FEBRUARY 2021 TIP
TALKS NEWSLETTER
FEBRUARY 2021 TIP TALKS NEWSLETTER
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IN THIS ISSUE *
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**LIB TALKS: Consumer Reports Awareness of PFA Risks, Life These Days is a Mixed Bag - & Confusion Reigns, Comment on EMF Concerns, TIP Related Suggestions & Support ** RHODE ISLAND CONCERNS/ACTIONS: Urgent: Protect Our Families From Harmful PFAS, Object to Burning of Medical Waste **RHODE ISLAND RESOURCES OF THE MONTH: RI for Safe Technology & 5G Free RI ** ACTIONS IN THE MAINSTREAM: Tell The EPA: BAN Chlorpyrifos, Stop USDA From Deregulating GMO Animals! **GOOD NEWS: Rodale Enlists Cargill In Unlikely Alliance To Increase Organic Farmland, Center For Food Safety Victories And Accomplishments ** CONSUMER CONCERNS: Consumer Reports & Alliance for Natural Health re: Risks of “Forever Chemicals (PFAs) & Action to Take” **TIP Position on Health Care Re-Stated, ** BENEFIT TIP: Including At No Cost To You!
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LIB TALKS
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**EVEN CONSUMER REPORTS IS SUPER CONCERNED ABOUT TOXIC CHEMICALS!” See the great article from CR about the terrible risks of PFAS. (And the other info and action item re: these same toxins - from the Alliance for Natural Health)
**LIFE THESE DAYS IS A MIXED BAG - AND CONFUSION REIGNS. As you can see from this issue of TIP Talks and the previous few, we are struggling to understand and to cope with not only the usual toxic concerns, but the various aspects of dealing with the Covid mess. (See our statement about TIP’s position on medical matters at the bottom of this TT.) One point that I believe can’t be rejected – supporting our immune systems by any means, whether by avoiding toxins or utilizing booster supplements, foods, etc. is helpful action. And, fortunately, awareness of and resistance to the toxic chemicals, pesticides and other nasty exposures is growing. See the Good News in this issue. The Center for Food Safety is especially encouraging with their list of accomplishments over the past year.
**COMMENT ON EMF CONCERNS: These continue to be very important,and there is evidence of possible connections with Covid, but we were not able to include discussion of such this month. Other items were more time-sensitive. You are urged to access the several contacts mentioned in this month’s Resources of the Month (Not just for Rhode Island)
**TIP RELATED SUGGESTIONS & SUPPORT: We would really like to hear from TIP TALKS readers about their own experiences with toxins in daily life & healthier alternatives. Also, many of our usual website advertisers are dealing with COVID and we have not asked them for payments until they feel they can afford that. So, assistance from anyone who appreciates our work is especially welcomed! See ways to help at the bottom of this TIP TALKS including one at no cost to you. Blessings Now, In the Year Ahead, & Many More, Liberty G
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RHODE ISLAND RESOURCES OF THE MONTH
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Rhode Islanders for Safe Technology, Stephen Dahl, E-Mail: Stephen70@cox.net Website: https://www.facebook.com/RhodeIslandersforSafeTechnology/ 5G FREE RI: Sheila Resseger E-Mail: 5gfreeri@gmail.com Websites: https://5gfreeri.com/?page_id=243 and 5G Free ri on Facebook
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RHODE ISLAND CONCERNS/ACTIONS OF THE MONTH
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URGENT: PROTECT OUR FAMILIES FROM HARMFUL PFAS CHEMICALS (From Clean Water Action) You’ve been hearing from us for years about the dangers of PFAS and why it's so important that our Rhode Island legislators enact policies to remove these chemicals from our food packaging. We finally have the opportunity to get a PFAS bill (HB5356) over the finish line, but your representatives need to hear from you. Please contact them today and ask that they support HB5356 and protect our health . https://mail.yahoo.com/d/folders/135?guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9sb2dpbi55YWhvby5jb20v&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAKiz-tYEHcq3Ud9kScufUMz8pZlTbjwG_Xxbw_cbgb0l6DLE5L21pQIpz9KmR774NOcIYsOqKACu4Rp3rP0CjrWJdByKCpclqRlfwz-igZcgsbsWzcyADatQZcid1on6vbUxDjzt2FgBR6N2PuyRzZsDsng8izuYaWbmdaZOYJke
**IMPORTANT & TIME-SENSITIVE RI ACTION: BURNING MEDICAL WASTE IS A TOXIC BUSINESS
Rhode Island Should Not Be New England’s Dumping Ground for Medical Waste
Jun 16, 2020 Kevin Budr
https://www.clf.org/blog/burning-medical-waste-dangers/
"Just off I-95 in West Warwick, Rhode Island, stands MedRecycler, a company that is aiming to build and run facilities for burning medical waste. The company is targeting an industrial park in its own hometown as a location to build one of these facilities. Its goal? To import and burn up to 70 tons of New England’s medical waste per day. MedRecycler labels itself and its high-heat technology, called pyrolysis, as environmentally friendly. But burning waste of any kind is far from safe for the environment, let alone the people living in neighboring communities. In fact, medical waste incinerators emit some of the most dangerous pollutants known to humankind, and the proposed facility in West Warwick would be no different. Two more recent articles about this concern are at:
https://www.ecori.org/composting/2021/2/16/opposition-growing-against-medical-waste-facility
CALL TO ACTION: A DEM public comment meeting is scheduled for March 15 at 4 p.m. on Zoom. The event is a listening session and questions will not be answered. Written comments can be submitted until April 14 to Yan Li at yan.Li@dem.ri.gov.
