Environmentalchristian’s Weblog

Both Israel and Syria announced today that they are beginning a new round of negotiations on peace between the two nations after an 8 year hiatus of talks. The two countries have been in a state of war for 60 years now, and peace has proven to be an elusive goal. Interestingly the U.S. has not been part of this latest round of peace talks. Instead Turkey has taken on the dominant liason role.  

Both the U.S. and Turkey have been arbiters in the past for peace in the Middle East. However, Turkey has emerged as a more even handed and less biased broker than America. In case some wondered if this was actually the case White House spokesman Dana Perino made it plainly clear today when asked about the current situation,

“We were not surprised by it and we do not object to it. We hope that this is a forum to address various concerns we all have with Syria, Syria’s support of terrorism, repression of its own people.”

After reading the briefings I never saw anything metioned about Israel holding up their end of the bargain or what they would need to do to attain peace. The U.S. is as far from an even broker as their could be. For instance, the White House could have said something to the effect of,

“We hope that this is a forum to address various concerns we all have with Syria and Israel, Syria’s support of terrorism, repression of its own people. We also hope that Israel will submit to United Nations resolutions 242 and 338 which they have defied.”

American foreign policy in the region has always been such that the spotlight stays focused on any group opposed to Israel and stubbornly ignoring anything done by Israel such as fighter jet flyovers of the capital of Syria, Damascus or ignoring security council resolution after resolution.

Obama said today that republicans should’ “lay off” his wife during the campaign. This came as a response to a youtube video made about her remark in February, “For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country.” Obama called the video, “low class” and “unacceptable.”

Obama is correct that these tactics are underhanded and “low class.” Those responsible should spend their time talking about Obama’s positions on issues rather than these cutting attacks. However, I dont totally agree with him.

She did, actually, make these comments at a stump speech after all. Just because she is not running for office does not mean her comments are safe from scrutiny.

If Obama wants to protect her from politics then asking her to not make high profile speeches might be a good start. 

This video brought back lots of memories for me.

This is a list I have been working on for aromatic hydrocarbon contaminants. If you see any mistakes or want to add additional uses I would appreciate it. Just give me the source. The uses are primarily from:

Contaminant Hydrogeology, C. W. Fetter; © 1999, 1993 by Prentice Hall, Simon & Suchuster/A Viacom Company, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458, ISBN 0-13-7512115-5

Continuing on through ground water and drinking water contaminants I decided to write a post about what is almost certainly the most interesting and ubiquitous human induced contaminant….caffeine. Most people probably never think of caffeine as a natural contaminant, however anytime a substance is introduced into the environment in new places it is going to have a reaction with the system that is already there. Caffeine is no exception. Although, it does seem to be an exception to almost everything else…

For instance, although caffeine is a psychoactive stimulant it is one of the only psychoactive substances that humans regularly consume that is unregulated. Almost everyone intakes caffeine right? Many of us can’t wake up in the morning without our cup. A recent study found that women consuming 200 mg or more per day are twice as likely to miscarriage¹. However, another study found no correlation¹.

Caffeine is a natural pesticide which protects plants from feeding insects. It acts to paralyze and kill certain insects. Its effects on humans are broad and not commonly understood. It is mainly a central nervous system stimulant which, as we all know, helps keep us awake and alert. Caffeine is also a diuretic…yep…it makes your body produce urine faster. It has a half life in most human adults of 3 to 4 hours². Caffeine is found in a variety of foods and drinks such as coffee, teas, mate, and soft drinks.

Caffeine is metabolized by your liver to³:

• Paraxanthine (84%)-Has similar effects to caffeine
• Theobromine (12%)-Used in the past as treatment for edema, syphilitic angina, hypertension, and vascular diseases⁴.
• Theophylline (4%)-Used in the past as a respiratory drug for asthma

Caffeine is nearly ubiquitous in natural waters. Several studies have measured the amount of caffeine and its metabolites in surface and ground waters across the world^5,6,7. It is an excellent method to track anthropomorphic effects on the environment because caffeine is almost always introduced into the environment in quantity by humanity.

Caffeine has multiple effects on wildlife and on the geochemistry of water systems. The total effects of caffeine are as yet unknown, but certainly it is one of the most pervasive geochemical pollutants on the planet.

1. Rubin, Rita (2008-01-20). New studies, different outcomes on caffeine, pregnancy (English). USA TODAY.

2. Meyer, FP; Canzler E, Giers H, Walther H. (1991). “Time course of inhibition of caffeine elimination in response to the oral depot contraceptive agent Deposiston. Hormonal contraceptives and caffeine elimination”. Zentralbl Gynakol 113 (6): 297-302. PMID 2058339

3. The Pharmacogenetics and Pharmacogenomics Knowledge Base. http://www.pharmgkb.org/do/serve?objId=464&objCls=DrugProperties#biotransformationData

4. Kelly, Caleb J (August 2005). “Effects of theobromine should be considered in future studies”. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 82 (2).

