Word: soiling
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...Lausanne meeting if they were deemed unsatisfactory. Meanwhile, in Jerusalem, another kind of territorial split for Lebanon was under consideration. By the terms of the May 17 agreement, Israel was bound to withdraw its 22,000 troops from southern Lebanon provided that Syria, with 62,000 troops on Lebanese soil, did likewise. Now the Israeli Cabinet is apparently considering withdrawal of the troops only from their current defensive line at the Awali River to new positions on the Zahrani River, about seven miles to the south...
Still, most scientists agree that there is not nearly enough evidence to pin down the cause of the deterioration. Several possible suspects have been considered. Among them: insects, plant disease, poor soil condition and abnormal climatic changes. Experts note that the decline began about the time of the great Northeast drought of the early 1960s. "Drought is undoubtedly a major component of a large part of the decline," says Robert Rosenthal of the EPA. "But it doesn't explain it all. There is pretty good evidence that there are air pollution effects." Plant Pathologist Robert Bruck of North Carolina...
...high altitudes to such trees as the red spruce and Fraser and balsam firs. The summits of Camels Hump and Mount Mitchell are enshrouded for as much as a quarter of the year in clouds, which are loaded with acidic chemicals and toxic heavy metals. Says Arthur Johnson, a soil expert at the University of Pennsylvania: "Vegetation essentially combs polluted moisture droplets out of the clouds." Mountain tops at this altitude are also exposed to high concentrations of ozone and get more rain, which washes chemicals onto the trees. "Most people think of remote mountains as ideal vacation spots that...
Researchers speculate that chemicals may work their damage in several ways. The excess ozone might open the pores of leaves, allowing acid rain to leach vital nutrients. Or acid rain may cause harmful changes in the chemical composition of the soil. Rain may also deposit toxic heavy metals that damage plants' root systems. Says Richard Phipps of the U.S. Geological Survey: "The darn thing is a heck of a lot more complex than we ever thought...
...takes root in the red flesh of soil...