It Begins: Fracking Spill in North Central PA

Newsworks is reporting that “thousands of gallons” – 13,000 to be precisely in the ballpark – of hydrofracking fluid (containing a nice cocktail of salt and toxins) have spilled from a well in North Central PA and the ground water in Lycoming County is as good as polluted. The site has already had several violations and it wasn’t until a follow-up visit that Department of Environmental Protection inspector actually found the spill. A gas valve had…been left open.

It’s currently wreaking havok on local waterways and nearby cattle.

And we’re hearing from WBNG out in Binghamton, New York, that XTO Energy (a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil), who owns the gas well pad, has hired cleanup contractor Minuteman Response to contain and “remedy” the situation, though has not offered an explanation as to why the valve was open.

DEP Northcentral Regional Director Nels Taber told PA Environment Daily: “There are also two private drinking water wells in the vicinity that will be sampled for possible impacts.”

A fence also has been installed to prevent a neighbor’s cattle from grazing in the impacted area of the pasture.

DEP inspectors have collected samples of nearby soil samples and surface water. Initial field meter readings showed elevated levels of conductivity and salinity in the spring and unnamed tributary.

Conductivity measures water’s ability to carry an electric current, while salinity measures the dissolved salt content in water. Elevated levels of both are indications that spilled fracking fluid is present.

Exxon paid $30 billion in June to merge with Texas-based XTO Energy, thus making the conglomerate the largest natural gas producer in the U.S. It has holdings throughout the Marcellus Shale and elsewhere.

Let’s review the potential damage of fracking fluid, via Nick Powell’s October 5 feature, Marcellus Shale: Jeers to Your Health:

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation analyzed wastewater in several wells in the state and found insanely high levels of radium-226, thousands of times the limit that is safe to drink. Radium-226 is a highly radioactive chemical that can lead to lung and bone cancer, among other diseases. When you take into consideration that the Delaware River and Schuylkill River watersheds are both located near the Shale, these findings are even more alarming. The New York City DEP concluded that drilling the Shale “presents potential risks to public health and would be expected to compromise the City’s ability to protect the watershed and continued, cost-effective provision of a high purity water supply.”

A big hat tip to Brendan Demelle at DeSmogBlog who points out a quote in this 2009 New York Times editorial: “If hydraulic fracturing is as safe as the industry says it is, why should it fear regulation?”

And now (still with us?), let’s review Governor-Elect Corbett’s plan to regulate Marcellus Shale and/or use some tax money to pay the DEP to, you know, get to the site sooner and maybe have more than one inspector on the site so these sorts of things aren’t overlooked.

…Oh, right.

AllGov - Texas Environment Commission Changed Test Results to Hide Radiation in Water

Texas Environment Commission Changed Test Results to Hide Radiation in Water
Friday, November 26, 2010

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) spent two decades under-reporting radiation levels in local water supplies, which helped water districts avoid fines, but exposed residents to potentially harmful radioactive elements.

An investigation by KHOU news in Houston found hundreds of water providers near the Gulf Coast that delivered drinking water containing radioactive contaminants, all with the blessing of state officials, using a reporting method that came to be known as “Texas math.”

At the center of the controversy was TCEQ’s manipulation of water-testing reports from theDepartment of State Health Services. When given a range of possible radiation levels in a water supply, TCEQ officials automatically went with the lowest possible figure based on the margin of error. This practice went on until 2009, when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) discovered what TCEQ was doing and told it to stop.

Alpha particles from uranium, radium and other minerals appeared repeatedly in water-testing reports compiled by TCEQ. “The alpha particle—this is the 800-pound gorilla of radioactive particles,” Dr. David Ozonoff, an environmental health professor and chair emeritus of the Boston University School of Public Health, told KHOU. “The word that comes to my mind is ‘cover-up’.”

Approval of lower radiation figures by the state allowed water districts to avoid being cited for having too much radiation in their water. This happened to Harris County Municipal Utility District No.105 (MUD 105), which dodged fines going back as far as 1988 because of TCEQ’s actions.

For example, in 1988, MUD 105’s measurement for alpha radiation came in at 17.6 picocuries at a time when the federal legal limit was 15. Because the margin of error was 5.3, the actual level could have been as high as 22.9 or as low as 12.3. TCEQ reported the level as 12.3, implying that this was the measured level rather the real measured level of 17.6. If TCEQ had not done this, MUD 105 would have been fined for exceeding the legal radiation limit in at least 12 different years. Instead, it was not cited until 2008.

-Noel Brinkerhoff, David Wallechinsky

I-Team Investigates Radiation in Our Water Supply (KHOU.com)

I-Team: State ‘Lowballs’ Radiation Scores in Drinking Water - Part 2 (by Mark Greenblatt, KHOU.com)

ACTIVISM: DEC. 7 ERIC CANTONA "KILL THE BANKS" (A MUST SEE)!

Reminder !!

http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull364/36405843745.pdf


Important follow up to my previous postings about this issue.



Biological effects of low doses of ionizing radiation: A fuller picture

The two latest reports of the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) provide a comprehensive overview of current knowledge

effects of low level radiation does not exist and will probably not be obtainable for a long time. Obtaining unequivocal evidence would require ...

Also, from the report:

Radiation Doses

The term radiation means energy propagating in the form of electromagnetic

waves or photons, or in the form of subatomic particles. Ionizing

radiation is radiation of sufficiently high energy to cause — in the medium

through which it passes — the production of pairs of ions, i.e. of atoms or

groups of atoms that have either lost or gained one or more electrons to

become positively or negatively charged, and the corresponding complementary

electrons. For biological effects, the medium in which ion pairs are

produced is biological material, more specifically cellular material.

