[getsmart-l] Booming Economy? -The Coming Foreclosure Tsunami

[23 Skidoo]

It will take a whole lotta hocus-pocus to get the confidence levels of investors back after the dust settles from this debacle. 
WOW! Some kind of booming economy they brag about eh?
 
Its certain that what's left after the chips fall -if we make it thru the storm -will not at all be recognizable...
 
Film at 11:00
***
The Nation - Nov 13, 2007 ("Web only") http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071126/hayes 
The Coming Foreclosure Tsunami 
by Christopher Hayes 
Unlike most hearings on the Hill, last week's meeting of the Joint Economic Committee actually got more interesting the longer it went on. While the first half-hour featured Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke offering his modest, softly downbeat but not panicked predictions about how the unfolding subprime mess would affect the broader economy, the last hour provided an opportunity to hear committee members give their own often eccentric diagnoses and predictions. 
Kansas Republican Senator Sam Brownback opined that tax cuts, shockingly, were probably the best way to deal with the current crisis. New Hampshire Republican Senator John Sununu spent much of his allotted time pointing out that he'd done a better job of predicting future trends of housing inventories in March than the chairman. "I was right," he told Bernanke with a smirk, "and you were wrong." ("Well, Senator, you were right and I was wrong," Bernanke intoned back into the mic with a deadpan expression that basically said, "Satisfied, dick?") And Senator Robert Bennett, a Republican from Utah, offered a refreshingly honest articulation of the conservative view of the unfolding debacle: "Markets make better decisions than governments do, and the market will punish, the market will reward and the market will ultimately stabilize. For the market is a just and wrathful God!" (OK, I made up that last sentence.) 
But amid the grandstanding, Maryland Congressman Elijah Cummings injected some welcome perspective. "Many members of Congress now, Chairman, are holding forums in their districts, as I will be doing very shortly, to help people who are coming to our doors literally with tears in their eyes and trying to figure out how they're going to manage a foreclosure that's right around the corner.... It seems like you have painted a very rosy picture, but if you came and walked through my district, I think people would be very...surprised that you seem so calm." 
Bernanke was defensive: "Congressman, first, I don't know how you got the impression that I was unconcerned about foreclosures." 
"I didn't say you were unconcerned," Cummings shot back. "I just said you seem to be pretty calm about it." Foreclosures in Maryland were up more than 400 percent in the third quarter, compared with the first. Minority homeowners, like those in Cummings's inner-city Baltimore district, are getting hit particularly hard. "I know that so often what happens is that when we're making decisions in the suites, we forget about the people who actually have to go through this," Cummings said. But "we're becoming a bit alarmed." 
In past financial implosions, of S&Ls in the '80s or Long Term Capital Management in the '90s, it was easy to name the villains but far trickier to find the victims. Not so here. They're everywhere, not just in inner-city Baltimore. There are subdivisions in the exurbs that are beginning to resemble ghost towns. 
So what is to be done? The long-term challenge is to regulate an industry that, left to its own devices, seems to have eaten its young. Last week the Mortgage Reform and Anti Predatory Lending Act of 2007 passed out of Barney Frank's House Financial Services Committee with the support of nine Republicans. It's far from perfect, but it represents a small step in the right direction. The mortgage industry is fighting it tooth and nail. 
The more immediate issue, though, is what to do about the millions of people who live in homes that are in danger of going under in the coming tidal wave of foreclosure. North Carolina Democratic Representative Brad Miller has proposed one common-sense solution. He has sponsored a bill that would allow bankruptcy judges to amend the terms of home mortgages. As the law currently stands, the terms of a mortgage on a yacht or a vacation home can be adjusted during bankruptcy, but the primary residence is off-limits. "This makes no sense," said Eric Stein of the Center for Responsible Lending in testimony before the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law. "The current bankruptcy law deprives mostly low-wealth and middle-class families of protections available to all other debtors and grants lenders on home mortgages a special protection not available to any other type of lender." 
