A new study invites parents of cancer patients to answer questions about their environment. FatCamera / Getty Images
By Jennifer Sass, Nsedu Obot Witherspoon, Dr. Philip J. Landrigan and Simon Strong
"Prevention is the cure for child/teen cancer." This is the welcoming statement on a website called 'TheReasonsWhy.Us', where families affected by childhood cancers can sign up for a landmark new study into the potential environmental causes.
<p>The study is a joint project between Texas Children's Hospital, part of the world's largest medical center, and The Oliver Foundation, founded by the parents of a 12-year-old boy who died 36 hours after he was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, one week after the onset of headaches.</p><p>After signing up, participants are contacted by the hospital's medical school, <a href="https://www.bcm.edu/news/baylor-launches-landmark-online-pediatric-cancer-study" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Baylor College of Medicine</a>, to fill out a questionnaire about their environment going back from pre-conception through pregnancy and childhood, to identify chemical contaminants in the places that they live, learn, work and play, to the point where they developed cancer.</p><p><a href="https://www.texaschildrens.org/find-a-doctor/michael-scheurer-phd-mph" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dr. Michael Scheurer</a>, director of the childhood cancer epidemiology and prevention program at Texas Children's Hospital, the nation's largest pediatric cancer center, is quoted in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jul/30/toxic-america-families-seek-answers-childhood-cancers" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Guardian</a> saying: "[This research] … will allow families who might not live near one of the existing study centers to participate as they are comfortable. In the end, if we see that several kinds of cancers share some risk factors that's important information, but we want to start with a very homogeneous group of cancers and start looking into these patients first. Signposts will pop up along the way."</p><p>When Oliver died in 2015, his parents Simon and Vilma Strong struggled to understand what may have led to their son's cancer, and whether it could have been prevented. They agonized over having used Roundup – the herbicide containing glyphosate, which is <a href="https://www.iarc.who.int/featured-news/media-centre-iarc-news-glyphosate/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">linked to leukemia</a> – to kill weeds in their yard and garden. Or could it have been the crumb rubber artificial turf athletic fields, made with toxic petrochemicals, where their goalkeeper son had played soccer?</p>
<p>In addition to cancer, exposures to harmful chemicals can lead to learning and behavioral impairments, developmental delays, reproductive harm, and chronic diseases including autoimmune disease, asthma, and obesity. The important work of preventing these health harms can only be done if we increase our efforts to identify the causes— including industrial and environmental pollutants— and reduce or replace them to prevent harmful exposures.</p><p>Sadly, as the 2020 <a href="https://www.cancerfreeeconomy.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CFE_ChildhoodCancerPrevention_Report_F2.pdf" target="_blank">Childhood Cancer Prevention Report</a> confirms, <a href="https://curesearch.org/Incidence-Rates-Over-Time" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">childhood cancer incidence rates</a>, the number of new cases per 1,000 children, have steadily increased over the last few decades across all racial/ethnic groups. Cancer is now responsible for more than <a href="https://curesearch.org/Childhood-Cancer-Deaths-Per-Year" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">half of all childhood and teenage deaths</a>, making this study all the more urgent.</p><p>Oliver's family may never know exactly what led to the cancer that took his life. But the study they've helped to launch can identify the environmental contributors to cancer and other diseases – and that knowledge can inform policies and practices to better protect families from toxic products and pollution.</p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.ehn.org/environmental-causes-child-cancer-2649926729.html" target="_blank">Environmental Health News</a>.</em></p>
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In December of 1924, the heads of all the major lightbulb manufacturers across the world met in Geneva to concoct a sinister plan. Their talks outlined limits on how long all of their lightbulbs would last. The idea is that if their bulbs failed quickly customers would have to buy more of their product. In this video, we're going to unpack this idea of purposefully creating inferior products to drive sales, a symptom of late-stage capitalism that has since been coined planned obsolescence. And as we'll see, this obsolescence can have drastic consequences on our wallets, waste streams, and even our climate.
<p>Corporations create obsolescence through two main avenues: planned obsolescence and perceived obsolescence. Both practices are meant to make a product seem useless or actually useless in order to drive sales. Planned obsolescence occurs when a company manufactures a device to fail before its realistic lifespan. This usually means a weaker filament, plastic encasement, or a fragile glass screen that limits the durability of the good. In the case of the collection of 1920s electricity companies known as the Phoebus cartel, they applied this principle to lightbulbs. The Phoebus cartel collectively cut the lifespan of their products in half from 2,000 to 1,000 hours, so that consumers would have to buy twice the amount of lightbulbs that they did previously. </p><p>On the other side of obsolescence, there's the more amorphous phenomenon of perceived obsolescence. Think of that new phone you bought or that new style of clothes you've been eyeing or even this year's new line of pickup trucks. All these are instances of perceived obsolescence. When companies release their new line of products, their older products quickly become unfashionable or less desirable. In order to get you to keep buying their goods corporations consistently market their new lines to make it seem like that new gadget you just bought a year ago is an antique, even though, in most cases, the older product still works. This kind of perceived obsolescence is especially prevalent with cars, technology, and fashion because these consumer goods have been transformed into status symbols. If you want to keep up appearances, you grab the newest model of the iPhone. If you want to look good, you buy the latest style from that Instagram ad. </p><p>But how and why do planned and perceived obsolescence work on us? Go watch the full video to find out the answer.</p><p><em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNXvxXpDJXp-mZu3pFMzYHQ" target="_blank">Our Changing Climate</a> is an environmental YouTube channel that explores the intersections of social, political, climatic, and food-based issues. The channel dives into topics like zero waste and nuclear energy in order to understand how to effectively tackle climate change and environmental destruction.</em></p><p><em><span></span>To receive all the latest videos produced by Charlie subscribe to his YouTube channel <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNXvxXpDJXp-mZu3pFMzYHQ" target="_blank">here</a>.</em></p>
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Like many other plant-based foods and products, CBD oil is one dietary supplement where "organic" labels are very important to consumers. However, there are little to no regulations within the hemp industry when it comes to deeming a product as organic, which makes it increasingly difficult for shoppers to find the best CBD oil products available on the market.
<p>Here you can learn about the importance of organic hemp oil, why it's better for the environment, and which CBD companies actually make trustworthy products with sustainable farming processes. origins which weigh heavily on many consumers who want to buy a product that's produced in the best way possible for not only themselves to ingest, but for the environment as well through sustainable farming methods. </p><h2>What Is CBD Oil?</h2><p>First things first, CBD stands for cannabidiol, and it's a cannabinoid found within cannabis sativa plants. This plant compound is believed to have many potential benefits, and it is primarily derived from hemp plants via a CO2 extraction process. </p><p>Since CBD is extracted from industrial hemp, which contains only trace amounts of THC (the psychoactive component in cannabis plants), this means that CBD won't make you feel high like marijuana, which has much higher levels of THC that causes psychoactive effects. Instead, the effects of CBD are much more subtle and promote a general sense of calm and relaxation in most users.</p><h2>What Makes a CBD Oil Organic?</h2><p>In terms of organic labels, perhaps the most important (and prominent) certification comes from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). This government organization has been labeling foods as "organic" for many years, but what exactly does this certification entail? Essentially, a label indicating that a product is "USDA Organic" or "Certified Organic" means that at least 95% of the ingredients are obtained from organic sources.</p><p>For a crop to be considered organic by the USDA, it must be grown without the use of industrial solvents, irradiation, genetic engineering (GMOs), synthetic pesticides, or chemical fertilizer. Instead, farmers rely on natural substances and <a href="https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2012/03/22/organic-101-what-usda-organic-label-means" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mechanical, physical, or biologically based farming</a> techniques to cultivate healthy and organic crops.</p><p>Before the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, no hemp-derived products could be dubbed as "certified organic" since the hemp plant and its extracts were still categorized as a Schedule I Controlled Substance. However, it's still difficult for CBD companies to obtain a USDA certified organic label for their products due to the legal grey area that still surrounds CBD extracts. </p><p>Because of these challenges, and due to the fact that industrial hemp has only recently become an agricultural crop, very few CBD oils are USDA certified organic. Rather, many CBD products contain hemp extracts from plants that were grown in organic conditions but may not be federally certified.</p><h2>What are the Best Organic CBD Oil Brands?</h2><p><em>Each product featured here has been independently selected by the writer. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission.</em></p><em><br></em>
<h2>Why Organic Hemp Oil Matters</h2><p>Hemp is a unique plant, not only for its rich cannabinoid content, but also for its ability to absorb a wide variety of components in soil. But this trait poses great risks when it comes to the creation of CBD products derived from hemp.</p><p>Because hemp has a high capacity for compound uptake, this means that the plants can retain <a href="https://www.remedyreview.com/industry/lab-test-results/" target="_blank">harmful chemicals like pesticides</a>, heavy metals, and other residual solvents. This is especially true when it comes to synthetic chemicals that are more toxic to humans, and difficult to remove once they have been absorbed by the hemp plant.</p><p>Organic farming practices help reduce the risk of hemp crops absorbing harsh chemicals that may later end up in CBD oil after extraction. When you're taking CBD as a wellness supplement to help alleviate your symptoms or improve your overall well-being, the last thing you want is to ingest compounds that might negatively outweigh the benefits of CBD. This is an important reason to look for third party lab test results when shopping for CBD products since these certificates of analysis can show the full cannabinoid and terpene profile of a hemp extract, as well as test results that search for the presence of any residual solvents.</p><p>In addition to creating a better end product, organic farming practices are also better for the environment. Sustainable and organic farming methods may <a href="https://www.helpguide.org/articles/healthy-eating/organic-foods.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">reduce pollution, conserve water, reduce soil erosion, increase soil fertility, and use less energy</a>. The use of natural pest deterrents as opposed to chemical pesticides is also better for nearby animal populations and ecosystems.</p><h3>Organic vs. Natural</h3><p>While there are only a select few companies offering certified organic ingredients in their products, almost every brand in the CBD market creates "natural" products. The term "all-natural" or "plant-based" does not mean that a product is organic, and since hemp oil is a natural derivative of hemp plants, these products are often referred to as all-natural. However, there are some synthetic CBD oils that should be avoided because they are chemically constructed and may produce unwanted side effects that are not caused by naturally derived CBD extracts.</p><h2>What are the Benefits of Organic CBD Oil?</h2><p>There's a long list of potential CBD oil health benefits, and some of the most common wellness advantages include:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2503660/" target="_blank">Chronic pain relief</a></li><li><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4604171/" target="_blank">Anti-anxiety effects</a></li><li>Better sleep</li><li><a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/inner-source/201901/cbd-oil-mental-health-should-you-take-it-too" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Improvements in mood</a></li><li>Internal balance and regulation</li></ul><p>When dealing with pain, inflammation, sleep issues, and mental health struggles, it can be hard to find sufficient treatment options. The use of certain prescriptions can cause unwanted side effects, yet they are often the only solution for patients with these medical conditions. In search of other therapies, people have started to flock towards CBD oil as an alternative remedy for a variety of conditions. However, it should be noted that CBD products are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and you should seek your doctor's advice before using CBD if you have a serious medical condition.</p><h2>Look at the Labels Before You Buy CBD Oil</h2><p>When you go online to buy CBD oil, you'll quickly realize there is an overwhelming number of brands that are saturating the market. It can be difficult to determine which products are truly as good as they make themselves out to be. Always look for up-to-date third-party lab tests so you know you are getting a great product, and don't hesitate to contact the brand if you have any additional questions. And if you're intent on purchasing 100% organic CBD oil, it's best to look for certified products or brands that are held to strict regulatory standards.</p><p><strong>Melena Gurganus </strong>is the Reviews Editor at EcoWatch. She is passionate health and wellness and her writing aims to help others find products they can trust. Her work has been featured in publications such as Health, Shape, Huffington Post, Cannabis Business Times, and Bustle.<br></p>
Spruce
