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If you really want to get technical on acquiring an exact answer, then please take the next hour or so and read the updated rules:
SEC Takes Steps to Curtail Abusive Short Sales and Increase Market Transparency
http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2009/2009-172.htm
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 17 CFR PARTS 200 and 242 [Release No. 34-60388; File No. S7-30-08] RIN 3235-AK22 Amendments to Regulation SHO
AGENCY: Securities and Exchange Commission. ACTION: Final rule. http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/2009/34-60388.pdf
fun
Pizzabuster1,
Personally, I like the Short Squeeze link showing that the O/S is less than 57 million. A confirmation on the O/S is coming soon to a PR near you. Even the worst case scenario for an O/S means that the stock is extremely undervalued. Just check out my spreadsheet I created based upon the O/S of 56,294,016 as quoted by Short Squeeze below.
Original post:
Some thoughts on Share Structure, Revenue and Price Per Share
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=45048647
Short Squeeze for HESG
The total short at the moment doesn't look exceptionally large, however the total Outstanding Shares is showing only 56,294,016
Source: http://www.shortsqueeze.com/?symbol=hesg&submit=Short+Quote%99
"On a side note it is estimated that the growing end of marijuana through collectives in California can exceed revenue of $400,000 per month. Therefore the Company will be immediately seeking opportunities within the "growing and transportation" end of legalized marijuana licensing"
Source: http://ih.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&cb=1262457139&article=40592390&symbol=NO%5EHESG
While revenues and profits are entirely two different concepts, I will use the revenues of just one collective of $400,000 per month and Outstanding Shares of 56,294,016. See below for my spreadsheet to calculate price per share based upon the aforementioned data provided.
fun
That's what the website is showing. If you're not happy with the numbers, please notify Short Squeeze and tell them to
increase the Outstanding number of shares.
Total Outstanding Shares is showing only 56,294,016
Source: http://www.shortsqueeze.com/?symbol=hesg&submit=Short+Quote%99
"On a side note it is estimated that the growing end of marijuana through collectives in California can exceed revenue of $400,000 per month. Therefore the Company will be immediately seeking opportunities within the "growing and transportation" end of legalized marijuana licensing"
Source: http://ih.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&cb=1262457139&article=40592390&symbol=NO%5EHESG
While revenues and profits are entirely two different concepts, I will use the revenues of just one collective of $400,000 per month and Outstanding Shares of 56,294,016. See below for spreadsheet calculation based upon the aforementioned data...
fun
I was just using the O/S numbers found on Short Squeeze. Didn't make the numbers up. If you are not happy with an O/S under 57 million, then I suggest you contact Short Squeeze and tell them just how unhappy you are!
fun
I'm speechless on how undervalued the stock is as well. Looking forward to additional pending news.
fun
Perhaps you should read my prior post today regarding, "Some thoughts on Share Structure, Revenue and Price Per Share"
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=45048647
Some thoughts on Share Structure, Revenue and Price Per Share
Short Squeeze for HESG
The total short at the moment doesn't look exceptionally large, however the total Outstanding Shares is showing only 56,294,016
Source: http://www.shortsqueeze.com/?symbol=hesg&submit=Short+Quote%99
"On a side note it is estimated that the growing end of marijuana through collectives in California can exceed revenue of $400,000 per month. Therefore the Company will be immediately seeking opportunities within the "growing and transportation" end of legalized marijuana licensing"
Source: http://ih.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&cb=1262457139&article=40592390&symbol=NO%5EHESG
While revenues and profits are entirely two different concepts, I will use the revenues of just one collective of $400,000 per month and Outstanding Shares of 56,294,016. See below for my spreadsheet to calculate price per share based upon the aforementioned data provided.
fun
Terrorist Threats to Food - Guidelines for Establishing and Strengthening Prevention and Response Systems
Department of Food Safety, Zoonoses and Foodborne Disease
Cluster on Health Security and Environment
World Health Organization
Revised version - May 2008
http://www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/fs_management/terrorism/en/index.html
ISBN: 92 4 154584 4
:: Full text in English [pdf 1.51Mb]
http://www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/general/en/terrorist.pdf
Preface
In May 2002, the Fifty-fifth World Health Assembly adopted resolution WHA 55.16 which expressed serious concern about threats against civilian populations by deliberate use of biological and chemical agents or radionuclear materials. It noted that such agents can be disseminated via food and requested the Director-General to provide tools and support to Member States, particularly developing countries, in strengthening their national systems. It also requested WHO to continue to issue international guidance and technical information on recommended public health measures to deal with deliberate use of biological and chemical agents or radionuclear materials to cause harm.
In December 2002, WHO published Terrorist Threats to Food, which was intended primarily for policy-makers in national governments with responsibilities for ensuring food safety, and was designed to assist them in incorporating considerations of food terrorism into existing food safety systems. The document received favourable comments from governments, the food industry and consumers and has been one of the most requested WHO documents in the field of food safety.
In June 2007, the revised International Health Regulations (2005) entered into force across the globe for WHO Member States. The revised Regulations have dramatically changed the way that key public health events of international significance are handled by the international community. As a consequence, this guidance has been updated and expanded, especially to inform responsible authorities in WHO Member States of their new obligations concerning foodborne disease under the revised Regulations. Certain incidents, potentially involving deliberate contamination of food, may be considered of international significance and subject to these Regulations. The WHO International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN) functions within the framework of the IHR (2005) and is utilized to manage food safety events, as appropriate.
This publication is the first to be issued by the WHO Department of Food Safety and Zoonoses since its incorporation into the new WHO Cluster on Health Security and Environment, which includes the primary responsibility for managing emerging international threats to public health. The World Health Report 2007 A Safer Future emphasized that the new watchwords are diplomacy, cooperation, transparency and preparedness. In order to ensure global public health security in the 21st Century, WHO urges all stakeholders to consider implementation of the relevant sections of these guidelines as a matter of prudent public health policy.