The term radiation (absorbed) dose generally means the amount of

energy which is absorbed from ionizing radiation by a unit mass of material.

This quantity is expressed in unit energy per unit mass, that is in joules per

kilogram, which takes the special name gray (Gy); [1 Gy = 1000 milligray

(mGy)]. For radiation protection purposes, the absorbed dose is weighted to

take account of the effectiveness of different radiation types and the radiosensitivity

of various organs and tissues. The resulting quantity is termed

effective dose, and its unit sievert (Sv) [ISv = 1000 millisievert (mSv)]; for

photons in the intermediate energy range, 1 mGy is approximately equal to

1 mSv.

The term low radiation dose is used to mean a radiation dose lower than

designated levels; sometimes it is also informally used to mean a low dose

rate, i.e. low dose per unit time. In specialized radiobiological forums, low

radiation dose (and dose rate) refers to exposures for which it is very unlikely

that more than one event of energy absorption from radiation will occur in

the critical parts of a cell (and damage it) within the time during which repair

mechanisms in the cell can operate. Thus, UNSCEAR concluded that low

radiation dose refers to a total dose of less than 200 mSv and dose rates below

, 0.1 mSv per minute (which in fact is a very high dose rate of around 5000

mSv per annum).

For the non-specialized public, low radiation doses are deemed to

correspond to levels similar to those from, for instance, natural background

exposure or some very common radiation exposures such as those arising

during air travel. Natural background exposure varies widely around the

world. Some "normal" [and "elevated"] values of annual dose rates are as

follows: for cosmic rays, 0.38 mSv [2.0 mSv]; for terrestrial radiation 0.43

mSv [4.3 mSv]; and for exposure to radon, 1.2 mSv [10 mSv]; leading to an

average total of around 2.4 mSv per annum. The average annual dose for

very frequent flyers (such as aircrew) is around 2.5 mSv. These dose rate

levels of a few mSv per annum are expected to deliver, during a lifetime,

doses of above around 100 mSv, which are of the order 

of magnitude of the low radiation doses designated by UNSCEAR."

Filmmaker Describes 'Gasland'

GASLAND Trailer 2010

Depleted Uranium

LOOK at what our weapons have done to the innocent in our sick wars!

A Detailed Look At The Effects Of DU

Mobile Phones: Tomorrow Will Be Too Late

http://www.next-up.org/pdf/Pratical_Health_France_Dr_Paul_Dupont_Mobile_phones_15042008_Add_WHO_Repacholi.pdf

In spite of the dithering by the Ministry of Health and the delaying tactics of the phone operating companies, it is now becoming clear that the mobile phone is a virulent pathogen with damaging effects that we are only vaguely aware of. Recently it was scientifically proved that there is a connection between certain types of tumour and the intensive use of a mobile phone. Most in evidence are cases of acoustic neurinoma, a tumour that develops on the acoustic nerve, as well as malignant brain tumours. According to this study the risk is multiplied by two or more on the side where the phone is held. Are the health authorities worried about these results? Not in the least since, according to the official experts, the risk concerns only "intensive" phone users, and, as they add with a certain touch of cynicism, nothing proves that using a mobile phone always causes a tumour to develop. They are right, but when we know that a tumour usually takes 15-20 years to develop, it would seem logical to conclude that the appearance of tumours after 4-5 years in these intensive phone users is a sure sign of a health catastrophe to come in 10 years' time. 10 years! For those who have children, it's nothing, but for the people that sell telephones it must seem a long way off. The worst thing in this situation is that it is the younger generation that is the most in danger. It is children and teenagers who use mobile phones the most. And it is at precisely this age that the brain is the most exposed: in a child's brain almost two thirds of it are affected by the radiation while in the adult it reaches only one third of the brain, which is already far too much! Even more worrying, the radiation increases in intensity as reception becomes more difficult. So when you use the phone in a train or a car, or when you are in a zone with weaker coverage and the phone has to keep searching for new signals, the intensity of the microwaves is considerably higher. And with every day that passes we find more electromagnetic radiation in our daily surroundings: TV screens and computer monitors, cordless phones and wi-fi systems. All of which is horrifying. All this radiation is non-ionising, that's to say it is capable of upsetting the function of our cells, particularly in our DNA, and the functioning of our glands. Among these it is the pineal, the source of the sleep hormone and of the resistance to cancer, that is the most easily disturbed. We could weep over this tragedy that awaits us, which everyone sees coming and which nobody is doing anything about. But wait - there are millions of mobile phones in use nowadays. . And one day, for lack of the will to face up to this problem, we will inevitably be faced with a terrible choice: your mobile or your life! At that point we will have to give up this magic tool, resign ourselves to taking a step backwards, draw a line through all that it has brought us - will we dare? . It's at that moment that we'll see if humanity still has a will to live or not.
- Dr Paul Dupont

See also:

EMF-Omega-News 14. February 2009
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/5515485/
EMF-Omega-News 21. February 2009
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/5531617/

The Future Is Here, and It's Ugly; A Spreading Techno-blight of Wires, Cables and Towers Sparks a Revolt

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9807E2DF1439F934A3575AC0A9669C8B63

More than 73,000 cell phone towers with heights of at least 200 feet are scattered across the American landscape, according to the Federal Communications Commission. But that does not include myriad other cellular transmitters and receivers, called cell sites, that are placed on lower towers or on poles and buildings. Some experts estimate that more than 100,000 cell sites are now in place. Ted Kreines, a consultant in Tiburon, Calif., who advises local governments on doing business with telecommunications companies, said that the growth of such technology is just beginning. He estimated that as many as one million cell sites would be installed by the time technology companies reached their desired capacity for wireless data and voice transmissions. Utility poles and wires are even more common. According to the F.C.C., more than 180 million telephone cables stretch across the country. The country has more than three million miles of overhead power lines, according to the Edison Electric Institute, an association of utility companies.

