Guest guest Posted August 13, 2004 Report Share Posted August 13, 2004 > WEEKLY_WATCH_85 > " GM_WATCH " <info > Thu, 12 Aug 2004 23:20:34 +0100 > " califpacific " > <califpacific > > --------------------------- > WEEKLY WATCH number 85 - and monthly review > --------------------------- > from Claire Robinson, WEEKLY WATCH editor > --------------------------- > > This week we are launching a special section on our > website - *FOCUS ON ASIA* - dedicated to keeping you > up to date with GM news, research and resistance on > that continent. > http://www.gmwatch.org/p1temp.asp?pid=42 & page=1 > You'll also find a useful directory of GM pushers > and shovers active in Asia, as well as links to the > organisations leading the resistance. Please tell > all your friends and contacts about it. > > We've a fascinating 'compare and contrast' pair of > stories. America's farmland, following the adoption > of GM crops, is being strangled by herbicide > resistant weeds (THE AMERICAS). Kenya, on the other > hand, a country awash with GM lobbyists trying to > take it down the GM route, has found a sustainable > way of working with nature to simultaneously control > the stemborer maize pest, keep down a noxious weed, > and boost milk production - all without GM (FOCUS ON > AFRICA). We can't help but be reminded that whereas > fragmentary knowledge (such as GM) produces > side-effects, holistic knowledge (sustainable ag) > produces side-benefits. > > Claire claire > www.lobbywatch.org / www.gmwatch.org > > --------------------------- > CONTENTS > --------------------------- > FOCUS ON ASIA > FOCUS ON AFRICA > THE AMERICAS > AUSTRALIA > WTO > LOBBYWATCH > COMPANY NEWS > DONATIONS > > --------------------------- > FOCUS ON ASIA > --------------------------- > > + INDIA'S GM GODFATHER KEY SPEAKER AT CONFERENCE > A profile of the Godfather of India's Green > Revolution, M.S. Swaminathan, is at > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4179 > > Swaminathan is a key speaker at the 3-day > International Conference which opened 6 August in > New Delhi, India, called, " Agricultural > Biotechnology: Ushering in the Second Green > Revolution " . > > Swaminathan, India's premier Green Revolution > scientist, has a talent for dressing up the industry > lobby's agenda in the rhetoric of village India, > women's empowerment, eco-tech etc., creating a > facade of an unthreatening, ecologically and > socially sensitive biotechnology 'domesticated' to > local conditions. > > But Swaminathan's promotion of a locally aware > biotechnology remains open to question. His track > record is hugely controversial. There are > allegations of scientific fraud as well as scandals > involving the suicide of scientists at the institute > from which he launched the Green Revolution. > > One eminent scientist wrote to us after reading our > profile to say thay had concluded from personal > experience that Swaminathan exemplified what is > 'worst and most corrupt in science'. But, > remarkably, all of this has been buried beneath a > plethora of awards and honours that portray as a > hero the man who presided over, and indiscriminately > furthered, one of the ecologically most devastating > technologies of modern times. > > The real importance of Swaminathan's record is that > it points to the errors India will repeat if it > embarks on a Swaminathan-led " Second Green > Revolution " . > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4215 > > + FAST-TRACK GM APPROVAL ARRIVES IN INDIA > India will put in place a single window regulatory > body by January to consider permission for > cultivation of GM crops in the country, according to > the Minister of State for Science and Technology, Mr > Kapil Sibal. > > " We are evolving a simpler regulatory system to > rapidly speed up the approval or rejection of > technologies in order to bring in additional choices > for farmers as soon as possible, " he said, > addressing the International Conference on > " Agricultural biotechnology ushering in the second > green revolution " in New Delhi. > (see item above). > > He even suggested India might simply follow other > countries' assessments of GM crops where they had > already granted approvals. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4217 > For more of the background to the conference see: > India's GM godfather > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4215 > > + NEW!! GM PROMOTERS IN ASIA > GM WATCH is launching its new resource, FOCUS ON > ASIA: > http://www.gmwatch.org/p1temp.asp?pid=42 & page=1 > > FOCUS ON ASIA not only provides links to the latest > news and to relevant reports, to country profiles > and the groups resisting the promotion of GM. It > also provides an A-Z directory to leading GM > promoters in Asia. > > Below is a selection from the directory. Links to > detailed profiles can be found here: > http://www.gmwatch.org/p1temp.asp?pid=42 & page=1 > ... > GM CROP PROMOTERS - AN A-Z [brief selection] > > GM crop promoters in Asia, or claiming to speak for > the people of Asia: > > Asian Food Information Centre - AFIC > Singapore-registered body funded by 'food, beverage > and agricultural industries' (includes biotechnology > companies). Collaborates with ISAAA and CropLife > Asia. > > Asian Rice Biotechnology Network (ARBN) > Founded 1993 by International Rice Research > Institute in Philippines to help develop and release > GM rice across Asia. > > Gerard Barry > Coordinator of GoldenRice Network at International > Rice Research Institute (IRRI). Formerly with > Monsanto where he helped exploit PR potential of > Golden Rice and Monsanto's Rice Genome project. > > CGIAR - Consultative Group on International > Agricultural Research > Has 16 international agricultural research centers, > including IRRI in the Philippines. Original remit > was as a publicly funded research body but > increasingly closely involved with private sector. > In 2002 CGIAR appointed Syngenta Foundation to its > board. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4213 > > Shetkari Sanghatana > Sharad Joshi's Shetkari Sanghtana is the remnant of > a farmers' union from which the dominant group broke > away to oppose GMOs and the WTO. Largely confined to > the Indian state of Maharashtra. Like the Federation > of Farmers Association in Andhra Pradesh, now > represents large local landowners growing cash crops > rather than India's many subsistence farmers. > > + FOCUS ON ASIA'S RESISTANCE: THE PHILIPPINES > (From GM WATCH's new *FOCUS on ASIA* resource: > http://www.gmwatch.org/p1temp.asp?pid=42 & page=1 ) > > Excerpt: > Commercial approval for the cultivation of > Monsanto's Bt corn was granted in December 2002 > despite fierce opposition, including a protracted > hunger strike, from farmers' organisations, > environmentalists and sections of the Catholic > Church. Subsequent concerns about a possible link of > Bt-corn farming to outbreaks of illness in the > Philippines have been the subject of scientific > research. > > Pressure to accept GM crop production has come not > just from the biotech industry and its lobbyists, > backed by the US, but also from the International > Rice Research Institute (IRRI) which is located in > Los Banos, Laguna, about 60 kilometers south of the > Philippine capital, Manila. Here Golden Rice is > among the GM crops under development. > > Find out more, including about those in the > Philippines resisting GM. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4216 > > + FOCUS ON ASIA'S RESISTANCE: JAPAN > > (From GM WATCH's new *FOCUS on ASIA* resource: > http://www.gmwatch.org/p1temp.asp?pid=42 & page=1) > > Excerpts: > Since 1996 consumer resistance to GM has been > growing in Japan, where millions of signatures have > been gathered for petitions opposing GM food and > crops. Following successful citizens' actions to > halt GM rice trials, Japanese corporations have > abandoned domestic GM rice research. Japanese > resistance was also a critical element in Monsanto's > decision to abandon plans to commercialise GM wheat > worldwide. At the moment there is a focus on > volunteer GM oilseed rape which is springing up > around Japanese ports (see item below). > > Find out more, including about those in Japan > leading the resistance to GM. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4224 > > + SERIOUS GM CANOLA POLLUTION AT JAPANESE PORT > Imported GM canola seeds have been spilled around > Kashima port in Ibaraki prefecture, and GM canola > pollution has been spreading. The Japan Wildlife > Research Centre and others have established 13 > checking points within a 5 kilometre radius of the > port. The tests were conducted for 2 years at a > total of 48 locations. > > According to an investigation in February 2003, > western oilseed rape was confirmed at 23 out of 48 > locations. There was possible GM canola reseeding at > 17 out of 23 confirmed locations. