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If anyone has not read the CEO interview, here it is.
http://www.bugsatwork.com/CEOinterview.pdf
I ignore the bashers if they don't like it get out. If they feel they are bagholders, just hold on, things IMO are just about to happen in a big way. If they are bashers with a position or no position they are just trying to buy your shares cheap. Don't let them. And then there are the shorts, who need the pps to drop to save their %^$#&*$$$ ass.
I beleive we are at the beginning of something big in regards to bugs getting some big exposure. I beleive they are on the right track, if they can get big contracts with Mexico, the rest of the third world countries will follow. Don't forget about other uses here in the U.S. and in all other countries. The application of our patents for use in industry, water treatment facilities, agriculture, and the list goes on.
IMO the Mexican contracts which will happen is just the tip of the iceberg.
Good luck
JC
(Voluntary Disclosure: Position- Long; ST Rating- Strong Buy; LT Rating- Strong Buy)
If any of you are interested in writing to other parties involved. Here are some names, you will need to look up the email addresses. If we can push the parties involved to give us more information about the future of Mexican contracts, we can be much more secure in our investments and prospects for success.
Pemex Oil - Petroleos Mexicanos
Environmental Tec International, S.A. de C.V.
Guillermo Andrade Gelabert
Luis Ramirez Corzo, who became Pemex's director general last December, has said. Lawmakers control Pemex's budget,
Villagran Ballesteros, a lawyer who has sued Pemex officials over the recent spills.
Gerardo Alvarado Salinas, Profepa's director general for inspection of pollution sources
Gov. Mario Marin Torres of the state of Puebla, Mexico,
National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)
Governor Mario Marin Torres has formed an alliance with the governors of Veracruz, Mr. Fidel Herrera, Tabasco, Mr. Manuel Andrade and Campeche, Mr. Jorge Carlos Hurtado Valdez, to ensure immediate restoration and remediation of the areas affected with Pemex's crude oil and gasoline releases, as these states have experienced hundreds of hydrocarbons spills during this
John Mizroch
President & CEO
World Environment Center
Northern Mexico Water Resources Would Be Viewed as Critical by UN
Along with the other states in Northern Mexico, Chihuahua has less than 2,000 cubic meters of water per person, says Salomón Abedrop López, the vice president of the executive council of the Asociación Nacional de Empresas de Agua y Saneamiento (National Association of Water and Sanitation Businesses, ANEAS). To put this in perspective, Abedrop notes that countries with less than 5,000 cubic meters of water per person are considered by the United Nations to be in critical condition in terms of water resources.
Northern Mexico has just 1,900 cubic meters of water per resident which puts it in a class with nations such as Egypt, Iraq and Iran in terms of water resources. However, Mexico as a whole is not in such dire shape. Nationwide there is an average of 4,900 cubic meters of water per person.
For more information on the intellectual property activities of the Engineering Institute of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, please contact Rodrigo Cárdenas, e-mail address: rodar@servidor.unam.mx
http://mexico.usembassy.gov/mexico/ep040308UNAM.html
The United States government through its Embassy in Mexico and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM
U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Antonio O. Garza, Jr. who presided over the event with Dr. Juan Ramon de la Fuente, Chancellor of UNAM.
Zaragoza Graduate School of Studies of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)
NOBEL PRIZE WINNER, DR. KARY B. MULLIS, JOINS XYCLONYX TECHNICAL ADVISORY BOARD
Currently a resident of La Jolla, CA, Mr. Mullis is a graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology (BS Chemistry, 1966) and the University of California at Berkeley (Ph.D. Biochemistry, 1972). He also did several years of post-doctoral research in pediatric cardiology and pharmaceutical chemistry.
Mr. Mullis was for many years a scientist at Cetus Corporation, where he was actively involved in both chemistry and human genetics research. Subsequently, he was Director of Molecular Biology for XyclonyX of San Diego, CA. Since 1987 he has consulted privately with dozens of prominent companies seeking his expert assistance in the field of nucleic acid chemistry,
Dr. Richard Lorden of Lorden Y Asociados in Mexico City, Mexico
Grupo Bartlett, S.A. de C.V. to execute work in Mexico using its registered technology with SEMARNAT (Mexico EPA).
Inventors: Mirzayi; Behzad (8228 S. Jackson St., Littleton, CO 80122); Robinson; Mery C. (6965 El Camino Real, Number 105-279, Carlsbad, CA 92009); Smith; Alvin J. (4379 Modoc Rd., Santa Barbara, CA 93110); Colasito; Dominic J. (2707 Panorama Dr., Bakersfield, CA 91101)
Mexico's Federal Ministry for the Environment."
jc
Here is a copy of an email I sent to Semarnat today to try to get some information on the September 19th meeting and the progress made.
environmental clean up
To: contactodgeia@semarnat.gob.mx
To whom it may concern,
I am an investor in US Microbics and it's subsidiary
Sub-surface Waste Management of Deleware. I understand
that they are working with SEMARNAT and Environmental
Tec International to submit detailed cost estimate
engineering proposals to address urgent environmental
compliance and remediation needs at Pemex operating
facilities.
I would like to request any information that you have
on these projects and any information that you can
give regarding the September 19th meeting with Pemex's
President Mr. Luis Ramirez Corzo to discuss proposed
remediation activities and a financing plan to address
recent and historic releases of petroleum products
from pipelines and bulk terminal facilities in the
State of Puebla.
________
I will try to translate this message into spanish. I
my translation is incorrect please excuse me, I am
using an internet translation site.
Thank you very much for your quick response to my
questions.
John C.
___
Translation
A quien pueda interesar, Soy un inveator en los
E.E.U.U. Microbics y es gestión de desechos
subsuperficie subsidiaria de Deleware. Entiendo que
están trabajando con SEMARNAT e internacional técnico
ambiental para someter ofertas detalladas de la
ingeniería de la valoración de costes para tratar
conformidad y la remediación ambientales urgentes
necesita en las instalaciones de funcionamiento de
Pemex. Quisiera solicitar cualquier información que
usted tenga en estos proyectos y cualquier información
que usted pueda dar con respecto a la reunión de
septiembre del 19 con el presidente Sr. Luis Ramirez
Corzo de Pemex para discutir propuso actividades de la
remediación y un plan del financiamiento para tratar
lanzamientos recientes e históricos de los productos
de petróleo de tuberías y de las instalaciones
terminales a granel en el estado de Puebla. ________
Intentaré traducir este mensaje a español. I mi
traducción es incorrecto me excusa por favor, yo está
utilizando un sitio de la traducción del Internet.
Gracias mucho por su respuesta rápida a mis preguntas.
Juan C.
(Voluntary Disclosure: Position- Long; ST Rating- Strong Buy; LT Rating- Strong Buy)
On Friday September 2, 2005 Governor Mario Marin Torres held a press conference covered by local and national media reprimanding Pemex, the state owned oil company, for the irresponsible management of their petroleum pipelines in Mexico, specifically in the states of Puebla, Veracruz, Tabasco and Campeche. The following day, September 3, 2005, Mexico's leading newspaper -- The Reforma -- quoted the Governor as he stated that the three most recent spills of crude oil and gasoline have contaminated water reservoirs, farm lands and rivers, in some cases impacting up to hundreds of acres.
Governor Mario Marin Torres has formed an alliance with the governors of Veracruz, Mr. Fidel Herrera, Tabasco, Mr. Manuel Andrade and Campeche, Mr. Jorge Carlos Hurtado Valdez, to ensure immediate restoration and remediation of the areas affected with Pemex's crude oil and gasoline releases, as these states have experienced hundreds of hydrocarbons spills during this year.
Governor Mario Marin Torres has requested an immediate meeting with the President of Pemex, Mr. Luis Ramirez Corzo to obtain Pemex's immediate acceptance of these remediation activities and their financial support for the same.
Environmental Tech International will be responsible for the majority of the restoration activities vis-a-vis these contaminated areas, i.e.: farming lands, rivers and water reservoirs in Puebla working through Governor Mario Marin Torres and his Secretary for the Ministry of Environment.
_____
BUGS Subsidiary Prepares Cost Estimates for New Work in Mexico
CARLSBAD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 16, 2005--Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc. (OTCBB:SSWM - News) announced that senior engineers from its Mexico subsidiary company Environmental Tec International, S.A. de C.V. (ETI) and representatives from its strategic alliance and teaming partner, the Zaragoza Graduate School of Studies of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), have been asked by the Mexican state oil corporation, Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex), to submit detailed cost estimate engineering proposals to address urgent environmental compliance and remediation needs at Pemex operating facilities. The ETI/UNAM engineering team recently completed site visits to gather data for submitting their report as soon as possible in order that work can be commenced.
Representatives of ETI will be joining Governor Mario Marin Torres in his scheduled meeting Monday, September 19 with Pemex's President Mr. Luis Ramirez Corzo to discuss proposed remediation activities and a financing plan to address recent and historic releases of petroleum products from pipelines and bulk terminal facilities in the State of Puebla.
As previously reported, ETI will be responsible for restoration activities on contaminated areas including farming lands, rivers and water reservoirs in Puebla working through Governor Mario Marin Torres and his Secretary for the Ministry of Environment.
______
Brehm added, "The Mexico operations, under the guidance of Sub-Surface Waste Management (OTCBB:SSWM), continued to generate record-breaking revenues each quarter this fiscal year (up 82% in first 3 months, 129% in six months, and 334% in nine months compared to prior year), indicating improved market acceptance of our technology and services. We expect revenues to further increase as we complete existing contracts and receive additional contracts in Mexico." A recent interview given by Mr. Brehm including an update on progress in Mexico is available at www.CEOCFOinterviews.com.
_____
(Voluntary Disclosure: Position- Long; ST Rating- Strong Buy; LT Rating- Strong Buy)
Claims
1. The method of providing for a fluid treatment, that includes
a) providing a treatment zone containing granular activated charcoal, and
b) providing a stream of water containing nutrients, contaminant degrading microbes and dissolved oxygen, and
c) introducing said stream to said treatment zone to effect adsorption of said nutrients and microbes onto the granular activated charcoal, thereby to provide a contaminant treatment matrix, whereby contaminant in fluid flow through the matrix is reduced, and
d) providing a seeding zone in matrix form upstream of said treatment zone and through which said stream of water is passed prior to its introduction to said treatment zone, to entrain microbes growing in the matrix to which nutrient is supplied.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the granular activated charcoal in said zone has one of the following forms:
i) pellets
ii) a mat or mats
iii) fabric
iv) a support matrix
v) adsorption media.
3. The method of claim 1 including passing a separate treatable aqueous fluid stream into contact with said granular activated charcoal, in a treatment path, and recovering treated fluid from said path.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein said granular activated charcoal is disposed as a porous support media for said nutrients and microbes.
5. The method of claim 3 including adjusting the pH of the separate fluid stream to between 6.0 and 8.5 prior to said introducing step.
6. The method of claim 5 including adjusting the temperature of said separate fluid stream to a level less than 110° F., prior to said introducing step.
7. The method of claim 1 including adjusting the temperature of said separate fluid stream to a level less than 110° F., prior to said introducing step.
8. The method of claim 1 including introducing O2 to said treatment zone.
9. The method of claim 1 including aerating said treatment zone.
10. The method of claim 1 including providing a series of said treatment zones, and said seeding zone upstream of said treatment zones, and from which microbes are supplied in fluid flow to the treatment zones, for adsorption on the granular activated charcoal therein.
11. The method of claim 1 including passing a separate waste water stream containing toxic contaminants through said matrix, to reduce the concentration of said contaminants.
12. The method of claim 1 including passing gas transported toxic contaminants through said matrix, to reduce the concentration of said contaminants.
13. The method of providing for a fluid treatment, that includes
a) providing a treatment zone containing granular activated charcoal in pellet form, and
b) providing a stream of water containing nutrients, contaminant degrading microbes and dissolved oxygen, and
c) introducing said stream to said treatment zone to effect adsorption of said nutrients and microbes onto the granular activated charcoal, thereby to provide a contaminant treatment matrix, whereby contaminant in fluid flow through the matrix is reduced, and
d) providing a seeding zone in matrix form upstream of said treatment zone and through which said stream of water is passed prior to its introduction to said treatment zone, to entrain microbes growing in the matrix to which nutrient is supplied.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to treatment of granular activated charcoal (GAC) filtration systems; and more particularly it concerns use of micro-organisms for removal of contaminating hydrocarbons from such systems.
"Liquid phase" GAC systems are typically used as water filtration media to adsorb toxic chemicals found in wastewater and extracted groundwater plumes. Treated water typically must meet Clean Water Act standards for discharge into sewers or streams. GAC becomes spent when its adsorption potentials are met and breakthrough of toxics occurs. There is need for apparatus and methods that not only extend service life, but also, actively effect scrubbing of the effluent water stream to mitigate GAC breakthrough of daughter degradation compounds such as Tri-Butyl Alcohol (TBA), which is created in the breakdown of Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE), the clean fuels additive found in gasoline.
More generally, granular activated carbon or charcoal (GAC) is used extensively to treat water, wastewater and groundwater at remediation sites contaminated with various organic pollutants such as petroleum hydrocarbons including BTEX and MTBE, chlorinated solvents, volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds. Historically, this technology has been used because it is effective, predictable, economical, and simple to implement at a variety of sites and operating conditions. Recently, however, increasing regeneration costs and the regulation of compounds that have lower adsorption efficiencies has made traditional GAC systems less economical. For example, hundreds of sites across the United States and overseas with groundwater impacted by MTBE, and its daughter products including TBA, must be remediated to near non-detect levels, but GAC has a very low adsorption efficiency for MTBE and TBA. The result is that MTBE and TBA breakthrough occurs very rapidly and carbon change-out frequencies must increase.
Such toxic chemicals include for example tri-butyl alcohol created in the breakdown of MTBE, Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether, the clean fuels additive found in gasoline.
As noted, granular activated carbon (GAC) is used extensively to treat groundwater and vapor streams at remediation sites and industrial facilities across the U.S. and abroad. To date, the standard practice has been to replace spent carbon with virgin carbon, or to have the carbon thermally regenerated. Replacing spent carbon with virgin carbon is more expensive, but is often done since the alternative thermal regeneration breaks down the carbon, resulting in more "fines". The cost of thermal regeneration has also been increasing due to increasing energy costs. At the same time, the increasing presence of MTBE and its daughter products like TBA have resulted in increasing carbon usage rates and expense, since GAC has a lower adsorption efficiency for these compounds.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is a major object of the invention to provide an improved method for fluid treatment, that includes
a) providing a treatment zone containing granular activated charcoal, and
b) providing a stream of water containing nutrients, contaminant degrading microbes and dissolved oxygen, and
c) introducing that stream to the treatment zone to effect adsorption of nutrients and microbes onto the granular activated charcoal, thereby to provide a contaminant treatment matrix.
An important advantage of such a method, and its associated system, over traditional granular activated charcoal per se treatment of fluid such as water, is that the system is very effective in the treatment of hydrocarbon contaminants such as MTBE and its byproducts, resulting in typical cost savings of up to 50 percent relative to traditional GAC systems.
The surface of granular-activated carbon adsorbs organic compounds, such as MTBE, and acts as a "storage site" to buffer variations in influent concentration. The surface is also an excellent attachment medium for bacteria. This allows the bacteria to thrive in the presence of uniform aqueous concentrations of MTBE and other organic compounds.
A further advantage lies in elimination of need for thermal desorption facilities which roast toxics from the GAC, causing indirect damage up to 25% of the GAC by volume, and necessitating addition of virgin GAC to blend back to specified adsorption levels or properties. The present on-site process can be operated at one-third to one-half the cost of conventional thermal reactivation.
Another object includes provision of a process wherein microbial blends are employed to inoculate bacteria directly upon out-of-service and spent Granular Activated Carbon from both "liquid phase" and "vapor phase" filtration systems. "Liquid phase" GAC systems are typically used as water filtration media to adsorb toxic chemicals found in wastewater and extracted groundwater plumes. "Vapor phase" GAC systems are typically used to scrub or reduce airborne or gas-borne toxics that vent from filling and emptying large storage tanks and process treatment vessels as found in petroleum refineries and tank farms.
