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Asian
delegations hosted at A&WMA annual meeting.
Through US-AEP's Overseas Program Fund and Environmental Exchange
Program, more than 50 delegates from Hong Kong, India, Korea, Sri Lanka, and
Thailand participated in the
Air & Waste Management Association (A&WMA)
90th Annual Meeting and Exhibition in Toronto, Canada, June 8-13. Under the
auspices of the National Association of State Development Agencies (NASDA),
US-AEP set up one-on-one meetings with U.S. firms attending the event and
arranged technical tours to three sites in New York�American Ref-Fuel,
Chemical Waste Management, and Love Canal. The Asian delegates also
participated in US-AEP's panel session, "Clean Technology and Environmental
Management: Opportunities in Asia," led by Julie Haines, Managing Director,
US-AEP/CTEM. Technology Representatives Vinay Gadkari (India) and JD Murphy
(Thailand) provided the U.S. business audience with insights on how to
conduct business in Asia. Present to staff the US-AEP trade show booth and
coordinate US-AEP involvement in the event were Rhonda Vandeworp and
Christina Mudd. Dana Mun of the Environmental Technology Network for Asia
took advantage of the event to conduct outreach to U.S. firms, while Amy
Schwiderski, Andrea Gorsey, and Patrick Terrien were on hand to see that all
ran smoothly with the meetings for the Asian delegates.
US-AEP
honors APEC environment ministers.
Concurrent with A&WMA meetings, the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
Environmental Ministerial on Sustainable Development met June 9-11 in
Toronto, to discuss, among other issues, cleaner production processes.
During the Ministerial plenary, the United States presented US-AEP's
$500,000 APEC proposal with the National Academy of Engineering that will
identify and recommend environmental industrial performance indicators for
the region. At an international reception hosted by A&WMA, US-AEP honored
eight of the APEC economies for being champions of environmentally
sustainable development. Julie Haines presented plaques to representatives
of the environmental ministries from Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia,
Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. US-AEP Tech Rep Vinay Gadkari
and Field Representative Jacintha Joseph accepted awards on behalf of the
governments of India and Sri Lanka, respectively. Before participating in a
ribbon cutting ceremony to open A&WMA's exhibition, APEC ministers and
representatives stopped by the US-AEP booth, located in the "Innovative
Environmental Technology Pavilion," to discuss clean technologies in Asia.
This APEC forum was one of several ministerial gatherings planned before
November, when leaders from 18 countries will meet in Vancouver, Canada, for
a summit.
Philippines
lays foundation for P2 Roundtable.
On June 6th, 19 leaders from Philippines' industry associations,
governmental ministries, academic institutions and the non-governmental
community met to lay the groundwork for the establishment of a Pollution
Prevention Roundtable organization. Enthusiastic support was garnered from
all participants at the meeting, sponsored by the Washington, DC-based
National Pollution
Prevention Roundtable (NPPR), a US-AEP partner, and US-AEP/Philippines,
and held at the Asian Institute of Management. Next steps include the first
meeting of a 'Convener Group,' scheduled for July 4, which coincides with
Filipino-American Friendship Day in the Philippines. Creation of independent
and self-sustaining pollution prevention roundtable organizations across
Asia is a key aspect of US-AEP's new partnership with NPPR.
Singapore
hosts emergency planning & response workshop.
Nearly 60 participants, representing industry and ten government
agencies, attended a workshop on "Emergency Planning & Response" held in
Singapore, June 3-5. The workshop, developed in response to a request from
the Ministry of the Environment, was organized by US-AEP/Singapore in
collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and the Singapore Chemical
Industry Club. Tan Gee Paw, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of the Environment
opened the event and Dennis Zvinakis, Field Director, gave remarks on behalf
of US-AEP. Three U.S. experts�Jim Morgester (Cal EPA), Russell Dynes
(Disaster Research Centre), and James Cassidy (SSI Services)�conducted the
workshop which included a facility tour of the GATX, an American-owned
company that does bulk liquid storage, handling, and packaging. The
participants responded positively to the content of the course and Tech Rep
Sarath Kumar Menon is now following up on several requests for more
information.
Korea signs
"Declaration of Environmental Ethics."
The National Pollution
Prevention Roundtable (NPPR) participated in ceremonies for the "Seoul
Declaration on Environmental Ethics," sponsored by the Republic of Korea on
World Environment Day, June 5. The declaration establishes an evolving
framework of ideals, principles, and guidelines for action, and calls on
industries to incorporate pollution prevention practices as part of their
normal production activities. The signing of the declaration marks the 25th
anniversary of the Stockholm Declaration and the 5th anniversary of the Rio
Declaration. Organizations from numerous countries participated at the
ceremonies, including Kazakstan, Republic of Vanuatu, Korea, Russia, Sweden,
Great Britain, India, and Vietnam. The keynote address was delivered by
Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment
Programme.
Internet
Guide Available.
Just off the US-AEP presses�the
Clean Technology and Environmental Management Guide to the Internet.
This publication represents a collection of environmental sites on the
Internet compiled by Kerith McFadden, US-AEP CTEM Information Center
manager, based on her research of US-AEP's five focus industries: pulp &
paper, food processing, electroplating, petrochemicals, and textiles. To
order copies, please e-mail Janet Redden (TSSC):
jredden@usaep.org.
Welcome
to...
...Thomas L. Bauer, who joins US-AEP as the new director of the Office of
Technology Cooperation in Jakarta, Indonesia. Tom, whose start date was May
5, comes to the program from Monsanto-Indonesia where he ran a farmer credit
program and led a public relations effort to promote biotechnology and use
of environmentally friendly herbicides. He has served as an agribusiness
economist and consultant for 12 years, serving with such organizations as
USAID, Harvard Institute for International Development, U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Winrock International, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation
on Agriculture, Rodale Institute, and Pillsbury Co. Tom received his M.S. in
agronomy and B.S. in soil science and agronomy from the University of
Wisconsin-Madison. |