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4224 > > + JAPANESE GENE BASHERS ATTACK PUBLIC NEGATIVITY > OVER GM > In a letter to Nature Biotechnology, Japanese > genetic engineers complain about " the impact of > Japanese public resistance to plant genetic > engineering on the actions of local and national > government. We are concerned that negative public > sentiment could translate into government actions > that will compromise overall competitiveness and > research and development capability in the plant > sciences. " > > We have limited sympathy with scientists whose frame > of reference is so narrow as to equate a single > limited technology (GM) with the whole of plant > science! > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4224 > > + PAKISTAN WILL NOT ALLOW CULTIVATION OF MONSANTO BT > COTTON > Pakistan will not allow the commercial cultivation > of GM Bt cotton, developed in the US for resistance > against bollworm. Instead, a source in the Ministry > of Food, Agriculture and Livestock said, it will > encourage the development of Bt cotton in the > research institutions within Pakistan. > > In Pakistan, the article says, the recently emerged > Burewala strain of the cotton leaf curl virus (CLCV) > is attributed to the unauthorized cultivation of > imported Bt cotton by some growers, the source > observed. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4219 > > + THAI ACTIVISTS PROMPT GM PROBE > Greenpeace campaigners in Thailand recently revealed > that GM papaya has been grown for at least 12 months > on a farm in the province of Khon Kaen in a GM > contamination scandal. It was grown from papaya > seeds purchased from a Thai government research > station in June 2003. Tests show the seeds they are > selling have become contaminated - almost certainly > by GM field trials carried out by the Thai > government. > > To see a map showing the spread of contamination in > Thailand: > http://weblog.greenpeace.org/ge/archives/Map-contamination.jpg > > Now, Thailand's agriculture department has ordered a > halt to the distribution of papaya seeds from its > research station in Khon Kaen in an effort to > disprove Greenpeace Southeast Asia's claims that GM > papaya seeds slipped through to farmers. Chakan > Saengraksawong, the director general of the > department, said the halt would allow his department > to investigate whether farmers possessed GM papaya > seeds. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4211 > > + NGOS THREATEN TO SUE THAI GOVT > A group of NGOs threatened to sue the Thai > government if they failed to stop distribution of > the contaminated seeds. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4211 > > --------------------------- > FOCUS ON AFRICA > --------------------------- > > [see also LOBBYWATCH for " 20,000 DEAD FROM GM FOOD > AID REFUSAL " ] > > + DON'T EMBRACE GM, GO FOR HOME-GROWN SOLUTIONS > An incisive article from Kenya contains an important > truth - that governments and agencies who line up > for GM crops are often not just in the business of > appeasing the US and the biotech industry and their > local supporters, they are also seeking cover for > their chronic failure to deliver on vital food and > agricultural issues. > > Excerpt: > [President Mwai] Kibaki's contention that > biotechnology " can help us increase food output " > seems, on the surface, reasonable. > > However, it is unclear how far the Kenya government > had addressed other agricultural issues that have > created food insecurity in the country. > > Kenya's record of addressing the hunger problem > through other means is, to say the least, poor. Past > governments, and to some extent the current one, > have shown little commitment to eradicating hunger > in the country for good. Many are the instances when > food has been used as political capital to buy off > victims of hunger. > > Kenya's budgetary allocations have always been > highly tilted towards such non-productive ventures > as administration and related services. Today, the > Office of the President, with its multitude of > departments, continues to get the lion's share of > taxpayers' money. While there seems to be a > rationale for this kind of expenditure, it leaves > little for investment in ventures that could > engender and promote agricultural production in real > terms. > > The government does not have a good record of > investing in concrete projects in rural areas that > would enhance food production, increase employment, > raise household incomes and create sustainable food > production. > > And having adhered to the World Bank's push for > structural adjustment programmes, the government > kicked out a significant number of agricultural > extension workers in a much-maligned retrenchment > exercise it carried out two years ago. This has > created a yawning gap in a country where extension > services had influenced the pattern, scale and > returns from agricultural activities. > > Over the past couple of decades, grand corruption > and sheer ineptitude have killed such irrigation > schemes as Bura in the Coast province and Ahero in > Nyanza, while the Mwea irrigation scheme in Central > province has been plagued by serious conflict > between the rice farmers and the National Irrigation > Board over ownership of the irrigated land. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4220 > > + BETTER SOLUTION THAN GM FOR KENYA > Resource-poor rural communities in Nyanza Province > are using the " push-pull " programme to control the > stemborer, which causes an estimated loss of 15 per > cent of Kenya's maize and other cereals. > > Push-pull is a repellent and attraction strategy > that uses different plants for the management of > cereal stemborers. The stemborers are repelled from > the main plant (maize or sorghum) and are > simultaneously attracted to a trap plant, usually > napier or Sudan grass, where they go and lay their > eggs. > > But push-pull is not only about controlling > stemborers only. It is also controlling Striga > hermonthica - one of the most noxious weeds known in > the world. > > The programme was developed by the International > Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (Icipe) at > the University of Nairobi, which specializes in > sustainable agriculture. > > The push-pull system relies on a carefully selected > combination of companion crops to be planted around > and among the maize or sorghum plants for the > manipulation of pests and their natural enemies. > Icipe's Dr Zeyaur Khan says that both domestic and > wild grasses, often ploughed under in modern single > cropping practice, can help protect the cereals by > attracting the stemborers. > > The grasses are planted in a border round the maize > or sorghum fields, where invading adult moths become > attracted to chemicals emitted by the grasses > themselves. > > " Instead of landing on the maize plants, the insects > head for what appears to be a tastier meal. The > grasses thus provide the 'pull.' They also provide a > haven for the borer's natural enemies, where they > are devoured as they seek refuge, " says Dr Khan. > According to him, good trap crops include napier > grass (Pennisetum purpureum) and Sudan grass > (Sorghum vulgare sudanese), a type of wild sorghum. > > The " push, " which is the repellent effect, is > provided by a nitrogen-fixing leguminous plant that > also provides fodder for cattle, the desmodium > (Desmodium uncinatum). > > Dr Khan says that as they were working with > " push-pull " to control stemborers, they noticed that > where desmodium was planted, the maize fields had > less striga germinating. Striga causes maize losses > of between 50 and 80 per cent. > > Dr Khan says that a ground cover of desmodium, > interplanted among the maize, reduces striga growth > by a factor of 40. The desmodium ground cover also > reduces soil erosion, conserves water by acting as a > mulch and provides fodder for cattle. > > According to Dr Khan, more than 2,000 small-scale > farmers covered by the Icipe programme have > significantly increased their maize yields and milk > production. " Fodder produced by the 'push-pull' > farmers contributes to production of one million > litres of milk annually, " he says. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4226 > > GM WATCH NOTE: Dr Khan is collaborating in this > project with Prof John Pickett of the UK's > Rothamstead Research Station. It's nice to see > Pickett doing something constructive - for more on > his less constructive side, see > http://www.gmwatch.org/profile1.asp?PrId=102 & page=P > > + AFRICANS WRESTLE WITH G(RI)M CHOICE > Monsanto-trained scientist Florence Wambugu hypes GM > crops once more in an article for Scoop news > service. > > The article tells us: " Wambugu believes no Kenyan > farmer - not even her own grandmother - would refuse > GM seeds if they would bring higher yields. " Wambugu > neglects to mention that so far, as with her much > hyped GM sweet potatoes that were supposed to more > than double production, GM seeds have generally > brought lower yields! > > The article continues: " That doesn't mean GM is > Africa's silver bullet. Providing loans to small > farmers, fixing roads and creating regional markets > for future surpluses are all vital to solving > Kenya's food insecurity, she says. 