TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Title |
Synopsis |
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I. Subject Area: Environmental Policy and Regulations |
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1 |
California sets legislation to combat health danger from toxic moulds |
California recently introduced the first comprehensive legislation to address the significant public health danger posed by toxic moulds in residential and commercial buildings. |
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II. Subject Area: Environmental Pollution and Health |
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2 |
Toxic effects of biodiesel compared with conventional diesel |
German researchers found that neither diesel nor biodiesel fuels showed a clear advantage in terms of vehicular emissions. |
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3 |
Arsenic leaks out from pressure-treated wood |
A US report cites findings that a type of pressure-treated wood used to build playgrounds, decks and picnic tables leaks arsenic at levels higher than the level state environmental officials consider safe. |
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4 |
Low standards heighten risk posed by pesticides |
Two UN agencies are warning of the dangers posed by pesticides developed below internationally accepted quality standards. |
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5 |
Particulate pollution increases hospital admissions in the US. |
Particulate pollution has been found to increase hospital admissions for chronic pulmonary disease in Nevada, USA. |
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III. Subject Area: Environmental Technology |
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6 |
Packaged scrubber system reduces odours and operating costs |
The City of Los Angeles's Environmental Engineering Division and the consulting firm of Montgomery Watson have equipped the Hyperion Wastewater Treatment Plant in Los Angeles with a "new generation" odour-control system. |
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7 |
New process cleans up hexavalent chromium and trichloroethylene (TCE) |
A US environmental consulting firm has developed a technique to neutralize toxic hexavalent chromium and TCE by using a molasses-based nutrient mixture. |
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IV. Subject Area: General Environmental News |
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8 |
USEPA and the semiconductor industry sign partnership agreement to reduce emissions |
The USEPA and the Semiconductor Industry Association have, on 13 March 2001, signed a new voluntary partnership to reduce emissions of perfluorocompounds. |
SUMMARY REPORT
Period Covered : 12 Mar 2001 to 18 Mar 2001
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Item 1 |
California sets legislation to combat health danger from toxic moulds |
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Summary |
The first comprehensive legislation to address the significant public health danger of toxic moulds in residential and commercial buildings was introduced by California's Health and Human Services Committee. The legislation is the first such state-wide policy in the country that directs the California Department of Health Services to adopt permissible exposure limits for moulds in indoor environments, based on the latest scientific data and existing standards by authoritative bodies. The bill requires landlords and sellers of residential and commercial property to provide written disclosure to potential tenants or buyers, identifying the current presence or prior presence of moulds and disclosing whether it exceeds the permissible exposure limit. The bill authorizes the Department of Industrial Relations to respond to moulds complaints and grants the department the responsibility to enforce standards in the workplace. It also amends the sub-standard housing code to include the presence of moulds and allows code enforcement officers to effectively address concerns about moulds. |
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Reference |
http://www.pollutiononline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid={2EDA0A1A-13CA-11D5-A770-00D0B7694F32} |
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Item 2 |
Toxic effects of biodiesel compared with conventional diesel |
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Summary |
German researchers tested both diesel and biodiesel fuels and found that neither showed a clear advantage in terms of vehicular emission. Under different loading conditions, each fuel could become more toxic than the other. The researchers found that although biodiesel produced higher total particulate emission, solid particulate matter (soot) in the emission from biodiesel were lower than that from conventional diesel. While the size distributions and the quantity of emitted particles at rated power were nearly identical for the two fuels, diesel fuel emitted significantly higher amounts of smaller particles than biodiesel during idling. Tests on the in-vitro cell cultures revealed that biodiesel fumes collected while the engine was idling were four times more toxic on mouse cells than conventional diesel, but not at full load. |
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Reference |
Air Quality Management, Mar 2001, Page 11 |
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Item 3 |
Arsenic leaks out from pressure-treated wood |
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Summary |
Investigation carried out in the US found that a type of pressure-treated wood used to build playgrounds, decks and picnic tables leaks arsenic at levels higher than the level state environmental officials consider safe. The arsenic comes from chromated copper arsenate, a powerful pesticide injected into the wood that can leak into soil around it. Switzerland, Vietnam and Indonesia have banned CCA-treated wood, and Japan, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, Australia and New Zealand have restricted or proposed restrictions for it. Connecticut health officials issued a warning three years ago that children who frequently play on CCA-treated playgrounds would be exposed to a major source of arsenic. |