Correcting this quirk of bankruptcy law seems like the kind of fairly straightforward modification you might want your Democratic Congress to make in the midst of a massively disruptive financial crisis. But if you've been following the Democratic Congress, you've probably already predicted that some in the caucus are circling the wagons to defend the mortgage industry. A few weeks ago, sixteen "Blue Dog" Democrats from conservative districts sent a letter to House Judiciary Committee chairman John Conyers, asking him to delay considering Miller's bill because it might undermine the provisions of the bankruptcy bill that President Bush signed into law in 2005. That bill, which made it harder for the broke and desperate to declare bankruptcy, stands as one of the most egregious examples of legislative malpractice of the last five years. 
"Guns are one thing," wrote blogger Matt Stoller on OpenLeft in response to the letter, "but there is no strong grassroots movement in conservative districts on behalf of big banks. These people are simply whores for credit card companies and banking interests building profitable de facto debtors prisons." 
If the Blue Dogs think that standing with lenders against borrowers makes for good politics or good policy, perhaps they should go take a walk through Representative Cummings's district.                                  * ALL OF THE POWER TO ALL OF THE PEOPLE! Film at 11:00***> From: getsmart-l-request at list.web.net> Subject: getsmart-l Digest, Vol 37, Issue 13> To: getsmart-l at list.web.net> Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2007 10:23:28 -0500> > Send getsmart-l mailing list submissions to> getsmart-l at list.web.net> > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit> http://list.web.net/lists/listinfo/getsmart-l> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to> getsmart-l-request at list.web.net> > You can reach the person managing the list at> getsmart-l-owner at list.web.net> > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific> than "Re: Contents of getsmart-l digest..."> > > Today's Topics:> > 1. East Gwillimbury Mayor fells trees on Sharon Temple site> (Janet May)> 2. Invitation to a talk by Daniel Lerch, author of Post Carbon> Cities (Rose Kudlac)> 3. Fw: Newsletter from Ontario Farmland Trust (John O'Gorman)> 4. Bees near cropland fall short in honey production keeper says> (23 Skidoo)> 5. Impact of the built environment on human health (Janet May)> > > ----------------------------------------------------------------------> > Message: 1> Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 12:06:31 -0500> From: "Janet May" <janet at smartgrowth.on.ca>> Subject: [getsmart-l] East Gwillimbury Mayor fells trees on Sharon> Temple site> To: <getsmart-l at list.web.net>> Message-ID: <200711131704.lADH4dol072144 at smtp0.beanfield.net>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"> > East Gwillimbury launches inquiry into felled trees > > > > East Gwillimbury > > Nov 12, 2007 04:32 PM > > > By: Teresa Latchford, Staff Writer > > The Town of East Gwillimbury has launched a public inquiry into what council> has now dubbed "the Sharon Temple tree-cutting incident".> > The move comes after a private meeting today to deal with the Oct. 24> incident in which Mayor James Young, equipped with a hard hat and safety> goggles, fired up a chainsaw and felled 75 trees on the historic Sharon> Temple site without permission from the temple board of directors, Ontario> Heritage Trust - an organization that protects the landscape of historical> property - and despite the fact town staff advised against the move. > > The chainsaw-wielding mayor was accompanied by Councillor Marlene Johnston> and a crew of town workers.> > No other councillors were aware Mr. Young was going to clearcut a path> between the two properties, Councillor Jack Hauseman said last week.> > While an official release outlining the town's next steps will be issued> later today, George Rust-D'Eye, an expert in municipal law, has been> obtained to provide legal services for the town, yorkregion.com was told.> > Stephen Heckbert of Thornley Fallis will help develop a communication> strategy on behalf of council and assist in reviewing what happened.> > The town has also hired Bruce Tree Experts as arborists to provide an> assessment of the damage and Mike Dale of Ultimate Protection will> investigate a specific, yet unknown, health and safety issue.> > A request that individual costs of the above services be tracked and> accounted by the treasurer was also carried.> > Mr. Young and Councillor Johnston were not in attendance during the> in-camera discussions.> > "We (council) decided last Monday to conduct a review and, until it is> complete, it is imperative that I do not comment," Ms Johnston said. "The> review has not yet included me or my information. I have not been asked."