Warning Against Adverse Health Effects from the Operation of Digital Broadcast Television Stations (DVB-T)

http://www.scribd.com/doc/12548638/Warning-Against-Adverse-Health-Effects-From-the-Operation-of-Digital-Broadcast

In the US, digital broadcast television is scheduled to start operating on February 17, 2009. We write to you today because we wish to save you from the significant negative health consequences that have occurred here in Germany.In Germany, analog broadcast television stations have gradually been switching to digital broadcast signals since 2003. This switchover first took place in metropolitan areas. In those areas, however, the RF exposures in public places as well as at home continued to increase at the same time. As a result, the continuing declining health status of children, adolescents, and adults in urban areas could not be attributed to any single cause. On May 20, 2006, two digital broadcast television stations went on the air in the Hessian Rhoenarea (Heidelstein, Kreuzberg), which until recently had enjoyed rather low mobile phone radiation exposure levels. Within a radius of more than 20 km, the following symptoms that occurred abruptly were reported: constant headaches, pressure in the head, drowsiness, sleep problems, inability to think clearly,forgetfulness, nervous tensions, irritability, tightness in the chest, rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, depressive mood, total apathy, loss of empathy, burning skin, inner burning, leg weakness, pain in the limbs, stabbing pain in various organs, weight increase. Birds had fled the area. Cats had turned phlegmatic and hardly ever went into the garden. One child committed suicide; a second child tried doing it. Over time the same unbearable symptoms showed up in other locations-most recently in Bamberg and Aschaffenburg on November 25, 2008. Physicians accompanied affected people to areas where there was no DVB-T reception (valleys, behind mountain ranges) and witnessed how these people became symptom-free only after a short period of time. (...) In Germany, DVB-T (Digital Video Broadcasting Terrestrial) uses Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplex Modulation. The fundamental principle of this type of modulation works by spreading
the information across several thousand carrier frequencies directly adjacent to each other. A channel is 7.8 MHz wide. The amplitude also changes constantly. (...) In Germany, we see strong evidence of a direct temporal association between the start-up of terrestrial digital broadcast television and the occurrence of severe health symptoms. (...) Satellites and cable provide the US population with television services. By contrast, the risk associated with terrestrial digital broadcast television transmitters is unacceptable. We, therefore, ask you, dear Mr. President, who has the wellbeing of his citizens at heart, to stop the scheduled introduction of this new technology in the United States of America and to save the people from the negative health consequences that have occurred in our country. (Signed by 3 German physicians)

Global Nuclear Genocide of Indigenous - government liquidation strategy? It won't work!


MNN. Feb. 19, 2009. A sickening picture is shaping up. The evidence continues to mount like a smelly compost heap, except it has no organic value and it’s a serious threat to the generations to come. Who doesn’t know that radiation is deadly? Government and the nuclear industry keep lying to us! They deny the grisly effects such as cancer, birth defects and many environmental illnesses caused by radioactive toxins in our air, land and water.


The nuclear industry seized on the “peak oil” and “global warming” crisis which they created and turned it to their advantage. They call nuclear a “green”, “clean”, “renewable” resource because they can reuse the deadly waste to make nuclear weapons. They lump it under with wind and solar. The theme of the Canadian Nuclear Association CNA convention and trade show from February 25 to 27 at the Westin in Ottawa is “the reality of renaissance”. [Is that crazy or what?] Yes, they rely on our ignorance and naivety. Their philosophy is, “There’s a sucker born every minute” and let’s melt them down!


These transnational corporate psychopaths are anti-life. They want to build dozens of nuclear reactors all over the world in Indigenous communities along and dump the nuclear waste for us to “manage”!! We live in remote areas far from any place they would want to even visit. If the radiation doesn’t kill us, they can make nuclear weapons to finish us off. We are in the way for their attempted reckless pillage and plunder of Mother Earth.


These multinational thugs are fomenting war in the volatile tribal areas between India and Pakistan. Both countries are already armed with nuclear weapons. To make money and depopulate Asia both sides are being armed by the same interests. Canada is one.


India doesn’t produce uranium. They lease it from Russia. The highly radioactive and toxic spent fuel is sent back to Russia. If Canada sells more CANDU reactors to India, they want to supply the uranium fuel and then bring back the nuclear waste to make nuclear weapons. (See endnotes for profiteers).


Meanwhile, Canada helps set up private organizations as government fronts like CNA (Canadian Nuclear Association), NWMO (Nuclear Waste Management Organization) and CAP (Congress of Aboriginal People) and OMAA (Ontario Metis and Aboriginal Association). The latter two are so-called “aboriginal” organizations. NWMO and CNA are funding the Assembly of First Nations, another government set up, and CAP to talk us into managing and storing nuclear fuel waste on our territories. Meetings have gone on for years to get Elders and “leaders” on side. Canada has even sent in Mother Joan Holmes to turn non-natives into “Indians” who can then sign away our inherent rights. Nuclear salesmen are courting “Aboriginal partners” to sign away our birthright and existence.

