Fifth District Report

Contributors

  Column by Tom Perriello www.perriello.house.gov As we close out 2009, here is a summary of all that we have accomplished during my first year in office. When I was sworn in almost a year ago, our economy was on the brink of collapse. While we still have a long way to go toward complete…

Waterpipe smoking dangers noted in VCU study

Contributors

   Staff Report VCU news: www.vcu.edu Smoking tobacco through a waterpipe exposes the user to the same toxicants – carbon monoxide and nicotine – as puffing on a cigarette, which could lead to nicotine addiction and heart disease, according to a study led by a Virginia Commonwealth University researcher published in the December issue of…

Focus | Kaine marks beginning of smoking ban

Chris Graham

Three-year effort leads to statewide ban Story by Chris Graham [email protected] With AFP Video A multiyear effort that began with Gov. Tim Kaine signing in 2006 an executive order banning smoking in state buildings was realized today with the implementation of a statewide ban on smoking in most restaurants and bars. Kaine said today in…

Earth Talk | Butt, seriously

Roddy Scheer

Dear EarthTalk: Has anyone ever studied the environmental impact of discarded cigarettes? I’m constantly appalled at the number of drivers I see pitching their butts out their car windows? – Ned Jordan, via e-mail It’s true that littered cigarette butts are a public nuisance, and not just for aesthetic reasons. The filters on cigarettes—four fifths…

Restaurants are going smoke-free Dec. 1

With just about 50 days to go before the Commonwealth’s landmark smoking ban goes into effect, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine is joining dining patrons and community leaders across Virginia today to highlight restaurants that have already gone smoke-free. The new law—called “monumental” in one of the nation’s biggest tobacco-producing states—takes effect Dec. 1 and will…

Virginia Tech researcher aids in genome sequencing … of the potato

The Potato Genome Sequencing Consortium, an international team of scientists from industry and academia in 14 countries, has released a draft sequence of the potato genome with the help of a Virginia Tech researcher. Richard Veilleux, professor of horticulture in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, contributed a unique phureja type of potato variety…

The Latest

Chris Graham

Friday, Aug. 14 – Local News: RMH employees pass gift goal Thursday, Aug. 13 – Local News: Staunton City Council meeting tonight – State News: Good economic news in Martinsville Wednesday, Aug. 12 – Local News: Augusta County Board of Supervisors meeting agenda Tuesday, Aug. 11 – State News: Jail agrees to change policies regarding…

Tom Perriello | Fifth District Report

Contributors

Our region of Virginia that once gave birth to the Declaration of Independence now stands poised to lead a new revolution that grants our nation energy independence. Whether one is for or against the new energy bill, most Americans are sick of going to the gas station to pour our hard-earned dollars to petro-dictators overseas…

Jennifer Rogers | Protecting the public from harmful chemicals

Contributors

I recently read an article about Bisphenol-A (BPA) that eerily reminded me of the movie, “Thank You for Smoking.” In the movie, the “merchants of death” or MOD Squad, as they call themselves, are lobbyists for the alcohol, gun, and tobacco industries and meet for lunch while plotting to keep vital information about the harmful…