BITS AND PIECES

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COMING IN FROM THE CODE: The Washtenaw County (Michigan) Building Inspection Department has ordered the owners of a tipi to install a framed door and a five-foot-square window, in order to satisfy the local building code. Officials said the flap-door structure lacks proper lighting and ventilation, a regulation entrance, and a fire exit. (One of the disgruntled owners remonstrated, "All I need for a fire exit is a knife.")

SAY WHAT? Although the Environmental Protection Agency has recently suffered some direct hits from environmentally conscious critics, it came as some surprise to us when Chemical Week —a leading industry trade magazine—added its licks: "An ineffective EPA is not what the chemical industry needs. What it needs and expects from the Reagan administration is an agency that will discharge intelligently its responsibility to the American people. ... A management attitude that turns off hundreds of competent and dedicated professionals—and the EPA has them—is not good."

RETURN OF THE FAMILY FARM: For the first time since the Great Depression, the number of farms in the U.S. has increased ... up to 2.4 million, representing a gain of 8,000 during 1981. However, agriculture officials report one alarming small-farm statistic . . . 60% of such holdings grossed less than $20,000 apiece in annual income and contributed only 6.5% of the nation's total agricultural output.

CHESTNUT CLONE: Forest scientists at West Virginia University have successfully cloned the American chestnut, a species that was almost eradicated by a fungus blight during the early 1900's. Researchers say their work may help bring back the tree, since it will now be possible to duplicate any blight-resistant chestnut specimen that may be discovered.

COAL SHAMPOO: Research sponsored by the Tennessee Valley Authority indicates that a mild solution of sodium lauryl sulfate—the active ingredient in many hair shampoos—can be applied to neutralize acid runoff from coal piles. The substance blocks both bacterial activity that promotes acid formation and chemical leaching in the drainage.

BARTERERS BEWARE: In February 1982 the Internal Revenue Service filed suit in U.S. District Court to obtain the exchange and membership records of Barter Systems, Inc., a Lubbock, Texas affiliate of a nationwide clearinghouse for trading goods and services. The Dallas IRS is specifically seeking the names and social security numbers of the group's members—in connection with exchanges that occurred in 1979 and 1980—for the purpose of collecting unpaid taxes.

WILD KINGDOM: A recent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service study shows that most Americans actually know very little about animals or about wildlife conservation issues, and that most of the knowledge they do have of such subjects is gleaned from TV watching. The survey also puts to rest any stereotypes about the typical bird watcher: The average committed "birder", says the agency, is a 42-year-old male.

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