> > The incident, which has garnered national attention, has angered and> confused residents, some of whom are calling for legal action.> > Council and staff have also passed a resolution that the review and reports> produced during the inquiry are made public, in an effort to make the> process transparent to the public.> > Details of the in-camera session will be released tomorrow morning in the> form of an official statement.> > > > > -------------- next part --------------> An HTML attachment was scrubbed...> URL: http://list.web.net/archives/getsmart-l/attachments/20071113/59e12846/attachment-0001.htm > > ------------------------------> > Message: 2> Date: Tue, 13 Nov 2007 17:35:34 -0500> From: "Rose Kudlac" <rose.kudlac at sympatico.ca>> Subject: [getsmart-l] Invitation to a talk by Daniel Lerch, author of> Post Carbon Cities> To: <getsmart-l at list.web.net>, <getsmart-l-request at list.web.net>> Message-ID: <005601c82645$81a6a480$6401a8c0 at your8545fb4e07>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"> > Invitation to a talk by Daniel Lerch, author of Post Carbon Cities> > > > Wednesday November 14, 7:30 - 9:30> > Metro Hall> > 55 John Street, Room 304> > Toronto, ON M5V 3C6 > > > > > > Is Toronto Prepared for Global Warming and Peak Oil?> > >What will happen to the local economy when oil reaches $150 a barrel?> > >How will global warming affect the water supply?> > >How should we plan for transportation, land use, and public safety while> facing huge uncertainties about energy and climate?> > > > > > Post Carbon Cities: Planning for Energy and Climate Uncertainty is a> guidebook on peak oil <http://www.energybulletin.net/primer.php> and global> warming for people who work with and for local governments in the United> States and Canada. It provides a sober look at how these phenomena are> quickly creating new uncertainties and vulnerabilities for cities of all> sizes, and explains what local decision-makers can do to address these> challenges.> > Post Carbon Cities fills an important gap in the resources currently> available to local government decision-makers on planning for the changing> global energy and climate context of the 21st century.> > > > "How will we cope with a future of energy scarcity? As a policy maker I look> to other communities for inspiration and ideas, but there's been a lack of> information on what local governments are doing to adapt to Peak Oil. Post> Carbon Cities fills this gap: herein lies the roadmap plotted by the cities> that are leading the way. Enthusiastically recommended!" > -- City Council President Dave Rollo, Bloomington, Indiana> > "Post Carbon Cities will be very helpful to people involved in> transportation and land use planning as they attempt to re-think land use> patterns and the movement of people and goods for the economic,> environmental and social well being of the planet. The timing could not be> more critical!"> > -- Alan Falleri, Community Development Director, Willits, California> > > > See www.postcarboncities.net <http://www.postcarboncities.net/> > > > > -------------- next part --------------> An HTML attachment was scrubbed...> URL: http://list.web.net/archives/getsmart-l/attachments/20071113/c45e658e/attachment.htm > > ------------------------------> > Message: 3> Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2007 00:26:23 -0500> From: "John O'Gorman" <jcogorman at sympatico.ca>> Subject: [getsmart-l] Fw: Newsletter from Ontario Farmland Trust> To: <getsmart-l at list.web.net>> Message-ID: <224c01c8267e$ead7dfd0$6500a8c0 at johndrxrkrab4o>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"> > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: I Lee > To: jcogorman at sympatico.ca > Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2007 9:15 PM> Subject: Newsletter from Ontario Farmland Trust> > > > Farmland Preservation News > > > The Newsletter of the Ontario Farmland Trust November 2007 > In this Issue: > What We've Been Up To > Outlook: The Role of Land Trusts in Protecting Private Land > OFT Volunteers > Ontario Farmland Trust Annual General Meeting > Pumpkin Harvest > Commentary: The Tension between Farmland Preservation and Development > > > > What We've Been Up To> > > > > Since our last newsletter, the Ontario Farmland Trust has been hard at work! On the land securement side, we've been working to secure some of Ontario's best farmland in Ontario, including properties in Brant County, Goderich and Wellington. While nothing has been done finalized yet, we hope to protecting some of these farms with easements in the near future. > > > > We're also still diligently working on getting a fiscal incentive program for