Search

Focuses on the reluctance of the United States government to sign the Kyoto Protocol. Possible effects of the Protocol on the economy of the US; Criticisms of the US government on the exemption of developing countries from timetables for reducing greenhouse gas emissions; Negotiations of issues still unresolved in the Protocol. INSETS: What Would The Treaty Do?;Companies Ahead of the Curve..

Focuses on the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Project XL, an innovative program that would give industry flexibility and prevent pollution. Three key elements of an XL project; Five phases of the development of XL projects; Number of XL projects in the implementation and evaluation stage; Proponents and opponents of the program. INSETS: What does it take to become an XL project?;Two sides of the coin..

Discusses various aspects of government policies regarding environmental risk assessment and management in the United States as of April 1999. Background on government's approach to environmental risk assessment; Commission on Risk Assessment and Risk Management's release of its report evaluating the government approach to environmental risk assessment in January 1997.

Focuses on the efforts of the United States Environmental Protection Agency in installing energy-efficient technology in all of the nation's commercial buildings, in an attempt to reduce pollution and promote economic growth and competitiveness through environmental protection. Information about the stages under the federal agency's Energy Star Buildings program. INSET: EPA's Energy Star Buildings Partner of the Year..

Focuses on the risk management program of the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Facilities affected by the regulation; Development of a plan addressing chemical emergencies; Classification of requirements according to compliance programs. INSETS: Grassroots emergency planning.;It's a matter of national security.;For more info....

Examines the progress of government initiatives to improve air quality in the United States. Decrease in levels of carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide, ground-level ozone and particulate matter; Persistence of the smog problem in some states; Health risks posed by air pollution; Economic benefits of cleaner air. INSET: It's everywhere: You can't escape air pollution..

Criticizes the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Superfund program for its involvement in different controversies and disputes over contentious issues such as liability have delayed the reauthorization process. Prevalence of bipartisan disagreements; Actions to take for EPA's administrative reforms to the Superfund program; Improvements needed. INSET: Key resources can answer Superfund questions..

Focuses on the United States Department of Energy's decision to stop selling scrap metals from nuclear weapons facilities. Health threats from possible radioactive contamination; Acceleration of a program to collect some types of commercially owned, radioactive sources that are no longer in use.

Focuses on the Executive Order of United States President Bill Clinton to expand the federal protection of oceans and coastlines. Creation of an Ocean Conservative Zones; Development of a national system of marine protected areas; Establishment of a moratorium on offshore oil and gas leasing.

Presents various updates relevant to environmental safety issues in industry as of August 2000. Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co.'s phase out of its Scotchgard stain-repellent products; 1998 Toxics Release Inventory which included data from sectors besides manufacturing; Case study of a March 1997 explosion in Oklahoma that reviews how to prevent waste fuel oxidizer reaction hazards. INSET: Supreme Court to Decide on Clean Air Rules, by Lani Sinclair..

Reports on a proposed voluntary program aimed at reducing the leaks of smog-causing vapors from above-ground petroleum product refinery storage tanks in the United States. Tanks' release of volatile organic compound emissions; Emissions' violation of clean air regulations; Contact information.

Reports on the increase in the United States Environmental Protection Agency's proposed budget for the 2001 fiscal year. Allocation of $7.3 billion for the agency's operating programs; Budget increases for clean water and air programs, food quality protection and soil cleanup operations; Contact information.

Reports that the United States and Mexico have signed an agreement to disclose information about their respective waste sites within 60 miles of the US/Mexico border. Provision of citizens with access to the information; Agreement's coverage of radioactive waste disposal sites; Goal to reduce tension in border states.

Reports on the United States Environmental Protection Agency's plans to crackdown on the emissions from electric power-plants and industrial facilities in a number of states. Agency action on a petition filed by states asking for relief from nitrogen oxide emissions that blow across state lines.

Reports on the availability of a free software from the United States Environmental Protection Agency to help companies prepare their Tier II reports under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act. Deadline of submission of the Tier II reports; On-site chemicals that require material safety data sheets; Address of the Web site.