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDY4NjI3OC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyOTM2NzgzOX0.axY0HjeqRctJsR_KmDLctzDpUBLBN-oNIdqaXDb4caQ/img.jpg?width=980" id="774be" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="8379f35b1ca8a86d0e61b7d4bfc8b46e" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="spruce organic cbd oil" data-width="710" data-height="959" /><p>As one of the best brands in the business, Spruce CBD is well-known for its potent CBD oils that feature many additional beneficial phytocannabinoids. This brand works with two family-owned, sustainably focused farms in the USA (one located in Kentucky and one in North Carolina) to create its organic, small product batches. The max potency Spruce CBD oil contains 2400mg of full-spectrum CBD extract, but the brand also offers a lower strength tincture with 750mg of CBD in total.</p>
$89
CBDistillery
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDcwMjkzNC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyMTU4OTM4Nn0.ypRdeDSBcE87slYrFfVrRwtJ2qGIK6FD5jBB4pndTMo/img.jpg?width=980" id="b473b" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="9930b53c9d58cb49774640a61c3e3e75" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="cbdistillery cbd oil" data-width="1244" data-height="1244" /><p>All of the products from CBDistillery are <a href="https://ushempauthority.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">U.S. Hemp Authority Certified</a>, and for good reason. The company only uses non-GMO and pesticide-free industrial hemp that's grown organically on Colorado farms. Its hemp oils are some of the most affordable CBD products on the market, yet they still maintain a high standard of quality. CBDistillery has a wide variety of CBD potencies across its product line (ranging from 500mg to 5000mg per bottle) and offers both full-spectrum and broad-spectrum CBD oils to give customers a completely thc-free option.</p>
$35
FAB CBD
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDY4NjIyNS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2NDIwOTEyMn0.MlTjz096FJ0ev_-soK7_Z-FeQeJczWoeh9Qi9SSkHsY/img.jpg?width=980" id="04b26" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="76aa4862f44603242e318982acea6646" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="fab cbd oil" data-width="800" data-height="800" /><p>For an organic CBD oil that has it all, FAB CBD offers plenty of variety for any type of consumer. All of its products are made with zero pesticides and extracted from organically grown Colorado industrial hemp. FAB CBD oil comes in five all-natural flavors (mint, vanilla, berry, citrus, and natural) and is also available in four strengths (300, 600, 1200, and 2400mg per bottle).</p>
$39
NuLeaf Naturals
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDY4NjIxOS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1NzExNTgyMX0.D6qMGYllKTsVhEkQ-L_GzpDHVu60a-tJKcio7M1Ssmc/img.jpg?width=980" id="94e4a" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="3609a52479675730893a45a82a03c71d" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="nuleaf naturals organic cbd oil" data-width="600" data-height="600" /><p>As an industry-leading brand, it comes as no surprise that NuLeaf Naturals sources its CBD extract from organic hemp plants grown on licensed farms in Colorado. The comany's CBD oils only contain two ingredients: USDA certified organic hemp seed oil and full spectrum hemp extract.</p><p>NuLeaf Naturals uses one proprietary CBD oil formula for all of its products, so you will get the same CBD potency in each tincture (60mg per mL), but can purchase different bottle sizes depending on how much you intend to use.</p>
$38.50
Charlotte's Web
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDcwMjk3NS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0MzQ0NjM4N30.SaQ85SK10-MWjN3PwHo2RqpiUBdjhD0IRnHKTqKaU7Q/img.jpg?width=980" id="84700" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a2174067dcc0c4094be25b3472ce08c8" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" alt="charlottes web cbd oil" data-width="1244" data-height="1244" /><p>Perhaps one of the most well-known brands in the CBD landscape, Charlotte's Web has been growing sustainable hemp plants for several years. The company is currently in the process of achieving official USDA Organic Certification, but it already practices organic and sustainable cultivation techniques to enhance the overall health of the soil and the hemp plants themselves, which creates some of the highest quality CBD extracts. Charlotte's Web offers CBD oils in a range of different concentration options, and some even come in a few flavor options such as chocolate mint, orange blossom, and lemon twist.</p>
$60
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Mountain goats roam the streets of LLandudno on March 31, 2020 in Llandudno, Wales during the COVID-19 outbreak and quarantine measures. Christopher Furlong / Getty Images
By Marie Quinney and Gabriela Martinez
This article is part of The Davos Agenda.
During 2020, many of us saw images of deserted urban areas being reclaimed by animals and heard reports of carbon dioxide emissions plummeting as transportation ground to a halt. A new analysis shows that the U.S. had reached its lowest level of emissions in three decades.
<p>It would be easy to assume that COVID-19 allowed nature to thrive. However, we must not prematurely celebrate nature's comeback.</p><p>Far from downplaying glimmers of hope and beauty that were welcomed interruptions to an otherwise difficult year, acknowledging that these have little impact in the long run will serve us better to achieve meaningful progress.</p><p>The outlook on the coming decade may be bleak if we do not seize the narrowing window of opportunity that we have to make systemic changes. By doing this, we can both prevent similar crises in the future and create sustainable, healthy and equitable jobs, societies and economies. The pandemic made an unquestionably strong case for a shift towards a<a href="https://www.wri.org/blog/2019/09/what-does-net-zero-emissions-mean-6-common-questions-answered" target="_blank"> </a><a href="https://www.wri.org/blog/2019/09/what-does-net-zero-emissions-mean-6-common-questions-answered" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">net-zero</a>,<a href="http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_Future_Of_Nature_And_Business_2020.pdf" target="_blank"> </a><a href="http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_Future_Of_Nature_And_Business_2020.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">nature-positive</a> global economy and, thankfully, we have the knowledge and the tools to make it happen.</p>
<h3>Nature Bouncing Back?</h3><p>Amidst the tragedies of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economy entering a global recession, you could be forgiven for thinking that it wasn't all bad news.</p><p>We were inundated with delightful images of previously unseen animals strolling through city streets. <a href="https://www.insider.com/shaggy-mountain-goats-welsh-town-lockdown-2020-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mountain goats explored Welsh towns</a>,<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/22/animals-cities-coronavirus-lockdowns-deer-raccoons" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/22/animals-cities-coronavirus-lockdowns-deer-raccoons" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">deer were spotted congregating outside metro stations in Japan</a> and<a href="https://www.france24.com/en/20200403-pumas-in-santiago-wildlife-takes-to-cities-amid-coronavirus-lockdown" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.france24.com/en/20200403-pumas-in-santiago-wildlife-takes-to-cities-amid-coronavirus-lockdown" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pumas took to the streets of Santiago, Chile</a>.</p><p>Many ecosystems also appeared to have been given time to regenerate, being temporarily spared humanity's polluted hand. The<a href="https://www.insider.com/venice-canals-clear-city-residents-self-isolate-prevent-coronavirus-spread-2020-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.insider.com/venice-canals-clear-city-residents-self-isolate-prevent-coronavirus-spread-2020-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">canals of Venice famously turned clear</a> and plants started to make a comeback in built-up areas such as<a href="https://www.reuters.com/news/picture/nature-reclaims-public-spaces-during-loc-idUSRTX7EJ1H" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.reuters.com/news/picture/nature-reclaims-public-spaces-during-loc-idUSRTX7EJ1H" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">parks</a> and<a href="https://www.reuters.com/news/picture/nature-reclaims-public-spaces-during-loc-idUSRTX7EJ1H" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.reuters.com/news/picture/nature-reclaims-public-spaces-during-loc-idUSRTX7EJ1H" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">city squares</a>.<br></p><p>Similarly, due to the slowdown of economic and social activities, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/08/covid-19-lockdowns-global-air-quality-india-london-uk" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">air quality</a> improved in many places around the world, including megacities including <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969720326036" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Delhi</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/08/covid-19-lockdowns-global-air-quality-india-london-uk" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">London</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-51944780" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">New York</a> and various cities in <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11869-020-00963-y" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">China</a>. Global CO2 emissions and total nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions decreased by as much as 30% and, as car traffic plummeted and industrial production slowed down, the<a href="https://www.sciencenews.org/article/covid-19-coronavirus-greenhouse-gas-emissions-climate-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> reduction of greenhouse gas emissions</a> followed. It seemed that at least the atmosphere was benefiting from the global pandemic.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ0ODUzMy9vcmlnaW4uZ2lmIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NzQ5ODI0MX0.NaCx18e_NCBB5SnFxwxI7L_sZclIuFAR6YlnpIxl1eg/img.gif?width=980" id="902a5" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="adef5c711181422b7e367aeb853ca9a7" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="640" data-height="474" />
NO₂ levels in the air above India (U.S. date format). World Economic Forum
<p>Lockdowns also highlighted both a fundamental human need for nature and the divisions between those who had access to it and those who did not. For those with a balcony, view of nature or a garden, the lockdowns may not have felt as oppressive. People craved their own patch of green and marvelled at the sight of animals roaming around freely. Nature, we may have thought, was healing.</p><p>Sadly, however, the breather that nature appeared to get is not only temporary but is extremely localized. Other areas have not been having the same luck.</p>
<h3>Nature Loss and Climate Change on the Rise</h3><p>If not for COVID-19, the year 2020 would have been remembered for environmental disasters that continued despite scattered improvements. COVID-19 news domination was punctuated by reports of <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/california-exceeds-4-million-acres-burned-wildfires-2020-n1242078" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">wildfires</a>,<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-54433904" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-54433904" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">flooding</a>,<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-2020-atlantic-hurricane-season-was-a-record-breaker-and-its-raising-more-concerns-about-climate-change-150495" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://theconversation.com/the-2020-atlantic-hurricane-season-was-a-record-breaker-and-its-raising-more-concerns-about-climate-change-150495" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">tropical storms</a> and the<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/aug/19/highest-recorded-temperature-ever-death-valley" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/aug/19/highest-recorded-temperature-ever-death-valley" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">highest temperature ever recorded</a> on Earth.</p><p>As pollution levels decreased in many cities, the effects were countered by <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S004896972033059X" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">increased emissions from home activities</a>. Although nitrogen dioxide <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-020-0883-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">declined sharply</a> in <a href="https://cen.acs.org/environment/atmospheric-chemistry/COVID-19-coronavirus-quarantines-cause/98/i11" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Italy</a>, <a href="https://www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/146362/airborne-nitrogen-dioxide-plummets-over-china" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">China</a> and <a href="https://www.stats.govt.nz/indicators/nitrogen-dioxide-concentrations" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">New Zealand</a>, COVID-19 responses triggered the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S004896972033059X" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">increase of global ozone concentrations</a>, which contributes to climate change.</p><p>Lockdowns in countries with high levels of biodiversity also restricted the ability of governments and communities to protect wildlife. Incidences of illegal poaching and deforestation increased in<a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/07/covid-19-lockdown-precipitates-deforestation-across-asia-and-south-america/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/07/covid-19-lockdown-precipitates-deforestation-across-asia-and-south-america/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">South America</a>,<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-deforestation-idUSL8N2BJ12Z" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-deforestation-idUSL8N2BJ12Z" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Asia</a> and<a href="https://www.conservation.org/blog/poaching-deforestation-reportedly-on-the-rise-since-covid-19-lockdowns#:~:text=%E2%80%9CPoaching%20and%20deforestation%20are%20unfortunate,humans%20in%20the%20first%20place." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://www.conservation.org/blog/poaching-deforestation-reportedly-on-the-rise-since-covid-19-lockdowns#:~:text=%E2%80%9CPoaching%20and%20deforestation%20are%20unfortunate,humans%20in%20the%20first%20place." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Africa</a>. <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-environment-idUSKCN21S1I1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Deforestation</a> in the Brazilian Amazon increased by 30% in March 2020 compared to the previous year and <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/07/double-blow-to-colombian-amazon-and-indigenous-groups-from-armed-militants-covid-19/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">forest fires</a> lit by land grabbers broke records in Colombia. <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/illegal-fishing-philippines-2646162839.html?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1" target="_self" rel="noopener">Illegal fishing</a> is also on the rise in many areas, with fishermen taking advantage of a drop in enforcement capacity.