So-called 34-year old “aboriginal”, Patrick “Fabio-Wannabe” Brazeau, was recently appointed Senator by Canadian Prime Minister Stephen “Ford-Modelling-Agent” Harper. What was this all about? Brazeau’s rap sheet looks like the antithesis of anything anyone would want in the Senate. He was rewarded for fronting the phony CAP to try to destroy Indigenous nations and sovereignty.

CAP has arrangements with NRC (Natural Resources Canada) and NWMO to consider nuclear waste management on or near our communities. Brazeau proposed, “... the 633 native communities in Canada be reduced to between 60 and 80. The 10 Algonquin reserves in Quebec and Ontario, for example, would become one. Same for the Cree. The Mohawk. And so on”. The guy didn’t consult any of us or visit any of our communities. Now, if he has any sense, he’d be afraid to come. He wants to redirect the flow of nearly $10 billion in federal funding for “aboriginal” programs and services in Canada. He thinks we wont need it because we are going to liquidated. So he wants the money to go to the many “aboriginal” that he and Mother Jones have created.

NWMO wants to store nuclear waste in Indigenous communities in the Canadian Shield. Sites in NAN (Nishnaabe Aski Nation) in northern Ontario appear to be the most likely. Ben Cheechoo and other Indigenous started out defying the government and defending our people, culture and sovereignty. They were gradually worn down to accept this senseless destructive agenda that threatens all of the future generations on the whole earth. The FSC (Forestry Stewardship Council of Germany) was instrumental in Cheechoo’s conversion through agents like Russell Diabo and David Nahwehgabow. FSC is a private UN backed organization that is designed to issue permits allowing multinational companies to cut down old growth forests on Indigenous lands worldwide. It’s completely illegal!

A telling example of these “courtships” with the Indigenous is the recent attempted seduction of the Navaho. Areva, the French nuclear power company, took the council on a recent trip to Paris. Areva “owns” uranium mines in northern Saskatchewan. They want the Navaho to put a nuclear reactor and to do more uranium mining in their territory in the U.S. southwest.


The Navaho know about the devastation of uranium tailings. Most want nothing to do with nuclear development. The same is true of the Ojibwe, Cree and Metis who have been targeted in northern Canada. Nishnaabe are fully aware of and suffering from the ongoing poisoning at Blind River and the tons of nuclear waste at Elliot Lake.


Nuclear promoters like AECL (Atomic Energy Canada Ltd) and CNSC (Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission) will coo soothingly, in their brushed suits, carefully coiffed hair [if they have any] and manicured hands, “There’s no risk”. (See endnotes) They lie while people are slowly dying horrible deaths in communities like Chalk River and Port Hope near nuclear facilities.


How do we stop this madness? We all need the facts about these dirty deals and sinister schemes. We have to closely watch and loudly object to those people the government sets up to “represent” us.


We all have to drastically cut back on our materialistic lifestyle. Every household could be generating enough clean energy to power their own grid. We Indigenous understand this basic and practical way of taking only what we need and leaving little or no footprint.


The elders are concerned about the future based on our traditional knowledge. The youth are concerned with living with the legacy of nuclear waste disposal. Women are concerned with protecting the clean and safe water for all people and the environment as this is our traditional role. [See notes and links below].


Iakoha’ko:wa & MNN Staff Mohawk Nation News www.mohawknationnews.com kittoh@storm.ca katenies20@yahoo.com kahentinetha2@yahoo.com Note: Your financial help is needed and appreciated. Please send your donations to PayPal at www.mohawknationnews.com, or by check or money order to “MNN Mohawk Nation News”, Box 991, Kahnawake [Quebec, Canada] J0L 1B0. Nia:wen thank you very much. Go to MNN “Canada” category for more stories; New MNN Books Available now! Purchase t-shirts, mugs and more at our CafePressStore http://www.cafepress.com/mohawknews; Subscribe to MNN for breaking news updates http://.mohawknationnews.com/news/subscription.php; Sign Women Title Holders petition! http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Iroquois


Notes, Sources and Contacts
In “Eaglefeather News” of Saskatchewan www.brucepower.com. Very misleading article. With all the sun, wind and low population, why would anyone want a nuclear reactor there?

Re CNSC and AECL: MNN spoke with Marc Drolet. Why is it the leaking NRU reactor still going? Marc passed the buck to AECL. CNSC told Parliamentarians on Feb 5 that there was no risk. He called it "concentration". The levels permitted in Canada is 100 times that allowed in Europe. He disagreed. We emailed him the link for Ace Hoffman's book. Later he email: "I suggest you formulate more precise questions to receive comments from our scientists. You mention tritium; and its long-term impact on infants and export-control issues related to some states that may want to use nuclear technology to less than peaceful ends. He said, “Our experts provide answers in plain English”. Marc Drolet, Public Affairs and Media Relations, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, Ottawa, Canada K1P 5S9, 613-947-0442, Blackberry 613-808-3134, Fax 613-992-2915


Sean Cotnam of AECL said: the reactor was running today and had been shut down last week for regular maintenance. When would it be shut down permanently? "It won't be shut down for a long time, ma'am". He said the information from the Uof Toronto professor saying that Canada's tritium level is 100 times that of Europe was incorrect. He said it is only 70 times that of Europe and 10 times that of the US!!! He is completely safe living on the Ottawa River and was not worried about his young children.


India and Pakistan each have about 30 nuclear warheads and have reached the brink of nuclear war before. India is buying plenty of military hardware. Pakistan is the #1 top recipient of US military aid in the world, receiving about $3.6 billion [New American Century] since 2006. They also receive aid from the World Bank to build dams and other infrastructure.
<http://www.newamerica.net/publications/policy/u_s_weapons_war_2008_0>
US Predator UAV's armed with Hellfire missiles have killed dozens of people in cross border forays into Pakistan from Afghanistan.


