from Pearl Rains-Hewett
Posted 8/23/2012
FOX NEWS – by elizabeth prann – 37 minutes ago
… for West Nile Virus, with 41 deaths and more than 1100 cases reported. … there were only 25 cases reportednationwide this time last month. … Experts are not willing to pin-point one specific reason for the outbreak of 2012.
1989-2012 Increased wetlands = increased mosquito vector borne diseases
Since 1989 the Corps and EPA have implemented the § 404 program to achieve a Presidential goal of “no net loss” of wetlands.
ADMINISTRATION PROJECTED 4.8 MILLION ACRES OF WETLANDS BY 2009
The Centers for Disease Control said Wednesday this is shaping up to be the worst year ever for West Nile Virus infections and deaths in the U.S. The virus, transmitted by mosquitoes, is now to blame for 41 deaths across the country with more than 1,100 people infected — and those numbers are expected to climb.
“There have been more cases reported to us at this time of year than ever before,” said Dr. Lyle R. Petersen, director of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases for the CDC. “This will be amongst the biggest or the biggest break we’ve had in the United States.”
On Earth Day 2004, the President George Walker Bush
announced a new initiative
to go beyond “no net loss” of wetlands
and attain an overall increase in the quality and quantity of wetlands in America.
Specifically, the Administration has projected that
an additional 1.5 million wetland acres
will be created, improved, or protected between Earth Day 2006 and 2007, with
three million acres being obtained by 2009.
These figures are in addition to the
1,797,000 acres of wetlands
that have already been restored, created, protected, or improved since the onset of the 2004 initiative.
The number of cases has risen dramatically in the past few weeks. CDC officials say numbers are alarming given there were only 25 cases reported nationwide this time last month. The only states that do not have reported cases of the virus are Hawaii, Alaska and Vermont.
Texas officials are working closely with the CDC to get a handle on the outbreak. Dr. David Lakey, commissioner for the Texas Department of Health, said his state is the center of the outbreak. Statewide, there are 586 reported cases with 21 deaths. Lakey said there were four more reported cases and one additional death yesterday, but those have not officially been confirmed.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/
West Nile Virus Kills 41 People in Biggest US Outbreak
Businessweek – 1 hour ago
West Nile virus has killed 41 people in the U.S. and infected 1,118 in the biggest outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease since it was first confirmed in the country 13 years ago.
CAUSE AND AFFECT?
1989-2012 Increased wetlands = increased mosquito vector borne diseases.
Pearl Rains Hewett