Entry into force of the UN Watercourses Convention: why should it matter?

The United Nations Watercourses Convention entered into force on 17 August 2014, following a long and complex journey that dates back to 1970 when the UN referred the matter to its legal arm, the International Law Commission. This article follows the Convention through that long and turbulent road, examines its main provisions and analyses the reasons for the delay of its entry into force. It concludes by answering the question of why entry into force of the Convention should indeed matter.     

International legislation on trace elements as contaminants in food: a review

Environmental contaminants such as trace elements may be present in all foods. Foods, raw materials and ingredients for food production are to an increasing extent traded across borders. Hence, there is a need for international legislation on trace elements as contaminants in food. In 1961, the FAO and WHO established the Codex Alimentarius to elaborate international food legislation. Contaminants in food are handled by the Codex Committee for Food Additives and Contaminants (CCFAC). The Codex Alimentarius system for developing legislation concerning trace elements as contaminants in food is based upon the Codex General Standard for Contaminants and Toxins in Food (GSCTF). By October 2001, the principles for setting maximum limits (MLs) for contaminants in food are agreed, and work is in progress on MLs for trace elements such as lead and cadmium in the various food categories. The status for the proposals is presented and discussed. The EU Regulation 466/2001 of 8 March 2001 sets MLs for lead and cadmium in various foods. This regulation will apply from 5 April 2002. The EU regulation is more detailed but similar to the Codex draft standards for lead and cadmium in food. In future, legislators and administrators in the Codex and EU and analytical chemists will discuss how to use more and better analytical data as risk-management tools to protect public health. Trace elements' speciation is an important aspect of this discussion.     

Conifers and commemoration — the politics and protocol of planting

This study examines the symbolic role of trees, shrubs and flowers on 20th century battle grounds and military cemeteries. By focusing on the imagery of commemoration and on the power of horticultural symbols the paper explores the emergence of an iconography during wartime and its perpetuation in ritualized peacetime landscapes. The paper makes specific reference to the Western Front in France and Belgium, and to the consecrated ground of the Dardanelles peninsula — a commemorative terrain that is being altered by Turkish planting and memorial schemes that are bringing into sharp focus the problems of maintaining Christian burial grounds in perpetuity across the globe. The paper concludes by asking whether tree planting may have replaced memorial building in the rhetoric and culture of commemoration.     

Advancements in the design and validation of an air pollution integrated assessment model for Spain

This paper describes the design and application of the Atmospheric Evaluation and Research Integrated model for Spain (AERIS). Currently, AERIS can provide concentration profiles of NO₂, O₃, SO₂, NH₃, PM, as a response to emission variations of relevant sectors in Spain. Results are calculated using transfer matrices based on an air quality modelling system (AQMS) composed by the WRF (meteorology), SMOKE (emissions) and CMAQ (atmospheric-chemical processes) models. The AERIS outputs were statistically tested against the conventional AQMS and observations, revealing a good agreement in both cases. At the moment, integrated assessment in AERIS focuses only on the link between emissions and concentrations. The quantification of deposition, impacts (health, ecosystems) and costs will be introduced in the future. In conclusion, the main asset of AERIS is its accuracy in predicting air quality outcomes for different scenarios through a simple yet robust modelling framework, avoiding complex programming and long computing times.     

An economic–ecological model to evaluate impacts of nutrient abatement in the Baltic Sea

This paper presents a coupled economic–ecological model that integrates a catchment model with a marine model and incorporates economic data to analyse the long-term economic and ecological consequences of nutrient abatement in the Baltic Sea. The spatially explicit model describes dynamics of soil phosphorus in arable land, developments of nutrient concentrations and phytoplankton biomass in the sea basins, and inter-annual variation in nutrient loads and biophysical processes. The performance of the model is demonstrated by computing the least-cost solution to reach the good environmental state of the sea – as implied by the Baltic Sea Action Plan – within a time span of 40 years. The total cost of achieving this target is 1487 M€ annually. Spatially optimal allocation of load reductions differs from the load reduction targets of the Baltic Sea Action Plan, and focuses more on the control of phosphorus loads.     