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Reference |
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20010311/us/playgrounds_arsenic_1.html |
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Item 4 |
Low standards heighten risk posed by pesticides |
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Summary |
The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that around 30% of pesticides sold in developing countries with an estimated market value of US$900 million annually, do not meet safety standards. These poor quality pesticides frequently contain hazardous substances and impurities that have been banned or severely restricted elsewhere. UN agencies want governments and international organizations to adopt the internationally accepted FAO/WHO pesticide specifications to ensure the production and trade of good quality products. The standards cover how pesticides should be produced and distributed, maximum residue levels for an individual pesticide in different foods and feed items, and specifications on how unwanted or obsolete pesticides should be disposed of. |
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Reference |
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Item 5 |
Particulate pollution increases hospital admissions in the US. |
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Summary |
Particulate pollution has been found to increase hospital admissions for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Nevada, US. The findings suggest that particulate matter at concentrations below the national standard levels can affect long- term health. Researchers analysed 3,115 hospital admissions due to COPD during the period 1990 to 1994 and matched the results to daily ambient PM10 measurements taken at seven local air quality monitoring stations. Researchers found that an increase of 27 ug/m3 of the daily PM10 levels, increased the risk of hospital admissions due to COPD by 1.049. According to the researchers, the association found between hospital admissions and the increase in the daily PM10 levels is very similar in magnitude to associations found between particulate air pollution and morbidity in several other US and worldwide studies. |
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Reference |
Air Quality Management Mar 2001, Page 11 |
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Item 6 |
Packaged scrubber system reduces odour and operating costs |
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Summary |
The Los Angeles' Environmental Engineering Division and the consulting firm of Montgomery Watson have equipped a wastewater treatment plant in Los Angeles with a "new generation" odour-control system. LO/PRO, a three-stage packaged scrubber system from USFilter/RJ Environmental Inc., achieved an odour removal efficiency of 99.73% at the plant. The scrubber system comprises a patented multi-stage design that enables complete reaction of the odour-control chemicals, thereby eliminating chemical waste and minimizing chemical consumption. Chemical utilization is optimized through precise control of pH and oxidation-reduction potential levels in the scrubber liquid. |
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Reference |
Pollution Engineering, January 2001, Pg 40-41 |
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Item 7 |
New process cleans up hexavalent chromium and trichloroethylene |
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Summary |
A US environmental consulting firm has developed a technique to neutralize toxic hexavalent chromium and trichloroethylene (TCE) by using a molasses-based nutrient mixture. Arcadis Garaghty & Miller, the U.S. arm of an international environmental and engineering services consulting firm, has been awarded a patent for the technique, believed to be the first effective method for treating this type of contamination. The patented process is called In-Situ Anaerobic Reactive Zones (IRZ Technology). The technology uses a simple molasses-based mixture, including special nutrients, which is injected into the ground. Natural soil and groundwater bacteria feast on the solution and multiply. In the process of breathing, the bacteria use up the dissolved oxygen, nitrates and sulfates in the groundwater. The resulting soil and groundwater environment causes a chemical reaction that converts the pollutants to harmless forms. |
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Reference |
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Item 8 |
EPA, semiconductor industry sign partnership agreement to reduce emissions |
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Summary |
The USEPA and the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) have, on 13 Mar 2001, signed a new voluntary partnership to reduce emissions of perfluorocompounds. SIA signed the Memorandum of Understanding with EPA on the "PFC Reduction Climate Partnership" on behalf of 21 semiconductor manufacturers. The partnership will promote global reductions of perfluorocompound gases, including perfluorocarbons, hydrofluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride. The agreement calls for a 10 percent reduction of perfluorocompounds emissions over 1995 levels by the end of 2010. Perfluorocompounds, used to clean semiconductor manufacturing equipment and to etch silicon wafers to create circuitry patterns, are the most potent and persistent of all global warming gases. Perfluorocompounds have 10,000 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide over 100 years. They can persist in the atmosphere from 2,000 to 50,000 years. |
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Reference |