp:headlines **

**********************************************************************
This material came from PeaceNet, a non-profit progressive networking
service.  For more information, send a message to
[e-mail]
**********************************************************************
Date: Fri, 04 Jul 1997 17:18:23 -0700
From: Andrew Gach <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: FWD: Logging road legislation - urgent!
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Vote on Wednesday for Porter/Kennedy Amendment

     The House has moved up the schedule for Interior
Appropriations and will consider the bill beginning on Wednesday, July
9.  The Porter/Kennedy timber roads amendment to the Interior bill is
likely to be voted on that afternoon.  We will keep you posted as the
amendment moves closer to a vote.

             Help protect our National Forests.
     Help end corporate welfare for logging companies.
   Help put an end to construction of new logging roads.

No New Logging Roads National Call-In Day Tuesday  -  July 8
     Please call your U.S. Representative on July 8 between 9:00am
and 5:00pm Eastern Standard Time and urge them to support the
Porter/Kennedy Amendment to the Fiscal Year '98 Interior
Appropriations Bill.  Please call them again on the day of the vote too!
         Capitol Hill Switchboard can be reached at
               1-800-962-3524 or 202/224-3121

Sign-On Letter Calls for End to New Logging Roads
     Enclosed for your review is an environmental sign-on letter that
we hope to distribute to Congress on Tuesday morning.  To sign-on
your group, please contact Sean Cosgrove at 202/879-3193, fax
202/879-3189 or email [e-mail] by close of business on
Monday, July 7.  Please include your name, organization, city and
state.  Also, please send a separate letter of support on your
organization's letterhead to your state's congressional delegation.
Thanks!

July 8, 1997

Dear Representatives:

Please support the Porter/Kennedy amendment to the Interior
Appropriations bill to end funding for new logging road construction
and reconstruction on our National Forests.

"Our No. 1 water quality problem in the National Forest System is
roads," says USDA Undersecretary Jim Lyons.

With 378,000 miles of roads in the National Forests already, new
logging roads aren't necessary.  New roads -- through construction or
reconstruction -- will generate sediment, pollute waters, and damage
fisheries.

Their construction will also result in the logging of rare old growth
forests, the fragmentation of wildlife habitat, and the loss of many
wildlands that we should leave for the benefit and enjoyment of future
generations.

The timber industry will fight to keep this $90 million subsidy but
please don't be fooled by their arguments:

     + Timber roads are not built to standards for recreational use,
     and Porter/Kennedy does not affect $26 million already in the
     budget for building new recreation roads.

     + "Reconstructing" a road causes just as much environmental
     damage as building a new one, and is no solution to
     maintenance needs.

     + The Porter/Kennedy amendment doesn't touch $85 million in
     the Forest Service budget for road maintenance.

In fact, the Forest Service says that they have a backlog of $440
million of road maintenance needs in the National Forests.  What sense
does it make to build new roads, when we can't afford to take care of
the ones we have?

The most immediate, direct step the Congress can take to move the
Forest Service toward more balanced forest policies and greater fiscal
and environmental accountability is to pass the Porter/Kennedy
Amendment.

Thanks for your consideration.

Steve Holmer
Campaign Coordinator
Western Ancient Forest Campaign
1025 Vermont Ave, NW, 3rd Floor
Washington, D.C. 20005
202/879-3188
202/879-3189 fax
[e-mail]
Date: Fri, 04 Jul 1997 22:43:54 -0400
From: allen schubert <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (BE) EU Warns Belgium on Meat Companies
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

from AP Wire page:
-----------------------------------
 07/04/1997 13:42 EST

 EU Warns Belgium on Meat Companies

 BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) -- The European Union told Belgium Friday if it
 does not vigilantly prosecute two Belgian meat companies linked to the
 illegal import of British beef it will take legal action itself.

 ``We want member states to live up to their responsibility'' and enforce
 the EU ban on imports of British beef imposed in 1996 because of mad cow
 disease in Britain, said European Commission spokesman Klaus van der Pas.