The Great Lakes Region and Bulk Water Exports

Abstract

The article provides an overview of the latest developments in the debate concerning the bulk water export of Great Lakes water. It examines the policy and legal dimensions of this new debate. The policy dimension focuses on the public attention and concern, in Canada, regarding bulk water removals from the Great Lakes basin. This concern has triggered the new Canadian federal legislation banning water exports from the region (Bill C-15). Is this a sign that the Canadian government now embraces a water conservation ethic? Is its position in line with the recent recommendations on the issue of the International Joint Commission (IJC), the joint body created by the United States and Canada to manage its shared waters? The attempt by investors to export water from the Great Lakes basin raises issues regarding Canada's obligations under international and regional trade agreements, most notably the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The article examines the provisions of those two trade agreements in the context of the water export debate in Canada and concludes that increased clarity on Canada/US transboundary water issues is required.     

关于加强企业经济活动监督工作的思考

企业经济活动监督工作往往存在着领导重视不够,不能全面参与;监察人员不够,不能全程参与;部门沟通不够,不能及时参与等不足。加强企业经济活动监督工作,要从组织上保证,加强纪委在经济活动中的监督地位;从制度上保证,加强纪律检查与管理工作有机融合;从机制上保证,加强纪委与业务部门联动联管合力。在开展经济活动监督工作时,要严格项目立项,实行项目管理集体决策;严格项目评审,规范业务管理操作程序;严格价格结算,及时审减项目开支费用;严格廉洁承诺,预防违纪违规问题发生。     

Environmental integration in European Commission development co-operation programming: experiences in the use of country environmental profiles

Efforts have been made to mainstream the environment in European Commission (EC) development co-operation. In programming, the main tool is the Country Environmental Profile (CEP) which informs, from an environmental point of view, the preparation of Country Strategy Papers (CSPs). Recently CEPs have improved significantly; they have different entry points in CSPs and the results of environmental integration can be found in a series of ‘environmental integration outputs’. This paper describes the structure of CEPs, their place in the EC cycle of operations and how they can influence CSPs. It shows, through case studies, the impact CEPs are having on CSPs, resulting in CSPs that prepare the ground for more effective environmental integration throughout the cycle of operations.     

Development and validation of an analytical method for the determination of arsenic,cadmium and lead content in powdered infant formula by means of quadrupole Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

Cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and arsenic (As) can enter the food chain through the environment and/or as a consequence of the manufacturing process making foodstuffs the main human exposure route to these chemical elements. The risk associated with this exposure is of such a big concern for human health that the European Food Safety Agency recommends to reduce the exposure to Cd and Pb so as to protect especially vulnerable subgroups of population (e.g., infants). Therefore, the setting of new maximum levels (MLs) for chemical elements in infant formulae (e.g., for Cd) or the reconsideration of the existing ML for Pb is under discussion. On this basis, the availability of analytical methods, precise, accurate and sensitive enough to quantify low concentration values, is a key point especially for official control laboratories that have to state the sample compliance using a fully validated method with an associated uncertainty compliant with the requirements specified in the pertinent regulations. This work describes the development and validation of an analytical method to quantify As, Cd and Pb in powdered infant formulae based on animal protein at values of concentration close to the MLs that are likely to be set. The results obtained make the method suitable for a precise and accurate determination of these chemical elements at these low concentration values. In particular, the results for limit of quantification (LoQ) were respectively (μg kg⁻¹): As 6.2, Cd 1.2 and Pb 4.5. While for the recovery rates the following percentages were obtained: As 105%, Cd 98% and Pb 108%. The expanded uncertainties were found extremely satisfactory (Cd 13% and Pb 19%). The LoQ and the uncertainty for Pb meet the requirements set in Commission Regulation (EC) No. 333/2007 and following amendments being lower than the maximum values allowed. Even for Cd the expanded uncertainty resulted adequate in relation with the low concentration considered.