'There is no one > technology that will end hunger. I don't know why > this argument is pushed in Africa.' " > > Yet Wambugu has pushed that very argument - GM as > the simplistic solution to all of Africa's woes > -more than anyone. > > She's claimed GM crops are 'the key to eradicating > poverty and hunger in the Third World', saying that > they 'could almost literally weed out poverty', and > that they could take care of 'famine', and even that > they could pull 'the African continent out of > decades of economic and social despair'. > > And now she tells us it's not a silver bullet and > she doesn't know why people keep bringing that up! > For more on why Wambugu won her PANTS ON FIRE award: > http://www.gmwatch.org/p2temp2.asp?aid=59 & page=1 & op=2 > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4218 > > + LEARN HOW TO FARM - COURTESTY OF PIONEER HI-BRED > AND AFRICA HARVEST > This summer two African agriculturalists are > visiting Iowa for study experience to better > understand corn production and modern agricultural > practices. Upon their return they will share what > they've learned to help subsistence farmers in some > of the poorest nations in the world. > > Rosa Seleke of Johannesburg, South Africa, and James > Kamanga of Nairobi, Kenya, are spending two months > in Iowa as part of an offer extended to them through > biotech lobby group Africa Harvest, founded by > Monsanto-trained Dr Florence Wambugu. Seleke and > Kamanga are being hosted by Pioneer Hi-Bred > International, Inc. > > For more on Africa Harvest - " known globally as the > voice of Africa in the debate surrounding > biotechnology " - and its founder see: > http://www.gmwatch.org/profile1.asp?PrId=131 & page=W > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4210 > > ------- > THE AMERICAS > ------- > > + ARGENTINA: SLASH AND BURN AG BREEDS HUNGER AND > DEFORESTATION > A compelling article based on a Greenpeace report > summarises the scandal of Argentina's disastrous > experiment with GM soy, which has led to mass > starvation and ecological devastation in spite of > large exports. > > Excerpt: > The rural poor lose an ecosystem which can provide > them with numerous goods such as food, medicines, > raw material for handicrafts or products that they > can trade. Like the Green Revolution, Genetic > Engineering has failed to feed the world. For the > biotech industry, it has been always all about > money. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4223 > > + SURVEY REVEALS GM CONTAMINATION IN BRAZIL > Weaknesses in Brazilian soybean segregation were > recently brought to light when the agriculture > ministry released a report revealing that a high > number of samples testing positive as biotech > varieties came from farmers who were not supposed to > be growing them. Survey findings were based on > laboratory analyses of 7,374 samples taken in > various growing regions of the country. Some 296 > samples tested positive as biotech varieties, of > which only 88 were from farms of registered biotech > soybean growers. The remaining samples that tested > positive were traced back to farmers who had not > signed the biotech registry. > > The report said farmer noncompliance with the > biotech registry requirement makes it impossible to > ensure that non-biotech soybean shipments will meet > the strict transgenic content limitations of premium > export markets such as the European Union. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4223 > > + US PRODUCES BUMPER HARVEST OF HERBICIDE RESISTANT > WEEDS > An interesting article from Delta Farm Press reports > on how just a few years after its adoption of GM > crops, North America has a serious problem with > herbicide resistant weeds. A debate has sprung up > about how to deal with them. Experts variously > recommend mixtures of chemicals, or older, more > toxic chemicals, or as yet undiscovered new > chemicals. Some believe the weed plague may spell > the end of so-called 'conservation tillage' or > 'no-till'. This is a no-plough method which relies > on burning off weeds with liberal amounts of > herbicide, pushed by chemical/GM companies as a way > of preventing soil erosion and, of course, selling > more chemicals. > > Note the Syngenta man's promise at the end that the > company will deliver a chemical answer to the > problem, at a not insignificant cost to the farmer! > > Excerpt: > [Dan] Reynolds [professor of weed science at MSU] > was not surprised the first cases of resistant > horseweed were in Tennessee because of that area's > wide spread adoption of conservation tillage. > Glyphosate didn't kill it; producers weren't > plowing; and at first, they weren't using a residual > or herbicide combination that suppresses the > horseweed. > > " That started the resistance in the horseweed and > from there it's gone through its own selection > process, " says Reynolds. " And, we are concerned > other weeds will go through a similar selection > process and our list of resistant weeds will grow. " > > Representatives of industry .. admitted research > dollars were not heavily allocated for the > development of new herbicides, but had shifted to > other areas such as fungicides, insecticides and > resistant variety development. > " Many of these concerns with resistant weeds are > realistic, " says Eric Palmer with Syngenta. " But > with good product stewardship, we will have the > products it takes to control these weeds. The > question will be if the grower is willing to spend > USD20 -25 an acre for that control. " > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4223 > > --------------------------- > AUSTRALIA > --------------------------- > > + WESTERN AUSTRALIAN GOVT BLOCKS GM COTTON > The Western Australian Government has blocked plans > for a GM cotton industry in west Kimberley. New > South Wales company Western Agricultural Industries > has spent $7 million over the past six years > developing plans to grow up to 200,000 hectares of > commercial crops, using GM cotton as a base. > > But following intense lobbying from Aboriginal and > environmental groups, the State Government has > decided not to extend its memorandum of > understanding with the company. > > The green group, Environs Kimberley, has led the > fight to stop the development, arguing it would > result in massive land clearing, excessive water use > and the introduction of dangerous GMOs. > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4225 > > --------------------------- > WTO > --------------------------- > > + GM AND FARM SUBSIDIES > The Saskatoon biotech community behind the ABIC2004 > conference (12-15 Sept, Cologne, Germany) pushing GM > for Europe argues that GM crops are a necessity for > agricultural efficiency in Europe. They say now that > the WTO has at last found its teeth and claims to be > dismantling subsidies in developed countries, this > move will result in " long-lasting implications for > the future of AgBiotechnology " . > > That is because " AgBiotechnology... has been > demonstrated in numerous studies to be the most > efficient tool to streamline the efficiency of > agricultural businesses " , making it possible to > remove subsidies from efficient farmers. > > If this is so, we wonder why, since the introduction > of GM crops into the US, farm subsidies have risen > exponentially. These subsidies have, for instance, > pushed down the price of cotton on the world market, > leading to spiraling debt for farmers in West Africa > and other developing countries who do not have the > benefit of such subsidies. And all that for the sake > of of America's " efficient " GM cotton farmers who > apparently have no need of subsidies! > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4209 > > + SUBSIDIES NOT BEING CUT > Trade analyst Devinder Sharma points out that claims > by developed nations that the WTO is dismantling > farm subsidies are untrue. " The devil is in the > detail, " he says. The 'reformed' framework is > complicated (no doubt intentionally so) but appears > to consist in redefining subsidies rather than > removing them. > > Devinder says, " The [new] framework actually > provides a cushion to the US and the EU to raise > farm subsidies. ... No wonder the so-called > phase-out of subsidies has not snowballed into a > political crisis in Europe. " > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4209 > > --------------------------- > LOBBYWATCH > --------------------------- > > + 20,000 DEAD FROM GM FOOD AID REFUSAL, CLAIMS > CORPORATE LOBBYIST > Dr Roger Bate of the Institute of Economic Affairs > has claimed in an article that perhaps as many as > 20,000 Zambians have died from that country's > refusal of GM food aid. He gives no evidence to > support this claim, and neither have we seen any, > despite our close coverage of this issue. > > Bate in an article widely promoted on the internet > (via Tech Central Station, the American Enterpise > Institute, AgBioView, Agnet etc.) claims, " ...aid > workers were taking food away from the mouths of > starving children. This was just one more example of > the folly of the 'precautionary principle,' and how > it is killing poor people in Africa. " > > Bate also claims - basing himself on, he says, GM > proponent Per Pinstrup Andersen - that the US would > have been equally happy to provide Zambia with > non-GM grain in order to resolve the crisis. In > reality, of course, the US insisted for a long time > that it would only provide