TABLE OF CONTENTS
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S/N |
Title |
Synopsis |
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I. Subject Area: Environmental Policy and Regulations |
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1 |
Pesticides and asbestos slated for trade controls |
Potentially dangerous pesticides and asbestos were set to be subjected to trade controls under a UN treaty that aims to protect workers in poor countries from hazardous exports. |
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2 |
EU proposes curbs on toxic chemicals by 2003 |
EU has approved plans to restrict the public use of 43 chemicals by 2003. |
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II. Subject Area: Environmental Technology |
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3 |
Cape Town to use garbage to power the city |
Two companies combine efforts to turn Cape Town's sewage and garbage into electricity, fuel and bricks for low-cost housing. |
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4 |
Fighting global warming with winds of change |
The Timberland Company has announced an innovative new plan to fight climate change by offsetting carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to help finance construction of new wind farms. |
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5 |
New miniature fuel cell rechargeable battery developed |
US scientists have demonstrated a prototype miniature thin-film fuel cell power source capable of providing a typical cell phone battery with power up to three times as long as current technologies. |
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6 |
Volkswagen successfully completes testing of new fuel cell system |
Volkswagen AG announced the successful completion of a test drive of a new low cost fuel cell vehicle. |
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III. Subject Area: Environmental Pollution and Health |
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7 |
Pollution report card finds US school buses delinquent |
A national report card analyzing pollution threats from school bus fleets in the US found that only six states and the District of Columbia had ranked "head of the curve". |
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8 |
Indoor pollution can affect health |
Studies have found that indoor air pollution levels may be 2 - 5 times higher than outdoor levels, with the main pollutant being VOCs. |
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IV. Subject Area: General Environmental News |
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9 |
Trees as groundwater cleanup solution |
A research team from the University of Missouri, US, is exploring the idea of using trees to clean groundwater by a process called phytoremediation |
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10 |
USEPA to fund research efforts on particulate matter |
Four US universities were gearing up to study the effects of airborne particulate matter on human health thanks to USEPA research grants totaling more than $3.8 million. |
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11 |
Three Volvo models pose electromagnetic risk |
A study has found that three Volvo car models have electromagnetic fields of up to 80 times higher than levels considered safe. |
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12 |
UN seeks crackdown on hazardous chemicals |
World environment ministers met in the Caribbean to plan a global crackdown on the manufacture, dumping and rampant smuggling of banned substances. |
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SUMMARY REPORT
Period Covered: 11 Feb - 24 Feb 2002
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Item 1 |
Pesticides and asbestos slated for trade controls |
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Summary |
The United Nations has said that potentially dangerous pesticides and asbestos were set to be subjected to trade controls under a treaty that aimed to protect workers in poor countries from hazardous exports. According to UNEP, an experts' committee had recommended three pesticides, including one widely used in Asia and five forms of asbestos to be added to a list of 31 chemicals whose import can be legitimately and unilaterally banned. The recommendations will go forward for adoption to a negotiating committee of the Rotterdam Convention held in Bonn in Sep 2002. Among the pesticides proposed for trade controls is monocrotophos, widely used in Asia to control insects and spider mites on cotton, citrus, rice, maize and other crop. Although banned in Australia and Hungary, it poses an acute hazard to hundreds of thousands of farm workers, particularly in developing countries, due to the lack of protective clothing and mechanical equipment. |
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Reference |
http://www.enn.com/news/wire-stories/2002/02/02222002/reu_46470.asp |
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Item 2 |
EU proposes curbs on toxic chemicals by 2003 |
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Summary |
The European Commission has approved plans to restrict the public use of 43 chemicals, believed to cause cancer, damage reproduction or pose a danger to human genes by 2003. These substances are used in special paints, printing inks, varnishes and adhesives. EU has proposed that their sale to consumers be banned beginning Apr 2003. Although most producers have stopped sale to consumers, these chemicals would be available for professional users who are able to ensure their safe use. Since 1994, EU had imposed restrictions on substances considered to be dangerous to the public and had proposed adding further chemicals to the EU blacklist as scientific evidence emerges. European researchers are concerned that chemicals with the same properties as natural hormones - known as endocrine disruptors - may be causing an increase in testicular cancer, falling sperm counts and abnormalities in male sex organs |
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Reference |
http://www.planetark.org.dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/14677/newsDate/22-Feb-2002/story.htm |
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Item 3 |
Cape Town to use garbage to power the city |
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Summary |