 He said the EU may seek to pull the licenses of the two Belgian firms
 unless Belgium prosecutes them vigilantly.

 On Thursday, the EU said 1,600 tons of British beef was exported to the
 Netherlands, Egypt and Russia in recent weeks.

 The exports were discovered April 23 in the Netherlands where officials
 seized 700 tons and found 900 tons had been shipped to Egypt and Russia.
 Van der Pas said Friday the Egypt shipment was later returned.

 There was no indication the beef was from British cattle that had mad cow
 disease.

 Two Belgian exporters have been implicated in the exports, making use of
 what the EU has called Britain's ``manifestly inadequate'' export
 controls.

 On Thursday, the EU said it was up to individual governments to pursue
 importers of British beef. It took a tougher stance Friday saying it
 would take legal action if violators of the beef ban get away with it at
 home.

 Sources said that was a signal to EU capitals that the European
 Commisison wants them to implement EU law in a serious manner for the
 sake of retaining consumer confidence in beef.

 In 1996, the EU banned all British beef exports and ordered London to
 accelerate the eradication of mad cow disease through a massive slaughter
 program. Scientists believe there may be a link between that degenerative
 ailment and an equally fatal human brain ailment called Creutzfeldt-Jakob
 Disease.

Date: Sat, 5 Jul 1997 11:17:49 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Eating less fat-especially less animal fat-saves lives
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>South China Morning Post
Saturday  July 5  1997
     Men live longer on low-fat Mediterranean diet,
     20-year study shows
     REUTER in London

     Eating less fat - especially less animal fat - really does save lives,
European researchers said yesterday.

A study comparing death rates among Finnish, Dutch and Italian men showed
the  healthier the diet, the lower the overall death rate.

     Patricia Huijbregts and colleagues at the National Institute of Public
Health and the  Environment in the Netherlands, along with colleagues in
Finland and Italy, followed more than 3,000 men for 20 years.

     Deaths were directly related to eating habits.

     "This study shows that 20-year mortality is lowest in men with the
healthiest diet  according to World Health Organisation recommendations,"
they wrote in a report in  the British Medical Journal.

WHO guidelines say no more than 30 per cent of calories should come from fat
and recommend a daily limit of 300 milligrams of cholesterol.

     "In Finland and the Netherlands, the intake of saturated fatty acids
and cholesterol was  high and the intake of alcohol was low," they wrote.
"In Italy, the opposite was  observed."

     High-fat diets are strongly linked with higher rates of cancer and
heart disease. Ms Huijbregts' group found this was indeed the case.

     "Mortality was highest in eastern Finland and lowest in Montegiorgio
[Italy].
"The group with the highest healthy diet indicator had an 18 per cent lower
risk from  cardiovascular disease than the group with the lowest healthy
diet indicator," they wrote.

     "Risk of death from cancer was 15 per cent lower in the highest group."

     The study accounted for smoking, age and intake of alcohol.

     Other researchers have proposed that the so-called Mediterranean diet,
which has a high intake of fruits, vegetables and olive oil, is healthier
than the northern European diet where fats come mostly from meat and cheese.


Date: Sat, 5 Jul 1997 11:17:54 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (US) Doggone blow for Basinger
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>South China Morning Post
Saturday  July 5  1997
     Doggone blow for Basinger
     A British-owned laboratory refused to give actress and animal-rights
activist Kim  Basinger 36 beagles spared from drug research that would have
involved breaking their  legs.

Basinger showed up at the East Millstone, New Jersey, offices of Huntingdon
Life Sciences to claim the dogs but went away empty-handed.

     The company said the dogs were bred for research and were not pets.

     Yamanouchi, the Japanese pharmaceuticals company that commissioned the
tests on a  medicine for osteoporosis, dropped its request after Basinger
stirred up international publicity by offering to adopt the beagles.