----------------------------------------
APPENDIX 2
Useful Web Sites
http://www.who.int/foodsafety/en/ (Food Safety, World Health Organization)
http://www.who.int/csr/delibepidemics/en/ (Epidemic and Pandemic Alert and Response, World
Health Organization)
http://www.who.int/disasters (Emergency and Humanitarian Action, World Health Organization)
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/fsterr.html (Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food
Safety and Applied Nutrition, USA)
http://www.foodsafety.gov/~fsg/bioterr.html (Food and Drug Administration, Center for Food
Safety and Applied Nutrition, USA)
http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/secur/secure.shtml (Canadian Food Inspection Agency)
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Food_Defense_&_Emergency_Response/FSIS_Security_Guidelines_f
or_Food_Processors/index.asp (Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA)
http://www.ipfsaph.org/En/default.jsp (International Portal on Food Safety, Animal and Plant
Health)
http://ec.europa.eu/food/food/rapidalert/index_en.htm (European Union Rapid Alert System for
Food and Feed)
----------------------------------------
Commentary: The audience of this paper was originally intended for governments around the world. Therefore, I believe that the aforementioned document is the "watered down" version of the original, as pertinent details were probably not provided. Still, the information is useful and a nice contribution to the board. There was too much information to copy and paste here as the document was 62 pages long. I have copied Appendix 2 and pasted it above as a quick useful resource. Appendix 1 which is on page 43 of the document is rather long, but is a very interesting read...
APPENDIX 1
Specific Measures for Consideration by the Food Industry
Anyone who is interesting in making investments with respect to food, might find some ideas to invest in under Appendix 1, other than just strict food companies or commodities.
Best of luck to all!
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Now for my small contribution to this board, which is the topic of systemic risk in equities.
This may be a bit long winded post and to completely review the information may take upwards of 3 hours. The "credit crisis" may pale in comparison to the equity crisis, which is another ticking timebomb. Despite efforts made by the SEC to curtail the Naked Shorting and FTD's within US Financial Equities, large loopholes still exist. So much so that just one moth after the new SEC ruling, The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland wrote a paper on systemic risk. Of course, this paper was written to correspond with the anniversary of the "credit crisis" one year prior.... or was it?
fun
---------------------------------------------------
Darkside of the looking glass:
http://www.businessjive.com/
My commentary: 1 hour slideshow presentation, discussing shorting, naked shortin and fails to deliver, along with the concept of systemic risk created in the US financial equities market. Note, the slideshow starts with the premise that the audience has no knowledge of how the US equity market works and then quickly moves into a college level lecture, complete with citations from academic and SEC.
---------------------------------------------------
SEC Takes Steps to Curtail Abusive Short Sales and Increase Market Transparency
http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2009/2009-172.htm
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 17 CFR PARTS 200 and 242 [Release No. 34-60388; File No. S7-30-08] RIN 3235-AK22 Amendments to Regulation SHO
AGENCY: Securities and Exchange Commission. ACTION: Final rule. http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/2009/34-60388.pdf
---------------------------------------------------
Federal Reserve Bank Of Cleveland
Policy Discussion Paper Number 27, August 2009
On Systemically Important Financial Institutions and Progressive Systemic Mitigation
James B. Thomson
http://www.clevelandfed.org/research/policydis/pdp27.cfm
I appreciate the post you made. I have since copied the information and posted it on the World Food Crisis discussion bulletin board. I believe that the focus of this "No Quarter For Corruption" discussion bulletin board will have some overlaps as a financial/economic collapse will most likely have domino effects world wide.
If anyone should have an article and/or information you would like to contribute to the World Food Crisis Board or the original World Water Crisis Board, please feel free to do so and everyone's contributions are welcome.
World Food Crisis:
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=16715
World Water Crisis:
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=14650
fun
GM Seeds Threaten World Food Supply
http://www.naturalnews.com/027827_GM_seeds_food_supply.html
(NaturalNews) The agribusiness strategy of aggressively promoting genetically modified (GM) and highly hybridized seeds are placing world food security at risk, according to studies conducted by researchers from the International Institute of Environment and Development (IIED) and presented at the World Seed Conference in Rome.
Researchers are increasingly warning that global warming and the ensuing worldwide ecological disruption may render many popular seed varieties unsuitable. A recent study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, concluded that temperature rises from global warming are likely to lead to shortages in corn and soy, two of the world's most important food crops.
"Where farming communities have been able to maintain their traditional varieties, they are already using them to cope with the impacts of climate change," said IIED project leader Krystyna Swiderska. "But more commonly, these varieties are being replaced by a smaller range of 'modern' seeds that are heavily promoted by corporations and subsidized by governments. These seeds have less genetic diversity yet need more inputs such as pesticides and fertilizers and more natural resources such as land and water."
Traditionally, farmers have saved seeds from a number of different varieties of each crop, which has made them able to adapt more readily to crises like drought or pestilence. But with farmers abandoning traditional varieties for higher yielding but genetically homogenous corporate varieties, the genetic diversity that protects the world's food supply from disaster could be lost.
According to the IIED, global agriculture needs to adopt a model similar to the Participatory Plant Breeding program in southwest China, in which small farmers and seed breeders are cooperating to develop new crop varieties and share the profits.
"Traditional seed varieties are critical to help Chinese farmers adapt to climate change," said Jingsong Li of the Center for Chinese Agricultural Policy. "At the same time, this biological diversity is under threat from problems such as drought, floods, pests and diseases, which climate change may promote. For these reasons, farmers are keen to improve their varieties through Participatory Plant Breeding."
Sources for this story include: www.foodnavigator-usa.com.Share49
HESG is attempting to break into a very large market. How big is it now? Estimated amount updated each second....http://www.worldometers.info/drugs/
fun
Manure War
(My commentary: This next story could have been on the World Water Crisis as well....)
Note, This NPR article is available in audio format as well. By clicking on the below link you will find the audio link.
New Mexico Dairy Pollution Sparks 'Manure War'
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=121173780
December 9, 2009
The picture on many milk cartons shows cows grazing on a pasture next to a country barn and a silo — but the reality is very different.
More and more milk comes from confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs), where large herds live in feedlots, awaiting their thrice-daily trip to the milking barn. A factory farm with 2,000 cows produces as much sewage as a small city, yet there's no treatment plant.
Across the country, big dairies are coming under increased criticism for polluting the air and the water. In New Mexico, they're in the midst of a manure war.
Manure Management
Everyday, an average cow produces six to seven gallons of milk and 18 gallons of manure. New Mexico has 300,000 milk cows. That totals 5.4 million gallons of manure in the state every day. It's enough to fill up nine Olympic-size pools. Every single day.
Dealing with the waste — so-called "manure management" — is the dairy industry's greatest environmental challenge.
Farms dispose of waste in two ways.
First, workers hose the muck off the concrete floor of a milking barn, and it flows into a plastic- or clay-lined lagoon where the liquid evaporates.
Second, waste from the feedlot where the cows live is collected and used as fertilizer for grain crops.
But the New Mexico Environment Department reports that two-thirds of the state's 150 dairies are contaminating groundwater with excess nitrogen from cattle excrement. Either the lagoons are leaking, or manure is being applied too heavily on farmland.
