In March 2002 the IUGS announced that the International Working Group on Medical Geology would be assigned Special Project status operating directly under the IUGS. Olle Selinus is Director of this activity; Jose Centeno and Bob Finkelman are Co-Directors and Dave Elliott is editor of the Newsletter.

During 2005 many activities have been carried out. Medical geology has been included in curricula at universities, has received several prestigious rewards and has been highlighted all over the world. 10 courses have been held. Numerous presentations have been held at meetings and conferences.

Final planning and organisation has been done for the new International Medical Geology Association, IMGA to be launched in 2006.

A newsletter for the working group and other interested people is produced. Editor of the newsletter is Dave Elliott, Canada. The newsletter is distributed to all officers in the commission and all members of the working group. It is also published on the web site. The newsletter is published twice a year. The newsletter is now printed and distributed to almost 800 persons and institutes and can also be downloaded from the website.

One newsletter was published in January. An additional letter is under preparation for early 2006.

From 2006 there will in addition to the regular newsletter also be a shorter monthly e-newsletter to all members of IMGA.

A brochure on medical geology and the IGCP project is in the planning stage. This will be undertaken in cooperation with the Americal Geological Institute (AGI), and will consist of about 40 pages in full colour. The target audience will be the general public, decision makers etc.

The highly popular short courses in medical geology have continued during the year. In all cases we have been invited from the countries involved. We have some requirements for having courses. Normally we require that 50% of the participants must be geoscientists and 50% from the medical sector. We also require that the organisers finance the subsistence in respective countries. In addition to this developed countries must pay for the international travelling while developing countries do not have this requirement.

Following courses have been held in 2005 (approximate number of participants in brackets):

• Romania, May 5-8 2005 (80)
• Argentina, May 26-27 2005 (50)
• Uruguay, May 28-31 2005 (60)
• Brazil, June 2-4 2005 (200)
• 8th Annual Force Health Protection Conference, Louisville, Kentucky , August 2005 (150)
• Egypt, 26-27 September 2005 (60)
• Turkey, September 29-30 2005 (200)
• Ireland, October 24-26 2005 (50)
• Sweden, October 27-28 (80)
• Puerto Rico, 14-18 November 2005 (120)

A short course in Cyprus had to be postponed because of medical problems of the spouse of one of the presenters.

Requests for short courses have been received from: Kenya, Norway, Portugal, Nigeria, Venezuela, Kenya, Jordan, Israel, Belarus, Iraq and Indonesia.

A total of more than 1,000 scientists, decision makers, organizations etc have thus participated in courses in 2005. We normally hand out evaluation forms and the most common response is that the courses are very professional, useful and good. The main negative response is that the courses are too short!

The website is continuosly growing. It is updated at least every second week and expanded. The website was moved to a new server in November with better possibilities and space for the future. When searching for "medical geology" on Google in mid 2004 about 300 hits were received. When the same thing is done now about 30 000 hits are received which shows the tremendous growth and impact of medical geology. Medical geology is now recognised all over the world and mentioned in a huge amount of websites.

Several national and international meetings have been attended during 2005 with both special sessions and key note lectures.

Selected meetings:

• 4th Asia Pacific Symposium on Environmental Geochemistry 18-20 January, 2005 Perth, Western Australia
• 23rd European Conference of the Society for Environmental Geochemistry and Health
• University of Paisley, 4-6 April 2005
• Jornadas interdisciplinarias rioplatenses de toxicologia y ecotoxicologi A Montevideo, 1 y 2 de junio de 2005. Plenary introductory talk on Medical Geology by Jose Centeno
• XIII International Conference on Heavy Metals in the Environment June 05-09, 2005, Rio de Janeirio, Brazil
• 11th International medical geography symposium, Fort Worth, Texas, USA, 5-9 JULY 2005
• 20th European Congress of Pathology Paris, September 3-8, 2005
• Second International Symposium on Recent Advances in Environmental Health Research Jackson, MS, USA September 18-21 2005
• Endocrine disrupters – Occurrence in the bioenvironment and possible effects in animals and humans International symposium arranged by the Norwegian Academy of Sciences in cooperation with the cancer register and Veterinary Institutet 13.-14 october 2005

• First Hemispheric Conference on Medical Geology, 14-18 November 2005 University of Turabo in Gurabo, Puerto Rico.

Invited Keynote Speaker Presentations on Medical Geology were presented at the following international meetings:

1. XXIX Congress of the Inter-American Association of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering, San Juan, Puerto Rico. August 24, 2004 (Jose Centeno).

2. Interactive Teleconference on Medical Geology, Universidad del Este, Ana G. Mendez University of PR, Carolina, PR. January 28, 2005. (Jose Centeno).

3. The Philippines Department of Health and Philippines National Hospital, Manila, The Philippines. January 17-18, 2005. (Jose Centeno).

4. Nelson Institute of Environmental Medicine, Special Seminar on Medical Geology, New York School of Medicine, NY, March 18, 2005. (Jose Centeno)

5. Rioplatense Conference on Toxicology and Ecotoxicology, Uruguayan Society on Toxicology and Ecotoxicology, Montevideo, Uruguay, June 2, 2005 (Jose Centeno)

6. XIV Week of Geochemistry and VIII Geochemistry Conference of the Portuguese Speaking Countries, Aveiro University, Portugal. July 11-16, 2005 (Jose Centeno)

7. 8^th Annual Force Health Protection Conference, Louisville, Kentucky, August 9-11, 2005. (Jose Centeno).

Selected international symposia containing sessions on Medical Geology in 2006 and beyond.

• 9th International Symposium on Metal Ions in Biology and Medicine Lisboa Portugal, May 20-23 2006
• Metals in the Environment, April 2006, Lithuania
• 7th International Symposium on Environmental Geochemistry (ISEG) 25-30 September 2006, Beijing, P R China

In May 2006 the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (the academy awarding the Nobel prizes) will have an official international 2-day symposium in Medical Geology.

The Second Hemispheric Conference on Medical Geology is planned inBrazil, October, 2007

The chairman Olle Selinus is also involved in the International Geological Congress in Oslo 2008 as a member of the organising committe.

