Nanotechnology removes Arsenic

Idaho National Laboratory reports INL researchers have engineered a
revolutionary and affordable material called Nano-Composite Arsenic Sorbent.

"N-CAS contains high concentrations of arsenic adsorbing nano-particle metal oxides embedded in a strong composite polymer matrix. It excels in offering significant reaction kinetics, exceptional strength and an extreme surface area. In fact, one gram of N-CAS contains 40% more adsorbent surface area than the square footage of the average American home. It is estimated that one gallon of N-CAS can treat 350-400,000 gallons of water."

Read all about it:
http://www.inl.gov/factsheets/docs/n-cas.pdf

" This technology will aid millions of Americans, but also
more than 70 million people around the globe, who are
exposed to dangerous arsenic concentrations in their drinking water."

Electronic mosquito repellers attract mosquitoes

Isaias Cabrini and Carlos Fernando S. Andrade (Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Sao Paulo) report trials of commercial devices claiming to repel mosquitoes. They conclude that generally mosquitoes, including Aedes aegypti, are attracted to these electronic devices (which the authors term negative repellency). They advise that "Because the manufacturers do not present data for efficacy, government authorities should regulate the commercialization of electronic repellers". The devices emitted frequencies from 7.2 to 22kHz.

See also
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2002/08/lentek.htm
"An Orlando, Florida company has been charged by the Federal Trade Commission with making false and unsubstantiated claims in advertisements for its electronic mosquito and pest repellers..."

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Source: Entomologia experimentalis et applicata (2006) Vol.121, No.2 pp.185-188.
online with Blackwell Synergy
doi:10.1111/j.1570-8703.2006.00463.x

Nest & Egg Collectors

Mark Cocker is a Guardian Country Diarist and is the author of Birds Britannica (Chatto & Windus, 2005 ISBN 0701169079 @ 23 GBPounds www.amazon.co.uk). His latest book, A Tiger in the Sand (Jonathan Cape, £10) a collection of his Guardian articles, is published this week: ISBN 0224078828

http://environment.guardian.co.uk/conservation/story/0,,1941610,00.html

The nest generation

Collecting birds' eggs has long been illegal, but it was a youthful pastime that led many people to become deeply involved in conservation. Mark Cocker on how we are stopping children from engaging with wildlife

Wednesday November 8, 2006The Guardian (c)

venison for school dinners

"Heartless though it may seem to some, among the least harmful things to eat are sustainably culled wild animals. In the absence of natural predators, deer populations in parts of Britain have reached such numbers that the woodlands they browse fail to regenerate.

"Harvesting animals from the wild will never yield the quantity of the modern meat industry but it will not cause the waste of valuable resources and pollution inherent in that industry either. Local councils in the Highlands are encouraging school canteens to serve "Bambi-burgers" to absorb the 70,000 red deer culled each year, thus providing children with a local, free-range meat that has a fraction of the fat and cholesterol of beef."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianweekly/story/0,,1936748,00.html

Happy hunting Guardian Weekly (c)

W. GRUBER: Biogas in Germany

Germany's Renewable Energy Sources Act (2004 Amendment) has encouraged the building of "over 700 biogas plants" last year; more than 3,000 biogas plants will feed electricity into the country's public network by the end of 2006. "Generating energy from biogas provides farmers who are prepared to make the appropriate investement and supply the raw materials with an opportunity ... [but there is no] guarantee that these plants will be profitable ..."

Source: EuroTier innovations 2006 (c) Reed Business Information, Doetinchem, the Netherlands. Pages 19-21 by Dr Waldemar Gruber, Bonn (North Rhine-Westphalia Chamber of Agriculture). www.AgriWorld.nl int@reedbusiness.nl