5. Determination of pharmaceutical compounds in surface- and ground-water samples by solid-phase extraction and high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, J. D. Cahill, E. T. Furlong, M. R. Burkhardt, D. Kolpin and L. G. Anderson; Journal of Chromatography A, Volume 1041, Issues 1-2, 2 July 2004, Pages 171-180

6. Drugs and personal care products as ubiquitous pollutants: occurrence and distribution of clofibric acid, caffeine and DEET in the North Sea ;Stefan Weigel, Jan Kuhlmann and Heinrich Hühnerfuss; The Science of The Total Environment, Volume 295, Issues 1-3, 5 August 2002, Pages 131-141

7. Tracking persistent pharmaceutical residues from municipal sewage to drinking water; Thomas Heberer; Journal of Hydrology, Volume 266, Issues 3-4, 15 September 2002, Pages 175-189

8. Caffeine and Pharmaceuticals as Indicators of Waste Water Contamination in Wells; Ralph L. Seiler^aaU.S. Geological Survey, 333 W. Nye Lane, Carson City, NV 89706. (702) 887-7674 (voice); (702) 887-7629 (fax). E-mail: rseiler@usgs.gov., Steven D. Zaugg^bbU.S. Geological Survey National Water Quality Laboratory, Box 25046, MS-407, Denver Federal Center, Denver, CO 80225, James M. Thomas^aaU.S. Geological Survey, 333 W. Nye Lane, Carson City, NV 89706. (702) 887-7674 (voice); (702) 887-7629 (fax). E-mail: rseiler@usgs.gov., and Darcy L. Howcroft; Ground Water; Volume 37 Issue 3 Page 405-410, May 1999

9. Caffeine as an environmental indicator for assessing urban aquatic ecosystems; Cadernos de Saúde Pública; Print ISSN 0102-311X; Cad. Saúde Pública vol.21 no.6 Rio de Janeiro Nov./Dec. 2005

It is sad that Disney has fallen so far from what it started. I remember when I was in 5th grade going to Disneyland Disney World in Florida as a family. We packed in the car and drove all the way from Texas. It was a blast. I remember my mom collected different pine cones from every state we went through. Disneyland was a blast. Well…I dont really remember any of it except the tea cup ride. I rode that think like 10 times. I am sure my parents were sick of it.

Now, I dont know if I would even take my kids there anymore. With the recent crazyness with Miley Cyrus being at the end of the list. It doesnt seem like Disney really cares about the family values that I treasure.

Some might call Disney’s openness to homosexuality wonderful. To me it is throwing their values…not just at me….but at my kids.

Of course, I dont have any kids yet.

The next type of endocrine disrupting compounds are the polychlorinated compounds. Some polychlorinated compound examples are: Polychlorinated dibenso-p-dioxins (PCDD), Polychlorinated dibensofurans (PCDF) and Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB’s).

Polychlorinated compounds are ubiquitious pollutants with aromatic structures¹. Polychlorinated compounds are very recalcitrant (difficult to degrade) and are not very soluble. Combustion processes are some of the most important sources of polychlorinated compounds in the environment. Polychlorinated biphenyls were used as industrial chemicals such as dielectric fluids, lubricants, hydraulic fluids, and as additives in sealants, plastics, paints, copying paper, adhesives and casting agents¹.

PCB’s thermal stability and recalcitrance was one of the main reasons for their industrial use…which in turn contrubutes to their effectiveness as environmental pollutants.

Polychlorinated compounds do tend to bioaccumulate in fish and other wildlife, and can enter humans through ingestion.

The EPA says that “PCBs are released into the environment from (1) items that contain PCBs introduced deliberately for their useful chemical properties, (2) inadvertent generation during certain production processes, and (3) storage and disposal facilities” as primary sources.1 PCB’s, now mostly banned were previously used in the production of dielectric fluids for transformers, capacitors, and other electrical components as well as synthetic resins, epoxy paints, protective coatings, and hydraulic and heat transfer fluids³.

1. Analysis and environmental levels of endocrine disrupting compounds in freshwater sediment; Mira Petrovice, Ethel Eljattat, Maria J. Loepez de Alda, Damiae Barcelo; Trend in Analytical Chemistry, vol. 20, no. 11, 2001.

2. Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), Dibenso-p-Dioxins (PCDDs), Dibenzofurans (PCDFs), and Related Compounds: Environmental and Mechanistic Considerations Which Support the Development of Toxic Equivalency Factors (TEFs); Stephen Safe; Critical Reviews in Toxicology, Vol 21, Issue 1, 1990, pages 51-88

3. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (1998). Great Lakes Binational Toxics Strategy Stakeholder Forum. PCB’s Workgroup. http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/bnsdocs/pcbsrce/pcbsrce.html

Have you noticed that on blogs it is commonplace to deride Arabs, Islam, Muslims, etc. in ways that nobody would think about to other ethnic or religious groups? Case in point: in a discussion last month on another blog I expressed my view that the war in Iraq was unjust and would only cause more violence worldwide in the long run over the next decade. Several people, but one in particular, began to argue with me…not so much on the merits of the war, but on the inferiority of Arab culture and people. I was stunned.

Over that past month I have paid attention to various posts on Islam over the web. Some of the comments that were made have floored me, and they are not worth repeating.

As a follower of Jesus I think that it is necessary to stand for positions that are important to me. It is even productive to have ’spirited’ discussions. However, I am really tired of all of the junk that is written about Arabs personally.

Most of the time arabs are charicatured as hate filled, irrational, backwards, and good-for-nothing. After living in the Middle East for several years I can say that large parts of the blogosphere need to reevaluate their stereotypes with reality and to take a good long look at possible seeds of bigotry.

I am not saying that we cant talk about things that we disagree on, but we should not ever ad hominem.

The Golan (pronounced Jolan–except in Egypt) Heights is a small strip of land between Israel, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan that was taken from Syria during the 1967 Six-Days War and occupied ever since. The Golan is a very heart pounding issue for Syrians as the area is part of Syria and as many as 100,000 Syrians have fled the region (now estimated at 600,000 refugees). Not only this, but it is the best farmland in the nation for a country that is mostly agrarian, and the area is militarily very strategic.

Syria has maintained military readiness for Israel continuously since the Six-Days war because Israel’s forces are far superior and because of the Golan’s proximity to Damascus, Syria’s capital. Israel provocatively flies fighter jets over the city every couple months as a sign of military authority, and the armaments at the Golan could level Damascus–a city of five million– within a day.

In 1981 Israel annexed the Golan Heights by extending Israeli civil law over the region continuing their defiance of the United Nations and international order. This move was condemned by the international community, and the Golan is recognized as part of Israel by no country of the world. The United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 calls the Golan, “an Israeli occupied territory.”

In June of 2007 Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert sent a secret message to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad stating that Israel was prepared to cede the Golan in exchange for peace. This is a similar move to the 1999 peace talks which would have given the Golan back as well. The negotiations were nearly completed, however failed on the western border position regarding access to the Sea of Galilee.

The Sea of Galilee is an important source of water for Israel. However, the entire Sea is not part of the nation of Israel. The United Nations resolutions 242 and 338 call for Israel to withdraw from occupied Arab territories. Despite the resolution Israel defiantly continues its war of attrition. A greater degree of peace could have been brought to the region decades ago if Israel would cease its aggresive militarism.

It is time for the International Community to deal fairly in peace talks between Israel and its neighbors. The Golan is part of Syria, and giving it back could help bring a lasting peace to the area and some much needed evenhandedness in international politics to the Middle East.

Ok, So I was encouraged the other day by a comment on my blog to stop being so negative about chemicals. I must admit that I was a little bit confused. My blog is primarily about contaminant remediation…which is what I study in school. I guess that sounds negative?

Anyway, the point is well taken. So, I started thinking about the word, ‘Chemical.’ What does the word, ‘chemical’ mean to most people? I realized that it has a somewhat negative connotation. At least I think it does. People seem to think that when something is called a chemical that means it is harmful. So, I looked up the definition on google (where else would I?). This is what I found:

1. A substance with a distinct molecular composition that is produced by or used in a chemical process.
2. A drug, especially an illicit or addictive one.
3. adj. relating to, involving, or denoting the use of poison gas or other chemicals as weapons of war: the manufacture of chemical weapons.

The third definition is from the U.S. Military dictionary (I didnt know we needed one). Besides being slightly weird and disturbing this didnt shed much light. Then I ran into a pop up (or maybe it ran into me) that had a picture of a cute dog and it said, “He has 35 chemicals inside him. How many do you have?” The chemist in me started thinking…well counting all the different organic species I would say….some millions.

Wait?!!?!? The dog only has 35 chemicals inside him? That must be like an amoeba dog or something. How can he live if he only has 35 chemicals? Then I realized that they meant the dog has 35 harmful chemical species.

Anyway, enough nerd stuff. I think I am starting to realize that the word chemical is synonymous with ‘harmful’ most of the time. I think part of my posts from now on should be devoted to explaining has chemical species can sometimes be good and sometimes be bad, but most of the time they are neither. They just are.