Today's Topics:
(Fwd) Request for assistance
Consumer Attitudes Toward Computers (3 msgs)
CRT recycling report on the Web
Email lists for C&D material reuse
GLOBE Europe News - Issue 3 - March 1998
GreenYes Digest V98 #67
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--- Loop-Detect: GreenYes:98/68 ----------------------------------------------------------------------Date: Mon, 16 Mar 1998 10:12:10 -0600 From: "John Reindl" <reindl@co.dane.wi.us> Subject: (Fwd) Request for assistance
Dear List Members -
Can someone help Mr. Trobridge with the information he is seeking?=20 Please respond to him directly, since he is not a member of the=20 email list.
thanks!
John Reindl
------- Forwarded Message Follows ------- From: joroger@vossnet.co.uk (Roger Trobridge) To: reindl@co.dane.wi.us Subject: Request for assistance Date: Sun, 15 Mar 1998 22:56:04 GMT
I appologise for this intrusion, but I was searching for information on the location of incinerators in North America when I came across your recent posting, which suugested you might be able to help me.
> In the February 8th issue of the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten,=20 >there is an article about a company that claims to have developed a=20 >new waste to energy technology.=20
I was asked to help a friend who is investigating the possible recycling of an aluminium foil/plastic laminate, and incineration is one solution. Are you aware of a list active incinerators in the US, (by location), or do you have any suggestions where I could look.=20
Again, if this is an intrusion, please use the delete ket <g>
Roger
Roger Trobridge=20 The Internet Gopher - joroger@vossnet.co.uk http://www.tcom.co.uk/gopher/=20
reindl@co.dane.wi.us (608)267-1533 - fax (608)267-8815 - phone
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 16 Mar 1998 22:42:19 EST From: Jango <Jango@aol.com> Subject: Consumer Attitudes Toward Computers
Regarding John R's question on residential computer use, something of=20 interest:
SAN FRANCISCO, (Reuters) - Thirty-six percent of consumers in North >America who do not own a personal computer said they have no reason or >interest in buying one -- no matter how low the cost, according to a >Forrester Research study. > >The recent study by Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester also showed that 43 >percent of North American households currently have a PC, and 50 percent >will have one by year-end 1998. > >"There is a gaping divide in the population," Josh Bernoff, a Forrester >Research analyst, said. "The main reason the non-owners in that group say >is that they don't need it." > >Bernoff said that high-income consumers, with annual salaries of more than >$35,000 are nearing the saturation point, with a 69 percent already owning >a PC. > >He also said, however, there is a massive surge of interest among what he >calls "technology optimists" in lower-income families, with an annual >income of less than $35,000. > >"These people can tell you exactly what they want to do with the PC - home >budgeting, education, Internet use," Bernoff said. "If you are black or >Hispanic, you are 50 percent more likely to be planning to buy one than if >you are white." > >He said the lower-income group, which had been shut out of PC ownership >previously because of price, is seriously looking at the booming >sub-$1,000 PC. > >This study is the first in a series by Forrester called "Consumers & >Technographics," which it says is the biggest survey of consumers on >technology. More than 120,000 consumers were polled in a 16-page study, >with a margin of error of plus or minus 1 percentage point.
David Biddle Center for Solid Waste Research 7366 Rural Lane Philadelphia, PA 19119 215-247-2974 (voice and fax) jango@aol.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 17 Mar 1998 04:25:24 -0500 (EST) From: "Roger M. Guttentag" <rgutten@concentric.net> Subject: Consumer Attitudes Toward Computers
At 10:42 PM 3/16/98 EST, you wrote: >Regarding John R's question on residential computer use, something of=20 >interest: > >SAN FRANCISCO, (Reuters) - Thirty-six percent of consumers in North >>America who do not own a personal computer said they have no reason or >>interest in buying one -- no matter how low the cost, according to a >>Forrester Research study. >> >>The recent study by Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester also showed that 43 >>percent of North American households currently have a PC, and 50 percent >>will have one by year-end 1998. >> >>"There is a gaping divide in the population," Josh Bernoff, a Forrester >>Research analyst, said. "The main reason the non-owners in that group say >>is that they don't need it."