# A further object includes provision of microbe adsorbing granular activated charcoal in a treatment zone, where the charcoal has one of the following matrix-like forms:
* i) pellets
* ii) a mat or mats
* iii) fabric
* iv) a support matrix
* v) adsorption media.
Yet another object includes provision of a process that includes passing treatable aqueous fluid into contact with such matrix adsorbed substances, in a treatment path, and recovering treated fluid from that path. Such fluid typically includes water. As referred to, the GAC is typically disposed as a porous support media for such nutrients and microbes.
An additional object includes adjusting the pH of the fluid to between 6.0 and 8.5 prior to its introduction to the matrix; and also adjusting the temperature of the fluid to a level less than 110° F., prior to the introducing step.
Further objects include provision of a multi-tank system containing GAC, and connected in series for reception of fluid to be treated, and microbial nutrients to be adsorbed on the GAC. At least one of the upstream tanks typically and preferably contains seeding microbes to be carried downstream onto the GAC in successive tanks. Porous synthetic resinous ball-like "seeders" may be employed in the upstream tank to disperse microbes into the flow, the microbes having been deposited on the seeders.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention, as well as the details of an illustrative embodiment, will be more fully understood from the following specification and drawings, in which:
DRAWING DESCRIPTION
FIG. 1 is a preferred system diagram;
FIG. 2 is another system diagram.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring first to FIG. 1, a bioreactor surge tank is shown at 10. Nutrients and microbes are supplied to the upper interior of tank 10 at 11 from a tank 12, via a metering pump 13; and air or oxygen is supplied to the lower interior of the tank 10, as via a blower 14, to increase dissolved O2 levels in the fluid in the tank. Process water, conditioned as to pH level and temperature, is supplied at 15 to the tank upper interior.
The reactor 10 contains a bio-support matrix or bed 16 through which process water flows downwardly to an exit at 17. The matrix 16 serves to maintain an active or "healthy" microbial population to ensure that a portion of the microbes will be picked up and carried by the water flowing through 16 and to and from exit 17, for seeding the granular activated charcoal GAC in a subsequent vessel or vessels. Matrix or bed 16 may advantageously consist of a mass of synthetic resinous (plastic) pieces such as porous balls, held in position as for example by upper and lower screens at 19 and 20. The O2 supply may include a fine-bubble aeration device or devices, or by adding or supplying hydrogen peroxide or other oxidizer.
Usable bacteria as for treatment (for example consumption) of hydrocarbon contaminants, include one or more of: Achromobacter, Arthrobacter, Aspergillus, Bacillus, Candida, Cladosporium, Corynebacterium, Myrothecium, Nocardia, Punicillium, Phialophora, Pseudomonas, Rhodotorula, Streptomyces, Trichoderma, and a blend of Anerobic and Faculative Organisms.
# Process water flows through the interstices in and between the plastic pieces or balls in the matrix or mass to entrain bacteria growing in the matrix, by virtue of the nutrient supply. Nutrient material may include one or more of the following:
* simple sugars
* mono-potassium phosphate
* nitrogen
The second step in the system employs one or more treatment vessels or canisters 25 to which process fluid such as water is supplied. See paths 26 and 27.
The process water containing nutrients, microbes, and dissolved oxygen enters the vessels where a carbon matrix adsorbs and concentrates the organic compounds carried in the upward flow in the vessels. The carbon matrix can consist of GAC or other carbon based products, including pellets, mats, fabrics, or a combination of carbon materials. The carbon material acts as an adsorption media for the organic compounds and as a support matrix for the microbes.
The microbes adsorbed onto the GAC matrix granules consume hydrocarbon material, such as MTBE, in the flowing process water, in the vessels. The matrix typically fills the vessels, as schematically indicated by in-fill arrows 28. The GAC material from which hydrocarbon has been removed by consumption (microbial consumption of hydrocarbon to produce CO2 and water) is periodically removed from the vessels, as schematically indicated by arrows 29. Treated fluid, or water, leaves the vessels as indicated at 30, for return flow in a loop to 15.
The bioreactor and Bio-GAC™ vessels must be sized to ensure that adequate retention time is available for the adsorption and microbial processes to be effective. High flow velocities tend to wash the microbes through the vessels, and prevent the development of suitable microbial populations to be effective on the water waste stream being treated, and removed at 30.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrative of an alternate system. Process water received at 32 is sprayed on packing 33 in a bioreactor vessel 34. Packing 32 corresponds to the bed 16 in FIG. 1. Process water draining to sump 35 in vessel 34 is removed at 36 and pumped to the reactors 37, 38, and 39, corresponding to reactors 25. pH control liquid is added at 40 to flow path 41; and microbes and nutrients may be added at 42 to the flow 41. After passing through the treatment tanks 37-39, process water leaves at 46, for use, or for return flow to 32.
The disclosed system or systems can be used for a variety of process streams containing organic compounds. In order to protect the microbes in the system, the groundwater or process water must be conditioned prior to entering the system. As referred to, the pH must be adjusted to between 6.0 and 8.5 and the temperature should be less than 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
Typically, the process restores GAC to 95% or more of its original adsorption value or values, without the need for transport handling.
A variation of the process further contemplates that the spent GAC to be treated be placed in a gravity feed hopper engineered to drain at an optimum rate of flow dependent upon GAC grain sizing and available treatment vessel size. Spray nozzles sized at 1-3 GPM are suspended above the spent GAC in a manifold pattern with overlapping radius in a treatment zone to assure maximum surface area coverage and to minimize the chance for treatment effluent channeling and formation of erosion gaps within the body of GAC deposited in the treatment vessel. Such a system or process employs the application of microbial blends, surfactants, nutrients and water applied through a series of spray nozzles that continually recycle the treatment blend in a closed loop. Gravity fed treatment blend is recovered using a receiving tank under or adjacent the treatment vessel plumbed to a water pump that feeds the spray nozzles atop the GAC treatment tank. Once GAC reactivation levels are achieved, liquid phase GAC can be placed directly back into service. Vapor phase GAC must be dried to specified moisture standards before being placed back into service. Conventional electric fan blowers plumbed directly into the treatment container force air through the GAC to achieve the proper moisture content.
The above system can be employed to treat water containing any of the following substances:
TABLE 1
Benzene
Bromobenzene
Bromochloromethane
Bromodichloromethane
Bromoform
Bromomethane
n-Butylbenzene
sec-Butylbenzene
tert-Butylbenzene
Carbon tetrachloride
Chlorobenzene
Chloroethane
Chloroform
Chloromethane
2-Chlorotoluene
4-Chlorotoluene
1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane
Dibromochloromethane
1,2-Dibromoethane (EDB)
Dibromomethane
1,2-Dichlorobenzene
1,3-Dichlorobenzene
1,4-Dichlorobenzene
Dichlorodifluoromethane
1,1-Dichloroethane
1,2-Dichloroethane
1,1-Dichloroethene
cis-1,2-Dichloroethene
trans-1,2-Dichloroethene
1,2-Dichloropropane
1,3-Dichloropropane
2,2-Dichloropropane
1,1-Dichloropropene
Diisopropyl ether
Ethyl benzene
Hexachloro-1,3-butadiene
Isopropylbenzene (Cumene)
p-Isopropyltoluene
Methylene chloride
Methyl-tert-butyl ether
Naphthalene
n-Propylbenzene
Styrene
1,1,1,2-Tetrachloroethane
1,1,2,2-Tetrachloroethane
Tetrachloroethene
Toluene
1,2,3-Trichlorobenzene
1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene
1,1,1-Trichloroethane
1,1,2-Trichloroethane
Trichloroethene
Trichlorofluoromethane
1,2,3-Trichloropropane
1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene
1,3,5-Trimethylbenzene
Vinyl chloride
m&p-Xylene
o-Xylene
Toluene-d8 (S)
# The system can be used in the following industries for treatment of water, wastewater, and impacted groundwater subject to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); Clean Air Act (CAA); Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Clean-water Act (CWA) including, but not limited to the equivalent state and local requirements. The typical industries with potential beneficial use are:
* Local potable water treatment companies, boards, districts
* Oil and gas production, transportation, pipeline, bulking, refining, distribution, retail and gas stations]
* Commercial and industrial facilities with waste water production, and/or NPDES permit requirements to treat facility discharges
* Chemical and petrochemical manufacturing facilities
* Groundwater remediation sites.
In a large-scale test, virgin carbon was loaded into a bioreactor consisting of two 55-gallon drums and exposed to water containing MTBE until the carbon was saturated with MTBE. At this point, microbes were added to the reactors and the system operation was continued by re-circulating water at flow rates of up to 2 gallons per minute. MTBE is added to the feed tank to create MTBE concentrations of approximately 150 mg/l. Continued operation and testing have shown that the bioreactor is effectively reducing MTBE concentrations by more than 99 percent as indicated in Table 1.
In the small-scale test, virgin carbon was loaded into two small columns and water containing approximately 180 mg/l MTBE was passed through the columns to simulate field conditions. After passing a volume of water through the columns equivalent to three times the adsorption capacity of the virgin carbon, samples were collected to determine if the system was continuing to adsorb MTBE or if the carbon was saturated. The results in Table 2 show that even after exposing the carbon to three times the adsorption capacity of the carbon, the system continued to adsorb the MTBE.
TABLE 1
Bio-GAC ™ Reactor Drum Test
MTBE
Sample ID (μg/l)
Feed Water 140,000
Reactor 1 Effluent 17,000
Reactor 2 Effluent 190
TABLE 2
Bio-GAC ™ Reactor Column Test
MTBE
Sample ID (μg/l)
Feed Water 200,000
Column 1 Effluent 30,000
Column 2 Effluent 6,000
The disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 5,334,533, is incorporated herein, by reference.
(Voluntary Disclosure: Position- Long; ST Rating- Strong Buy; LT Rating- Strong Buy)
Bio-GAC (™) Patents
"Our research and field development team was also busy this year as it had published its patented water treatment technology, Bio-GAC(TM) (Patent No: US 6,905,603 B2) for the treatment of toxic waste streams such as those caused by Hurricane Katrina and other man-made and natural disasters. We expect to license this technology in 2006 and use it in our own projects," added Brehm.
US patent No 6,905,603 B2
United States Patent 6,905,603
Mirzayi , et al. June 14, 2005
________________________________________
Treatment of contaminated activated charcoal
Abstract
The method of providing for a fluid treatment, that includes providing a treatment zone containing granular activated charcoal, and providing a stream of water containing nutrients, contaminant degrading microbes and dissolved oxygen, and introducing the stream to a treatment zone to effect adsorption of nutrients and microbes onto the granular activated charcoal, thereby to provide a contaminant treatment matrix, whereby contaminant in fluid flow through the matrix is reduced.
________________________________________
Inventors: Mirzayi; Behzad (8228 S. Jackson St., Littleton, CO 80122); Robinson; Mery C. (6965 El Camino Real, Number 105-279, Carlsbad, CA 92009); Smith; Alvin J. (4379 Modoc Rd., Santa Barbara, CA 93110); Colasito; Dominic J. (2707 Panorama Dr., Bakersfield, CA 91101)
Appl. No.: 052295
Filed: January 18, 2002
Current U.S. Class: 210/615; 210/150; 210/616; 210/617
Intern'l Class: C02F 003/00
Field of Search: 210/615-617,150
(Voluntary Disclosure: Position- Long; ST Rating- Strong Buy; LT Rating- Strong Buy)
I am glad to see more posters on this board. I have been posting on another board and have done some extensive dd. I will copy some of it and post it here. This is just the beginning folks. Hold on to every share you have !!!!
JC
Bugs is the company that Univ of Mexico, Pemex and the Government has choosen. They have choosen their technologoy as the solution, it is just a matter of when and How much the contracts are for. My guess, out of 3 billion cost to clean up, we may ge 50 to 100 million to start on the most affected areas. That is just scratching the surface. In my earlire long post on dd I did on pemex and their environmental clean up problems, it will cost the Government up to 9 billion over 10 years to clean it up. We are first in line and they have choosen bugs as the solution.
Hope we get a pr today or tomorrow. !!!!
Holding strong with a large position.
I will be out for the afternoon and will reply to any responses later this evening.
Caution this post is very long. I did some dd this morning, so mark this post and go back to it if you don't want to read it all at one sitting.
good luck - Go Bugs
To all investors, potential investors, bashers and pumpers. In regards to the potential for Bugs and it’s subsidiaries to gain contracts with the Mexican Government, here is some research that I have done today to find out just how concerned the Mexican Government and Pemex Oil is and how serious they are about cleaning up the mess they have made over the decades. I am tired of reading the posts from bashers that have no links to what they talk about, it is to be frank a bunch of “crap” to read if you know what I mean!
Caution there is a lot of reading here so take it one article at a time or all at once, however after reviewing all of this, it surley increases my confidence in the fact that Bugs will get some contracts out of the Mexican Government and Pimex. Of course you make your own assessments and decisions.
JC
Pemex information
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20050515/news_1n15pemex.html
Accidents at Mexico's Pemex draw scrutiny
Oil company provides much of the government's income
By James C. McKinley Jr. and Elisabeth Malkin
NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE
May 15, 2005
MEXICO CITY – Juan Gonzalez Duran, who like nearly everyone in Nanchital works for Pemex, the state-owned oil monopoly, had no doubt about who was responsible for his brother's death last month when a work crew cut into the wrong pipeline and six men died in a blast of ammonia gas.
Gonzalez blamed a Pemex engineer who had been overseeing the job but left just before the accident.
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"I was a worker for Pemex for years, and I worked on deep-sea platforms, and there I could tell you many bad things that the engineers would do, that they would not pay attention to the work," he said. "It makes me sick."
Gonzalez is not the only one fed up in this region, the heart of the oil and petrochemical industry. The blast that killed his brother and five other workers was the latest in more than 12 pipeline accidents to befall Pemex since October.
The spills have focused Mexico's attention on what even company officials acknowledge is an old and poorly maintained network of pipelines. About a third of the network is more than 30 years old, and some pumping equipment is so antiquated that the company cannot find spare parts, Pemex officials say.
But the recent spate of accidents also highlights the complicated symbiotic relationship between the company and the government that is supposed to regulate it. Pemex provides about 40 percent of the government's income, and the environmental agency charged with policing the oil company is woefully underfinanced.
This year, Pemex's authorized budget for maintenance is almost $1 billion less than it needs, Luis Ramirez Corzo, who became Pemex's director general last December, has said. Lawmakers control Pemex's budget, and it pays some two-thirds of its revenue in taxes. Despite record high oil prices that increased revenues to $69 billion last year, Pemex, short for Petroleos Mexicanos, reported a loss of $1.3 billion.
Pemex officials complain that the government mainly uses the oil industry to finance the rest of its spending and puts too little money into infrastructure and maintenance.
Environmentalists say the company's sins, including padded payrolls and oil spills, go unpunished because its enormous importance to the nation's coffers gives it unparalleled political power. In particular, the federal environmental enforcement agency, known as Profepa, has proved toothless when policing Pemex facilities, they say.
"It's a fact that Profepa is very limited; it definitely follows the party line, they can't touch Pemex much," said Francisco Villagran Ballesteros, a lawyer who has sued Pemex officials over the recent spills.
The Profepa chief, Jose Luis Luege, has been reduced to making threats he cannot carry out. On Thursday, he held a news conference to demand that Pemex repair 35 problem pipelines, but he acknowledged that it would cost $770 million. Pemex says it has money to repair just seven. Luege acknowledged that any decision to shut down a major pipeline – and halt a refinery – would probably have to be made by the president.
To many Mexicans who can recall catastrophic Pemex accidents in the recent past, the company is synonymous with a callous disregard for safety and the environment. In 1986, a liquefied petroleum gas terminal blew up outside Mexico City, killing more than 500 people. Six years later, a pipeline explosion in Guadalajara killed more than 200 people.
