Month: February 2019

The Irrawaddy dolphins that cruise through their namesake river in Myanmar are an endangered species. The Wildlife Conservation Society says there are only about 76 left in the Irrawaddy River. That number has risen from a low of 69 over the past few years thanks to conservation societies working alongside local fishermen. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports. …

A new type of solar panel promises a cheap, flexible way to get more power from the sun. They may help the growing renewable energy industry expand even faster. VOA’s Steve Baragona has more. …

It does not yet have office space, staff or even Republican members, but Florida Rep. Kathy Castor is confident that a special House committee on climate change will play a leading role on one of the most daunting challenges facing the planet. Castor, who chairs the new panel, says those early obstacles can be overcome as lawmakers move to reduce carbon pollution and create clean-energy jobs. “The Democratic caucus is unified under the belief we have to take bold action on the climate crisis,” Castor said in an interview. While that can take many forms, the transition to renewable energy such as wind and solar power is “job one,” she said. Castor, who’s in her seventh term representing the Tampa Bay area, said Congress has a “moral obligation” to protect future generations from the costly effects of climate change, including more severe hurricanes, a longer wildfire season and a dangerous sea-level rise. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi named Castor to lead the panel in December, saying she brings experience, energy and urgency to what Pelosi called “the existential threat of the climate crisis” facing the United States and the world. The climate panel is similar to one Pelosi created when Democrats last controlled the House from 2007 to 2010. The panel was eliminated when Republicans took the majority in 2011. While the previous panel played a key role in House approval of a landmark 2009 bill to address global warming, Castor said the new panel is likely to focus on a …

Many more Americans may be getting opioids for their pets, and veterinarians appear to be prescribing increasingly potent versions of these drugs to animals, a small study suggests.  The researchers examined data on opioid tablets and patches dispensed or prescribed by 134 veterinarians at an academic small-animal hospital in Philadelphia from 2007 to 2017. Over the decade, the amount of opioids used for creatures like rabbits, birds and reptiles surged 41 percent even though visits to the hospital increased by only 13 percent.  “We have no way of knowing if any of these prescriptions were obtained by pet owners for themselves, and most were likely not,” said senior study author Dr. Jeanmarie Perrone, a toxicologist with the emergency medicine department at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.  “However, the risk to humans is that leftover opioid prescriptions to animals end up in the same medicine cabinets as leftover opioids for people, leading to opportunities for misuse by teenagers or unintentional exposures in children that can be lethal,” Perrone said by email.  The study included 366,468 pet visits to the animal hospital. During these visits, veterinarians prescribed a total of 105.2 million tablets of tramadol, more than 97,000 tablets of hydrocodone, almost 39,000 tablets of codeine and 3,153 fentanyl patches.  Most were for dogs Dogs got the most drugs, accounting for 73 percent of these prescriptions, followed by cats at 22.5 percent and exotic animals at 4.5 percent.  A major factor contributing to the growing opioid crisis in the U.S. is the increasing availability of these drugs, which addicts often get from friends or relatives when they aren’t able to obtain …

Lawmakers in the U.S. Northwestern state of Washington, which is battling a measles outbreak, are considering a bill that would prohibit parents from claiming a personal or philosophical exemption to their children receiving vaccinations. Hundreds of people opposed to the bill lined up early Friday to attend a hearing in Olympia, the state capital, where lawmakers heard testimony from both supporters and opponents of the proposed bill. The measure came after health officials reported at least 52 known cases of the measles in the state and four cases in the neighboring state of Oregon. Current law Washington state law requires children to be vaccinated for nearly a dozen diseases, including measles, before they can attend schools or child care centers. However, exemptions are allowed for parents based on personal beliefs, including medical, religious and philosophical views. The proposed bill would eliminate that personal exemption, meaning all children would have to be vaccinated for a range of diseases before enrolling in schools or child care facilities. The bill has the support of the state medical association as well as Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, who declared a state of emergency last month because of the measles outbreak.  Opponents testifying against the bill Friday included environmental activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has questioned vaccine safety standards. The Associated Press cited state Department of Health records that showed 4 percent of Washington secondary school students had nonmedical vaccine exemptions. The records showed that 3.7 percent of those exemptions were personal, while the remainder were …

