Did you know...
- ... the poor quality of health care in the nations making up the former Soviet Union has widened the health gap between East and West. Average life expectancy at birth in the West is 75.6 years and only 69.6 years in the East. Deaths in the first year of life range from 5-8 per 1000 births in most Western European countries and over 40 in some former Soviet Republics. (Source: World Ecology Report, Spring 1995)
- ... the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl scattered an amount of Cs137 equivalent to 100 atomic bombs. (Source: World Ecology Report, Fall 1995)
- ... last year, thirty million people in 80 countries took part in the first ever Clean Up the World campaign, held to encourage involvement in environmental affairs at the grassroot level. The focus during this year's event, being held from September 16-18, will be on waste and water pollution and the goal is to expand the idea to "Think Globally ... Act Locally."
- ... the Wuppertal Institute estimates that in order to make European society sustainable, consumption of nonrenewable resources must be drastically reduced. The yearly per capita consumption of cement must be reduced by approximately 85 percent; pig iron 87 percent; aluminum 90 percent; chlorine 100 percent; and wood 15 percent. That's a lot of consumer goods! (Source: Newsletter Sustainable Europe Campaign, Spring 1995)
- ... one East German-manufactured Trabant emits as much pollution into the atmosphere as 100 Mercedes Benzes and BMWs equipped with catalytic converters. (Source: The U.S. Trade and Development Agency)
- ... the UN has declared 16 September as International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer.
THE BULLETIN * SUMMER 1995