Since then, the company has worked to upgrade safety and maintenance, its officials say. It has opened its installations to government inspectors, and Pemex executives now submit to public questions and rebukes in Congress. But the spills in Veracruz suggest that the company has a long way to go to repair decades of neglect along its 38,000 miles of pipelines.
Ramirez Corzo said Pemex needed to spend $12.3 billion on maintenance through 2008, a third of that on upgrading pipelines. "This is the crude reality," Ramirez Corzo said in April at a Senate hearing on the Veracruz accidents. "This is the company we have got, not the company we would like to have."
Jose Manuel Olivares Paez, a Pemex official in charge of the oil pipelines, said: "Our infrastructure has started to become old and tired. There are always risks, but the key is to evaluate periodically that your pipelines are secure. There are many points where they are not secure."
But Pemex says it cannot fix all those weak spots. Although the government keeps tight control over Pemex's budget, its ability to watch over Pemex's compliance with environmental and safety regulations is hindered by a tiny budget and weak laws.
Profepa employs 150 industrial inspectors nationally, and Pemex has 2,000 installations to check, said Jose Ramon Ardavin Ituarte, the deputy prosecutor for industrial inspection.
The pipeline from Nuevo Teapa to Poza Rica that burst last December had long been earmarked as a risk, but Pemex had promised to make improvements.
"We knew there was a risk there, but we could not do anything," said Gerardo Alvarado Salinas, Profepa's director general for inspection of pollution sources. "The law does not allow us to take preventive action. I cannot close this pipeline because tomorrow there might be a spill. I have to wait until there is a spill."
After an accident, environmental officials' tools are limited, because the law sets low fines. Since 2001, Pemex has paid less than $5 million in penalties. And prosecuting officials in connection with negligence is the responsibility of Mexico's Attorney General's Office, which has shown little appetite for taking on the company. In five years, the government has carried out one prosecution.
The accident in Nanchital in April released a plume of ammonia gas, estimated at 60 liquid tons, killed six workers in the excavation, blackened trees and plants for hundreds of yards and forced the evacuation of at least 900 people. It took two days to retrieve bodies.
Just up the road from the site, family members waited grimly. The dead men left behind wives and children with little or no money. Most had been working for the subcontractor, Reparaciones Navales de Petroquimica, for only a few months. On May 4, Pemex gave $74,500 to the families of the six men, although it said it might be ordered to pay more in the future.
Pemex officials have tried to divert blame, saying the subcontractor cut into the wrong pipe after a supervising engineer left to check on the location of the right one. But family members asked why the workers had no protective suits.
"They put him in there to work without any protection," said Victor Armas Mayo, 56, whose 30-year-old son, Daniel Armas, was killed. "I don't know how Pemex allowed this."
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Mexican university to fund SSWM unit groundwater cleanup at state direction
CARLSBAD, CA, Sept. 8, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware Inc. announced that its Mexico subsidiary company Environmental Tec International S.A. de C.V. (ETI) was named specifically in an official correspondence dated Sept. 1 and signed by Gov. Mario Marin Torres of the state of Puebla, Mexico, directing ETI strategic alliance and teaming partner the Zaragoza Graduate School of Studies of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) to provide immediate funding for engineering assessment and remediation of hydrocarbon discharges due to antiquated pipelines and storage tank farms. The recent Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) pipeline spills in Puebla have accounted for the contamination of hundreds of acres of productive farming land, rivers and lakes.
Bruce Beattie, CEO of SSWM stated, "In the Governor's letter UNAM was also instructed to work with ETI to form an Emergency Response Center in Puebla coordinating with the State's Ministry of Environment to train specialized environmental Engineers and Technicians to respond to future spills of hydrocarbons in the State."
On Friday September 2, 2005 Governor Mario Marin Torres held a press conference covered by local and national media reprimanding Pemex, the state owned oil company, for the irresponsible management of their petroleum pipelines in Mexico, specifically in the states of Puebla, Veracruz, Tabasco and Campeche. The following day, September 3, 2005, Mexico's leading newspaper -- The Reforma -- quoted the Governor as he stated that the three most recent spills of crude oil and gasoline have contaminated water reservoirs, farm lands and rivers, in some cases impacting up to hundreds of acres.
Governor Mario Marin Torres has formed an alliance with the governors of Veracruz, Mr. Fidel Herrera, Tabasco, Mr. Manuel Andrade and Campeche, Mr. Jorge Carlos Hurtado Valdez, to ensure immediate restoration and remediation of the areas affected with Pemex's crude oil and gasoline releases, as these states have experienced hundreds of hydrocarbons spills during this year.
Governor Mario Marin Torres has requested an immediate meeting with the President of Pemex, Mr. Luis Ramirez Corzo to obtain Pemex's immediate acceptance of these remediation activities and their financial support for the same.
Environmental Tech International will be responsible for the majority of the restoration activities vis-a-vis these contaminated areas, i.e., farming lands, rivers and water reservoirs in Puebla working through Gov. Mario Marin Torres and his secretary for the Ministry of Environment.
Sub-Surface Waste Management Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary of U.S. Microbics Inc. (www.bugsatwork.com) and provides comprehensive civil and environmental engineering project management services including specialists to design, permit, build and operate environmental waste clean-up treatment systems using conventional, biological and filtration technologies. SSWM is capitalizing on its patented technologies registered in Mexico with SEMARNAT a Federal regulatory agency overseeing environmental compliance nationwide.
http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/29297/newsDate/1-Feb-2005/story.htm
Pemex Wants $9 Billion to Fix Pipes, Oil Spills Continue
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MEXICO: February 1, 2005
MEXICO CITY - Mexican state oil monopoly Pemex Monday confirmed an oil spill in Veracruz state -- it's fifth spill of oil or fuel in four months -- as energy authorities said $9 billion was needed to fix the country's old and rusting pipeline network.
Pemex said the Jan 26. crude oil spill occurred near the town of Hueyapan de Ocampo, Veracruz.
A Pemex spokeswoman in the nearby Gulf of Mexico port of Coatzacoalcos told Reuters around 45,000 liters (283 barrels) of oil had seeped into the subsoil from a faulty pipeline.
She said the leak was caused by corrosion.
Local media have quoted Veracruz Governor Fidel Herrera as saying the spill could pollute underground water sources.
A joint statement by Pemex, Mexico's energy and environment ministries, and environmental watchdog Profepa said Pemex needed to invest 100 billion pesos ($9 billion) over the 2006-2008 period for a huge backlog in repairs to 36,738 kilometers (22,961 mile) of aging pipeline.
The recent spate of spills has thrust attention onto the state of pipes pumping oil, gasoline, natural gas and chemicals around the Gulf of Mexico states of Veracruz, Tabasco and Campeche, where the oil industry is centered.
Pemex chief Luis Ramirez is due to appear before Congress later Monday to discuss the situation.
Mexico's IMP oil research institute estimates that half of Mexico's pipelines are more than 30 years old and corroded.
While Pemex has cleaned up the worst of the spills and trucked bottled water into contaminated areas, residents and fishermen were still suffering the aftermath, illustrated by photos in the local media of dead fish and oil-stained earth.
Pemex, which pays taxes worth 61 percent of its revenue, has complained for years that it cannot operate properly with the budget Congress gives it. Last week Pemex said pipeline repairs would cost $3 billion over six years.
Mexico is the world's No. 9 oil exporter, selling much of its 1.95 million barrels per day to the United States.
A reform to ease Pemex's tax burden by trimming royalties on oil produced from new oilfields has been held up in Congress by opposition Senators wary of any changes to Pemex's statute.
The company is spending the bulk of its $11 billion investment budget this year on exploration and production, its main focus based on concerns that output from its largest oilfield will start declining from 2006.
Pemex officials at a spill of toxic naphtha fuel a week ago near the town of Agua Dulce, Veracruz, told Reuters over the past weekend that the company needs to extend a computerized leak alert system to its entire pipeline network.
Story by Catherine Bremer
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
http://www.nmsu.edu/~frontera/may-june04/envi.html
ENVIRONMENT
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Northeast Mexican Ranchers Worry About Burgos Drilling Projects
Ranchers' associations in the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León are concerned that gas drilling will damage springs and other water sources on their land. One cattle owner in Tamaulipas has already complained about two incidents in which PEMEX subcontractors allegedly stole property from his holdings. PEMEX is Petróleos Mexicanos, Mexico's national petroleum company.
To confront their worries the rancher's associations from the three northeast Mexican states have asked for the help of federal-level elected officials. They have requested that federal diputados (representatives) intervene with PEMEX to see that ecosystems and herds are not damaged by installation of the natural gas infrastructure.
Ranchers are bothered that PEMEX is not taking responsibility for the actions of its subcontractors, says Ramón Serna, president of the regional ranchers' association for Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. PEMEX should remember that ranchers control who goes on their land, he stated.
According to Serna, on two occasions in May of this year, property was allegedly missing from the Sabino Verde ranch where PEMEX subcontractor PGS Mexicana is said to be working.
The associations also complained to elected officials that the oil company has not told them the true extent and nature of the Burgos Basin gas project. The basin, which extends under all three states, is just experiencing the beginning of billions of dollars worth of investment. Ranchers would also like to have greater information from PEMEX about when and where drilling will take place.
Ranchers are also worried that springs and other water sources could be affected by drilling, Serna said.
Source: EnLínea Directa (Tamaulipas), June 14, 2004.
Reynosa's "La Escondida" Lagoon Still Awaits Clean Up
A group of Reynosa architects and other city organizations are demanding that city officials, political candidates and the state government finally take action to restore the city's Laguna La Escondida (Hidden Lagoon). The architects and other organizations say that too many promises have been made for too long but nothing has been done to improve the site.
Remembered by those that grew up in Reynosa in the 1950s and 60s as an idyllic spot to picnic and watch migrating birds, the lagoon was filled in with garbage and junked cars in following decades. At one point the area became a dump for a nearby PEMEX plant and its waters later dried up completely.
More recently, Reynosa guaranteed a water supply to La Escondida and 1997 it was officially declared a natural, protected area. A restoration plan was put forth in that year but has yet to be implemented.
In April 2001, FNS described an open sewage canal that ran around the edge of the lagoon. During rains residents said that the canal would spill over its banks and contaminate the lagoon.
Bruno Mariel Lezama, head of Reynosa's environment department, responded to the group of architects by saying that the city has taken action to improve La Escondida. He says that the city has planted "little trees" on its banks and has ordered strict monitoring of the site to ensure that companies do not dump waste there.
The city official noted that "it is a little impossible to be aware" of dumping but stated that two hamburger restaurants were each fined nearly the equivalent of US$3,000 for dumping grease in the lagoon.
Mariel says the city has talked to PEMEX and the oil company has offered to take care of the pollution problem. However, the company wants some "some people" to lose their property rights to land on the lagoon. Mariel described PEMEX's reaction as "infantile".
EnLínea Directa did not specify who these other owners were but the reference could be to families that built homes on the garbage that filled in part of the lagoon.
Previously, part of the restoration plan included relocating area residents. Residents however were opposed to this and protested vigorously at city hall.
To see a previous FNS article on the Laguna La Escondida and residents' reaction to the clean up plan go to: http://www.nmsu.edu/~frontera/apr01/feat4.html.
Source: EnLínea Directa (Tamaulipas), April 29, 2004.
The Baldenegro and Rivas Case: Incarceration of Indigenous Tarahumara Forest Activists Continues in Chihuahua
Greenpeace has joined with other international and Mexican organizations that are demanding the release of indigenous environmental and community activists Isidro Baldenegro and Hermenegildo Rivas. Baldenegro and Rivas, Rarámuri men from the embattled Sierra Tarahumara community of Coloradas de la Virgen, were arrested in their home town on March 29, 2003.
The Sierra Tarahumara, better known in the US as the Copper Canyon, is a 10,000 square mile mountainous area that begins 250 miles south of the US-Mexico border and extends to the Chihuahua-Durango border. It is home to nearly 100,000 indigenous people and the region contains old-growth forest, deep canyons, water falls, and endangered thick-bill parrots.
Baldenegro and Rivas say that Chihuahua state police broke into the men's homes without search warrants and planted guns and marijuana so that they could arrest the pair. Eye witnesses from Coloradas de la Virgen confirm the raid on the men's homes.
The police version of what happened is that agents saw Baldenegro and Rivas walking around with AK-47s and detained them for this. Upon searching Baldenegro they claim that they found him to be carrying marijuana. In Mexico, having weapons of a type only allowed for military use is a serious federal crime. If convicted the men would receive more than ten years in jail.
Environmental and human rights groups like Greenpeace, Amnesty International, Fuerza Ambiental, and Chihuahua's own State Commission for Human Rights say that Baldenegro and Rivas were targeted because of their success as community leaders and environmental activists. It has been noted that the two were arrested just days after Coloradas de las Virgen community members stopped logging trucks that were working in their community. Previously, in 2002, a Mexican court had ordered an end to all cutting in the area.
As FNS reported in April 2004, Baldenegro's father was also a community and forest activist when he died in 1984 after being shot by a high-power rifle--one allegedly fired by a contract killer working for a local, well-known narco-logging family. Other Tarahumara in the area were killed for organizing against illegal forest cutting. Baldenegro's brother, Trinidad Baldenegro, and another men were arrested prior to Isidro Baldenergro and Rivas but have since been freed.
According to environmentalists in the Sierra, the narco-logging dynamic is one in which drug traffickers buy up or use logging companies to launder drug money. In this fashion drug money is run through companies and is made to look like profits from logging. Unfortunate for the Sierra's fauna and flora is the fact that such mechanisms allow otherwise unprofitable logging to continue.
Marijuana and opium cultivation is also threatening peace in the region. Although drug traffickers used to pay a bit of cash to men to tend the growing fields, they now often pay in cocaine which leads to addiction or to the arrest of men that are trying to sell cocaine for cash. Cocaine is brought into the region by low-flying aircraft that use rough landing strips in the Sierra.
To see two April 2003 FNS articles about the Sierra and the Baldenegro-Rivas case go to: http://www.nmsu.edu/~frontera/apr-may03/main.html
Source: El Norte (Cd. Juárez), May 11, 2004. Article by Guadalupe Salcido.
Expanded Farming Threatens Species and Water in Northern Chihuahua
The illegal conversion of grassland to farmland and the drilling of unauthorized wells is threatening ecosystems and communities in Northern Chihuahua, according to an article in the Chihuahua City newspaper El Heraldo. More than 300 species of animals live in the region and some may be threatened by increased development including the Golden Eagle, the Harris Hawk, the Red Tail Hawk, the Pronghorn Antelope and the Prairie Dog.
The Heraldo article pointed to two specific areas that are seeing the plowing of their prairies. One area is in the northwestern corner of Chihuahua, near the cities of Janos and Ascensión. The other area is between Ciudad Juárez and Chihuahua City, in the area around El Sueco. Mennonite agricultural communities in these regions are said to be responsible for most of the unauthorized farming.
José Mario Sánchez, the head of the Procuraduría Federal de Protección al Ambiente (Federal Environmental Protection Office, Profepa) in Chihuahua, said that before grasslands are plowed into farmland another federal environmental agency, Semarnat, must perform an impact study and then give a favorable recommendation to the government of Chihuahua. At that point Chihuahua environment officials must approve or deny the permit. Sánchez says that this process is not being followed in the above mentioned regions.
Not only are animals losing habitat with the creation of new agricultural fields but those working the land are burning it before they plant. Although this practice is prohibited, El Heraldo indicates that the grass is set aflame so that it is harder to detect the conversion.
Due to the slight rainfall the region receives, wells are necessary to irrigate new fields. However, there is currently a ban on well drilling in the areas that are experiencing increased farming. Too much drilling could affect water supply to existing wells in the area, El Heraldo noted.
Source: El Heraldo de Chihuahua (Chihuahua City), June 11, 2004. Article by Juan Francisco Garay Ruiz.