In 2001, the government of Nigeria, along with all African Union countries, pledged to spend 15 percent of its annual budget on health care. But the country has never come close to reaching that goal. The result is that up to 70 percent of medical spending in Nigeria is out of pocket, forcing many with sudden health problems into debt or poverty. Ajayi Taiwo is one of those people. Taiwo was involved in a car accident a year ago that injured his right leg and pelvis three weeks before his wedding. Today, he’s still recovering. “I actually spent like two … close to two months in the hospital and all the resources we had gathered together for the wedding to make it good actually went into hospital bills,” he said. Discounts promised, not granted The government hospital where Taiwo was taken would not grant him discounts promised under Nigeria’s national health care plan. So he had to sell his car and other valuables to pay for care. “Imagine — I went to a government hospital and I was paying heavily as if I was in a private hospital,” he said. ​Health care pledge The 2001 health care pledge made by Nigeria and its fellow African Union countries is called the Abuja Declaration. But 18 years later, Nigeria’s highest-ever budget share for health care was just 7 percent. Last year, it dropped to less than 4 percent. The impact is that 70 percent of hospital spending in Nigeria is out-of-pocket, which …

The World Health Organization reports it is scaling up efforts to try to control an outbreak of Lassa fever, which is escalating at a rapid pace.   Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic illness that occurs after human exposure to the urine or feces of infected Mastomys rats. It is also transmitted person to person. About 80 percent of those infected show no symptoms. The disease can be effectively treated in its early stages with the antiviral drug Ribavirin. West Africa is in the midst of a seasonal outbreak, which usually flares between December and March. The disease is endemic in the region so, the current outbreak was expected. But, WHO spokesman Tarek Jasarevic says what is alarming is the scale and speed with which the disease is spreading. “Right now, since the beginning of the outbreak until now, we already have one-third of the number of cases that we had last year,” said Jasarevic. “And already last year was the biggest Lassa fever outbreak. So, basically, we are seeing more cases than usual.”  Nigeria declared an outbreak on January 22.  The disease so far has affected 16 states. The Nigeria Center for Disease Control confirms 213 cases, including 42 deaths in what is seen as the largest outbreak in West Africa.   While Nigeria is the source of the most anxiety, WHO reports a total of 12 cases, including two deaths have been confirmed in Benin, Guinea, Liberia and Togo, with more suspected cases being investigated. Jasarevic says the …

Rainwater is essential for life. It helps plants and food crops flourish, and it keeps grasslands green and lush. But too much of it, especially in the city, can lead to flooding, causing sewers to overflow and carry pollutants and contaminants to nearby streams and waterways. To combat the problem in urban areas of the country, a growing number of cities across the U.S. are initiating programs like rooftop gardens. ​A labor of love To help with that initiative in the nation’s capital, a team at the University of the District of Columbia has created a rooftop garden on campus with a wide variety of vegetation to help absorb excess rainwater and grow food at the same time. Architect David Bell, who designed five “green roofs” on the campus, says he’s excited about the project because “it meant doing something more than just dealing with storm water management.” “It took advantage of a resource above the city that you see all over where you have these flat roofs that aren’t doing anything and really made it into something that was about urban agriculture,” he said. Rainwater is distributed through an irrigation system and collected in cisterns for the rooftop garden. It is also used in other parts of the campus. The result is a picturesque sea of green vegetation and patches of brightly colored plants and flowers that attract pollinating insects and other wild creatures. ​Urban agriculture “In an urban environment, you don’t have that many spaces to choose from, …