</p><p>COVID-19 has also halted the <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-020-1275-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">nature-based tourism industry</a>. In many countries, communities relied on this as a source of income, in addition to these funds being used to protect nature. For countries like the <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/seychelles/overview#:~:text=Tourism%20accounts%20for%20approximately%2030,decline%20by%20more%20than%2050%25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Seychelles</a> and <a href="https://data.adb.org/media/4411/download" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Vanuatu</a>, tourism accounts for 30% and 45% of their GDP, respectively. The economic crisis may prevent such tourism from returning for quite some time, while conservation is unlikely to be perceived as a priority for government spending.</p><p>The improvements witnessed in biodiversity and emissions during the lockdowns are unlikely to remain, and the situation is on course to get worse than before the pandemic. For the climate, there is historical precedent for this. There were also <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17387-financial-crisis-may-have-been-good-for-the-climate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">dips in emissions during the 2008 financial crisis</a>, yet emissions bounced back as <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/27/opinion/sunday/coronavirus-climate-change.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">economies recovered</a>.</p><p>Today, experts are concerned that global emissions in 2021 <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/global-carbon-project-coronavirus-causes-record-fall-in-fossil-fuel-emissions-in-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">will rise beyond 2019 levels.</a> In addition, many countries have been <a href="https://in.boell.org/en/2020/11/24/environmental-regulation-and-post-covid-19-economic-recovery" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">loosening environmental regulations </a>and, in some countries, early recovery packages were targeted towards bailouts for <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/nov/09/revealed-covid-recovery-plans-threaten-global-climate-hopes" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">oil and high-carbon infrastructure</a>.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ0ODU0OS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY2NTg2NDYwNH0.9fcY_k1mLyDQDdv0FvUlonL0Z-lt7yYOocof6Tw2h4Q/img.png?width=980" id="bbe9a" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="63b2896e84d3e53a93eee3818daa4aea" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1522" data-height="1012" />
Human activity is destroying our natural world. World Economic Forum Nature Risk Rising
<h3>Towards a Net-Zero, Nature-Positive Recovery</h3><p>While the lockdowns provided a glimpse of how life could be different for our planet, this will only be the case through decisive and deliberate action. It shouldn't take a pandemic, with devastating consequences on millions of lives, to let nature reappear and emissions drop. Rather than being good for the environment, COVID-19 only showed us how unsuitable our current socioeconomic systems are.</p><p><a href="https://www.vivideconomics.com/casestudy/greenness-for-stimulus-index/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Some stimulus packages</a> are acknowledging the importance of placing nature at the heart of our recovery, and in September world leaders<a href="https://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/press_releases/?893466/Leaders-Pledge-for-Nature-World-leaders-commit-to-reversing-nature-loss-by-2030" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> </a><a href="https://wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/press_releases/?893466/Leaders-Pledge-for-Nature-World-leaders-commit-to-reversing-nature-loss-by-2030" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pledged to reverse nature loss</a> by 2030. However, on average, the pandemic is likely to reinforce negative environmental trends with stimulus packages in only <a href="https://news.trust.org/item/20201217092751-wk5b9" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">seven of 25 major economies</a> estimated to have a net positive impact for the climate and nature.</p><p>As world leaders discussed stimulus and recovery packages to keep the economy afloat, milestone global meetings to decide how to address biodiversity loss and climate change had to be postponed to 2021. These are critical opportunities to reset our economies and societies for the better. Governments and businesses must focus on addressing some of the increasingly indefensible realities of our societies and economies that this pandemic has uncovered. For example, they must ensure that economic activity is regenerative, rather than destructive, to nature, that businesses reduce their carbon footprint, and that there are sustainable, equitable jobs.</p><p>As the World Economic Forum's recent reports have found, <a href="http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_New_Nature_Economy_Report_2020.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">more than half of the world's GDP</a> is highly or moderately dependent on nature, and opting for a nature-positive economy in key sectors could create <a href="http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_Future_Of_Nature_And_Business_2020.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">395 million jobs by 2030</a>. We are likely to, therefore, pay a high price in the future for overlooking its importance in decisions made today.</p><p>Similarly, in the <a href="https://www.hacfornatureandpeople.org/" target="_blank">High Ambition Coalition</a>'s <a href="https://www.highambitioncoalition.org/statements/green-recovery-statement-2020" target="_blank"><em>Statement on Resilient Recovery</em></a>, it stressed the importance of aligning <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/coronavirus-tracking-how-the-worlds-green-recovery-plans-aim-to-cut-emissions?utm_campaign=Carbon%20Brief%20Daily%20Briefing&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Revue%20newsletter" target="_blank">green measures</a> from stimulus packages with climate ambitions. The UN's 2020 <a href="https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/green-pandemic-recovery-essential-close-climate-action-gap-un-report" target="_blank">Emission Gap Report</a> highlighted that recovery investments in climate action could cut up to 25% off the emissions projected for 2030. Countries need effective policies to <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/12/1079602" target="_blank">support zero-emissions technologies and infrastructure, reduce fossil fuel subsidies, stop new coal plants and promote nature-based solutions</a>.</p>
<p>The pandemic transcended borders in more ways than one. We saw unprecedented levels of international cooperation, with information sharing and the deployment of <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-52431627" target="_blank">healthcare personnel</a> and <a href="https://www.france24.com/en/20200410-donating-masks-and-shipping-gear-vietnam-promotes-its-own-coronavirus-diplomacy" target="_blank">equipment</a>. It also taught us that, when we work together, we can enact great change. This needs to be channelled into the fight against nature loss and climate change too.</p><p>COVID-19 offered many the chance to stop and reflect on the sort of world we belong to. If nothing else, the pandemic revealed that our economies are inherently vulnerable to shocks. Images of animals reclaiming once-bustling city streets, and a dip in greenhouse gas emissions were a relief during a time of such angst, but they are exceptions that are likely to be long forgotten unless we work towards a better future. Designing net-zero, nature-positive stimulus packages is key in preventing future outbreaks, improving economic and environmental stability and enabling people to live healthier, more fulfilling lives.</p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/01/davos-agenda-environment-net-zero-emissions-nature-positive-recovery/" target="_blank">World Economic Forum</a>.</em></p>From Your Site Articles
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By Alex Truelove
We're all culprits in the plastic pollution crisis — and that's by design.
I was reminded of this recently when I ordered a set of carbon filters for my countertop compost bin. (Like most people, I don't care for smelly kitchens.) The package arrived in a layered-plastic bubble envelope. Inside I found another clear plastic bag encasing the filters. Finally, adding insult to injury, each filter was wrapped individually in plastic. That made at least three layers of plastic for each filter.
<p>Frustratingly, in an effort to reduce waste, I had created more. And I'm not alone. A recent <a href="https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/6/44/eabd0288" target="_blank">landmark study</a> confirmed that the United States is the most plastic-polluting country in the world. Every 16 hours Americans throw away enough plastic to fill a football stadium.</p>
<p>Adding to my frustration was a sense of helplessness. There was no way I could have known or changed the fact that these products were shrouded in layer upon layer of disposable plastic packaging.</p><p>I know millions of Americans feel the same way. We want to reduce our waste, particularly our use of disposable plastic, but we're rarely given the opportunity. Even when sustainable products are minimally packaged or designed for reuse, they often must be purchased online (delivered in more packaging, often disposable) or at specialty stores (rarities). Countless times I've wished that I could have avoided buying things that created so much trash.</p><p>But what if, in demanding better of ourselves, we're missing the point? The companies that design our products and packaging to be disposable not only created this system but are rewarded by it. Waste equals profit through cost avoidance.</p><p>Disposable products are cheap for industry, but costly to the rest of us. As taxpayers we have to pay for trash collection and recycling. As citizens we're exposed to pollutants from excessive manufacturing and <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/humans-consume-equivalent-credit-card-worth-plastic-week/story?id=63687144" target="_blank">microplastics</a> shed from disposable products into our drinking water and food.</p><p>Meanwhile our oceans and waterways are being bombarded with millions of tons of plastic every year, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/18/world/asia/whale-plastics-philippines.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">killing wildlife</a> and <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/01/plastic-junk-coral-disease/551495/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">spreading disease</a>.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTI2OTIwNy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNzc3MzYxNH0.kQGHaYiDU54NGFkKJbaUkkXzq5HxSm05sAx7Iib1cDQ/img.jpg?width=980" id="11268" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f81e20a7aa3d681e37cb4ce5eb0860d0" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="800" data-height="538" />
Marine litter on a remote stretch of Norway coastline. Bo Eide / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
<p>The cost to the companies making these wasteful products? Zero. In a shareholder profit-maximizing world, making disposable junk wins every time.</p><p>But what if these companies were held responsible for their products? Would it prevent the onslaught of plastic junk filling up our landfills and too often ending up in the ocean? History suggests manufacturers would design products to be more reusable, repairable and resilient, because they'd want to limit the waste they would have to manage.</p><p>Which brings us to an idea known as producer responsibility.</p><p>Producer responsibility programs have existed around the world for decades and have successfully increased collection, recycling and reuse for the products they cover. For the most part these programs regulate hazardous, hard-to-dispose-of products such as batteries, paint, mercury thermostats, carpet, pesticides, tires and pharmaceuticals. Dozens of states already have programs in place for these items.</p><p>For example, thermostat makers are required to finance and sometimes run convenient recycling programs to keep mercury, a potent neurotoxin, from escaping and causing damage. Not all programs require producers to collect their own trash, but they all require adequate financing for safe collection. Producers that redesign their products to be less dangerous or more reusable can often avoid higher fees.</p><p>Unfortunately we don't have programs in place for single-use packaging and foodware, despite the fact that those products are <em>also </em>hazardous and hard to dispose of. That's why <a href="https://uspirg.org/reports/usp/break-waste-cycle" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">we need to create them</a>. British Columbia has already implemented producer responsibility legislation, and a handful of U.S. states — from Washington to Maine — are <a href="https://www.wastedive.com/news/epr-extended-producer-responsibility-maine-new-york-trends-plastic/587623/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">considering similar programs</a>. If implemented, these programs would create jobs, generate revenue streams for local municipalities to further reduce waste and, in the long run, improve human health and help fight climate change.</p><p>With support and pressure from residents, we could see laws pass as early as 2021, forcing our product-makers to either be better or pay out.</p><p>The idea is even gaining support <a href="https://www.tomudall.senate.gov/news/press-releases/udall-lowenthal-merkley-clark-unveil-landmark-legislation-to-break-free-from-plastic-pollution" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">at the federal level</a>, as members of Congress respond to growing calls from constituents to address the plastic pollution crisis. Even the remote possibility of a federal program may push states to establish their own programs first.</p><p>Perhaps unsurprisingly, industry groups that represent manufacturers of these products have <a href="https://time.com/5790656/fixing-recycling-in-america/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">already opposed</a> efforts to hold their clients responsible, which is why we must continue to push our legislators to support these programs now and into the future. In other words, the jig is up — but only if we say so.</p><p><em>The opinions expressed above are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of</em> The Revelator<em>, the Center for Biological Diversity or their employees.</em></p><p><em><a href="https://therevelator.org/author/alextruelove/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Alex Truelove</a> is United States Public Interest Research Group's director of zero waste campaigns.</em></p><p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://therevelator.org/plastic-producer-responsibility/" target="_blank">The Revelator</a>. </em></p>
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Op-ed: How the FDA Ignores the Law When Approving New Chemical Additives to Food
28 December 2020
Insights + Opinion
The FDA has consistently reviewed individual chemicals without regard to the cumulative effect on chronic disease. LauriPatterson / Getty Images
By Maricel V. Maffini and Thomas G. Neltner
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) failure on food chemical safety has left consumers at risk of chronic diseases.