Northern Mexico Water Resources Would Be Viewed as Critical by UN
Along with the other states in Northern Mexico, Chihuahua has less than 2,000 cubic meters of water per person, says Salomón Abedrop López, the vice president of the executive council of the Asociación Nacional de Empresas de Agua y Saneamiento (National Association of Water and Sanitation Businesses, ANEAS). To put this in perspective, Abedrop notes that countries with less than 5,000 cubic meters of water per person are considered by the United Nations to be in critical condition in terms of water resources.
Northern Mexico has just 1,900 cubic meters of water per resident which puts it in a class with nations such as Egypt, Iraq and Iran in terms of water resources. However, Mexico as a whole is not in such dire shape. Nationwide there is an average of 4,900 cubic meters of water per person.
While Mexico has greater water resources in the south, 60% of the nation's population is in northern and central Mexico, Abedrop said. He also noted that 70% of Mexico's gross internal product comes from this same region--which has only 25% of the nation's water.
Not only is water supply a problem in Mexico but so is waste water treatment. Within the next 18 months all cities with more than 20,000 inhabitants will have to have water treatment facilities. There are 306 cities in Mexico of this size and many of them lack the funds necessary for construction. According to Abedrop these cities will start paying fines in 2006 if they do not have waste-water treatment plants in operation.
In Chihuahua City, from August 3, 2004 to August 6, ANEAS will have its yearly conference. It is the second largest in Mexico and will have between 1,500 and 1,800 people in attendance. Water industry companies from Canada, the US, the UK, France, Spain and other nations will exhibit at the conference.
Source: Heraldo de Chihuahua (Chihuahua City), June 3, 2004. Article by Antonio Rosales Rodríguez.
http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:cCL2J5tSqU8J:www.pemex.com/index.cfm%3Faction%3Dstatusfilecat%26c...
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World Environment Center
The World Environment Center welcomes this fifth annual report of Pemex on Safety,
Health and Environment and applauds Pemex’s commitment to the principles of
sustainable development. The role of large scale corporations in society is changing at
an accelerating pace. Sustainable development –whether at the global or local level–
depends on meaningful cooperation between communities and the governments,
industries, development agencies, international organizations and NGOs that support
growth and the creation of wealth.
Pemex is the largest company in Mexico and recently ranked as the eighth largest oil
and gas company in the world, and the third largest producer of crude oil in the
world. Corporations like Pemex are rethinking their roles in development and searching
for new approaches that seek to incorporate sustainable development concepts into
worldwide operations that go well beyond environment, health and safety best practices
to minimize risks and increase shareholder value.
As one of the world’s largest corporations and the leading company in Mexico, Pemex
has undertaken the most serious responsibility of developing and implementing a
pathway to sustainable development. This is an ongoing process characterized by
goal-setting, continuous improvement, and regular reporting of its progress.
Pemex’s commitment to sustainable development is supported by a number of initiatives
cited in this report: its efforts to benchmark against other leading multinationals in its
industry sector; its decision to support cleaner production techniques and processes
at its installations; its goal of strengthening its management systems for industrial
safety and environmental protection; and its efforts to promote the efficient use of
energy and water.
While Pemex has made great strides over the last year in a number of key areas related
to environment, health and safety, decreases in its air emissions, waste generation,
and emissions and discharges per unit of production would be desirable. With its
commitment to cleaner production, resource efficiency and stewardship, and improved
environmental management systems, Pemex is establishing a framework that will enable
it to make further environmental advances.
The World Environment Center commends Pemex for its decision to renew and
strengthen its social policy in its drive to become a socially responsible business that
generates economic, social and cultural value for its stakeholders, the citizens of Mexico.
John Mizroch
President & CEO
World Environment Center
REPORT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT 2003
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FORROS PEMEX INGLES 2 OK*J
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http://www.usembassy-mexico.gov/texts/et031003AIDPemex.html
CLEANER PRODUCTION” REDUCES EMISSIONS,
SAVES MONEY FOR MEXICAN OIL GIANT PEMEX
Taken from USAID "Frontlines," September, 2003, p.10
MEXICO CITY—With air quality a pressing issue in auto exhaust-choked Mexico City, U.S. technicians are working with national oil company PEMEX to reduce emissions in its operations. An added bonus is significant cost savings.
USAID’s cleaner production program in Mexico is part of a region-wide effort to show industries that reducing pollution in their activities can also be good business.
USAID and its multilateral partners have opened and supported 14 Cleaner Production Centers across Latin America and the Caribbean to advise companies on techniques to eliminate pollution during production, such as recycling or recovering industrial byproducts.
“ The impact of a relatively small USAID training investment is paying big dividends for Mexico's environment.”
USAID/MEXICO DIRECTOR PAUL WHITE, 1998–2003
USAID and PEMEX specialists scrutinized the oil production cycle—from exploration and drilling to refining, petrochemical production, and distribution.
Simply reducing natural gas flaring at oil-field wellheads led to major reductions in emissions by PEMEX, the world’s seventh-largest petroleum company.
Energy-intensive oil refining was closely studied. Engineers reexamined every step to boost efficiency, sealing steam leaks, recycling process heat, and generally using less energy to “crack” petroleum into gasoline and other marketable compounds.
This focus on cleaner production saved PEMEX energy, water, and materials worth an estimated $562 million over the past two years. PEMEX might save $1.2 billion more in the next 10 years, if it continues the process.
Not surprisingly, PEMEX has decided to launch programs for cleaner production and efficient use of water in all of its operating subsidiaries. “PEMEX has clearly demonstrated that protecting the environment can also positively affect a firm’s bottom line,” said PEMEX Corporate Director for Industrial Security and Environmental Protection Rafael Fernández de la Garza.
Reduced energy consumption in refining and other operations meant that less carbon dioxide—the greenhouse gas known as CO2—was released. CO2 emissions were reduced by 3.1 million metric tons, based on estimates by PEMEX and USAID engineers.
That’s about 8 percent of the estimated 40 million metric tons of CO2 emitted by PEMEX in 2001.
Mexico produced 514 million tons of CO2 emissions in 2001. Its energy sector, including fixed sources such as power plants, emitted an estimated 45 percent of the total.
The Cleaner Production Centers were established through collaboration between technology transfer and energy teams from the Bureau for Economic Growth and Trade and field missions in the Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean.
USAID staff say firms have shown interest in the program because it helps them come to grips with environmental and worker health and safety issues. Economically, firms can cut production costs and improve their competitive position. The process can also yield improvements in product quality and enhance a firm’s public image.
Gil Jackson, Christian Smith, and Ian May contributed to this article.
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Tel. 5080-2000, ext.2253, Fax 5080-2892
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Oil Spills: Rescuing Animals, Protecting the Seas
Pemex Oil Spill in Veracruz, Mexico
On December 22nd, an oil spill in Veracruz, Mexico spilled seven thousand barrels of oil into the Coatzacoalcos River, which leads into the Gulf of Mexico. To date, IFAW has rescued 175 animals with more on the way.
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Field Report #10: January 28, 2005
Field Report #9: January 21, 2005
Field Report #8: January 20, 2005
Field Report #7: January 18, 2005
Field Report #6: January 16, 2005
Field Report #10: January 28, 2005
Author: Paul Kelway
Manager, Oiled Wildlife Division
FINAL REPORT
The last of the pelicans have now left the rehabilitation centre at Coatzacoalcos. All but two have been released. These two birds require slightly longer care before they can go and so have been transferred to a small wildlife facility within the Pemex refinery. The Vet who manages this centre was able to spend some time with us to understand the specific care that these birds need and we feel confident that they should both be ready for release in just over a week.
This means that our numbers to date are as follows:
Total live animals admitted:
183 (including 151 brown pelicans)
Total animals released:
163 (88.5%)
Pelicans released:
143 (94.7%)
This is an excellent release rate and is a credit to everyone that has been involved in this operation. However, the success of this response is not just measured by the numbers of animals that were returned to the wild. Longer-term studies of the released pelicans are now being planned in collaboration with the University of Mexico (UNAM). Blood samples taken from the birds during pre-release evaluations will now be tested for West Nile Virus to help with mapping the spread of this disease in Mexico. The samples will also be used to draw the biochemistry profile of each bird to give us a clearer picture of their general health. Later this year some of these birds will be re-captured and their profiles compared with the previous results. This will be an extremely valuable exercise in helping to better understand the long term survivability and health of rehabilitated oiled pelicans.
This response has also set a precedent here in Mexico as the first time that Pemex and the Ministry of Environment have recognized and supported a wildlife response to an oil spill. Our intention now is to continue to build on this through further training as well as advizing on oiled wildlife planning and of course oil spill prevention, which is always our preferred solution.
Collaboration has also been excellent during the operation and there has been a strong emphasis on training throughout. Individuals from the Universities of Mexico and Veracruz and from Africam Safari, who are very experienced and well qualified in their respective fields, have now been able to gain a greater insight into the specifc technical aspects of working with oiled wildlife. This will certainly serve the region well should it suffer from future incidents of this kind.
Most of the team have now returned home and the last of us are getting ready to leave. Some are still in California continuing the response to the oil spill in Los Angeles and we wish them all the best with finishing up there so that they too can have a well-deserved rest.
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Field Report #9: January 21, 2005
Author: Paul Kelway
Manager, Oiled Wildlife Division
It’s Saturday morning here in Coatzacoalcos and we’re enjoying a quieter day here at the centre. Yesterday was much busier with most of it being spent preparing for a closing ceremony which Joaquin had organized to coincide with what we expected to be the last big release of birds. Representatives from Pemex were invited to attend and we had a good turnout from local media.
Yesterday we agreed that we would stop attempting new captures of birds. We are seeing very few significantly oiled animals now and so will focus on the rehabilitation of those that are already in care and begin de-mobilizing people and equipment. Our total in house is now 26 pelicans and 1 box turtle. All of the pelicans will be evaluated for release again tomorrow and many that are close to being waterproof should be ready to go. In the meantime we will keep their pools as clean as possible, feed them well and let them do the hard work with regular bathing and preening. The weather is warm and sunny so this should help a great deal.
One of the funniest things about this response has been that many of the birds we have released are still hanging around our centre. As large numbers of the pelicans live and feed in this area our outdoor aviaries are covered with birds with yellow release leg bands perching on top. When we feed our rehab pelicans in the pools the birds outside look down enviously trying their best to squeeze through the netting and get a share of the free food. We have been joking that we actually have two floors to our pelican cages. I just hope the roof holds out for a few more days!
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Field Report #8: January 20, 2005
Author: Paul Kelway
Manager, Oiled Wildlife Division
The weather has been improving over the last few days and with it the percentages of birds passing waterproofing checks during our pre-release evaluations. Most of the birds are in good health and in many cases the lack of total water-proofing has been the only thing holding them back. Yesterday we released our 100th Pelican at the centre and 21 altogether.
We also had a capture team working from the water all day baiting birds close to their boat to check for oiled individuals. Two more birds were captured but less than 5% of the birds being seen now are actually oiled.
Our centre is right on the mouth of the Coatzacoalcos river so from time to time huge tankers pass by on their way to the Pemex refinery, dwarfing the small capture vessel that the team is using. The river is not very wide here so it is quite an amazing sight.
We have another group of representatives from Profepa here today learning about the operation. We will be spending the weekend working on the reconditioning of the remaining pelicans.
As the numbers of birds here has reduced considerably we are also beginning to release some of our team members. By the end of the weekend we will just have a small team left to oversee the operation until the last few birds have gone.
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Field Report #7: January 18, 2005
Author: Paul Kelway
Manager, Oiled Wildlife Division
It’s been a busy two days here in Coatzacoalcos. Today we washed the last remaining oiled birds at the centre. We do still have a boat out searching for other casualties and we have received reports of some oiled pelicans on another river nearby but for now almost all the birds here are well on their way to being released. In the last three days we have released 50 birds and it is possible that most, if not all of the birds, will be gone by Friday.
One of our goals has been to use our time here to work with local organisations to train veterinarians and biologists and improve the knowledge of governmental and non-governmental organisations that may have a role to play in future oil spill incidents here in Mexico. For the last two days we have had two representatives from PROFEPA, the Mexican environmental protection agency, visit the centre and spend time with our team. Our aim has been to give them some practical experience and a better insight into what is involved in an oiled wildlife response. The feedback has been very positive and they have been fascinated by the operation.
We now also have two veterinarians from the University of Mexico here and they have been doing a great job assisting with washing and pre-release evaluations over the last few days.
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Field Report #6: January 16, 2005
Author: Paul Kelway
Manager, Oiled Wildlife Division
This morning we attempted our first capture of oiled birds for a few days. A number of us arrived at the centre at 7am so that we could set up the net system we have been using at the centre. We encourage birds to fly down and eat fish from the ground in between the cages and then once we have observed oiled birds we pull up a net around one side to prevent them flying away and quickly capture all of the birds trapped inside. Of around 10 that we captured this morning only one was oiled. Because of this we have decided not to continue attempting captures in this way and will focus our efforts on baiting individual oiled birds on the beach or out on the boat as and when we see them.
We saw considerable improvements in the waterproofing of the clean birds that were evaluated for release yesterday. Of the 36 that were evaluated 13 were cleared for release. Many of the others have only a few wet spots and are very close to being ready to go. This improvement is clearly connected to the improved water quality in the pools now that we have a salt-water pump bringing water up from the river. Today we have another 40 birds to evaluate. We plan to have two teams operating today so that these evaluations and the washing can take place simultaneously.
Last night the team had a meal at the home of one of our volunteers. Alejandra, a student who has been at home with her family for the holidays, has been helping us since the beginning of the response and is returning to university today. This was the first time the team has had an opportunity to be away from the centre and the hotel since the beginning of the spill so it was great to have a change of scenery and also to experience some proper home-cooked Mexican food!
Alejandra has been a wonderful asset to the team here and has proved herself to be a very adept bird handler and rinser. She is currently studying to be a graphic designer but has said that she is now thinking about going on to do more animal-related studies in the future. As we always say, oil spills change people lives. Most of our team members are testament to that.
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Field Reports: January 4th - 15th
Some of the released pelicans have come back looking for some free food! ©IFAW/P. Kelway
The taste of freedom! Members of IFAW's ER Team oversee the release of the rehabilitated pelicans. ©IFAW/P. Kelway
Clean pelicans getting ready for release in the outdoors pools at the rehabilitation centre.
An IFAW ER Team member making sure that all the oil is removed from the pelicans feathers.
© 2005 International Fund for Animal Welfare
PO Box 193 • 411 Main Street Y
http://www.nmsu.edu/~frontera/july-aug04/envi.html
ENVIRONMENT
________________________________________
Reynosa's "La Escondida" Lagoon Still Awaits Clean Up
A group of Reynosa architects and other city organizations are demanding that city officials, political candidates and the state government finally take action to restore the city's Laguna La Escondida (Hidden Lagoon). The architects and other organizations say that too many promises have been made for too long but nothing has been done to improve the site.
Remembered by those that grew up in Reynosa in the 1950s and 60s as an idyllic spot to picnic and watch migrating birds, the lagoon was filled in with garbage and junked cars in following decades. At one point the area became a dump for a nearby PEMEX plant and its waters later dried up completely.
More recently, Reynosa guaranteed a water supply to La Escondida and 1997 it was officially declared a natural, protected area. A restoration plan was put forth in that year but has yet to be implemented.
In April 2001, FNS described an open sewage canal that ran around the edge of the lagoon. During rains residents said that the canal would spill over its banks and contaminate the lagoon.
Bruno Mariel Lezama, head of Reynosa's environment department, responded to the group of architects by saying that the city has taken action to improve La Escondida. He says that the city has planted "little trees" on its banks and has ordered strict monitoring of the site to ensure that companies do not dump waste there.
The city official noted that "it is a little impossible to be aware" of dumping but stated that two hamburger restaurants were each fined nearly the equivalent of US$3,000 for dumping grease in the lagoon.
Mariel says the city has talked to PEMEX and the oil company has offered to take care of the pollution problem. However, the company wants some "some people" to lose their property rights to land on the lagoon. Mariel described PEMEX's reaction as "infantile".
