Someone on this forum wondered why they weren't hearing more from environmentalists concerning Y2K The information is out there, it just isn't in Time, Neweek or the mainstream press.

In this issue of Earth Island Journal, IMHO one of the best magazines on the environment available, there was a feature articles, two other long articles, and several smaller items about Y2K. I counted at least 5 and I haven't finished reading it. This is a magazine that practices what it preaches; no slick pages advertising f SUV's, but a back cover advertising the ZAP bike. It's printed on tree free paper. I urge everyone that hasn't seen this magazine to check it out. Even my non-environmental friends like it for news they can use.

E The Environmental Magazine has also written about Y2k. Their feature article is entitled: 2000: Tough Choices for Planet Earth. It is an excellent article and notes that our planet is in peril, Y2K or not. This is a heads up article that everyone should read. Fixing Y2K won't matter if the earth is just a dump of toxic waste.

-- gilda jessie (jess@listbot.com), February 14, 1999

Answers

Thanks, Gilda. I'll check them out. I have been following (through work) the environmental agency Y2K enforcement policies that are popping up to *strongly* encourage companies to test their equipment and develop extensive contingency plans. EPA's policy can be found at:

http://www.epa.gov/region04/air/enforce/y2kpolcy.htm

Essentially, although there is no specific mandate, the agencies are strong-arming companies whose operations include air or wastewater emissions or generate hazardous waste, to do pre-2000 testing and develop contingency plans. The policy says that violations that occur during testing will be excused if a number of criteria are followed. OTOH, if problems crop up after the rollover, EPA will take a decidedly No Excuses approach. The sorts of things EPA is indirectly encouraging re contingency planning are stockpiling goods and pretreatment chemicals, arranging for alternative energy supplies (NOT to include natural gas generators), and firing non-compliant vendors. The agencies in my state are taking a similar approach.

The policies create a bottomline reason to be prepared, because the fines (civil and criminal) will be very steep. The problem is that EPA cannot focus on everyone, and as usual, it is the small/medium businesses that are the most behind. For the moment, the sectors receiving extra attention include chemical manufacturers, water and wastewater (drinking water and sewage plants), and waste management (solid and hazardous waste, including hazardous waste generators). The sector approaches can be reviewed at EPA's main site (www.EPA.gov).

-- Brooks (brooksbie@hotmail.com), February 14, 1999.

Thank you, gilda.

The Earth Island Journal is found under Earth Island Institute

http://earthisland.org/

Then click on Earth Island Journal, and look for The Year 2000 Problem: An Environmental Impact Report by Chris Clarke. Good Y2K article down in the body of it.

... The power will stay on, oil refineries wont explode, and life, for better or worse, will go on as usual. If all goes well.

All is unlikely to go well, however. All is already not going well. Though Year 2000 (Y2K) problems have to date been relatively minor, they are happening. As we approach the end of the century, they are expected to increase in frequency and severity. And given the interconnected systems with which we run our industrial societies, it is possible that the millennium will be marked by a cascade of catastrophic failures in automated systems that safeguard our environment, public health and safety. ...

Or see ... Earth Island Journal:100% tree-free

http:// www.igc.apc.org/ei/paper/eiiffpp.html

See also ...

[Sat up in an Oregon Health Food store reading this a couple weeks ago.]

E - The Environmental Magazine

http://www.emagazine.com/

2000: Tough Choices for Earth article:

In 1999, as we approach the next millennium, the world stands at a crossroads, with divergent paths leading to unprecedented scarcity and want on the one hand, and a new era of conservation-driven prosperity and plenty on the other. By Jim Motavalli

http://www.emagazine.com/january-february_1999/ 0199feat1.html

Check out the interview with CNNs Ted Turner:

http://www.emagazine.com/january- february_1999/0199conversations.html

Enjoy!

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), February 14, 1999.

Thanks so much Diane for helping me out. You are very much appreciated!! I may have missed it above, but Everyone's Backyard and Food and Water are also excellent publications.

-- gilda jessie (jess@listbot.com), February 16, 1999.