<p>The agency is required to review the safety of classes of chemicals rather than individual chemicals. Using the class approach, multiple chemicals adversely affecting the same organ or system (such as the immune, endocrine, or nervous systems) are evaluated together and a safe consumption level is determined for the class. This approach prevents the intentional new or expanded uses of chemical additives that increase chronic disease and, when coupled with a systematic review of prior decisions, results in health risk reduction. Instead, the agency has consistently reviewed individual chemicals without regard to the cumulative effect on chronic disease.</p><p>In the last 60 years, innovations in processing, preserving, and packaging have made food more affordable, convenient, and available. To accomplish this transformation, industry, with the FDA's approval, has brought thousands of chemicals into the food system, resulting in diets increasingly composed of ultra-processed foods without regard for the cumulative effect of these additives and their long-term chronic health consequences.</p><p>When Congress passed the Food Additive Amendment in 1958 in response to a rapidly changing food system and rising public and scientific concerns about the potential health risks of new chemical additives, it included a health-protective requirement: the cumulative effect of chemically and pharmacologically related substances in the diet must be taken into account when assessing the safety of new additives. That means, additives with similar toxic effects, either because they look alike or affect similar body functions, must be evaluated together to prevent exposures above an amount that would cause harm.</p><p>However, food manufacturers and regulators have neglected to consider this cumulative effect, failing to harness changes in food technology and use advances in scientific knowledge to protect the public from dietary chemical exposures. Medical associations and a group of health, environmental and consumer organizations <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FDA-2020-P-2003" target="_blank">have jointly challenged</a> the FDA to change its practice of not accounting for the cumulative health effect of chemicals in the diet as required by law.</p>
We Are Sick
<p>A lot of us are affected by chronic health conditions. <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/research/reports/children-diabetes-rates-rise.html" target="_blank">Diabetes in children</a> and <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr123-508.pdf" target="_blank">adults</a>; <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_10/sr10_258.pdf" target="_blank">attention</a>, learning and memory disorders; <a href="https://www.childstats.gov/americaschildren/obesity.asp" target="_blank">obesity in children</a> and <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr122-508.pdf" target="_blank">adults</a>; thyroid dysfunction; and the list goes on. Experts call them non-communicable diseases because, unlike pathogens like bacteria and viruses, we do not pass them from one person to another. <a href="https://www.who.int/nmh/publications/ncd-status-report-2014/en/" target="_blank">Global public health experts</a> linked tobacco use, physical inactivity, alcohol abuse, and unhealthy diets to increases in the risk of non-communicable diseases.</p><p>Unhealthy diets are usually associated with calorie-dense nutrient-poor foods, often called ultra-processed foods, due to their ingredients resulting from a series of industrial processes, many requiring sophisticated equipment and technology (sweet and savory snacks, reconstituted meats). In addition to industrially produced ingredients (high-fructose corn syrup, protein isolates, hydrogenated oil), such food also contains numerous additives including dyes, flavors, emulsifiers, thickeners, and artificial sweeteners. Further, industrial chemicals used in packaging manufacturing and food processing equipment —such as bisphenol A (BPA), phthalates, PFAS, perchlorate— are also found in these foods.</p><p>These intentional uses of chemical additives number in the thousands, and many have been linked to endocrine disruption, neurological and behavioral problems, cancer, and heart and liver disease.</p>Congress Added Guardrails Against Chronic Health Effects
<p>In the U.S., approximately <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1541-4337.2011.00166.x" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">10,000 chemicals</a> can be purposely added to food or enter the food supply through processing equipment and packaging, and 60 percent of the calories ingested are from ultra-processed foods. In 1958, Congress gave the FDA authority to regulate chemicals intentionally added to food or to food contact materials, commonly known as food additives, to ensure their use is safe. <a href="https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=170.3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Safe</a> means the potential toxic health effects of a new additive that becomes part of the diet must be assessed in combination with other substances already present and are expected to have similar health effects. Thus, the cumulative assessment of health effects by a class of related substances prevents the addition of intentional new or expanded uses of chemical additives that would increase chronic disease. Moreover, this approach, together with systematic review of prior safety decisions results in health risk reduction.</p>FDA Neglected Its Responsibility to Follow the Law
<p>We wanted to investigate whether and how food manufacturers and the FDA had implemented the cumulative effect requirement. To do that, <a href="https://www.edf.org/media/lack-key-considerations-fda-food-chemical-safety-process-leaves-consumers-risk-chronic" target="_blank">we downloaded and reviewed all 877 safety determinations</a> contained in the Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) <a href="https://www.fda.gov/food/generally-recognized-safe-gras/gras-notice-inventory" target="_blank">notifications inventory</a>. These notices were voluntarily submitted by food manufacturers to the FDA between 1997, when GRAS notification program began, and March 24, 2020. We looked at GRAS notices because they are publicly available and FDA rules require that food manufacturers include in the notice an explanation of how they considered the cumulative health effect of a new additive. Unfortunately, our investigation showed that both the FDA and the food manufacturers appeared to have ignored this crucial safety requirement.</p><p>We searched the documents for terms "cumulative effect" and "pharmacological" presuming that any analysis of the cumulative effect of chemical or pharmacologically related substances would include those terms. We evaluated every positive finding for context and reviewed the document more closely when warranted. We found that in only one of 877 GRAS notices did a food manufacturer consider the cumulative effect requirement in a meaningful way. Notably, that one notice stopped short of establishing a safe exposure for the class as required by regulation. And we found no evidence that the agency either recognized this single attempt to follow the law or had objected to the omissions in the 876 other notices.</p><p>To better understand how these blatant omissions happened, we also reviewed the FDA's relevant guidance for industry documents to determine if they contain information to help industry understand how to consider the cumulative effect of the substance as required by law and regulations. We used the agency's online research tool and identified 21 documents related to food chemicals. For each document, we searched for key terms including "cumulative effect", "chemically related", "pharmacological effects", and "pharmacologically related". We also searched for references to key regulations or statutory provisions directly related to the cumulative effect requirement. We found next to nothing and what information was there was either incomplete or confusing.</p><p>Ten documents did not mention the legal requirement and two simply restated it. Four documents created confusion by using terms such as 'cumulative exposure' or 'cumulative intake.' Five documents provided incomplete and potentially misleading information. For example, excluding the requirement from the definition of safety or paraphrasing the safety requirement in a manner that limited the assessment to a single chemical instead of related substances in the diet.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTA0Njc1NC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NTM2MzA5N30.cMC_aYedY_I5-sHSVDl7OawtR0Hf4yt1VvLFTYC3BA8/img.jpg?width=980" id="786d2" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="8cb44fa7ba58ac2d2650055494dd6eb4" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1264" data-height="711" />
The Unknown Cost of FDA’s Six Decades of Failure
<p>This is an obvious failure by the FDA and food manufacturers that has significant consequences for public health, particularly for communities already facing significant health and socio-economic disparities and for <a href="doi:%20https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2018-1408" target="_blank">children</a>, who are uniquely susceptible to dietary exposures to multiple chemicals. It is known that fetal and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/1476-069X-11-42" target="_blank">early life exposures</a> have been associated with long-term diseases or disorders that usually manifest later in life. Development of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2014.05.003" target="_blank">neurological, immune, reproductive</a>, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1210/er.2015-1010" target="_blank">endocrine systems</a> have been shown to be particularly susceptible to chemical exposures. For example, several <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jech-2014-203980" target="_blank">food additives and contaminants</a> in common foods – including nitrates, perchlorate, thiocyanate, BPA, phthalates, potassium bromate, synthetic dyes – all harm the thyroid's ability to produce a hormone essential to brain development. The common-sense preventative measure to reduce exposures is to treat chemicals in the diet with related health effects as a class – as Congress mandated in 1958.</p><p>The healthcare costs of long-lasting health conditions, especially when they arise during <a href="https://doi.org/10.1586/erp.11.93" target="_blank">childhood</a>, as well as the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2213-8587(20)30128-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">economic benefits</a> of preventing exposures to substances that disrupt the normal function of the endocrine system have been documented.</p><p>How can this be remedied?</p>Solutions
<p>First, the FDA needs to add definitions of key terms such as "cumulative effect", "chemically related", "pharmacologically related" and "pharmacological effect." This should not be a heavy lift. For instance, the agency's own Center for Drug Evaluation and Research has already <a href="https://www.fda.gov/media/77834/download" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">established definitions</a> for pharmacologically related substances and pharmacological effects; food additive regulators could also implement this. We are not implying that additives be regulated as drugs; rather, that the body does not identify whether a chemical that binds to a hormone receptor is a pharmaceutical or a food additive. But it certainly may have a similar biological response with potentially different health consequences depending on the dose, duration of exposure and life-stage of the individual.</p><p>Second, the FDA should review the requirement for all forms industry must complete when submitting petitions or notifications to the agency for review of their products' safety assessment. FDA should provide clear and specific guidance to industry on what it is expected and how to accomplish it. And, of course, the agency needs to ensure compliance with the law.</p><p>Medical and scientific societies together with health and environmental organizations have formally submitted <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=FDA-2020-P-2003" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">a petition to the FDA</a> to revise its food and color additive regulations and associated guidance to ensure compliance with the requirements in law. Safe food is fundamental to protect the health and well-being of all Americans. Putting into action the protections already available in the law and regulations would also restore the confidence in the FDA's mission to protect the public health by assuring the safety of our nation's food supply.</p><p>Lastly, these efforts should be conducted without delay so we begin to curb the epidemic of chronic diseases that continue to inflict personal and financial pain in so many families and worsen an already strained healthcare system.</p>
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Bob Wick / BLM
By John R. Platt
Let's be honest: This has been a truly exhausting year.