"As we get more and more monitoring data, what we see is that more and more dairies have contamination underneath them. So something isn't working about those facilities," says Marcy Leavitt, director of the department's Water and Wastewater Division.
The problem is worsened by the tendency of large dairies to cluster together.
Dairy Row
On Dairy Row along Interstate 10 between Las Cruces, N.M., and El Paso, Texas, more than 30,000 cows live in 11 farms located one after the other.
In the past four years, the EPA has repeatedly cited these dairies for violating the Clean Water Act because manure-laced stormwater was washing into tributaries of the Rio Grande.
"You hear it often in community meetings. People describe that maybe five, six, seven years ago they could go out in front of their home and enjoy the afternoon, eat some food," says community organizer Arturo Uribe, who lives in Mesquite, Texas, which is in the middle of Dairy Row. "But now what these folks are saying is when they go out there, there's too many flies."
Even more serious than odor and flies is the threat to the watershed. In the town of Dexter, in southeastern New Mexico, a dozen residential homes are surrounded by sprawling dairies on three sides.
Homeowner Herbie Rodriguez says he has been buying five-gallon bottles of water to drink and cook with, though his family still washes with contaminated well water.
"We were told that we couldn't drink the water because it's contaminated," Rodriguez says. "On a white, brand-new T-shirt, you can wash it in the water, brand-new, it would come out brownish, beige. That's how you could tell how bad the water was."
The trend in the dairy industry, like the rest of commodity agriculture, is toward fewer and larger farms, which concentrates more manure in smaller geographic areas. Citizens are reporting dairies contaminating ground and surface water across the nation — in the Yakima Valley in Washington; Brown County in Wisconsin; Hudson, Mich.; and now Dexter, N.M.
Enlarge John Burnett/NPRAs critics of dairy cattle operations have grown louder, the New Mexico dairy industry launched a statewide public relations campaign.
John Burnett/NPRAs critics of dairy cattle operations have grown louder, the New Mexico dairy industry launched a statewide public relations campaign.
Enlarge John Burnett/NPRBut critics point out that dairy cows in New Mexico are not fed in pastures; they live in confined animal feeding operations like this one.
John Burnett/NPRBut critics point out that dairy cows in New Mexico are not fed in pastures; they live in confined animal feeding operations like this one.
In many places, the powerful dairy lobby blocks tough state regulations, and the federal EPA lacks broad powers to crack down on agricultural runoff. But in New Mexico, the winds might have begun to shift.
The Winds Of Change
Among state regulators, there's no question who's to blame for fouling the groundwater in Dexter. The water table is shallow in this part of the state, and monitoring wells downgradient of the dairies all clearly show excess nitrates. The dairies are under state abatement plans to control manure runoff.
New Mexico's dairy industry denies the New Mexico Environment Department's figure that two-thirds of its farms are polluting groundwater. Robert Hagevoort, a dairy extension specialist and industry spokesman, suggests that critics are too quick to blame dairies.
"They may have a septic tank that's leaking. That is the No. 1 reason why domestic wells in New Mexico are contaminated," Hagevoort says. "With that, I'm not saying there's not issues and we're not working on some of these dairies. Dairymen are very adamant about being a good steward to the environment. They want to make sure that their families that live on these dairies can drink that water, can bathe in that water and their animals are healthy as well."
And no one wants to drive the milk cows out of New Mexico. Dairies contribute an estimated $1.2 billion to the economy in a poor state with little private industry. Even Rodriguez, whose well water is contaminated, works at a dairy.
But after decades of acceptance, there's a sense here in the state that the dairies' free ride is over.
"Public sentiment is clearly shifting towards wanting to see more protection from the groundwater pollution that follows CAFO dairy operations," says Dan Lorimier of the Sierra Club.
New Mexico is currently in the process of rewriting and tightening regulations for dairy discharge permits. This year — for the first time ever — the state rejected a proposed dairy in the town of Caballo after citizens protested that it would pollute the Rio Grande watershed.
'The Right Thing To Do'
Pro-dairy billboards have sprouted around the state. One shows a family watching cows graze on green pastures with the message: "Caring for our land isn't easy. But it's the right thing to do."
Jana Hughes, a homemaker who lives next to a dairy near Hobbs, N.M., and recently formed a group called Citizens for Dairy Reform, was shown a photo of that billboard.
"False advertisement," Hughes says. "I mean, as someone who lives around dairies and knows dairies, that is not how it is. We're talking 2,000 cows confined in a small area, living in their own feces and urine."
Some dairymen try to site their farms as far from civilization as possible. John Woelber built his $5 million, 2,300-cow operation in remote high desert in Valencia County, 10 miles from his nearest neighbor.
"The reason we're out here in the middle of nowhere is so we have no complaints; we have no neighbors that will come up and say, 'You've got too many flies,' or, 'It smells,' " Woelber says.
Developing Wastewater Services in Emerging Market Economies: The Cases of China and Ukraine
John Bachmann, PADCO
http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/ASDB_SMARTSAN/Bachmann.pdf
http://www.padco.aecom.com
john.bachmann@padco.aecom.com
Delivering affordable, dependable and sustainable wastewater services is a challenge for
local governments worldwide. But it is an especially tall order in emerging market
economies, in which the old service norms, institutional forms and pricing policies often
constrain the development of autonomous and competent wastewater service providers that
can develop their systems to meet users’ needs and collect sufficient revenues to cover their
costs.
China and Ukraine are two countries that are wrestling with the problems of developing
sustainable wastewater collection and disposal services while their economies transition
toward the market. This paper examines the performance of local governments and their
Wastewater Service Providers (WASPs) in selected towns in both countries and seeks to
identify the factors that contribute toward improving service quality and achieving financial
sustainability.1 The goal of the analysis is to draw conclusions that may be applicable to
WASPs in other emerging market economies.
The paper will examine in turn three aspects of wastewater service delivery — institutional
arrangements, service pricing and stakeholder participation — in each of the two countries.
For each aspect, the paper will briefly define the Chinese and Ukrainian contexts and identify
the main problems faced by WASPs and local governments (LGs). A final section will
attempt to draw conclusions about the types of interventions that could be successful in
promoting improved service delivery in the future.
Institutional Arrangements for Wastewater Service Delivery
In both China and Ukraine, wastewater service delivery is a devolved function for which local
governments are responsible. Ukraine’s law “On Local Government” of 1996 makes LGs
responsible for the provision of a number of “communal services,” including piped
wastewater collection and disposal. Most LGs execute this official mandate through
“vodokanals,” which are legally independent organizations that are nominally owned by the
local community (residents of the town or city) but in practice operate under the direction of
the local government. (A minority of vodokanals or their fixed assets are leased to private
companies.) Vodokanals are generally responsible for water supply and piped wastewater
collection and disposal.