>David Biddle >Center for Solid Waste Research >7366 Rural Lane >Philadelphia, PA 19119 >215-247-2974 (voice and fax) >jango@aol.com =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D In regard to this finding: Computer sales are driven by applications. All this says is that the "killer" app aimed at the home PC market hasn't arrived - yet - but it probably will since the subzero priced (under $1,000) machines has essentially moved the PC into the realm of the high end home appliance market. This will encourage software developers to work on apps oriented to this market since that is where the real money is going to be made. There will be a number of stillborn products that will initially arrive (For example, does anyone remember Microsoft's Bob?) But all it will take is one super product to make the home PC market explode (and cause all of the Forrester Research to go into the data dump so to speak).=20
Further, what is also probably going to happen now is that the amount of machine you can get for under $1,000 will steadily improve just as it has for the more powerful PC's that are marketed currently. Don't be surprised, for example, to see DVD (digital video disk) drives in these machines within another 6 months to one year. (DVD's can hold over 6 gigs of data currently which is sufficient to play any current Hollywood released movie and they are, I believe, backwardly compatible with current CD's).
At that point, you will see more of a fusion between the computer and home entertainment systems. An example of this can be seen in the Gateway 2000 Destination series which marries a 31" - 36" SVGA monitor to Pentium II based systems running at 233 - 333MHz. The cheapest one can be purchased for $2,500 and they can be used as either standard business computers or as digital TV / home entertainment systems. Now imagine these type of systems selling for $800 - $1,000 complete (perhaps with a subscription to Internet & digital TV services as part of the package). Every coach potato, even those who don't give a fig about balancing their checkbooks, is going to want one of these.
Roger M. Guttentag
E-MAIL: rgutten@concentric.net TEL: 215-513-0452 FAX: 215-513-0453
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 17 Mar 1998 04:25:24 -0500 (EST) From: "Roger M. Guttentag" <rgutten@concentric.net> Subject: Consumer Attitudes Toward Computers
At 10:42 PM 3/16/98 EST, you wrote: >Regarding John R's question on residential computer use, something of=20 >interest: > >SAN FRANCISCO, (Reuters) - Thirty-six percent of consumers in North >>America who do not own a personal computer said they have no reason or >>interest in buying one -- no matter how low the cost, according to a >>Forrester Research study. >> >>The recent study by Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester also showed that 43 >>percent of North American households currently have a PC, and 50 percent >>will have one by year-end 1998. >> >>"There is a gaping divide in the population," Josh Bernoff, a Forrester >>Research analyst, said. "The main reason the non-owners in that group say >>is that they don't need it."
>David Biddle >Center for Solid Waste Research >7366 Rural Lane >Philadelphia, PA 19119 >215-247-2974 (voice and fax) >jango@aol.com =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D In regard to this finding: Computer sales are driven by applications. All this says is that the "killer" app aimed at the home PC market hasn't arrived - yet - but it probably will since the subzero priced (under $1,000) machines has essentially moved the PC into the realm of the high end home appliance market. This will encourage software developers to work on apps oriented to this market since that is where the real money is going to be made. There will be a number of stillborn products that will initially arrive (For example, does anyone remember Microsoft's Bob?) But all it will take is one super product to make the home PC market explode (and cause all of the Forrester Research to go into the data dump so to speak).=20
Further, what is also probably going to happen now is that the amount of machine you can get for under $1,000 will steadily improve just as it has for the more powerful PC's that are marketed currently. Don't be surprised, for example, to see DVD (digital video disk) drives in these machines within another 6 months to one year. (DVD's can hold over 6 gigs of data currently which is sufficient to play any current Hollywood released movie and they are, I believe, backwardly compatible with current CD's).
At that point, you will see more of a fusion between the computer and home entertainment systems. An example of this can be seen in the Gateway 2000 Destination series which marries a 31" - 36" SVGA monitor to Pentium II based systems running at 233 - 333MHz. The cheapest one can be purchased for $2,500 and they can be used as either standard business computers or as digital TV / home entertainment systems. Now imagine these type of systems selling for $800 - $1,000 complete (perhaps with a subscription to Internet & digital TV services as part of the package). Every coach potato, even those who don't give a fig about balancing their checkbooks, is going to want one of these.