donations of agricultural land. We are currently proposing the establishment of an Agricultural Gifts program, much like the very successful Ecological Gifts Program for ecologically sensitive land. For more information on Ecological Gifts Program visit:http://www.cws-scf.ec.gc.ca/egp-pde/> > > > On the education side, we've recently obtained a three year grant from the George Cedric Metcalf Charitable Foundation to work on a project titled "Places to Grow Food". The goal of this project, arising in part as our response to the recent "Places to Grow Act", develop a blueprint for how and where Ontario is going to grow its food. > > > > The OFT has been out and about in the community spreading the message of farmland preservation. We have had a display in the Agricultural Awareness tent at the Fergus Fall fair on September 15 - 16, 2007 and at the International Plowing Match that took place in Crosby, Ontario from September 18 - 22, 2007. At each of these events, we spoke to a wide range of people who were passionate about farmland preservation. It was also a lot of fun as there were many interesting displays and exhibitions. We plan to be at more conferences in the fall and spring so look for us there!> > > > Photo: Alan Northsworthy> > Outlook: The Role of Land Trusts in Protecting Private Land> > By Rodger Cummins> > > The vast majority of arable land in Ontario is in private hands. Responsibility for the stewardship of the important assets on the land, like the soil, water, woodlots streams and wildlife habitats is in the hands of its private owners. > > > Many farmland owners are concerned about the steady disappearance of farmland and natural habitat. They know that a time will come when society will sorely miss these assets that are disappearing the world over in the face of growing populations that have wealth and appetites for richer foods. Older landowners who have seen vast areas of prime land in the best climate zones built upon in their life time are understandably skeptical about the ability of planning and zoning laws to do more than slow down the relentless encroachment. The mantra, "you can't stop progress" is part of our culture and bulldozes everything in its path. For the time being, growing things to eat is not considered "progress". Wiser heads know this will not always be the case. > > > > Do landowners stand helplessly by or are there things they can do? The Ontario Farmland Trust and its sister land trusts have been established as private charitable organizations that can accept these lands or limited interests in land as donations and ensure that the lands continue to be owned and used for the purposes the owners want the land to be used for in perpetuity. Recent amendments to provincial land law have introduced Conservation Agreements whereby a designated piece of land continues to be held in private ownership but the landowner and the Trust agree that the land can never be subdivided as well as any other terms about the land that they wish. These terms are written into the Conservation Agreement, which is then registered on title to bind future owners. These agreements qualify as receiptable charitable donations under the Income Tax Act. Some donations qualify for enhanced income tax benefits under the Ecological Gifts program administered by Environment Canada. > > > > The Land and Fundraising Committee of the Trust are currently in negotiations with a number of farmland owners in various parts of the province to put Conservation Agreements in place. A prototype agreement has been prepared. Members of committee review the prototype with the owners who have expressed interest in participating in this program. If the owner decides to proceed, the landowner and the Trust begin the process of drafting an agreement tailored to the owner's particular property. The owners must have their own independent legal and financial advice in the drafting process. > > > > Each property is unique. The owner and Trust identify the special features of the property and work out a set of restrictions that the owner wishes to place on the future use of the land. There are certain essential restrictions that the Trust demands to participate in such an agreement such as forbidding subdivision of the land and removing soil from the land. If satisfactory progress is made, experts like ecologists, surveyors, appraisers and lawyers are brought in to ensure that documentation is properly drawn. Once all the steps have been taken, the agreement is registered on title. The Trust then becomes responsible for monitoring compliance with these restrictions on into the future, ensuring that the special places that sustain us are protected for future generations to enjoy. > > > > Ontario Farmland Trust Volunteer Program> > In