Chinese towns are also responsible for the delivery of local wastewater services. In small
cities and towns, services are usually provided by a municipal department, often operating
independently from the water company, a municipally owned utility. In large cities,
wastewater collection and disposal services are generally carried out by municipal
departments or LG-owned water/wastewater companies.
The broad outlines of the institutional arrangements in both countries are favorable to
responsive, sustainable wastewater service delivery to the extent that local governments can
design and implement their own programs. However, the specific roles and responsibilities of
1 The material in this paper is drawn from two technical assistance projects implemented by Planning and
Development Collaborative International, Inc. (PADCO): the ADB-financed “Town-Based Urbanization Strategy
Study” (TA 4335-PRC) implemented China in 2004-2005, and the USAID-financed “Ukraine Tariff Reform and
Communal Services Enterprise Restructuring Project” implemented in 2000-2005.
the WASPs are insufficiently defined, and there are few incentives for WASP managers and
staff to improve institutional performance and/or service quality.
In the Chinese case, the operational environment for wastewater delivery is first and
foremost undermined by the political imperatives of local government leaders. In recent
years, the Government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has put heavy emphasis on
economic growth. Local government leaders — both in the Party and the town or city
government — are evaluated based on the amount of new investment they leverage and the
increase in local economic output. Prospects for promotion within the party and to larger
urban settlements will depend first and foremost on economic growth. The degree of
environmental sustainability of local growth is not an evaluation criterion. These political
priorities do not incentivize improvements in urban environmental infrastructure generally or
in wastewater service delivery in particular. On the contrary, many officials are driven to
undertake any investment project that will boost growth, regardless of its impact on the
environment.
Another constraint in Chinese towns is the dependence on decision-makers at higher levels
of government in order to improve wastewater services. Large capital investment projects
and tariff increases require approval of higher-level governments, such as a county, countylevel
city or prefecture-level city.
Finally, the performance of many Chinese WASPs is undermined by their separation from
water service providers. It is much more effective to bill customers for wastewater and water
supply services at the same time (through the same bill), given that willingness-to-pay for
water supply is always higher than willingness-to-pay for wastewater collection. The fact that
water suppliers are able to disconnect their customers in case of non-payment also
contributes to higher payment collection rates, which benefit wastewater service providers
also when billing is combined.
Unlike their Chinese counterparts, Ukrainian local have the authority to set tariffs for
wastewater services delivered by vodokanals (communal service enterprises) without
higher-level approvals. The vodokanals calculate the tariffs and make a proposal to the LG,
which approves the tariff by action of its executive committee. While the autonomy afforded
by this arrangement is an asset, it also subjects the pricing of wastewater services to the
vagaries of local government politics in an emerging democracy. Many Ukrainian mayors
feel that raising the prices of communal services will lower their chances of being reelected.
The old notions of water as a public good that the State should provide for free run deep in
Ukrainian society, especially among older people and pensioners, which make up a large
portion of the total population. It takes a progressive local government leader to decide that
raising tariffs is either (i) the right thing to do for sustainable service delivery, despite its
unpopularity, or (ii) can be fashioned into a political asset by emphasizing improvements to
service coverage or quality.
Economic growth continues to trump environmental protection in Chinese towns.
In both Ukraine and China there is a general lack of clarity about the roles and
responsibilities of WASPs vis-à-vis municipal owners and end users (customers). There are
few written agreements between local governments and wastewater service providers
specifying the responsibilities of the wastewater service provider with respect to service
levels, capital investment financing, and service pricing (tariffs). The obligations of the local
government — in effect, the LG’s contribution to improving wastewater services — are also
underarticulated: there is no specific commitment by the municipality to provide financing for
improvements, build public support for increasing payment collection, or approve necessary
tariff increases. At the same time, there are no contractual agreements between WASPs and
end users. In this operational environment, the wastewater service provider lacks clear
targets to work toward and clear commitments from the city and customers to assist in
achieving institutional and sector objectives.
Pricing of Wastewater Collection and Disposal Services
At its best, the pricing of urban services such as wastewater collection and disposal is a
complex, interdisciplinary and flexible exercise through which interested parties set prices to
achieve a set of often conflicting objectives. On the one hand, user charges should be
affordable to customers. On the other hand, tariffs should be set to ensure the level of
revenue needed to keep providing decent services in the future. Where fixed assets require
rehabilitation or coverage must be expanded, tariff revenues may have to cover capital
investment costs too. In a successful service development planning and tariff setting
process, the different parties work together to find common goals and then formulate
interventions to achieve them.
Such a “holistic” view of the tariff setting process is not yet widespread in Ukraine. In the
1990s, most municipalities, despite being responsible for service pricing, distanced
themselves from this process in order to limit perceived political damage. Cities would posit
themselves as the arbiter of the tariff setting process, a role that assumes conflicting views
among vodokanals and customers. Generally siding with the customers in order to
strengthen their position for future elections, municipal governments would generally reject
tariff increases proposed by vodokanals, thereby locking the WASPs into a downward spiral
of aging assets, rising energy costs and financial shortfalls.
Wastewater service pricing in China is also influenced by the notion of water supply (and by
association, wastewater) as a public good to which all citizens are entitled. Local
government leaders are wary of raising water and wastewater tariffs, which are consequently
below the level required for recovery of operation and maintenance (O&M) costs in most
towns.
In cities in China and Ukraine, extensive capital investment is needed to ensure adequate
future service delivery. In China, it is necessary to expand coverage of piped wastewater
collection services in response to rapid urban development and to build appropriate
wastewater treatment facilities. Ukrainian municipalities need to rebuild pumping stations
and treatment plants to reduce energy consumption and lower energy costs; moreover,
much of the aging piped network needs replacement.
Under the principle that the customer should bear as much of the cost of service provision as
possible, WASPs in both countries should calculate new tariffs that cover O&M costs and
whatever share of investment costs the end user can bear. This calculation requires
knowledge of household income and expenditures. Ability-to-pay analysis was carried out
under the USAID-financed Tariff Reform and Communal Services Enterprise Restructuring
Project in two Ukrainian cities (Lutsk and Khmelnytsky) to evaluate the impact of alternative
hypothetical tariff scenarios on household finances. The analysis concluded that there was
additional disposable income, and that it would be possible to raise water and wastewater
tariffs without surpassing the normative “15% limit” set by the local governments: combined
housing and communal services costs should not exceed 15% of the income of a household
at the 25th income percentile.