Roger M. Guttentag
E-MAIL: rgutten@concentric.net TEL: 215-513-0452 FAX: 215-513-0453
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 16 Mar 1998 10:55:52 -0600 From: "John Reindl" <reindl@co.dane.wi.us> Subject: CRT recycling report on the Web
For those of you interested in the recycling of CRTs, there is an=20 interesting report available at the following web site:
http://sun1.mpce.stu.mmu.ac.uk/pages/projects/dfe/pubs/dfe16/report16.htm
John Reindl, Recycling Manager Dane County, WI
reindl@co.dane.wi.us (608)267-1533 - fax (608)267-8815 - phone
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 16 Mar 1998 10:59:06 -0600 From: "John Reindl" <reindl@co.dane.wi.us> Subject: Email lists for C&D material reuse
Dear List Members -
Does anyone know of an email list or a web page that focuses on the=20 reuse of construction and demolition materials?
We are looking to buy some used construction materials.
thanks much!!
John Reindl, Recycling Manager Dane County, WI
reindl@co.dane.wi.us (608)267-1533 - fax (608)267-8815 - phone
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 16 Mar 1998 12:22:31 +0300 From: DAVID WEBBER <gen.globe@innet.be> Subject: GLOBE Europe News - Issue 3 - March 1998
>GLOBE Europe News - Issue 3 - March 1998
Please find herewith the latest issue of GLOBE Europe News. The newsletter is also available at our web site on
http://globeint.org/html-europe/general/news.htm
Please forward any comments or questions to: gen.globe@innet.be
>In this Issue
>Transparency and Participation Decision Making Time GLOBE Appeal Dates to Remember The Arhus Conference
>GLOBE EU Annual General Assembly
>Climate Change European Parliament Calls for Continued Leadership Polish Government Questioned
>Denmark Champions European Environmental Unity
>Open Up Parliament, Once More
>The Haarp Project
>The State of the World, 1998
>In Short
>The GLOBE Europe Helpline
Recent GLOBE publications - All publications are available from GLOBE GLOBE Europe Directory 1998.
GLOBE Europe News is part of a project aimed at improving the flow of information on European environmental policy between Europe's parliamentarians.
The project is supported by the European Commission - DGXI. ________________________________________________________________________ >TRANSPARENCY AND PARTICIPATION
>Decision-making Time
On March 6th, government officials meeting at the UN-ECE(1) will adopt the final text of a draft Convention on citizen1s rights. This text will be submitted as such to the Ministers meeting in =C5rhus in June.
__________________________________ What good might the Convention do?
The draft document introduces three radically new procedural rights for citizens and their organisations. These procedural rights are intended to contribute to the goal of protecting a fourth, fundamental right: the right to an environment conducive to health and well-being.
The first of the procedural rights is the right to participate in decision-making when it affects the environment. The second is the right to sue in court those guilty of breaking environmental law or of ignoring the rights guaranteed by the Convention. Finally, the Convention will also give members of the public the right of access to environmental information.
These rights are very significant. The Convention is creating the conditions to empower citizens to assist in the effective implementation of the law. Citizens will thus be able to point out where laws are ignored, and they will be allowed to sue polluters where their legitimate concerns are not heeded. Furthermore, while some of these rights are guaranteed in some European countries, the Convention marks a quantum leap in that it generalises them.
At the time of publishing GLOBE Europe News, the final text of the Convention was still being debated; a final document should be approved on March 20 by government officials, but the Ministers will only adopt the document on June 25.
__________________________________ Last minute problems
27 different unresolved problems have been listed by the negotiators, all of which must be resolved in March. These problems include such important questions as whether decisions to release genetically modified organisms into the environment should be subject to public consultations.
There is also uncertainty around the issue of public participation in the making of laws. Since its September 1997 Conference in Stockholm, GLOBE has insisted that the making of laws is a matter of interest for all citizens. Likewise, GLOBE has advocated that parliaments and EU institutions should be open to public participation and access to information- an issue as yet unsolved.
