NPR 2008-06-15

Clean water is now a major concern in Cedar 1 Rapids, Iowa where the downtown area is submerged under murky 2 flood waters that have contaminated several collection wells. City officials say supplies of drinking water may last only three or four days unless people conserve 3. More than 24, 000 people were forced to flee their homes, including Marjorie Freese who was reluctant to leave. “My house burnt a year and a half ago and I just got it all put back together. Everything new and everything..and then they tell me  I have to leave and I just want to stay until the very last, until I, until I had to leave.”

Flood waters breached 4 a levee in a neighborhood of Des Moines this morning and officials are concerned that a mile-long wall of sandbags and dirt in that area may also be overrun. But the voluntary evacuation elsewhere in Des Moines is being lifted at this hour. Iowa Public Radio's Pat Blank has more.

The wall was built after the river punched a hole in the levee, allowing water to stream into a neighborhood in the northern part of the city. Several homes and businesses had already been voluntarily evacuated 5, but a mandatory 6 evacuation has now been ordered for another 300 homes. Other levees are holding and the downtown is not threatened. In all, nine rivers in Iowa are at record levels, and 83 of the state's 99 counties have been declared disaster areas. For NPR News, I'm Pat Blank in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Iran has again ruled out suspending uranium enrichment activities, despite a new offer from the United States and five other nations for trade and other incentives 7 if it does so. President Bush criticized Iran's failure to accept the proposal which was presented by European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana. But Teri Schultz reports from Brussels that Solana remains 8 hopeful.

Solana is expressing an unusual level of optimism: there may soon be talks between Tehran and the countries calling on it to suspend its uranium enrichment program. “I think we are in front of a win-win situation. Iran gets cooperation from international community and we get reassurances 9 that we need that the program is for peaceful purposes.” Solana says he hopes to get an official response soon on whether Teheran is willing to sit down with the U. S. , Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia based on the package he presented. He also asserts there's common ground between this offer and a proposal from Tehran. However, Solana's upbeat summary did not resolve the obstacle that major powers still insist Iran suspend uranium enrichment, and Iran still says that's out of the question. For NPR News, I'm Teri Schultz in Brussels.

 With twin sonic booms announcing its arrival, the space shuttle Discovery landed safely at the Kennedy Space Center today. NASA's Rob Navias described the touchdown. “Discovery rolling out on runway 15 of the Kennedy Space Center, wrapping up a 5. 7-million-mile mission to further expand the global city in space. " Discovery completing a two-week mission to the International Space Station.

This is NPR News from Washington.

Treasury 10 Secretary Henry Paulson and other finance officials from the world's major industrial nations, the G8, have wrapped up talks in Japan with a statement warning that soaring oil and food costs pose a serious threat to global economic growth. They urged oil-producing nations to boost output and they called for assistance to address food shortages in developing nations. Steve Beckner of Market News International has the story.

 In a communique, the G8 finance ministers said the world economy is facing headwinds and downside risks. They warned further declines in home prices and greater financial turmoil 11 could hurt economic growth. They said elevated oil and food prices not only threaten growth but boost inflation pressures. They vowed 12 to take appropriate actions individually and collectively to secure economic stability. The G8 policy makers 13 said financial markets have improved somewhat, but said strains remain, and agreed to take steps to strengthen the resilience of the financial system. Since Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and the other top central bankers were not there, the G8 communique did not address the weak dollar. But it was discussed. And Paulson reiterated 14 that a strong dollar is in the U. S. interest. For NPR News, I'm Steve Beckner.

 Democrats chose a middle school teacher from New York State to give the party's radio address today to underline the financial pinch being felt by many Americans. Jeff Alberici says just putting food on the table has become a challenge. “We used to spend about ($) 125 a week at the supermarket. Now, it's at least ($) 200. And our kids are definitely not eating twice as much.” Alberici says he will vote Democratic in the fall because he believes the party understands better than the GOP the problems faced by American families.