TABLE OF CONTENTS
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S/N |
Title |
Synopsis |
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I. Subject Area: Policy |
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1 |
IMO Approves Accelerated Timetable for Phasing out Single-Hull Tankers |
The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has approved a new timetable for elimination of single-hull tankers by 2015. It has also called for more stringent reporting of the structural condition of the ship. |
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2 |
EU to Implement New Noise Emissions Directive in 2002 |
A new noise emission directive will be implemented across the EU on 3 Jan 2002. Under the new directive, operations of 22 types of outdoor equipment including dumpers and mobile cranes will have to comply with the minimum noise levels. |
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3 |
US Senators Want More Renewable Fuels in Gasoline |
US has introduced a renewable fuel standard to reduce its dependence on foreign oil imports. Under the renewable fuel standard, which would be phased in over time, all motor fuels sold in the US would have to contain either biodiesel or ethanol from corn or biomass. |
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4 |
All 15 EU Environment Ministers Agree on Electro-scrap Law |
EU environment ministers have agreed to introduce producer responsibility for managing waste electrical and electronic equipment. Producers of electronic and electrical equipment also have until Jan 2007 to find substitutes for lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, and the brominated flame retardants PBB and PBDE, in their products. |
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II. Subject Area: Environmental Technology |
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5 |
New Plan to Force Greenhouse Gases Underground |
According to researchers at Adelaide University, Australia, a major proportion of the world's greenhouse gases may be pumped underground. A present study at the institute is investigating ways of removing carbon dioxide emissions by injecting it back into the ground where it came from. |
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6 |
US Releases Dioxin Study |
THE USEPA has released a long-stalled report that concludes dioxins can cause cancer in laboratory animals. |
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IV. Subject Area: General Environmental News |
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7 |
Japan Calls for Replacement of Official Fleets with Low-Emission Vehicles |
The Japanese government will replace all its official automobile fleets with low-emission vehicles. The replacement of the official automobile fleets will be staggered over a period of time. |
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8 |
Polish Farms on Track to End Use of Methyl Bromide as Fumigant by 2005 |
Poland will end the use of methyl bromide by 2005 as part of its commitment to the 1997 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. Alternative pest management strategies such as crop rotation are already being practiced in Poland. |
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9 |
Fluoridation and Arsenic: The Hidden Public Health Hazards |
The presence of trace amount of arsenic as impurity in the chemical agent used for drinking water fluoridation treatment would pose a public health hazard. Studies have discovered that low concentrations of arsenic in the drinking water can cause prostate, skin, bladder, kidney, liver and lung cancers. |
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10 |
Lots of Finger-Pointing over Mercury in Cars |
California and Oregon are to introduce new bills to require auto dismantlers to remove mercury switches before cars could be crushed and melted down for steel recovery. The auto dismantlers claim that the automakers produced the cars with mercury switches and profited from it. It defies logic that the automakers now want to deny any responsibility and put the onus on auto dismantlers. |
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SUMMARY REPORT
Period Covered: 4 Jun 2001 to 10 Jun 2001
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Item 1 |
IMO Approves Accelerated Timetable for Phasing out Single-Hull Tankers |
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Summary |
The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has approved a new timetable for elimination of single-hull tankers by 2015 or sooner. The revised regulation (Regulation 13G) of the MARPOL Convention will take effect in September 2002. The previous version called for phasing out single-hull tankers under a longer period, allowing their use for up to 30 years after their initial entry into service. Subsequent to the Exxon Valdez and Erika incidents, tankers built since 1996 are required to have double hulls. These events also led to the unilateral ban of single-hull tankers from the territorial waters and ports of the United States by 2015. Under the revised regulation, countries may allow vessels flying their flags to continue operation for up to 25 years after vessel delivery, provided they meet certain technical specifications. However, these vessels may be denied access to other countries' ports and offshore terminals. The revised regulation also mandates a Condition Assessment Scheme under which "a more stringent and transparent verification of the reported structural condition of the ship" would be conducted, and survey procedures would be documented. This scheme will be applicable to all single-hull tankers of 20,000 tons deadweight and carrying crude, fuel, heavy diesel, or lubricating oil; or of 30,000 tons deadweight and carrying other oils (Category 1 tankers) after 2005. Category 2 tankers - and cargoes as Category 1 - will be subject to the assessment after 2010. |