Since the book Medical Geology has been published education in medical geology has started all over the world. Examples are:

Division of Human-Centered Systems / Department of Computer and Information Science / Linköpings universitet, Sweden Courses in Health GIS. Masters program

Also introductory courses for Health GIS, including geological risks, 5 points.

Course in medical geology at Uppsala University. 5 credits

George Washington University course expanded to two credits.

A Medical Geology class planned for 2006 at the University of Texas at Dallas.

Courses at the universities of Stockholm and Örebro in Sweden will start in 2006.

A first PhD student in medical geology has been accepted at the university of Stockholm. The student will study selenium and health effects in Asia.

Several papers and notes have been published in different journals informing of and marketing the project.

Work is almost completed with a special issue on Medical Geology in Developing Countries in the journal of SEGH. Guest editor is Bob Finkelman. The interest has been great and therefore there will be two special issues.

Selected papers in medical geology published in 2005:

Finkelman, R. B., Centeno, J. A., Selinus, O., and Pereira, J. J., 2005, Medical Geology: An emerging discipline. Environmental Health Focus, Vol. 2, no. 2, p 21-28. .

Of Stones and Health: Medical Geology in Sri Lanka. Essay in Science 5 August 2005 by Chandra Dissanayake

Centeno, Jose A., Mullick, F. G., Finkelman, Robert B., Selinus, O., 2004, Medical Geology: An emerging discipline in support of environmental and military medicine. XXXV International Congress on Military Medicine. P. 6.

Finkelman, Robert B., 2004, Health benefits of geologic materials and geologic processes. First International Symposium on Recent Advances in Environmental Health Research, Jackson State University. P. 76.

Wang, Binbin, Finkelman, Robert B., Belkin, Harvey E., and Palmer, Curtis A., 2004, A possible health benefit of coal combustion. Abstracts of the 21^st Annual Meeting of the Society for Organic Petrology, Vol. 21, p. 196-198.

Centeno, J. A., Finkelman, R. B., Selinus, O., and Mullick, F. G., 2004, Medical Geology: An emerging discipline in support of environmental and military medicine. First International Symposium on Recent Advances in Environmental Health Research, Jackson State University. p. 73.

Centeno, J. A., Mullick, F. G., Finkelman, R. B., and Selinus, O., 2004, Medical Geology: An emerging discipline in support of environmental and military medicine. 7^th Annual Force Health Protection Conference.

Finkelman, R. B., 2005, Review of Medical Geology: Effects of Geological Environments on Human Health by Miomir M. Komatina, International Journal of Coal Geology, Vol. 62, Issue 3, P.193-194.

Finkelman, R. B., 2004, The health impacts of minerals. Organisation Mondiale de Mineralogie. http://www.monaco-omm.com/0_abs_Finkelman.htm

Orem, W., Tatu, C., Pavlovic, N., Bunnell, J., Finkelman, R., Feder, G., Lerch, H., Bates, A., and Corum, M., 2004, Is the etiology of Balkan Endemic Nephropathy and associated upper urinary tract tumers linked to well water containing organic compounds leached from low rank coal? First International Symposium on recent advances in environmental health research. P.85.

Hu, Jun, Zheng, Baoshan, Finkelman, Robert B., Wang, Binbin, Wang, Mingshi, Li, Shehong, and Wu, Daishe, 2005, Concemtration and distribution of potentially hazardous trace elements in coals from DPR Korea. The Society for Organic Petrology.

Wang. Mingshi, Zheng, Baoshan, Finkelman, Robert B., and Hu, Jun, 2005, Arsenic concentrations in Chinese coals. The Society for Organic Petrology.

Zheng, Baoshan, Wu, Daishe, Wang, Binbin, Liu, Xiaojing, Wang, Aimin, Wu, Yonghua, Chen, Hongshu, and Finkelman, Robert B., 2005, The endemic fluorosis caused by indoor combustion of coal: Is the fluorine from coal or clay?

Zhang, B., Wang, B., Ding, Z., Zhou, D., Zhou, Y., Zhou, C., Chen, C., and Finkelman, R. B., 2005,Endemic arsenosis caused by indoor combustion of high-As coal in Guizhou Province, P. R. China. Environmental Geochemistry and Health,

Medical Geology (In Geologiskt Forum 2005)

Arsenic New publication i Swedish on arsenic, environmental effects and health effects in Sweden with many maps. Published in Swedish.

Finkelman, R. B., 2005, Sources and health effects of metals and trace elements in our environment: An overview. P25-46.

Centeno JA, Tchounwou PB, Patlolla A, et al. 2006. Environmental Pathology and Health Effects of Arsenic Poisoning – A Critical Review. In Managing Arsenic in the Environment: From Soils to Human Health. Naidu R, Smith E, et al. (Eds.). CSIRO Publishing, Australia, p. 307.

Cook AG, Weinstein P, Centeno JA. Health Effects of Dust – Role of Trace Elements and Compounds. Biol Trace Element Research 2005;103:1-15.

Gray M, Centeno JA, Slaney DP, Todorov TI, Ejnik JW, Nacey JN. Environmental Exposure to Trace Elements and Prostate Cancer in Three New Zealand Ethnic Groups. Int J Environ Research and Public Health (in press, October 2005, vol 2(3)).

Liu P. Chen Y-W, Centeno JA, Quezado M, Lem, KE, Kaler SG. Downregulation of Myelination, Energy, and Translational Genes in Menkes Disease Brain. Molecular Genetics and Metabolism (In press, 2005).

Christian WY, Hopenhayn C, Centeno JA, Todorov TI. Distribution of Urinary Selenium and Arsenic Among Pregnant Women Exposed to Arsenic in Drinking Water. Environmental Research (In Press, 2005).

Todorov TI, Ejnik JW, Mullick FG, Centeno JA. Arsenic Speciation in Urine and Blood Reference Materials. Microchimica Acta 2005;1:1-6.

Centeno JA, Mullick FG, Finkelman RB, Selinus O. Medical Geology – An Emerging Discipline in Support of Environmental and Military Medicine. Mil Med Tech 2005;9(5):7-9.

Ejnik JW, Todorov TI, Mullick FG, Squibb K, McDiarmid MA, Centeno JA. Uranium Analysis in Urine by Inductively Coupled Plasma Dynamic Reaction Cell Mass Spectrometry. Anal Bioanal Chem 2005;382:73-79.