Profiteers in the global nuclear industry include: WorleyParsons Canada Ltd. Nuclear Energy, (905) 940-4770 8133 Warden Avenue, Markham, ON L8G 1B3 http://www.worleyparsons.com/GlobalPresence/Pages/default.aspx
Offices worldwide, including 4 in China and one in Canada. 28,000 employees in engineering and construction. Biggest in China. Ready to build "nuclear parks" deep in the mire of Athabasca oil sands. Their profits are up 50% over last year. OTHER SUCKS: Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL),Organization of CANDU Industries, CAMECO Corporation, SNC Lavalin Nuclear, Bechtel, Canada China Power Inc., Areva of France, Ontario Power Generation, Bruce Power, Power Workers Union, GE-Hitachi, Hitachi, Comstock, Fox Constructors, Wardrop, The Society, AMEC, L-3Com, RCM Technologies, B&W, Black & McDonald, Power Train, Nuvia, NWMO, Hydro-Quebec, HSL, Aecon, Amidyne, CUSW, Industrial AUdit, McMaster University, UOIT (University of Ontario Industry Technology), IML, BPR, SWI.
* Canadian Nuclear Association Conference and Trade Show, February 25 -27, Westin Hotel, Ottawa.
http://www.cna.ca/english/index.asp Canadian Nuclear Association, 130 Albert Street, Suite 1610 Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5G4, 613-237-4262 Fax: 613-237-0989
Contacts: http://www.nrcan-rncan.gc.ca/com/concon/concon-eng.php
Lisa Raitt, NR Min; MP Halton, (613) 996-2007 MINO/MINO Lisa.Raitt@NRCan-RNCan.gc.ca
(613) 996-7046 Fax: (613) 992-0851 EMail: Raitt.L@parl.gc.ca DM Deputy Minister Doyle, Cassie J. since June, 2006; (613) 992-3280 DMO/DMO CassieJ.Doyle@NRCan-RNCan.gc.ca [also on board of directors at AECL]
Serge Dupont, Associate Deputy Minister, Natural Resources Canada (613) 996-9753 DMO/DMO Serge.Dupont@NRCan-RNCan.gc.ca
Min. Health Leona Aglukkaq Conservative Constituency: Nunavut, Telephone: (613) 992-2848 Fax: (613) 996-9764, Aglukkaq.L@parl.gc.ca www.leonaaglukkaq.ca/EN/5215/
HEALTH [WHAT A CONTRADICTION]! Morris Rosenberg, Deputy Minister Health since December 2004. Deputy Minister Justice and Deputy Attorney General of Canada from July 1998 to December 2004. 1993 to 1996 Assistant Secretary to the Cabinet, Economic and Regional Development Policy, Privy Council Office. Deputy Minister's Office - Health Canada, Brooke Claxton Building, Tunney's Pasture, Postal Locator: 0906C, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada > K1A 0K9 Fax: (613) 952-1154 dm_sm@hc-sc.gc.ca
CRITICS OF AECL: Geoff Regan ReganG@parl.gc.ca, (613) 996-3085 Fax: (613) 996-6988,
John Gerretsen MPP Minister of the Environment <jgerretsen.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org>,
George Smitherman MPP Energy & Infr. <gsmitherman.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org>
CNSC Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, CNSC Chalk River Laboratories Site, Building 432 Chalk River, ON K0J 1J0, Telephone: 613-584-7743 Fax: 613-584-9077, interventions@cnsc-ccsn.gc.ca; EA@cnsc-ccsn.gc.ca Marc Drolet, Public relations, 613 947-0442 <info@cnsc-ccsn.bc.ca>
AECL Chalk River Laboratories, Chalk River, Ontario Canada K0J 1J0, Phone: (613) 584-3311, Bill Pilkington, VP, talks to media Ext.#44429 (Sarah), Hugh MacDiarmid, Pres & CEO, Ext.#37330 (Helene)
Glenna Carr, Chair Board of Directors Ext.#37506 (Kimberly), Sean Cotnam, Public relations direct line: 613 584-8291
http://www.aecl.ca/Contact/Make_a_request_for_information.htm
http://www.aecl.ca/site3.aspx Public Requests for Information Toll free: 1-866-513-AECL (2325)
Media Enquiries Toll free: 1-866-886-2325 Community Enquiries Toll free: 1-800-364-6989
Some Canadian politicians including senators: NOTE: No email or photo is available for "Senator Brazeau". 613-947-4231 Fax: 613-947-4228, He is current Member of the following Senate committee(s): Aboriginal Peoples, Human Rights.
http://www.nan.on.ca/article/nan-staff-163.asp
NAN. sbeardy@nan.on.ca, twaboose@nan.on.ca, roseanne@nan.on.ca, afiddler@nan.on.ca, dfletcher@nan.on.ca, dkiecman@nan.on.ca, jshewaybick@nan.on.ca, fmckenzie@nan.on.ca, bnothing@nan.on.ca, gsmith@nan.on.ca, jhunter@nan.on.ca, acrozier@nan.on.ca, mheintzman@nan.on.ca, jnelson@nan.on.ca, ibeardy@nan.on.ca, pdesmoul@nan.on.ca, jforneri@nan.on.ca, pfayrick@nan.on.ca, jthompson@nan.on.ca, eachneep@nan.on.ca, nan@nan.on.ca, caudet@nan.on.ca, twilson@nan.on.ca, rmetlin@nan.on.ca, bmaloney@nan.on.ca, mgoodchild@nan.on.ca, wcaruk@nan.on.ca, lwabasse@nan.on.ca, sperrault@nan.on.ca, sbarkman@nan.on.ca, sbrown@nan.on.ca, cfox@nan.on.ca, cmackay@nan.on.ca, sachneep@nan.on.ca, bmainville@nan.on.ca, klcheechoo@nan.on.ca, amurphy@nan.on.ca, wtrylins@nan.on.ca, jcheechoo@nan.on.ca, gmedicin@nan.on.ca, kadcock@nan.on.ca, lbaxter@nan.on.ca, dsimon@nan.on.ca, csimard@nan.on.ca, ehanson@nan.on.ca, jalto@nan.on.ca, bwheesk@nan.on.ca, rmamakwa@nan.on.ca, dfrenett@nan.on.ca, blouttit@nan.on.ca, lhunter@nan.on.ca, jwheesk@nan.on.ca, bencheechoo@nan.on.ca, msault@nan.on.ca, ljeffries@nan.on.ca, staylor@nan.on.ca, lbiggeorge@nan.on.ca,