We started 2020 already worn thin by three years of the Trump administration, with its constant assaults on the environment and human decency on display almost every single day — and it got worse from there.
<p>In February the coronavirus pandemic hit and took off like a wildfire, killing hundreds of thousands of people in this country and leaving millions underemployed or without jobs, healthcare, homes or beloved family and friends.</p><p>The virus would have been bad enough on its own, but the willful, outrageous failure of the Trump administration to address it, and the failure of many state and local elected officials as well, made it all much worse — and so much more exhausting.</p><p>But then, that failure shouldn't have come as a surprise. The denial of climate science from just about everyone on the far right — fueled by corporate influencers, Fox News, social-media platforms and their soul-draining ilk — had already showed us that science denial could rear its ugly head the next time we faced a crisis.</p><p>And it did, in spades.</p>
<p>Of course, COVID-19 wasn't the only thing to sap our strength this year. The pandemic came alongside seemingly countless racial injustices, angry protests, violence and intimidation by right-wing extremists, and the worst election season this country has ever seen — one characterized more than anything else by a bloviating, habitual liar seeking reelection.</p><p>His performance in the first presidential debate — like watching a rabid dog on stage — may be what pushed my own exhaustion past the breaking point. From then on the election kept going downhill, my doomscrolling went into hyperdrive, and our collective grief continued to swell while more and more people got sick and died.</p><p>And yet it kept getting worse. Spurred on by Trump's lies about the virus, people and communities "debated" whether they should or should not wear masks, stay home, stop partying, stop coming to the office — an endless fuel of "free-dumbness" driven once again by the increasingly righter-than-ever right-wing media and what passes for leadership in the Grand Old Party.</p><p>And through it all, the world experienced record temperatures, species went extinct, millions were displaced by the world's worst hurricane season and endless fires, and…and…and…</p><p>…and a record 81 million people stood up and voted for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. More voters turned out this year than any election in history, and many of us had to fight to get our votes and our voices recognized.</p><p>Maybe we weren't so exhausted, after all? Or maybe we tapped into some final reserve of strength, saved for just such an emergency.</p><p>So here's where we are now: Although the shockwaves of 2020 will be felt for a long time, and we're all obviously still exhausted, this devastating year is nearly over. Now's the time to heal, to rest, and to take all the energy we would normally have poured into the holidays and pour it into taking care of ourselves and our loved ones.</p><p>And while we're at it, stay safe and physically distant, wear masks, share scientifically accurate information, and help others to recover from the ravages of the pandemic so we can get back to the greater task of saving the planet.</p><p>And the Biden win — assuming it's not stolen at the last minute by Trump operatives and Republican legislators committed to a coup — sets us up for a lot of success.</p><p>"Biden has put forward a bold climate plan with ambitious targets for reducing carbon emissions and support for both regulatory and market-driven policy measures," climate scientist Michael C. Mann tells me. "If Democrats take back the Senate, there is real opportunity for meaningful climate action by the U.S. — and not a moment too soon. A Biden win will stop the hemorrhaging, but there is a lot of work that will need to be done in repairing our reputation on the world stage."</p><p>Heck, there's still a lot of work and repairing to do in general — more than ever, in fact, since we're now four years behind where we should have been by this point.</p><p>But that work won't be possible without taking care of ourselves. That's why our team here at <em>The Revelator</em> is about to take a couple of weeks off to recuperate and recharge. We've published hundreds of articles and commentaries over the past year and we're going to do it again next year — but if we don't rest up now, we won't make it very far.</p><p>I sincerely hope you also get a chance to rest the final few weeks of the year. I know that kind of rest is a privilege not everyone has.</p><p>So do our best to reboot and meet back here the first week of January. We already have a lot of good stories in development for the New Year, and we're excited to share them with you.</p><p>Of course, before we get that far, we'll have one more source of exhaustion to contend with: the drawn-out, sore-loser end of the Trump era. Just as the post-election period was filled with Trump shenanigans, malarkey and the attempted reversal of the election, so will the very last weeks be a chance for the outgoing White House occupants and their enablers to tear every bite they can out of the government and the environment.</p><p>So keep an eye out for tomfoolery — we will, too.</p><p>Rest up, exhausted readers. The fight to save our planet and everything that lives here will keep up in 2021 — and far beyond.</p><p><em><a href="https://therevelator.org/author/john/" target="_blank">John R. Platt</a> is the editor of The Revelator. An award-winning environmental journalist, his work has appeared in Scientific American, Audubon, Motherboard</em><em>, and numerous other magazines and publications. His "Extinction Countdown" column has run continuously since 2004 and has covered news and science related to more than 1,000 endangered species. He is a member of the Society of Environmental Journalists and the National Association of Science Writers. John lives on the outskirts of Portland, Ore., where he finds himself surrounded by animals and cartoonists.</em></p><p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://therevelator.org/2020-forward-resilience/" target="_blank">The Revelator</a>. </em></p>
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Malcolm Peacey / Flickr / CC BY-NC 2.0
By Ken Kimmell
2020 is coming to a close, and it can't end fast enough. But as the year winds down, I am buoyed by two big climate victories on the same day, perched atop a clear change in direction mandated by the election.
<p>First, Congress just enacted a <a href="https://www.ucsusa.org/about/news/congress-set-pass-important-covid-19-relief-and-clean-energy-measures-omnibus-bill" target="_blank">massive COVID relief and government spending package</a>. While the COVID relief provisions are not adequate and need to be bolstered, the package includes important provisions on climate. Most significantly, Congress authorized the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to phase out hydrofluorocarbons (HFC's), a greenhouse gas that is approximately a thousand times more potent than carbon dioxide and is widely used in refrigerants and air conditioners.</p>
<p>A worldwide phase out of HFC's has the potential to reduce the overall warming from climate change by .5 degree centigrade. With this legislative authorization, the United States can not only do its part, but US businesses can play a leading role in supplying the world with alternatives to HFC's.</p><p>The congressional package also includes a much-needed extension of tax credits for clean energy. One of the biggest wins is for offshore wind energy, for which tax credits are extended for five years. In conjunction with timely and decisive permitting decisions from the federal government, this will propel a giant, job-creating investment in offshore wind along the Atlantic coast. Also included in the tax credit package are more modest extensions for solar and onshore wind, energy efficiency investments, and carbon capture and storage. On top of that, the bill steps up funding for the Department of Energy. Especially important is a $2.9 billion authorization for ARPA-E, a DOE program that funds cutting edge research and development for clean energy.</p><p>On the same day that Congress passed this bill, three northeastern states (MA, CT, and RI) and the District of Columbia launched a "cap and invest" program to cut greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector, about forty percent of these states' emissions. <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/cecilia-moura/northeast-reaches-major-milestone-to-reduce-emissions-and-raise-revenue-for-transportation-but-much-more-work-remains?_ga=2.31723774.1155285391.1608674178-1328994799.1603211760&_gac=1.217359204.1607994394.CjwKCAiAt9z-BRBCEiwA_bWv-D-t6Zi7QosXo5s5n_IgqCmy_sOoN_ODWUDFbNRPMaxov80YddQlixoCmY8QAvD_BwE" target="_blank">The program</a> would place an overall cap on the emissions from transportation fuels sold in the region, require the distributors of the fuels to purchase "allowances" to sell the fuels, and use the proceeds to invest in equitable and clean transportation alternatives, such as public transport, electric buses, and electric cars and trucks. In a statement accompanying this MOU, these three states and DC joined eight other states in pledging to continue to work together on this initiative. There is every reason to expect that many if not all these eight additional states will eventually join the TCI program, making it one of the largest carbon-cutting measures implemented by a group of states.</p><p>These breakthroughs are heartening in and of themselves, but even more encouraging is that they are likely an early indicator of much more change to come in 2021. For the first election in history, climate change and respect for science were major issues on the ballot this year, and president-elect Biden won with a large majority by pledging to act swiftly on climate and pay close heed to the overwhelming scientific evidence on the issue. President-elect Biden has shown that he understands this obligation by nominating people of rich depth and experience to his climate team, including Gina McCarthy, John Kerry, Michael Regan, Jennifer Granholm, Deborah Haaland, Pete Buttigieg, and Brenda Mallory.</p><p>The climate provisions in this bill are a strong step forward—but just a step. The Biden administration, through executive orders, rulemaking, and leading by example, can and must go much farther than these steps, and Congress needs to enact many other measures, such as a national clean energy standard and support for electric cars, trucks and buses, to codify and make durable the nation's commitment to addressing climate change.</p><p>But in a year in which virtually every trendline was in the wrong direction, this change in direction was a welcomed gift.</p><p><em><a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/author/ken-kimmell#.X-X48elKj9E" target="_blank">Ken Kimmell</a> is president of the Union of Concerned Scientists and has more than 30 years of experience in government, environmental policy, and advocacy.</em></p>
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There are signs of climate action hope for 2021. R_Tee / Getty Images
By Kristy Dahl
In early January of this year, fresh off the experience of writing a year-end blog post for 2019, I started a project that I thought would make writing this year's year-end post easier. I created a little 2020 calendar on which I planned to record the one big thing that happened in the climate change space each day. In my mind I called it "The Daily Big Deal," and I could envision myself sitting here, as I am, on December 17, reviewing the year's climate-related events and deftly knitting them together in the blog post equivalent of a beautiful scarf made of reclaimed yarn. Or an ugly sweater. Or whatever.
