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Reports Reducing Mercury Emissions from Coal Combustion in the Energy Sector in Vietnam United Nations Environment Programme
Emissions of mercury (Hg) from thermal power stations are a subject of increasing concern because of their toxicity, volatility, persistence, and longrange transport in the atmosphere. Hg has the tendency for bioaccumulation as methyl Hg and thus enters the food chain. Once released into the environment, Hg contaminates soil, air, surface and ground water. Hg is a neurotoxin and causes adverse health effects. Hg is a global pollutant that is emitted, deposited, and reemitted on both a local and global scale in both terrestrial and marine environments. Toxic Hg emitted from coal-fired power plants originates from the Hg present in coal. Burning of large quantity of coal for power generation makes it the second largest anthropogenic source of Hg emissions at a global level. The Pollution Control Department (PCD) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) have entered into a Small-Scale Funding Agreement to undertake a project titled “Reducing Mercury Emissions from Coal Combustion in the Energy Sector in Vietnam”. In accordance with UN Environment Governing Council priorities, identified in Decisions 24/3 and 25/5, and with the goal of reducing Hg emissions from the coal partnership area under the UN Environment Global Mercury Partnership, the project aims to present national information on: coal types and coal usage; characterize coal-fired power sector in Vietnam; develop an emission inventory for the coal fired energy sector; and present other relevant information to improve accuracy of future emission inventories for the sector.
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2017 |
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Chapters and Articles Nanomaterials: Applying the Precautionary Principle - Frontiers 2017: Emerging Issues of Environmental Concern McGlade, Jacqueline
The recent advances in nanotechnology and nanoscience have introduced nanoscale materials with emergent physical and chemical properties to transform the world.
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2017 |
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Reports and Books Towards a Pollution-Free Planet: Background Report United Nations Environment Programme
Pollution today is pervasive and persistent. While the world has achieved significant economic growth over the past few decades, it has been accompanied by large amounts of pollution, with significant impacts on human health and ecosystems and the ways in which some of the major Earth system processes, such as the climate, are functioning. This report describes the pollution challenge, explores what is already being done to address pollution, and proposes 50 focused and actionable interventions to address pollution in all its forms. The report is a call to act towards a pollution-free planet.
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2017 |
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Chapters and Articles Antimicrobial Resistance: Investigating the Environmental Dimension - Frontiers 2017: Emerging Issues of Environmental Concern Gaze, William, Depledge, Michael
Antibiotic pharmaceuticals are used around the world to treat and prevent bacterial infections in humans, animals and even plants. They have also been used widely as growth promoters to increase meat production, although this practice was banned in the European Union in 2006. While the misuse of antibiotics in medical and agricultural practices has been linked to increasing resistance, the role of the natural environment in the emergence and spread of resistance has received relatively little attention.
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2017 |
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Reports and Books Lead in Enamel Decorative Paints: National Paint Testing Results - A Nine Country Study United Nations Environment Programme
A total of 234 cans of enamel decorative paints were purchased in retail establishments in the following nine countries: Argentina, Azerbaijan, Chile, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kyrgyzstan, Tunisia, and Uruguay. An additional 10 cans of anti-corrosive enamel paints were purchased in Côte d'Ivoire. All the paints – the 234 samples of decorative paints and the 10 samples of anti-corrosive paints – were tested for their total lead content, and dry weight.
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2013 |
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Other Lead in Enamel Decorative Paints: National Paint Testing Results Annex 1: Country by Country Results United Nations Environment Programme Download: English
2013 |
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Other Lead in Enamel Decorative Paints: National Paint Testing Results Annex 2: Materials and Methods, including Analytical Laboratory Results and Quality Control Procedures United Nations Environment Programme Download: English
2013 |
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Book/Report UNEP Emerging Issues: Environmental Consequences of Ocean Acidification: A Threat to Food Security United Nations Environment Programme
Carbon dioxide is altering the chemistry of the surface oceans and causing them to become more acidic. From scientists and marine resource managers, to policy and decision-makers, there is growing concern that the process called ocean acidification could have significant consequences on marine organisms which may alter species composition, disrupt marine food webs and ecosystems and potentially damage fishing, tourism and other human activities connected to the seas.
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2010 |
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Policy and Strategy Documents Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead Paint: Action Plan for 2015-2016 United Nations Environment Programme, World Health Organization Download: English
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Reports and Books Air and Water Pollution: Sources of Information and Bibliography United Nations Environment Programme
This bibliography covers the preliminary aspects of information gathering, the policy and legal aspects of decision-making, and the technical choices regarding treatment and disposal. Within each topic a selection of references has been given to orient the reader, and to provide factual information. A number of handbooks and manuals are among the references, thus allowing further research into topics that could not be covered in the limited space here.
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