the past few months, the beginnings of a volunteers program has been established at the Ontario Farmland Trust. Many enthusiastic and skilled people have expressed their interest in volunteering, and the program is slowly growing. Some of the accomplishments made by our volunteers include:> > > > (i) Alan Northsworthy has taken many beautiful photographs of our rural countryside that will be used in our promotional material> > > > (ii) Roli Wilhelm has been documenting the farms in Wellington region that are found just outside the urban zone (and thus the most susceptible to development)> > > > (iii) Matt Kochan has been archiving articles on farmland from some of the national newspapers> > > > (iv) Tristan Dineen has written a short article on the importance of farmland preservation (an excerpt of which can be found below)> > > > (v) Angela Schinas has helped edit a Citizens' Guide to Farmland Preservation> > > (vi) Nikki Hammond for helping edit this newsletter.> > > Many of our other volunteers are working on many interesting projects. If you would like to volunteer with the Ontario Farmland Trust, contact Ivan Lee at 519-824-4120 x. 58382, or farmland at uoguelph.ca> > > Attention: Ontario Farmland Trust Annual General Meeting> > The Ontario Farmland Trust will be holding it's Annual General Meeting on Wednesday November 28, 2007 from 10:00 am - 11:00 am in the Board Room at the Arboretum Centre in Guelph, Ontario. All members are welcome, please contact us if you have any questions. > > 519-824-4120 x. 52686> farmland at uoguelph.ca> > A Harvest Photo> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Hundreds of glowing orange pumpkins sit ready for a Halloween harvest on the Crinklaw farm in the south end of London. The family planted a one acre plot of pumpkins this year in an effort to diversify the produce available at their sugar house this fall, where they also sell their maple syrup and other maple products. The large number and high quality of fruit produced on the vines this year translates into a successful first attempt, which will likely see the farm continue to experiment in other ways to capitalize on their near-urban location. The readily accessible urban population creates a market for fresh farm produce, but also brings with it issues such as trespass and theft, which the Crinklaw's note their pumpkin and sweet corn fields were not immune to this year.> > Photo and Text: Drew Crinklaw > > Commentary> Title: The Tension between Farmland Preservation and Development> > > > By Rick DeGraaf > > > > The topic of farmland preservation creates a tension in most farmers. And it's a tension that should be there! It's a tension that drives us to greater scrutiny and higher levels of land stewardship.> > > > Consider what has happened in the Niagara fruitbelt where I grew up. I can recall fields of fruit trees that I used to help harvest around Fruitland and Winona - but now they're all gone! And it's all for highway expansion and more buildings. That kind of development stands in contrast to the more marginal, neglected farm land just a few kilometers south on the escarpment. > > > > Recently, we were asked by the 'Stop the 424' highway protest group to allow it to put up a large sign at the frontage of our farm property. At stake is land that is now being farmed or is ecologically sensitive land that is part of the Grand River basin. At issue is the route that the proposed Highway 424 will finally take from Brantford to Highway 401 northeast of Cambridge. Several variations are proposed. However, the favoured one is the one that impacts the most farmland!> > > > Why is it that farmland seems to lose out time and time again? Several reasons come to mind - reasons that farm organizations like the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario are eager help Canadians understand:> > > > ? Farmland is easy to develop> > ? Farmland is cheap compared to the alternatives> > ? There are fewer people to deal with for the same area of land> > ? Weak competition: farm profits per acre just can't compete and cover all the costs> > ? Farmers are getting old and leaving - more sell out each year and few are coming in> > ? The public appreciation for farms is in decline: the ecologists carry more sway - sensitive land gets protected before Class 1 farmland> > ? Weak farm connections: the urban-rural connection is disconnecting> > ? Decline of the family farm and rural population > > ? Fewer and bigger industrial type farming operations> > > > Farmland needs a stronger voice. Each acre taken out of farm production is another acre of land that no longer takes in carbon dioxide and generates oxygen. More intensive agriculture and forestry needs to happen to counter the rise in carbon dioxide today.