This past
month the Pacific Northwest Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry
(PNW-SETAC) held their annual chapter meeting here in Vancouver. This was an excellent opportunity to learn
about the scientists conducting research and working towards solving
environmental problems here on the west coast of Canada and abroad. Several man-made pollutants (e.g. fire
retardants, pesticides, etc.) were highlighted as particularly troublesome due
to their prevalence in water, air and soil as well as in wildlife.
The number
of man-made chemicals is upwards of 500,000 with many frequently detected in our
environment, and for the majority of these chemicals there is a high degree of
uncertainty regarding their individual and combined effects on the health of humans
and wildlife. We are fighting an
incredibly steep uphill battle in this regard.
It is apparent that we as a society need to take this issue seriously
and urge our governments to do the same.
Between loss of habitat and widespread pollution our wildlife and our
human lives depend on becoming better environmental stewards of this planet,
and we at Isa Mundo aim to be part of the solution not the problem. For more information and to see abstracts
from the 2012 PNW-SETAC regional chapter meeting, please visit their website (www.pnw-setac.org).
