The Gaia Reports By Theodora Filis - Environmental Journalist

By Theodora Filis Generally, one thinks in terms of a nuclear war when considering pollution that involves radiation. The background level of radiation in oceans and seas varies around the globe. The primary source of radiation pollution has been nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific Ocean, but some regions have experienced additional inputs. The Irish Sea in 2008 showed elevated levels compared to large ocean basins as a result of radioactive releases from the Sellafield reprocessing facility at Seacastle, U.K. Levels in the Baltic and Black Seas are elevated due to fallout from the 1986 explosion and fire at the Chornobyl nuclear reactor. --Data courtesy of MARIS/IAEA and CMER Scientists continue to track the many pathways by which radioisotopes from the damaged nuclear reactors at Fukushima make their way into and out of seawater, marine life, and seafloor sediments.  These depend on the behavior and metabolism of an individual animal, the nature of complex coastal and o

By Theodora Filis The most effective way to keep American citizens silent and under control is through fear. The "spiral of silence theory" describes the process by which one opinion becomes dominant as those who perceive their opinion to be in the minority do not speak up because they fear isolation from society, or in this case, being prosecuted as a terrorist. The Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) hopes to accomplish just that by making it an "act of terrorism” for anyone to investigate animal cruelty, food safety, or environmental violations on corporate-controlled farms producing the bulk of US meat, eggs, and dairy products. The Animal and Ecological Terrorism Act, designed to protect Big Ag and Big Energy, was written by lawyers for the Energy, Environment, and Agriculture Task Force, which is funded by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). That in itself should send red flags through the earth's atmosphere... This new information comes

By Theodora Filis Every year, over 10,000 people die from complications related to asbestos exposure in the US alone. Despite everything known about the danger of asbestos, halting its use has been a difficult process in Canada and the United States. In the 1990s, many countries adopted bans on the use and importation of asbestos to protect their citizens – except the US and Canada – strong economic and political forces still conspire against the movement to ban asbestos. When France announced in 1996 that it would ban the use of asbestos, Canada (a major exporter of chrysotile asbestos) felt threatened. The Canadian government took its concerns to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to argue that the ban was an “unreasonable restriction of international trade.” However, disputing the resolution panel, the WTO rejected Canada’s argument, finding that France and other countries involved in the ban had valid public health concerns. Today, asbestos has been banned in more than 55 co