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| Digital representation
of City Farmer cob shed
Picture by Thor Lewis |
Research Gives Tea Drinkers a Boost
Drinking tea can be good for you, according to researchers at Boston’s
Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Previous studies have suggested
that antioxidant chemicals in tea can help ward off stomach and other
types of cancer. Green tea has also been linked to skin-cell rejuvenation.
The new study found that tea boosted the immune system of a group
of tea drinkers by five times. The source of this health benefit can
be traced to the antioxidant L-theanine, which is found in black,
green, oolong and pekoe teas. Head researcher Dr Jack Bukowski said
the results were proof that five cups of tea a day strengthen the
body’s disease defences. A control group of coffee drinkers
was shown to have no such increase in their immune system.
B.C. Flunks Environmental Report Card
With the provincial government adjourned for Summer break, a coalition
of prominent environmental organisations, that includes the Suzuki
Foundation and the Sierra Legal Defence Fund, have rated the BC
Liberals on their environmental policy thus far. The results? Not
pretty. The government was marked down for lowering standards for
pulp mill production, promoting coal-fired power stations, cutting
environmental monitoring and allowing the expansion of salmon farming.
The Liberals did get a qualified tick for moving ahead with a 200
million upgrade to the Hydro Power Project in the West Kootenays,
but the record doesn’t look good for a government that was
claiming "a New Era of environmental management, based on sound
science, cleaner water and sustainable practices" during the
election campaign. View the damage at www.bcfacts.org.
Canada takes EU to Court Over GM Food Ban
Pollsters say nine out of 10 Canadians want mandatory labelling
of food so you can tell whether it has been genetically modified.
Yet, after the federal government abandoned legislation to improve
labelling of food last year, it is now championing the case of the
powerful GM food lobby abroad in a high profile attack on European
Union’s five-year-long moratorium on GM foods. The US, Canada,
and Argentina - producers of 95% of the world’s GMOs - and
ten other nations, have filed a World Trade Organisation (WTO) case
against the EU’s stance. The WTO has no real enforcement power,
although it can authorise higher tariffs against the "transgressor"
nations, but a WTO ruling against the EU may scare poorer countries
into adopting GM crops. Last year, China introduced bio-safety rules
that demanded strict labelling, extensive documentation and government
approval for food and Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique turned down
US GM aid. Greenpeace Canada offers a Shopper’s Guide for
those concerned about GE food. See
Common Reader.
City Farmer Cob Shed will be a First
Vancouver’s City Farmer, set up 25 years ago this year, offers
a wealth of practical information on urban agricultural activities
and energy-saving technologies, offering hands-on information on
composting, grasscycling, natural lawn care, rainbarrelling, and
techniques for making those organic veggies thrive. The pioneering
spirit continues with a week-long workshop (9-15 June) to build
a new garden shed at the centre in Kitsilano made of cob, "the
first cob building in a public space in Canada". Cob, an ancient
building material comprising of clay, sand and straw, uses less
materials and energy than conventional building. Cob is used in
over 50% of houses around the world, from adobe huts in Africa to
centuries-old thatched cottages in Devon, England. "We will
be starting the seed of green building in the core of the city,"
says project-leader John Freeman of ERTH Design Consultants. Participants
on the $400 workshop will learn about building foundations, walls,
wood elements, some plastering and will lay a turf roof and a green
lane to absorb water run-off. Get your hands dirty at www.cityfarmer.org.
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