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ACTIONS IN THE MAINSTREAM
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TELL THE EPA: BAN CHLORPYRIFOS! (Banned in the EU, California and Hawaii) The EPA is asking to hear from the public on brain-damaging chlorpyrifos, but we only have until March 7 to make our voices heard. Chlorpyrifos was scheduled to be banned under the Obama-Biden administration, but the Trump EPA cancelled the ban, allowing this neurotoxic pesticide to continue contaminating our food and water. We need to make sure the incoming Biden-Harris administration makes our health a priority and finally BANS chlorpyrifos. Join EWG today and urge the EPA to BAN brain-damaging chlorpyrifos! https://act.ewg.org/a/epa-ban-chlorpyrifos?sourceid=1020160&emci=3a7882ba-fa76-eb11-9889-00155d43c992&emdi=0cfa5204-5178-eb11-85aa-00155d43c992&ceid=328398
STOP USDA FROM DEREGULATING GMO ANIMALS! As a final favor to industrial meat companies, Trump's USDA proposed approving all new methods of producing genetically engineered animals without reviewing the impacts. USDA would not even require companies to show the entire genomic sequence of the animal before approving them. The many GE pigs and cows waiting for review would just get automatically approved! Add your name to oppose USDA's new plan to approve all new genetically engineered animals! https://secure.everyaction.com/trA16Z58DUaOXyzzhystSA2?emci=a7ebf5a8-1b76-eb11-9889-00155d43c992&emdi=e06f116c-1d76-eb11-9889-00155d43c992&ceid=1290212
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GOOD NEWS
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RODALE ENLISTS CARGILL IN UNLIKELY ALLIANCE TO INCREASE ORGANIC FARMLAND
By Lisa Held February 9, 2021
Rodale Institute—one of America’s most renowned organic institutes—announced today it will help transition more than 50,000 acres of farmland to organic production by forming an unlikely alliance with Cargill, the largest privately owned agribusiness company in the country, and chicken producer Bell & Evans. The project is called the U.S. Organic Grain Initiative, and it’s designed to help more farmers adopt organic practices and fill a gap in domestic organic animal feed. While organic product sales have more than doubled over the past decade to hit $55 billion in 2019, certified organic cropland has not kept pace. Looking at cropland alone, organic production accounts for just one-half of 1 percent of all U.S. acres. See more at: https://civileats.com/2021/02/09/rodale-enlists-cargill-in-unlikely-alliance-to-increase-organic-farmland/?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=c7a45983-ac2b-4631-8063-be016d2b56c8
CENTER FOR FOOD SAFETY VICTORIES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS www.centerforfoodsafety.org/victories?emci=b037ebee-9c56-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&emdi=f98d9608-3a57-eb11-a607-00155d43c992&ceid=1290212 For twenty years, CFS has been at the forefront of organizing a powerful food movement that is fighting the industrial model and promoting organic, ecological, and sustainable alternatives. Here are some of the groundbreaking victories and accomplishments that we have achieved, together in 2020!
Stopping GMO Foods and Pesticides Victory! Stopping GMO salmon: Victory! Stopped a Monsanto pesticide: New lawsuit to save GMO food labeling New lawsuits to stop glyphosate and atrazine Fighting 2,4-D "Agent Orange" Crops. Stopping Other Toxic Pesticides & Protecting Endangered Species Victory for Monarch Butterflies! Victory! Stopped the toxic pesticide sulfoxaflor Huge win for the bees. Protecting our children from toxic pesticides OTHER ACTIONS BY CFS: Stopping Factory Farms Stopping Polluting "Factory Farms of the Sea" Promoting Regenerative Agriculture
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CONSUMER CONCERNS & ACTIONS
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I TESTED MY BLOOD, TAP WATER, HOUSEHOLD PRODUCTS, & CAT FOR PFAS. HERE’S WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT THE RISKS POSED BY THESE TOXIC ‘FOREVER CHEMICALS’
Consumer Reports Article: February 23, 2021
By Tom Perkins for Type Investigations
After spending several months reporting on the PFAS crisis, an alarming realization hit—\ taco night might be poisoning me. I learned that the type of nonstick pans that I used to fry the fish usually contain the toxic chemicals, also called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. Research alerted me to their use in some types of parchment paper used to roll tortillas, while the aluminum foil in which I wrapped leftovers raised a red flag with its “nonstick” label. For dessert, I purchased cookies that a local bakery packed in the type of paper bags sometimes treated with PFAS, and the chemicals may have been in my tap water and fish.
