NUCLEAR ROUNDUP

SCHUESSEL PLAYS DOWN AUSTRIAN PETITION ON CLOSING TEMELIN 
Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel, tried to play down the significance of a petition signed by 915,220 people -- nearly a sixth of Austrian voters -- that demands a veto of Czech membership in the European Union if Czechs do not close the Temelin nuclear power plant, according to reports. Schuessel said that, despite the petition, an overwhelming majority of Austrians are happy with the current situation, in which the Czechs agreed to spend an estimated USD 27 million on upgrading the plant, according to a Jan. 22 report from BBC Online. Schuessel and Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman worked out that agreement in an attempt to quell widespread Austrian concerns about the newly opened Soviet-designed plant, which is 60 kilometres from the Austrian border. But Austria's far-right Freedom party, which is a partner in the government coalition, has opposed the Schuessel-Zeman agreement and called for the anti-Temelin petition. The petition is not legally binding, and only forces the Austrian parliament to vote on the issue -- a vote that Schuessel is confident will go his way, according to the BBC report. Nonetheless, it appears that Schuessel faces conflict within his ruling coaliation. Many opponents in Austria, where anti-nuclear sentiment is strong, fought to prevent the construction of the plant, which was begun several years ago and then delayed. The Czech government has said that, with upgrades, the Temelin plant is safe, and argued that their country needs the energy source. Contact: Upper Austrian Parliament Chairman Josef Puehringer, e-mail: <LH.Puehringer@ooe.gv.at>; or Karel Bohm, chairman, Czech State Office for Nuclear Safety, tel: (420-2) 2422-3139; fax: (420-2) 2162-704; e-mail: <karel.bohm@sujb.cz>; or Czech Environment Minister Milos Kuzvart, tel: (420-2) 6712-2719 or (420-2) 6712-1111; or Greenpeace Austria, tel: (43-1) 545-4580.

RUSSIA BALKS AT KOZLODUY NUCLEAR WASTE, THEN ACCEPTS IT
Russia has backed down on its threat to return spent nuclear fuel to the Kozloduy plant in Bulgaria, but Russian authorities warned that they will not accept further shipments tainted with non- radioactive absorbent elements, according to a Jan. 22 report from BTA, the Bulgarian News Agency. Kozloduy has no long-term storage facilities for its spent nuclear fuel, and, under an agreement with Russia, it ships its fuel there for long-term storage. The arrangement has raised protests from environmentalists in both countries, but Bulgarian energy officials claim that they must keep the plant operating and have no other options. To satisfy Russian authorities, Kozloduy introduced new technology to make the spent fuel eligible for processing in Russia, according to the BTA report. But Russian authorities recently complained that the non-radioactive absorbent elements make the waste dangerous to process, and, on Jan. 19, they threatened to return the spent fuel shipped in November and December, the report said. Instead, Russian authorities said they would process the waste they have received, but they warned that they would not accept further shipments unless they were in better condition, the report said. Contact: Bulgarian Atomic Energy Committee, tel: (359-2) 720-217; or Bulgarian Environment Minister Dr. Evdokia Maneva, tel: (359-2) 882-577; web: <http://www.moew.government.bg>.