> > > > What about the sign? As you approach Cambridge - you'll see it. We're not opposed to development of Highway 424. We favour a route that makes only a marginal impact on farmland and makes better use of existing roadways to handle the growth of our community. More can also be done to increase mass transit in our area which will also be encouraged if we continue to direct the developers and planners to think of more 'land stewardly' alternatives. > > > > The tension over farmland development should stay - it's healthy and makes everyone think! > > > > I'm Rick DeGraaf for the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario and the Ontario Farmland Trust.> > > > > > Rick DeGraaf is a director on the Board of the Ontario Farmland Trust, the Executive Board of the Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario and a chicken producer. The preceding article appeared in the Ontario Farmer on August 14, 2007.> > > > > Meet the Board> > The Board of Directors of the Ontario Farmland Trust consists of a group of very dedicated and knowledgeable people from a variety of backgrounds. Our current Board members are:> a.. Chair: Stew Hilts > Professor at the University of Guelph > b.. Vice Chair: Nancy Walther> Farmer, Oxford Countyand Ontario Federation of Agriculture Representative> c.. Harry Brander > Farmer, Ontario Federation of Agriculture> Representative> d.. Dan Breen> Dairy farmer - Putnam > e.. Drew Crinklaw> Farmer; Rural Planner at OMAFRA> f.. Rodger Cummins> Farmland owner, Retired civil servant > g.. Bruce Flattery> Professor at York University> h.. Rick DeGraaf Christian Farmers Federation of Ontario> i.. Mark Juhasz> Ph.D. student - University of Guelph > j.. Elbert van Donkersgoed > Executive Director, GTA Agricultural Action Plan Committee > k.. Bronwynne Wilton> Ph.D. (ABD) - University of Guelph> > > > Photo: Alan Northsworthy> > > Metcalf Intern Report > By Ivan Lee> > Hi, so it's already October, and my one year internship is almost up! It's hard to believe how fast the year has gone by. Since my last update in the May 2007 newsletter several things have happened. Most of my work has been centred around establishing a volunteer program at OFT. This was a challenging endeavor, but in the end it was relatively successful and, on a personal note, rewarding - OFT now has a list of skilled and willing volunteers.> > > > Some of the other tasks that I have been working on include helping run the day to day operation of OFT, assisting with land securement work, organising the membership and doing some public outreach. While working on all of these things has been hectic at times, overall I'm grateful for my experience working at OFT. It has been a fun place to work, with great people and I've learned a lot about farmland conservation and the running of an environmental non-governmental organization.> > > Read about Farmland Preservation!> > An excellent book to read if you wish to learn more about farmland preservation, is Farmland Preservation - Land for Future Generations. This book is a reader on issues and challenges related to farmland preservation and is edited by two Board members of the Ontario Farmland Trust, Dr. Stew Hilts and Bronwynne Wilton, along with Dr. Wayne Caldwell. Topics covered in this book include general overview of farmland preservation along with definitions of popular approaches; perspectives from different provinces in Canada; perspectives on issues and approaches in the United States; and global perspectives from Australia and the United Kingdom.> > > Click here to order your copy today! > > Donations, Memberships and Volunteering> > There are a number of wasy to help out the Ontario Farmland Trust (OFT). > > First you can make a charitable donation that will help support our work. Your cash donations will help support our efforts to preserve Canada's best farmland. We also accept donations of land or easements (which allow you to protect your farm while you still own your land and have the right to sell it). In most instances donors have the opportunity of obtaining significant tax benefits.> > Second, you can buy a membership with the Ontario Farmland Trust. Your membership fees will go a long way to helping the OFT achieve its goals. Membership categories:> (i) Individual/Family - $50 per year> (ii) Non profit organization - $250 per year> (iii) Corporate - $500 per year> > Third, you can volunteer at the OFT. There are numerous exiting position just waiting for the right volunteer.