Arsenic and other toxins in Âu Lạc's (Vietnam) groundwater. - 24 Feb 2011  
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Arsenic and other toxins in Âu Lạc's (Vietnam) groundwater.
A new study published in the US-based Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that 65% of drinking water wells in one region of Âu Lạc are at risk of containing unsafe levels of arsenic and other harmful substances.

Dr. Michael Berg, senior scientist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, co-authored the study which estimates that some seven million people in the southeast Asian country are at risk.

In addition to arsenic, which is toxic and can cause vomiting and anemia as well as cancer of the skin, lungs, bladder and kidneys, about 44% of the wells contained unsafe levels of manganese, with an estimated five million people who might be affected.

Manganese at high concentrations can damage children's intellectual ability. The risk of harmful contamination has increased in recent years due to unsustainable water use combined with climate change effects such as desertification caused by prolonged drought.

Dr. Berg, in cooperation with Hà Nội University of Science and Technology, has created a groundwater map that shows safe water sources, which Aulacese (Vietnamese) officials intend to use as a tool to provide alternate clean water supplies.

Our sincere thanks, Dr. Berg and associates for this revealing study and your work with the Aulacese government to protect the public from such grave contamination-related diseases.

Let us endeavor to live in greater harmony with nature to ensure the health of both humans and the planet. During a December 2010 videoconference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Supreme Master Ching Hai spoke about similar issues of imbalance and encouraged government measures to minimize environmental harm.

Supreme Master Ching Hai : The problem is much of these chemicals or pollutants that run into our water are not colorful, not specially significant so that we can even know what it is, or we can even see what it is.

And even the chemicals or the pollutant or the poison, even mercury for example, that goes into the fish that the people consume, they're colorless, tasteless. So people don't even know what they're eating until they've fallen ill or die.

We need every help right now in this urgent time, to save our planet.

I hope government will guide the agriculture sector to the organic vegan path. for a sustainable future.

And finally, we must change our lifestyle.

We should live more simply, sustaining ourselves on the best diet, and the economy, ecology diet that is organic vegan. And we should also live more contented, not only with money or material possessions, but with spiritual inner strength as well.
http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110117/full/news.2011.20.html?s=news_rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+news%2Frss%2Fmost_recent+%28NatureNews+-+Most+recent+articles%29
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-17/arsenic-poisoned-water-threatens-vietnamese-in-alarming-study.html,
http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/charity-news/high-arsenic-levels-in-drinking-water-from-wells-in-vietnam, http://portal.unesco.org/geography/en/ev.php-URL_ID=8695&URL_DO=DO_PRINTPAGE&URL_SECTION=201.html
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100920074013.htm
http://www.english.rfi.fr/asia-pacific/20110118-quarter-vietnams-drinking-wells-contain-dangerous-levels-arsenic http://www.watertechonline.com/news.asp?N_ID=75635
http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/charity-news/high-arsenic-levels-in-drinking-water-from-wells-in-vietnam http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-17/arsenic-poisoned-water-threatens-vietnamese-in-alarming-
study.html

Extra News
Malaysia launches a first-ever Stability of Altered Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) project on the island of Borneo to evaluate the effects of deforestation and help establish more informed decision-making about the conversion of forests to palm oil plantations.
http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110128/full/news.2011.56.html?s=news_rsshttp://news.mongabay.com/2011/0129-palm_oil_stability_project.html

Tanneries in Bangladesh are discovered to be literally poisonous, with 90% of workers suffering from diseases caused by chemical exposure along with worsening pollution of water supplies and the environment through the continued manufacture of leather.
http://www.ecouterre.com/are-bangladeshs-toxic-leather-tanneries-killing-their-workers/