OTTAWA DOUCHE BAGS: Reid.S@parl.gc.ca, Harper.S@parl.gc.ca, Nicholson.R@parl.gc.ca, Aglukkaq.L@parl.gc.ca, Day.S@parl.gc.ca,VanLoan.P@parl.gc.ca, McCallum.J@parl.gc.ca, ReganG@parl.gc.ca, Raitt.L@parl.gc.ca, Easter.W@parl.gc.ca, Szabo.P@parl.gc.ca, Baird.J@parl.gc.ca, Clement.T@parl.gc.ca, leader@greenparty.ca, donna.dillman@greenparty.ca, Cannon.L@parl.gc.ca, Sorenson.K@parl.gc.ca, Dewar.P@parl.gc.ca, FAAE@parl.gc.ca, Patry.B@parl.gc.ca, ThibaLo@parl.gc.ca, ChongM@parl.gc.ca, TrostB@parl.gc.ca, BigraB@parl.gc.ca, CardiS@parl.gc.ca, LafraM@parl.gc.ca, CulleN@parl.gc.ca, GallaC@parl.gc.ca, HawnL@parl.gc.ca, McTeaD@parl.gc.ca, AlghaO@parl.gc.ca, AnderDa@parl.gc.ca, BevinD@parl.gc.ca, DebelC@parl.gc.ca, OuellCh@parl.gc.ca, CrowdJ@parl.gc.ca, ChowO@parl.gc.ca, LunnG@parl.gc.ca, BerniM@parl.gc.ca, StrahC@parl.gc.ca, MilliP@parl.gc.ca, Hill.J@parl.gc.ca, MacKay.P@parl.gc.ca, Kramp.D@parl.gc.ca, Brown.G@parl.gc.ca, DelMastro.D@parl.gc.ca, Dewar.P@parl.gc.ca, Coderre.D@parl.gc.ca, DionS@parl.gc.ca, Comartin.J@parl.gc.ca, Oda.B@parl.gc.ca, OConnor.G@parl.gc.ca, Atamaa1@parl.gc.ca, blackd@parl.gc.ca,Black.D@parl.gc.ca, Ambrose.R@parl.gc.ca, Toews.V@parl.gc.ca, Blackburn.J@parl.gc.ca, Paradis.C@parl.gc.ca, Moore.J@parl.gc.ca, Mulcair.T@parl.gc.ca, Duceppe.G@parl.gc.ca, Barbot.V@parl.gc.ca, Layton.J@parl.gc.ca, BlackJ@parl.gc.ca,

dmcquinty.mpp@liberal.ola.org, john.bennett@greenparty.ca, randy@ruralrevolution.com, info@randyhillier.com, holland.m@parl.gc.ca, pm@pm.gc.ca, ottawa@chuckstrahl.com, john.yakabuskico@pc.ola.org, jim.wilsonco@pc.ola.org, tim.hudakco@pc.ola.org, hhampton-qp@ndp.on.ca, pkormos-qp@ndp.on.ca, gphillips.mpp@liberal.ola.org, dramsay.mpp@liberal.ola.org, gilles@gillesbisson.com, mbryant.mpp@liberal.ola.org, leader@greenparty.ca, info@greenparty.ca, rlm@xplornet.com, lorraine.rekmans@greenparty.ca, jwarnock@ontarioeast.net, doherty@kos.net, hhampton-qp@ndp.on.ca, norm.sterlingco@pc.ola.org, president@lisamacleod.ca, ahorwath-qp@ndp.on.ca, joyce.savoline@pc.ola.org, dzimmer.mpp@liberal.ola.org, tabunsp-qp@ndp.on.ca, laurie.scott@pc.ola.org, robert.runcimanco@pc.ola.org, brad.duguid@liberal.ola.org, rbartolucci.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org, toby.barrett@pc.ola.org, donna.cansfield@liberal.ola.org, michael.gravelle@liberal.ola.org, dave.levac@liberal.ola.org, garfield.dunlop@pc.ola.org, gilles.bisson@ndp.ola.org, jeff.leal@liberal.ola.org, brad.duguid@liberal.ola.org; norm.miller@pc.ola.org; peter.kormos@ndp.ola.org; Prentice.J@parl.gc.ca, brianmitchell@conservative.ca, brucemclaughlin@conservative.ca, ceciltaylor@conservative.ca, DonPlett@conservative.ca, gilleslavoie@conservative.ca, gordelliott@conservative.ca, jeanleblanc@conservative.ca, karajohnson@conservative.ca, liamobrien@conservative.ca, loisbrown@conservative.ca, mennofroese@conservative.ca, michaelmacdonald@conservative.ca, rayleitch@conservative.ca, richardciano@conservative.ca, sammagnus@conservative.ca, stephanedesilets@conservative.ca, susanmcarthur@conservative.ca, victormarciano@conservative.ca, ericw@kingstongreens.ca, morganw@kingstongreens.ca, Julian.P@parl.gc.ca, GreenLight1@kingstongreens.ca, andrer@sen.parl.gc.ca, bakerg@sen.parl.gc.ca, carsts@sen.parl.gc.ca, rattel@sen.parl.gc.ca, cochre@sen.parl.gc.ca, zimmer@sen.parl.gc.ca, tkachd@sen.parl.gc.ca, smithd@sen.parl.gc.ca, kfl@sen.parl.gc.ca, poulim@sen.parl.gc.ca, lachah@sen.parl.gc.ca, munsoj@sen.parl.gc.ca, mahovf@sen.parl.gc.ca; CassieJ.Doyle@NRCan-RNCan.gc.ca; Lisa.Raitt@NRCan-RNCan.gc.ca; Serge.Dupont@NRCan-RNCan.gc.ca; Raitt.L@parl.gc.ca; Aglukkaq.L@parl.gc.ca; dm_sm@hc-sc.gc.ca

