Study 3: Ecodestruction and the Right to Food: The Cases of Water ...

Starving the Future Study 3
32The total figure and urban/rural figures are from FAO, the internal differentiation of rural figures are crude extrapolations of
data from rural Bangladesh, World Bank 1985.
33 GMO – Genetically Modified Organisms
34 Report and Recommendations on Organic Farming. U.S.Department of Agriculture, 1980
35 Food First Institute, Oakland, California 1999
36 Pretty / Generating Agriculture, Earthscan London 1995
37 The absolute poverty line (indicating malnutrition) is generally set at 1 US$ per day or 365 US$ per year. Roughly 75% go
for food. For the 300 million non-agricultural malnourished, this would mean 82 billion US$. The total OECD producer
subsidies equivalent (PSE: the amount of tansfers from consumers to producers that result from agricultural policies) was at
an average of 179 billion US$ in 1902-3 (J.Pretty / op.cit). The South Centre in Geneva puts it for 1998 even 274 billion US$
(www.twnsite/org/title/modalities.htm). Most of it was pocketed by agribusiness. The subsidies for agribusiness are therefore
more than sufficient to carry most of the cost of this massive programme for an immediate eradication of malnutrition among
300 million malnourished non-agriculturists – along with lavish support for a thorough agrarian reform towards productive
sustainable agriculture for the 500 million malnourished peasants and agricultural workers in the South.
38 H.Geist, E. Lambin / Proximate Causes and Underlying Driving Forces of Tropical Deforestation, BioScience, February
2002 / Vol.52 No.2, p.143 ff
39 Umweltbundesamt, Daten zur Umwelt, 1988/1989, Berli,n according to
E.U.von Weizsäcker / Erdpolitik; Darmstadt1992
40 Due to multiple causation, figures don’t add up to 711.
41 (1999), Tuxill, John : "Plant Losses threaten Future Food Supplies and Health Care", News Release, World Watch Institute
www.worldwatch.org/alerts/990916.html
42 all data: J.Pretty, op.cit
43 (1977), Kendrick Jr., J.B. : Preserving Our Genetic Resources. In California Agriculture, September 1977, S.2
44 (1978), Omang, J. : Plants with Alien Names Hold Promise of a Brave New World. In The Washington Post, 28th September 1978
45 FAO / Food for All, Rome 1996, p.30
46 Commission on Human Rights; Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights E/CN.4/Sub.2/2000/7
47 http://www.rafi.org/article.asp?newsid=133 or www.sacredearth.com/ethnobotany/biotech1.html
48 See Greenpeace Press releases. www.greenpeace.org. 16 May 2002.
49 Certain “therapeutical” genetic manipulations even turned out to result in leukaemia, as was recently discovered at
Hannover University’s Medical School. Deutsches Ärzteblatt, 99, Heft 17, 26.April 2002
50 The precautionary principle states that rather than await certainty, regulators should act in anticipation of any potential
environmental harm in order to prevent it. This principle is so frequently invoked in international environmental resolutions
that it can be seen as a basic normative principle of international environmental law.
51 To read more, www.megalink.com/fobomade. Foro boliviano sobre medio ambiente y desarollo.
52 See Greenpeace Press releases, http://www.greenpeace.org/~geneng/highlights/gmo/april24_monsanto.html
53 Ens.lycos.com/ens/aug99/1999L-08-02-06.html
54 A.Alonso, Francisco Dallmeier, Working for Biodiversity, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C.2000
55 Moreover ecological footprint provides an indicator for sustainability: The footprint indicates a sustainable way of life, if it
stays with in the limits of the bioproductive area available. The bioproductive area per capita in 2000 was 2.1 ha on a global
average, 5.5 ha in the USA, 0.6 ha in China, with an overshoot (demand-supply) of –0.3 ha globally, -4.1 ha in the USA, -0.8
ha in China)
56 The USA also shows the largest fertility rate (2.0 births per woman) of all OECD countries (average: 1.7).World
Development Report 2000/2001
57 N.Chambers, C.Simmons, M.Wackernagel / Sharing Nature’s Interest. London 2000
58 N.Chambers, C.Simmons, M.Wackernagel, op.cit.p.125 ff
59 „Da brennt es überall“ (DIE ZEIT, May 8, 2002, translation FIAN)
FIAN International 142
June 2002