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This misunderstanding is the “one gene, one protein” hypothesis from 70 years ago, which stated that each gene codes for a single protein. However, the Human Genome project completed in 2002 failed dramatically to identify one gene for every one protein in the human body, forcing researchers to look to epigenetic factors — namely, “factors beyond the control of the gene” – to explain how organisms are formed, and how they work. According to Thierry Vrain, a former research scientist for Agriculture Canada: “Genetic engineering is 40 years old. It is based on the naive understanding of the genome based on the One Gene – one protein hypothesis of 70 years ago, that each gene codes for a single protein. The Human Genome project completed in 2002 showed that this hypothesis is wrong. The whole paradigm of the genetic engineering technology is based on a misunderstanding. Every scientist now learns that any gene can give more than one protein and that inserting a gene anywhere in a plant eventually creates rogue proteins. Some of these proteins are obviously allergenic or toxic.”

In 2009, the American Academy of Environmental Medicine called for a moratorium on genetically modified foods, and said that long-term independent studies must be conducted, stating: “Several animal studies indicate serious health risks associated with GM food, including infertility, immune problems, accelerated aging, insulin regulation, and changes in major organs and the gastrointestinal system. …There is more than a casual association between GM foods and adverse health effects. There is causation…” Despite this sound warning, GM foods continue to be added to the US food supply with no warning to the Americans buying and eating this food. Genetic manipulation of crops, and more recently food animals, is a dangerous game that has repeatedly revealed that assumptions about how genetic alterations work and the effects they have on animals and humans who consume such foods are deeply flawed and incomplete. Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant claims genetically engineered crops are “the most-tested food product that the world has ever seen.”

Assessment of whether pesticide exposure is associated with neurodevelopmental outcomes in children can best be addressed with a systematic review of both the human and animal peer-reviewed literature. This review analyzed epidemiologic studies testing the hypothesis that exposure to pesticides during pregnancy and/or early childhood is associated with neurodevelopmental outcomes in children. Studies that directly queried pesticide exposure (e.g., via questionnaire or interview) or measured pesticide or metabolite levels in biological specimens from study participants (e.g., blood, urine, etc.) or their immediate environment (e.g., personal air monitoring, home dust samples, etc.) were eligible for inclusion. Consistency, strength of association, and dose response were key elements of the framework utilized for evaluating epidemiologic studies. As a whole, the epidemiologic studies did not strongly implicate any particular pesticide as being causally related to adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants and children. A few associations were unique for a health outcome and specific pesticide, and alternative hypotheses could not be ruled out. Our survey of the in vivo peer-reviewed published mammalian literature focused on effects of the specific active ingredient of pesticides on functional neurodevelopmental endpoints (i.e., behavior, neuropharmacology and neuropathology). In most cases, effects were noted at dose levels within the same order of magnitude or higher compared to the point of departure used for chronic risk assessments in the United States. Thus, although the published animal studies may have characterized potential neurodevelopmental outcomes using endpoints not required by guideline studies, the effects were generally observed at or above effect levels measured in repeated-dose toxicology studies submitted to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Suggestions for improved exposure assessment in epidemiology studies and more effective and tiered approaches in animal testing are discussed.

Recent declines in honey bee populations and increasing demand for insect-pollinated crops raise concerns about pollinator shortages. Pesticide exposure and pathogens may interact to have strong negative effects on managed honey bee colonies. Such findings are of great concern given the large numbers and high levels of pesticides found in honey bee colonies. Thus it is crucial to determine how field-relevant combinations and loads of pesticides affect bee health. We collected pollen from bee hives in seven major crops to determine 1) what types of pesticides bees are exposed to when rented for pollination of various crops and 2) how field-relevant pesticide blends affect bees’ susceptibility to the gut parasite Nosema ceranae. Our samples represent pollen collected by foragers for use by the colony, and do not necessarily indicate foragers’ roles as pollinators. In blueberry, cranberry, cucumber, pumpkin and watermelon bees collected pollen almost exclusively from weeds and wildflowers during our sampling. Thus more attention must be paid to how honey bees are exposed to pesticides outside of the field in which they are placed. We detected 35 different pesticides in the sampled pollen, and found high fungicide loads. The insecticides esfenvalerate and phosmet were at a concentration higher than their median lethal dose in at least one pollen sample. While fungicides are typically seen as fairly safe for honey bees, we found an increased probability of Nosema infection in bees that consumed pollen with a higher fungicide load. Our results highlight a need for research on sub-lethal effects of fungicides and other chemicals that bees placed in an agricultural setting are exposed to.