EU ENLARGEMENT

REPORT OUTLINES TRANSITION PERIODS FOR EU ACCESSION COUNTRIES
Most of the European Union accession countries have completed negotiating the environment "chapter" of their accession negotiations, except for Bulgaria and Malta, which were still in negotiation as of mid-January, and Romania, which had not yet begun environmental negotiations, according to the Jan. 15 edition of European Report Daily. In closing these chapters, many of these countries have been granted "transition periods," during which they are allowed to phase in their compliance with the EU's environmental regulations. According to the European Report Daily, the following transition periods have been granted: CZECH REPUBLIC: recovery and recycling of packaging waste until 2005; and treatment of urban waste-water until 2010. 
ESTONIA: emissions of volatile organic compounds from storage of petrol until 2006; landfill of oil shale until 2009; treatment of urban waste-water until 2010; and quality of drinking water until 2013. 
HUNGARY: recycling of packaging waste until 2005; treatment of urban waste-water until 2015; air pollution from large combustion plants until 2005; and incineration of hazardous waste until 2005.
LATVIA: emissions of volatile organic compounds from storage of petrol; recovery and recycling of packaging waste; landfill of waste; treatment of urban waste-water; quality of drinking water; integrated pollution and prevention control; storage of asbestos waste; and health protection of individuals against ionising radiation in relation to medical exposure (all long-term).
LITHUANIA: emissions of volatile organic compounds from the storage of petrol until 2007; recovery and recycling of packaging waste until 2006; and treatment of urban waste-water until 2009. 
SLOVAKIA: emissions of volatile organic compounds from the storage of petrol; treatment of urban waste-water; discharges of dangerous substances into surface water; integrated pollution prevention and control; air pollution from large combustion plants; incineration of hazardous waste; and emissions of volatile organic compounds due to use of organic solvents (all long-term).
SLOVENIA: recovery and recycling of packaging waste until 2007; treatment of urban waste-water until 2015; and integrated pollution prevention and control until 2010. 
POLAND: sulphur content of liquid fuels until 2006; emissions of volatile organic compounds from storage of petrol until 2005; recovery and recycling of packaging waste until 2007; waste landfill until 2012; shipment of waste until 2007; treatment of urban waste-water until 2015; discharge of dangerous substances into surface water until 2007; integrated pollution prevention and control until 2010; and health protection of individuals against ionising radiation in relation to medical exposure until 2006. The report noted that Bulgaria has requested transition periods on reduction of sulphur content liquid fuels; emissions of volatile organic compounds from storage of petrol; recovery and recycling of packaging waste; landfill of waste; the treatment of urban waste- water; discharges of dangerous substances into surface water; integrated pollution prevention and control; and emissions of volatile organic compounds in certain activities and installations. Bulgaria must also negotiate a schedule for the eventual phase-out of its nuclear power plant at Kozloduy. Contact: European Commission Enlargement Directorate, web: <http://europa.eu.int/pol/enlarg/index_en.htm>.

ELSEWHERE AROUND THE CEE REGION

CEE MARKET FOR WATER METERS EXPECTED TO GROW USD 17M
The desire to preserve the environment, and money, has created a growing demand for water meters in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), according to a report by Frost & Sullivan, private market researchers. The report said that the estimated value of the CEE market for residential water meters was at USD 66.1 million for2001 and should grow to USD 83.4 million by 2008, based on an estimated increase in water meter purchases from 4.1 million in 2001 to 6.5 million in 2008. The report postulated that the increased demand would come from private individuals, who want to save money by regulating water use, and also from infrastructure demand due to European Union accession. EU accession countries, seeking to comply with EU environmental regulations, can be expected to spend large amounts on improvements in their water systems in ever stage of water supply. Contact Frost & Sullivan, web: <http://www.frost.com>.

EIB PLEDGES EUR 43M FOR HUNGARIAN ENVIRONMENT PROJECTS
The European Investment Bank has announced that it will lend Hungary EUR 43 million to finance six environmental projects around the country, according to a report in the Jan. 10 edition of EU Enlargement Weekly. The funds will be used to modernise and upgrade two wastewater plants at Gyor and Szeged and four solid waste management projects in Debrecen, Miskolc, Szeged and Szolnok, the report said. The article also said that the additional financing for these projects will come from the European Commission's ISPA pre-accession programme, which helps fund environmental and transport projects in European Union Accession countries. Contact: Barbara Simonelli, European Investment Bank, tel: (352-4) 379-3122; e-mail: <info@eib.org>; web:<http://www.eib.org>.

NEWS FOR JOURNALISTS

ARTICLES SOUGHT ON CORPORATE RESPONSES TO CLIMATE CHANGE
Greenleaf Publishing has sent out an e-mail announcing that it is seeking contributions for a special issue of "Greener Management International," and a subsequent book, on the topic of "Corporate Responses to Climate Change." Abstracts of 300 words describing proposed articles should be submitted to Katie Begg, one of the co-editors of the book, by March 15, according to the e-mail. For further information about the topic, the scope of the articles, and the editors' specific needs, contact: Begg at the University of Surrey, UK, e-mail: <k.begg@surrey.ac.uk>.

NEW WEB SITE COVERS ENVIRONMENT OF BALTIC SEA
The Helsinki Commission, an organisation that oversees international cooperation to protect the Baltic Sea, has just launched a new web site, with information about the sea's environment. The site, at <http://www.helcom.fi>, contains an excellent overview of the Baltic marine environment, and the humanimpact on that environment, as well as information about the Helsinki Commission itself. It fills a much-needed informational gap that was left when past sites about the Baltic environment closed down.