IS WI-FI PUTTING OUR

CHILDREN IN DANGER?

Adults may be safe, but what are the effects on youngsters exposed to radiation?

Tuesday September 16,2008

WITH wireless internet and mobile phones now in constant use in our schools and homes, TESSA THOMAS asks if youngsters are being exposed to hazardously high levels of radiation.

When Leah Homan is anywhere near a phone mast, her body alerts her – even before the mast comes into view.

“I get a sort of tingling and dizziness and sometimes a headache and then I know there’s one not far away.”

Leah, 12, is sensitive to the radiation from masts and other mobile telecommunications equipment. When she was two, a tumour was found around one of her kidneys. Fortunately it was discovered in time and removed.

Her mother Jackie feared that a phone mast close to their home in Sefton, Liverpool, may have been to blame, although this cannot be proven.

Even though Leah made a full recovery, as a toddler she was restless and later had difficulty sleeping and concentrating at primary school, where she needed extra help to compensate for her attention problems.

She still suffers intermittent insomnia, brain fog, headaches and the familiar tingling, which is worse when she’s near a computer and the wireless router is on.

In a world where most people are now close to a mobile mast or wi-fi network and live normal lives, such a reaction seems surprising. But more children are becoming sensitive to electromagnetic emissions from telecoms equipment.

And the number is set to increase inexorably, says pathologist Dr George Carlo of the Science and Public Policy Institute in Washington, who spoke at a recent Radiation Research Trust conference

Information carrying radio waves are everywhere – from wireless computers, cordless phones, mobile phones and masts. At least half of all primary schools and three-quarters of secondary schools in the UK now have wi-fi.

According to Dr Carlo, mobile telecommunications were launched without enough research to assess the risks to health and with little awareness of the extent to which children would be using the technology.

There are guidelines for safe exposure to emissions, implemented in the UK through the Health Protection Agency (HPA), but there are several problems. First, they take into account only the risk of damage caused by the body being heated up by the emissions. By contrast, the effects may be deep inside the tissue and cannot be felt.

Second, their upper “safe” limit is considerably higher than that in several other countries – 10 times as high as in Russia.

Also, the limits were based on the effect on a healthy adult of a half-hour exposure. Children not only spend much longer than anyone anticipated in front of laptops or with a mobile glued to their ear but have a different biological make-up that makes them more vulnerable.

“They have thinner skulls so the radio waves can penetrate more readily,” explains Dr Carlo. “A greater percentage of their bodies are water and they have a higher proportion of ions in their interstitial fluids, both of which increase absorption of radio waves. Also, their cells are dividing, making them more vulnerable to genetic damage.”

Symptoms include fatigue, sleep problems, tingling, neck pain, dizziness, headaches and nausea. Sceptics say there is no proof and these complaints could have many causes.

One study, reported in the British Medical Journal in 2006, concluded that electromagnetic sensitivity could be psychological. James Rubin and his team at the Institute of Psychiatry found that when people who said they were sensitive to radio waves were tested with real or sham waves, they were as likely to say that the dummy waves caused a headache.

“It doesn’t mean that their headaches were any less real but it did mean that they weren’t directly connected with the assumed cause,” says Rubin.

However, it is worth noting that the study was partly funded by mobile phone companies. A lot of the other symptoms of electromagnetic sensitivity – digestive problems, depression, memory loss – have a compound effect. This means that the longer the exposure goes on, the worse the problems are likely to get. “No one has any idea what chronic long-term exposure will do to children,” says Dr Carlo.

Some schools have decided against taking any risk and removed their wireless networks. The head of Ballinderry Primary School in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, Ian Thomson, announced recently that “the advantages of wi-fi seemed to be outweighed by the risks”, so he discontinued it.

What is worrying, says Dr Michael Kundi, head of environmental health at Vienna University, is that while children are more vulnerable than adults, there is no official threshold for emissions indoors – which is where youngsters are most often in the line of fire.

“Wi-fi may be limited in its power but that doesn’t mean it is safe for children. We have no evidence of that yet,” he says, adding that there are ways to configure networks in the classroom to limit emissions but few teachers know about them.

Although other countries – including Israel and Italy – are adopting lower exposure limits, the HPA says there is still insufficient evidence to issue separate guidelines for children.

