Biotechnology Facts and Publications

An Examination of the Efforts of an Anti-Biotechnology Activist:

Abstract:

 This paper attempts retrospectively to examine the impact of the efforts of Jeremy Rifkin on the rules and regulation, and ultimately the mission, of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) pertaining to biotechnology. Rifkin arguably single-handedly raised the consciousness of the American public, and indeed the world, to the potential risks of the technology, at least as he saw them. In this way, he positioned himself as a biotechnology gadfly who became the bane of the biotechnology industry and federal agencies regulating biotechnology. It seems fitting, therefore, to study the impact of anti-biotechnology activism on federal regulation of biotechnology by focusing on Rifkin’s efforts. In the course of examining Rifkin’s activities that were targeted specifically at the FDA, this paper also discusses his efforts aimed at curbing recombinant DNA research regulated by the National Institutes of Health and genetic engineering activities that fell under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

 

download the all paper HERE

Fertiliser over-use negatively impacts on global grassland biodiversity

According to a new international study published online in Nature on February 16th, over-use of fertilisers is having an adverse effect on the number of species thriving in grasslands. According to one of the study’s co-authors, Johannes M.H. Knop of the University of Nebraska: "More nitrogen means more production, but it's less stable….There are more good years and more bad years. Not all years are going to be good and the bad years are going to be worse."

The three year study analysed diversity–stability relationships from 41 grasslands on five continents, in Germany, the USA, Switzerland, Tanzania and China, and looked to see how chronic fertilisation could affect these relationships. Such a concerted, long-term international effort is a relatively new development. Chronic fertilisation has been identified as one of the strongest international drivers of species loss. There were common trends observed across the range of grasslands. A process known as species asynchrony in natural, unfertilised grasslands, in which decreases in the biomass of some species are compensated for by increases in others resulted in a variety of grass species with more stability. However, use of fertiliser resulted in reduction of asynchrony and hence weakened the positive effect of diversity on stability due to the decline in the number of species.

It would not be common for farmers to directly fertilise rangeland and pastures, however grasslands would be affected by nitrogen deposition due to, for example, run-off from nearby fertilised crops and ammonia volatilization from cropland. According to Dr Knops, the effects of fertiliser overuse on species asynchrony could exacerbate the impact of events such as droughts on grasslands, such as devastated the cattle herd in Texas and Oklahoma in 2011-2013. It could also increase erosion due to reduction in plant cover, hence decreasing water filtration and carbon sequestration benefits of grasslands. This large international project emphasises the importance of a comprehensive consideration of how drivers of global change interact with each other to affect ecosystems and their diversity.

Sources

HAUTIER, Y., SEABLOOM, E.W., BORER, E.T., ADLER, P.B., HARPOLE, W.S., HILLEBRAND, H., LIND, E.M., MACDOUGALL, A.S., STEVENS, C.J., BAKKER, J.D., BUCKLEY, Y.M., CHU, C., COLLINS, S.L., DALEO, P., DAMSCHEN, E.I., DAVIES, K..F, FAY, P.A., FIRN, J., GRUNER, D.S., JIN, V.L., KLEIN, J.A., KNOPS, J.M.H., LA PIERRE, K.J., LI, W., MCCULLEY, R.L, MELBOURNE, B.A., MOORE, J.L., O’HALLORAN, L.R., PROBER, S.M., RISCH, A.C., SANKARAN, M., SCHUETZ M. and HECTOR, A., 2014. Eutrophication weakens stabilizing effects of diversity in natural grasslands. Nature (16 February 2014), doi:10.1038/nature13014

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2...021414.php [Accessed 17 February 2014



 

Constraints to commercialization of algal fuels

Yusuf Chisti

Highlights

•

Constraints to commercialization of algal fuels are identified.

•

Insufficiency of carbon dioxide is a major hurdle to commercialization.

•

A lack of inorganic fertilizers hinders large-scale production of algal fuels.

•

Potential solutions are outlined to enable commercialization of algal fuels.

Abstract:

Production of algal crude oil has been achieved in various pilot scale facilities, but whether algal fuels can be produced in sufficient quantity to meaningfully displace petroleum fuels, has been largely overlooked. Limitations to commercialization of algal fuels need to be understood and addressed for any future commercialization. This review identifies the major constraints to commercialization of transport fuels from microalgae. Algae derived fuels are expensive compared to petroleum derived fuels, but this could change. Unfortunately, improved economics of production are not sufficient for an environmentally sustainable production, or its large scale feasibility. A low-cost point supply of concentrated carbon dioxide colocated with the other essential resources is necessary for producing algal fuels. An insufficiency of concentrated carbon dioxide is actually a major impediment to any substantial production of algal fuels. Sustainability of production requires the development of an ability to almost fully recycle the phosphorous and nitrogen nutrients that are necessary for algae culture. Development of a nitrogen biofixation ability to support production of algal fuels ought to be an important long term objective. At sufficiently large scale, a limited supply of freshwater will pose a significant limitation to production even if marine algae are used. Processes for recovering energy from the algal biomass left after the extraction of oil, are required for achieving a net positive energy balance in the algal fuel oil. The near term outlook for widespread use of algal fuels appears bleak, but fuels for niche applications such as in aviation may be likely in the medium term. Genetic and metabolic engineering of microalgae to boost production of fuel oil and ease its recovery, are essential for commercialization of algal fuels. Algae will need to be genetically modified for improved photosynthetic efficiency in the long term

...................................................................................................................................................................

Please purchase your paper to read the all findings.