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SERC Wildlines Report #36

September 9, 2002

In this Edition:
Issue Spotlight: Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD)
Headliner: EPA Finds Diesel Exhaust a Cause of Cancer
Watchdog: ALEC’s "Environmental Good Samaritan Act"
News From the States:
*Concerns Grow about Louisiana Insecticide Use
*Illinois Local Planning Fund Will Help Towns Update Planning
*California Computer Recycling Fee Awaits Governor
*Ohio Announces Nation’s First Hydrogen Fueling Station
*Florida to Improve Endangered Species Protections
*No Level of Lead is Safe for Kids
*West Virginia Advances New Water Rules
*Virginia to Lose Farmers

Chronic Wasting Disease belongs to the same group of brain diseases as Mad Cow Disease.  Little is understood about this disease that affects elk and deer, except that all infected animals lose bodily functions and eventually die. According to many scientists, CWD seems more likely to occur in areas where deer or elk are crowded or where they congregate at man-made feed and water stations.  Also, the importation and exportation of deer and elk among states and game farms has most likely contributed to the spread of the disease by keeping herds in close quarters. Once thought to be well-contained in a small area of northeast Colorado and southern Wyoming, the disease now has been detected in the wild in Nebraska, New Mexico, Wisconsin and South Dakota. To learn what your state can do to keep CWD out, visit SERC's Chronic Wasting Disease site at http://serconline.org/CWD.

Headliner: EPA Finds Diesel Exhaust a Cause of Cancer

The AP news service reported on 9/5 that the US EPA has released a study finding that inhaling diesel exhausts from large trucks and other sources can cause cancer in humans. The EPA finding was released after a decade of study, and it reinforces the federal government's push to reduce truck tailpipe emissions by requiring cleaner-burning engines and diesel fuel with ultra-low sulfur content. The engine rule does not affect emissions from trucks already being driven, but other regulations cutting the amount of sulfur in diesel fuel is expected to produce pollution reductions. The report reiterated that environmental exposure to diesel exhausts poses short-term health problems and in the long term has been shown to be a "chronic respiratory hazard to humans" contributing to increased asthma and other respiratory problems. According to the report, diesel exhausts account for as much as a quarter of the airborne microscopic soot in some urban areas. For more on clean air, visit http://www.serconline.org/cleanairstate.html.

Watchdog: ALEC’s "Environmental Good Samaritan Act"

Concerns Grow about Louisiana Insecticide Use

Could the massive dosages of pesticides and repellents being applied in South Louisiana be more harmful than West Nile virus? The 9/9 Advocate (Baton Rouge) reported that despite the daily barrage of insecticide spraying, there is little information on the environmental risks posed by such a massive injection of insecticides and larvicides. Some health officials believe that only a small percentage of mosquitoes carry the disease and that four out of five people bitten by an infected mosquito will never develop any symptoms. Despite the low risk of contracting the disease, the massive mosquito control efforts continue, although the effects of pesticides on human reproduction, fetal development, and children are barely understood. Experts also suggest caution in using repellants containing DEET on the elderly or very young, and say they should not be used at all on children under 2 years old. For more on this issue, see http://www.serconline.org/PrecautionaryPrincipleState.html

Illinois Local Planning Fund Will Help Towns Update Planning

Last Week’s Smart Growth News reported that Illinois Gov. George Ryan signed into law the Local Planning Technical Assistance Act, based on a model statute in the recent American Planning Association's (APA) ''Growing Smart Legislative Guidebook'' and hailed by the association as ''exemplary and trend- setting.'' An update to 1920s statutes, the act authorizes the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs to offer local governments varied assistance and grants from a specially created Local Planning Fund to help them devise, modify and implement 20-year comprehensive plans. For more on planning, visit http://www.serconline.org/UrbanSprawlState.html.

California Computer Recycling Fee Awaits Governor

California Governor Gray Davis is now considering whether to sign SB1523, a bill that would place a fee on all computer monitors using cathode ray tube (CRT) technology sold in the state. The recycling fee would be limited to $10 per CRT. Many substances used on computers and other advanced electronics contain highly toxic substances. For more on electronic waste recycling, visit http://www.serconline.org/ewaste.html.

Ohio Announces Nation’s First Hydrogen Fueling Station

The 9/5 Plain Dealer (Cleveland) reported that Ohio officials have announced plans for the first public hydrogen-fueling station. The alternative-fuel station is the first of four proposed for Ohio in the next decade. Hydrogen will be used to power fuel cells in the next generation of cars now being developed. The hydrogen source for the station in Cleveland will be natural gas, and backers intend to use the project as a learning center to help bridge the public's acceptance in moving from conventional gasoline to fuel cell- driven cars powered by hydrogen, which emits no pollutants. For more on clean energy, visit http://www.serconline.org/cleanenergypage.html.

Florida to Improve Endangered Species Protections

Florida may improve its efforts to protect endangered species, according to the 9/6 Miami Herald. The state Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is revamping the process it uses to list species as endangered, threatened, or of special concern to fully address marine wildlife and to bring the state process in line with both federal (US FWS) and international (IUCN) guidelines. Florida’s current rules rely heavily on population size, according to the Florida office of Defenders of Wildlife, which may allow a species to come too close to extinction before it is listed. They hope that future guidelines will rely more on scientific judgment. The commission postponed decisions on changing the status of several species, including the bald eagle, until the review is finished. For more on endangered species protection, visit http://www.serconline.org/esa/index.htm.

No Level of Lead is Safe for Kids

Rhode Island is taking steps to punish eight national corporations for their role in the lead poisoning of thousands of children, according to the 9/6 Providence Journal. The state has filed suit against these companies and if successful, the suit would define lead paint as a public nuisance and hold the companies liable for damages. Dr. Michael Shannon, of Harvard University and Boston’s Children’s Hospital, testified last week that he has seen brain injury in children with lead blood levels below the legal limit of 10 micrograms/deciliter. Shannon was the second lead-paint poisoning expert to testify in Rhode Island’s landmark suit against paint companies. For more on protecting children’s health, visit http://www.serconline.org/childrenshealth.html

West Virginia Advances New Water Rules

The West Virginia Environmental Quality Board advanced new clean water protections of state streams last week. According to the Charleston Gazette, the board moved forward on both a proposal to permanently protect all state streams as drinking sources, and a draft rule that provides pollution exemptions that allow dumping in certain streams. Under the system, companies can seek board approval to exempt certain streams from the drinking water standards, allowing those streams to be more polluted. Final approval is pending public comment. To learn more protecting water, see http://www.serconline.org/waterconservation/stateactivity.html 

Virginia to Lose Farmers

Do you have news about environmental legislation or regulations in your state? Please submit items to [email protected].