On the basis of this analysis and extensive stakeholder consultation, the City of Lutsk
decided to increase its water and wastewater tariffs by 32 percent in June 2002. In
combination with increased payment collection, the higher tariffs provided enough revenue
to cover O&M costs and finance a modest $500,000 short-term capital investment plan.
Following on the Lutsk experience, three-quarters of the 29 communal service enterprises
that graduated from the Tariff Reform Project over the period 2002–2005 achieved cost
recovery through a combination of tariff increases, higher payment collection rates and
operational cost reduction (27 enterprises were loss-making at entry into project).
Municipal public works departments and wastewater companies in China also desperately
need to raise tariffs in order to generate financing for the construction of wastewater
treatment plants. But there is no standard methodology for calculating tariffs that include a
component for O&M and another component for capital investment. And ability-to-pay
% Payment Collection, Residential Customers
35
45
55
65
75
85
95
2000 2001 2002
Khmelnytsky Vodokanal
Khmelnytsky Heat
Lutsk Vodokanal
Lutsk Heat
analysis is not used to systematically evaluate the capacity of customers to pay more.
Perhaps most critically, there is no established public forum in which packages of service
improvements and pricing options could be discussed and agreed with customers and other
stakeholders in Chinese cities in towns.
Stakeholder Participation in Wastewater Service Delivery
The Government of the PRC is currently pursuing a goal of creating a “harmonious society”
in which the benefits of growth are equitably distributed among different population groups.
Equitable distribution of the benefits of urban development requires dialogue among the
various concerned parties: local governments, real estate developers, holders of use rights
to land, buyers of newly created real estate products, and users of wastewater and other
municipally provided services. In China today, however, customers do not have a voice in
the provision of urban services. Decisions about service levels and coverage in many cities
are taken primarily based on engineering requirements and the availability of capital
investment subsidies from higher-level governments. There is no systematic consultation of
different population groups, and end user preferences and priorities are not incorporated into
the service planning and pricing process.
The investment requirements of Chinese towns and cities in the area of wastewater
treatment are staggering. If the current trend in environmental degradation of surface and
ground water supplies is to be halted, thousands of urban settlements across the country will
need to build wastewater treatment facilities. Under current conditions — an unfunded
mandate to provide services coupled with insufficient authority to increase tariffs — it would
seem difficult for Chinese WASPs to respond to the challenge. Any successful approach to
improving service levels will have to be multi-pronged, but one important aspect is likely to
be improving relations with stakeholders: the users of wastewater collection and disposal
services. In the respect, the recent experience of Ukrainian cities may prove instructive.
In the 1990s Ukraine adopted a representative democratic form of government in which
executive and legislative officials are elected at the local government level. This system
requires some degree of responsiveness to the priorities of the public on behalf of local
mayors and council deputies. But as described in the service pricing section above, elected
officials have in many cases acted as arbiters rather than leaders in the area of urban
services provision. This is now changing. Town halls in such cities as Komsomolsk,
Chernigiv, Kalush and Lutsk have forged partnerships with their communal service
enterprises (including vodokanals) and the local stakeholders.
Where such partnerships have been forged, the parties have been able to agree on and
implement substantial improvements in service delivery and sustainability. The process in
most towns has followed this general outline:
1. Build customer awareness. Conduct public outreach and carry out media campaigns to
educate the public about the need to rehabilitate or expand wastewater systems, to increase
revenues in order to pay for improvements, and to pay for services in order to ensure the
financial viability of vodokanals.
2. Gather information on customer preferences and priorities. Conduct focus groups and/or
customer surveys to find out what customers see as the major problems, what types of
service improvements are most important to them, and whether they are willing to pay more in
user charges in order to receive better services.
3. Formulate proposals that respond to customers’ stated priorities. In the process of service
planning and capital investment programming, include the projects and operational changes
that will improve coverage, improve wastewater treatment, protect local rivers and streams,
etc. Formalize these proposals into strategic action plans.
4. Garner public support for the strategic plans. Publicize the plans by distributing summary
versions of them, posting them in public places for review, and holding public hearings on the
plans.
Public hearings in Ukraine are used to build stakeholder support for wastewater
services reform.
Participants in focus groups and public hearings can be presented with different
technical/pricing options that have different sets of capital improvements associated with
them. Each option or scenario is presented as a package; for example, achieving 24 hour a
day water supply (from scheduled delivery) will necessitate a 20% tariff increase, while 24/7
water and higher water pressure above the second story will entail a 30% increase.
Participants should be able to evaluate the costs and benefits of each package themselves,
and contribute their opinion to the decision-making process.
Conclusions
This brief review of the wastewater sector in Chinese and Ukrainian towns indicates that
there is great scope for refining and improving institutional arrangements, pricing policies
and stakeholder participation. The following concrete recommendations are set out for
consideration by policy-makers and practitioners in emerging market economies.
• Reinforce the legal and regulatory basis of WASPs so that they can establish technical
service targets, plan capital investments and set prices in collaboration with local
governments and stakeholders;
• Develop and implement service agreements in which the rights and responsibilities of local
governments and WASPs are clarified. Local government commitments to achieving service
delivery targets must be spelled out clearly;
• Get the incentives right for improved performance of WASPs and LGs. Link improvements in
wastewater services and environmental protection to the career advancement among civil
servants and elected officials.
• Unite the entities responsible for water supply and wastewater collection into a single
organization responsible for both services. This will improve service planning and facilitate
tariff payment collection;
• Use ability-to-pay analysis to determine how much local households can afford to pay for
improved wastewater services;
• Use customer outreach techniques such as focus groups and customer surveys to determine
end user preferences and priorities with respect to wastewater service levels and coverage.
• Develop a tariff calculation methodology that includes a capital investment component.
• Develop and evaluate alternative capital investment and tariff scenarios with input from
stakeholders;
• Build consensus for a preferred option or scenario through information dissemination and
public hearings.
• Implement the strategic plan.
Supply and Demand: Given constant demand, if supply increases price decreases. Given constant demand, if supply decreases, price increases. To better understand the relationship of price as a function of market maker activity, please see the following link:
The Dark Side of The Looking Glass
http://www.businessjive.com/
A slide show presentation, which plays automatically and is presented in a college level format. The first few slides start with the premise that an individual has very little to no understanding of how US equities trade and eventually gets into more complex issues of shorting, naked shorting, fail to deliver, market makers, etc. The entire slideshow requires 1 hour of your time.
