Tasmania’s future

This short news item is relevant to the kind of Tasmania we want for the future.
(Restore each link)
*Big profit from nature protection.*
Money invested in protecting nature can bring huge financial returns, according to a major investigation into the costs and benefits of the natural world.
Friday, 13 November 2009 BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8357723.stm

This short summary popped up as one of the items in the “Above the fold”. This is a daily news service by www.EnvironmentalHealthNews.org. The daily service provides short summaries and links for around 15 to 20 reports in journals and media relating to human health, economy and the environment. It tends to focus on the US but includes other areas.

I find it compelling reading every morning over breakfast. Others might find it relevant too.

Here is a random selection of 6 items from the latest email (15 Nov) to give you a taste –

*’Catastrophic’ e-waste fuels global toxic dump.* A “catastrophic accumulation” of millions of tonnes of “e-waste” from computers, cellphones and television sets is fuelling a global pile of hazardous waste, an international body warned Friday.
Agence France-Presse
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/
article/ALeqM5gYUlBYRTFfxF-TdqWYp83fYd8lPw

*Boeing suit seeks to set aside higher standard.* The Boeing Co. filed suit Friday to scuttle a state law requiring the highest cleanup standards at one of the nation’s most polluted sites. It contends that only the federal government, not the state of California, has the authority to oversee cleanup at nuclear energy sites. Contra Costa Times, California.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_13786082

*Brookfield natives expose bottled water industry*. By 2030, two-thirds of the world’s citizens will not have access to clean drinking water, according to the United Nations. Thirty-five states in the U.S. are experiencing drought now. One of the causes of the impending water crisis is something millions of Americans use every day — bottled water. Danbury News Times, Connecticut.
http://www.newstimes.com/ci_13784076

*Blizzard renews storm over China making snow.* Heavy snowfall in northern China is testing the country’s disaster preparedness and prompting fresh questions about Beijing’s efforts to alter its weather.
China’s water supply relative to its 1.3 billion-person population is roughly a fourth the world’s average, and the shortage is worse in the north. Wall Street Journal
[Subscription Required]
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125814710015847539.html

*Restoring China’s disappearing wetlands.* The Sanjiang Plain Wetlands, China’s largest freshwater wetlands, are disappearing at a frightening speed after decades of agricultural conversion. Scientists link increased droughts, floods and sandstorms afflicting northern China in recent years to the shrinking wetlands.
China Daily http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2009-
11/09/content_8933093.htm

*Arab experts predict Mideast water wars.* There is a widely held fear in the Middle East that global warming, dwindling water resources and burgeoning populations will trigger wars over water in the not-too-distant future.
United Press International
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/Resource-Wars/
2009/11/13/Arab-experts-predict-Mideast-water-wars/
UPI-56281258138250/

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Mike Cassidy

Mike Cassidy