World

Japan's Military Dilemma

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Japanese activists turned out in the thousands last week to oppose changes to the nation’s pacifist constitution. At issue is the so-called Article 9, a charter which severely restricts the activity of the Japanese military, and which has been targeted for updating as the nation’s international role has changed in recent years. According to the Associated Press, thousands of activists gathered outside of Tokyo last week for a peace conference centered around the issue. A statement by the organizers of the event said, “We believe that Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution constitutes a world-class model for peace and should be protected as a global treasure for future generations,” according to the Associated Press. Imposed after Japan’s defeat in World War II, the charter states, “The Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes.”

Democracy & Civics

For Cold War Brits, the Day After was a Tea-Time Nightmare

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A wry old anti-nuclear slogan used to say “One nuclear bomb can ruin your whole day.” If you’re British, and the nuclear bomb manages to ruin your afternoon tea, well, then you’ve really got a problem. Or so one might conclude from the release last week of declassified Cold War-era documents that found British officials worrying about what a nuclear war would do to food supplies. The BBC quoted one document from 1955 as saying the government must be “completely ready to maintain supplies of food to the people of these islands, sufficient in volume to keep them in good heart and health from the onset of a thermonuclear attack on this country.” But, the document stated, the kind of rationing that existed in World War II would be “fatally deficient” in keeping the British people fed in the case of a nuclear war.

Democracy & Civics

New Wind-Power Projects Becalmed

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With oil prices setting new highs nearly every day, wind power is getting another look. But, like most weather reports, the outlook for large windmill projects is anything but predictable, plagued as they are by noise complaints, endangered species and fickle commercial backers. In the United Kingdom, a giant wind farm planned for the Thames River estuary now appears to be in jeopardy after Dutch oil giant Shell announced it would pull out of the project. The BBC reported that Shell, citing the rising cost of building materials, would sell its 33 percent stake in the London Array, a proposed wind farm that had been listed by Forbes magazine as one of the biggest clean energy projects in the world. The pullout sparked anger on the part of environmentalists and other supporters of the project.

World

Drought Persists Down Under

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Australians had high hopes for the Pacific weather pattern known as La Nina. That periodic cooling of the eastern Pacific typically brings increased rainfall to the land Down Under — which would have been a blessing for a country entering its tenth year of drought in some regions. But, with the La Nina pattern fading, the prognosis is grim. Heavy rainfalls did indeed come to Australia, but only certain parts, and not in the quantities need to break the enduring drought cycle. Areas plagued by record-low rainfall are actually increasing, and the resurgence of average rainfall elsewhere wasn’t enough to officially close out the dry spell.

World

Africa Reels from Illegal Fishing

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Billions of dollars have been lost worldwide, and entire ecosystems are at risk from the effects of illegal fishing. Africa, in particular, is threatened by the trend, according to Kenya’s The Nation newspaper. The culprits — mostly large commercial fleets from Asia and Europe — break international law, and prey on developing nations that lack the infrastructure and clout to enforce fishing regulations. While the collective financial losses are huge — adding up to $1 billion annually in sub-Saharan Africa alone — the effects are felt at the local level. Family and subsistence fishers, for example, find their traditional waters suddenly populated with massive trawlers they can’t compete with.

World

More Deaths Alleged at Myanmar Pipeline

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Alleged human rights abuses by soldiers guarding a Burmese pipeline have revived old questions about pipeline co-owner Chevron’s relationship with the military dictatorship that hosts it. The activist group EarthRights International says it has interviewed villagers near the Yadana Pipeline who claim government troops working for Chevron have killed local residents, and used others as slave labor. The pipeline brings in $969 million annually for the Myanmar junta. Marco Simons, the EarthRights legal director, told the San Francisco Chronicle that Chevron has a “moral responsibility” to shut down the pipeline, pressuring the dictatorship to end the abuses. Chevron, however, says the charges are unfounded.

Nation

Where Have all the Songbirds Gone?

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Songbirds fly thousands of miles to return to the northern hemisphere every spring, just as regularly as the sun comes up every morning. Or, that’s how it’s supposed to be. But the numbers of migratory birds reaching the north from their winter grounds in the south have plummeted in recent years. One British study found numbers of migratory birds down by 20 percent in just four years, according to the Telegraph newspaper. A five-year study just concluded in Vermont found 17 new species since the last time an atlas was taken, in the 1970s, but other species have dwindled or disappeared altogether, according to the Burlington Free Press.

Nation

Look, up in the Sky! Urban Farming Puts Down Roots

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UPDATE: According to the Las Vegas Sun, the NextEnergryNews story about a proposed agricultural skyscraper in Las Vegas is not true. — The Editors
Urban farming can be as simple as a backyard vegetable patch or as complicated as a proposed agricultural skyscraper in Las Vegas. Yes, you read that right. NextEnergryNews reports that plans are afoot for a 30-story, $200 million building which will feature crops growing on many of its floors — and the building will go up in the notoriously environmentally unfriendly city of Las Vegas. According to the article, the project could reportedly make up to $25 million a year through selling food to nearby casinos, with perhaps another $15 million generated through tourism at the site — and the project could be completed as early as 2010.

Economy

Virtual water and real thirst

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The recent hike in the price of food worldwide is usually blamed on the price of oil or the conversion of food crops to biofuels. But a handful of experts have pointed to a simpler cause: a shortage of water. “The two underlying causes of the world food crisis are falling supplies and rising demand on the international market,” writes environmental consultant and author Fred Pearce in the London Telegraph. “Why falling supplies? Because of major droughts in Australia, one of the world’s big three suppliers, and Ukraine, another major exporter.

Public Health

Callbacks on the Cell Phone Cancer Story

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The long running debate over whether cell phones cause cancer is heating up again. The latest round of press came after the release of two studies suggesting a link between cell phone use and cancer, and one that denies such a link altogether. Australia’s Dr. Vini Khurana made waves recently with research finding that using cell phones for more than 10 years could more than double the risk of developing malignant brain tumors. But what hit the headlines was Khurana’s contention that cell phones could present more of a risk to public health than smoking or asbestos. Based on a 15-month review, Khurana found increased reports of malignant brain tumors associated with heavy cell phone use, with tumors showing up near the phone user’s preferred ear for making calls.