Introduction by Olle Selinus

Sources and Health effects of metals and trace elements in our environment: A brief overview (Finkelman)

Arsenic in drinking water and Health issues (Centeno, Gray, Mullick, Tchounwou, Tseng)

Volcanic emissions and health risks of metal contaminants(Cook, Weinstein)

The Surveillance of heavy metals and human health outcomes (Phillipps, Fowles)

Gray M.A., Harris A, Centeno J.A., 2005. The Role of Cadmium, Zinc and Selenium in Prostate Disease, in Metal Contaminants in New Zealand, T.A. Moore, A. Black, J.A. Centeno, J.S. Harding, D.A. Trumm (Eds.) resolutionz press, Christchurch, NZ, p. 393-414.

Centeno, J.A., Gray, M.A., Mullick F.G., Tchounwou P.B., Tseng C.H., 2005. Arsenic in Drinking Water and Health Issues, in Metal Contaminants in New Zealand, T.A. Moore, A. Black, J.A. Centeno, J.S. Harding, D.A. Trumm (Eds.) resolutionz press, Christchurch, NZ, p. 415-439.

The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Washington DC, USA has received approval from the American Registry of Pathology to establish a registry on medical geology. The Registry

on Medical Geology serves as the liaison between the medical/pathology community and the

earth sciences, environmental and public health professionals. The aims of the Registry on

Medical Geology are:

1. to facilitate the interactions between the medical/public health community and the earth

sciences, toxicologists, and other related areas;

2. to provide a centralized facility for the sharing of information, materials

and research projects on medical geology;

3. to provide opportunities for training (i.e., postdoctoral, postmedical,

visiting scientist/professor, etc.) on medical research with particular

emphasis on medical geology, environmental and environmental

epidemiology research; and

4. to develop educational materials, publications and activities (courses,

workshops, symposia, conference) on medical geology research topics.

During 2005 the Medical Geology Registry provided training to one postdoctoral fellow in epidemiology and toxicology. The postdoctoral fellow, Dr. Marion Gray, came from the School of Public Health, Wellington School of Medicine in New Zealand. Dr. Marion spend one year at the AFIP working with Jose Centeno on a project entitled "Environmental Exposure to Trace Elements and Prostate Disease: The Role of Cadmium, Zinc and Selenium". A second postdoctoral fellow, Dr. Gilbert van der Voet, The Netherlands, will start a training appointment with the Medical Geology Registry in January 2006

The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Washington, DC has recently started the Center for Military Medical Geography within the Medical Geology Registry. The aims of the Center are:

1. Assist in Medical Geology research through geospatial analysis and cartography.

2. Enhance the adoption and acceptance of geographic information systems (GIS) within the Medical Geology and military communities.

3. Provide a clearinghouse for medical geography information to researchers around the world.

4. Educate the medical community on the importance of GIS and geospatial analysis through lectures, courses, workshops, and academic writin

During 2005 three rewards in medical geology have been received.

1.

"Prix D'Excellence Pour Les Sciences de La Terre"

Medical geology and the links between earth processes and human health were the focus of invited talks presented recently by USGS scientists Bob Finkelman (ERERT), Chris Kellogg (USGS Center for Coastal and Watershed Studies) and Geoff Plumlee (CRCICT) at the First International Mineralogy Days of Monaco Conference, organized by the Organisation Mondiale de Mineralogie. The conference, held at the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco, brought together a diverse group of international experts on economic geology, remote sensing, geophysics, climate change, and medical geology. The meeting culminated in the First Annual Monaco Bal Des Diamants (Diamonds Ball), a formal ball held in the Monte Carlo Grand Hotel. As part of the ball, which was attended by a number of local dignitaries, several scientists were presented awards. Geoff Plumlee was one of three scientists presented with the inaugural "Prix D'Excellence Pour Les Sciences de La Terre" (a medallion with the visage of Prince Rainier on one side and the visage Prince Albert I on the other side) for his medical geology research. Geoff accepted the medal on behalf of his colleagues within and outside the USGS studying the links between earth processes and human health. The conference was truly memorable for all scientists in attendance, not only for the opportunity to exchange information with scientists from a number of different international institutions, but also because of the unique cultural and historical setting of the meeting in Monaco, and because of the patronage of both the meeting and awards by HSH Prince Rainier of Monaco. Both the medical geology session (which was organized by Bob Finkelman) and the award to Geoff illustrate the growing international recognition and impacts of medical geology research.

2..

Olle Selinus has been appointed the "Geologist of year 2005" in Sweden. The award and prize is because of his work within medical geology which "has moved the geological science one step further to the future".

3.

The book Essentials of Medical Geology was published in January. The book has been met with great success.

In November almost 70% of the first edition had already been sold out.

A new book was published in New Zealand in 2005: Selected chapters in Metal Contaminants in New Zealand, Eds Moor, Black, Centeno, Harding, Trumm, 2005:

Selected organisations:

• Society for Environmental Geochemistry and Health, SEGH (with an official representative of IMGA)
• International Society of Medical Geography
• Nordic Working Group on Medical Geography
• Medical Geology Registry at AFIP
• International Association of Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry, Working Group on
• Geochemistry and Disease
• American Registry of Pathology
• Centre for Metal Biology in Sweden
• Geomedical Committee of the Norwegian Academy of Science and letters
• The East and South Africa Association on Medical Geology
• International Society of Doctors for the Environment (ISDE)

At present, there is a moderate level of activity in the medical geology field in the United States, primarily applied research activities within the Department of Interior (U.S. Geological Survey) and the Department of Defense (U.S. Armed Forces Institute of Pathology. These research activities address known earth science-related medical issues, both within the US and overseas (e.g., research at USGS-AFIP on impacts of coal, arsenic, and mercury on human health, public health effects of microbes transported by dusts; research at AFIP on environmental health impacts of trace elements, toxic trace metals, and metalloids). Despite the enthusiasm of individual researchers, it is clear that there is no overall consensus on the major high priority research issues. In addition, although the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health have recently begun a substantial inter- and intra-agency research initiative on the theme of "Ecology of Infectious Diseases", at present time there is a little involvement of earth scientists in this initiative and it is unclear what role earth scientists should play.

