...WEFTEC Asia '98 attracts 1,300 participants and 50 U.S. exhibitors.

WEFTEC Asia '98, a five-day water quality conference and exhibition held in Singapore from March 7-11, attracted more than 1,300 government officials and industry representatives from Southeast Asia and around the globe. The event, which was organized by the Water Environment Federation (WEF) and supported by US-AEP, featured a comprehensive technical program, workshops, facility tours, and 80 exhibitors, 50 of which were from the United States. U.S. Ambassador to Singapore Steven J. Green, who made a walk-through of the exhibition, said that such strong interest in the event by U.S. and other exhibitors shows that foreign firms are committed to the region despite the current financial problems. "This is what we need to bring more small- and medium-sized U.S. companies who will make a significant commitment to the Southeast Asian market despite the economic downturn," said Ambassador Green. WEF President C. Dale Jacobson agreed with the ambassador, announcing the dates of the next show: March 11-15 in the year 2000.

The event was opened by Heng Chiang Meng, Chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee on the Environment. Featured speakers included Dr. Say Leong Ong, President of the Environmental Engineering Society of Singapore; Pradeep Khare, Director of the British Columbia Ministry of Environment; and Cengiz Ertuna of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

US-AEP supported the participation of 14 delegates from India and 15 from the Philippines, led respectively by Dinaz Noble, US-AEP's Market Research Coordinator in Mumbai, India, and Alma Madrazo, US-AEP/Philippines Technology Representative. The Indian delegation received financial assistance through US-AEP's Overseas Program Fund, a small grants program administered by the National Association of State Development Agencies (NASDA). In addition, the Indian delegates participated in one-on-one meetings with U.S. exhibitors, organized by NASDA and facilitated by Ms. Noble and Sarath Menon, former Director of US-AEP/Singapore's Office of Technology Cooperation. The success of WEFTEC Asia '98 was due in part to the efforts of US-AEP/Singapore Technology Representative Chan Yiu Kei and Assistant Pearlynn Tan Lay Kuan.

Singapore's Air Toxics Monitoring Project, conducted by the Ministry of the Environment, recently received technical support from the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA). Under its agreement with US-AEP, CalEPA sent two experts from the Air Resources Board of Sacramento, California, to consult on the project: Terry McGuire, Chief of the Technical Support Division, and William Oslund, Chief of the Quality Surveillance Branch. From February 27-March 7, the two advised the Ministry of Environment on ways to upgrade Singapore's ozone monitoring program to provide adequate warning to the public in the event of unhealthy ozone conditions. Specific improvements included the ability to identify sources of ozone precursors and forecast ozone levels.

US-AEP's Environmental Exchange Program brought four government officials from Singapore to the United States, February 22-March 3, to study environmental health and safety (EHS) standards and practices. Representing the Ministries of Labor, Home Affairs, and the Environment, the officials visited Dallas, Texas, where they toured Texas Instruments and met with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). They also visited Intel Corporation (Chandler, Arizona); Hewlett Packard (San Jose, California); and the Palo Alto Fire Department (Palo Alto, California). Their objective--to gain knowledge that would help them ensure high EHS standards in Singapore's many semiconductor wafer fabrication plants--was accomplished by studying U.S. companies' methods of hazardous chemical handling and storage, as well as U.S. government regulation and enforcement. The Environmental Exchange Program is administered by the Institute of International Education.

Small U.S. firms that wish to do business in Asia may want to participate in the Asian Development Bank (ADB) seminars scheduled this month for Indianapolis, Indiana (March 23-24); Seattle, Washington (March 26-27); and Raleigh, North Carolina (March 30-31). The tour is being conducted by the Multilateral Development Bank Operations (MDBO) office of the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service (US&FCS). The seminars will consist of two days in each city; the first day will offer detailed instructions on how to win contracts at the ADB, while the second will feature one-on-one meetings with bank staff. In Indianapolis, Denny Barnes, US&FCS liaison officer to the ADB, will be available for one-on-one consultations; in addition, Peter Gourlay, former US-AEP Director of Environmental Infrastructure and current Director of CNA's Architect, Engineers and Construction Division, will deliver the keynote speech on successful engineering strategies in Asia. For more information, contact Barbara White at the MDBO office via phone: 202-482-3399 or fax: 202-273-0927.