Contact: Inga-Britt Johansson MP: T. 46 8 786 4701: F. 46 8 786 6119 E-mail. inga-britt.johansson@riksdagen.se
Carlos Pimenta MEP: T. 32 2 284 5373: F. 32 2 284 9373 E-mail. cpimenta@europarl.eu.int
The Text of the draft Convention is available on the web: http://194.7.253.245/Convention/conventi.html
__________________________________ >GLOBE Appeal
Major decisions are still be taken. In spite of its considerable significance, by the time the Convention reaches the Ministerial level there will be little room for amendments. By the time it reaches parliaments for ratification, there will be no possibility for amendment at all.
In an attempt to improve the final document, Carlos Pimenta MEP and Inga- Britt Johansson MP, recently launched an appeal to GLOBE members around Europe to explain to their Ministers how important it is that the final text should be a good one.
A copy of the appeal and a briefing on the Convention are available from the GLOBE Europe secretariat.
__________________________________ >Dates to remember
20 March: adoption of the draft Convention at official level in the UN-ECE (1) Committee on Environmental Policy.
16 June: EU Council decides on whether to sign Convention and on EU declaration to accompany signature. This decision will be an important one in determining to what extent EU institutions will be covered by the Convention.
25 June: Convention is signed by the Ministers.
(1): UNECE: United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
__________________________________ >The =C5rhus conference: June 21-25
European Environment Ministers will meet in =C5rhus, Denmark, on June 23, 24 and 25 in a conference which is expected to take many important decisions on such subjects as transparency and public participation, chemical contamination, lead in petrol, energy conservation, and major environmental issues for central and eastern Europe.
Because the event is so significant, the Danish Parliament and GLOBE will host a Parliamentary conference on June 21 and 22. GLOBE is also inviting Parliaments to ensure that they are represented in their country1s delegation at the Ministerial Conference as well as the Parliamentary Conference.
The =C5hrus conference website: http://mstex03.mst.dk/aarhus-conference/index.htm
________________________________________________________________________ >ANNUAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY >GLOBE EU Launches its 1998 Working Programme.
Members of GLOBE EU meeting at the organisation1s general assembly on February 3rd decided to continue their work to strengthen the Climate Convention and the draft European Convention on Public Participation and Access to Information.
GLOBE members will also take action on a number of other environmental issues, including improving the Basel Convention and stopping the waste trade; improving the environmental record of the EBRD and EIB; strengthening international agreements relating to Biodiversity; including the Biodiversity Convention; and regulating hormone disrupting chemicals.
These actions will feature a series of events throughout the year, including a major Parliamentary Conference in =C5rhus, Denmark, on June 21 and 22, immediately before the meeting of Europe's Environment Ministers in the same city. GLOBE International1s General Assembly will be hosted by the US Congress on August 24-28.
GLOBE's programme of activities for Europe in 1998 as well as its report of activities for 1997 are available from the secretariat of GLOBE EU.
Both documents are also available on the Internet at: http://globeint.org/europe.html
________________________________________________________________________ >CLIMATE CHANGE UPDATE >European Parliament calls for continued EU leadership and equality of treatment for all the world1s countries.
With the Kyoto Protocol, the Climate Convention (UNFCCC) has been transformed from soft law to hard law. What is decided in the now yearly Conference of the Parties will have very real impacts for all of the world1s countries, their environment, people and economies.
However, three months after Kyoto, the world's governments and the EU institutions are still struggling to come to grips with the Kyoto Protocol. GLOBE members in the European Parliament met with UK Environment Minister John Prescott and EU Environment Commissioner Ritt Bjerregaard to address the implications of the Kyoto targets. They discussed the action the EU will be required to take before COP4 in Buenos Aires, in November 1998.
GLOBE members also submitted a resolution, which was subsequently debated and adopted by the European Parliament. The resolution emphasizes in particular the need for the EU to continue exercising a genuine and energetic leadership in the talks and to implement an ambitious target, close to the EU1s negotiating position of a 15% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2010.