The National Institutes of Health is investigating whether a dozen researchers there failed to report taking funding from foreign governments, specifically China. Last August, NIH sent a letter to more than 10,000 research institutions urging them to ensure that NIH grantees are properly reporting their foreign ties. The agency also said it is investigating about a half-dozen cases in which NIH-funded investigators may have broken reporting rules, and it reminded researchers who review grant applications that they should not share proposal information with outsiders. NIH is also getting pressure from Congress. Sen. Charles Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, last month requested the NIH Inspector General’s office investigate “threats posed by foreign actors seeking to steal U.S. intellectual property by exploiting U.S. research institutions and the vetting processes in place regarding researchers and public grants [supported] by taxpayer-funded research.” “The threats to our academic institutions from foreign governments are well known,” Grassley wrote. “Our government must take all reasonable and necessary steps to protect the integrity of taxpayer-funded research.”  Grassley inquired about the background checks of the researchers conducted by the FBI, as well, asking if “federal law enforcement has taken to educate various government agencies and institutions of higher learning about the threat and a history of investigatory and prosecutorial steps taken by the department in the last five years.” The senator pointed to testimony in December 2018 from Justice Department witness John Demers, who testified that some “researchers in labs, universities, and the defense industrial base … may have …

Measles is spreading in the U.S. As of Feb. 5, there were 50 cases in Washington state and five in Houston. New cases are being added daily. Health officials, including the U.S. surgeon general, are urging parents to get their children vaccinated. Measles was eliminated in the U.S. 19 years ago. The cases that occur here now are imported from other countries. But that is happening in the U.S. with greater frequency. Dr. Camille Sabella is a pediatric infectious disease specialist at the Cleveland Clinic. “Measles is incredibly contagious,”he said. “Once it gets around the community it’s very difficult because it’s airborne.” 18 state allow exemptions Eighteen states allow parents to not vaccinate their children if they have moral, personal or philosophical objections to it. A measles outbreak in the U.S. northwestern state of Washington has state health officials scrambling to contain it. Dr. Jason Hanley sees emergency cases at the medical center, PeaceHealth. “I hope I’m wrong, but I think the cases are going to get more frequent and spread throughout the country from this epicenter,” he said. Rural areas in the U.S. tend to be have higher numbers of unvaccinated children. But there are significant numbers in cities such as Houston, Austin and Seattle, where immunization rates are lower than in other U.S. cities. Houston just reported two new cases of measles in children younger than 2, bringing the total to five as of Feb. 6. Doctors, including U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, are urging parents to get …

Melania Trump, addressing an anti-drug conference, says “recovery is possible.” The first lady traveled to Maryland on Thursday to address the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America’s annual youth leadership forum. Her signature “Be Best” campaign focuses on a number of issues, including the opioid crisis. Mrs. Trump spoke about a former opioid and substance abuse addict who joined her for Tuesday’s State of the Union address. The first lady says Ashley Evans received treatment at an Ohio facility, has been in recovery for over a year and looks forward to being reunited with her daughter. Mrs. Trump says Evans’ story shows “recovery is possible” and that community programs can help make a difference. The first lady was also visiting the Office of National Drug Control Policy for a briefing. …

The World Meteorological Organization says 2018 was the fourth hottest year on record confirming, what it calls a clear sign that long-term climate change is going on. Of the four past record-breaking years, 2016 was the hottest. The World Meteorological Organization says temperatures that year reached a global average of 1.2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.  It says the increased warming in the atmosphere was influenced by a strong El-Nino event, which causes sea temperatures to rise in the tropical Pacific.    Temperatures in 2018 dipped to 1 degree Celsius above pre-industrial levels.  But meteorologists say the ranking of individual years is less important than the long-term temperature trend in gauging climate change. The WMO says other factors besides temperature are involved in changing climate.  WMO spokeswoman Claire Nullis says extreme weather events also play an important role. “Obviously, as we continue in 2019, we are seeing more extreme weather… in different parts of the world, including dangerous and extreme cold in North America, record heat and wildfires in Australia, high temperatures and rainfall in parts of South America,” Nullis said. While Australia was baking in its warmest January on record, a cold weather front was gripping parts of the eastern United States. Nullis says freezing temperatures do not disprove climate change is happening. “We do not just have climate change.  We have the daily weather.  It is summer in the southern hemisphere right now.  So, we do expect to see high temperatures.  It is winter in the northern hemisphere.   …

In Southern California, there are some special creatures that have adapted and thrived in an urban environment. Some advocates for conservation and the environment say a city may be the perfect man-made space for some endangered species. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee reports from Los Angeles. …