EnLínea Directa did not specify who these other owners were but the reference could be to families that built homes on the garbage that filled in part of the lagoon.
Previously, part of the restoration plan included relocating area residents. Residents however were opposed to this and protested vigorously at city hall.
To see a previous FNS article on the Laguna La Escondida and residents' reaction to the clean up plan go to: http://www.nmsu.edu/~frontera/apr01/feat4.html.
Source: EnLínea Directa (Tamaulipas), April 29, 2004.
The Baldenegro and Rivas Case: Incarceration of Indigenous Tarahumara Forest Activists Continues in Chihuahua
Greenpeace has joined with other international and Mexican organizations that are demanding the release of indigenous environmental and community activists Isidro Baldenegro and Hermenegildo Rivas. Baldenegro and Rivas, Rarámuri men from the embattled Sierra Tarahumara community of Coloradas de la Virgen, were arrested in their home town on March 29, 2003.
The Sierra Tarahumara, better known in the US as the Copper Canyon, is a 10,000 square mile mountainous area that begins 250 miles south of the US-Mexico border and extends to the Chihuahua-Durango border. It is home to nearly 100,000 indigenous people and the region contains old-growth forest, deep canyons, water falls, and endangered thick-bill parrots.
Baldenegro and Rivas say that Chihuahua state police broke into the men's homes without search warrants and planted guns and marijuana so that they could arrest the pair. Eye witnesses from Coloradas de la Virgen confirm the raid on the men's homes.
The police version of what happened is that agents saw Baldenegro and Rivas walking around with AK-47s and detained them for this. Upon searching Baldenegro they claim that they found him to be carrying marijuana. In Mexico, having weapons of a type only allowed for military use is a serious federal crime. If convicted the men would receive more than ten years in jail.
Environmental and human rights groups like Greenpeace, Amnesty International, Fuerza Ambiental, and Chihuahua's own State Commission for Human Rights say that Baldenegro and Rivas were targeted because of their success as community leaders and environmental activists. It has been noted that the two were arrested just days after Coloradas de las Virgen community members stopped logging trucks that were working in their community. Previously, in 2002, a Mexican court had ordered an end to all cutting in the area.
As FNS reported in April 2004, Baldenegro's father was also a community and forest activist when he died in 1984 after being shot by a high-power rifle--one allegedly fired by a contract killer working for a local, well-known narco-logging family. Other Tarahumara in the area were killed for organizing against illegal forest cutting. Baldenegro's brother, Trinidad Baldenegro, and another men were arrested prior to Isidro Baldenergro and Rivas but have since been freed.
According to environmentalists in the Sierra, the narco-logging dynamic is one in which drug traffickers buy up or use logging companies to launder drug money. In this fashion drug money is run through companies and is made to look like profits from logging. Unfortunate for the Sierra's fauna and flora is the fact that such mechanisms allow otherwise unprofitable logging to continue.
Marijuana and opium cultivation is also threatening peace in the region. Although drug traffickers used to pay a bit of cash to men to tend the growing fields, they now often pay in cocaine which leads to addiction or to the arrest of men that are trying to sell cocaine for cash. Cocaine is brought into the region by low-flying aircraft that use rough landing strips in the Sierra.
To see two April 2003 FNS articles about the Sierra and the Baldenegro-Rivas case go to: http://www.nmsu.edu/~frontera/apr-may03/main.html
Source: El Norte (Cd. Juárez), May 11, 2004. Article by Guadalupe Salcido.
Tarahumara Activist to Be Freed but Fear for Safety
Chihuahua environmental and community activists Isidro Baldenegro and Hermenegildo Rivas could be set free on or before Friday, June 17, 2004. The Tarahumara environmentalists were arrested on March 29, 2003. They say that Chihuahua state police broke into the their homes without search warrants and planted guns and marijuana so that they could arrest them. Eye witnesses from their community, Coloradas de la Virgen, confirm the raid on the men's homes.
Before Baldenegro and Rivas can be freed, Mexico's Attorney General Rafael Macedo de la Concha must sign off on the recommendation of a federal court located in Chihuahua. Once Macedo gives his approval, the federal court will then issue an order to free the men.
At the same time the legal process against Baldenegro and Rivas is ending, the state police officers charged with framing the men are going through the legal system. However, just weeks after the investigation into these men's actions began, Chihuahua's Attorney General Jesús Antonio Piñón Jiménez has already asked federal officials to reach a finding such that they will not prosecute the Chihuahua officers.
Free but Safe?
Although Baldenegro and Rivas are happy to be just hours away from being able to return to their families and community, Baldenegro has asked the federal Attorney General's Office to protect not just him but his town of Coloradas de la Virgen.
Baldenegro worries that the community may suffer reprisals after he and Rivas are freed from prison. In a letter to Attorney General Macedo, Baldenegro requested an increased police or army present in his community.
Out of all the state and federal organizations that perform security functions in Mexico the army is considered by many Mexicans to be the most trustworthy and least corrupt. This might explain why Baldenegro requested the presence of the army.
Why he would want an increased police presence is difficult to understand unless he was seeking protection solely from federal police forces and not state police forces (which allegedly planted evidence to frame him and Rivas).
Another possibility is that Coloradas de la Virgen community members fear Artemio Fontes Lugo and his associates even more than they do law enforcement. For decades Fontes and his associates have been investigated for and accused of drug offenses, murder and other crimes.
A series of reports and news stories available at the following link examine the history of the Fontes in the Sierra Tarahumara: http://www.sierramadrealliance.org/coloradas/proceso.shtml
Sources:
El Norte (Cd. Juárez), June 16, 2004. Articles by Carlos Huerta and Guadalupe Salcido.
El Norte (Cd. Juárez), May 31, 2004. Article by Angel Zubía García.
Northern Mexico Water Resources Would Be Viewed as Critical by UN
Along with the other states in Northern Mexico, Chihuahua has less than 2,000 cubic meters of water per person, says Salomón Abedrop López, the vice president of the executive council of the Asociación Nacional de Empresas de Agua y Saneamiento (National Association of Water and Sanitation Businesses, ANEAS). To put this in perspective, Abedrop notes that countries with less than 5,000 cubic meters of water per person are considered by the United Nations to be in critical condition in terms of water resources.
Northern Mexico has just 1,900 cubic meters of water per resident which puts it in a class with nations such as Egypt, Iraq and Iran in terms of water resources. However, Mexico as a whole is not in such dire shape. Nationwide there is an average of 4,900 cubic meters of water per person.
While Mexico has greater water resources in the south, 60% of the nation's population is in northern and central Mexico, Abedrop said. He also noted that 70% of Mexico's gross internal product comes from this same region--which has only 25% of the nation's water.
Not only is water supply a problem in Mexico but so is waste water treatment. Within the next 18 months all cities with more than 20,000 inhabitants will have to have water treatment facilities. There are 306 cities in Mexico of this size and many of them lack the funds necessary for construction. According to Abedrop these cities will start paying fines in 2006 if they do not have waste-water treatment plants in operation.
In Chihuahua City, from August 3, 2004 to August 6, ANEAS will have its yearly conference. It is the second largest in Mexico and will have between 1,500 and 1,800 people in attendance. Water industry companies from Canada, the US, the UK, France, Spain and other nations will exhibit at the conference.
Source: Heraldo de Chihuahua (Chihuahua City), June 3, 2004. Article by Antonio Rosales Rodríguez.
Expanded Farming Threatens Species and Water in Northern Chihuahua
The illegal conversion of grassland to farmland and the drilling of unauthorized wells is threatening ecosystems and communities in Northern Chihuahua, according to an article in the Chihuahua City newspaper El Heraldo. More than 300 species of animals live in the region and some may be threatened by increased development including the Golden Eagle, the Harris Hawk, the Red Tail Hawk, the Pronghorn Antelope and the Prairie Dog.
The Heraldo article pointed to two specific areas that are seeing the plowing of their prairies. One area is in the northwestern corner of Chihuahua, near the cities of Janos and Ascensión. The other area is between Ciudad Juárez and Chihuahua City, in the area around El Sueco. Mennonite agricultural communities in these regions are said to be responsible for most of the unauthorized farming.
José Mario Sánchez, the head of the Procuraduría Federal de Protección al Ambiente (Federal Environmental Protection Office, Profepa) in Chihuahua, said that before grasslands are plowed into farmland another federal environmental agency, Semarnat, must perform an impact study and then give a favorable recommendation to the government of Chihuahua. At that point Chihuahua environment officials must approve or deny the permit. Sánchez says that this process is not being followed in the above mentioned regions.
Not only are animals losing habitat with the creation of new agricultural fields but those working the land are burning it before they plant. Although this practice is prohibited, El Heraldo indicates that the grass is set aflame so that it is harder to detect the conversion.
Due to the slight rainfall the region receives, wells are necessary to irrigate new fields. However, there is currently a ban on well drilling in the areas that are experiencing increased farming. Too much drilling could affect water supply to existing wells in the area, El Heraldo noted.
Source: El Heraldo de Chihuahua (Chihuahua City), June 11, 2004. Article by Juan Francisco Garay Ruiz.
Nine of Ten Mexicali Autoshops Illegally Dump Used Oil and Fluids
According to Mexico’s Procuraduría Federal de Protección al Ambiente (Federal Environmental Protection Office, Profepa) only one in ten autoshops follows regulations pertaining to the proper storage and recycling of used motor oil and transmission fluid.
An article in the Mexicali newspaper La Crónica states that used oil is viewed by Mexican environmental agencies as a toxic substance. For instance, if oil is dumped in a field it takes approximately 100 years for the soil to recover. Due to the negative impacts of oil on the environment, Mexico has established guidelines for its proper disposal.
Ricardo Montaño, the owner of a Mexicali autoshop, says that he pays 200 pesos (approximately US$18) to have a company come pick up 200 liters of used oil. If he wants to have oil-soaked rags and filters disposed of this costs more, he noted.
According to La Crónica, it is the cost of recycling oil that keeps shops from disposing of it as they should. In the past, in an attempt to make this process more affordable, the Mexicali city government, Profepa and another federal environmental agency were planning to establish an oil recycling center where residents and mechanics could leave their used oil at no cost to them. However, the plan was never implemented.
Now, unknown substances have been detected in water in various parts of the city, says Enrique Villegas, the state environmental director. Pipes are being corroded by the pollutants and they are also affecting the city’s waste-water treatment facilities. It is believed that used automobile oil is contributing to the problem.
To prevent the continued illegal dumping of oil, two state environmental agencies will begin searching for polluters and fining them.
It is also noted that autoshops must keep active contracts with oil recycling firms so that they can stay in business. If they are found not to be in compliance with this regulation they can be shut down by federal or state inspectors.
Source: La Crónica (Mexicali), July 19 & 20, 2004.
Northeast Mexican Ranchers Worry About Burgos Drilling Projects
Ranchers' associations in the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León are concerned that gas drilling will damage springs and other water sources on their land. One cattle owner in Tamaulipas has already complained about two incidents in which PEMEX subcontractors allegedly stole property from his holdings. PEMEX is Petróleos Mexicanos, Mexico's national petroleum company.
To confront their worries the rancher's associations from the three northeast Mexican states have asked for the help of federal-level elected officials. They have requested that federal diputados (representatives) intervene with PEMEX to see that ecosystems and herds are not damaged by installation of the natural gas infrastructure.
Ranchers are bothered that PEMEX is not taking responsibility for the actions of its subcontractors, says Ramón Serna, president of the regional ranchers' association for Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. PEMEX should remember that ranchers control who goes on their land, he stated.
According to Serna, on two occasions in May of this year, property was allegedly missing from the Sabino Verde ranch where PEMEX subcontractor PGS Mexicana is said to be working.
The associations also complained to elected officials that the oil company has not told them the true extent and nature of the Burgos Basin gas project. The basin, which extends under all three states, is just experiencing the beginning of billions of dollars worth of investment. Ranchers would also like to have greater information from PEMEX about when and where drilling will take place.
Ranchers are also worried that springs and other water sources could be affected by drilling, Serna said.
Source: EnLínea Directa (Tamaulipas), June 14, 2004.
I just don't understand that 50 mil shares at .04 is only $2 million. Companies like these need that capital to generate contracts and contacts. Which is exactly what they are doing. I think it is the calm before the storm. those that sell at these levels because of the 50 mil dump will loose out after monday when bugs signs deals with the state of mexico and who knows what other contracts which could be in the billions with the hurricane clean up. I think this could be mm's manipulating the stock cause they are short or day traders doing their thing... Good luck
COMPANY NEWS AND PRESS RELEASES FROM OTHER SOURCES:
BUGS Subsidiary Prepares Cost Estimates for New Work in Mexico
CARLSBAD, Calif., Sep 16, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc. (OTCBB:SSWM) announced that senior engineers from its Mexico subsidiary company Environmental Tec International, S.A. de C.V. (ETI) and representatives from its strategic alliance and teaming partner, the Zaragoza Graduate School of Studies of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), have been asked by the Mexican state oil corporation, Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex), to submit detailed cost estimate engineering proposals to address urgent environmental compliance and remediation needs at Pemex operating facilities. The ETI/UNAM engineering team recently completed site visits to gather data for submitting their report as soon as possible in order that work can be commenced.
Representatives of ETI will be joining Governor Mario Marin Torres in his scheduled meeting Monday, September 19 with Pemex's President Mr. Luis Ramirez Corzo to discuss proposed remediation activities and a financing plan to address recent and historic releases of petroleum products from pipelines and bulk terminal facilities in the State of Puebla.
As previously reported, ETI will be responsible for restoration activities on contaminated areas including farming lands, rivers and water reservoirs in Puebla working through Governor Mario Marin Torres and his Secretary for the Ministry of Environment.
About Sub-Surface Waste Management
Sub-Surface Waste Management Inc. is a majority owned subsidiary of U.S. Microbics, Inc. (OTCBB:BUGS) and provides comprehensive civil and environmental engineering project management services including specialists to design, permit, build and operate environmental waste clean-up treatment systems using conventional, biological and filtration technologies. SSWM is capitalizing on its patented technologies registered in Mexico with SEMARNAT, a Federal regulatory agency overseeing environmental compliance nationwide.
The information contained in this press release includes forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements usually contain the words "estimate," "anticipate," "believe," "expect," or similar expressions that involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include the Company's status as a startup company with uncertain profitability, need for significant capital, uncertainty concerning market acceptance of its products, competition, limited service and manufacturing facilities, dependence on technological developments and protection of its intellectual property. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those discussed herein. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences are discussed more fully in the "Risk Factors," "Management's Discussion and Analysis or Plan of Operation" and other sections of the Company's Form 10-KSB and other publicly available information regarding the Company on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company will provide you with copies of this information upon request.
SOURCE: Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc.
CONTACT: Sub-Surface Waste Management of Delaware, Inc.
Alan Kau, 888-795-3166
http://www.bugsatwork.com/19.asp
Copyright Business Wire 2005
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KEYWORD: United States
Mexico
North America
Central America
California
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: Energy
Oil/Gas
Government
Other Government
Manufacturing
Engineering
Natural Resources
Environment
Thanks I didnt see the link on top of the picture. I'm glad I didn't sell this am. In fact I put in an order for 5 mil at tripple 01. it didn't go darnit! Good luck.
I cannot find the demo on the companys website. Is it up yet? If so where do I find it?
MATAWAN, N.J., Jul 29, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE)
iVoice to Present at Major Industry Exposition SpeechTEK 2005; The Speech Enabled Auto Attendant is Provided by iVoice's Subsidiary SpeechSwitch, Inc.
MATAWAN, N.J., Jul 29, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- iVoice, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: IVOC), a leader in speech recognition technology will be presenting their Speech-Enabled Auto Attendant at the SpeechTEK 2005 Exposition and Conference at the New York Marriott Marquis, August 1, 2 & 3rd in New York City. Other exhibitors include Avaya, IBM, Convergys, Microsoft, and Cisco Systems, to name just a few. Keynote speakers will include Rudy Guiliani, speaking about, "Leadership in Difficult Times" and Don Peterson, CEO of Avaya, speaking about, "The Age of Intelligent, Mobile, Right-Time Communications: Bringing Voice Applications and Speech Technology to the Heart of Business Processes."