aid to Zambia if Zambia's > decision not to accept GM food aid were reversed. In > the words of a US state department official at the > time, " Beggars can't be choosers " . > (http://ngin.tripod.com/forcefeed.htm) > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4214 > > Bate is a visiting fellow of the American Enterprise > Institute and the former executive director of the > European Science and Environment Forum (ESEF) which > he co-founded in 1994 with undisclosed Big Tobacco > money. ESEF has campaigned vigorously against > restrictions on smoking. Bate also connects to > Africa Fighting Malaria, amongst several other > dubious lobby groups. > More on Bate: > http://www.gmwatch.org/profile1.asp?PrId=18 & page=B > > --------------------------- > COMPANY NEWS > --------------------------- > > + TEFLON TROUBLE STICKING TO DUPONT > " Our story is not a good one " - John Bowman, > DuPont's lawyer > > The US Environmental Protection Agency filed a > complaint last month charging chemical/biotech giant > DuPont with withholding evidence of its own health > and environmental concerns about an important > chemical used to manufacture Teflon. That would be a > violation of US federal environmental law, > compounded by the possibility that DuPont covered up > the evidence for two decades. > > Teflon has been hugely successful for DuPont, which > over the last half-century has made the material > almost ubiquitous, putting it not just on frying > pans but also on 'stain resistant' carpets, > fast-food packaging, clothing, eyeglasses and > electrical wires - even the fabric roofs covering > football stadiums. > > Now DuPont has to worry that Teflon and the > materials used to make it have become too > ubiquitous. Teflon constituents have found their way > into rivers, soil, wild animals and humans, > according to government environmental officials and > others. Evidence suggests that some of the > materials, known to cause cancer and other problems > in animals, may be making people sick. > > While it remains one of the company's most valuable > assets, Teflon has also become a potentially huge > liability for DuPont, the second-biggest US chemical > maker, which operates in more than 70 countries and > sells products from electronics to clothing. > > The suspect chemical - which is more commonly known > as PFOA, has turned up in the blood of more than 90 > per cent of Americans... > > The company acknowledges that fumes from Teflon pans > subjected to high heat can release gases which can > kill pet birds and cause a flu-like condition in > humans known as polymer fume fever. PFOA is known to > cause cancer in some animals, and has been linked to > liver damage in animals. Effects on humans have been > little studied. > > A class-action lawsuit filed in Wood County, home of > the Washington Works plant where DuPont has made > Teflon for decades, has turned up a series of > documents that DuPont had sought to shield as > proprietary information. The latest came to light in > May, when the West Virginia Supreme Court voted > unanimously to unseal several DuPont memorandums > from 2000 in which John Bowman, a company lawyer, > warned two of his superiors - Thomas Sager, a > vice-president and assistant general counsel, and > Martha Rees, an associate general counsel - that the > company would " spend millions to defend these > lawsuits and have the additional threat of punitive > damages hanging over our head. " > > He added that other companies that had polluted > drinking water supplies near their factories had > warned him that it was cheaper and easier to replace > those supplies and settle claims than to try to > fight them in court. And those companies, he noted, > had spilled chemicals that did not persist in the > environment the way that PFOA does. > > " Our story is not a good one, " he wrote in one memo. > " We continue to increase our emissions into the > river despite internal commitments to reduce or > eliminate the release of this chemical into the > community and environment because of our concern > about the biopersistence of this chemical. " > http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=4212 > > ------- > DONATIONS > ------- > Our thanks to all of you who have donated to GM > WATCH. You can donate online in any one of five > currencies via PayPal, at > http://www.gmwatch.org/donate.asp OR by cheque or > postal order payable to 'NGIN', to be sent to: NGIN, > 26 Pottergate, Norwich, NR2 1DX, UK. We appreciate > your support. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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