While the SEC in July 2009 issued new rules regarding Naked Short Selling, there are more loopholes in the document than swiss cheese. Of course, it requires actually reading the shocking document to understand what the SEC has done (or not done) to undermine the average investor and benefit the criminals. Critical critiques of the SEC do not appear in main stream news, as the average citizen is being intentionally left in the dark.
In August 2009, the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland wrote a paper on systemic risk, (read it carefully). Essentially, completely overhauling US equities and bonds may cause a catastrophic systemic financial collapse. In my opinion, only incremental change will occur to correct the corruption of the past.
SEC Takes Steps to Curtail Abusive Short Sales and Increase Market Transparency
http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2009/2009-172.htm
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 17 CFR PARTS 200 and 242 [Release No. 34-60388; File No. S7-30-08] RIN 3235-AK22 Amendments to Regulation SHO
AGENCY: Securities and Exchange Commission. ACTION: Final rule. http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/2009/34-60388.pdf
Federal Reserve Bank Of Cleveland
Policy Discussion Paper Number 27, August 2009
On Systemically Important Financial Institutions and Progressive Systemic Mitigation
James B. Thomson
http://www.clevelandfed.org/research/policydis/pdp27.cfm
Looks like a few mm's fell off of the 5's. Should get interesting after the lunch hour special. Glad to be an ask smacker today. Now let's roll HESG! Back to lurking...
fun
"good thing I dont base my investments based on messagebaord hype "
Now that's actually some rather good advice for all! Happy New Year Everyone, may 2010 be the year as those stimulus dollars start to really flow! http://134.67.99.241/stimulus/EPA_RecoveryApp.html
fun
Looking forward to the new I-Box! Can I have the crying running baby posted up there as we enter 2010 with a new options system? Ok, back to lurking!
fun
The important thing to remember with the estimated number is that these numbers appear to be US Domestic Sales
only, and do not include the international sales. See below screen print of the German "As Seen On TV" website
showing the Zevotek Inc, Ionic Lightbulb.
fun
=============================================================================================================
Ionic Bulb on Track for $77 Million in Sales First Year
I estimate based on the numbers you guys provided that 14,546 units were sold in the first 33 hours for a total revenue of $290,775.
At this pace sales would be $77,187,423 per year.
290,775/33 x 24 x 365 = 77,187,423.
This is conservative as one would expect the sales volume to increase as the product becomes more well known.
Please refer to earlier post for order numbers provided by customers from late Monday evening until early this morning on the Yahoo ZVTK message board.
http://messages.finance.yahoo.com/Stocks_%28A_to_Z%29/Stocks_Z/forumview?bn=89033
By the way, this estimate assumes a $19.99 per order sale, however, many of the posters, including myself, have purchased larger orders so the actual sales to date are greater than my estimate.
Sentiment : Strong Buy
===========================================================================================================
.
I just created a quick spreadsheet and confirmed the numbers calculated.
Given the projected sales, and a money multiplier of 10, a $.70 pps may not unreasonable by end of 2010.
Good luck to all!
fun
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=44957229
Posted by: patmanley Date: Wednesday, December 30, 2009 9:07:57 AM
In reply to: patmanley who wrote msg# 15907 Post # of 15912
Ionic Bulb on Track for $77 Million in Sales First Year
When you go to Yahoo, please note that the sales figures are based upon actual purchase order numbers.
ION-333497275 12/28/09 11PM
ION-333482729 12/30/09 8AM
14,546 sales in 33 hours
Yesterday's trading activity:
Dollar Volume (USD):$5,401,469
Trade Volume: 521,671,834
Trades Executed: 3,244
Note, that the initial price dip in yesterday's trading occured on just a few million shares.
Whether you are a flipper, a long or shorting this stock, you are here to play it!
Oh yes, there are in fact lots of eyes on this one and it will continue to have attention with additional PRs, soon to be released..
fun
That was the previous symbol. Try typing ZVTK.PK. Zevotek Inc was once on OTCBB, and they have previously announced that they intend on returning. The company has been delivering on previously announced PR's, I'm expecting another PR soon.
fun
Ah, probably just taking a pit stop, sometimes referred to as "parking."
fun
Yes, another nice intraday consolidation. Hope everyone enjoyed the morning breakfast special. Could get some hot spicy food later on with that pending PR...
fun
Sounds like a good theory. The 15 minute chart above in I-Box shows the activity though. Appears to be under $0.0001. Look at the MA's 5,10, etc.
Not a personal attack. Just suggesting that all relax and have cool heads.
fun
Someone please post L2 ASAP!
MAMA-86 Drinking Water Campaign
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT INTERNATIONAL
ANNA GOLUBOVSKA-ONISIMOVA, Director of MAMA-86, Ukraine
http://www.p2pays.org/ref/40/39737.pdf
ABSTRACT
Ukraine, one of the New Independent States with a territory of 603 700 square kilometres and a population of about 50 million, is located in the
centre of Europe. With regard to water resources available for use, Ukraine belongs to the group of water limited countries. In dry years there are 670 m3 of river runoff per capita. Unequal distribution of water resources in terms of space and time throughout Ukraine makes water supply problems more complicated. Surface water is the main source of supply of drinking water. Approximately 60% of the population is supplied from the Dnieper River, 15% from other surface waters and 25% from groundwater (particularly in rural areas).
Figure 1 (above)
Collection of water for home use
As a result of a long period of administrative-command economic system development, the water resources of Ukraine have suffered from considerable anthropogenic pressure with subsequent deterioration. Basins of the main Ukrainian rivers are polluted, sometime severely, by nitrogen
substances, oil products, phenols and heavy metals. The quality of surface water in Ukraine is in general too poor for drinking purposes.
During the transitional period of last 10 years in Ukraine, the economic constraints coupled with fundamental political and administrative changes have prevented the maintenance and extension of water and sewerage infrastructure. Reduced investment and decreasing activities have led to changes in polluting inputs, disruption of water supply and sanitation services, and disruption of pollution control. In general the situation in the water and sewage sector can be identified as a crisis. The quality of drinking water is significant in determining the complexity of social and health problems in Ukraine. In 1997 MAMA-86, an Environmental NGO in Ukraine initiated consultations on water problems. Quality of drinking water was identified by MAMA-86
network’s member organisations as a key issue for action. We brought together community activists from different parts of the country with representatives of main stakeholders’ groups and government to facilitate an integrated approach to finding a solution. From this network four organisations from different regions of Ukraine have started a campaign on drinking water. Today the water campaign is run by MAMA-86 Kyiv,
‘Vidrodzhennia’ Tatarbunary, MAMA-86 Odessa, MAMA-86 Artemivsk, ‘Gaia’ Sebastopol. Women’s environmental groups from Mariupol, Kharkiv, Yaremche,
Ternopil and Nizhin are also joining the campaign. The short term goals of MAMA-86 drinking water campaign are to:
- monitor drinking water quality and survey public opinion;
-raise public awareness about the issues and provide information;
-stimulate the cooperation and debates between different sectors;
-exchange already existing good practices from Ukraine and overseas;
-conduct pilot projects aimed at improving drinking water quality and rational water use;
-use international events to promote participation, consultation and partnership.
