Reykjavík Grapevine - 12.08.2011, Blaðsíða 40

Reykjavík Grapevine - 12.08.2011, Blaðsíða 40
Noodle soup with chicken IKR 930 IKR 930 Noodle soup with beef Home of the best noodle soup! Skólavörðustígur 21A Pósthússtræti 13 101 Reykjavík Tel: +354 551 1800 www.gamla.is .. Tungumálaskólinn LIFANDI NÁM - LITLIR BEKKIR – ELDA – BORÐA – TALA SAMAN – LEIKIR – FARA ÚT – MENNING .. Morgunnámskeið DAgnámskeið Kvöldnámskeið Íslenska fyrir útlendinga Stig 1, 2, 3, 4 og Tal Spænska fyrir byrjendur Spænska tal Enska fyrir byrjendur Enska tal www.skoli.eu information@skoli.eu tel: 551-7700 gsm: 821-7163 SKOLI.EU Velkomin 40 The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 12 — 2011 were washed. You would also see sailors from for- eign ships going there with their garments. The re- mains of the washing springs can still be seen at Laugardalur, not far from the national football sta- dium, and of course Laugavegur itself also takes its name from these springs. NORWEGIAN HOUSES In recent years, many of the old timber houses have been rebuilt, some of them quite beautifully, but it should be mentioned that these houses are not es- pecially Icelandic. The oldest style of buildings (see Bernhöftstorfa) is Scandinavian and some of the larger ones, built in the early twentieth century, are in fact catalogue houses in the so called ‘Sveitser’ style from Switzerland, which were imported from Norway where it was popular at the time. The only buildings that can be called truly Ice- landic are the old turf houses, which the nation lived in for centuries. Few of these turf houses are left today as most people wanted to erase the memories of these dwellings. Icelanders have never had enough wood to build houses from, and one still wonders how the beams for the huge cathedral that stood at the bishop’s seat at Skálholt in the twelfth century were transported. Also Icelanders never mastered the art of building houses from hewn stone—knowledge imported from Denmark in the late eighteenth cen- tury. REBUILDING IN THE OLD TIMBER STYLE Today, people seem to favour the timber houses, rather than for example, the Reykjavík classic style. There have been three projects in the last few years wherein houses were rebuilt in the old timber style or adapted freely from the buildings that were once there. One is at Laugavegur 4–6, another is on the corner of Austurstræti and Lækjargata, and a third one is on Aðalstræti. Generally this has been considered a success. People seem to like these buildings, even if some of them are not especially practical. But this mixture of old and modern is a delicate balance, and some might consider it a bit kitsch. Continued from page 8 As usual, 68-year-old, Kristján Loftsson (owner of Iceland’s largest whaling company, Hvalur) rears his head in the Independent piece, agreeing that de- mand for whale meat has diminished since the disas- ter in Japan. “Demand has shrunk [but] it will pick up.” According to Kristján, there are up to 60,000 minke and fin whales in Icelandic waters, “So if we take 150 a year, that’s nothing,” he says. We’ll have to see just how headstrong the Icelan- dic Ministry of Fisheries turns out to be. Somehow I have a feeling that with pressure from the White House and the Hollywood lobby, even they will have to bow down. Isn’t Iceland trying to promote itself as an ideal filming location? Wasn’t the James Bond movie Die Another Day, starring Pierce Brosnan, filmed at Jökulsárlón in Iceland? Just in case the whale issue weren’t enough, the mackerel policy is resurfacing. European Fisheries Commissioner Maria Damanaki very recently met with delegates from Norway and the EU to get Iceland back to the mackerel-negotiating-table. FISHupdate. com reported that “Brussels…called for immediate inspections in Iceland…with regard to illegal and unregulated fishing.” And furthermore, “the EU has been asked to ‘freeze’ Iceland’s membership talks un- til the [mackerel] issue is settled.” Pressure from the EU may not move mountains, but if the unfettered voice of Hollywood has its say, things are surely about to change. In Pierce Brosnan’s words: “You can be sure that Iceland will not end the abhorrent practice of whaling until it is forced to do so. Let’s fight ‘em. Again and again.” It strikes me that Kristján may have finally met his match. Besides, the IWC hasn’t given him the li- cense to kill. Continued from page 12 Continued from page 14 The culture is different, they don’t all share the same religion and I don’t think that many Italians understand the Finnish language without studying it very carefully: you get the point. Even though the European Union member countries are richly di- verse they share the same ideas and are united in their commitment to keep peace, democracy and the rule of law in the continent just as well as over the borders of Europe. They share the respect for hu- man rights, equality, freedom, the values of coop- eration, welfare, better environment and the rights of not only their citizens but the whole world, which can be seen in the fact that the European Union is a major donor of humanitarian assistance and de- velopment aid. Is Iceland European? So why do I believe that Iceland should be the next member state of the European Union? Iceland is a European country, not only geographically but also historically and politically. The history of Iceland is a part of the European history. Iceland has close relations with Europeans and Iceland is very con- nected to Europe through the European Economic Area, which gives Iceland a place at the inner market of the European Union and a great amount of Euro- pean Union law, but without the ability to have