Date: Sat, 5 Jul 1997 11:18:00 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: DNA Analysis Proves South Korea Not Illegal Whale-Meat
  Importer
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>The Korea Herald
07-05-97 : DNA Analysis Proves South Korea Not Illegal Whale-Meat Importer

     Debunking suspicions by some critics that Korea, a member of the
International Whaling Commission (IWC) which bans whaling, may be importing
illegal whale meat, recent tests by  a U.S. lab indicated the opposite.

     The recent genetic analysis of whale meat circulating in Korea proved
that the specimens  tested were whales which habitat local, Korean waters
and not international seas, according  to an Environment Ministry official.
``The genetic analysis by a U.S. science laboratory showed that all
specimens of domestic whale meat belonged to species living in the seas off
Korea,'' the official said yesterday.

     Only whales caught by Korean fisherman in nets by accident, are allowed
for consumption,  the ministry said. On May 9, the ministry asked a U.S.
laboratory to conduct the genetic analysis of domestic whale meat, to prove
that South Korea does not illegally import the banned mammal.

     Eighteen specimens of whale meat circulating in Korea, were taken and
analyzed at the Southwest Fisheries Science Center in the United States, the
ministry said. ``The U.S. center carried out the DNA (Deoxyribo Nucleic
Acid) analysis of the whale-meat samples to find out the species and the
habitats,'' Yu Ho, a ministry official said.

     DNA carries genetic information unique to each species. Yu said that
the DNA analysis revealed the whale specimens' genetic types, which
indicated their species and, more    importantly, what seas they roamed in.
``The U.S. center informed us of the DNA analysis results last month. None
of the domestic whale meat samples came from species which lived  in foreign
habitats,'' she said.

The whale meat tested was found in domestic markets in Pusan, Ulsan and
Pohang, caught unexpectedly in trawling nets. If fishing trawlers catch the
endangered whales by accident, they are obliged to undergo a through
inspection by authorities before selling them, the ministry said. The exact
amount of whale meat circulating is hard estimate, and thought to be
 negligible, due to the nation's strict ban on whaling.

     Korea joined the IWC in December, 1978. The IWC has imposed a
full-fledged ban on industrial whaling since 1986. It is the second time
Korea has allowed DNA analyses of domestic whale meat since 1994, when an
international environmental group unofficially conducted tests.

In the 1994 tests, genetic analyses on 47 specimens of whale meat, indicated
six samples  turned out to be imported from abroad, the ministry said.

Date: Sat, 5 Jul 1997 11:18:06 +0800 (SST)
From: Vadivu Govind <[e-mail]>
To: [e-mail]
Subject: (TH) Rats have edge in battle for Bangkok
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"



>South China Morning Post
Saturday  July 5  1997
     Rats have edge in battle for Bangkok
     BEN BARBER in Bangkok

     War has been declared on an underground army that outnumbers Bangkok's
human  inhabitants 15 to one.

     Studies reveal city drains and garbage help sustain an estimated 234
million rats that   pose a significant threat to health.
Bangkok's rats are the variety whose fleas can carry bubonic plague or the
"black   death". The authorities fear the rodents could become the source of
a pneumonic  epidemic like the 1994 outbreak in India.

     Bangkok Governor Bhichit Rattakul this year launched a cleanup campaign
to help  beautify a city notorious for dust, rotting garbage and traffic
pollution.

     Health officers say the campaign aims to extend life spans which are
lower than in the  provinces.

     A Health Sciences Research Institute study estimated 160 million rats
lurk in the slum  areas of Klong Toey and Bang Khen.

Staff of a rat-plagued city hospital described how the animals fed on the
plaster cast of  a woman with a broken leg.

     Patients complained they could not sleep because of the noise rats made
chewing  electrical wires.

     Hospital staff have been unable to reduce the number of rats, which
they suspect  originate from a nearby slum.

     Health officers say Bangkok's water-treatment system is equal to world
standards, but  they worry about the threat posed by an unusually large rat
population.
"There is only a minute possibility, but we don't want a repeat of the black
death," an  official said. "We also want to prevent other diseases carried
by rats."


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