The resolution also calls for the adoption of the principle of "convergence to equality of treatment". This echoes GLOBE's call for an equitable method of allocating reduction targets between countries. Such a method would have to be based on the determination of national emission quotas proportional to population, so that each human being is ultimately entitled to the same level of emissions as their counterparts in any other country on the planet.
In her speech to Parliament, Anita Pollack MEP(1), addressing British President of the Environment Council John Prescott MP and to Environment Commissioner Bjerregaard, emphasized the need to introduce policies and measures to implement the Kyoto targets, and to close the gaping loopholes left in the Kyoto Protocol.
She ended her speech with a plea for integration: "the President in office spoke of breaking out of the habit of thinking in a fragmented way and I would like to see closer integration of policies. For instance, it is crucial for the long term success of the battle against climate change that a strong environment protection clause is inserted into the Multilateral Agreement on Investment."
(1) Member of the board of GLOBE EU
Parliamentarians wishing to obtain the European Parliament resolution can request it from the GLOBE secretariat or consult the European Parliament's website on: http://www.europarl.eu.int/plenary/en/default.html
__________________________________ >Polish Government questioned
Poland was among those countries in central and eastern Europe who were torn between their allegiance to the EU group and their reluctance to take on additional commitments in the face of an uncertain economic future. Poland is an important contributor to European emissions of greenhouse gases, as its emissions are of a similar magnitude to those of France or Italy. Poland is now committed to reducing its emissions of greenhouse gases by 6% by 2010, using 1990 as a baseline.
Following the Conference of the Parties to the Climate Change Convention, Zbigniew Janowsky MP addressed the Environment Minister, Mr Jan Szyszko, in Parliament on the government's plans to address the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions required of Poland under the Kyoto Protocol.
Mr Janowsky asked what action the government intends to take to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in such areas as:
-the mining sector and coal-based energy industries: are the Kyoto targets taking into account in the restructuring of the mining sector? -Poland's transport network -the housing sector: will the programme for energy efficiency in the housing sector be continued? -the budget and taxation policy -the use of the "National Supporting Fund" in assisting the implementation of the Kyoto target. -the working programme of the Environment Ministry for 1998.
Mr Janowsky concluded with a request for a full parliamentary debate on the implications of the climate change process for Poland1s industrial development.
In his reply, Minister Szyszko presented a document entitled "Strategies for adapting the Polish economy to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases". The Minister emphasized that the main action to be undertaken in implementing the Kyoto protocol will be to reduce the country's energy intensity and to rationalise the use of energy. These orientations are reflected in the restructuring programmes in the various industrial sectors mentioned. The Minister also described the supporting funds, both local and foreign, which are to be provided to assist in the process.
If the Minister is to be believed, the liberalisation of the market for energy distribution to take place in 1998 will constitute a major task, in which the environmental dimension has been fully taken on board. The "national programme for afforestation" will be continued amongst areas of governmental activity.
Contact Zbigniew Janowsky MP T. 48 22 254 105: F. 48 22 694 1684 E-mail: janoz@novapress.com.pl
________________________________________________________________________ >DENMARK CHAMPIONS EUROPEAN ENVIRONMENTAL UNITY >The Second Working meeting of EU Environment Committees 4-6 February, 1998
It is ironic that one of the EU1s most Eurosceptic countries should be the driving force behind a new European institution. A few days after Copenhagen1s little mermaid was brutally decapitated by hooligans, the Danish Folketing's Environment Committee hosted a meeting assembling representatives of the EU's Environment Committees. This assembly will now recur on a yearly basis and will form a regular part of the EU's operations.
>Factor 4 and 10
The meeting was used to bring a fresh, new and bold idea to parliamentarians. Businessmen, scientists, economists, amongst whom Swiss researcher Roger Stahel and French Businessman Claude Fussler, believe that it is possible to reduce our use of material resources by a factor of 4, even 10, with existing technology.
