Collateral Damage Disappearing Wild Pollinators Spell Disaster
T
che perilous decline of domestic honeybees due to the widespread occurrence of colony collapse disorder continues to make news, but wild bees and other insects are often overlooked, even though they are twice as effective in producing seeds and fruit on crops, according to a study of 41 crops in 600 fields worldwide by Argentina’s research network, CONICET. For the first time, scientists have a handle on the
huge contribution of wild insects, showing that honeybees cannot replace the wild insects lost as their habitat is increasingly destroyed. Study leader Lucas Garibaldi, of Argentina’s National University, in Río Negro,
says that relying on honeybees is a highly risky strategy, because disease can sweep through a single species and it may not adapt to environmental changes as well as wild pollinators. Also, trucking in managed honeybee hives does not replace native pollinators, which visit more plants, resulting in more effective cross-pollination; honeybees tend to carry pollen from one flower to another on the same plant.
Nasty Stuff Monsanto Weed Killer Contaminates Food
A
peer-reviewed Massachusetts Institute of Technology report published in the scientific
journal Entropy points to evidence that residues of glyphosate, the chief ingredient in Roundup weed killer, manufactured by Monsanto and sprayed over millions of acres of crops, has been found in food. The residues enhance the damaging effects of other food-borne chemicals and toxins in the environment known to disrupt normal body functions and induce disease, including Parkinson’s, infertility and cancers. Reuters reports that environmentalists, consumer groups and plant scientists
from several countries have warned that heavy use of glyphosate is harming plants, people and animals. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is conducting a standard registration review of glyphosate to determine by 2015 if its use should be limited. Yet Monsanto continues to claim that glyphosate is safe and less damaging than other commonly used herbicides.
Solar Powered Capturing Energy from Asphalt Roads
A
sphalt roads throughout the country are well known for soaking up the sun’s rays. Now, new
piping technology from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, in Massachusetts, is offering a way to trap heat and use it elsewhere, potentially transforming blacktopped streets into giant solar energy collectors. It works by using the sun-warmed asphalt to heat
water pumped through tubes embedded a few inches below the road surface. This can help to cool asphalt by utilizing some of the heat that would have remained in the material to heat the circulating water to produce electricity. Researchers are testing different pipe materials and conductive aggregates to add to the asphalt to improve heat absorption. Costs relative to potential returns have yet to be quantified.
Source:
ForumForTheFuture.org NaturalAwakeningsSA.com August 2013 13
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