Forwarded by Jane Clark
From:
Defenders of Wildlife
Rural Updates!
June 27, 2003

STUDY LINKS PESTICIDES TO SPERM DEFORMITIES

A study published last week in the online journal "Environmental
Health Perspectives" linked low sperm counts in rural Missouri men
to three pesticides that are widely used in the area.  A study
published in 2002 had revealed that these men had lower sperm
quantity and quality than their urban counterparts.  The research
released this week "confirmed that men with lower sperm counts
and quality had higher concentrations of alachlor, diazinon, and
atrazine metabolites in their urine than men with higher-quality
sperm." A dozen other pesticides tested were not correlated with
lower sperm counts or quality.  Many of the men affected are not
farmers and were not handling the chemicals directly, leading
researches to conclude that exposure to the pesticides is coming
from drinking water.  Groundwater in the area had been previously
shown to be contaminated with the chemicals.  The study did not
look at whether the reduced sperm counts were impacting fertility.
More research is needed in that area, and also to assess the impacts
to women, children, livestock and wildlife.
More information is available at:
http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/press/swan2003.html

NEW BOOK:  FARMING WITH THE WILD

Watershed Media has a great new book out called, "Farming with
the Wild: Enhancing Biodiversity on Farms and Ranches."  Written
by Dan Imhoff, the publication features profiles from more than 20
states and "offers a compelling view of a future in which farming
and ranching operations are integrated into regional networks of
protected wildlands."  With an inspiring foreword by Fred
Kirschenmann, the book explores and highlights pioneers in modern
agriculture; farmers and ranchers striving to foster methods of
agriculture that protect and restore the wildness, and the
wilderness, that is the great America's legacy.  Beautifully
illustrated, the book articulates a new path; one leading from
accepted assumptions that food production and biodiversity cannot
coexist, towards a future where agriculture and biodiversity exist in
mutually-enhancing, mutually profitable systems. With regional
highlights, individual profiles, and even a "getting started" checklist,
the new book is important reading for anyone searching for a truly
sustainable future.  You can order a copy on line at:
http://www.watershedmedia.org/store.html#FWTW.

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