By contrast, there are well-developed linkages between the medical and geoscientific communities in several other countries, e.g., medical schools in Sweden are beginning to include environmental medicine, including geologic aspects, as a standard component of the curriculum. It will be important to understand the dynamics of such linkages and any lessons learned that may be applicable to the US situation.

Towards this end, the US National Research Council has been tasked with the responsibility of creating a NRC Committee on Earth Sciences and Medicine to access the present status of research at the interface between medicine and earth science. The NRC Committee will advise on the high priority research activities that should be undertaken for optimum societal benefit. The NRC Committee will report on the most profitable areas for communication and collaboration between the earth sciences and medical communities, recognizing both the infectious disease and environmental components. The NRC Committee is specifically tasked to:

• Describe the present state of knowledge in the emerging field of medical geology;
• Describe the connections between earth sciences and public health, addressing both positive and negative societal impacts over the full range from large-scale interactions to micro-scale biogeochemical processes;
• Evaluate the need for specific support for medical geology research;
• Propose ways to enhance collaboration between the medical and earth science communities;
• Suggest how future efforts should be directed to anticipate and respond to societal health needs and threats, particularly as a consequence of environmental change.

The NRC Committee will complete its activities by the end of 2005, with the publication of a report addressing each of the areas listed above.

Beginning in 2002, two important tools for dissemination of medical geology data have been made available in Brazil. During the 41^st Brazilian Geological Congress held in the city of João Pessoa, the participants of the Symposium on Environmental Geochemistry decided to join a discussion list named "Regagem – the Environmental Geochemistry and Medical Geology Network". The network is hosted at the University of Campinas and open to geochemists, academics, students and other professionals from all regions in Brazil. Additionally, a website was created at the Geological Survey of Brazil (SGB) http://www.cprm.gov.br/pgagem/index.html which hosts publications, theses, presentations and other information on medical geology for public consultation.

The number of participants of "Regagem" evolved from 157 in the beginning to its present 320 members. An active subgroup of professionals has been involved in sponsoring and delivering scientific meetings, lectures and short courses to disseminate the concepts of medical geology around the country. In October 2003 more than one hundred people attended the International Workshop on Medical Geology (Metals, Health and the Environment) held at the University of Campinas. An updated version of this workshop will be delivered in June at SGB’s Headquarter in Rio de Janeiro - again more than one hundred attendees are expected. At this meeting, participants will determine how to strengthen formal links between "Regagem" and the International Medical Geology Association – IMGA.

Perhaps the "Regagem" experience in Brazil could serve as a model for other countries wishing to enhance communication within regional groups and with the public and, hence, to strengthen medical geology worldwide.

A new division of the Geological Society of America (GSA) has recently been approved by the GSA Board of Directors. The Geology and Health Division will focus on impacts of geologic materials on human and animal health, both in a modern setting and as reflected in the paleontologic record. More than 100 people had signed a petition requesting that GSA sanction the division. Committees have been formed to generate a slate of candidates for office and to organize technical programs. For more information go to the GSA Divisions web page at http://www.geosociety.org/sectdiv.

In implementation of the decisions of the XXXII session of the International Geological Congress by theMinistry of Natural Resources of Russia (deputy director of the Department of Natural Resources and State Policy and Regulation, Nickolai V. Miletenko), the Russian Geological Society (RGS, President Victor P. Orlov, Vice-President Evgeny G. Farrahov), Federal State Unitary Enterprise All-Russian Scientific Research Institute for Mineral Resourses, named after Nickolai M.Fedorovski (FSUE VIMS, Deputy Director Dr. Igor G. Pechenkin, administrative associate Dr. Iosif F. Volfson, Dr. Georgy V. Ostroumov, Dr. Galina A. Sidorenko) and subdivisions of the Russian Academy of the Medical Sciences (RAMS) and the Russian Medical Society (RMS, President of RAMS and RMS Academician, Valentin I. Pokrovski), Russian State Medical University (RGMU, Rector Academician Vladimir N. Yarygin, Dr. Yelena V. Kremkova), Scientific-Research Institute of Human Ecology and Environmental Hygiene named after Alexander N. Sysin (Director, Academician Youri A. Rakhmanin, Deputy Director, Member Correspondent of RAMS Nickolai V. Rusakov), the creation of the RUSSIAN INTERDISCIPLINARY MEDICAL GEOLOGY SECTION on the base of RGS and RMS was initiated.

The INTERDISCIPLINARY MEDICAL GEOLOGY SECTION (IMGS) was created on March 1, 2005 at a meeting between the representatives of geological and medical communities, which took place in the Federal State Unitary Enterprise All-Russian Scientific Research Institute for Mineral Resources named after Nickolai M.Fedorovski (FSUE VIMS, Moscow), and which coincided with memories of professor Nathan I. Ginzburgh, a famous Russian mineralogist. IMGS was established on the basis of an initial agreement between Russian Geological Society (RGS) and Russian Medical Society (RMS). The agreement is accompanied with six sections related to:

1. Scopes and ranges of the IMGS.
2. Organizational structure
3. List of presidium and section members
4. Procedure by which members of the presidium and/or of the section are elected.
5. Basic organizations.
6. Foreign scientists, practitioners, and membership of citizens in IMGS.

A new division of the Geological Society of America (GSA) has recently been proposed. The division will focus on impacts of geologic materials on human and animal health, both in a modern setting and as reflected in the paleontologic record. More than 100 people signed a petition requesting that GSA sanction the division, and an organizational meeting was held at GSA's 2004 annual meeting in Denver this past November. It is anticipated that the GSA Council will formally consider the request at an upcoming meeting. For more information go to the GSA Divisions web page at http://www.geosociety.org/sectdiv and click on "learn more" under "Your Support Needed" in the lower righthand corner.

Talks on Medical geology were presented at the Hungarian Geological Survey, the Geological Survey of Slovenia, in Israel, and in the U.S. at the University of Virgina, George Mason University, the University of Texas at Dallas, University of Cincinatti, and Penn State University.

Medical Geology will also be involved in International Year of Planet Earth as one of 9 themes. .

The first Center for Medical Geology will now be built in China with funding from U.S. AID. The Center will focus on health problems caused by coal combustion and by karst water quality. The Center is expected to begin operations in 2006. A second Medical Geology Center is under discussion in South Africa.

A Center for Medical Geology is planned in Ankara, Turkey.