<p>You can see where this is going, of course. The calendar has exactly 17 entries, almost all of them before mid-March, when the U.S. shut down amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and <a href="https://giphy.com/gifs/this-is-fine-dumpster-fire-floating-1rNWZu4QQqCUaq434T?utm_source=iframe&utm_medium=embed&utm_campaign=Embeds&utm_term=https%3A%2F%2Fstlmotherhood.com%2F" target="_blank">2020</a> began its seemingly never-ending nosedive. The story of 2020 will forever be one of the COVID-19 pandemic: a story of the lives lost, the heroic commitments of medical professionals, essential workers, and vaccine researchers, the deep crises of unemployment and hunger, the months of isolation from friends and family, the loss of normalcy, the failure of our federal government to stanch the spread of this deadly virus.</p><p>Despite my abandoned efforts to chronicle it, though, climate change was also deeply woven into the story of 2020. As we close out this year, these are the five climate lessons I'll be taking with me into 2021.</p><h3>1. Climate change is showing up in our daily lives whether we recognize it or not</h3><p>Climate change was on full display this year as a parade of extreme events marched its way around the globe. In what was a record-breaking wildfire year across the western U.S., <a href="https://www.fire.ca.gov/stats-events/" target="_blank">over 4.2 million acres</a> of California's land burned—an area larger than the state of Connecticut and more than burned during the entire decade of the 1990s. As dire as California's fires were, consider this: The year began with wildfires in Australia that burned 10 times more land than that (about <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666449620300098" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">46 million acres</a> in all). Combined with a record-breaking Atlantic <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/astrid-caldas/rapid-intensification-unprecedented-number-of-storms-make-2020-a-record-hurricane-season" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">hurricane season</a> with multiple direct hits to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/oct/10/hurricane-delta-louisiana-creole-lake-charles-damage" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Louisiana</a> and <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2020/11/17/nicaragua-eta-iota-landfalls/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nicaragua</a>, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/02/eastern-kentucky-is-underwater-but-you-probably-didnt-notice/606973/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">flooding</a> in the U.S. Midwest, <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/phe-heatwave-mortality-monitoring/heatwave-mortality-monitoring-report-2020#excess-all-cause-mortality-summer-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">heat waves in the UK</a> associated with more than 2,500 excess deaths, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200806-the-biblical-east-african-locust-plagues-of-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">locust swarms</a> in East Africa, devastating back-to-back typhoons in the <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/12/asia/typhoon-vamco-philippines-intl/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Philippines</a>, and countless other climate-related events, it's clear that climate change was staring us in the face—or more like screaming at us—all year long.</p><p>But climate change isn't just here in the form of these extreme events. It's here in the winter coats cast aside for a few days in the Northeast in January, when places like Pittsburgh hit 70°F. It's here in the strange, early blooms of confused spring flowers. And it's here in the <a href="https://eos.org/features/coastal-fog-climate-change-environment" target="_blank">lack of summertime fog</a> in my <a href="https://twitter.com/fog_karla/status/1318715094872715265" target="_blank">notoriously/gloriously foggy neighborhood</a>.</p><p>Indeed, one of the year's most chilling and powerful <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-019-0666-7" target="_blank">new studies</a> concluded that from 2012 onward, the fingerprints of climate change can be detected from any single day in the global record. Whether it is glaringly obvious or not on any given day, climate change is already shaping our everyday lives in ways big and small.</p>
<h3>2. When it comes to cascading risks, we need to be thinking much more broadly</h3><p>Against the backdrop of the pandemic, this year's climate extremes exposed the many ways in which climate change intersects with civil unrest, water quality, financial insecurity, racial inequities in access to health care and secure housing, and countless other issues that might otherwise be perceived as being wholly unrelated.</p><p>Like pandemic preparedness, effective climate adaptation and planning will require us to think much more broadly about what climate change means than we have before.</p><p>For example, we have long recognized the interconnectedness of extreme weather and our energy systems—thousands if not millions of people lose power every year during snowstorms, hurricanes, thunderstorms, and the like. But when we look at what happened when Hurricane Laura hit Lake Charles, Louisiana, this summer, we can see that the cascading risks of climate-change-driven extreme weather extend far beyond the reach of our electricity system.</p><p>In the aftermath of Laura, hundreds of thousands of people were without <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/more-than-750000-still-without-power-in-hurricane-lauras-aftermath" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">power <strong>and water</strong></a> for days while a severe heat wave rode in on the storm's heels. Lake Charles' residents—about half of whom are Black and about 20 percent of whom live below the poverty line—had to somehow try to rebuild their homes and lives; keep themselves safe from the heat despite not being able to run their air conditioners or fans; and avoid contracting COVID-19 despite being unable to wash their hands. Add to that the financial insecurity many were experiencing after having been laid off during the pandemic shutdown, and we can see that the impacts of climate change reach deeply into so many different systems.</p>
<h3>3. COVID-19 and climate change are racial injustices</h3><p>The pandemic has touched all of our lives this year, but has taken a particularly devastating toll on Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous communities. In just one example, as of June, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/almost-one-third-of-black-americans-know-someone-who-died-of-covid-19-survey-shows/2020/06/25/3ec1d4b2-b563-11ea-aca5-ebb63d27e1ff_story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">nearly one in three</a> Black Americans personally knew someone who had died from COVID-19 compared with roughly one in 10 white Americans.</p><p>The disproportionate impacts of COVID-19 on communities of color are a crystal-clear manifestation of the deep racial inequities that have built up over centuries of systemic racism in the U.S. Millions of people around the world rose up this summer to protest another manifestation of those inequities: the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and countless other Black people by the police.</p><p>The disproportionate impacts of climate change are yet another injustice that racism inflicts on communities of color. My colleagues and I have <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/adrienne-hollis/researchers-find-deadliest-aspect-of-covid-19-for-people-of-color-racism" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">written</a> <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/adrienne-hollis/we-need-a-new-normal-post-covid-19-thats-not-a-death-sentence-to-black-people" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">extensively</a> <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/kristy-dahl/new-covid-19-testing-data-reveal-70-more-positive-results-in-non-white-us-counties" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">about</a> <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/juan-declet-barreto/mapas-mostrando-donde-los-mas-vulnerables-estan-azotados-por-covid-19-en-eeuu-senalan-una-injusticia-creciente" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">these</a> <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/juan-declet-barreto/hurricane-laura-and-the-inequities-of-evacuating-to-safety" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">issues</a> recently, and, personally, I'm closing this year out with a deeper understanding of the fact that we cannot and will not be able to address challenges like climate change and COVID-19 without addressing the systemic racism that results in the disproportionate suffering of Black and brown people.</p>
<h3>4. When it comes to emissions reductions, we need profound change, but not the kind of devastating change we experienced this year</h3><p>This year we expect that carbon dioxide emissions—the primary contributor to human-caused climate change–will have dropped by about <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/global-carbon-project-coronavirus-causes-record-fall-in-fossil-fuel-emissions-in-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">7 percent globally</a> and about <a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=46196" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">11 percent in the U.S</a><a href="https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=46196" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">.</a>, primarily as a result of the widespread economic and emotional pain caused by the pandemic. This is not the kind of transformative change, driven by deep and sustained policies, that we need to meet our climate goals—and it is likely to be short-lived.</p><p><a href="https://www.unenvironment.org/emissions-gap-report-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Studies</a> show that we'll need to accomplish decreases of roughly that same magnitude every year for the next 10 years to be on track to limit future warming to 1.5-2°C, and we'll have to do so in ways that encourage economic stability, improve the quality of life for people around the globe, reduce—rather than exacerbate—racial inequities, and ensure a just transition to safe, well-paying jobs for those whose livelihoods have been entwined with the production of fossil fuels.</p><p>It's a task that looks more and more daunting by the day, particularly because emissions are on track to increase by 2 percent per year globally between now and 2030 if we continue on a business-as-usual path.</p><p>But there are <a href="https://environmenthalfcentury.princeton.edu/" target="_blank">multiple technically feasible pathways</a> to get to net-zero emissions by 2050, with steep near-term reductions in emissions. And economic recovery packages that invest in clean energy rather than continuing to prop up the loathsome fossil fuel industry (as they have thus far) could <a href="https://www.unenvironment.org/emissions-gap-report-2020" target="_blank">put us on a path</a> toward accomplishing near- and long-term emissions reductions.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDk4NDM3Ny9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNzMzOTk0MX0.mb2piF1FO6XN1l8xv4tiYU8mgunEtt5f6WG9K8njyCY/img.png?width=980" id="3c97a" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7ece568f6eef39e6fc196db23aa8b00c" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1024" data-height="824" />
Financial commitments to the fossil fuel industry have far outpaced commitments to clean energy in G20 countries since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
<h3>5. In the U.S. and around the world there is <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/john-rogers/clean-energy-2020-year-in-review" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">cause for hope<br></a></h3><p>In a clear signal of the importance of climate change in U.S. voters' minds, climate change was a prominent topic in the presidential and vice-presidential debates. Indeed, <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/10/06/how-important-is-climate-change-to-voters-in-the-2020-election/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pre-election surveys</a> showed that, particularly for voters identifying as Democrats climate change was a high-priority issue despite the many immediate challenges the country faces.</p><p>The country then went on to elect a president and vice president who understand the science behind climate change and embrace the need for rapid, transformative climate action. President-elect Biden has affirmed his commitment to climate action in announcing an exciting slate of nominees and appointees who have long focused on issues of climate change and justice, including <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/12/17/937259525/in-historic-move-biden-to-pick-native-american-rep-deb-haaland-as-interior-secre" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Deb Haaland</a>, <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/biden-names-john-kerry-climate-envoy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">John Kerry</a>, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/15/politics/gina-mccarthy-joe-biden/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Gina McCarthy</a>, and <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/biden-selects-michael-regan-north-carolina-environmental-chief-head-epa-n1251598" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mike Regan</a>.</p><p>On the international front, China's <a href="https://www.iea.org/commentaries/china-s-net-zero-ambitions-the-next-five-year-plan-will-be-critical-for-an-accelerated-energy-transition" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">pledge</a> to achieve net-zero emissions by 2060 along with <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/rachel-cleetus/five-years-on-keeping-the-hope-of-the-paris-agreement-alive-and-strong" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">signals</a> of similarly ambitions pledges from the EU, UK, Japan, and South Korea all serve as challenges for other countries—particularly developed countries like the U.S.—to commit to aggressive emissions reduction plans.</p><p>While we can't erase the past years and decades of climate inaction, all of these are signs that we may begin to right our path in earnest in 2021.</p><p>I think I can speak for many in the climate community when I say that the last four years have been grueling. Many of the drastic climate impacts we've long been warning about are coming to pass sooner than we had expected yet we've had to continue to fight for the issue of climate change to be named and recognized at all by our federal government. But there's been a heartening crescendo of calls over the last few years for intersectional solutions to climate change, and the incoming Biden Administration seems to be hearing those calls. There is a tremendous amount of work ahead of us as individuals, as a nation, and as a global society. But for the first time in years, I find myself hopeful that we'll start to see more meaningful progress on climate action in 2021.</p>
<p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://blog.ucsusa.org/kristy-dahl/5-climate-change-lessons-from-2020" target="_blank">Union of Concerned Scientists</a>.</em><a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/r/entryeditor/2649587161#/" target="_self"></a></p>From Your Site Articles
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For a Path Forward on Climate, Let’s Learn From the Original New Deal
16 December 2020
Insights + Opinion
USDA Photo by Preston Keres
By J. Mijin Cha and Manuel Pastor
You may not know it, but Democrats and Republicans share a growing concern about the climate and environment. With extreme weather events becoming more common, many young Republicans now question their allegiance to a party that denies the reality of climate change. After the destructive environmental policies of the Trump administration, there are high hopes among many Americans that progress will be possible under a new administration — even if Biden's reluctant to abandon fracking or adopt all the language of a "Green New Deal."