The State of Nature, a report published in May by a coalition of environmental charities, found that more than half our wildlife species are in decline. "We are heading for Armageddon in terms of nature. We are faced with a nightmare of no nature in large parts of southern England," says Mark Cocker, author of Birds and People, a monumental new account of the role birds play in human life. "The filigree of our lives, the things that make it fantastic – silver-washed fritillaries, nightingales, dunlin, water voles chomping away at the edge of the pool – are disappearing. We are faced with the most appalling loss." Cocker's passion echoes a rollickingly fierce speech to the Welsh assembly earlier this summer by Iolo Williams, the RSPB officer turned Springwatch presenter, which is still being passed around and debated among naturalists. In it, Williams recalled his childhood by the Vyrnwy river, currently imperilled by proposals for pylons and infrastructure to service vast wind farms. The Mid Wales countryside may still appear glorious but, according to Williams, it is bereft: water voles, trout, curlew and cuckoos are gone; so, too, are insects and hay meadows (Wales has lost 99% of its hay meadows since the second world war). On the moors, alien conifers have been planted. "It's like going and looking at war graves. Every single tree is a death-knell, a nail in the coffin of that moor," said Williams. "We really are on the brink of disaster."

The Department of Health and the Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets continue to investigate the possible misuse of a pesticide in the Rutland region by AAA Accredited Pest Control company located on Cold River Road. The Agency of Agriculture summarily suspended the license of AAA Accredited Pest Control in July. The company is suspected of using a chemical (chlorpyrifos) to treat for bed bugs and other insects. Chlorpyrifos has been prohibited for indoor use by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency since 2001. The state has obtained customer records from AAA from 2012 that show 150 residences, in addition to the 61 originally identified, that were sprayed with various pesticides. The state sent letters to those 150 residences on Aug. 7 asking permission to collect samples in homes for laboratory testing. The state is offering the testing at no cost. “We’re asking for everyone’s assistance and patience, and we are grateful to the residents who have had their homes tested so far,” said Health Commissioner Harry Chen, M.D. “We’ve been working closely with state and federal agencies and while the scope of our work has expanded, our approach is the same. We want to test the homes and then determine the best course of action to address any possible health concerns.”

A four-year study by scientists from the University of Bristol estimated there were 1,000 of the bats left - all confined to southern England. The Bat Conservation Trust has published the findings in a new conservation management plan. Dr Orly Razgour, who led the research, said that very little was known about the species before she started her study. "We thought there might be more colonies, that it might be less rare than we suspected," she told BBC News. "But after studying the species for four years, we realised that they are very rare. We also know that [it has] declined dramatically in the last century".

Under the EPBC Act more than 50 species of Australian animals have been listed as extinct, including 27 mammal species, 23 bird species, and 4 frog species. The number of known extinct Australian plants is 48. Australia’s rate of species decline continues to be among the world’s highest, and is the highest in the OECD.
The list of nationally threatened species continues to grow in Australia, with 426 animal species (including presumed extinctions) and 1,339 plant species listed as threatened under the EPBC Act. Furthermore, there is some evidence that the rates of recovery once a species has been listed as threatened, whilst it is difficult to determine in short time periods, may be particularly low. In a study conducted on 38 threatened species recovery plans across every state and territory, evidence of ongoing decline in populations was displayed in 37 per cent of cases.

Just two pairs attempted to nest this year in England, but both failed. At one of these sites the RSPB was working with the landowner to ensure the nest was protected. Sadly, the eggs never hatched. No new hen harriers this season means that the hen harrier (Circus cyaneus) is one the brink of extinction in England. The news of the nest failure follows the publication in May of the State of Nature report which showed that 60 per cent of those wildlife species which are monitored are declining across the UK. In 2011, the Government published ‘Biodiversity 2020’ (the revised England Biodiversity Strategy). In this strategy the Government made a clear commitment that there should be no extinction of an English wild species at the hands of man. This mirrors an international commitment under the Convention of Biological Diversity. Martin Harper, the RSPB’s conservation director, added: “With no birds nesting successfully this year, the hen harrier is clearly on the brink of extinction in England. We are eager to hear proposals from DEFRA about how the hen harrier can be restored to its rightful place on the English uplands.”