Medical Geology is involved in the GeoUnions Initiative as one theme. A meeting was held in Uppsala, Sweden in October.

Research in medical geology is going on in several countries. Some selected examples are:

Research in Morbus Gaucher in Sweden, a collaboration between the Geological Survey and the Karolinska Institute This is a severe genetic disease affecting 300 families. Research has shown that the cause of this genetic disease is that two miners working with smelting of sulfide ores in Sweden in the beginning of the 17^th century were affected by metal fumes which caused genetic disorders. This is probably the first time in the world such a genetic disease has been explained, in this case in collaboration with geochemists.

Collaborative research on Balkan Endemic Nephropathy (BEN), a degenerative kidney disease, is being conducted in Romania, parts of the former Yugoslavia, U.S., Portugal, and Turkey (a Master’s student).

Research in China is proceeding in investigating the causes of the death of Marco Polos horses.

European Union is showing interest in medical geology. Olle Selinus will visit the European Environmental Agency (EEA) in Copenhagen in January 2006 for discussing medical geology and the involvement of European Union and possible financing.

Interest in Medical Geology is continuing to expand worldwide at an increasingly rapid rate and creating numerous opportunities. Our organization has reached the stage of development in which a formal structure is necessary for it to function efficiently. This structure should enable us to better respond to the opportunities, to rapidly pass information to those interested in Medical Geology issues, and to make critical decisions that will benefit the discipline. A new association is developing, International Medical Geology Association, IMGA.

One of the principal objectives of the Association is to forge links between geoscientists and biomedical/public health researchers and between developed and developing countries with the goal of finding solutions to environmental health problems.

The Directors of the association will be:

Olle Selinus (Geochemist, Sweden)

Bob Finkelman (Geologist USA)

Jose Centeno (Pathologist, USA)

In the new future organisation (association) we have appointed six Councilors to represent the broad geographic distribution of Medical Geology and the wide range of disciplines that are embraced by this topic. The Councilors are:

During 2005 it has been necessary to establish a firm base for establishing the association, Therefore we have established committees and working groups with participants from all over the world.

The following committees and working groups (WG) are running:

· Society formation. Constitution, bylaws etc.

· Journals

· Promotion of Medical Geology

· Fund raising

· Regional groups, guidelines and support

· Conferences

· Education

· Nominating Committee

· Veterinary Geology (WG)

· Health Impacts of Geologic Disasters (WG)

Other possible working groups, following the formation of the association are:

· Medical Geology Indicators

· Traditional Medicines

· Occupational Health

· Urban Medical Geology

· Integrated methodologies

The committees have suggested the organisational structure and other matters. The bylaws and constitution are presented in the appendix.

The bylaws and constitution will be presented for all members of the International working group/Initiative in the beginning of December 2005 for voting. Then the Association will be officially formed January 1, 2006. From then on we will have to put rather much work in organising the association.

IMGA will have a new logotype based on the older Initiative logo. The new logotype will be presented at the end of 2005.

Work is going on in establishing regional divisions of IMGA. One division will now be established for the Southern Mediterranean region including Turkey and the Middle East. Chairmen of this division have been identified.

Two regional divisions are also decided in the Carribean Basin and South and Central America. This planning is under way and will be finalised in the beginning of 2006.

Geological Survey of Sweden

Post Box 670

Uppsala, 751 28, SWEDEN

Phone +46 18 179000

Fax +46 18 179210

Olle.selinus@sgu.se (office)

Olle.selinus@home.se (home)

The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology

Dpt of Environmental and Toxicologic Pathology

Washington DC, 20306-6000 USA

Phone: + 202 782-2839 (office)

+ 202 782-2832 (Lab)

Fax: +202 782-9215

centeno@afip.osd.mil

United States Geological Survey

Mailstop 956

Reston, VA20192, USA

Phone +1 703 648 6412

Fax +1 703 648 6419

Rbf@usgs.gov

1. Selected sponsors of medical geology
2. Constitution and bylaws of the International Medical Geology Association
3. Dues structure for IMGA
4. UN list of countries to be used for differentiated membership fees
5. Time line for Medical Geology
6. Countries where short courses have been held since 2001.

SELECTED SPONSORS OF MEDICAL GEOLOGY

Geological Survey of Sweden

United States Geological Survey, USGS

US Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, AFIP

National Natural Research Council of Sweden

Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters

Centre for Metal Biology of Sweden

Geological Survey of Norway

British Geological Survey

UNESCO

UNEP

International Union of Geological Sciences, IUGS

International Geological Cooperation Program, IGCP#454, Medical Geology

International Council of Science, ICSU

International Association of Geochemistry and Cosmochemistry, IAGC

American Registry of Pathology
Western Australia University
Jackson State University, Mississipi

School of Mines, University of Zambia

University of Santiago

Ministerio de Minera, Chile

US Environmental Protection Agency

Centro CoHemis y la Universidad de Puerto Rico, Recinto Universitaria de Mayaguez

Saint Petersburg State University, Russia

National Natural Science Foundation, China

The State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Academia Sinica, China

The Key Laboratory of Coal Resources, Ministry of Education, China

Japan Branch of COGEOENVIRONMENT-IUGS

The Society of Geo-Pollution (SGP), Japan

Committee of Environmental Geology, Geological Society of Japan

Center for Water Environment Studies, Ibaraki University (CWES), Japan

National Committee for Geoscience, Science Council of Japan

Geological Survey of Lithuania

Geological Survey of Brazil (CPRM)

Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Brazilian Ministry of Health

Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil

PETROBRAS, Brazil

FAPESP, Brazil

Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI), Malaysia

Institute for Medical Research Malaysia (IMR)

Department of Minerals and Geoscience Malaysia (JMG)

University of Canberra, Australia

CRC for Landscape Environments and Mineral Exploration (CRC LEME), Australia

Geoscience Australia (GA)

Institute of Geology and Geography, Lithuania (GGI)

Vilnius University (VU)

Geological Survey of Ireland

Institute of Desert Environment Research, Egypt

Minufiya University – Alexandria, Egypt

U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine (USACHPPM)

Geological Survey of Brazil (SGB-CPRM)

University of Campinas – Brazil (UNICAMP)

Sustainable Development Policy Secretary (SDS – MMA)

Fluminense Federal University (UFF)

ASOCIACIÓN GEOLÓGICA ARGENTINA

Western University "Vasile Goldis" Arad

University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Victor Babes" Timisoara

Ankara University

Cancer Control Department, Turkey Ministry of Health

The name of this organization is The International Medical Geology Association (IMGA).

