Plants

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Press Release Modern Express no. 4

(The other press releases on the modern Express are available here)

According to the French naval headquarters of the Atlantic Ocean there are 3600 tons of sawn timber on board of the Modern Express. On the other hand, the Ministry of Economy of Gabon (after having consulted with the shipping agent Necotrans in Libreville) claims that there are 4089 tons of sawn timber. Necotrans also has an agency in Le Havre.

The fact that Gabon claimed an international investigation of the matter thorough Interpol encourages France to do likewise on its own territory, particularly because the timber unloaded at Le Havre can reach China on board of container ships of Chinese companies that regularly call at Le Havre.

Only in French.

Only in French.

Only in French.

Only in French.

Robin des Bois and GEIDE post-disaster

Nobody can be blamed for the outbreak and consequences of earthquakes of large magnitude. For forest fires, it’s a different story. Only the lightning escapes human responsibility. Man is the cause of more than 9 out of 10 forest fires.

Barbecues, gas stoves, cigarettes, motorcycle incursions, quadbikes or other vehicles with internal combustion engines, campfires, fireworks and combustible wastes are all risks of fire in an environment that is vulnerable to conflagration. A spark can ignite thousands of acres and a small fire can in a few seconds become uncontrollable.

Chainsaws are impatient and are cutting down without letting up. They are pairing up with wood shredders that reduce fallen trees into fuel. Nothing comes through alive; hundred year old, notable, or isolated trees, tree-lined avenues, and forests. Any excuse will do; they block the sun, they obstruct the view, they are sick, they interfere with the train, they accumulate starlings, are dangerous for road safety, and even hedges are not safe. France is burning since the government, ADEME (Environmental Agency and Energy Control) and environmentalists have promoted forests to the level of renewable energy and the collective and individual heating using wood is spreading like an epidemic. Right-minded people and smooth talkers are busy forming their energy packages, offering it to voters while looking elsewhere; Amazon, Indonesia, and the island of Borneo with insincere crocodile tears.

The site Arzamas-16 is threatened by forest fires since the middle of July 2010. The exact location of the storage and waste on the site is unknown. The current management of plutonium storage, enriched uranium and nuclear warheads are the subject of diverging information. The military site is in activity since 1946. For more than half a century, experiments and nuclear activities have left undeniable traces on the site (see the assembly of photos). If the fire reaches strategic and radioactive sectors this could spark a major event but also cause global contamination. The Russian government and fire fighters lack of insight to foresee the risk caused by the fires around this dangerous site and to control them is shocking.

Forest fires and slash and burn farming are a major source of air pollution and greenhouse gases which in his book “Forests: The Shadow of Civilization”*, Professor Robert Harrison suggests to call the “fever effect”.

Russia is an expert in the matter. Satellite observations show that the extent of forest fires is always downplayed by the authorities. 2 million hectares were declared burnt in 2003 while 14 million were observed. During the summer of 2006, cinders and soot from fires around St Petersburg caused high concentrations of particles and air pollution in Finland, Scotland and Northern England. Forest fires are an important source of mercury scattering in the atmosphere.