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Environmental protection: the international dimensions
189 3 4 5 6
Guzman Gomez, N. Estudio m6dico--antropol6gico de la Amazonia Colombiana (Medico--anthropological study of Colombian Amazonia). Cali, Universiy of Valle, 1968. Community Participation Directorate. Summary and conclusions of second workshop on the provision of health services to indigenous communities. Ministry of Health, Valledupar, 1983. Ashburn, P.M. Las heustes de la muerte: una historia m6dica de la conquista de Am6rica (The armies of death: a medical history of the Spanish conquest of America). Mexican Social Security Institute, Mexico, 1981. National Indigenous Organization of Colombia. The Organization's standpoint on the official health programmes. Valledupar, 1983 (mimeographed document).
NEW CAMPAIGN H I G H L I G H T S B E N E F I T S OF LEAD L o n d o n , N o v e m b e r 23 -- The Lead d e v e l o p m e n t Association t o d a y launched a major campaign aimed at p r o m o t i n g the safe and positive uses of lead. It will highlight all aspects o f the safe use of lead in an e f f o r t to support the thousands o f people in t he c o u n t r y who work in or depend on what is th e fifth m os t i m p o r t a n t metal industry in the world. Announcing t he campaign, Dr Derek Temple, t he LDA's Director General, said it would n o t be a "rearguard a c t i o n " to c o u n t e r criticism o f lead in petrol and paint. Instead, it would have t w o major objectives: (1) to show t hat t he lead industry takes a responsible and concerned attitu d e towards public health, safety and the environment; and (2) to d e m o n s t r a t e t h a t lead is a versatile and, in m a n y cases, an indispensible metal which can, and should, be used safely. Dr Temple said: " T h e impetus for the campaign has stemmed from a pilot opinion survey carried o u t last D ecem ber on a cross section of MPs, civil servants, local a u t h o r i t y officials and councillors, and professional bodies, including trade unionists and journalists." This was supplemented by a larger s tu d y last m o n t h (October). " T h e results were similar in b o t h instances. With few exceptions, there is a low awareness o f the m o d e r n uses and benefits o f lead among decision makers and opinion leaders. The majority of people interviewed expressed little or no initial interest or concern and whilst m a n y responses linked lead with petrol or health hazards in general, the views on benefits versus drawbacks revealed no hard attitudes or d e p t h o f know l edge. " Th e survey had also revealed scant awareness o f t he safety and protective applications o f lead, for example against excessive x-ray exposure in hospitals or as a shield against radiation in t he nuclear industry. The massive c o n t r i b u t i o n m a de by t he lead industry t o waste removal and conservation -b y recycling 60% o f its ow n o u t p u t -- was similarly unappreciated. It was because o f all this, Dr Temple added, t h a t t he LDA had decided to launch an intensive i n f o r m a t i o n campaign, which would include giving evidence t o Parliamentary c o m m i t t e e s b o t h in t he UK and t he EEC, meeting with gover nm ent ministers, MPs and civil servants, as well as major lead users. "We shall take every o p p o r t u n i t y to put forward t he positive case f o r lead," he said. " I n short we shall t ry to ensure t hat those who make
190
decisions concerning the future of the lead industry have the full facts at their disposal." For further information contact: Tony Wall, Lead Development Association, 34 Berkeley Square, London W l X 6AJ, Telephone: 01499 8422, Telex 261286; or Tony Richards, CBA Public Affairs Ltd., l l a West Halkin Street, London SWlX 8JL, Telephone: 01-235 7040, ext. 133.
NEW BOOKS
Environmental Protection: the International Dimension*, edited by D.A. Kay and H.K. Jacobson. Allanheld, Osmun & Co., Totowa, NJ, USA, 1983. 340 pp. Price: $39.50. The editors present this b o o k as the first evaluation of international activity undertaken within the c o n t e x t of the broad strategies adopted at the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, held in Stockholm in 1972. Eleven separate environmental problem areas are reviewed, i.e. toxic chemicals, fluorocarbons, carbon dioxide and climate, radioactive waste disposal, ocean dumping, pollution from ships, water supply and sanitation, schistosomiasis, soil degradation, conservation of living resources, and the Mediterranean Sea. Each area is the subject of a separate article written by an expert in the field, and the analysis is specifically from the point of view of the USA. Nevertheless, as a factual overview of the problems and international activity in these 11 areas, the volume is a generally useful and informative reference work. The publication is particularly strong in two respects. First, the editors provided the authors with a framework to enable them to maintain a c o m m o n format and criteria applicable to all topics, this framework being explained in the introductory chapter. Accordingly, each article d.escribes the scope of the problem and international activities involved and concludes with an analysis of the effectiveness of these activities. Secondly, the editors have done a commendable j o b in the concluding chapter, in which they discuss the limitations of the project, factors affecting the success or failure of international activities generally, and policy concerns as they emerge from the study as a whole. The insights provided are especially pertinent for planning future international activities and contribute substantially to the value of the book. A major goal of the book, as explained in the introductory chapter, is to
* Reviewed in World Health Forum, Vol. 5, 1984 by Barbara J. Lausche (Environmental lawyer, Washington, DC).
