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Transport minister prepares anti-terrorism plan

Canadian Press

Tuesday, August 09, 2005

http://www.canada.com/national/story.html?id=1f3913ef-1130-40d3-ae32-bb570161fa4f

MONTREAL -- The federal transport minister says experts agree there has
to be better communications at all levels in Canada following the
recent public transit bombings in London.

Jean Lapierre met in Montreal with about 30 of the top rail and public
transit experts in Canada.

He says they discussed the strengths and weaknesses in the Canadian
systems and outlined four areas where work needs to be done.

The transport minister says everyone was impressed by the way cameras
helped identify suspects in the London bombings, but adds that Canadian
authorities don't have the means to get camera systems in place
quickly.

Lapierre also says there are gaps in the training of transit employees,
such as ticket takers, which have to be improved.

The transport minister is also defending a potential no-fly list of
1,000 airline passengers, including Canadians, calling it a normal measure
in a free and democratic society.

ate: 9 Aug 2005 From: A-Lan.Banks Source: Patriot-News, Pennsylvania, USA, 9 Aug 2005 [edited] _____________________________________________________________ It should be unsettling to more than just anglers that unusual numbers of young smallmouth bass are being found dead in sections of the Susquehanna and Juniata rivers. _____________________________________________________________ Specifically, biologists and anglers are finding large numbers of dying or dead fish with skin lesions downstream from Lewistown in the Juniata and downstream from Sunbury to below Harrisburg in the Susquehanna. _____________________________________________________________ The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission has attributed the problem to a bacterial infection, but the source of those bacteria remains a mystery. Fortunately, the commission says the bacteria -- columnaris, which is [related to] environmental or nutritional factors -- [poses] no threat to humans. _____________________________________________________________ But it's nevertheless troubling that dead fish are turning up on some of the best bass fishing waters in the United States, and waters used for various recreational purposes and in some cases drinking water in our backyard. And while the smallmouth are the afflicted at the moment, the bacteria can be picked up by other freshwater species; they have been found in smaller numbers on white suckers in the same waters. _____________________________________________________________ Officials haven't ruled out water pollution, but note that a single event usually doesn't affect just one species or occur over an area as large as that in question. _____________________________________________________________ There's some thinking that high water temperatures and low water levels are contributing to the bacterial infection, and that may be. But this isn't the first summer that such conditions have existed, so deeper exploration is needed. _____________________________________________________________ The Fish and Boat Commission appears to be on top of the situation, posting public information on its website and bringing in experts from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Fish Health Laboratory. _____________________________________________________________ -- ProMED-mail [If this were an issue of water quality, it is unlikely that it would affect only one species. It appears from this article that there is much reassuring of the public without definite answers to what is really happening. _____________________________________________________________ This article indicates that investigation is continuing. If indeed only one species is affected, then perhaps people swimming in the waters are not at great risk. _____________________________________________________________ If the problem is columnaris, that disease is a caused by the bacterium _Flexibacter columnaris_, other names for which include _Cytophaga columnaris_ and _Bacillus columnaris_. The disease is also known by such common names as Cotton-Wool or Cotton mouth disease because of its white mold-like appearance when it forms skin lesions. _____________________________________________________________ The bacteria enter through skin abrasions, the mouth, or the gills, and is most often spread by contaminated nets or food sources. Most often it affects fish that are stressed by poor water quality (high water temperatures, low dissolved oxygen concentration, or inadequate diet). _____________________________________________________________ Fish that are commercially raised may suffer from the disease in cases of overcrowding. In such contained areas they may be treated with oxytetracycline (Terramycin) added to the feed or water. However, this may be impractical in the case of large lakes or free-flowing streams and rivers.- Mod.TG]