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Dear OPPT Newsbreak subscribers and readers: We regret to announce that, due to budget cuts, OPPT Newsbreak will be discontinued. We will cease publication after February 12, 1999. Please send any questions or comments to [email protected] or use the "Comments" button on the OPPT Home Page at http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/. Back issues are available courtesy of RTK Net on their website at http://www.rtk.net/T268/ . Thanks for your support, and thanks to the many library staff over the years that have contributed to the production of OPPT Newsbreak: Toxic News for the Net. Sincerely, Linda Miller Poore (GCI Information Services) Editor-in-chief, OPPT Newsbreak Head Librarian, OPPTS Chemical Library U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C. OPPT NEWSBREAK Today's "Toxic News for the Net" Tuesday, Feb 9, 1999 Brought to you by the OPPTS Chemical Library http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/oppt_nb.txt NEWS "Crackdown on Trash Haulers Starts. Eight States, D.C. Stop Hundreds of Tractor-Trailers for Inspections." Washington Post, 9 February 99, B1, B4. "Delegates Vote to Ban Garbage Barges in State [Virginia Assembly '99]." Washington Times, 9 February 99, C6. Trucks hauling trash down the East Coast were pulled over by inspectors in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia as part of a crackdown on trash haulers. Violations included bad brakes, loads that were too heavy, and drivers who had been driving for too many hours. Of the 417 trucks stopped in Maryland, the District of Columbia, and New Jersey, 37 were ordered off the road because of violations that posed an immediate threat. Some trucks were also inspected at landfills. The crackdown came as Virginia's General Assembly was considering legislation to put limits on the waste industry. Bills to ban garbage barges, restrict new landfill construction, and cap dumping capacity passed a preliminary vote in the House of Delegates and were approved by a Senate committee. "Experts Find No Arms Chemicals at Bombed Sudan Plant." New York Times, 9 February 99, A3. No traces of chemical weapon compounds have been found in debris, soil or sludge samples taken in October from Al Shifa, a Sudanese pharmaceutical plant, destroyed by American cruise missiles in August. Contrary to American officials' beliefs, samples did not evidence traces of the VX nerve gas precursor, Empta, nor its breakdown product, Empa, which remains detectable in soil in small amounts for weeks or months. Evidence links Salih Idris, owner of the plant, at the time of the attack, to Sudan's Government entity, the Military Industrial Corporation, which makes weapons for the Sudanese Army and which has been financed by Osama bin Laden. "Getting the Lead Out [Science Times]." New York Times, 9 February 99, D5. A new study focussed on the New York urban area reveals that the high levels of atmospheric lead come more from the burning of garbage than the burning of leaded gasoline. Scientists from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at Columbia University and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation studied samples from Central Park Lake and found that lead levels were peaking between the 1930's and 1960's before the use of leaded gasoline and during the rise in use of waste incinerators. Environmental Science and Technology journal published the study. EDITORIALS & COMMENTARY "Lowering Levels of Gas Sulfur [Commentary]." Washington Times, 9 February 99, A15. Automotive writer Eric Peters has finally met an environmental regulation he likes: "Such a one is a proposed requirement (the announcement could come sometime this month) that would affect sulfur levels in gasoline." He explains how this would help catalytic converters function more efficiently and lessen air pollution. "EPA is right on this one and deserves support." PEOPLE IN THE NEWS "Germany: Treason Charge in Uranium Case [World Briefing]." New York Times, 9 February 99, A8. Engineer Karl-Heinz Schaab has been charged with treason for reportedly selling the Iraqis equipment and information for making weapons-grade uranium. ACROSS THE USA, from USA Today "Paragould, Arkansas [Across the USA]." USA Today, 8 February 99, 14A. The cost of cleaning up a methamphetamine lab is high for taxpayers. Last year in Arkansas the federal government spent $1.183 million for hazardous waste cleanup at meth labs. "Portland, Maine [Across the USA]." USA Today, 8 February 99, 14A. Gov. King plans to earmark $75 million for public land acquisition. His proposal stipulates that $50 million of the amount be borrowed over five years. The Sierra Club wants the target amount to be $100 million. "Southport, North Carolina [Across the USA]." USA Today, 8 February 99, 14A. In June, a federal judge threw out the Army Corp of Engineers' rules limiting the draining of wetlands. Corp spokesman Ernie Jahnke said that since then, 6,000 acres of marsh have disappeared in southeastern North Carolina. The state plans to establish its own rules by 2000. AROUND THE BELTWAY: DC/MD/VA REGIONAL NEWS "Glendening, Del. Governor Discuss Pollution [Metro: In Brief: Maryland]." Washington Post, 9 February 99, B3. In discussing the problem of water pollution caused by chicken manure, Maryland Gov. Parris N. Glendening and Delaware Gov. Thomas R. Carper said they will explore the option of burning the manure at an oil-burning Conectiv power plant in Vienna, Md. Maryland officials are still studying a proposal to burn manure to generate power and steam heat at the Eastern Shore Correctional Institution in Westover. There are concerns about the amount of phosphorus that remains in the ash, and how to transport and store the manure safely. TOXICS IN THE NEWS: ASBESTOS "The Asbestos Epidemic: An Emerging Catastrophe-Part 1 of 4." USA Today, 8 February 99, 1A. In Eastern Europe, South Africa, China and many of the poorer countries of the world, there is an epidemic of asbestos-related disease. In the next 30 years, it is projected that at least 1 million people will die. The victims are those who mine asbestos and manufacture asbestos products. Sidebar:An Asbestos Primer, 4A. "The Asbestos Epidemic: Prison Camp or Death Camp? China-Part 1 of 4." USA Today, 8 February 99, B1. Chinese convicts toll without basic safety precautions and gear. As a Chinese-American human rights activist says "a sentence or a job at the facility is the same as a death sentence." About 25% of China's asbestos comes from prison mines. LIVING IN THE INFORMATION AGE "Fear of the Year 2000 Bug Is a Problem, Too." New York Times, 9 February 99, A1, C10. Government officials and consultants say that keeping the public informed on the work being done to reduce risks likely to occur with the arrival of the new Millennium Bug is the best way to deal with mass nervousness'. Broad-based community preparedness efforts are underway. A manual instructing cities how to prepare for disruptions is being written by Larry Shook, a Spokane, Wa. Year 2000 organizer, in cooperation with the City of Portland, Oregon. It will be available on the World Wide Web. The American Red Cross and the Federal Emergency Management Agency plan to publish new advice this month. This article provides a Year 2000 checklist of recommendations from the American Red Cross. INTER ALIA "Pretty Goods [The Arts]." New York Times, 9 February 99, B1. An exhibition of facial beauty product advertisements and related artifacts from the past begins today at the New York Historical Society. Complexion products that were once marketed include Laird's Bloom of Youth which was lead paint-based and Dupin's Arsenic Complexion Tablets which were taken internally. * All items, unless indicated otherwise, are available at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxics Substances (OPPTS) Chemical Library Northeast Mall, Room B606 (Mailcode 7407) Washington, D.C. 20460 (202) 260-3944; FAX x4659; E-mail for comments: [email protected]. (Due to copyright restrictions, the library cannot provide photocopies of articles.) *Viewpoints expressed in the above articles do not necessarily reflect EPA policy. Mention of products does not indicate endorsement.* To subscribe to OPPT Newsbreak, send the command subscribe OPPT-NEWSBREAK Firstname Lastname to: [email protected] To unsubscribe, send the command signoff OPPT-NEWSBREAK Also available on the World Wide Web (see banner for address) The OPPTS Chemical Library is operated by GCI Information ServicesMore EPA OPPT Newsbreak
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