> > If you are interested in learning more about how you can support our work please contact the Ontario Farmland Trust at farmland at uoguelph.ca or 519-824-4120 x. 52686. > > > The Importance of Farmland Preservation> > Below is an excerpt of the article written by Tristan Dineen on the importance of preserving farmland: > > > With the world's population growing we cannot sacrifice our ability to grow food to feed the masses of humanity... Gwynne Dyer cites the economist Lester Brown as saying that "The stage is now set for direct competition for grain between the 800 million people who own automobiles, and the world's two billion poorest people (Dyer)"... > > > Indeed, farmland preservation is not only important for the obvious reasons of ensuring a reliable food supply and resource management to feed a growing population. Farmland has inherent ecological value beyond its economic value and possesses cultural value as well in that it embodies rural qualities such as "open space, recreation, clean air and water, wildlife, and historical character (Wilton pp 23)." These things are called "local amenities" and define rural areas as distinct - with farmland as a public good and pollution control via the water cycle (Wilton pp 23). This goes hand in hand with the so-called "Agrarian ideal" which holds the farmer as the steward of the land and as the basis of community life (Wilton pp 24).> > > Sources> > > > Dyer, Gwynne, "Cheap food is a thing of the past, and the world's poorest will suffer," Guelph Mercury, Thursday July 12th, 2007.> > > > Wilton, Bronwynne, "Farmland Preservation Perspectives," in Farmland Preservation: Land for Future Generations, Wayne Caldwell, Stew Hilts, Bronwynne Wilton eds. Guelph: Farmland Preservation Research Project, University of Guelph, 2007 pp 13-32.> > > > > The Ontario Farmland Trust is a non-government, non-profit, charitable organization that has been established to work with farmers, rural communities and other interested parties to promote the protection of farmland in the province of Ontario. > > The mission of the Ontario Farmland Trust is to protect and preserve farmlands and the associated agricultural, natural and cultural features of the countryside and to research and educate to further the preservation of these lands for the benefit of current and future generations. > > Contact Info> > Melissa Watkins, Executive Director> Ontario Farmland Trust> Richards Building > University of Guelph> Guelph, ON, Canada> N1G 2W1 > Tel: (519) 824-4120 x52686 > Fax: (519) 824-5730 > farmland at uoguelph.ca > > > Forward email> > This email was sent to jcogorman at sympatico.ca, by farmland at uoguelph.ca> Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribeT | Privacy Policy. Email Marketing by> > > Ontario Farmland Trust | c/o University of Guelph | Richards Building | Guelph | N1G 2W1 | Canada > > > -------------- next part --------------> An HTML attachment was scrubbed...> URL: http://list.web.net/archives/getsmart-l/attachments/20071114/292532fe/attachment.htm > > ------------------------------> > Message: 4> Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2007 10:26:35 -0400> From: 23 Skidoo <twenty-three-skidoo at hotmail.com>> Subject: [getsmart-l] Bees near cropland fall short in honey> production keeper says> To: <getsmart-l at list.web.net>> Message-ID: <BAY136-W113ACD0420531C312B9372B1810 at phx.gbl>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"> > > While most of us are busy consuming and NOT thinking at all about whats going on all around us in our natural environment the REAL sting creeps closer and closer. This information arrives on your computer screen from ground zero - the reliable laypeople and persons most likely to see the results of a civilization guided by a segment of the population gone mad from its own self importance.> > Film at 11:00> ***> > Bees near cropland fall short in honey production keeper says > John McDonald, Special to The Chronicle San Francisco Chronicle, November 10 2007 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/11/10/HOK7SRH5R... > The e-mail response to my article with the headline "Could genetically modified crops be killing honeybees?" was universally positive from laypeople and beekeepers. Most researchers, however, rejected the idea out of hand. > I concluded the article with the suggestion that matching colonies should be sited in farm and non-farm regions in order to determine whether, indeed, agricultural practices were the basis for the die-off. (The new die-off has been virtually instantaneous throughout the country, not spreading at the slower pace of conventional classic diseases.) > When it appeared that others weren't interested in this experiment, I undertook to do my own investigation at my own expense. Because my own bees had died the previous winter, it was necessary to establish new colonies. I established eight colonies in new wooden hives in order to prevent disease transfer from the old hives in case there was a pathogen remaining. > The new colonies arrived