Located in booth #105, iVoice will be demonstrating its Speech Enabled Auto Attendant with the new 3.2 released functions that include automatic adaptation and tuning processing which provides final speech recognition pass thru rates above 97%.
iVoice's Auto Attendant is supplied to dealers in various configurations including analog, digital and TAPI WAV, "all available to be shipped in turnkey solutions." All of the iVoice products incorporate iVoice's Speech recognition technology and offer reliability with economical pricing.
About SpeechSwitch, Inc.:
iVoice announced that it intends to distribute to the company's shareholders all common stock shares of its newly formed subsidiary, SpeechSwitch, Inc. The iVoice board of directors authorized management to pursue a strategy designed to unlock the value in the company's speech-recognition software by spinning it off into a new independent public company. The assets that will become part of SpeechSwitch include the Speech SDK, Speech Enabled Auto Attendant, Name Dialer, plus two issued patents and two patents pending. Subject to final review by the SEC, holders of iVoice common stock will receive 10 million shares of SpeechSwitch common stock on the distribution record date. It is anticipated that SpeechSwitch common stock will trade on the NASD OTC Bulletin Board. To facilitate the expansion of this business, we have arranged for a financing facility for SpeechSwitch, Inc. of $11 million.
About iVoice, Inc.
iVoice, Inc. designs, manufactures and markets innovative speech-enabled applications and computer telephony communications systems. While there are many companies that develop speech applications, most require licensing of the core speech recognition engine resulting in a costlier solution for the end user. iVoice pays no such royalty or license fees for any of its speech recognition applications. Customers include Avaya, Gold Kist, Toshiba and Comdial. Interactive Voice Response products developed by iVoice allow PC databases to be accessed via voice or from a standard touch-tone telephone.
The board of directors of iVoice believes the best way to build shareholder value, separate and apart from the operating performance of iVoice, is to create new business opportunities by distributing shares of spin-offs to our shareholders. In the past 13 months, we have taken major steps to restructure our company in ways that we believe will be most favorable to shareholders with the spin-off and/or distribution of the stock of separate companies. This is part of our broader strategy to reposition iVoice as a company focused on the development and licensing of proprietary technologies.
For more information on iVoice, please visit http://www.ivoice.com
This news release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, regarding among other things our plans, strategies and prospects -- both business and financial. Although we believe that our plans, intentions and expectations reflected in or suggested by these forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or realize these plans, intentions or expectations. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many of the forward-looking statements contained in this news release may be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "believe," "expect,""anticipate," "should," "planned," "will," "may," "intend," "estimated," and "potential," among others. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements we make in this news release include market conditions and those set forth in reports or documents that we file from time to time with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements attributable to iVoice, Inc. or a person acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary language.
SOURCE: iVoice, Inc.
CONTACT: iVoice, Inc.
Investor Relations
Dolores Serafin, 732-441-7700
investors@ivoice.com
http://www.ivoice.com
Copyright Business Wire 2005
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now .105 ask
Weeeeeee! I would be happy to see .20 today and FIDY CENT BY EOM
Implant Sciences QS H-100 Portable Explosives Trace Detector.
http://www.implantsciences.com/products/exp/products.html
Oh Tradersnation airs at 11:00am EST.
When is Tradernation supposed to air. Or have they already aired the news?
Sorry wrong board.
Weeeeeee 1.3 mil in 30 seconds
If we keep gaining a penny a day we will be at .30 in one month!
I would retire early. It is not at all impossible that HISC could do as well as TASR. With a worldwide need for this technology and the connections we have, I beleive we will at least get a piece of the action. Whether that's $3 to $5 per share or $40 to $60 per share will remain to be seen. I do think we are all in the right place at the right time. Good luck. Go HISC.
How about HISC is the next TASR!!!
Sunday, July 17, 2005
Headline News
Dirty container detection capabilities presented at LANL
CAROL A. CLARK, lanews@lamonitor.com, Monitor Staff Writer
Detecting dirty cargo containers amid some 16 million arriving in the United States by ship, truck and rail each year is a daunting task.
Some 200 million cargo containers move between major seaports worldwide each year, according to a U.S. Customs Service fact sheet.
And the problem continues to grow.
The volume of trade moving through America's 102 seaports has nearly doubled since 1995, with more than a million cargo containers currently passing through customs annually.
In 2001, U.S. Customs processed more than 214,000 vessels.
About 90 percent of the world's cargo now moves by container.
The problems are worsened by the surge in traffic in containerized freight, according to U.S. Customs. Ever larger ships, some with more than 7,000 cargo containers each, are docking at American ports.
The top 10 U.S. Ports of Import include New York, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Charleston, Seattle, Norfolk, Houston, Oakland, Savannah and Miami.
Problems are particularly acute at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the nation's busiest, handling roughly a third of all containers that arrive in the United States each year.
Nuclear physicist Cal Moss gave the first half of the third lecture in the summer seminar series sponsored by the Center for Homeland Security at the Los Alamos National Laboratory on Wednesday.
Moss spoke to a group of LANL students; many who are Department of Homeland Security undergraduate scholars and graduate school fellows from around the country.
The students are interested in pursuing basic science and technology innovations that can be applied to the DHS mission.
Tom Wehner, Ph.D., and technical staff member in LANL's Center for Homeland Security attended Wednesday's presentation and stated that through the lectures, the students are privy to the best in homeland security research.
"This seminar series is so exciting because we are sharing with students the hottest topics in homeland security," said Wehner. "This series is presenting the kind of research that is making such a difference in our nation's security."
Moss addressed the latest developments in active interrogation techniques to detect Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) in cargo containers with the students.
"Some 70 percent of international goods arrive in containers so you'd expect smugglers to try to use them," Moss said. "Radiography is often used to inspect cargo but cannot detect HEU. We need to come up with a better way to detect HEU."
One of the students questioned the presence of human health concerns with scanner radiation.
Moss explained that cargo is initially scanned at a low beam similar to the level of a chest x-ray until the lack of human beings inside containers is ascertained. Inspectors then crank up the beam during a 60-second scan to detect nefarious chemicals lurking inside.
Moss is an expert in the field. He wrote his doctoral thesis on gamma-ray spectroscopy using a van de Graaff accelerator.
His LANL work includes the design of nuclear instruments for space satellites and participation in monitoring the down blending of HEU from Russian weapons for use in U.S. reactors.
The Advanced Nuclear Technology Group, NIS-6 published an abstract in which photofissions were induced in samples of HEU with masses up to 22 kg using bremsstrahlung photons from a pulsed 10-MeV electron linear accelerator.
Neutrons were detected between pulses by large 3He detectors and the data analyzed with the Feynman variance-to-mean method.
The effects of shielding materials, such as lead and polyethylene, and the variation of the counting rate with distance for several configurations were measured.
For comparison, a beryllium block was inserted in the beam to produce neutrons that were also used for interrogation.
Because both high-energy photons and neutrons are very penetrating, both approaches can be used to detect shielded HEU; the choice of approach depends on the details of the configuration and the shielding, according to the abstract.
Nuclear chemist Robert Estep presented the second half of Wednesday's presentation. He addressed the latest developments in algorithms for radiological and nuclear detectors and other timely topics.
"The goal is to improve isotope identification in the field," Estep said. "The current analysis methods are unreliable when shielding is present. The latest Material Basis Set (MBS) allows advanced analysis at the sensor head and corrects for shielding effects while identifying isotopes. The MBS method solves this problem."
Estep described the ongoing MBS Development Work at Los Alamos including:
Multiple Isotope MBS (MIMBS)
# Development of a full-up multiple isotope MBS solver.
# Identify all isotopes present with shielding corrections.
# PC only-would be too slow for current handhelds
Lite version of multiple isotope solver
# Compact enough to run on current handhelds.
# Method was outlined in a 2004 INMM article.
Collaboration on new handheld project
# A "third generation" handheld has been proposed at LANL.
# Would have the processing power needed for full MIMBS.
# Ideal platform for full MIMBS plus other MBS algorithms.
Estep also is an expert in his field. He developed active and passive neutron detection systems for nuclear safeguards. He is the original developer of the tomographic gamma scanner method, now in worldwide use for the characterization of radioactive waste.
Next week's seminar will include a lecture on Plume and Urban Modeling by scientist Michael Brown at 10 a.m. Wednesday at LANL.
For information, call 665-8031.
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Transportation security hearing set
By JANET FRANKSTON
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/11/05
In the wake of the explosions last week in London at or near three subway stations and on a double-decker bus, the state Senate will hold hearings July 27 to examine the security of the public transportation systems in Georgia.
Homeland security experts and transportation officials will testify at a hearing about the precautions taken to prevent similar attacks in Georgia and what other legislative measures might be introduced in January when the General Assembly convenes, Sen. Bill Stephens (R-Canton) said.
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"I think the situation in London was a wake-up call," said Stephens, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee.
"What we hope to do is hear from everyone from the Ports Authority in Savannah to MARTA in Atlanta about where we are on security issues."
Stephens said the hearings could determine if more money is needed for security.
"It could be something as easy as giving the Ports Authority more flexibility in some part of their operation," he said.
The meeting takes place at 10 a.m. in Room 450 of the State Capitol.
http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/horizon/0705/11security.html
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0507140170jul14,1,7753899.story?coll=chi-newsnati...
Homeland Security to narrow its focus
Nuclear, biological threats move to fore
By Frank James
Washington Bureau
Published July 14, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said Wednesday that he is reorganizing his agency to better focus on those terrorist threats that would be the most catastrophic, such as nuclear or biological attacks.
"Some of the tools needed to prevent, respond and recover from such awful scenarios are already in place," he said. "Others need significant improvement."
Chertoff said his department would focus more resources "on addressing threats that pose catastrophic consequences," such as a nuclear device being detonated in a major American city. As a result, the agency apparently will spend less time and money worrying about smaller threats.
Seaport detection lacking
One possibility dreaded by terrorism experts is that Al Qaeda or another group could acquire a nuclear device on the black market and smuggle it into the country through one of the nation's seaports. The nation's ports don't have enough detection devices to scan all 8 million incoming cargo containers for hidden nuclear material.
Chertoff said U.S. officials "must complete our deployment of radiation portal detectors at ports while advancing research on more sophisticated, non-intrusive detection protocols and equipment."
Likewise, the possibility of a biological attack with a deadly microbe such as smallpox or anthrax has worried terrorism experts.
To that end, Chertoff said he would name "an outstanding physician" to be his principal adviser on medical preparedness and coordinate the department's efforts with other federal agencies in hopes of preventing or responding to such an attack.
Chertoff's plans are an early result of his ongoing review of the relatively new and somewhat unwieldy department he took over in March.
Homeland Security is a collection of 180,000 workers from 22 agencies hastily thrown together in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The resulting department created in 2003 has been frequently criticized by independent terrorism experts and Congress as being poorly organized and managed.
The department's first secretary, former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, was a well-liked politician who oversaw the creation of the department.
But perhaps because he was a politician, he seemed to some observers loathe to offend people within the newly merged agencies, leaving them essentially to operate as they had before they became part of the umbrella agency.
By contrast, Chertoff, a former federal judge and Justice Department official, has a reputation for bluntness.
Improving information flow
Many of the changes he announced Wednesday were aimed at improving the flow of information within the department and its overall management.
Chertoff said he would remove a layer of management so that such agencies as the Transportation Security Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement report directly to his office instead of to an undersecretary.
Clark Kent Ervin, the department's former inspector general who is now with the Aspen Institute think tank in Washington, said the policy change "makes sense in order to make it more likely that decisions are made in a timely fashion, and issues and problems are brought to top decision-makers as quickly as possible."
Meanwhile, Chertoff said he was designating a chief intelligence officer who would report directly to him and unify the disparate intelligence coming from at least 10 separate units within the department.
Julliette Kayyem, a terrorism expert at Harvard University, said in a statement that "Chertoff's announcement shows us something from the department we have not yet seen: focus. The secretary demonstrated today that while Tom Ridge was in charge of bringing 22 agencies together, Mike Chertoff is in charge of telling them what to do. This reorganization should be praised."
Flight, finger-scan changes
continue >>
Chertoff announced the end of a ban on airline passengers leaving their seats on flights within 30 minutes of takeoffs or landings at Reagan National Airport, which serves Washington and is located within eyesight of the Capitol.
Chertoff said that deployment of air marshals on flights and other security measures made the requirement unnecessary.
Chertoff also said foreigners visiting the U.S. who must have their fingerprints electronically scanned as part of the U.S.-VISIT program will be required to submit all 10 fingers for scanning on their first visit to the U.S., compared with only two fingers until now.
Research has found that scanning only two fingers increases the likelihood that terrorists on watch lists could be allowed into the country.
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fjames@tribune.com
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PORT SECURITY GRANTS
The bill includes $200 million for the Port Security Grant program, a $50 million increase over last year. These funds are granted to localities to finance security enhancements at critical national seaports. Over the years, Senators Mikulski and Sarbanes strongly advocated increased funding for the Port of Baltimore. Maryland has received $14.5 million since its creation in 2002.
“I've been fighting to upgrade our Port for more than 20 years,” said Senator Mikulski. “For years, my challenge was fixing the twists and turns in our channels that were a safety risk. Today it's threats that were unthinkable years ago. Keeping our Port and our people safe from terrorism is one of my top priorities.”
“While we have funneled massive amounts of money into airport security, our ports continue to pose a threat to potential terrorist activities,” said Senator Sarbanes. “These funds will help protect the Port of Baltimore and its surrounding neighborhoods as we seek to combat terror on land, sea and in the air.”
FIRST RESPONDER GRANTS
The Homeland Security Appropriations bill includes $1.5 billion in First Responder grants and funding for states, urban areas and regions. First responders use the grants for equipment training, exercises and planning costs. In 2005, the National Capital Region was awarded almost $30 million and Baltimore was awarded almost $16 million through this program.
“In my own hometown of Baltimore, every time we go to ‘Code Orange’ we have to spend an additional $500,000 a week in overtime costs,” said Senator Mikulski. “We need to protect the protectors who guard the homeland and the first place to do it is in the federal checkbook.”
“Throughout the war on terrorism our local first responders have been working 24/7 to keep our citizenry safe,” said Senator Sarbanes. “This new infusion of funding that is being made available to our localities from the federal government in this bill will help them recover some of these significant costs, as well as purchase new equipment and plan for the unfortunate potential of future terrorist attacks. Our region is highly vulnerable and our first responders have worked diligently to keep us safe. I commend them for their untiring efforts.”
COAST GUARD YARD
The appropriations bill includes funding for a $37.5 million project to be completed at the Coast Guard Yard at Curtis Bay, Maryland. This project will extend service life and increase mission performance for the Coast Guard’s aging fleet of Medium Endurance Cutters, and will ensure the survivability of the Yard for at least the next 7-10 years. The bill also includes language that recognizes the Yard as a critical component of the Coast Guard’s core logistics capability that directly supports fleet readiness.
In the next step of the legislative process, the House and Senate will meet in Conference Committee to work out the differences between the two versions of the bill. The conference report will then be voted on by both Houses of Congress. Once passed by the House and Senate, the Homeland Security Appropriations bill will go to the President for his signature.
Senator Mikulski is a member of the Appropriations Committee and the Homeland Security Subcommittee. Senator Sarbanes is a member of the Budget Committee.
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Chambliss Says Homeland Security Bill Provides Essential Funding
posted July 15, 2005
http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_69521.asp
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., praised the Senate’s passage of the fiscal year 2006 funding bill for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which he said provides essential funding to improve the security of our borders, ports, airports and mass transit systems. The bill was approved 96-1 Thursday evening.