To facilitate interactions between geoscientists and biomedical/public health researchers in addressing human and animal health problems caused by geologic materials or geologic processes. The IMGA is a "policy neutral" organization.

1. To stimulate interest and promote research in medical geology.
2. To provide a forum for discussion, to disseminate information, and to provide educational opportunities in medical geology.
3. To promote state-of-the-art technologies in medical geology.
4. To inspire the highest standard of professional ethics of its members.

1. The membership of the Association shall consist of persons, corporations and organizations concerned with the promotion of the Association's objectives.
2. Membership classifications, qualifications and duties and privileges shall be established in the Bylaws of the Association.

The government of this Association shall be vested in an Executive Committee. Membership on the Executive Committee and the election process, terms of office, and specific duties and responsibilities of Executive Committee members, as well as other matters relevant to the Executive Committee, shall be as provided in the Bylaws of this Association. Any responsibility and authority of government of this Association not otherwise specified in these governing documents shall be reserved to the Executive Committee.

The Bylaws as appended hereto are hereby adopted and may be amended, enlarged or reduced as provided in the Bylaws.

This constitution can be amended by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of members in good standing responding by mail or electronic mail ballot. A minimum of twenty (20) percent of the membership is required for the vote. Amendment proposals can be made by the Executive Committee or by a petition signed by ten percent of the Members of the Association. Proposed amendments must be ratified by the Executive Committee before submission to a vote by the Members.

1. Members shall be classified as follows:
• A. Member - a person whose professional activities or interests are in keeping with the objectives of the Association.
• B. Student Member – a student enrolled at least half time in an institution of higher learning.
• C. Honorary Member - a person distinguished in a scientific discipline of significance to the Association.
• D. Institutional Affiliates - Institutional Affiliates shall be those firms, institutions of higher learning, or other organizations interested in fostering the science of medical geology. Institutional Affiliates shall have the right to appoint a person as their designated representative. Such a person could also be a Member. Institutional Affiliates shall enjoy all the privileges of the Association except that they, or their representatives, shall not hold office or vote. Notwithstanding any of the above limitations, a designated representative of an Institutional Affiliate, who is also an individual Member, may so continue to exercise his/her membership rights and privileges on his/her own behalf.

Article II: Procedures for Election to Membership

1. A person desiring membership in the IMGA must petition the Executive Committee on an approved membership application. The applicant must be informed of Executive Committee's acceptance or rejection as soon as practicable.
2. Life Members are elected for life by a majority vote of the Executive Committee after being nominated by the responsible committee.
3. New members (regular and student) can be proposed by other members or may request consideration from the Executive Committee for themselves

Article III: Dues

1. Annual dues shall be determined by the Executive Committee and shall be assessed on a calendar year basis. The Executive Committee may substitute appropriate service to IMGA or to Medical Geology in lieu of the annual dues. Annual dues are waived for Life Members.
2. Institutional Affiliates shall pay an annual membership cost to be determined by Executive Committee.
3. Annual dues are payable in advance on or before the first day of each calendar year. Notice of dues will be sent with the newsletter and by electronic mail in the third quarter of each calendar year. A Member who fails to remit by January 1 should be considered in arrears until he/she remits, and any member still in arrears on April 1 will be dropped from membership. Members may be reinstated upon payment of current dues and no membership application will be required provided such reinstatement occurs within one (1) year.
4. Any Member in arrears as defined in Section 4 above shall not receive any Association publications nor be allowed to vote or hold office.

All dues are payable in EU or US currency. Alternate methods of payment may be approved by the Executive Committee.

Article IV: Duties and Privileges of Members

1. Members in good standing, defined as a Member not in arrears as defined in Article III, Section 4 of the Bylaws, shall have the privilege of holding office, voting, serving on Association Committees, and transacting the business of the Association.
2. Life Members shall have all the privileges of membership.
3. Institutional Affiliates in good standing shall receive all publications of the Association.

Article V: Executive Committee

1. Executive Committee shall be composed of:
• A. Chair
• B. Co-Chair for geoscience
• C. Co-chair for medical science
• D. Secretary
• E. Treasurer
• F. Six (6) Councillors
• G. Editor – non-voting appointed position
• H Webmaster – a non-voting appointed position .

2. The Executive Committee shall have ultimate executive control and management of affairs and funds of this Association. Duties include planning for conferences, elections, publications, determination of applicant qualifications and membership, administering funds for the benefit of the Association, and any other duties required to accomplish the objectives of the Association.

3. The Executive Committee shall meet at the annual meeting and at the call of the president. Robert's Rules of Order shall apply at all Executive Committee meetings and a simple majority of Executive Committee Members shall constitute a quorum. No proxy votes or alternates are allowed. Executive Committee members may act on Association matters by mail, telephone, or electronic communication (e.g. E-mail, or World Wide Web site) if needed.

Article VI: Officers

1. The officers of this Association shall be as follows: Chair, Co-Chair (geoscience), Co-Chair (medical science), Secretary, Treasurer, six Councilors and an Editor and Webmaster, the two latter two officers are non-voting appointed positions. Terms of office shall begin at the close of the annual business meeting and extend for two years.
2. The Chair shall be the chief executive officer of the Association and shall preside over all meetings of the Association and Executive Committee.
3. The Co-Chairs shall perform such duties as may be assigned by the Chair if the Chair is absent or unable to serve, and shall jointly assume the office of Chair in the event of a vacancy for any cause.
4. The Secretary shall be responsible for recording the actions of the Executive Committee, and be responsible for all communications including coordinating courses and meetings.
5. The Treasurer shall supervise the receipt of all funds and, under the direction of the Executive Committee, be responsible for all disbursements of funds of the Association.
6. The Councilors shall perform specific duties as directed by the Executive Committee.
7. The editor shall be responsible for all official publications such as the newsletter.
8. The officers shall each serve two-year year terms. In the initial elections three Councilors shall be elected for a one year term. Thereafter, three (3) Councilors shall be elected each year for two-year terms.
9. The officers shall be eligible for one second consecutive term in the same office.
10. The Executive Committee shall select one individual to fill any interim vacancy occurring in the offices of Co-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Councilor, or Editor.