late in May because of cold weather at the nursery where they are grown and required the feeding of sugar syrup continually until the hives were in their experimental locations on July 6. Two locations were chosen to fill the need for farm and non-farm sites: one here in Centre County, Pa., in a valley with rolling farmland; the other in Forest County, Pa., adjoining the Allegheny National Forest, an area with no agriculture within foraging range of honeybees. I chose the date of placement to avoid any possible exposure of the bees to Centre County corn pollen. Corn flower tasseling started on July 19. > At both sites the flowers of goldenrod provided ample pasturage, with the honey flow commencing in the middle of August and tapering off by the second week in October. Medium-depth empty honey storage supers (a super is the part of the beehive used to collect honey) were put on the hives at this time in addition to the three brood chambers already there. By the simple expedient of lifting the hives from behind, progress could be roughly monitored. > This monitoring showed that the hives of the farmland bees, while numerous, were not gaining weight. Meanwhile, the non-farm colonies steadily gained weight. This part of the experiment was terminated Oct. 14 with the removal of the honey storage supers, with these results: The farmland bees had not even started to work in the honey supers and will require extensive feeding before winter sets in. The non-farm bee colonies produced, in total, nearly 200 pounds of extra honey in addition to about 150 pounds per hive stored in the overwintering brood supers. These colonies will be left in place to see whether the die-off of last season is repeated. These results should encourage new research to determine what factor or factors are present in farm country to cause such a discrepancy in honey production. > Editor's note Read John McDonald's article "Could genetically modified crops be killing honeybees?" at sfgate.com/ZBMX. The article, which ran in the Home&Garden section March 10, was McDonald's attempt to show that there is enough evidence to warrant investigating the role that genetically modified crops might have played in the large bee die-off observed the previous fall and winter. He also suggests that the role of genetically modified crops be investigated as a possible cause of the collapse. > John McDonald is a beekeeper in Pennsylvania. He welcomes comments or questions about the bee problem at mcbee... at yahoo.com. General comments made be sent to h... at sfchronicle.com. > > This article appeared on page F - 7 of the San Francisco Chronicle> _________________________________________________________________> Express yourself with free Messenger emoticons. Get them today!> http://www.freemessengeremoticons.ca/?icid=EMENCA122> -------------- next part --------------> An HTML attachment was scrubbed...> URL: http://list.web.net/archives/getsmart-l/attachments/20071114/b464ed4a/attachment.htm > > ------------------------------> > Message: 5> Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2007 09:50:32 -0500> From: "Janet May" <janet at smartgrowth.on.ca>> Subject: [getsmart-l] Impact of the built environment on human health> To: <getsmart-l at list.web.net>> Message-ID: <200711141448.lAEEmeLi059852 at smtp0.beanfield.net>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"> > The Simcoe Muskoka Health Unit has just released a report "The Impact of the> Built Environment on the Health of the Population: A Review of the Review> Literature." > > > > I cannot find a link to the report on the Health Unit's website. If you> have difficulties opening the report, send me an email and I will forward it> to you. Janet> > -------------- next part --------------> An HTML attachment was scrubbed...> URL: http://list.web.net/archives/getsmart-l/attachments/20071114/ed18a8b7/attachment.htm > -------------- next part --------------> A non-text attachment was scrubbed...> Name: Microsoft Word - BHC Lit Review - FINAL - 5 Nov 2007 .pdf> Type: application/pdf> Size: 1077493 bytes> Desc: not available> Url : http://list.web.net/archives/getsmart-l/attachments/20071114/ed18a8b7/attachment.pdf > > ------------------------------> > _______________________________________________> getsmart-l mailing list> getsmart-l at list.web.net> http://list.web.net/lists/listinfo/getsmart-l> > > End of getsmart-l Digest, Vol 37, Issue 13> ******************************************
_________________________________________________________________
Express yourself with free Messenger emoticons. Get them today!
http://www.freemessengeremoticons.ca/?icid=EMENCA122
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://list.web.net/archives/getsmart-l/attachments/20071114/37cf419c/attachment.htm