“While we’ve made enormous progress to make America safer and more secure than we were before Sept. 11, 2001, there is still much more to do,” said Chambliss. “This bill provides much-needed resources to improve the security of our nation’s borders and help stem the tide of the massive flow of illegal aliens crossing our borders undetected and undocumented every single day. This bill also allocates critical funding to beef up security for America’s ports, mass transit systems and airports. For example, the bill includes funds for additional airport screeners and explosive detection devices which will improve security and make air travel safer for passengers at our nation’s airports, including Hartsfield-Jackson.”
The bill also includes $277.3 million for the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, Ga. This is an increase of over $50 million from the level funded in fiscal year 2005. “FLETC plays a key role in the war against terrorism,” said Chambliss. “The hard working men and women at FLETC are playing critical roles in keeping our country safe, and they should be commended for their hard work ensuring our federal law enforcement personnel are well prepared and trained. The funding in this bill shows that the folks in Washington know how essential their work is and what an outstanding job they all do.”
Chambliss said highlights of the bill include:
$5.9 billion for Customs and Border Protection and $3.8 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement;
1,000 new border control agents, in addition to the 500 provided in the supplemental;
300 new immigration/customs investigators;
460 new enforcement agents, in addition to the 168 provided in the supplemental;
Funds over 40,800 positions dedicated to protecting our borders and enforcing immigration laws: 12,500 border patrol agents, 18,200 customs and border protection officers, nearly 6,100 criminal investigators for customs and immigration; 1,300 deportation officers and nearly 2,700 immigration enforcement agents and detention officers;
$10.6 million to train new border and immigration enforcement personnel;
$340 million to support deployment of US VISIT;
More than doubles the number of ports, since 2003, operating the Container Security Initiative to 41 ports;
$3.4 billion for first responders, including grants to state and local communities, firefighters, and emergency management;
$40 million for grants to States for implementing the REAL ID Act of 2005
$5.05 billion for securing transportation, including: $2.3 billion for passenger and baggage screeners; $172 million for checkpoint support; $180 million for the procurement of explosive detection and trace systems; $50 million for the procurement and deployment of next generation in-line explosive detection systems; $1 billion for airport security direction and enforcement; $50 million for air cargo security; and $678 million for the Federal Air Marshals.
Technology Ideas, Products & Services
Submit Your Ideas to TSA
The purpose of this section is to provide a convenient means for vendors, industry groups, citizens and others to present their security technology ideas, products and services to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). It is not a mechanism for submitting a response to a Request For Proposal (RFP), Request For Information (RFI), Broad Agency Announcement (BAA), Unsolicited Proposal or other type of formal procurement action.
We have recently streamlined our submissions process for TSA information technology opportunities. We invite those interested in submitting their information technology ideas, products and services to visit the Department of Homeland Security IT Product and Service Information Web site (found at https://vendors.dhs.gov/).
If you have an idea product or service related to one of our Areas of Interest you can submit it to TSA.
Ideas, products or service information submitted will not create any agreement of non-disclosure or confidentiality between the submitter and TSA, unless TSA independently determines that to be in the best interest of the government.
* Disclaimer
http://www.tsa.gov/public/display?theme=85
Grant Opportunities
Maritime and Land Security Grant Programs
http://www.tsa.gov/public/interapp/asset_summary/asset_summary_0517.xml
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Maritime and Land Security Grant Programs have been transferred to the Office for State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness (SLGCP), within the Department of Homeland Security. Fiscal Year 2005 funding opportunities for the Port Security Grant Program, Intercity Bus Security Grants and Operation Safe Commerce will be available through Homeland Security as well as the Federal Grants Web site.
Port Security Grants
The Application Period for Round 4 of the Port Security Grants Program is closed. For more information, please see the Program Announcement at the Program Announcement at the Port Security Grants web site.
Intercity Bus Security Grants
The Intercity Bus Security Grant Program will improve security for operators and passengers by providing bus security enhancements and training to bus companies and others. The application period for Fiscal Year 2004 funding closed on July 7, 2004
Operation Safe Commerce Cooperative Agreement Program
TSA is working with an interagency Executive Steering Committee for OSC and has requested applications for the OSC Cooperative Agreement Program to fund business driven initiatives to enhance security for the movement of cargo through the supply chain. The Ports of Los Angeles/Long Beach, Seattle/Tacoma and New York/New Jersey are invited to submit proposals for funding consideration. Entities representing components of the supply chain may seek funding through these ports.
Statement by Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff Before the House Government Reform Committee
http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?theme=45&content=4536
Secretary Michael Chertoff's statement on homeland security July 13th 2005.
http://www.tsa.gov/public/display?theme=46&content=0900051980148ecb
Briefing Room Click here to printPrintable Version
Speeches & Statements
Secretary Michael Chertoff U.S. Department of Homeland Security Second Stage Review Remarks
U. S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Transportation Security Administration
Washington, D.C.
Ronald Reagan Building
July 13, 2005
(Remarks as Delivered)
Well, thank you, ladies and gentlemen. I thank all of you who join me today -- Members of Congress, state and local leaders, private sector partners -- and, of course, my fellow employees of the Department of Homeland Security.
Together, we gather once again in the shadow of a despicable act of terrorism. Make no mistake -- the terrorists seek to destroy not only our lives, but our entire way of life. Our hearts and our prayers go out to the British people and everyone who suffered a loss in this barbaric attack that occurred several days ago.
For most Americans, last week’s attacks in London were a sobering and jarring reminder of the threats we now face. But for my fellow employees here at DHS, facing those dangers and reducing those threats is a daily responsibility. In his remarks about the London attacks, President Bush captured the essence of what motivates these outstanding men and women when he said, "The terrorists cannot shake our will. America and its allies will act decisively, because we know that the future of civilization is at stake in this struggle, and we know that the cause of freedom will prevail."
All Americans owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the patriots and pioneers who built this Department in record time. Because of their dedication, security at our ports, airports, critical infrastructure and borders has been significantly strengthened. Our nation has thwarted plots and captured terrorists. As a result, in the period since 9/11, the American people have begun to live under an umbrella of greater security, with greater peace of mind than we imagined on that terrible day.
My friends, much work has been done. Much remains to do. My job, and the job of the leadership team at the Department, is to provide the strategic direction, tools, and aggressive support needed by our colleagues who carry out the vital mission of protecting America. We must continue to build effectiveness, agility, and capacity in this effort every single day.
So we ask: What exactly are the next steps at DHS as we continue to make the homeland more secure? To help answer that question, shortly after taking office at Homeland Security, I launched the Second Stage Review -- a systematic evaluation of the Department’s operations, policies and structures. We finished that review last month, I’ve spoken to the President and Members of the Congress about our conclusions, and today I will explain our review and outline the path ahead for Department of Homeland Security.
Our review was conducted with several core principles in mind. First, as I've said before, DHS must base its work on priorities that are driven by risk. Our goal is to maximize our security, but not security "at any price." Our security strategy must promote Americans’ freedom, privacy, prosperity, mobility. Second, our Department must drive improvement with a sense of urgency. Our enemy constantly changes and adapts, so we as a Department must be nimble and decisive.
Third, DHS must be an effective steward of public resources. Our stewardship will demand many attributes -- the willingness to set priorities; disciplined execution of those priorities; sound financial management; and a commitment to measure performance and share results. Perhaps most of all, DHS must foster innovation.
Finally, our work must be guided by the understanding that effective security is built upon a network of systems that span all levels of government and the private sector. DHS does not own or control all these systems. But we must set a clear national strategy, and design an architecture in which separate roles and responsibilities for security are fully integrated among public and private stakeholders.
We must draw on the strength of our considerable network of assets, functioning as seamlessly as possible with state and local leadership, law enforcement, emergency management personnel, firefighters, the private sector, our international partners, and most certainly, the general public. Building effective partnerships must be core to every mission of DHS.
So, with these principles in mind, we went to work. From across the Department and elsewhere in the federal government, we pulled subject matter experts and talented individuals away from their day jobs to focus on how well we tackle our tough fundamental challenges: prevention, protection, and all-hazards response and recovery.
This Second Stage Review utilized 18 action teams -- involving more than 250 members of the DHS staff -- to evaluate specific operational and policy issues. We asked each team to answer a couple of simple questions. First, freed from the constraints of existing policies and structures -- writing on a clean slate -- how would you solve a particular problem? And then, how would you take the best solutions and implement them aggressively?
We actively sought opinions from hundreds of public and private partners at the federal, state, local, tribal and international levels. Finally, we examined the DHS organizational structure, to make sure that our organization is best aligned to support our mission. This work, along with the experience of the last two years in the Department’s existence, will now play a critical role in setting our agenda moving forward.
In the weeks and months to come, the Department will launch specific policy initiatives in a number of key areas. Here, then, are six of the key imperatives that will drive the near-term agenda for DHS. We must increase preparedness with particular focus on catastrophic events; strengthen border security and interior enforcement and reform immigration processes; harden transportation security without sacrificing mobility; enhance information sharing with our partners, particularly with state, local and tribal governments and with the private sector; improve DHS stewardship, particularly with stronger financial, human resource, procurement, and information technology management; and realign the DHS organization to maximize mission performance.
Now, we will put more muscle on the bones of these six areas and others with additional actions and policy proposals in the weeks and months ahead. But today, let me give you a broad overview of our agenda for the future of the Department.
First, preparedness. In the broadest sense, preparedness addresses the full range of our capabilities to prevent, protect against, and respond to acts of terror or other disasters.
And, of course, America’s critical infrastructure is not a government asset; roughly 85 percent is privately owned or operated.
At the outset, we must acknowledge this: Although we have substantial resources to provide security, these resources are not unlimited. Therefore, as a nation, we must make tough choices about how to invest finite human and financial capital to attain the optimal state of preparedness. To do this we will focus preparedness on objective measures of risk and performance.
Our risk analysis is based on these three variables: threat, vulnerability, and consequences. These variables are not equal. For example, some infrastructure is quite vulnerable, but the consequences of an attack are relatively small; other infrastructure may be much less vulnerable, but the consequences of a successful attack are very high, even catastrophic.
DHS will concentrate first and foremost, most relentlessly, on addressing threats that pose catastrophic consequences. Some of the tools needed to prevent, respond or recover from such awful scenarios are already in place, but others do need significant improvement.
The first step in enhancing our national preparedness is establishing a preparedness baseline that measures the effectiveness of our planning for preventing, protecting against, and responding to terrorist acts or disasters. One Second Stage Review team has, therefore, constructed the model for an analytic matrix that will set that baseline. The matrix will allow us to match possible threats against possible targets, and will map the current state of prevention, protection and response planning with respect to each. This matrix will be a critical tool enabling us to identify and remedy current gaps in our preparedness.
Bringing greater planning discipline to each of these risk scenarios is another dimension of our preparedness mission, and simple common sense counsels that we begin by concentrating on events with the greatest potential consequences. That's why the Department’s recently released National Preparedness Goals -- and additional, risk-based planning -- will form our standard in allocating future DHS grants to our state and local partners so that we build the right capabilities in the right places at the right level. Federal money should be distributed using the risk-based approach that we will apply to all preparedness activities. And DHS needs the discretion to award infrastructure protection grants in a more flexible and disciplined manner, as provided by the administration’s proposed Targeted Infrastructure Protection Plan.
Of course, federal funds are not the only resources available to strengthen the protection of our valued infrastructure. Three years ago, Congress passed the SAFETY Act to enable our private sector partners to develop innovative technology to protect the homeland without the fear of unduly high transaction costs imposed by the possibility of frivolous lawsuits. There is more opportunity, much more opportunity, to take advantage of this important law, and we are going to do that.
Finally, of all the catastrophic threats that we face, a nuclear attack on our soil would be uniquely threatening to our society. The President’s budget asks Congress to establish and fund a Domestic Nuclear Detection Office to develop and deploy the next generation of systems that will allow us to intercept a nuclear threat. We have already begun to take the steps to make this office a reality. The DNDO will report directly to me under our new structure, and I have asked Congress to support this critical resource.
A second imperative is the need to strengthen border security and interior enforcement, as well as improve our immigration system. We cannot have one approach without the other. As to the first, we must gain full control of our borders to prevent illegal immigration and security breaches. Flagrant violation of our borders undercuts respect for the rule of law and undermines our security. It also poses a particular burden to those in our border communities. We are developing a new approach to controlling the border, one that includes an integrated mix of additional staff, new technology and enhanced infrastructure investment. But control of the border will also require reducing the demand for illegal border migration by channeling migrants into regulated legal channels to seek work. I look forward to working with Congress, therefore, this year to improve border security significantly through the President’s Temporary Worker Program.
But immigration policy is about more than keeping illegal migrants out. Our heritage and our national character inspire us to create a more welcoming society for those who lawfully come to our shores to work, learn and visit. Secretary Rice and I will, in the near term, announce a detailed agenda of work and innovation that the Department of State and DHS have already begun, to work together to ease the path for those who wish to visit, study, and conduct business in the United States.
Of course, some people come to our shores to seek a better life for themselves and their children. Ours is, after all, a nation of immigrants. But for legal immigrants trying to become American citizens, the process can be confusing, frustrating, and seemingly endless. Part of the problem is that the current business model fosters a long delay between application and final adjudication of applicants for residence and citizenship, during which many applicants stay here as temporary residents. But this system puts some of the most important security screening at the end of a lengthy process rather than at the beginning, and leads to an unnecessarily high rate of rejection late in the process.
As a result, too often, this system leaves a negative first impression of our nation with our new fellow countrymen. Worse yet, it causes unnecessary security risks because people enjoy temporary residence while we are completing the screening process. Restructuring this process to enhance security and improve customer service will be an important part of our upcoming agenda.
Now, creating better systems to move people and goods more securely and efficiently into the country and around the country was a core objective in founding the Department of Homeland Security. It remains so today.
The tragic events in London last week serve as a reminder of the terrorist threat against innocent civilians in our mass transit systems. Following last year’s Madrid train bombings, DHS took important action not only by increasing funding for rail security, but by conducting over 2,600 individual consequence assessments. Since 9/11, the Transportation Security Administration and the Federal Transit Administration have worked together extensively with the transit industry and with first responders to strengthen the overall security capabilities of our transit systems, with a special emphasis on the largest systems. Together, we have developed a significant tool-kit of protective measures, which include the coordination and training needed to recover from a possible attack. Multiple funding streams within DHS have been made available to support these kinds of transit-oriented projects, including eligibility for roughly $8.6 billion -- that's billion dollars -- under our State Homeland Security and Urban Area Security Initiative grant programs.
But we are also working to develop next-generation explosive detection equipment specifically for use in mass transit systems. We will continue to apply enhanced resources to this groundbreaking work. And at the same time, we must also prepare for terror attacks of even greater consequence -- attacking transit systems with biological, radiological or chemical agents. We now have in place a network of bio-sensors, but we will accelerate the development and deployment of the next generation technology in bio-sensors to more quickly detect biological, radiological, and chemical attacks.
Aviation security. After 9/11, TSA was created to deny terrorists the opportunity to use aircraft as weapons and to defend our vital national infrastructure. Extraordinary progress has been made, but more remains to do. In aviation, our security and our convenience and efficiency can be strengthened by better use of technology, both existing and next generation technology.
Let me observe that Congress intended TSA to be almost entirely supported by user fees, but it is not. The administration has proposed a modest increase, a few dollars, in user fees to fund the infrastructure necessary to do this job right. I believe travelers are willing to pay a few dollars more per trip to improve aviation security and enhance efficiency. I call on Congress and the aviation industry to work with me to find a formula that will work. By collecting user fees for aviation, we can free up precious DHS resources for other very important security priorities.
Passenger identity screening. Too often, security screening for passengers at airports is frustrating. We are still dependent upon a pre-9/11 technology system to conduct the most elementary form of terrorist screening -- matching names against watch lists. Our job is to identify people at airports whom we already know and believe to pose a risk to aviation. Our existing watch list does do this, it does identify threatening people, but it is not fully automated for aviation screening and it yields an unacceptably high number of false positive identifications, which drains our security resources and imposes a burden and inconvenience on passengers.