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Reference |
International Environment Reporter Vol 24 No 11, Page 407 |
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Item 2 |
EU To Implement New Noise Emissions Directive In 2002 |
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Summary |
EU has announced the implementation of the new Noise Emission Directive, which would take effect on 3 Jan 2002. Under the proposed directive, manufacturers of 22 types of outdoor equipment including dumpers and mobile cranes, would have to get certificates that guarantee compliance with the new regulations before equipment are allowed to be sold. The new directive sets the minimum noise level for operation of the equipment. Nevertheless, the local authorities and the Health & Safety Executive reserve the right to impose more stringent noise limits for actual usage of the equipment at specific sites. |
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Reference |
Lexis-Nexis, Reed Business Information Ltd, June 6, 2001 |
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Item 3 |
US Senators Want More Renewable Fuels In Gasoline |
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Summary |
In a move to help reduce US dependence on foreign oil imports, legislation has been introduced in the Senate that would require gasoline to contain a small portion of renewable fuels. The renewable fuel standard would be phased in over time, required to be in 2% of each gallon of gasoline by 2008 and in 5% by 2016. The law would require all motor fuels sold in the US to contain either biodiesel or ethanol from corn or biomass. Biodiesel is a diesel engine fuel made from vegetable oil, animal fat or algae. Biomass is made from crops, trees or even landfill gases. Ethanol is the most widely used bio-fuel and its production has increased sharply since 1980, rising from 200 million gallons a year to 1.9 billion gallons. As an inducement to develop the home-grown fuel, ethanol already has an excise tax exemption worth 5.3 US cents a gallon at the refilling stations. Ethanol is distilled from corn and used in a 9-to-1 blend with gasoline. |
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Reference |
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Item 4 |
All 15 EU Environment Ministers Agree on Electro-scrap Law |
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Summary |
European Union environment ministers have reached a first-reading agreement on directives to introduce producer responsibility for managing waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) and restricting hazardous substances in product manufacture. The laws are expected to enter into force in around a year. Under the WEEE agreement, producers of electronic and electrical equipment will be responsible for removing and recycling waste deposited at local collection points by consumers. Producers could choose either to pay for recycling individually or by sharing costs with others. Producers of electronic and electrical equipment must reuse and recycle 75% by weight for large household appliances, 65% for information technology and consumer electronics, and 50% for most other products. Under the deal for restricting hazardous substances in product manufacture, industry will have until Jan 2007 to find substitutes for lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, and the brominated flame retardants PBB and PBDE, in their products. The phase-out will also apply to light bulbs and fluorescent lamps. |
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Reference |
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Item 5 |
New Plan to Force Greenhouse Gases Underground |
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Summary |
According to researchers at Adelaide University, Australia, a major proportion of the world's greenhouse gases may be pumped underground. A study at the institute is investigating ways of removing the carbon dioxide by injecting it back into the ground where it came from. Studies are also being conducted concurrently in Norway. If the trials are successful, the technology will complement other methods of greenhouse gas reduction, such as tree planting, improved energy efficiencies, reduction in the use of coal as an energy source, and shifting to new gas and fuel cell technologies. |
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Reference |
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Item 6 |
US Releases Dioxin Study |
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Summary |
The USEPA has released a long-stalled report that concludes dioxins can cause cancer in laboratory animals. Dioxins and furans are a class of chlorinated organic chemicals created in combustion processes. These chemicals can settle on grass and feed and it is bioaccumulative in fat. The study has indicated that diet is the principal route of human exposure to dioxins and furans. The findings could provide a basis for regulators to impose more stringent limits on these chemicals. However, the EPA advisory committee is split over whether to classify the chemicals as human carcinogens. The new report states that "It is important that EPA continues to try to limit emissions and human exposure to this class of chemicals in view of their very long biological and environmental persistence". |
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Reference |
Environment Business News Briefing, 25 May 2001; p9 |
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Item 7 |
Japan Calls for Replacement of Official Fleets with Low-Emission Vehicles |
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Summary |
