12/April/20

 

New White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows is working with Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to see how to reduce wage rates for foreign guest workers on American farms, in order to help US farmers struggling during the coronavirus, according to U.S. officials and sources familiar with the plans. Opponents of the plan argue it will hurt vulnerable workers and depress domestic wages. NPR

 

 

The destruction of forests into fragmented patches is increasing the likelihood that viruses and other pathogens will jump from wild animals to humans, according to a study from Stanford University published this month. The research, which focused on contact between humans and primates in western Uganda, holds lessons for a world reeling from the coronavirus outbreak and searching for strategies to prevent the next global pandemic. New York Times

 

 

World-renowned British primatologist Jane Goodall says the coronavirus pandemic was caused by humanity's disregard for nature and disrespect for animals. Goodall, who is best known for trail-blazing research in Africa that revealed the true nature of chimpanzees, pleaded for the world to learn from past mistakes to prevent future disasters. During a conference call ahead of the release of the new National Geographic documentary, "Jane Goodall: The Hope", the 86-year-old also said everyone can make a difference. She said, “We have to realise we are part of the natural world, we depend on it, and as we destroy it we are actually stealing the future from our children.” Yahoo! News

 

 

The critical facets of pandemic prevention, according to Lee Hannah, senior scientist at Conservation International, include having testing infrastructure ready and banning the global wildlife trade, including the open animal markets where Covid-19 may have first infected people. A key recommendation is: “Take care of nature". The assault on ecosystems that allowed Covid-19 to jump from animals to humans went far beyond merchants hunting and selling rare wildlife. Biodiversity — that is, the health of the entire ecosystem — can restrain pathogens before they ever leave the wild. “We need to tell people right now that there is a series of things we need to do once we're out of this mess to make sure it never happens again,” Hannah says. Bloomberg Green

 

 

Brazilian tax exemptions benefit the agrichemical industry to the tune of $2.2 billion USD annually, according to researchers from the Oswaldo Cruz foundation and the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro. ABRASCO, the Brazilian Association of Collective Health, headed a new study which illuminates a tight relationship between Brazilian government and industry. Researchers additionally point to millions of dollars given from public resource funds to the companies. While industry lobby groups argue that toxic pesticides are necessary for development and food production, environmental and health advocates say the people of Brazil bear the brunt of toxic pesticide contamination while international companies profit. Beyond Pesticides