<p>But to envision a path forward on environmental policy, we should remember some key lessons from the original New Deal, the 1930s-era policies that pulled the United States out of the Great Depression through a combination of relief programs, public-works projects, financial reforms and progressive regulation.</p><p>The first key lesson: The New Deal was implemented in DC, but many of its policies emerged from earlier state experiments. A second point: The space for progressive presidential action was opened up by labor and grassroots organizing that <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/go-out-and-make-me-do-it_b_281631" target="_blank">didn't just rely on elected leaders</a> but shifted the political calculus of what was possible.</p>
<p>We should also be careful not to repeat past mistakes. For the New Deal had a major Achilles' heel: In an attempt to secure support from Southern Democrats, many of its programs left Black Americans and other people of color behind (such as by excluding domestic and agricultural workers from Social Security).</p><p>For a new national environmental policy to be successful, we need to lift up state experimentation, provide political pressure and political cover for doing what's right, and be sure to center, not derail, racial equity.</p><p>Our scholarship has been <a href="https://dornsife.usc.edu/pere/roadmap-equitable-low-carbon-future/" target="_blank">looking at just these issues</a> for the past few years, examining how some states are trying to transition off fossil fuel in a way that protects workers and communities and addresses environmental injustice. Known as "just transition," this notion focuses not only on the technical and policy aspects of power generation but also on the nitty-gritty of power-building to organize for change.</p>
<p>There's good news to report from states and localities. For example, in keeping with its ambitious approach to greenhouse gas reduction over the past decade and a half, California recently declared that the state would phase out the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035, creating impetus for a market in electric and other zero-emission vehicles. Meanwhile, in New York, more than 200 groups have come together as NY Renews and won the <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1t3ay4o445DGwPPhBtVNFk1FHfF9LJKWs/view" target="_blank">most ambitious climate protection bill</a> in the nation. Passed in 2019, it will dramatically limit emissions, invest in vulnerable communities, and chart a path to 100% carbon-free electricity.</p><p>Part of what's making such policy change possible is power-building among those whose voices have traditionally been sidelined. As a NY Renews coalition member told us, "Power is built when you stand shoulder-to-shoulder and when you stand up for someone else, not just yourself." So the group built a broad coalition, ranging from labor unions to environmental justice organizations to faith-based organizations, that aimed not just to reduce emissions but to support vulnerable communities.</p>
<p>A similar success story can be found in Arvin, California, a small town in the southern San Joaquin Valley, where local advocates have shown how to dig in against Big Oil. After launching a multifaceted campaign to keep new oil and gas drilling 300 feet from residential or commercial properties, Arvin quickly became a battleground pitting over-polluted residents against the behemoth fossil fuel industry. Despite the pressure, advocates launched a full-scale electoral push that brought in a new, progressive mayor and a wave of young Latina city council members who passed the first setback ordinance in California.</p><p>These are examples of state and local innovation — inspired by grassroots activism and multiracial and multisector coalitions — that should now make their way to the federal level, much as the New Deal picked up ideas such as unemployment insurance, minimum wages and labor protections from <a href="http://bostonreview.net/politics/thomas-kochan-what-would-frances-perkins-do" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">experiments in New York, Wisconsin and Massachusetts</a>.</p>
<p>The combination of state experimentation, local power-building and attention to racial justice is all the more urgent now because we also need to make our way to a post-climate, post-COVID world. Both our environmental and public health challenges have some common themes and present an opportunity for a new narrative: In each arena we need to prioritize those with the highest risks, act to shield those we may never know, and learn to replace "me" — the spirit of self-interest — with "we," the impulses of solidarity with people and the planet.</p><p>On the policy side, we can clearly learn from state efforts to address climate change. But just as important will be learning from state and local organizing. The secret sauce is not in the technology: moving away from an oil- and coal-fueled power grid to a people-driven power structure will require the science of coalition-building.</p><p>Power must be built to hold a new administration accountable, push it further toward bold climate policy and economic and racial justice, and create the political space for a massive federal investment in public health and clean energy. The future of America and the planet depend on it.</p>
<p><em>J. Mijin Cha is an assistant professor of urban and environmental policy at Occidental College.</em></p><p><em>Manuel Pastor </em><em>is a professor of sociology at the University of Southern California and the director of USC's Equity Research Institute.</em></p><p><em>The opinions expressed above are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of The Revelator, the Center for Biological Diversity or their employees.</em></p><p><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://therevelator.org/climate-new-deal/" target="_blank">The Revelator</a>.</em></p>From Your Site Articles
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Gray Wolf Recovery and Survival Require Immediate Action By the Biden Administration
12 December 2020
Insights + Opinion
Scott Flaherty / USFWS
President-elect Joe Biden will soon step into a tangled web of critical foreign and domestic issues affecting Americans. As his administration begins work to address these complex challenges, issues that affect other species on Earth must not be lost in the shuffle.
<p>One species whose fate once again hangs in the balance is the gray wolf, which the Trump administration this October <a href="https://therevelator.org/wolves-lose-protection/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">removed from the protection</a> of the Endangered Species Act in most of its range.</p><p>This delisting affects more than wolves: Numerous species and ecosystems depend on wolves for their long-term health. The most recent example of this comes from preliminary research results in the Yellowstone ecosystem indicating wolves exert a "<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/12/science/wolves-chronic-wasting-disease.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">predator cleansing effect</a>" that may delay and decrease the size and spread of the devastating chronic wasting disease in native ungulates.</p><p>But the Trump administration did not listen to the science, starting in 2019, when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed a rule to remove gray wolves in the lower 48 states from the endangered species list.</p>
<img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDk1MDYxNi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyOTMwMTE3N30.3URMLr1TVzb5OTBOe_UtWLgAgCAaNQmiroq7Ozt8VGc/img.jpg?width=980" id="732dc" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6d5408e6be6315cd047f4f5cb3b698ed" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1024" data-height="576" />
MacNeil Lyons / NPS
<p>The proposal, which would put wolf management in the hands of the states instead of the federal government, produced immediate outrage. A historic <em>1.8 million</em> public comments opposed the delisting, and 86 members of Congress (in both House and Senate), plus 100 scientists, 230 businesses and 367 veterinary professionals, submitted letters of opposition. Even the scientific peer reviews commissioned by the Service itself found the proposal had <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/12/science/wolves-chronic-wasting-disease.html" target="_blank">inadequate scientific support</a>.</p><p>Despite this overwhelming opposition and flawed science, the Service went ahead and stripped gray wolves of protection under the federal Endangered Species Act. In the process it also ignored the fact that gray wolves are still functionally extinct in the majority of places they once inhabited.</p>Why States Can’t Protect Wolves
<p>Prior to this year's comprehensive delisting, gray wolves living in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Washington, Oregon, Utah and California were already being managed by state wildlife agencies. In most of these states, this so-called "management" has been a debacle, as the agencies are often staffed and directed by hunters interested in "harvesting" wildlife for personal gain or, in the case of trophy hunting, ego gratification. If wolves are eating deer and elk in order to survive, these hunters view the predators as unacceptable competition.</p><p>For many of these state decision-makers, the attitude toward wolves is at best reluctant tolerance — far from what it should be: a desire for full recovery of the species and compassionate co-existence.</p><img lazy-loadable="true" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDk1MDYxNy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNjIwMzM1MH0.hbECitzGSBM4qWTK_LHh5qzDtIMfNBNg3DyfrXMoM0w/img.jpg?width=980" id="b004a" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="93694ee1ec612e4a7327bd781cd526e8" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="1024" data-height="576" />
A radio-collared wolf watches near a group of wintering elk in the National Elk Refuge in Wyoming. USFWS / Tony and Ann Hough
<p>Idaho provides the worst example of wolf mismanagement at the state level. Over the 12-month period ending June 30, 2020, the state allowed the killing of at least <a href="https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/news/press-releases/idaho-documents-reveal-weeks-old-wolf-pups-among-570-maimed-slaughtered-wolves-2020-09-11/" target="_blank">570 of the 1,000 wolves</a> estimated to exist there. The only thing that prevented it from authorizing even more killings was a provision that would have <a href="https://idfg.idaho.gov/old-web/docs/wolves/plan02.pdf" target="_blank">returned management to the federal government</a> if population levels fell below an established threshold. This is completely unacceptable. Until state-agency staffing is more balanced, representing both the interests of hunters and those who appreciate wildlife alive, the agencies have no business making management decisions about wolves.</p><p>The bottom line is wolves need continued federal protection if they're to survive and fully recover.</p>How to Restore Federal Protections
<p>The Biden administration could begin ensuring protection of wolves through three initial actions.</p><p>First it should reverse the recent decision to delist gray wolves. The incoming secretary of the Interior could easily and immediately withdraw the rule in order to settle the inevitable lawsuit(s) that will challenge the legality of the delisting.</p><p>Second it should put <em>all</em> gray wolves in the lower 48 states under Endangered Species Act protection once again. The entire history of federal wolf protection has been piecemeal and fractured. Defining numerous different "distinct population" segments and pursuing delisting on a region-by-region or state-by-state manner does not facilitate full wolf recovery throughout their historic range; it only results in significant numbers of wolves being shot and trapped, and repeated challenges in court.</p><p>Third, once all gray wolves are again under the full protection of the Act, the administration should have the Fish and Wildlife Service finally develop a comprehensive nationwide gray wolf recovery plan. This plan is required under the Act but has never been made. The gray wolf was first protected way back in 1974; the Service has had more than 40 years to complete such a plan. It is long overdue. Once the recovery plan is completed, the Biden administration should have the Service implement it and monitor the results of the implementation. These actions will go a long way toward ensuring the recovery and long-term survival of gray wolves in the lower 48 states.</p><p>As one of North America's most iconic and ecologically important species, gray wolves can and should represent the very best of our conservation efforts and science. This will benefit not just wolves, but all other threatened species in the United States. President-elect Joe Biden has the power to make that a reality.</p><p><em>The opinions expressed above are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of</em> The Revelator, <em>the Center for Biological Diversity or their employees</em>.</p><p><span></span><em>Reposted with permission from <a href="https://therevelator.org/gray-wolf-biden-administration/" target="_blank">The Revelator</a>. </em></p>From Your Site Articles
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Rough handling can result in birds becoming injured before slaughter. Courtesy of Mercy for Animals
By Dena Jones
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) was sued three times this past summer for shirking its responsibility to protect birds from egregious welfare violations and safeguard workers at slaughterhouses from injuries and the spread of the coronavirus.