A South African firm, Solid Waste Technologies and a Bahamas-based biotech company, Kwikpower, would soon turn Cape Town's sewage and garbage into electricity, fuel and bricks for low-cost housing. Kwikpower has been breaking new ground in UK, US, Canada and Israel, as it has been able to produce "green electricity" and alcohol fuels from garbage, sewage, sludge and even old tyres by converting waste into biogas, which is used to run a diesel generator or a micro-turbine to produce electricity. The first plants are expected to arrive in South Africa as early as April 02. The portable plant, the size of a freight container, produces inert ash as by-product. The ash can be compressed and converted into lightweight bricks and the alcohols produced could be processed into 95-octane unleaded petrol. |
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Reference |
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Item 4 |
Fighting global warming with winds of change |
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Summary |
The Timberland Company and New England-based non-profit Clean Air-Cool Planet have announced an innovative new plan to fight climate change by offsetting carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from Timberland's U.S. retail stores' electricity use. Timberland was the first corporation in the nation to make a donation that would allow Clean Air-Cool Planet to purchase renewable energy credits - also known as Green Tags - from a family-owned wind farm in South Dakota. The sale of the credits was used to subsidize wind farm construction because generating clean electricity by many wind farms was still more expensive - and thus less competitive - than electricity generation by coal fired power plants. The Green Tags purchased by Clean Air-Cool Planet will "retire" more than 2,400 tons of CO2 - enough to offset the carbon pollution produced over two years of normal electricity use by Timberland's 67 U.S. retail stores. Clean Air - Cool Planet would purchase the Green Tags from NativeEnergy, a pioneering Vermont company that helps finance the construction of new wind farms through its WindBuilders program. |
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Reference |
http://www.gnet.org/news/newsdetail.cfm?NewsID=19545&image1=2 |
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Item 5 |
New miniature fuel cell rechargeable battery developed |
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Summary |
Scientists from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have recently demonstrated a prototype miniature thin-film fuel cell power source capable of providing a typical cell phone battery with power up to three times as long as current technologies. The miniature fuel cell incorporated microfluidic fuel processing components and a thin film fuel cell integrated into a common package. The fuel cell was capable of operating three times longer than existing renewable batteries, and used easy-to-store fuels such as methanol. It was recharged instantly when a user plugs in a new fuel cartridge. Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) estimate that the new battery, which could provide portable electrical power for a range of consumer electronics, would have immediate real-world applications. The units would be able to extend cell phone battery talk time from around six hours to over two days, and standby time from four days to two weeks. LLNL researchers believe that the fuel cell units could provide a realistic alternative to disposable batteries, reducing the amount of batteries used by up to 50% and eliminating tons of waste generated each year. |
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Reference |
http://www.gnet.org/news/newsdetail.cfm?NewsID=19580&image1=2 |
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Item 6 |
Volkswagen unveils fuel cell car |
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Summary |
Volkswagen AG recently announced the completion of a long-range test drive of its HY.POWER fuel cell vehicle. Volkswagen developed a low-cost hydrogen-powered fuel cell with its partner the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) in Zurich, Switzerland. The fuel cell features extra ultra capacitors that are capable of storing the engine's electrical energy for use during extra strenuous driving. This technology allows engineers to remove heavy storage batteries, which present problems in other fuel cell vehicles, to improve the vehicle's performance. Two technical innovations featured on the Bora HY.POWER are the ultra capacitors, referred to as "supercaps", and a new membrane used in the fuel cell. PSI was able to develop a less expensive membrane without sacrificing performance. The "supercaps", which store energy until needed for hard driving, such as acceleration up a mountain pass, can provide additional power to the motor for brief periods of time. |
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Reference |
http://www.gnet.org/news/newsdetail.cfm?NewsID=19549&image1=2 |
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Item 7 |
Pollution report card finds US school buses delinquent |
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Summary |
A national report card analyzing pollution threats from school bus fleets in the US found that only six states and the District of Columbia had ranked "ahead of the curve". Pollution Report Card is the first pollution analysis of school buses across the country. It assigned state-wide bus fleets with grades based on the emissions of toxic soot particulates, smog-forming pollution, and heat-trapping global warming gases. America's school bus fleets emit almost 95,000 tons of smog-forming pollution and over 3,000 tons of soot every year. The study found that cost-effective investments could dramatically reduce pollution by allowing school districts to switch to buses that run on cleaner fuels, like natural gas. Natural gas buses had a proven track record of success; one in seven newly ordered municipal transit buses was powered by this cleaner burning fuel. Natural gas buses could reduce toxic soot by 90% and smog pollutants by 30% compared to diesel powered buses. |
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Reference |
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Item 8 |
Indoor pollution can affect health |