Japan's new Prime Minister has announced that the Japanese government will replace all its official automobile fleets with low-emission vehicles (LEVs). Approximately 7,000 vehicles are being used by the Japanese government. Immediate replacement is estimated to cost 15 billion yen and therefore, replacement will be staggered. It is estimated that for this fiscal year, the cost will be 1.5 billion yen. According to the Japan Ministry of Environment, 20 % of the official fleet already comprises LEVs, most of them gasoline-electric motor hybrid sedans; other government fleets are powered by compressed natural gas or methanol. The Comprehensive Strategy Council for the Development and Promotion of Environmentally Motor Vehicles would set quantitative development targets for LEVs by type, such as passenger cars, trucks and buses to be achieved by around 2020. The Council will also form two working subcommittees for the development of next-generation LEVs and "environmental motor vehicles", respectively. The latter, according to the Council, are futuristic concept vehicles while next-generation LEVs exploit existing technologies. |
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Reference |
International Environment Reporter Vol 24 No 11, pp 445 |
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Item 8 |
Polish Farms on Track to End Use of Methyl Bromide as Fumigant By 2005 |
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Summary |
Poland will end the use of methyl bromide by 2005 as part of its commitment to the 1997 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. Alternative pest management methods such as compost, crop rotation, and the use of substitute chemicals metham sodium, chloropicrine and dazomet have already being used in Poland. These are as effective as methyl bromide but they are slightly more expensive. According to the Research Institute for Vegetable Crops, Poland used 170 tons of methyl bromide in 1999. However, consumption has decreased since then. The amount of methyl bromide use in Poland was the highest in Central and Eastern European countries. In Poland, it is mainly used for soil fumigation in greenhouse and field grown vegetables, cut flowers, and open field production of strawberries. |
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Reference |
International Environment Reporter Vol 24 No 11, pp 428-429 |
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Item 9 |
Fluoridation and Arsenic: The Hidden Public Health Hazards |
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Summary |
According to a report published in the Earth Island Journal recently, 90% of the fluoride used to fluoridate water in the US water systems comes directly from the by-product of the phosphate fertilizer industry. The fluoridation agent contains trace amounts of lead, mercury and arsenic. There are no water quality criteria for fluoride either for the protection of aquatic life or for the protection of human health. Tests carried out by the National Sanitation Foundation International showed that the average arsenic levels in the fluoridation agent were well above the "maximum allowable level" (MCL) for water treatment chemicals. With arsenic now classified as a Class 1 human carcinogen, the US EPA has proposed reducing the MCL for arsenic from 50 ppb to 5 ppb. The decision to drastically reduce permitted arsenic levels also was prompted by numerous studies showing that low concentrations of arsenic in the drinking water can cause prostate, skin, bladder, kidney, liver and lung cancers. Recent epidemiological work from Finland found that people drinking water with 0.1 to 0.5 ppb arsenic had approximately 50 percent greater-than-average risk of getting bladder cancer. This is exactly the range of arsenic that is expected to be added to the water from the use of the fluoridation agent. |
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Reference |
Lexis-Nexis, Earth Island Institute, Earth Island Journal, June 2001 |
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Item 10 |
Lots Of Finger-Pointing over Mercury in Cars |
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Summary |
California and Oregon are planning to introduce new bills to require auto dismantlers to remove mercury switches before cars could be crushed and melted down for steel recovery. Environmental groups known as "Clean Car Campaign" are also persuading automakers not just to stop using mercury, but to take responsibility to remove mercury switches installed in millions of vehicles still being used on the road. The automakers have agreed to phase out most mercury switches by the end of the 2001 model year. However, they are balking at the monumental effort required to remove mercury switches from the vehicles, which are still in use. They argue that the auto dismantlers are already taking out the gasoline, oil and air-conditioner refrigerant from scraped vehicles and it would be a simple add-on step for them to remove the mercury switches before crushing and melting down the scraped cars. However, the auto dismantlers say that they have little financial incentive to take on the task, since each switch contains only a gram of mercury, and the element is trading for less than US$2 a pound. They claim that the automakers produced the cars with mercury switches and profited from it. It defies logic that the automakers now want to deny any responsibility and put the onus on auto dismantlers. Many studies have confirmed that mercury accumulates in water and in the tissues of humans, fish and animals. Mercury is slowly being phased out of many uses, including thermometers, but it is still used in many industrial processes and is present in fluorescent lights, thermostats, appliances and toys like maze puzzles. |
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Reference |
Lexis-Nexis, The New York Times, June 8, 2001 |