Day: 16 April 1999

Acid rain still damaging UK ecosystems

Acid rain is still damaging the UK environment, according to the UK Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions as it launched a new information booklet on the problem.

EIB lends EUR 20 million for environment investment in Latvia

The European Investment Bank, the European Union's long-term financing institution, is lending EUR 20 million to the Republic of Latvia for municipal and environmental infrastructure projects.

Caspian ecosystem menaced by pollution

Environmental groups are calling for vigorous measures to protect the fragile ecosystem of the Caspian Sea as international energy companies penetrate into the Caucasus and Central Asia to extract oil and natural gas. By Phillip Kurata.

SWEDEN: mercury sniffer dogs clean up Swedish schools

More than 1.3 tonnes of hazardous mercury has been collected at around 1,000 schools participating in the "Mercurius 98" project, led by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. Mercury sniffer dogs Ville Sigmund and Froy saved at least SEK 7m in clean-up costs.

DOE releases carbon sequestration report

The US Department of Energy has released a "working draft" on the emerging science and technology of carbon sequestration — the capture and secure storage of carbon dioxide emitted from the combustion of fossil fuels. The report is meant to help government, industry and academia to begin setting research and development priorities.

EU: Parliament tightens proposals on LCPs and waste incineration

MEPs this week approved amendments to Commission proposals intended to reduce pollution from large combustion plants (LCPs), updating the 1988 directive, to extend the scope of the directive and tighten emission limits.

Big savings for Energy Star house owners

Energy-efficient homes awarded with a US EPA-certified Energy Star may provide homeowners with large savings on bills, according to scientists at the University of Florida. The EPA awards Energy Star certificates to houses that test 30 percent more efficient for heating, cooling and hot water heating than the national Model Energy Code.

Poll shows US voters support wilderness protection over military spending

A majority of US voters support buying and protecting wilderness rather than using the money to increase military spending, according to a national Sierra Club poll.

Strategic Diagnostics partners with Monsanto

Bio-tech giant Monsanto is to develop diagnostic test kits for genetically modified (GM) traits in crops that may have been used as food ingredients in collaboration with Strategic Diagnostics Inc. (SDI), developer and manufacturer of immunoassay-based test kits.

EU: energy tax proposals approved by Parliament at second attempt

This week MEPs approved a Commission proposal designed to pave the way for the introduction of a European energy tax, with numerous amendments, including provisions intended to promote renewable energy.

Book isolates main environment-damaging consumer activities

Only a few consumer activities – primarily the use of cars and trucks, consumption of meat, and choice of homes and appliances – are responsible for the vast majority of consumer-related environmental harm according to a new book from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).

Joint effort launched to evaluate remediation technologies

The US EPA, the Department of Energy, the US Air Force and NASA are joining forces to evaluate two new technologies for the clean up of the sources for dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs), which cause ground water contamination.

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