It was already known that the environment demands such a leap in efficiency: for instance, climate experts estimate that the amount of fossil fuel we use must be reduced by 50 to 70% to stabilise the climate. Speakers in Copenhagen argued that such a reduction in the use of natural resources is not only possible but profitable for those businesses that make the leap. Companies which ignore this trend, they say, will soon go out of business.
>"Factor 15"
The main object of the meeting however was to break the isolation which each of the EU's 15 Environment Committees suffers from. While environmental law is increasingly being prepared by the EU, even within the UN, national parliamenta-rians have no official forum to collaborate- until recently.
The conference therefore worked for the creation of a permanent structure, including a steering committee and a communications network, aiming to circulate opinions on matters of common interest and debate European policy. Committees will meet every year in the country holding the EU1s presidency at the time.
Though inspired by the work of GLOBE, this new structure differs radically from the parliamentary NGO: the Danish initiative assembles not individual parliamentarians, but committees as such. The working meeting, many of whose participants are also GLOBE members, has however requested GLOBE EU to be an official observer in their annual meetings and to stay closely associated with their work.
Contact: Steen Gade MP: T. 45 33 37 4406: F. 45 33 14 7010 E-mail: sfstga@ft.dk
________________________________________________________________________ >OPEN UP PARLIAMENT, ONCE MORE
Previous issues of GLOBE Europe News have presented the work currently being carried out by a project called TEAP for GLOBE members and other members of parliament in Newly Independent Countries. TEAP stands for "TACIS Environmental Awareness Project" (see GLOBE Europe News # 1, 1998).
The project has chosen to follow the model of Open Parliament meetings (OPM) launched by GLOBE in 1996. Such meetings seek to bring together actors of civil society and parliamentarians to discuss environmental policy and have usually proved very productive. Following the first two such meetings in Moldova and the Ukraine, more meetings are scheduled for the coming months (see calendar).
__________________________________ >Bringing public participation to parliament (St Petersburg 21-22 February 1998)
A seminar was held by TEAP at the Ecology Committee of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly in the city of St Petersburg. This was held for the benefit of the members of the Committee as well as a limited number of NGOs and journalists.
The Seminar debated the draft Convention on Access to Information and Public Participation, due to be signed by Europe's Ministers in June this year.
The debate based its work on the output of the OPM held in Kiev the previous month (see GLOBE Europe News #2, 1998) and will allow the further dissemination of the ideas discussed in Kiev to the other CIS countries.
The seminar also exploited the model law on access to information which the Assembly adopted last year, in an effort to bring it one step closer to implementation by NIS member states.
For further information of any kind about the TEAP project, please contact:
Mika Veps=E4l=E4inen T. 358 9 708 44 136: F. 358 9 708 44 453 E-mail: vepsalainen@huks.helsinki.fi or Patrick Worms E-mail: worms@ogilvy.com
__________________________________ >Dates for The Open Parliament Meetings.
Date City Central issue 26 March Moscow Forests 6 April Bishkek Natural reserve of Tengir-tu 8 April Almaty Legislation on voluntary organisations 10 April Tashkent Ecobusiness 20 April Erevan Renewable energy 22 April Tbilissi Solar energy and the environment 25 April Bakou Oil industry 28 April Minsk Protection of humid areas 12 April Ulan-Bator Forests 2 June St Petersburg Renewable energy
__________________________________ >Credit where it is due
In "Ukrainian Members Support Transparency" (GLOBE Europe News #2, 1998), we reported in some detail on discussions in the Ukrainian parliament on the draft Convention on Access to Information and Public Participation.
The article omitted to mention that this Open Parliament Meeting, like the other planned "OPMs" in NIS countries, is organised and funded by the TACIS Environmental Awareness Programme.
________________________________________________________________________ >THE HAARP PROJECT: PURE RESEARCH, STAR WARS CONTINUATION OR ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTER
At a public hearing in Brussels on 5th February, the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the European Parliament discussed the US army's HAARP project- the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Programme. Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Tom Spencer MEP, stressed the importance of the hearing in connection with the report to be drawn up by Maj-Britt Theorin MEP on the possible use of military resources in environmental strategies.