<p>Over the years, it has become abundantly clear that federal regulators not only let animal abusers off the hook but also placate the factory farm industry by subverting worker and consumer interests. On July 27, a growing number of animal advocacy organizations joined a lawsuit that <a href="https://mercyforanimals.org/mercy-for-animals-joins-lawsuit-challenging" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">challenged the USDA</a> over its recent bird flu response plan, which indemnifies factory farms and fails to address how intensive confinement contributes to disease outbreaks. One day later, unions representing workers across six states <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2020-07-28/unions-sue-usda-over-faster-chicken-plant-production-speeds" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">sued</a> the USDA over its approval of faster slaughter line speeds that they say will endanger workers.</p>
<p>In August, my organization, the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), and Farm Sanctuary <a href="https://awionline.org/press-releases/usda-sued-compel-humane-handling-birds-slaughter" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">sued</a> the USDA over its persistent failure to require humane handling of poultry at slaughter, resulting in damaged or contaminated products that violate the federal <a href="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/rulemaking/poultry-products-inspection-acts" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Poultry Products Inspection Act</a> and compromise food safety and meat quality.</p><p>Our lawsuit comes after we initially <a href="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/wcm/connect/e138fe1a-d380-42b2-88b7-f24a11ed7d7f/Petition-AWI-PPIA-121713.pdf?MOD=AJPERES" target="_blank">petitioned</a> the department in 2013 to uphold its congressional mandate and codify poultry humane handling standards into enforceable regulations. After six years, during which time federal inspectors documented <a href="https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/publication/digital_download/20TheWelfareBirdsSlaughter.pdf" target="_blank">more than 2,000 incidents</a> of poultry mistreatment, the USDA denied our petition <a href="https://www.natlawreview.com/article/animal-rights-groups-file-lawsuit-against-usda-to-tackle-inhumane-treatment-poultry" target="_blank">in 2019</a>. At the same time, the department denied a second petition asking it to address the <a href="https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/temp/FA-AWI-Poultry-loading-transport-holding-incidents.pdf" target="_blank">problem</a> of birds being abandoned in the holding areas of slaughter plants — often in extreme heat or cold for extended periods.</p>
<p>Ongoing reviews of USDA enforcement records by AWI reveal that every year, government inspectors document the suffering of tens of thousands of birds from suffocation, blunt force trauma, and heat or cold stress before even reaching the slaughter line. This widespread suffering is entirely preventable, as it is caused by neglect, inadequate worker training, faulty equipment, and intentional acts of cruelty at slaughterhouses.</p><p>In 2018, for instance, <a href="https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/Butterfield-2018-incident.pdf" target="_blank">Butterfield Foods Company failed to protect its hens</a> during their transportation to a Minnesota slaughter plant in subzero temperatures, resulting in nearly 10,000 deaths, with many birds frozen to their cages. More than 9,000 birds died in a <a href="https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/Butterfield-2020-incident.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">similar incident at the same plant this past winter</a>.</p><p>A Butterball plant in North Carolina held a truck of turkeys for 31 hours last year, <a href="https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/Butterball-holding-incident-Jan-2019.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">depriving them of food and water</a>. By the time they were unloaded, a large number of birds had perished, and some had begun cannibalizing weaker birds.</p>
<p>Each year, about <a href="https://downloads.usda.library.cornell.edu/usda-esmis/files/pg15bd88s/kw52js65h/d217r6115/pslaan20.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">9 billion chickens and turkeys are slaughtered</a> in the United States, yet plants suffer no consequences when most forms of mistreatment are observed during USDA audits. There are no fines, no slowing or stopping of the slaughter line, and no shuttering of a plant even if egregious or repeat violations occur.</p><p>For instance, a Jennie-O slaughter plant in Minnesota was <a href="https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/Jennie-O-Turkey-repeated-laceration-incidents.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">written up 10 times in 2018 from February to August for severe injuries to turkeys</a>, including large areas of torn skin, hemorrhaging and muscle mutilation — all due to malfunctioning equipment — yet the USDA did not penalize the plant or require operators to fix the problem.</p><p>Even incidents of willful mishandling are tolerated. At the Southern Hens facility in Mississippi, <a href="https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/Southern-Hen-repeated-bird-tossing-incidents.pdf" target="_blank">USDA inspectors cited the plant 10 times in the month of March 2020 alone</a> because workers were seen tossing crates to the ground six feet below as the live birds inside frantically flapped their wings and tried to escape. This callous indifference not only causes stress, injuries and painful deaths for animals; it can also <a href="https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/RelationshipBetweenAnimalHandlingMeatQuality.pdf" target="_blank">damage the final meat product</a> for the consumer.</p>
<p>Under the Poultry Products Inspection Act, the USDA is required to reduce the incidence of damaged and/or potentially unsafe (or "adulterated") poultry products. But while federal inspectors have issued official notices and directives drawing a connection between the mistreatment of live birds and adulteration, they have taken <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/poultry-slaughter-plants-2625984903.html" target="_self">no concrete steps to stop it</a>.</p><p>Instead, the USDA permits the poultry industry to police itself through voluntary standards that — based on the department's own records — are clearly inadequate. Meanwhile, industry executives falsely claim that when inhumane handling occurs, government inspectors take action. Each side contends that the other is responsible for animal welfare. In reality, no one is protecting birds at slaughter.</p><p>The USDA has repeatedly demonstrated that it is unwilling to act against industry interests — even when doing so would improve poultry product quality and help prevent the abuse of the vast majority of land animals killed for food.</p><p>You can help protect birds at slaughter by <a href="https://awionline.org/compassion-index#/243" target="_blank">sending a message to the USDA</a>, asking the agency to change its regulations and policies to prevent neglect and abuse of birds at slaughter.</p>
<p><em>Dena Jones is the director of the Farm Animal Program for the nonprofit <a href="https://awionline.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Animal Welfare Institute</a> (AWI) in Washington, DC. Since 1951, AWI has sought to alleviate suffering on animals inflicted by humans.</em></p><p><em>This article was produced by </em><a href="https://independentmediainstitute.org/earth-food-life/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Earth | Food | Life</em></a><em>, a project of the Independent Media Institute.</em></p>
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Tyson Exploits Consumers Just Like Its Animals and the Workers Who Raise Them
03 December 2020
Insights + Opinion
The miserable ones: Young broiler chickens at a feeder. The poor treatment of the chickens within its supply chain has made Tyson the target of public campaigns urging the company to make meaningful changes. U.S. Department of Agriculture / Flickr
By David Coman-Hidy
The actions of the U.S. meat industry throughout the pandemic have brought to light the true corruption and waste that are inherent within our food system. Despite a new wave of rising COVID-19 cases, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently submitted a proposal to further increase "the maximum slaughter line speed by 25 percent," which was already far too fast and highly dangerous. It has been made evident that the industry will exploit its workers and animals all to boost its profit.
<p>The revelations continued when Tyson Foods, the world's second-largest producer of chicken, beef and pork, cooperated with the Department of Justice to avoid scrutiny into the company's role in the monopolization of the industry to <a href="https://www.fooddive.com/news/new-chicken-price-fixing-indictment-charges-6-more-with-conspiracy/586595/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">fix prices</a> of chicken for both consumers and retailers. This news comes at a time when Tyson has already been <a href="https://talkbusiness.net/2020/06/tyson-foods-reports-199-positive-covid-19-cases-at-springdale-plant/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">under fire</a> for <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2020/04/17/tyson-foods-officials-call-plant-close-over-coronavirus-cases/5158361002/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">exposing</a> its workers to an enormous risk of contracting COVID-19. We can now add competitors and consumers to the ever-growing list of those victimized by the corporate giant. This is further evidence that it's time for our nation's food supply chain to change in a big way.</p>
<p>Tyson Foods former CEO Noel White, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/03/tyson-foods-names-new-ceo-as-coronavirus-raises-costs.html" target="_blank">replaced</a> by Dean Banks in October, rushed to cooperate under the Department of Justice's antitrust leniency program, <a href="https://stjosephpost.com/posts/5ee39382ebfb13423b279658" target="_blank">stating</a>, "I am proud to lead a company that took appropriate and immediate actions in reporting the wrongdoing we discovered to the Department of Justice." What White failed to mention is that cooperating will afford Tyson protection from public scrutiny and legal fines, at the expense of its competitors.</p><p>Unethical business practices seem to be the norm for Tyson Foods. Due to a lack of proper safety measures and harsh attendance policies, <a href="https://www.foodandwine.com/news/10000-tyson-employees-positive-covid-19" target="_blank">more than 10,000 Tyson plant workers</a> tested positive for the virus, substantially more than any other U.S. meat company. Before the pandemic, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/09/04/interview-how-us-making-meatpacking-jobs-even-more-dangerous" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">working on a meat processing line was one of the most dangerous jobs</a> in the United States. Now, with the constant threat of COVID-19 looming over these elbow-to-elbow assembly lines, meat processing may be among the <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/why-meatpacking-plants-have-become-covid-19-hot-spots/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">most deadly</a> jobs in the world. <a href="https://thehumaneleague.org/article/whats-more-essential-workers-lives-or-meat-on-the-table" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Workers</a> are not just getting sick from this virus—they're dying.</p><p>The pandemic has led to <a href="https://www.inddist.com/supply-chain/article/21131454/keough-pandemic-has-caused-supply-chain-disruptions-for-80-of-us-businesses" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">major disruptions in the supply chain</a>. While Tyson has not yet engaged in the mass "<a href="https://thehumaneleague.org/article/emergency-legal-petition-filed-with-usda-to-end-depopulation" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">depopulation</a>" of animals that other producers resorted to, in a typical week, the company slaughters an estimated <a href="https://sentientmedia.org/tyson-foods/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">37 million chickens</a>. The poor treatment of the chickens within its supply chain—including <a href="https://thehumaneleague.org/article/study-reveals-the-chicken-we-eat-live-in-agony" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">breeding</a> birds to grow at such an unnaturally fast rate that they can't even hold up their own bodies—has made Tyson the target of <a href="https://www.change.org/p/tyson-stop-neglecting-workers-animals-and-public-health" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">public campaigns</a> urging the company to make meaningful changes.</p><p>More than 120 labor, food justice, animal welfare and environmental organizations have banded together to <a href="https://thehumaneleague.org/article/120-organizations-target-tyson-foods-for-failing-to-protect-workers-covid19" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">take action against</a> the company. Tyson must take immediate action to protect the safety and well-being of its workers, make improvements to support animal welfare and reduce its harsh impact on the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/01/commission-report-great-food-transformation-plant-diet-climate-change/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">environment</a>.</p><p>For too long, the unethical, avaricious practices of the meat industry have been hidden from view. The scandals surrounding Tyson and other major producers are making clear that vulnerable workers, abused animals and a rigged system are the foundation of an unethical and destructive business model.</p><p>Tyson had a role in creating the industrialized system, and it must step up its role in fixing it. The meat giant has had one singular focus since its inception: profit. The company's greed has caused it to exploit anyone in its path. Tyson's disregard for human and animal life extends to its workers, animals killed in its plants, consumers and now its competitors. Tyson took ownership for rigging the system using price-fixing. It's time for Tyson to take ownership for exploiting and endangering its more vulnerable victims as well.</p><p><a href="https://www.change.org/p/tyson-stop-neglecting-workers-animals-and-public-health" target="_blank"><em>Sign the petition</em></a><em> urging Tyson to stop neglecting workers, animals and public health.</em></p><p><a href="https://actnow.thehumaneleague.org/live-shackle-slaughter/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Sign the petition</em></a><em> urging the U.S. chicken meat industry to end the cruel practice of boiling birds alive.</em></p><p><em> David Coman-Hidy is president of <a href="https://thehumaneleague.org/broken-food-system" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Humane League</a>, a global nonprofit working to fix our broken food system and end the abuse of animals raised for food.</em></p><em><p><em>This article first appeared on </em><a href="https://truthout.org/articles/tyson-exploits-consumers-just-like-its-animals-and-the-workers-who-raise-them/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Truthout</em></a><em> and was produced in partnership with </em><a href="https://independentmediainstitute.org/earth-food-life/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Earth | Food | Life</em></a><em>, a project of the Independent Media Institute.</em></p></em>
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