The ADB, which was founded four decades ago to fight poverty through economic growth, has a standing policy of not advocating atomic power out of concerns of safety and possible conversion to weapons use.
But under increased pressure to promote alternatives to the fossil fuels that fan global warming, the ADB is considering the use of nuclear power under a new energy policy to be adopted in three months, WooChong Um, ADB director of energy, told The Associated Press in an interview at the ADB’s annual meeting.
The nuclear industry hails the IPCC report (pdf for policymakers). The report from scientists with pro-renewable energy biases also admits the necessary and beneficial role of nuclear power.
Climate change and the rise in allergies and asthma have been linked
20 million suffer from asthma. Even though the air in many cities is much cleaner than in the past, the prevalence of hay fever has increased in the U.S. over the past few decades. In 2004, asthma affected more than 6 percent of the American population, up from a little over 3 percent in 1980, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Childhood asthma is increasing at an even faster rate. The percentage of children with asthma jumped to 9 percent in 2005 from 3.6 percent in 1980, according to the CDC.
In 2004, a Harvard Medical School study linked the childhood asthma “epidemic” among inner-city youth to climate change. Stating that higher carbon dioxide levels in cities promote pollen production in plants, fungal growth, and opportunistic weeds, the study noted that asthma among preschool children grew 160 percent between 1980 and 1994, more than double the increase for the overall U.S. population.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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