Philippines: Proper Waste Management for Safer Water
Just in time with the World Water Day celebration, Health Care Without Harm-Southeast Asia (HCWH-SEA) warns that water is the biggest victim of all improper waste management practices in the health care setting. Health Care Without Harm

US: Maryland Hospitals Reduce Carbon Footprint
Hospitals are reducing their meat purchases to reduce their carbon footprint—the amount of carbon dioxide or green house gas equivalents emitted—by serving healthier meals and taking the Balanced Menus Challenge, launched by Healthcare Without Harm in September 2009. Health Care Without Harm

Philippines: Doctors Push for Mercury Ban in Health Care
A group of medical doctors and envi-health group Health Care Without Harm-Southeast Asia today push for the banning of mercury in health care and promise a vote for the presidentiable who can make this happen. Health Care Without Harm

India: Hospicio Begins Scientific Biomedical Waste Disposal
Acting upon directives of the high court and the Goa State Pollution Control Board on biomedical waste, authorities of Margao's Hospicio announced that a deep pit has been constructed for the purpose of scientific disposal of human anatomical waste. Times of India

Pakistan: 22 Hospitals Fined for Poor Waste Handling
The Punjab Environmental Protection Department (EPD) has fined 22 public and private hospitals across the province for not obeying the hospital waste management rules, 2005, during year 2009. Officials said the department had sent the cases of hospitals to an environmental tribunal for non-implementation of the rules during year 2009. The International News

Denmark: Ban on Bisphenol A in Food for Young Children
The Danish government has, together with the Danish People's Party, decided to invoke the principle of precaution and introduce a temporary national ban on bisphenol A in materials in contact with food for children aged 0 – 3 years (infant feeding bottles, feeding cups and packaging for baby food). Business News for Food Industry

Japan Pays Victims of Minamata Mercury Poisoning
Japan on Monday settled a suit by more than 2,000 victims of mercury poisoning, half a century after the country's worst industrial pollution disaster hit the fishing town of Minamata. Inquirerer.net

Zambia: Government Should Ban Skin-Bleaching Creams
The Public Health Partnership Forum (PHPF) has called on Government to ban the sale of skin-bleaching creams in the country, arguing that indiscriminate use is harmful to the body. According to the PHPF publicity secretary Enock Kaputula “The number of women in Zambia using skin dermatological creams containing high-dose steroids, hydroquinone and mercury to bleach their skins has reached alarming levels”. UKZambians

WHO Alerts on Health Hazards of Climate Change
The WHO said in an article published yesterday in its Bulletin that overwhelming evidence shows that human activities are affecting the global climate, with serious implications for public health. The Guardian News

Climate Change and Poisonous Chemicals Focus of New UN Study
A major new United Nations study will examine the influence of climate change and some of the world’s most hazardous chemicals on human health and the environment. The study will provide the scientific community and policymakers with a better understanding of the effects of climate change on emissions, environmental distribution, toxicity and exposure to what is known as persistent organic pollutants (POPs). UN.org

Tonga: E-Waste, a Fast Growing Problem
Tonga and other Pacific Island nations face the issue of dealing with mountains of hazardous e-waste with serious consequences for the environment and public health. These are cause for grave concern for Tonga where agriculture plays an important role in the economy and in supporting the livelihood of the people. Montangi Online

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