Day: 5 March 1999

Australia lags behind on environmental reporting

Australian companies are lagging behind international standards on environmental reporting, with few companies reporting publicly and plenty of room for improvement among those that do, according to a recent benchmarking report, by Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation (SMEC).

CD ROM delivers site-specific environmental, land-use and geological data

A new CD ROM enables instant searching for site-specific environmental data, through over 10 million environmental and property records. Edie users can get a free copy + £500 of free data if you are quick.

GM food labelling unreliable says Which Magazine

Many of us may be eating food containing genetically-modified ingredients without realising it, according to a new report by Which Magazine.

Leaked Cabinet Office memo questions Govt line on GM foods

A Cabinet Office memo leaked to Friends of the Earth this week reveals the Government has commissioned a report on the health effects of GM food, from the Chief Medical Officer and Chief Scientific Adviser, and shows that the Government lacks answers to a number of key GM policy questions.

New report challenges Government advice on GM crop contamination

Evidence that pollen from genetically modified crops can cause cross-fertilisation over distances considerably greater than the Government's advised 200m separation zone has emerged in a new report commissioned by the Soil Association.

Robin Cook announces climate change challenge fund

British companies are being invited to contribute to the Climate Change Challenge Fund, a new initiative designed to make use of British expertise in clean technologies and renewable energies.

Bringing Mars into the iron age

NASA scientists are developing ways to mine and process iron ore for energy production on Mars, creating technologies needed to support a human colony.

1998 was warmest year of millenium, say US researchers

Researchers at the Universities of Massachusetts and Arizona who study global warming have released a report strongly suggesting that the 1990s were the warmest decade of the millennium, with 1998 the warmest year so far.

Knowledge Societies – Information Technology for Sustainable Development

The full text of this new book is available online.

CHINA: drought hits crops and drinking water

A severe drought in China, which started last autumn, has affected 22.3 million hectares of crop land, and caused drinking water shortages for 12 million people and 8 million livestock, according to state media reports.

Aviation authority tightens aircraft emissions standards

Tighter emissions limits on new aircraft engine emissions will take effect in 185 countries by 2004, says the International Civil Aviation Organisation. Nox emissions limits are to be cut by 16%. This limit will only apply to new engines, but many manufacturers are already meeting it.

Increasing halon emissions set back ozone recovery

Recovery of the ozone layer is likely to take years longer than expected, CSIRO scientists warn. Latest research shows that global emissions of a key ozone-depleting halon are 50 percent greater than previously supposed.

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