Guzman Gomez, N. Estudio m6dico--antropol6gico de la Amazonia Colombiana (Medico--anthropological study of Colombian Amazonia). Cali, Universiy of Valle, 1968. Community Participation Directorate. Summary and conclusions of second workshop on the provision of health services to indigenous communities. Ministry of Health, Valledupar, 1983. Ashburn, P.M. Las heustes de la muerte: una historia m6dica de la conquista de Am6rica (The armies of death: a medical history of the Spanish conquest of America). Mexican Social Security Institute, Mexico, 1981. National Indigenous Organization of Colombia. The Organization's standpoint on the official health programmes. Valledupar, 1983 (mimeographed document).
NEW CAMPAIGN H I G H L I G H T S B E N E F I T S OF LEAD L o n d o n , N o v e m b e r 23 -- The Lead d e v e l o p m e n t Association t o d a y launched a major campaign aimed at p r o m o t i n g the safe and positive uses of lead. It will highlight all aspects o f the safe use of lead in an e f f o r t to support the thousands o f people in t he c o u n t r y who work in or depend on what is th e fifth m os t i m p o r t a n t metal industry in the world. Announcing t he campaign, Dr Derek Temple, t he LDA's Director General, said it would n o t be a "rearguard a c t i o n " to c o u n t e r criticism o f lead in petrol and paint. Instead, it would have t w o major objectives: (1) to show t hat t he lead industry takes a responsible and concerned attitu d e towards public health, safety and the environment; and (2) to d e m o n s t r a t e t h a t lead is a versatile and, in m a n y cases, an indispensible metal which can, and should, be used safely. Dr Temple said: " T h e impetus for the campaign has stemmed from a pilot opinion survey carried o u t last D ecem ber on a cross section of MPs, civil servants, local a u t h o r i t y officials and councillors, and professional bodies, including trade unionists and journalists." This was supplemented by a larger s tu d y last m o n t h (October). " T h e results were similar in b o t h instances. With few exceptions, there is a low awareness o f the m o d e r n uses and benefits o f lead among decision makers and opinion leaders. The majority of people interviewed expressed little or no initial interest or concern and whilst m a n y responses linked lead with petrol or health hazards in general, the views on benefits versus drawbacks revealed no hard attitudes or d e p t h o f know l edge. " Th e survey had also revealed scant awareness o f t he safety and protective applications o f lead, for example against excessive x-ray exposure in hospitals or as a shield against radiation in t he nuclear industry. The massive c o n t r i b u t i o n m a de by t he lead industry t o waste removal and conservation -b y recycling 60% o f its ow n o u t p u t -- was similarly unappreciated. It was because o f all this, Dr Temple added, t h a t t he LDA had decided to launch an intensive i n f o r m a t i o n campaign, which would include giving evidence t o Parliamentary c o m m i t t e e s b o t h in t he UK and t he EEC, meeting with gover nm ent ministers, MPs and civil servants, as well as major lead users. "We shall take every o p p o r t u n i t y to put forward t he positive case f o r lead," he said. " I n short we shall t ry to ensure t hat those who make
190
decisions concerning the future of the lead industry have the full facts at their disposal." For further information contact: Tony Wall, Lead Development Association, 34 Berkeley Square, London W l X 6AJ, Telephone: 01499 8422, Telex 261286; or Tony Richards, CBA Public Affairs Ltd., l l a West Halkin Street, London SWlX 8JL, Telephone: 01-235 7040, ext. 133.
NEW BOOKS
Environmental Protection: the International Dimension*, edited by D.A. Kay and H.K. Jacobson. Allanheld, Osmun & Co., Totowa, NJ, USA, 1983. 340 pp. Price: $39.50. The editors present this b o o k as the first evaluation of international activity undertaken within the c o n t e x t of the broad strategies adopted at the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, held in Stockholm in 1972. Eleven separate environmental problem areas are reviewed, i.e. toxic chemicals, fluorocarbons, carbon dioxide and climate, radioactive waste disposal, ocean dumping, pollution from ships, water supply and sanitation, schistosomiasis, soil degradation, conservation of living resources, and the Mediterranean Sea. Each area is the subject of a separate article written by an expert in the field, and the analysis is specifically from the point of view of the USA. Nevertheless, as a factual overview of the problems and international activity in these 11 areas, the volume is a generally useful and informative reference work. The publication is particularly strong in two respects. First, the editors provided the authors with a framework to enable them to maintain a c o m m o n format and criteria applicable to all topics, this framework being explained in the introductory chapter. Accordingly, each article d.escribes the scope of the problem and international activities involved and concludes with an analysis of the effectiveness of these activities. Secondly, the editors have done a commendable j o b in the concluding chapter, in which they discuss the limitations of the project, factors affecting the success or failure of international activities generally, and policy concerns as they emerge from the study as a whole. The insights provided are especially pertinent for planning future international activities and contribute substantially to the value of the book. A major goal of the book, as explained in the introductory chapter, is to
* Reviewed in World Health Forum, Vol. 5, 1984 by Barbara J. Lausche (Environmental lawyer, Washington, DC).