Archive
International News Services archives articles supplied to clients one year or more after initial publication. These articles are protected by a password and not made available to readers without permission from clients. They are used as a background resource by agency journalists. Upon client requests, International News Services will remove such articles from the archive or not upload them in the first place. They are included to demonstrate the breadth of topics undertaken by the agency and also to help promote clients’ coverage.
BSE RISKS
BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE RISK that American cattle are infected with BSE is high, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has concluded, and without changes to US rendering or feeding practice, “the probability of cattle to be (pre-clinically or clinically) infected with BSE persistently increases”.…
ENVIRONMENTAL LAW REPORT
BY KEITH NUTHALL
FRANCE is Europe’s laggard for implementing European Union (EU) environmental law, the European Commission has concluded. It its latest assessment of compliance with EU green regulations and directives, it notes 11 instances of France being recently censured by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) or threatened with legal action by the Commission over non-compliance with environmental legislation.…
ASBESTOS ADVICE
BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EASHW) has released a factsheet advising on the risks posed by asbestos to all construction, maintenance, and cleaning workers. The paper gives technical details about asbestos, where it can be found and its health effects, whilst offering some basic good practice.…
POMACE HEALTH
BY MONICA DOBIE
WINE production waste – or pomace – the seeds, skin and stems of crushed grapes, could be commercially developed as a natural inhibitor against several types of bacteria, a new study has claimed. Research by Turkish academics published in the UK-based Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, showed pomace has high concentrations of antioxidants which, mixed with methanol in concentrations ranging from 0.5% to 20%, prevented the growth of 14 types of bacteria including E-coli, salmonella, staphylococcus aureus and enterobacter aerogenes.…
GREEN PROCUREMENT
BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Commission has issued a handbook guiding local authorities in how to further environmental policy goals through their purchasing policies, without breaking European Union public procurement rules. This Handbook on Green Public Procurement gives best-practice examples while advising about dealing with all steps of procurement procedures.…
GM PROCEDURES
BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Commission has rejected claims from the European Parliament’s Green group that the EU’s authorisation process for genetically modified organisms is undemocratic. The Greens have criticised the Commission’s recent approval of GM maize, when the EU Council of Ministers could not reach a decision.…
LIFE PROGRAMME
BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Union’s (EU) LIFE environment programme has been extended for another two years to 2005 and 2006, when it will command a budget of Euro 317.2 million. The scheme finances the development of innovative environmental techniques and methods and was prolonged by the EU Council of Ministers, with Portugal opposing the move.…
LEUKAEMIA - PETROL STATIONS
BY MONICA DOBIE
CHILDREN who live near petrol stations and car repair garages have a dramatically higher rate of leukaemia, according to a new study. The research, published in the UK journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine, indicates that exposure to the chemical benzene, present in petrol fumes and used in the manufacture of paints, plastics and pesticides may cause the childhood cancer.…
NEW COMMISSIONERS
BY KEITH NUTHALL
GREECE and Cyprus are taking over the key European Commission jobs in the environmental health world, in the new team unveiled by incoming Brussels president José Durão Barroso. Taking over from Sweden’s Margot Wallström as environment commissioner will be Greek Stavros Dimas, who has served as stand in employment commissioner since his compatriot Anna Diamontopoulou returned to national politics in March.…