Figure 2
MAMA-86 logo
Long term goals of the Campaign are to:
-build public pressure for a change in water policy;
-activate the public and local governments to take action;
-promote the ideas of sustainable water use;
-involve the public in the decision-making process;
-build a public platform to lobby the national and local governments.
Figure 3
Conditions of water supply
The basic activities of Mama-86 drinking water campaign are informational and educational, as well as implementation of pilot projects. There is no tradition in Ukraine of disclosure of information and it is difficult for the public to obtain clear information from official sources. However, the public needs the information about water quality; about practical steps to improve water quality which can be taken to protect themselves and their families from health risks associated with inadequate water. MAMA-86 undertakes their own independent tests on tap water quality and surveys public attitudes and habits regarding drinking water. The results of tap water analysis have shown the specifics of drinking water quality in cities
of Kyiv and Odessa and the towns of Tatarbunary and Artemivsk, which reflect the state of pollution of water sources and the low level of water treatment. The main conclusions of the survey made in co-operation with Socis-Gallup International in 11 cities and towns of Ukraine were that 64% of respondents perceived drinking water quality as a major environmental problem, 15.6% considered that a large-scale public awareness campaign would be necessary,
21.3% believed that they had to rely on their own devices to improve water quality: many citizens interviewed agree to pay more, if the quality of drinking water were to be guaranteed. This is especially important now, when pricing of water becomes the primary issue and the majority of the
Ukrainian population has very low income. The quality of drinking water and consumers’ concern about it are key factors which can help to influence the
citizens’ and environmental consciousness of the population in order to preserve water resources in Ukraine.
Figure 4
Rusting and disintegrating pipes
The MAMA-86 Network plays an intermediary role between the public and the Government at local and national levels to develop dialogue on water problems, to find practical solutions and help people towards a better future. According to the Aarhus Convention (ratified in 1999 in Ukraine) the public should be involved by the State in the decision-making process at the earliest stages. The implementation of this Convention in Ukraine should include the mechanisms of active environmental information provision by the State to the population, as well as the involvement of the population into the environmental decision making process, on water use in particular. The MAMA-86 Network actively works on gathering and wide distribution of information on the water problems and the decision-making processes on environmental issues. There are many educational lectures; seminars and meetings are going on, articles and materials being published, radio and TV programmes produced on drinking water problems in the framework of MAMA-86 water campaign. We are sure that drinking water is the key issue for the building of democracy in our society. The popularisation of sustainable development and democracy-building principles with a focus on water resources management is very effective because the problems of quality of drinking water supply are very understandable as they are directly linked to people’s life, performance and health. Due to the absence of state obligatory permanent environmental education, lack of awareness-raising policy and lack of economical regulative instruments, individual consumers have had no motivation to participate in the protection of water resources and economical use of them. The objective of the MAMA-86 informational-educational campaign is to revive the feeling of citizens’ ownership and their understanding of personal responsibility for national resources which are our rivers and ponds. The goal is to educate not only a rational consumer but also mainly an active citizen who becomes the main factor of sustainable development programme implementation. On 22 and 23 February 2000 MAMA-86 held the seminar ‘Basic principals of sustainable water use in Ukraine and the role of NGOs in preparation to the World Water Forum’. About 100 participants took active part in the seminar, among them: 26 Government officials, 19 experts and representatives of 25 NGOs from nine regions of Ukraine The implementation of sustainable development principles in management, protection and use of water resources is urgent and a vital matter for Ukraine. Today the idea of sustainable resources is not reflected in public opinion, national and local programmes, or State policy and economic performance. However, the idea of sustainable development is close to and understandable for Ukrainian environmental NGOs. It was the ‘green’ movement, determined by the Chernobyl accident, which resulted in important political changes and the establishment of independent Ukraine. But Ukraine needs State political will and consecutive actions for the implementation of the sustainable development concept. Development of partnerships between the Government and other sectors of the society (business, science, industry, trade unions, NGOs and public) is an obligatory precondition to solve the problems of sustainable development and to introduce the practice of sustainable water use. Several important documents were the outcome of the seminar: NGO Position Paper ‘Basic principles of Sustainable Water Use in Ukraine’, ‘NGO recommendations to the Government’, ‘Government recommendations to NGOs’, linked to popularisation and promotion of the sustainable development. One of the outcomes of the seminar was the decision to hold public hearings on new drinking water legislation. MAMA-86 has co-ordinated the NGOs’ input into the new draft law, and we are going ahead with including in the new drinking water legislation the right for access to safe drinking water in adequate supply, as well as mechanisms for public participation on the monitoring and improvement of this law. In the framework of the drinking water campaign MAMA-86 network implements the pilot projects on different practical solutions of drinking water problems at the local level.
Figure 5 (top)
Water purification device
Figure 6 (above)
Odessa: intake channel at the water supply station
At present, in Ukraine 25% of water treatment facilities have reached their expiry date, 22% of water pipelines are in state of emergency, 35% are worn out and inadequate. 45% of the population of Ukraine is consuming water which is below the quality standards adopted at the beginning of 1980. The health of the population in Ukraine is in a critical state; therefore small-scaled, short-term alternative solutions for the supply of safe drinking water to people today is an extremely urgent and important task. Exchange of knowledge and experience on positive solutions of ecological problems (water pilot projects, in particular) and on citizens’ role in implementing it are of the great importance for catalysing public activity. Nongovernmental organisations should develop and increase the number of such pilot projects. Development of rational water use among citizens is one of the important goals of the MAMA-86 drinking water campaign. It is important to note that during the former Soviet Union’s time the concept of endless water resources prevailed. The payment for water resources never corresponded to the real value. Yet, the cost of water is not realistic and not transparent. To compare: in the Netherlands, 1 cubic metre costs for the individual user up to 1.5 USD, whereas the same in Ukraine costs not more than 10 cents. Economical instruments are developing very slowly in Ukraine, while overuse of drinking water exceeds national standards (300 litres per person per day) by an average of 2–3 times, and 5–6 times the standards of EU countries. Ukrainian Government has declared market reforms in Ukraine. The private sector is becoming involved step-bystep in municipal services operations. That is why the attitude to water has to start changing at the political, administrative, legislative and consumer levels as soon as possible.