Reports on the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Printers Simplified Total Environmental Partnership's awarding of grants to the printing industry. Testing of ways to reduce government oversight on facilities; Aiding of states in the collection of data to measure the programs' success; Contact information.

Reports on the United States Environmental Protection Agency proposal that would require tougher standards to clean up polluted rivers, lakes and estuaries. Proposed revision of the amount of pollution a body of water can receive; Proposed responsibilities of states; Good news for industry and consumers.

Reports on the public hearing to be conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) about a new relocation policy for residents and businesses near hazardous waste sites. Need for more public comment on National Priority List Superfund sites; Conditions for permanent relocation.

Presents an interview with Julius Jimeno, director of safety, health and environmental management at the Environmental Protection Agency. Role in developing policies; Most significant safety and health concerns; Safety rating of the agency; Technology-based job tools; Compliance to year 2000 date conversion.

Reports that the computer systems of the United States Environmental Protection Agency are 100 percent Year 2000 (Y2K) compliant. Effect of Y2K bug; Findings of the President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion.

Presents the two reports of the United States Environmental Protection Agency. `1996 Toxics Release Inventory Public Data Release--10 years of Right-to-Know: Industry Sector Analyses'; `Draft Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks'; Availability of the reports.

Cites the five documents from the United States Environmental Protection Agency's High Production Volume Challenge designed to help chemical companies compile basic toxicity information for chemicals manufactured in excess of one million pounds in the United States. Availability on the Internet; Commitment of the companies that will participate in the program.

Focuses on the United States Environmental Protection Agency's pilot project which is investigating ways to implement alternative standards for managing hazardous waste at university laboratories. Goal to prevent the setting up of a regulatory approach; Testing of an environmental management plan; Evaluation of the small-scale treatment of laboratory byproducts.

Presents regulations on the disposal of waste generated by the cleanup of Superfund sites, released by the United States Environmental Protection Agency as of February 1999. Procurement of permits for treating,storing and disposing of waste; Creation of a `staging pile' during the cleanup; Exclusion of dredge material from the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

Reports on a proposal from the United States Environmental Protection Agency relating to changing the way in which gas stations and facilities which handle or store gravel, rock salt or sand submit several hazardous chemical inventory forms. Details on the changes; Availability of information on the proposed rule.

Questions the purity of indoor air within homes, while suggesting why the atmosphere within homes and other buildings, may be more polluted than outdoor air, as stipulated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Identification of pollution sources within buildings and homes, as suggested by the Healthy Indoor Air for America's Homes project; Recommended measures to ensure the consistent purity of indoor air. INSET: Are You Buying or Building a New Home?.

Presents information on the United States President Bill Clinton's Clean Water Action Plan designed to increase funding for clean-water initiatives in the federal fiscal 1999. Budget for the initiatives; Role the Environmental Protection Agency will play the projects; Description of the plan; Comments from C. Dale Jacobson of the Water Environment Federation; Contact information for the president's plan.

Presents information on a study on national air quality and emissions trends which was conducted by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Information on the `National Air Quality and Emissions Trends Report'; Statistical information on air quality from 1970 to 1996; Reference to the Road Information Program; Comments from William M. Wilkins, spokesman for the program; Contact information for copies of the report.

Reports on a rule to prevent pollution from small construction sites from running into waterways, proposed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Name of the proposal; Who will be affected; Impact of the first phase of the rule which started in 1990;

Reports that the United States Protection Agency (EPA) has increased its maintenance fees for pesticide registrants under the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996. When the increase becomes effective; Reason the EPA's Office of Pesticide Registration has increased fees; Breakdown of the increases; Contact for more information.

Reports that the United States Environmental Protection Agency issued final rules in 1997 aimed at reducing toxic emissions from medical waste incinerators. Approximation on the number of such incinerators nationwide; Length of time which incinerator operators have to comply to the rules; Contact information for the rules; Availability of the rules on the World Wide Web.

Reports that in the United States, federal agencies joined together to form the `Brownfields Partnership' designed to clean and redevelop pieces of land. Number of federal agencies involved in the project; When the partnership was announced by Vice President Al Gore; What the agencies plan to provide.