Now, getting this right is urgent. The short-term solution lies in enhancing our ability to screen individuals more precisely against named terror suspects. We can do that by utilizing more precise identifying information such as the date of birth. That kind of system, a more precise identifying system, is being developed through our Secure Flight program, and it will limit cases where low-risk travelers are selected for additional pull-aside security screening. It will dramatically reduce the number of cases where travelers are delayed for questioning simply because they might have the same name as somebody who appears on the watch list. But even this approach may not be complete, because it still remains focused only on identifying the high-risk travelers.
Putting aside the known risks, the more comprehensive and efficient passenger screening system that DHS must develop will give us the ability to automatically clear low-risk travelers. By clearing these low-risk travelers, TSA can reasonably focus on a smaller and more distinct pool of passengers that might really pose a threat to aviation. The result of this will be less frustration, faster service and better security. Better forms of screening will also promote privacy, because they will reduce the number of mistakes or unnecessary interventions that annoy travelers.
TSA’s Registered Traveler and Secure Flight programs are keys to increasing the precision, reliability, and speed of identity screening for domestic air travelers. Equally important are improved protocols to screen inbound international airline passengers and expanded deployment of U.S.-VISIT for overseas visitors. All of these screening programs, taken together, should be integrated so that screening is consistent and interoperable.
Supply chain security management. After September 11th, this country put in place vital measures intended to protect the global movement of marine cargo that touches our shores before it moves into the interior of the country. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is screening all inbound containers and inspecting those that merit further scrutiny. And increasingly, this screening and inspection is taking place at the port of departure overseas, before cargo arrives in the United States.
But we should not rest where we stand. I believe that we can gather, fuse and assess more complete data from the global supply chain to develop a more accurate profile of the history of cargo in any given container. Data about what cargo is moving from the initial point of shipping to the final destination will allow us to target risk better. With more informed targeting, we can more efficiently conduct inspections of cargo that is either high risk or unverified. This "Secure Freight" initiative will allow us to expedite large portions of our inbound trade that sustain our nation’s economy, and let us focus with more precision on the unknown.
And that brings us to inspections. We must enhance and speed inspections that we need to perform so that we minimize freight delays and increase our total inspection capacity. To this end, we will complete our deployment of radiation portal detectors at ports, while advancing research on more sophisticated non-intrusive detection protocols and equipment.
Now let’s turn to information sharing. The ability to share information with our state and local partners and with the private sector, law enforcement and first responders is absolutely critical to our success. Otherwise, we are effectively tying the hands of those who are on the ground and charged with the responsibility of protecting their community, their neighbors and their family.
To our state and local partners, let me say this: You are the front line of defense. We recognize the need for better and more inclusive information sharing, and information sharing, by the way, is a two-way street. Therefore, we will work with the White House Homeland Security Council and our federal colleagues not only to help forge a common federal set of tools for information sharing, but also work with state and local officials -- and private sector infrastructure owners --to fuse and share a richer intelligence base. In short, we will promote greater situational awareness.
Therefore, this week, I will invite every state homeland security advisor and every state emergency management coordinator to come to Washington at a date we will set for a face-to-face visit with me and my senior management team. This will be a working session to discuss information exchange protocols, the Homeland Security Advisory System, and how we can best support state and regional data fusion centers, and other topics of mutual concern.
Now, with all this, DHS must be a responsible steward of the public trust. Congress is justified in making significant investments in homeland security, and that entails significant procurement for DHS. But we must ensure that we carry out these procurement responsibilities properly.
One of my very first acts as the new Secretary here was to contact the Department’s Inspector General and my Chief Procurement Officer and ask them to evaluate DHS procurements and our contracting practices. I asked to make suggestions regarding needed changes, and I’ve received those suggestions. I'm going to rely on those recommendations and others to make procurement integrity and efficiency a management focus throughout this Department’s work.
We will also emphasize improving financial controls and financial systems, seeking operating efficiencies, strengthening human capital policies, and delivering core information technology systems. Last week’s attack in London re-emphasized for me the need to act on another Second Stage Review recommendation: better integration and consolidation among the Department’s multiple crisis management centers. We will do that.
DHS employees deserve an organization that provides top-notch professional training, and an organization that actually enables individuals to broaden their experiences by working in other components of the Department without interfering with their own career paths. DHS ought to reward the strongest performers and the team players. Our review has given us some very specific recommendations for building this kind of a team organization, and we will look forward to sharing more details with employees in the weeks and months to come.
Now, with all this, I have concluded that some structural changes are needed at DHS to improve mission performance. Modest but essential course corrections regarding organization will give us big dividends. Most of these can be accomplished administratively; a few will require congressional action.
Today I am announcing organizational changes that will include four important areas of focus. These include: (1) formation of a new, department-wide policy office; (2) significant improvements in how DHS manages its intelligence and information sharing responsibilities; (3) formation of a new operations coordination office and other measures to ensure operational accountability among our 22 different components; and (4) an important consolidation effort that integrates the Department’s critical mission of preparedness.
Let me turn to policy first. I have proposed creation of a central policy office led by an under secretary for policy. This office will bring together our international affairs staff, a significant and new strategic planning capability, DHS-wide policy development assets, a senior policy advisor focused on refugee asylum policies, and enhanced private sector liaison resources. Collectively, this policy directorate will strengthen the Department’s ability to develop and plan vital policies.
This office is not a new idea -- it builds in part upon the foundational work of the Border and Transportation Security policy staff, which is to be folded into the new policy directorate. Creation of a DHS policy shop has been suggested by Members of Congress, Secretary Ridge himself, and numerous outside experts. Now is the time to make it a reality.
Intelligence. The fact is that systematic intelligence lies at the heart of everything that we do. Understanding the enemy’s intent and capabilities affects how we operate at our borders, how we assess risk in protecting infrastructure, how we discern the kind of threats for which we must be prepared to respond.
Right now, there are more than 10 separate components or offices of the Department of Homeland Security, which are intelligence generators, and all of us in the Department are consumers and users of intelligence information. We need to have a common picture across this Department, of the intelligence that we generate and the intelligence that we require. We need to fuse that information and combine it with information from other members of the intelligence community, as well as information from our state and local and international partners.
And as I said earlier, DHS can also do a better job of sharing the intelligence we're gathering and the intelligence we're analyzing with our customers inside the Department, with the intelligence community as a whole, and with our frontline first responders at the state and local level.
Therefore, today, I am announcing that the Assistant Secretary for Intelligence Analysis will be designated as the Chief Intelligence Officer for the Department of Homeland Security. The Chief Intelligence Officer will head a strengthened Information Analysis division that will report directly to me. This office will ensure that intelligence is coordinated, fused and analyzed within the Department so that we have a common operational picture of what's going on. It will also provide a primary connection between DHS and the intelligence community as a whole, and a primary source of information for state, local and private sector partners.
Now, intelligence and policy don't mean very much if it's not translated into action. Under our plan, all seven primary operational components of this Department will have a direct line to the Secretary, but, to improve our ability to coordinate and carry out operations, we will establish a new director of operations coordination. The director of operations coordination will work with component leadership and other federal partners to translate intelligence and policy into actions, and to ensure that those actions are joint, well-coordinated and executed in a timely fashion. The operations coordination director will manage DHS’s hub for crisis management.
Now, this integrating office will not disrupt our operators in the field, and it's not going to interfere with the component chains-of-command, because we do not aim to fix what already works. It's simply going to make it easier and more efficient for us to make everybody work together.
Finally, let me turn to the critical area of preparedness. The Department of Homeland Security has sometimes been viewed as a terrorist-fighting entity, but of course, we're an all-hazards Department. Our responsibilities certainly include not only fighting the forces of terrorism, but also fighting the forces of natural disasters. And of course, Hurricane Dennis was a reminder over the weekend of how potent those forces can be. Fortunately, we got a little bit lucky in the way the hurricane finally arrived.
But to ensure that our preparedness efforts do have a focused direction, we intend to consolidate all the Department’s existing preparedness efforts -- including planning, training, exercising and funding -- into a single directorate led by an under secretary for preparedness. Going forward, FEMA will be a direct report to the Secretary, and it will focus on its historic and vital mission of response and recovery -- a mission that it performs superbly. The importance of this latter capacity was illustrated powerfully as Hurricane Dennis made landfall this past week.
And the preparedness directorate will support FEMA with training resources and will continue to rely on FEMA’s subject matter expertise, as well as the expertise of other components in promoting preparedness. It will include our Infrastructure Protection division, as well as the U.S. Fire Administration, which is currently affiliated with FEMA, which will strengthen our linkages and our preparation with the fire service.
Further, as part of our consolidated preparedness team, I will appoint a chief medical officer within the preparedness directorate. This position will be filled by an outstanding physician who will be my principal advisor on medical preparedness and a high-level DHS representative to coordinate with our partners at the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Agriculture and state governments.
The chief medical officer and his team will have primary responsibility for working with HHS, Agriculture and other departments in completing comprehensive plans for executing our responsibilities to prevent and mitigate biologically-based attacks on human health or on our food supply.
We also keenly appreciate the efficiencies and vulnerabilities of our modern technology upon which so much of society depends. To centralize the coordination of the efforts to protect our technological infrastructure, we will also create the new position of assistant secretary for cyber and telecommunications security within the preparedness directorate.
The six areas of focus I've just described are all areas that will be priorities, among others, for the Department moving forward in the near term, and the offer at least an initial road map of large categories of our activity for the months ahead.
We look forward to working with Congress, our colleagues in the administration, and our partners to ensure that the agenda for DHS that I have just described can be implemented effectively. And we will continue to roll out new thinking and specific solutions to the issues that directly affect our security and way of life.
I'm pleased to say we have not been idle while waiting for this moment. To the contrary, we have taken immediate steps to promote security in a common-sense and balanced way. Since my confirmation, for example, we have resolved a long-simmering dispute by supporting the placement of hazardous material warning placards on rail cars. We have also announced a plan to open Ronald Reagan National Airport to general aviation, and the regulation allowing that to happen will be out very, very soon. And we affirmed a strong and achievable implementation plan for the Visa Waiver Program that requires biometric technology standards for passports issued by the nations that participate in our Visa Waiver Program.
Now, what's notable about these decisions is this: We just didn't simply pile on additional security restrictions. Instead, we have modified or even relaxed security measures that were no longer necessary, when risk analysis warranted doing that. After all, a balanced approach means the balance moves down as well as up.
So, moving forward, we will evaluate our decision making, strengthening security where it's needed, and eliminating unnecessary burden when it's possible to do that. And in that spirit today, I'm going to announce two decisions that illustrate this balanced approach.
In the category of strengthening security, after extensive consultation with the Department of State and the Department of Justice, DHS has decided to strengthen our U.S.-VISIT program. In the future, first-time visitors to the United States will be enrolled in the program by submitting ten fingerprints. Subsequent entries will continue to require only a 2-print scan for verification. This enhanced use of U.S.-VISIT will dramatically improve our ability to detect and thwart terrorists trying to enter the United States, with no significant increase in inconvenience.
In the category of lightening burden, TSA will suspend the post-9/11 requirement that commercial airline passengers departing or entering Reagan National Airport in Washington must remain seated for 30 minutes after departure and before arrival. (Applause) Now, this 30-minute seating rule was a sensible measure when it was first applied. But now, almost four years later, significantly enhanced layers of security, ranging from hardened cockpit doors to air marshals, make it reasonable to eliminate this requirement.
So our work in protecting the homeland will always seek reasonable balance. Over time, as intelligence warrants and as progress allows, DHS will be open to change. We will be straightforward. If something goes wrong, we will not only acknowledge it, but we will correct the error. But we will also stand up and let people know when we've done things the right way, or when we see a better way ahead.
In closing, let me address a special message to my colleagues and coworkers at the Department of Homeland Security. This is an exciting time for our organization. Change brings opportunity, and after a historic first two years, our young Department continues to hold one of the most important and valued roles in government -- the responsibility to protect the safety and security of our nation. It's a mission with President Bush placed squarely and confidently on our shoulders, and I share his confidence in you. As we face the future, we set these priorities and we make these adjustments always to serve that mission, to protect our families, our fellow citizens, our visitors, and our homeland.
So, moving forward together, let us answer this call by building upon that which has been honorably founded these past two years at DHS. We will proceed with unyielding focus and with quiet determination.
Thank you very much.
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Related Information
* Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff Announces Six-Point Agenda for Department of Homeland Security
Can someone tell me where to go to download paperclick on a cell phone. I can't find it on the NeoMedia website.
News!
http://www.pinksheets.com/quote/news.jsp?url=fis_story.asp%3Ftextpath%3DCOMTEX%5Cpz%5C2005%5C07%5C07...
HISC -- Homeland Integrated Security Systems Inc.
Com (No Par)
COMPANY NEWS AND PRESS RELEASES FROM OTHER SOURCES:
Homeland Integrated Security Systems, Inc. is Expecting to Have Cyber Noze Units Available for Delivery Within Next 30 Days
ASHEVILLE, N.C., Jul 7, 2005 (PRIMEZONE via COMTEX) -- Homeland Integrated Security Systems, Inc. (Pink Sheets:HISC) is pleased to announce that Homeland Integrated Security Systems President/CEO, Frank Moody, was interviewed on CEOCast.com.
In his interview, Mr. Moody stated that he is in the final stages of negotiation to market an explosive detection device called the Cyber Noze. The Cyber Noze employs a novel technology for the detection of explosive vapors that is more sensitive than existing devices. The advanced technique detects the presence of parts per trillion (ppt) of explosive molecules, without physical contact, and in real time. The Cyber Noze uses an exclusive technology "sample acquisition" system which collects samples, ionizes them, and identifies the sample for an explosive. If the explosive is present, the LCD screen will display and identify the explosive and an alarm will sound.
Moody states, "We hope to combine this product with our other products in the marketplace for distribution in the Middle East and in the U.S. We are currently expecting to have these units available for delivery within the next 30 days."
About Homeland Integrated Security Systems
Homeland Integrated Security Systems owns proprietary technology and has the rights to use patents to some of the most innovative and sophisticated security products. Among the key target markets are the 361 commercial seaports in the U.S. which are vulnerable to criminal penetration. The company is now accepting pre-orders for the Cyber Tracker at http://www.hissusa.com.
About CEOcast
CEOcast is the premier source of original and syndicated streaming broadcast interviews of CEOs of public companies. CEOcast is distributed to millions of online investors at over 700 financial websites as well as to more than 20,000 portfolio managers, buy side analysts and traders at more than 3,300 North American Institutions.
You can hear the interview at www.Ceocast.com
For more information please visit our Web site http://www.hissusa.com or contact Matt Maguire 1-866 THE APPL(E).
Statements regarding financial matters in this press release other than historical facts are ``forward-looking statements'' within the meaning of section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The company intends that such statements about the Company's future expectations, including future revenues and earnings, technology efficacy and all other forward-looking statements be subject to the safe harbors created thereby. Homeland Integrated Security Systems, Inc. is a development-stage company that continues to be dependent upon outside capital to sustain its existence. Since these statements (future operational results and sales) involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time, the Company's actual results may differ materially from expected results.
SOURCE: Homeland Integrated Security Systems, Inc.
By Staff
CONTACT: Homeland Integrated Security Systems
Matt Maguire
866 THE APPL(E)
www.hissusa.com
(C) 2005 PRIMEZONE, All rights reserved.
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SUBJECT CODE: DEFENSE
SOFTWARE
Product Services Announcement
Although it may be a good idea to put in your sell orders at .25 it is my understanding that the market makers do not have to borrow your stock to short it. With pink sheet stocks, I beleive they can just naked short sell stock that they will later have to buy back.
I hate to make predictions they seldom come true. I wish I could just forget about it for 3 years then wake up to find out it's $50.00 pps. But I couldn't do that the curiosity would kill me!
Pennyheaven, back to .74 next week providing we get pr's and 1.50 to 3.00 by end of the month if we get fortune 100 company release.