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 […]
Uruguay Closer to Plastic Bag Law
Saturday, September 19th, 2009This week Uruguay came one step closer to restricting the use of plastic carry bags in the nation’s retail establishments. On the 17th the Chamber of Deputies approved a law that would require all supermarkets, hypermarkets, shopping centers, markets and stores in general to only use carry bags for their merchandise that is either degradable, […]
Ceará Limits Public Smoking
Tuesday, August 25th, 2009Today Ceará (CE) became the latest Brazilian state (after São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro) to severely restrict smoking in public areas. The governor signed a law that prohibits smoking any product, whether derived from tobacco or not, in “collective enclosures” except in segregated areas that have a physical barrier separating them from nonsmokers with […]
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 […]
Trash Photos XVIII: Fluorescent Lamp Collection in Brasilia
Thursday, June 18th, 2009I’m in Brasilia now, and had some time between meetings, so I wandered through Patio Brasil, one of the shopping centers here. If times allows, I like to wander through shopping centers in the cities that I visit. I do it not so much for actual shopping or even window-shopping in the usual sense, but […]
Oaxaca Gets a Comprehensive Waste Law
Friday, June 5th, 2009The legislature of the Mexican state of Oaxaca (OX) just sent the governor a gift for World Environment Day: a comprehensive state solid waste law. Since Mexico adopted its federal General Law for the Prevention and Integrated Management of Wastes in 2003, the Federal District (DF) and many states have adopted their own general waste […]
SP Governor Proposes Very Tough Smoking Ban
Thursday, September 4th, 2008On August 28 — Brazil’s National Day to Combat Tobacco — José Serra, the Governor of the state with the biggest market in the nation, São Paulo, sent to the state legislature a bill would ban smoking in areas of collective use, whether public or private. The bill looks to be one of the toughest […]
Getting Tough About Lamp Take-Back
Saturday, August 9th, 2008Brazil [as have several other Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) nations] has been wrestling with the issue of proper disposal of fluorescent lamps for some time now. This becomes quite apparent just by browsing the Temas download list of laws and regulations regarding batteries and lamps — there are numerous lamp entries for Brazil, and […]
Morelos Gets a Comprehensive Waste Law
Wednesday, October 10th, 2007The central Mexican state of Morelos (home of Revolutionary leader Emiliano Zapata) just adopted its own comprehensive state solid waste law. Since Mexico adopted its federal General Law for the Prevention and Integrated Management of Wastes in 2003, the Federal District (DF) and many states have adopted their own general waste laws, or else amended […]
Jalisco Gets a Waste Law
Monday, February 26th, 2007The Mexican state of Jalisco (JL) just published in its official gazette the text of its recently passed Law on the Integrated Management of Wastes. Jalisco joins the Federal District (DF) and the states of Colima, Guanajuato, Querétaro and Veracruz in adopting its own waste law to supplement the federal Law for the Prevention and […]