Opinion. Comments on the opinion of environmentalists that Congressional Republicans may dismantle a 25-year legacy of environmental protection laws. Shift of power to the local governments from the restriction of `unfunded mandates' imposed on states; Requirement of compensation for property owners when federal regulations decrease property values; Requirement of risk assessment.

Reports on the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) stand on the dioxin controversy. Production of dioxin through industrial processes; Health effects of dioxin; Dioxin as a probable human carcinogen; Physiological effects; Suggestions by environmental groups to implement action against dioxin.

Focuses on American hotels' environmental programs that makes the same efforts most people do at home to protect the environment. Recycling; Installation of energy-efficient lighting; Use of water-saving shower heads and plumbing fixtures; Extensive retrofit and upgrade projects.

Reports on the renovation of the White House as the most energy-efficient and environmentally responsible office spaces in the United States. Comprehensiveness of the project; Organizations, agencies and technical people involved in the project; Cutting of energy use by 30 to 50 %; Security and historic preservation concerns; Cost effectiveness test of the project.

Focuses on the Labs21 program, a voluntary initiative to increase energy efficiency and environmental performance in the United States. Collaboration of strategies and technologies in laboratory energy and environmental improvement; Advantages of the Labs21 approach; Provision of regulatory flexibility to participating laboratories.

Focuses on a report by the National Research Council, which dealt with the need for the United States Environmental Protection Agency to strengthen the extent and quality of its scientific research. Ways of improving the regulatory agency's scientific information and sound science base; Complexity of environmental protection.

Focuses on United States (U.S.) government's plan to include environmental impact reviews in trade agreement negotiations. Topic of an Executive Order from U.S. President Bill Clinton; Creation of procedures for incorporating environmental issues into the negotiating process.

Focuses on a study dealing with the advantages of using non-governmental third-party auditors to conduct Risk Management Program compliance audits in the United States. Results of the first phase of a pilot project; Examination of the viability of third-party audits at facilities; List of incentives.

Focuses on a panel of the National Academy of Sciences' approval of the United States Environmental Protection Agency's proposed stringent restrictions on mercury emissions. Threats posed by mercury to human neurological systems; Main sources of mercury in the human diet; Major source of unregulated mercury emissions.

Focuses on the proposal to require states to draft plans for improving water quality in the United States. Context of the proposed legislation; Argument of the forest industry against the proposal; Percentage of forest operations affected by the proposal.

Focuses on the proposal of the United States Environmental Protection Agency to give flexibility to its air pollution regulation. Consideration of allowing state and local authorities issue a flexible clean air permits; Benefits of the proposal for computer chip manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies; Context of the proposed clean air permits.

Reports the phasing out of the insecticide chlorpyrifos in the United States. Dates of the cancellation of the production of the insecticide for household and extermination uses; Restrictions on the use of the insecticide for selected fruits; Defense of the manufacturers on the safety of the insecticide.

Forecasts the environmental impact of global warming in the United States. Increase of the temperature by the year 2100; Rise of the crop productivity; Reduction of forest productivity; Comparison of the impact of global warming in the regional and the national levels.

Focuses on the proposal of the Environment Protection Agency to reduce the allowable level of arsenic in drinking water in the United States. Health threats of arsenic; Estimated number of water system that needs to upgrade treatment systems; Cost of the upgrades according to the American Water Works Association.

Focuses on the reassessment report of the United States Environmental Protection Agency on dioxins. Processes creating dioxin compounds; Factors contributing to the decline in dioxin levels; Harmful health effects of dioxin compounds on animals and people.

Reports on the partnership between United States government agencies and the three major carmakers to produce fuel-efficient cars. Amount contributed by each to the initiative; Development of hybrid electric-gas engines; Government's financial incentives to consumers.

Reports on the increase in the United States emission of greenhouse gases, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Comparison between 1997 and 1998 levels; Share of fossil fuel combustion; Reporting requirements under the 1992 Rio Earth Summit.

Reports that nitrogen and phosphorus pollution from fertilizers and the burning of fossil fuels is damaging a third of the United States' coastal waters. Formation of `dead zone' on the Gulf of Mexico; Pollution by agricultural runoff; Environmental consequences of algal blooms caused by excess nitrogen.