The HAARP project involves the manipulation of the earth's ionosphere, using very high intensity beams of electromagnetic radiations. HAARP beams can be used to mark the trajectory of missiles or as reflectors for radio communications. According to experts testifying to the Hearing, HAARP allows the manipulator to wipe out communications globally at will or to make their own communications resilient in the event of nuclear war. In view of the grave potential implications of the information provided, Tom Spencer regretted that NATO had declined to provide its own side of the story at the hearing.
________________________________________________________________________ >GLOBE GURU LECTURE >The State of the World, 1998
President of the WorldWatch Institute Lester Brown came to Brussels once again in February to present this year1s edition of the publication "the State of the World" to members of GLOBE in the European Parliament. In this year1s edition of the State of the World, Lester Brown and his team have documented the environmental effects of continuing economic growth as the economy outgrows the earth1s ecosystem. The book describes the consequences of the collision between the expanding economy and the earth1s natural limits, shrinking forests, falling water tables, eroding soils, collapsing fisheries, rising temperatures and disappearing species.
Nowhere, says Lester Brown, is this clash better illustrated than in China. "China now consumes as much pork as the United States: it has now closed the "pork gap". If the country were ever to close the beef gap as well, then it would need to absorb the entire wheat production of the United States. Should China ever achieve the level of motorization of the USA, as the government has pledged to do, its oil consumption would reach 80 million barrels per day; but, the entire world currently produces no more that 64 mb per day."
However, the Institute also detects encouraging signs that corporations have understood that converting to efficient, lean and sophisticated technologies is not only good for the planet, it is the only way to stay in business.
While oil giants BP and Shell have both announced considerable investments in the solar energy sector, gas company Enron is now positioning itself as the transition to the pollution free hydrogen fuels of tomorrow.
Among other encouraging signs, Japan has launched a programme to install enough solar roofing by 2010 to supply an amount of energy equivalent to the entire consumption of Chili. And a study recently showed that just three American States could supply the whole electricity consumption of the USA from solar electricity alone.
________________________________________________________________________ >IN SHORT
>European Financial Institutions
Following his initiatives relating to international financial institutions (see GLOBE Europe News # 2, 1998), Doeke Eisma MEP(1) proposed that the Environment Committee of the European Parliament should visit the European Investment Bank. The visit will take place on April 28, 1998.
More information: Doeke Eisma MEP : T. 32 2 284 5797 Fax. 32 2 284 9797
(1) Member of the board of GLOBE EU
__________________________________ >Oceans
A major European conference on oceans was held from January 31 to February 2 at the initiative of GLOBE and ACOPS (2). The Conference, which was opened by Robin Teverson MEP, opened the United Nations "Year of the Oceans" in Europe with an extensive programme of action. More will be published on this in a later issue of the GLOBE Europe news.
More information: Robin Teversen MEP: T. 32 2 284 5625: F. 32 2 284 9625 ACOPS: T. 44 171 799 3033: F. 44 171 799 2933
(2) Advisory Committee on Protection of the Sea
________________________________________________________________________ >THE GLOBE EUROPE HELPLINE
Members of Globe Europe and other members of Parliament are invited to request additional information on any of the issues referred to in this Newsletter from the GLOBE Europe secretariat:
T: 32 2 230 65 89: F: 32 2 230 95 30 E-mail: gen.globe@innet.be
________________________________________________________________________ GLOBE Europe News is distributed to more than 1000 environmental parliamentarians from all political parties in Europe. It is open to information and contributions from parliamentarians from around the continent, and to contributions about the activities of environmental parliamentarians.
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Date: Mon, 16 Mar 1998 10:46:18 -0500 From: "Blair Pollock" <bpollock@town.ci.chapel-hill.nc.us> Subject: GreenYes Digest V98 #67
There was a spray-on cellulosic product in use in the early 80's called "K-13" it was used on industrial type buildings. Don't know if it's still around, etc. it adhered directly to metal surfaces. > >Subject: Recycled content insulation > >Timonie Hood >Naval Station San Diego >P.O. Box 1104 >Bonita, CA 91908 >Chesestick@aol.com > >------------------------------ >
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End of GreenYes Digest V98 #68 ******************************