Medical waste, produced by hospitals, clinics, doctors' offices, research facilities, and even private homes from self-administered healthcare, is extremely varied in character, and much of it poses a public health hazard. Because of the potential hazards posed by medical waste, it is important to public health and the environment to properly dispose of it. The disposal of medical waste is generally regulated at the state level; however, several federal agencies are involved in certain aspects of medical waste disposal.
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) is a international financial organization whose mission is to protect the global environment. The GEF was established in 1991 and has three implementing agencies: the World Bank, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the United Nations Development Programme; however, it is independent of each of those three agencies. The GEF assists international efforts to achieve goals of sustainable development--development that improves living standards of people everywhere while preserving natural resources and the environment for the use and enjoyment of future generations--developed at United Nations conferences in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1972 and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992.
Sulfur dioxide is one of the six common pollutants--referred to by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as "criteria pollutants"--for which the EPA sets air quality standards under the mandates of the Clean Air Act. Sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere comes mostly from electric power generation plants that burn fossil fuels such as coal and oil. It is also produced by industrial operations, from vehicles that burn gasoline and diesel fuel, and the burning of other fossil fuels such as home heating oil.
In 1996, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a report entitled "Environmental Health Threats to Children," which acknowledged that children are at particular risk from pollution because their systems are still developing, their organs and tissues are immature and more vulnerable, and their immune systems are weaker. The EPA report established the National Agenda to Protect Children's Health from Environmental Threats (Children's Health Agenda), which outlines the EPA's role in protecting the health of children.
The Antarctic Treaty's first article declares that Antarctica is to be used for peaceful purposes only and that no activities of a military nature nor the testing of any weapons are to be conducted on the continent. The treaty provides that scientific freedom and cooperation is to be continued on Antarctica. The treaty also provides for the exchange of information regarding plans for scientific programs in Antarctica in order to permit maximum economy and efficiency of operations, the exchange of scientific personnel between expeditions and stations, and the exchange of scientific observations and results from research and experimentation on Antarctica.