SEBASTOPOL
In 1999 MAMA-86 initiated an international project on the reconstruction of Sebastopol City Infectious Diseases Hospital. The state of water supply, sewerage and heating systems of the Hospital are in a state of emergency. The Hospital’s wastewater is insufficiently treated and contains
pathogenic micro-organisms, a dangerous source of pollution to underground water and open sea. The Tebodin consulting firm conducted a technical
investigation (in June-July 1999) of the situation, resulting in a priority listing and first cost estimate for the reconstruction works. A local building firm is now conducting the construction work. NOVIB funded 90% of the project’s budget. To develop the feeling of ownership among citizens of Sebastopol, MAMA-86 partner ‘Gaia’ has started a broad informational campaign in order to raise funds for and to involve local people, authorities and other interested parties into the Hospital reconstruction work.
Figure 7
Secondary treated water
ARTEMIVSK
In Artemivsk, the MAMA-86 partner has actively lobbied the local authorities to implement the City Programme on Drinking Water Supply till 2002. MAMA-86, together with major stakeholders, has prepared recommendations on: treatment plant reconstruction; putting into operation artesian wells in the town; and the production of bottled drinking water. The additional measures on drinking water improvement and finance building (8% of the town’s budget) were adopted by the local authorities. In 1999, three town enterprises producing bottled drinking water were put into operation.
TATARBUNARY
In Tatarbunary, as a result of the MAMA-86 campaign, regional partners have received a drinking water purification device, which supplies the kindergarten with safe drinking water. This deal has activated local authorities. They have decided to buy two more devices to supply safe water to kindergartens and schools.
ODESSA
Odessa’s MAMA-86 partner is actively developing their activity on rational water use. They have found that there is a 2.3–3.6 times excess of water use in Luzanivka district (about 10 000 inhabitants). The main reasons for such losses are leakages in water supply system and irrational water use. Due to public activities the local administration has conducted repairs of taps, pipes and overflow systems in apartments. Based on the data obtained, a leaflet on water saving was published and distributed in this area. This experience is broadly used in MAMA-86’s educational work. The MAMA-86 regional group in Odessa took action to provide consumers with information on the quality of commercially supplied drinking water. As the quality of tap drinking water drops, the spontaneous development of alternative systems for drinking water supply is becoming a real problem. The volunteers of the ‘Drinking Water’ project in Odessa have conducted a public inspection of 98 commercial additional purified water units. The results obtained were delivered to the State Sanitary Supervision Organs. After the second government inspection 10 units were closed. The results and valid information on the situation with additionally purified water were presented in the leaflet ‘What the consumer of additionally purified water must know’. This information contributed to
the debates on legislation and technology aspects of alternative solutions for safe drinking water supply. In December 1999 the regional group of MAMA-86-
Odessa held a seminar on additional water purification problems. All the participants represented Odessa’s water business. The experts on water purification and relevant regulations informed the business community about the requirements as to the quality of additionally purified water
and the new technologies. The participants considered this seminar as highly informative and constructive.
CONCLUSIONS
Environmental NGOs play a significant role in the implementation of sustainable water use principals, making it real. But NGOs shouldn’t replace the National and Local Governments in their duties. Also, when we are talking about an integrated approach to water management, this integration should not be cooked as a mixture. Structured mechanisms of performance and the true partnership of the different players are based on clearly identified duties
and rights of those involved. Participation is the key word for the strategy to achieve sustainable water, although the roles of different participants should be specified. However, as for participating consumers – they should be citizens, first of all. The consumer is taking care only of his/ her tap
water, while the citizen is taking care of the river where the water is coming from, and what will happen to the water after use. This is a challenge while introducing new NIS economical instruments in water management, including water meters, to promote the connection of these instruments
to the environment, health and well-being; and educate citizens about it. The Governments should make better use of NGOs’ information capacity and their experience to educate people about water sector reforms. We need people to understand the basic principles of ecosystem approach in water management. As water is vital to the life of each person on Earth, we believe that global thinking of people, needed for sustainable development, will be developed exactly via thoughts about water – blue gold of the Planet.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Anna Golubovska-Onisimova is a cofounder and acting director of MAMA-86 environmental NGO in Kyiv, Ukraine. She is 36 now, married, mother of 2 children. Anna graduated from the National Academy of Arts in 1987, where she trained as an architect, but since 1990, she has become more and more involved
with environmental NGO activities. Anna participated in a large number of international projects and conferences, including UN CSD–2, CSD–5 and CSD–6, UN Women’s Conference in Beijing in 1995, and a number of regional meetings organised by UN ECE. She is a Board member of ANPED (Northern Alliance for
Sustainability), ECO Forum (Pan-European Coalition of Environmental Citizen’s Organizations) and Women in Europe for a Common Future. Since April 1999, she has been the associate of LEAD (Leadership for the Environment and Development) International programme.
IF YOU HAVE ANY ENQUIRIES REGARDING THE CONTENT OF THIS ARTICLE, PLEASE CONTACT:
Anna Golubovska-Onisimova
Director MAMA-86 Environmental NGO
22 Michailivska str.
Kyiv-1 01001
Ukraine
Tel: +380 44 228 7749
Fax: +380 44 229 5514
E-mail: mama86@gluk.org
Web site: www.mama-86.kiev.ua
================================================
Commentary by funmaxus: The above website shown defaults to:
http://rozvitokrus.ru/ which appears to be printed in Ukraine. Use Google Translate to convert the website into English.
International patent: http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=44326154
"Icepickr - Interesting, so it has to be Himilayan sodium chloride, nothing else will do, LOL. Looks to me like ZVTK just stuck a couple of electrodes in a CFL. If there's no patent, its more like a Pet Rock - heck,I guess somebody sold millions of those at a high profit margin, LOL "
Hmm, let's see broke $0.01. Next up: $0.03. Go ZVTK!
fun
Posted by: momentum858 Date: Thursday, December 24, 2009 6:52:13 PM
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=44850196
"3 day weekend will give time for investors to evaluate ZVTK as to entry, additional investment, etc. Will get interesting if a PR arrives on Monday to break .01 and get a sense of PPS direction and behavior. With the buying force and exposure new 52 week high could very well occur this coming week. Good gain on ones money from this level."
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Posted by: advance Date: Thursday, December 24, 2009 6:53:52 PM
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=44850214
"yes and pink elephants will travel to the moon come this week"
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Posted by: funmaxus Date: Thursday, December 24, 2009 8:15:11 PM
Declassified Photograph Of Pink Elephants On Moon