1. Home
  2. Articles posted by: Rona Fried (Page 2346)

Cruise Industry Campaign Splits Environmental Community

MIAMI, Florida, March 16, 2004 (ENS) – A joint initiative announced by the International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL) and Conservation International (CI) to address the problem of cruise ship pollution lacks substance and specific commitments, according to a coalition of 30 environmental groups who are also tackling cruise ship pollution. The ICCL/CI initiative, announced in December 2003, is making waves at the week long Seatrade Cruise Shipping Convention that opened Monday here in the busiest cruise port in the world. Calling itself the Ocean Conservation and Tourism Alliance, the ICCL/CI group aims to protect biodiversity in top cruise destinations and promote industry practices that minimize the cruise industry's environmental impact on destinations. Four initial priority areas to address were outlined by the group: * Best practices for wastewater management: improved shipboard technology, specifically accelerating and adopting Advanced Wastewater Purification systems. * Establishing destination partnerships: working with local governments and communities to maintain high-quality travel experiences by protecting the natural and cultural assets of cruise destinations. * Promoting environmental education: raising guest and crew awareness of and support for critical conservation issues. * Promoting vendor environmental education: lessening the environmental impacts of suppliers. The ICCL represents 14 of the world's […]

Read More

Cruise Industry Campaign Splits Environmental Community

MIAMI, Florida, March 16, 2004 (ENS) – A joint initiative announced by the International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL) and Conservation International (CI) to address the problem of cruise ship pollution lacks substance and specific commitments, according to a coalition of 30 environmental groups who are also tackling cruise ship pollution. The ICCL/CI initiative, announced in December 2003, is making waves at the week long Seatrade Cruise Shipping Convention that opened Monday here in the busiest cruise port in the world. Calling itself the Ocean Conservation and Tourism Alliance, the ICCL/CI group aims to protect biodiversity in top cruise destinations and promote industry practices that minimize the cruise industry's environmental impact on destinations. Four initial priority areas to address were outlined by the group: * Best practices for wastewater management: improved shipboard technology, specifically accelerating and adopting Advanced Wastewater Purification systems. * Establishing destination partnerships: working with local governments and communities to maintain high-quality travel experiences by protecting the natural and cultural assets of cruise destinations. * Promoting environmental education: raising guest and crew awareness of and support for critical conservation issues. * Promoting vendor environmental education: lessening the environmental impacts of suppliers. The ICCL represents 14 of the world's […]

Read More

EPA Misled Public on Quality of U.S. Drinking Water

Officials at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have repeatedly made misleading statements about supposed improvements in U.S. drinking water quality, according to the EPA's Inspector General's office. From 1999 to 2002, the agency reported "meeting its annual performance goal for drinking water quality even though it concurrently reported that the data used to draw those conclusions were flawed and incomplete," the Inspector General said in the report. For the agency's annual performance goal to be met, 91 percent of the nation's drinking water must meet public health standards. "EPA's own analysis, supported by our review, indicated that the correct number was unknown, but less than what was reported," according to the Inspector General's office. The internal report also cited numerous claims by senior Bush administration officials in 2003 and 2004 that incorrectly "portrayed [EPA's] success at improving drinking water quality." EPA data audits show that some 77 percent of known monitoring and reporting violations, and 35 percent of known health standard violations, are not included in the agency's compliance database. In addition, the inspector general's report confirmed the finding of several EPA documents that many of these monitoring and reporting violations likely are "masking" health standard violations. The report […]

Read More

Protonex Receives Financing for Portable Fuel Cell Technology

Excerpted from a Protonex Press Release Protonex Technology Corporation, today announced they received early stage financing to further develop their portable fuel cell technology for commercial applications. The financing was led by Conduit Ventures, Ltd with co-investors SAS Investors, Solstice Capital and Commons Capital. As a result of the funding, George Abraham, Partner of SAS Investors and John Butt, Partner of Conduit Ventures, joined the Board of Directors with existing board members Paul Osenar and Norman Strate of Protonex. Protonexs portable fuel cell systems are compact, lightweight and durable, providing customers with a preferred alternative to heavier, short-term power sources such as batteries and generators. Protonex has developed a strong base of proprietary fuel cell technology and has multiple patents pending. Originally developed for the military, Protonex is accelerating market growth by adapting their product line to accommodate a wide range of industrial, commercial and government applications. Protonex has been working with the military since 2000 to develop a portable, long duration power solution for portable applications. A soldier on a 3 day mission, for example, would need to carry over 20 pounds of batteries to equal the power of one Protonex portable fuel cell system. Weighing less than 5 […]

Read More