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US RICE EXPORTS STALLED AT JAPANESE AND EUROPEAN BORDERS
US RICE EXPORTS STALLED AT JAPANESE AND EUROPEAN BORDERS Japan and the European Union imposed restrictions on long-grain rice imports from the United States after Washington announced on 18 August that its commercial rice supplies had been contaminated by trace amounts of a genetically-engineered (GE) variety of rice not approved for human consumption. Bayer…
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ABIDJAN TOXIC WASTE POISONING RAISES QUESTIONS OF RESPONSIBILITY
ABIDJAN TOXIC WASTE POISONING RAISES QUESTIONS OF RESPONSIBILITY At least three people have died and an estimated 3000 have been affected by dumped toxic waste in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, where the government has resigned over the incident. The dumping occurred during the night of 19 August, when more than 500 cubic metres of hazardous wastes from…
- In Brief
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Switzerland to Ban Hormone-Treated Beef, To Comply with EC Bilateral Agreement
Switzerland is planning to implement an import ban on hormone-treated beef similar to that already enforced by the EC, according to government veterinary officials. The measure, which is set to enter into force no later than spring 2007, harmonizes Swiss legislation with the EC’s sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) rules as per a bilateral agreement. Under current…
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Appellate Body Supports Canada in Lumber Dispute - 'Zeroing' Condemned Again
In a report issued on 15 August, the WTO Appellate Body supported Canada’s claim that the US has not implemented a 2004 ruling in the longstanding softwood lumber dispute. The original case pertains to Canadian softwood lumber exports to the US. Washington argues that the Canadian lumber is being ‘dumped’ on the US market — that…
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Bush to Sign Columbia FTA after Bogota Drops Ban on US Beef Imports
Days after Colombia agreed to drop all mad cow disease-related restrictions on US beef imports, US President George W. Bush notified Congress on 24 August that he would formally sign a free trade agreement (FTA) with the Andean country. The FTA negotiations were largely wrapped up earlier in the year, save for some sticking points…
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Ozone Layer Recovery Likely to be Delayed
A major new report predicts that recovery of the depleted atmospheric ozone layer will probably take longer than previously expected. The document, produced by a panel of 250 experts on ozone depletion, states that the ozone layer over Antarctica will not be fully restored until between 2060 and 2075 - as much as 10 to 25…
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World Water Management - Coming Up Short
One-third of the world population is already living with a water shortage, a level of scarcity previously predicted to occur two decades from now, according to a report released at the World Water Week on 20-26 August in Stockholm. Unlike previous research based on country-by-country analysis, the report analyses individual river basins and argues that…
- Events
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Events
For a more comprehensive list of events in trade and sustainable development, please refer to ICTSD’s web calendar. Please bear in mind that dates and times of WTO meetings are often changed, and that the WTO does not always announce the important informal meetings of the different bodies. Coming Up 10-13 September, Cambridge, United Kingdom: CONFERENCE OF…
- Resources
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Resources
If you have a relevant resource (books, papers, bulletins, etc.) you would like to see announced in this section, please forward a copy or review by the BRIDGES staff to gvea@ictsd.ch. Resources POVERTY, HEALTH, AND ECOSYSTEMS: EXPERIENCE FROM ASIA. Edited by Paul Steele, Gonzalo Oviedo, and David McCauley. (IUCN and the Asian Development Bank, 2006). This book…