McGuinty faces major challenges: Star editorial

The Ontario Legislature resumes sitting today after a three-month recess. In the coming days, its order paper will be filled with earnest legislation like amendments to the Mining Act (to give First Nations more of a say in prospecting and mining on their traditional lands), a measure to limit toxic emissions by industries, and a ban on the use of hand-held cellphones by motorists.

There will also be an economic statement, likely in November, with some short-term fixes for the ailing provincial economy.

And in the daily question period in the Legislature, Premier Dalton McGuinty's government will come under attack for not doing enough to address the economic slump.

But McGuinty should be able to withstand the barrage, given the weakened state of the opposition, with one lame-duck leader (the NDP's Howard Hampton, who is stepping down next year) and the other on probation (the PC's John Tory, who was given a tepid endorsement by his party earlier this year).

Behind the scenes, however, McGuinty will be wrestling with two enormous decisions that will shape the province's future.

The first is whether to keep the budget balanced or to let it slide into deficit if, as expected, the current economic slump continues and significantly erodes the provincial revenue base.

The second is what kind of reactor to choose to replace the aging nuclear power plants at Pickering and Darlington.

On the deficit, even bank economists have said that, given the circumstances, it ought to be under consideration. But so far McGuinty has stuck doggedly to the goal of a balanced budget.

"Obviously if we anticipate that our revenues are going to slow down, as I've said many times in the past, we're going to have to do in government what families do at home," said McGuinty last week. "You've got to make some adjustments and you've got to make sure you're focusing on your priorities."

Thus, with one eye on the fiscal storm clouds, McGuinty has sought to dampen expectations of government assistance. He told municipalities last month not to expect instant relief from the downloading of provincial services onto their plates. And last week he suggested the timetable for his promise to reduce poverty will have to be stretched out.

So no new spending initiatives. But even existing spending – on schools, hospitals, roads, transit, courts, jails and so on – will come under pressure if the recession deepens and the treasury is further squeezed. It remains to be seen whether McGuinty's commitment to a balanced budget is sustainable in that circumstance.

As for the decision on a new nuclear reactor, in hot competition for the multi-billion-dollar contract are: Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL), the homegrown company whose design is now in place in the province's power plants; French-owned Areva; and U.S.-based Westinghouse.

The McGuinty government would like to give the nod to AECL, which is owned by the federal government. But Ontario wants Ottawa to back up any sale with guarantees to cover cost overruns. So far, those guarantees have not been forthcoming, as Stephen Harper's government has wrestled with its own decision whether to keep AECL or sell it.

Both these decisions are due to be made next spring (the deficit in the annual provincial budget, the reactor likely in a separate announcement). The behind-the-scenes struggles that precede the decisions will be more ferocious – and hugely more significant – than the daily battles on the floor of the Legislature between the government and the opposition parties.

Comments

Major Challenge is getting rid of McGuinty

At what point will Ontarions ever get choices for good government? The current system is only about getting votes and not doing anything that benefits us. Mr. McGuinty was a reckless promiser in opposition and his party had even tried to get rid of him. He has been elected by playing the game (twice now) with no real strategic plan. You got wonder at a guy who now wants to use a web based petition when many such as tax payers association, support for parents of autistic children and even the small business association have used similar tactics with him with absolutely zero positive results. Can you say PR?

Posted by Ignorance is Bliss

don't bite the hand...

McGuinty never thought about how he's going to pay for all his massive increases in civil servants and their salaries. A strong public sector always requires a strong private sector. Someone has to pay the bills.

Posted by scamper

Grow up and govern

Have you received your property assessment yet? Lets see some real leadership and halt this annual insanity courtesy of MPAC. Mr. McGuinty road the coattails of fear in the '07 election on the religious schooling issue. It was a non starter. Mr. Tory could have OVERNIGHT turned this entire platform 180 degrees by promising a total revamp of this insane, bully pulpit tax grab. He didn't. Where were the NDP and Howard Hampton? If they raised this issue , they allowed it to be muted. The middle class is being fleeced and all the while wooed with empty promises in this campaign. WAKE UP

Posted by Steve Canyon

Really?

Sure, lets bring more competition to the provision of hydro power. Remember when Mr. Eaves let the rates for electricity float after full deregulation, and everyone hand to pay market price? The government had to step in again to prevent the public outcry from becoming riots in the streets. If we are already so incensed by the collusion of the oil conglomerates, how will it be when the electricity generators and distributors do the same thing? But by all means, Mr. Jones, lets have more competition.

Posted by sobersecondthought

Econimic denials and foolishness

McGullible was too busy boasting of irrelevant issues like banning smoking and pitbulls - the real easy stuff - how proactive. Mr Flaherty urged McG to start cutting taxes across the board, including the health tax. Instead, McG sulked and felt he was victimised - now, Ontario is in a recession and all he can do is give the doctors a big raise and shuffle the cabinet - liberals are all alike - why face reality when you can blame your foolhardyness on someone else.

Posted by freebel

Cost Over Runs

Let's end the old boys club once and for all. Ontario is shy on competition: there's very very little in hydro and very very very very little in education. This results in complacency, lack of accountability, mediocrity, and inefficiency. As Bob Rae said, " We can do better" Ontario would thrive with an injection of competition into it's highly protected socialized public work force.

Posted by Templeton Jones


No Short Term Fixes

The crisis in manufacturing has been brewing for a long time. Expect to see many more small companies in Ontario close. In the globalized economy, consolidation is a critical trend. Mass is king. Our cpompanies are typically one tenth the size of American companies. Guess who closes first when the market contracts?

Posted by Herschell Hollywood