NEWS BRIEFS Older grandfathered power plants emit 4 to 10 times more pollution than modern plants that comply with Clean Air Act regulations according to a new report by the US Public Interest Research Group Education Fund an environmental group Requirshying the 559 dirtiest plants to meet current new source emissions standards would eliminate 69 of the NOx and 77 of the S0 2 reshyleased into the air each year by electric utilities The report also notes that the industry is responshysible for one-third of all US emissions of mercury and carfjon dioxide For a cODV of Lethal Loophole call (202) 546-9707

Total volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions during vehicle refueling may be significantly higher than current methods sugshygest report scientists from the University of Texas-Austin Quig-ley et al measured total and spe-ciated VOC emissions over a one-year period with a special emphasis on the summer ozone season They then compared these results with those predicted using two common emissions algorithms AP-42 and On-board Refueling Vapor Recovery The researchers found that the algoshyrithms underestimated VOC emisshysions by 20-25 overall and by 30-42 during the summer For a CODV of the paper VOC Emissions During Gasoline Refueling Meashysured Versus Predicted Results contact Air ampWaste Management Association at (800) 275-5851

By 2005 the phytoremediation market will swell to between $214 and $370 million predicts David Glass Associates a consultshying firm in its third report on phytoremediation The 1998 US Market for Phytoremediation estishymates that it will generate beshytween $165-$295 million in US revenues in 1998 The use of plants to treat organic contamishynants in groundwater soil wasteshywater and leachate should see strong steady growth in coming years according to the report

which predicts that phytoremedishyation techniques for removing metals and radionuclides are cashypable of dramatic growth Call (617) 726-5474 or e-mail DGlassAsscaolcom for more information

Canal estates and marinas should be designed to maximize wetland flushing reports the World Conservation Union (IUCN) an international consershyvation organization According to IUCN poorly engineered watershyfront developments in or near low-relief areas can result in nushytrient loading loss of habitat lower biological diversity deshycreased water quality sedimentashytion and erosion The report sugshygests mitigation techniques to minimize adverse environmental impacts and includes a bibliograshyphy of papers on the subject A copy of Report on Canal Estates is available on the Web at http wwwiucn orethemesramsar wurc_topic_l_reporthtm

200 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and 13 million metric tons of methane emisshysions could be eliminated over the next 60 years as the result of 32 US companies investments in international efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions acshycording to the businesses particishypating in a pilot program Its purpose is to evaluate joint imshyplementation projects in which US companies invest in endeavshyors to decrease greenhouse gas emissions outside the U S The pilot programs projects include efforts to capture greenhouse gases through forest management schemes A GAO report on the oroeram Climate Change Inforshymation on the US Initiative on

Joint Implementation (RCED-98-154) is on the Web at httpwww gaogovnewitemsrc98154pdf

Sustainable development could benefit their businesses say more than 80 of companies surshyveyed in North America and Eushyrope by the consulting firm Arthur D Little Only 4 of the 450 respondents said that susshytainable development would be too difficult to implement But most companies are still focused on short-term environmental inishytiatives and little progress is beshying made in implementing adshyvanced sustainability concepts such as full-cost accounting environmental performance mea~ surement closed-loop manufacshyturing and design-for-the-environment The survey nonetheless predicts that sustainshyability will become a higher priorshyity for companies For a copy of Arthur D Littles 1998 Survey on Sustainable Development and Business call 617-498-5777

All production and use of DDT should be banned worldwide by 2007 according to a new report by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) a wildlife conservation group The report stresses that there are safer and equally effecshytive alternatives to DDT in disshyease-vector control DDTs only remaining official use throughout the world Alternatives for malaria control are emphasized in the report which examines a range of insect-borne disease control proshygrams in West Africa Tanzania India the Philippines South America and Mexico Resolving the DDT Dilemma Protecting Biodiversity and Human Health is online at httrWwwwwwf org newnewsprl51htm

People in the news In August the American Chemical Societys Environmental Chemistry divishysion presented research paper awards to five graduate students Barbara Bergen University of Rhode Island John Lendvay Unishyversity of Michigan Huizhong Ma University of Delaware Ma-halingam Ravichandran Univershysity of Colorado and Lisa Totten Johns Hopkins University

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