But PFAS, dubbed “forever chemicals” because they don’t naturally break down, aren’t only lurking in the kitchen. The synthetic compounds are often used to make thousands of everyday products water-, stain-, and grease-resistant, and they’re popular with manufacturers across dozens of industries because they’re so effective. That’s a problem because the class of around 4,700 compounds is linked to serious health problems including cancer, heart disease, birth defects, liver disease, and decreased immunity. SEE MORE OF THIS STORY AT: www.consumerreports.org/toxic-chemicals-substances/i-tested-my-blood-tap-water-household-products-and-cat-for-pfas-toxic-forever-chemicals/?EXTKEY=NWT12TSD4&utm_source=acxiom&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20210226_nsltr_whatsnew_newsletter
ALSO SEE: CHEMICAL MADNESS- EPA SHIRKING DUTIES ON PESTICIDES https://anh-usa.org/chemical-exposure-link-to-covid/ February 4, 2021
The US lags behind other advanced countries in regulating dangerous chemicals, making us more susceptible to COVID and a host of other diseases. Thousands of pesticides, food additives, and cosmetic ingredients that are legal in the US are banned in the European Union, Brazil, and China—which may help explain in some part why Americans have lower life expectancy and higher COVID fatality rate than other comparable nations. The federal government’s deference to the chemical industry is completely unacceptable.
One of the most dramatic examples is PFAS, the so-called “forever chemicals” that do not break down in the environment. We’ve written at length about the EPA’s failure to address the dangers of these chemicals, which contaminate drinking water and are used in Teflon, food packaging, and a host of other products. While the EPA stalls, it has been left to individual states to pass legislation to curb the use of PFAS.
Experts are warning that elevated PFAS levels can increase risk of serious COVID infection. They are also linked to a wide range of other health concerns such as cancer, thyroid disorders, kidney disease, autoimmune problems, liver disease, and more. While the EPA seems to be twiddling their thumbs, European countries have been more active in setting limits on PFAS chemicals and in some cases even banning their use in food packaging. But Americans are exposed to thousands of other chemicals that are banned elsewhere, increasing our toxic burden.
TAKE ACTION: BAN PFAS AND OTHER ENDOCRINE DISRUPTORS Exposures to every day chemicals are making us more susceptible to infection by the COVID-19 virus. Endocrine disrupting chemicals are found in food packaging, cookware, plastics, and many other consumer products. These chemicals are linked to the very diseases that increase our risk of serious COVID-19 infection. Government agencies like the FDA and EPA continue to ignore the clear dangers posed by these chemicals—another example of the cronyism and deference to industry that puts American lives at risk. TAKE ACTION: Write to Congress, the EPA, FDA, telling them to ban endocrine disrupting chemicals. https://secure3.convio.net/aahf/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=3558
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**TIP POSITION ON HEALTH CARE RE-STATED:
In this time of Covid, it is impossible for any organization or person not to speak of the health concerns and responses with which we are dealing. I need to make this very clear – TIP does not endorse any medical treatment or drug, nor are we “Anti” vaccines or specific treatments. As always, we simply stand for openness and fair consideration of the research and science provided by others. Mainstream sources tend to avoid or minimize info about such toxins as are found in products, pesticides in food, and the dangers of radiation. And they ignore or dismiss natural & affordable health care offerings. So, we believe that, as do other countries, Alternative options for health care should be included in research & reporting, and available as choices. This is especially important because One Size Does Not Fit All.
** TIP IS SMALL, ACTIVE, INFORMATIVE, NEEDY There is a need to update our website, as more and more good information cries to be shared & quick links are the best means. Unlike many organizations, we don’t pester folks with calls for money, but I do ask today that anyone who can contribute any amount, please – this is the time. Donations are tax-deductible.
**BENEFIT TIP WHILE SURFING THE WEB at: www.goodsearch.org (Uses the Y search engine) OR *SHOP ONLINE AT AMAZON SMILE https://smile.amazon.com/ref=smi_ext_ch_14862385_dl?_encoding=UTF8&ein=14-1862385&ref_=smi_chpf_redirect&ref_=smi_ext_ch_14-1862385_cl to select Toxics Information Project (TIP) as your charity to receive a donation. You already probably use Amazon for various purchases, & it costs you nothing to include us in your buying
** BEST OF ALL: Mail a check to TIP at the address below. (We are a tax-deductible organization) Note New P.O. Box Number: Toxics Information Project (TIP) P.O. Box 40572, Providence, RI 02940 Tel. 401-351-9193, E-Mail: liberty@toxicsinfo.org Website: www.toxicsinfo.org Or, make a donation via Pay Pal on our own website, at: http://toxicsinfo.org/support.htm