Nature strikes back at the Amazon, sleep less while improving your productivity, radioactivity of Fukushima continues to spread, and chemicals you want to avoid (but are somehow still used in children’s toys?). Read it in this freshly formatted Wormfood, now with more pictures than ever.
The new format took a little bit of time to prepare, apologies for the delay of this edition. Next edition will be on time, I promise!
Cutting down the Amazon rain forest could significantly reduce the amount of electricity produced from hydropower. A serious problem for Brazil because 29% of its electricity is generated by hydropower (in 2010). Researchers found that if forests continue to be destroyed, the energy produced by one of the world's biggest dams could be cut by a third.
China wins observer status in the Arctic Council. Rising temperatures have boosted international interest in the polar region, as melting ice causes transport routes to open up. Also, it makes inaccessible mineral resources easier to exploit. Many countries want to get access to these and through their observer status they can exert influence on decisions made about the Artic. Other countries given permanent observer status were India, Italy, Japan, Singapore and South Korea.
Poor nations are deprived of billions in taxes, because half of all foreign investments are chanelled through tax havens. This according to an influential report by the international organisation ActionAid. ActionAid claims that among them are single transactions that could have provided every Indian primary school child with a subsidised meal for a year if it been taxed fully.
A Russian spacecraft returned to Earth with most of its furry crew dead. "Unfortunately, because of equipment failure, we lost all the gerbils."
This bi-weekly digest is made by assembling items from all of Except’s people. Have questions, comments, or news items to suggest? E-mail merel.segers@except.nl. Read past Wormfood global news reports here.
Merel Segers
Industrial Ecologist & Sustainable Storyteller