The ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems standard has been adopted by more than 250,000 organizations globally since it was originally issued in 1996 and then revised in 2004. General perception amongst adopters has been that it is a well written standard with enough flexibility to apply to any organization. In fact, ISO reviewed the
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This article summarizes 9 new environmental laws issued by Saudi Arabia in 2012 and provides links to the legislation in English. Background Saudi Arabia has acted with urgency to develop a comprehensive framework for measuring and monitoring activities that cause environmental degradation. Its actions include measures to ensure efficient use of natural resources, prevention
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In response to a court order, the U.S. EPA finalized on December 14, 2012 an update to its national air quality standards for harmful fine particle pollution (PM2.5), setting the annual health standard at 12 micrograms per cubic meter. This announcement has no effect on the existing daily standard for fine particles or the existing daily standard for coarse particles (PM10)…
Environmental risks pose a multi-dimensional threat to business that if ignored could consume an enterprise. The reputational risk alone of that “one-in-a-million chance” or “enterprise ending event” can no longer be ignored—ask BP. But beyond the negative ramifications of environmental risks is the often overlooked opportunity for business success that can result from sustainable business
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ExxonMobil’s view of the world’s energy future through the year 2040 was recently published in The Outlook for Energy. According to The Outlook for Energy, the future of energy use and development will vary by region, reflecting diverse economic and demographic trends as well as the evolution of technology and government policies. ExxonMobil predicts that
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My cell phone is 5 years old. It has a tiny screen, an awkward keyboard, and no applications at all, but I stubbornly refuse to trade it in for a new one. It still functions, and for the work I do, it’s really all I need. Also, I know that if I exchange it, my
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On March 26, 2012 the United States Federal Register published the final rule on the Hazard Communication Standard/Globally Harmonized System. This final rule will become effective 60 days after the date of publication. The changes will bring the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Hazard Communication Standard, which was first adopted in 1983,
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In its efforts to tackle the problem of climate change, the Australian government will introduce a carbon tax starting July 1, 2012. Australia’s goal is to reduce the country’s total emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) to 5 percent below 1990 levels by 2020; to achieve this goal, the country is starting with a carbon tax,
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On November 1, 2011, the amended China Provisional Regulation of Resources Tax (资源税暂行条例)[1] came into force. The amended regulation imposes a five to ten percent tax rate on the sale of crude oil and natural gas. The tax rate for rare earth ores and coking coal also increased, while the tax rate for regular coal,
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Canadian law firm Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP has issued a summary of environmental law that applies to projects in the Alberta, Canada oil sands in western Canada. Oil sands are composed primarily of sand, bitumen, mineral-rich clays and water. Bitumen, in its raw state, is a heavy, viscous, crude oil. According to the Alberta government, Alberta’s oil sands have 170.4 billion barrels of proven reversible reserves. These reserves are the second-highest source of proven crude oil reserves in the world, second only to Saudi Arabia , , ,
