China's State Environmental Protection Administration(SEPA) issues notice on environmental tasks related to dealing with the SARS virus

On April 22, 2003, China's State Environmental Protection Administration(SEPA) issued an urgent notice to all relevant institutions about implementation of plans for preventing and treating the SARS(Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) as well as other tasks related to environmental preservation.

Currently in China, the rate of sewage and wastewater treatment facilities is at an average of 15% and other waste treatment and separate waste collection system is at an insufficient level.

The notice calls for strengthening environmental precautionary measures for protecting against the SARS virus, by some of the ways such as thoroughly sterilizing wastes and wastewater of medical facilities, cancelling some of the national conventions and business trips, and other measures for protecting against infection.

EU pushes ahead with the new chemical policy, despite U.S. efforts to delay the process

The European Union is in the process of completing their internal review of the new legislation which would create new rules for managing chemicals in commerce in Europe. It will be placed on the Internet for public comment beginning in mid-May.

The new chemicals policy is called REACH, for Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals. It requires manufacturers and users to provide information on the potential health risks posed by all chemicals available commercially in quantities of more than one ton per year. The amount of information and review required under the new policy is based on the amount of a chemical in commerce, not on the hazards it poses, though potential restrictions on use would be based on chemical hazards.

The U.S. government and industry groups are trying to delay the process, warning that the proposed legislation would cost billions to implement and may violate international trade agreements because they would restrict trade more than necessary to protect human health and the environment.