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ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP NAMES "FILTHY FIVE Environmental Action (Suite 731, 1346 Connecticut Ave N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036) has dubbed five industry groups-The Edison Electric Institute, The American Paper Institute, The American Iron and Steel Institute, The Manufacturing Chemists Association, and The American Petroleum Institute-the "Filthy Five" for their alleged attempts to undermine provisions of the 1972 Clean Water Act. The five industry lobbying organizations are said to have a collective staff of over 1,000 person and yearly budgets totaling more than $50 million.

THE AVERAGE COST OF OWNING AND OPERATING A NEW CAR JUMPED TO 30.1¢ PER MILE in 1977 from 28.1 ¢ per mile the previous year (and 20.2 ¢ per mile in 1973), according to the Hertz Corporation's leasing division, Gasoline, oil, parts, service, repairs, licenses, fees, insurance, depreciation, and interest were taken into account in Hertz's computation.

ONE OUT OF EVERY FOUR WORKING AMERICANS is exposed to a life- or health-endangering substance in the course of his/her work, a yet-to-be-released National Occupational Health Survey says. The survey-which encompasses 4,636 plants with 985,000 employees in 67 metropolitan areas-, reports that it could cost as much as $54 billion to provide appropriate warnings and health surveillance services for the 21 million people in this country believed to be working in harmful conditions.

ALFALFA EXTRACT BOOSTS CROP YIELDS, Michigan State University horticulturist Stanley K. Ries reports that a plant growth stimulator originally extracted from alfalfa (but present naturally in most plant foods) is capable of boosting the yield of asparagus, sweet corn, cucumbers, carrots, radishes, tomatoes, and navy beans by 7% to 22%. The substance-triacontanol-is active in exceedingly small amounts (one pound of triacontanol is enough to treat about 900,000 acres of crops) and appears to enhance the growth of plants without increasing their consumption of nitrogen fertilizer.

ANTI-E.R.A. STATES LOSE CONVENTION BUSINESS. As of late 1977, at least 40 national groups had decided riot to hold conventions in states that have failed to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. Chicago reports the loss of $15 million in convention business so far ... Atlanta, more than $6 million ... Miami, $4.5 million. Kansas City, New Orleans, and St. Louis have also lost business recently because of the "convention boycott" strategy promoted by the National Organization for Women.

PEOPLE WHO LIVE NEAR HIGHWAYS MAY FACE AN INCREASED RISK OF CANCER. Three scientists writing in the November 1977 Environmental Science & Technology report that the concentration of cancer-causing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH's) in the soil of one Swiss mountain town is up to 75 times higher near the town's main highway than in the surrounding alps. Coincidentally-the researchers note-cancer deaths in the Swiss town are nine times more frequent among residents who live along the highway than among those who do not live near the road.

RENT-FREE VACATIONS. ANYONE? For just $10, the Vacation Exchange Club will send you its Home Exchange Director (published each spring), which lists names, addresses, and descriptions of some 2,000-plus homes, homesteads, villas, and apartments currently being offered for temporary exchange by VEC members, Who knows? With the aid of this book, you might be able to take your next vacation rent-free in Maine, New Mexico, California, Spain, or the Bahamas. Write the Vacation Exchange Club, 360 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10013.

FDA'S DONALD KENNEDY WANTS WARNING LABELS ON ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTAINERS advising pregnant women that alcohol consumption can cause birth defects. Mr. Kennedy-who has asked the Treasury Department's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms to "look into" the idea of requiring the warnings (since the Food and Drug Administration has no direct authority over alcohol)-says that "the evidence that alcoholic beverages can produce birth defects Is so disturbing that I think we ought to make sure that women consider seriously whether they should drink at all during pregnancy".

THE U.S. POPULATION PASSED THE 216 MILLION MARK IN JANUARY OF 1977, the government reported not long ago. That's 1.6 million more people than there were In the U.S. in January of 1976 .... Customers who want to rent canoes from Shenandoah River Outfitters (Luray, Virginia 22835) can either pay the usual $16-percance-per-day fee, or HAND OVER TWO BAGFULS OF TRASH COLLECTED FROM ALONG TEE RIVER .... As part of the county's anti-littering campaign, POP-TOP CANS HA VE BEEN OUTLAWED IN FAIRFAX C UNTY, VIRGINIA (near Washington, D.C.). In addition, all "throwaway" soda pop bottles sold in the county are now returnable for a 5 ¢ deposit .... A new examination of fertility statistics by federal health officials suggests that AVERAGE SPERM COUNTS OF AMERICAN MALES MAY HAVE FALLEN OVER THE PAST 25 YEARS. No reason for the apparent decline has been given .... The consumer fraud unit of the San Francisco District Attorney's office has filed suit against General Mills, charging the cereal manufacturer with false advertising. The suit asks that General Mills PROVE THAT WHEATIES IS INDEED THE "BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS According to U.S. Embassy sources in Moscow, one of every 29 adults at the embassy suffers from a MYSTERIOUS BLOOD CONDITION MARKED BY ABNORMALLY HIGH LEVELS OF WHITE CELLS. The State Department-for reasons unknown-rules out Soviet microwave irradiation of the embassy as the cause .... The SMALL FARM ENERGY PROJECT NEWSLETTER focuses on renewable energy sources for farms. The newsletter is published irregularly, and it's free. Write the Small Farm Energy Project, P.O. Box 736, Hartington, Neb. 68739.

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