Leave the poor children alone

This is ridiculous news but it's true. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has come up with a study that actually pushes children to greater illness instead of helping them out of it.

This is ridiculous news but it's true. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has come up with a study that actually pushes children to greater illness instead of helping them out of it.

The study is about how children react to poisonous chemicals. The children are from poor families. What happens is that their parents continue to use the poisons they use at home and elsewhere for as little as $1,000 for two years. They also get a video camera (to document their kids) and a few other things like T-shirts.

Most of these families face a dilemma. Should they accept the money or refuse? If they say no, will they and their children be taught how to prevent toxic poisoning?

It's unlikely, as the EPA has already received $2 million for the study. It feels the study is important because they need the data. The need of the hour is to determine how to collect ethical data and extrapolate from existing data. Most importantly, such a project must place people's well-being first.

PET peeves VISIT ANY tourist spot and you'll find PET bottles strewn all over. They say PET in India is difficult to collect and too expensive to send for recycling. Even as the government has made recycling of PET mandatory and public disgust mounts, we have a lesson to learn from Japanese.

Japan has shown the world it is possible to recycle most of the PET that is generated. In fact, they are the biggest PET recyclers in the world and it is a combined effort of municipalities, supermarkets and railway companies.

(If you feel for planet Earth, write in to earth watch1@rediffmail.com)