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Summary |
USEPA studies had found that indoor air pollution levels may be 2 to 5 times, occasionally > 100 times, higher than outdoor levels. Since most people spent about 90% of their time indoors, places like homes, schools and offices become potentially hazardous to health. The risks were likely to increase with infants, the elderly and people with chronic disease. Indoor pollution sources that release gas or particles into the air were the primary cause of such problems. Poor ventilation, high temperatures and high humidity levels could increase the concentration of some pollutants. These pollutants known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), are organic chemicals that evaporate at room temperature. Some of the typical VOCs include chloroform from chlorinated water, benzene from tobacco smoke, formaldehyde from fabrics, pressed wood products and insulation, styrene found in adhesives, foam, lubricants, plastic carpets and insulation, methylene chloride from paint strippers and carbon tetrachloride from paint removers. Although the effects vary with each individual, short-term exposure might cause immediate effects like headaches, dizziness and allergies while long-term effects could result in respiratory disease, heart disease and cancer. Some measures that could be taken to reduce and prevent indoor air pollution include changing of house cleaning products, improving ventilation, airing of dry-cleaned clothing, etc. |
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Reference |
http://www.enn.com/news/wire-stories/2002/02/02192002/ap_46429.asp |
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Item 9 |
Trees as groundwater cleanup solution |
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Summary |
A research team from the University of Missouri, US, is exploring the idea of using trees to clean groundwater by a process called phytoremediation. The effort could replace the current methods being used to cleanse contaminated soil and groundwater. Working in conjunction with the University of Connecticut and Ecolotree Inc., an environmental engineering company, the team plans to cut costs by using trees to remove the pollutants from water tables that may be used for drinking water. One method involved incorporating genetically enhanced microbes with the planting of the trees. This type of "genetic engineering" gives the microbes the ability to break down contaminants naturally. The technique could result in a potential savings of about $5 million in clean-up processes. |
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Reference |
http://www.gnet.org/news/newsdetail.cfm?NewsID=19552&image1=2 |
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Item 10 |
EPA to fund research efforts on particulate matter |
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Summary |
Four US universities are gearing up to study the effects of airborne particulate matter on human health thanks to research grants totaling more than $3.8 million. The grants, made through USEPA's Science to Achieve Results (STAR) program, have been awarded to the University of California, Emory University, Michigan State University and University of North Carolina. USEPA pointed out that increases in particulate matter pollution had been linked to increased hospital admissions and emergency room visits for heart and lung disease, increased respiratory illness or discomfort, decreased lung function and even premature death. This class of air pollutants was typically generated by any activity involving burning of materials, from burning fossil fuels in power plants and cars to wood burning. Dust-generating activities, such as construction or traffic on unpaved surfaces also generates airborne particulate matter (PM). |
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Reference |
http://www.gnet.org/news/newsdetail.cfm?NewsID=19482&image1=2 |
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Item 11 |
Three Volvo models pose electromagnetic risk |
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Summary |
A study has shown that three car models, V70, S60 and S80, made by Volvo Car Corp, have electromagnetic field up to 80 times higher than levels considered safe. Magnetic fields of up to 12-18 microtesla were detected which were well above the safe limit of 0.2 microtesla. A Volvo spokesperson did not dispute the measurements of the study that also tested 14 cars including models from Ford, Volkswagon, BMW, Mercedes Benz, Saab, Renault and Toyota. The three Volvo model fared worst when measurements were taken at various body parts exposed to the electromagnetic fields. Volvo however said that the levels were well below the recommended level set by the European Union which mainly concentrates on the exposure of the fields to the head and body and added that there was no scientific proof of illness like cancer being caused by electromagnetic fields. |
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Reference |
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewstory.cfm/newsid/14597/newsDate/18-Feb-2002/story.htm |
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Item 12 |
UN seeks crackdown on hazardous chemicals |
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Summary |
With the shifting of hazardous substance production to developing countries, world environment ministers met recently in the Caribbean city of Cartegena, to plan a global crackdown on manufacture, dumping and rampant smuggling of banned substances. United Nation which sponsored the conference at which the plan was discussed, would also provide funding to poor countries, whose weak safety standards and inadequate storage were raising fears of increased global contamination. The chemicals of concern deplete the ozone layer, cause climate change and affect the world's biodiversity. Some of them also cause cancer, immune deficiencies and reproductive impairments. UN officials said that a thorough evaluation of the health effects of various chemicals was needed and added that it would be a difficult task as 70,000 chemicals were already on the market and 1,500 new chemicals were being introduced each year. |
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Reference |
http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/14594/newsDate/18-feb-2002/story.htm |