From now on tourists visiting Tanzania are being urged to remove plastic bags from their luggage after the country implemented a ban in order to tackle pollution and protect the environment.
Dosimetry Laboratory Adds Linear Acceleratory Capability
A new medical linear accelerator has been installed in the IAEA Dosimetry Laboratory. The lab helps hospitals worldwide ensure the dose that radiotherapy patients receive is correct.
World Environment Day 2019: Deploying Nuclear Science to Help Keep Our Air Clean
Each year, World Environment Day is celebrated on 5 June to encourage action, to promote awareness and to organize events for the protection of our environment. Rallying international efforts under the theme ‘Beat Air Pollution,’ this year’s World Environment Day will emphasize the importance of measuring and protecting air quality, as an important contribution to human and economic development. The IAEA helps Member States to apply nuclear techniques in a wide range of environmental areas, including air quality monitoring.
In USA people consume 70,000 particles of microplastics per year
In the 1940s began the mass production of plastics. Since then the versatile polymers have spread rapidly across the globe. It goes without saying that plastics have made life easier in many ways, but disposing of the materials is a growing problem. Researchers in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology declared that the average USA citizen consumes more than 70,000 particles of microplastics per year, though the health effects of that consumption stay still unclear.
Banana leaves as a substitute for plastic
Asia is playing an active part in saving the planet, and have recently presented a natural alternative to plastic packaging—banana leaves.
Natural environment promotes good bacteria
Researchers discovered that rebuilding environments with a wider range of species promote ‘good’ bacteria over ‘bad’, giving potential benefits for human health.
Native species are at greater risk of extinction than non-natives due to the climate change
Looking how spring advances across the Midwest, scientists came to conclusion that non-native plants might outlast native plants in the region for the reason of climate change.
Lesotho Receives Expert IAEA Support for its First Cancer Centre
Lesotho looks to open its first cancer facility in 2024 to provide local services for its increasing number of patients rather than sending them abroad for treatment. With its plan in an advanced stage, delegates from several Lesotho ministries joined IAEA experts for an intensive three-day meeting in Vienna last week, to finalise the centre’s specifications and roadmap.
With funding for the facility provided by the Lesotho government and specialist medical staff already undergoing training with IAEA support, the African country of 2.2 million people is in a good position to start building the centre in the capital Maseru and purchase the necessary equipment.
Lesotho currently spends almost US$7 million a year sending its cancer patients to South Africa and India for treatment and care. “This is a major scourge for our country. We have lost many lives due to cancer because of the lack of a radiotherapy facility,” said Mamasiane Tieho, Principal Secretary at the Ministry of Environment, Tourism and Culture, which is mandated to establish the country’s Radiation Protection Board. “It has been a long journey to get to this stage, but we are very happy to come here to finalise the centre’s roadmap and get things moving.”
Completion of the first stage of construction will enable the provision of chemotherapy and radiotherapy for around 1,000 patients a year, with some accommodation available for patients requiring longer periods of treatment. A second construction phase is then envisaged, which will extend the centre’s capacity to provide services for more day patients. The second phase will also add diagnostic and nuclear medicine facilities for both cancer and cardiovascular diseases.
Cancer is increasingly both a health and development issue for many low and middle income countries, with a growing number of cases putting more pressure on the government and family resources. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the number of people expected to develop cancer in Lesotho each year will grow by almost a quarter by 2030, with a similar annual rise in related deaths. Lesotho is one of 28 countries in Africa which currently do not provide radiotherapy– an essential tool in the treatment of cancer.
Recognizing Lesotho’s challenges, Shaukat Abdulrazak, Director of the IAEA’s Technical Cooperation Division for Africa said, “So many countries before you have faced the complex task of establishing cancer services and are succeeding. The IAEA wants to reassure Lesotho of our continued support to make this radiotherapy centre operational.”
Making it happen
During the three-day meeting, the Lesotho delegates provided a comprehensive overview of the status of planning and approval of the facility in the country, and discussed the requirements for its completion in terms of construction, purchase of equipment, and the availability and training of the necessary medical workforce.
Working closely with IAEA experts, the delegates clarified the layout of the centre, prioritised their equipment needs and established the overall timeline for completion, which must coincide with the ongoing training of the required radiation oncologists, medical physicists and radiation therapy technologists. Nuclear safety experts from the IAEA also provided guidance, outlining the importance of protecting medical professionals and patients when providing radiotherapy services.
Garbage of contention
Even 10 years ago no one could have imagined that garbage may be a reason for a diplomatic scandal. But now in a world of climate change urgency this looks like real. The story of 6 years negotiations, discussions, and threats over litter between Philippines and Canada has finally resolved in peaceful way this week.
In Philippines graduates will have to plant dozens of trees
Pupils and students will be encouraged to plant primarily endangered tree species.