any- thing to say about them of course, since we are only “visitors” of the area, but the voice we need within the Europe would come with a membership. More importantly perhaps, like I mentioned before, for me the European Union is not only a business machine with its own market and currency (which by the way Iceland really needs), not only a bureau- cracy that would lower the price of food in Iceland, lower the taxes and make it easier (and cheaper) for people to study and live in other European coun- tries, it is also a very strong ideological power, and it is the ideology behind the foundation of the Union that makes me believe that Iceland belongs among the other 27 countries. The European Union is a unique thing that has only been growing stronger since its foundation. How can someone not want to be a part of such a success story like the European Union, which is good for the member states, good for the citizens of the Union and good for the rest of the world? I think that the words of the great Jean Monnet, the founding father, back in the year 1952 says it all: “We are not bringing together states, we are unit- ing people.” The lupine | Controversy ALASKAN “WOLF” INVADES ICELAND The battle for land in Iceland Invasive species or non-native plants present a problem all over the world. For instance, the ragweed in Europe can cause serious allergy problems and the zebra mussel in the North America colonises rapidly, clogging water intakes that support drinking water supplies and pow- ers hydroelectric plants. In Iceland, that invasive species is the Alaskan lupine, which was brought into the country in 1885. Then in 1960, the Icelandic Forestry Service began actively spreading the plant, and by 1986, the Soil Conserva- tion Service was using it for land rec- lamation and to stop soil erosion. Soil erosion has been a problem in Iceland since the early settlers cut down most of the country’s trees for building homes and firewood. “The forest cover was sig- nificantly reduced from 25 percent since settlement to 1.1 percent in recent de- cades,” according to Björn H. Barkarson and Magnús H. Jóhannsson, who co- authored “Arctic Land Care.” THE CONTROVERSY The Alaskan Lupine seemed the ideal plant to correct the soil erosion. Head of the Environmental Studies Program at Franklin College Switzerland, Dr. Brack Hale, explains that while other plants take nitrogen from the soil, the lupine species actually put nitrogen back into the soil, which makes them well suited for restoring the soil in the barren land- scapes, such as those of Iceland. But along with this nitrogen fixing quality, there is the fact that the Alaskan lupine spreads like a wild fire, outcompeting Iceland’s established plants. Thus, members of the political and scientific community believe the Lu- pine must be controlled. Among them is Iceland’s Minister for the Environ- ment Svandís Svavarsdóttir. She sees the rapid expansion of the lupine being problematic. “The Alaskan lupine can become invasive, expanding beyond the eroded areas, and competing with natu- ral vegetation,” she says. One of the plants in danger is the bil- berry (which people often confuse with the blueberry). “People hate it because it spreads everywhere ruining favourite spots for berry picking,” says Specialist at the Soil Conservation Service of Ice- land Magnús H. Jóhansson. Borgþór Magnússon of the Icelan- dic Institute of Natural History, who authored “Nobanis – Invasive Alien Species Fact Sheet” on the Alaskan Lu- pine, points out that the spreading of the Alaskan lupine can be difficult to handle. “Early action is necessary if plants are to be eradicated from an area,” Borgþór writes. “It has proven very difficult to manage the species after it has started to spread in an area and formed a seed bank.” At the same time, there are those who think the Alaskan lupine is a wel- come addition to Iceland. In 1988, Ævar Jóhannesson started producing a drink that contains Alaskan lupine, which was used to help patients through their can- cer treatments. The drink strengthens the immune system, which chemothera- py weakens. In the early years, Ævar dis- tributed this drink to anyone who asked, absolutely free. Now, the drink is available commer- cially. “The drink has proved beneficial for people suffering from asthma, ar- thritis, as well as other inflammatory symptoms, such as aching joints and even healthy individuals, as an overall immune booster,” Fríða Brá Pálsdót- tir says, an employee at Heilsuhúsið in Smáratorg. A SOLUTION? Despite its positive traits, the Alaskan lupine’s quickly expanding nature calls for a change in dealing with the soil ero- sion problem. “There is a constant work to develop new and improved methods to tackle this important environmental issue,” Svandís Svavarsdóttir said. Though grasses and fertilizer are not necessarily nitrogen fixers, they can still be implemented to reclaim land. Mag- nús H. Johansson, for instance, lists al- ternatives such as grasses (lyme grass, Kentucky blue grass, red fescue, and Italian ryegrass), legumes (clover, vetch, and sea pea), and fertilizer with no seed. In the meantime, the Alaskan lupine continues to threaten areas where no soil conservation is needed, outcompet- ing natural Icelandic vegetation, such as moss and the bilberry. Without the bilberry, the “blueberry” soup, loved by Icelanders and foreigners alike, may cease to exist: a favourite Icelandic cuisine reduced to memory and recipe books. S. ALESSIO TUMMOLILLO NATSHA NANDABHIWAT A View From The Curch Tower Revoked: License To Kill The New Idea Of Europe: United In Diversity
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