Article VII: Election of Officers

1. The Chair shall appoint a nominating committee of not less than three (3) Members, one (1) of whom shall be designated as Chairman and none of whom shall be members of the Executive Committee. The Members should be selected from the Association and should be representative of the disciplines included in the membership. The Chair shall instruct the committee to submit the names of at least two (2) qualified nominees for each of the offices. Competitive elections are encouraged but not required for the office of Secretary, Treasurer and Editor. Election of officers shall be completed six (6) weeks prior to the annual meeting.
2. The Nominating Committee shall be responsible for the preparation, receipt and counting of all ballots requiring a vote by Members. In the case of election of officers, a ballot and a biography of each nominee shall be mailed (electronic mail?) to every voting Member. All ballots shall be returned to the Nominating Committee Chairman and shall be counted by the Committee within seven (7) days following the designated closing date. Results of balloting shall be promptly reported by the Nominating Committee Chairman to the Chair who will in turn report ballot results to Executive Committee and the candidates.
3. A plurality of the votes received for any office shall constitute election. In the event of a tie, a vote of the Executive Committee shall prevail.
4. Nominees for all elective offices shall be Members in good standing or Life Members. Representation on Executive Committee should if possible reflect global demographics, and different disciplines and should also strive for gender balance.

Article VIII: Business Procedures

1. The Executive Committee shall appoint committees, arrange IMGA representation with other groups, production of journals, special publications, short courses, and symposia and conduct day-to-day business. The affairs of the Association shall be managed by its elected Executive Committee who must be Members in good standing.
2. The Executive Committee is responsible for the annual budget, which shall be based on the calendar year.
3. The Executive Committee shall cause an audit of the Association's financial records to be performed at the conclusion of a treasurer's term of office and prior to installation of a newly elected treasurer. The Executive Committee may call for an audit of the Association’s financial records at shorter intervals.
4. In the event of the dissolution of the Association, the assets remaining after discharge of all liabilities, shall go for charitable, scientific or educational purposes. Under these circumstances, no Member of the Association shall have any right of interest in the assets of the Association.

Article IX: Publications

1. The Executive Committee is authorized to provide for publications in keeping with the objectives of the Association.

Article X: Awards

1. The Executive Committee shall have the responsibility for establishing an awards committee, approve the recipients of awards, and accord them appropriate recognition.

Article XI: Committees and Representatives

1. The Executive Committee shall have the authority to establish, direct and dissolve standing committees of the Association.
2. The appointment of Chairmen shall be at the direction of the president and approved by Executive Committee.
3. Ad hoc committees may be appointed by the president upon approval of the Executive Committee to consider specific questions, or conduct specific studies.
4. Committee chairmen and the representatives shall submit an annual written report to the Executive Committee.

Article XI Regional Divisions

1. The excecutive committee can decide on the establishment of regional divisions.
2. The purposes, membership and regional division authority can be found in the bylaws of the regional divisons.
3. The chairman of each regional division will together with the excecutive committee form a council.

Article XII: Annual Meeting

1. One meeting of the Association each year shall be designated as the Annual Meeting. The Executive Committee shall designate the time and place of the meeting.
2. At the Annual Meeting there shall be a business meeting, at which time Executive Committee may present to the Members present items of business for information, recommendation, discussion or vote.

Article XIII: Professional Ethics

1. Members of the Association are expected to maintain the highest level of professional ethics. Any Member of the Association who is found guilty by due legal process of a legal infraction that includes a breach of professional ethics. shall have his/her membership in the Association automatically terminated.

Article XIV: Amendments

1. Amendments to these Bylaws may be proposed by the following means: resolution of the Executive Committee, or written proposal signed by ten percent of the voting Members of the Association.
2. Proposed amendments shall be approved by the Executive Committee, which then shall submit such amendments to the Members by mail ballot, or to the Members present at the annual business meeting, and shall be passed by a two-thirds affirmative vote of the Members voting with a minimum of twenty (20) percent of the membership responding.

 

Medical Geology Regional Divisions

Article1:Name

International Medical Geology Regional Divisions

Article II: Constitution and bylaws

The divisions shall pledge to abide by the constitution and bylaws of the International Medical Geology Association

Article III: General purpose

1. Medical Geology Regional Divisions (Divisions) shall be formed to encourage broad participation in medical geology research, training, and education and to disseminate medical geology information in their respective regions.
2. Medical Geology Regional Division (Divisions) may organize scientific and educational meetings when and where it is necessary, may consist of activities that provide for effective exchange of plans, information, analyses results, ideas, and other activities among its professional and student members; activities that are designed to increase the public’s awareness and appreciation of Medical Geology.
3. The International Medical Geology Association (The Association) shall strive to support and encourage the Divisions.
4. The Divisions shall conform to standard geographic boundaries as determined by the Association.
5. The divisions shall cooperate with other organizations operating in this field, exchange information with the public, other scientists, individuals, decision makers and organizations, act as an information resource center in the field of Medical Geology, promote communication among members on matters of common interest and importance, establish regional research priorities in the field on the basis of current and future needs and disseminate information, ideas, and other activities to its scientific and amateur members in their respective regions
6. The Divisions shall be open for membership to any interested person living in the region or to any organization chartered in the region.
7. The Divisions shall be run in a democratic manner having elections for officers at regular intervals. The officers of the Division shall reflect the geographic, gender, ethnic, and disciplinary diversity of the Division’s membership.

 

Article IV: Membership

1. Types of Membership may be individual or Institutional
2. Active members shall consist of individuals who are up-to-date with their dues or accepted commitments.
3. The Divisions shall be open for membership to any interested person living in the region or to any organization chartered in the region.
4. The Divisions shall be run in a democratic manner having elections for officers at regular intervals. The officers of the Division shall reflect the geographic, gender, ethnic, and disciplinary diversity of the Division’s membership.
5. Institutional members shall pay dues as determined by the Association Executive Board.
6. A request to form a Division shall be signed by at least 10 full members in good standing of the Association and shall be submitted to the Association Executive Board. For regions containing less than five countries, the signers must be from at least two countries within the region. For regions containing more than five countries, the signers must be from one third of the countries represented in the Association membership. A majority vote by the Association Executive Board is required for recognition.

