CEC Notes
April Events
On April 18, CEC hosted both a Delegate Luncheon and an evening Roundtable. At lunch, Rebecca McKeever, a seasoned wildlife rehabilitator, explained how the Texas Wildlife Rehabilitation Coalition’s web of trained volunteers cares for injured and orphaned animals. She also explained what citizens should do with wildlife in need. McKeever emphasized that people should return young wildlife to their parents if at all possible; if an animal needs further assistance, she recommends keeping it in a warm, dark, safe place until it can be delivered to a licensed rehabilitator. More than a dozen CEC delegates attended the talk.

In the evening, a panel from the Source Reduction Project, a community-industry partnership that has been successful at reducing emissions from the Equistar and Lyondell chemical plants in Channelview, presented. Panelists emphasized the collaborative nature of the project. Community members spent many hours educating themselves on chemical production processes and touring the facilities. After gaining an understanding of plant operations, and developing a rapport with plant leadership, participants submitted six initial formal “Citizen Requests.” The plants analyzed the technical and economic feasibility of the possible source reduction activities, and implemented the measures that they found appropriate. The speakers also emphasized that their methodology could be repeated to reduce air emissions at industrial sites across the country. About 20 attended the discussion.

Coaltion Notes
Riparian System Workshop
The Texas Riparian Association, in partnership with the Bayou Preservation Association (BPA) and the Harris County Flood Control District, will host a workshop on Assessing Proper Functioning Condition of Riparian-Wetland Areas from June 4 – 5 at the Houston Environmental Center, 3015 Richmond, in the Windsor Room. The first day of the conference begins with a two-hour introductory session, which is free and open to the public. Registration for the entire conference costs $100, which covers training materials, refreshments, lunches, and field supplies. A limited number of need-based scholarships are available. Contact the BPA at 713-529-6443 for more information.

Oyster Gardening
The Galveston Bay Foundation (GBF) will host Oyster Gardening Reef Round-Ups on June 9, 16, and 23. Oysters support local economies, provide food and shelter for wildlife, improve water quality, and prevent shoreline erosion. Last summer, volunteers created apparatuses to collect baby oysters, or “spat.” They hung the spat collectors from docks or piers and monitored oyster growth throughout the year. At the Reef Round-Ups, the oysters will find permanent homes in newly created reefs in the bay. To learn how you can help, call GBF at 281-332-3381.

Walk, Run, Roll
The Houston chapter of the American Lung Association is organizing their annual Walk, Run and Role to Cure Asthma on June 9 at 9 am beginning at Sam Houston Park downtown. Registration is $20, and proceeds from the 5K and 10K events benefit ALA’s various programs that educate children and their families about asthma management. For details, call 713-629-1600 or visit www.texaslung.org.

EcoNotes
Environmental Injustice
People of color in Harris County experience 1.27 times more cancer risk from hazardous air pollutants than whites, are 5.26 times more likely to live near a Superfund site, and are 2.16 times more likely to live by facilities emitting the six most heavily regulated air pollutants, according to a newly created section of Environmental Defense’s www.scorecard.org website. Analyses based on income and education level reveal similar discrepancies. The data on the site are based on information from more than 60,000 U.S. census tracts, the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other sources. People of color are defined as all non-white racial/ethnic groups, including African Americans, Asians, Native Americans, Latinos (Hispanics), and those who marked “Other” on their census forms. Site visitors can enter their zip codes and learn about the disproportionate environmental burdens that local low-income and minority communities face.

Global Warming and Health
Climate change could have a far-reaching impact on health in the United States, according to a recent assessment published in the Journal of Environmental Health Perspectives. The article identifies and examines five key health problems that could be influenced by global climate change: heat-related illness and death; health effects related to extreme weather events; health effects related to air pollution, water-borne, and food-borne diseases; and vector-borne and rodent-borne diseases. The poor, the elderly, children, and people with weak immune systems face the highest risks, the report says. (ENN 5/01)

Chemicals and Pregnancy
Women who are exposed to chemicals in the workplace are less likely to become pregnant than other women, according to a study published in the April 2001 issue of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Swedish scientists studied 560 women with 735 pregnancies among them. They found that the chance of pregnancy during the first menstrual cycle was less likely for women who worked around chemicals – most significantly, solvents – than for women who did not. (ENN 4/01)

Pesticides in the Third World
More than half a million tons of old and unused pesticides that have been banned or have expired threaten the environment and the health of millions of people in developing countries, warns the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in a new report. The figures are dramatically higher than previous estimates of around 100,000 tons. Often, the pesticides are stored unsafely; leaks are contaminating soil, water, and food.

Pesticides were provided to developing countries in the past by international aid agencies with good intentions. But insufficient coordination among aid agencies has been a major factor causing accumulation of excessive supplies, FAO says. In addition, governments of some developing countries, in particular those with state-run economies, have bought pesticides and then failed to use them. (FAO 5/01)