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More Brazilian States Opt for Smoke-Free Environments
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009The push for smoke-free environments continues to march across Brazilian states — how long before federal legislators decide to extend such protections nationwide?
Today the governors of the southern state of Paraná (PR) and the western state of Amazonas (AM) signed new tobacco control laws, joining Ceará (CE), Rio de Janeiro (RJ) and São Paulo (SP) [...]
A WEEE Bill for Amazonas
Saturday, September 26th, 2009This week Amazonas (AM) became the latest state in which a bill on “technological trash” (lixo tecnologico or e-lixo) – the Brazilians nickname for what is known elsewhere as WEEE or e-waste — has been introduced. Unlike bills recently introduced in the northeastern states of Bahia and Pernambuco, which are based primarily on a Law on [...]
São Paulo to Ban 14 Pesticides?
Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009I’ve mentioned in the past that Brazilian states sometimes get impatient waiting for the federal government to act on environmental issues and elect to take their own action, which eventually prods the feds into action (sometimes because industry complains about conflicting state rules on the same subject). It looks that may be about to [...]
Brazil Launches Unparalled Study of Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes
Saturday, August 22nd, 2009Diseases of the circulatory system are the leading cause of death in Brazil. According to the Health Ministry (MS) there are 300,000 deaths and over one million hospitalizations per year, and hypertension and diabetes mellitus are major risk factors. Hypertension affects approximately 35% of the Brazilian population over the age of 40 years and of [...]
Sam’s Club to Sell Fair Trade Certified Coffee from Brazil
Wednesday, August 19th, 2009From Walmart:
Sam’s Club Introduces New Fair Trade Certified Coffee from Brazil
Brazilian coffee farmers link with mass market coffee consumers
Today, Walmart, TransFair USA, SEBRAE-Minas Gerais and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) announced that a new Fair Trade Certified coffee from Brazil will be sold to Sam’s Club members across the country. The two new [...]
Directional Signals in Brazilian Federal Waste Policy
Monday, August 17th, 2009A body most people have never heard of, part of a larger organization many people do not know or understand, met today and took a series of decisions that will help shape new directions in waste policy in Brazil.
The larger organization many do not know and a good many do not understand is Brazil’s National [...]
A Smokeless Rio?
Monday, August 17th, 2009If you’ve ever been to Rio de Janeiro (RJ), you know that it’s not exactly a nonsmoker’s paradise. Despite all the health warnings and studies issued over the years, quite a bit of smoking still occurs in public places within the state.
Not for much longer.
Or at least that’s the stated legislative intent of the measure [...]
Toward Brazilian Environmental Norms for Electro-Electronics
Saturday, August 15th, 2009Several jurisdictions in Brazil — most notably the States of São Paulo (SP) and Mato Grosso (MT), and the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro (MRJ) — have recently adopted e-waste laws, and several states look interested in following suit (here, here and here). There’s rumors that the National Environment Council (CONAMA) will soon decide [...]
Toward an ISO Energy Management Standard
Wednesday, August 12th, 2009Last week in Rio de Janeiro and yesterday in São Paulo, Eletrobrás and the Brazilian Association of Technical Standards (ABNT) co-hosted workshops to try to get Brazilian business more actively involved in the process now underway in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to develop an international standard for energy management, ISO 50001. One of [...]
Another Momentum Indicator on Used Motor Oil Packaging in Brazil?
Friday, July 24th, 2009A couple of months ago I wondered aloud if maybe a bill introduced in São Paulo’s (SP) state assembly was an early indicator of a momentum shift in the hitherto slow-building movement in Brazil to promote the collection and recycling of the packaging that the new motor oil comes in.
Now comes another curious indicator. A [...]