I enjoy the kind E-mails and real letters that I receive from readers all over the country. In fact, I have received one response from Australia about a column that I wrote concerning cancer clusters. In that article, I observed that many cancer cluster and other disease cluster claims cannot be proven to be true. The problem relates to "causation," it is hard to prove that the offending pollutant actually made someone ill.

I received a letter from an Australian professional who saw my column on the Internet. She acknowledged the difficulty in establishing causation in many cases, but advised of some strong studies that have gone a long way toward proving connections between illnesses and exposures. Thank you, Australia, for reading and providing this response.

Not long ago, I wrote a story about "sick fish" found in Maryland and Florida waters, as well as other eastern state water bodies. Millions of fish have died. It is quite an impressive problem. In preparing the article, I interviewed a scientist from the University of Maryland who informed that many scientists attribute farm runoff with the sick fish problems.

I received a friendly E-mail from a farmer, I suspect, who told me that indeed, farm runoff does create certain problems. But he pleaded that we not just blame farmers. He stated suburban green lawns are probably a bigger problem. And, the writer has a point. Suburban lawns, including those golf course green corporate lawns, require a lot of fertilizers and pesticides. These chemicals are toxic (remember, pesticides are meant to kill). When it rains, the chemicals wash into storm drains, and end up in streams and lakes. Ultimately, it all washes into the ocean.

Agriculture runoff is a big problem. In fact, right now many states have proposed laws designed to control farm runoff problems. This includes manure, pesticides and fertilizers. As farm production becomes more efficient, chemical and manure production has increased, and so have the runoff problems. But, farmers are professionals and generally do an admirable job in controlling this runoff. We suburbanites, however do not do a good job. So as the E-mailer warned, we should not cast the first stone.

Another recent article concerned composting. One writer informed me that he is an avid composter. He told me that he uses the compost in his garden, which produces a tasty green tea each year. I asked the writer for some tea, and am still waiting.

I received a lot of letters after I wrote an article about new, energy efficient fluorescent light bulbs. Some asked where they could purchase bulbs, and some sought more information about utilities that are offering cash incentives to customers who replace traditional bulbs with these new, energy efficient bulbs. Some of you just thanked me for the information. You are welcome!

In a recent column, I wrote about fears associated with plastic wrap. There is a lot of controversy over this subject. One Massachusetts organization believes that all plastic wrap should be banned. I wrote that the evidence does not appear to support a great deal of concern over this subject. But, everyone, including industry officials, seems to agree that you should not microwave food that is covered with plastic wrap. The chemicals can leak into your food, and may hurt you.

A reader from Lake Wales, Florida wrote that she uses newspaper to line her refrigerator's vegetable bin drawer. "For some reason the print doesn't come off in the cold," she advises. On occasion, this reader even wraps her tomatoes and lettuce in newspaper. She concludes: "Everything keeps much longer. Thank you for your great column."

Let me thank all who have responded to my hundreds of articles written since 1997. Please continue to write and let me know what you like and what you do not like. And if you have any topic suggestions, please don't be shy. I am always on the prowl for environmental issues, affecting our property and our lives.

The information provided in this column is written by Stuart Lieberman,a practicing environmental attorney, and is for general information purposes only. It is not legal advice and should not be used in place of legal advice.

Stuart Lieberman, Esq., and IRED.Com, Inc., will not accept any responsibilty for any reliance on the information in this column or any damages whatsoever resulting from reading this column.