 

Article V: Membership dues

1. The Divisions shall bid by the dues structure approved by the Association. Division members may pay dues directly to the Association or to the Division.
• The first $250 of annual dues from Division members shall belong to the Division (categories 2-4);
• The next $250 shall be divided equally between the Association and the Division.
• For dues income over $500, seventy-five percent (75%) shall go to the Association and twenty-five percent (25%) shall go to the Division.
1. Members of the Divisions shall be considered as full members of the Association and shall enjoy all benefits that accrue with Association membership.
2. Funds generated by dues, donations, or other means under the auspices of the Division shall be used only for the promotion of Medical Geology within the region, unless otherwise agreed to by the Association Executive Board.
3. The Division shall maintain clear and complete records of regional activities and comprehensive and accurate financial accounts. The Division shall provide the Association periodic reports on regional activities for inclusion in the Association Newsletters and other documents. The Division shall respond in a timely manner to any requests for information from the Association Executive Board.

 

Article VI: Termination of membership

The Association Executive Board may discharge officers of a Division for malfeasance. A two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Board is necessary for dismissal.

 

Article VII: Regional division authority

1. The Regional Division members shall be convoked in writing. The regular meeting shall be held at least once every two years.
2. The Regional Division can also make decisions without meeting, under the condition that proposals have been sent to all Council members of the Regional Division, and that all Council members have the opportunity to give their vote in writing or by e-mail.
3. Each Council member of the Regional Divisions shall have one vote. Prior to voting, they must have agreement upon decisions within their Regional Division and shall be taken by simple majority.

 

 

Dues structure IMGA

4 categories according to the UN list of member states.

Category Due (USD) Students

and retired

1 40 20

2 20 10

3 10 5

4 5 2

Corporate members from industry 200 USD (all categories).

All corporate fees to be payed to IMGA and not to the regional divisions.

Honorary members no dues

Members paying dues for four years in advance receive the fifth year of membership for free.

The Divisions shall bid by the dues structure approved by the Association. Division members of category 1-3 may pay dues directly to the Division. Division members of category 1 pay directly to the Association. The first $250 of annual dues from Division members shall belong to the Division (category 1-23); the next $250 shall be divided equally between the Association and the Division. For dues income over $500, seventy-five percent (75%) shall go to the Association and twenty-five percent (25%) shall go to the Division.

Full members of IMGA receive following:

• Biannual newsletters on a CD
• Membership lists
• Monthly shorter newsletters by e-mail
• 30% discount of the book Essentials of Medical Geology
• Access to a memberpage of the website www.medicalgeology.org with a password.
• Compilations of published articles at the end of each year.
• Reduced conference fees for conferences and workshops sponsored by IMGA.
• Possibilities to receive travel support to conferences and workshops

UN List of countries

Low-income economies (59)

Afghanistan

Haiti

Pakistan

Bangladesh

India

Papua New Guinea

Benin

Kenya

Rwanda

Bhutan

Korea, Dem Rep.

Sao Tome and Principe

Burkina Faso

Kyrgyz Republic

Senegal

Burundi

Lao PDR

Sierra Leone

Cambodia

Lesotho

Solomon Islands

Cameroon

Liberia

Somalia

Central African Republic

Madagascar

Sudan

Chad

Malawi

Tajikistan

Comoros

Mali

Tanzania

Congo, Dem. Rep.

Mauritania

Timor-Leste

Congo, Rep.

Moldova

Togo

Cote d'Ivoire

Mongolia

Uganda

Eritrea

Mozambique

Uzbekistan

Ethiopia

Myanmar

Vietnam

Gambia, The

Nepal

Yemen, Rep.

Ghana

Nicaragua

Zambia

Guinea

Niger

Zimbabwe

Guinea-Bissau

Nigeria

Lower-middle-income economies (54)

Albania

El Salvador

Namibia

Algeria

Fiji

Paraguay

Angola

Georgia

Peru

Armenia

Guatemala

Philippines

Azerbaijan

Guyana

Romania

Belarus

Honduras

Samoa

Bolivia

Indonesia

Serbia and Montenegro

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Iran, Islamic Rep.

Sri Lanka

Brazil

Iraq

Suriname

Bulgaria

Jamaica

Swaziland

Cape Verde

Jordan

Syrian Arab Republic

China

Kazakhstan

Thailand

Colombia

Kiribati

Tonga

Cuba

Macedonia, FYR

Tunisia

Djibouti

Maldives

Turkmenistan

Dominican Republic

Marshall Islands

Ukraine

Ecuador

Micronesia, Fed. Sts.

Vanuatu

Egypt, Arab Rep.

Morocco

West Bank and Gaza

Upper-middle-income economies (40)

American Samoa

Grenada

Poland

Antigua and Barbuda

Hungary

Russian Federation

Argentina

Latvia

Seychelles

Barbados

Lebanon

Slovak Republic

Belize

Libya

South Africa

Botswana

Lithuania

St. Kitts and Nevis

Chile

Malaysia

St. Lucia

Costa Rica

Mauritius

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Croatia

Mayotte

Trinidad and Tobago

Czech Republic

Mexico

Turkey

Dominica

Northern Mariana Islands

Uruguay

Equatorial Guinea

Oman

Venezuela, RB

Estonia

Palau

 

Gabon

Panama

High-income economies (55)

Andorra

Greece

New Caledonia

Aruba

Greenland

New Zealand

Australia

Guam

Norway

Austria

Hong Kong, China

Portugal

Bahamas, The

Iceland

Puerto Rico

Bahrain

Ireland

Qatar

Belgium

Isle of Man

San Marino

Bermuda

Israel

Saudi Arabia

Brunei

Italy

Singapore

Canada

Japan

Slovenia

Cayman Islands

Korea, Rep.

Spain

Channel Islands

Kuwait

Sweden

Cyprus

Liechtenstein

Switzerland

Denmark

Luxembourg

United Arab Emirates

Faeroe Islands

Macao, China

United Kingdom

Finland

Malta

United States

France

Monaco

Virgin Islands (U.S.)

French Polynesia

Netherlands

 

Germany

Netherlands Antilles