ment options—such as ozone, chlorine dioxide, UV light, and various filtration technologies—which systems would choose from to meet additional treatment requirements. Taken together, the two proposed rules would require roughly 30% of utilities nationwide to significantly alter their treatment processes, says Steve Via, a regulatory engineer with the American Water Works Association. EPA estimates that the annual cost of the proposed rules will range from $127.8 million to $174.9 million. For more information on the DBP rule, go to www.epa.gov/safewater/ stage2/index.html, and for more information on the microbial rule, go to www.epa.gov/safewater/lt2/ index.html. —KRIS CHRISTEN
ES&T’s new associate editors In August, ES&T Editor Jerald Schnoor announced the appointment of Armistead Russell of the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) and Janet Hering of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) as associate editors for the journal. Russell will handle papers on air pollution and atmospheric pollution, which were formerly covered by retiring editor Lynn Hildemann, an associate professor at Stanford University who has been with ES&T since 2001. Hering will cover papers on the fate and transport of organic and inorganic compounds as James Pankow, a professor at Oregon Health & Science University, leaves after seven years of service to ES&T. Russell earned his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering at Caltech. After holding research and teaching positions at Caltech Armistead Russell and Carnegie Mellon University, he became the Georgia Power Distinguished Professor of Engineering in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Georgia Tech. His current research centers on applying air
quality modeling to policy and health studies, including projects on modeling the effects of particulate matter and emissions on ecosystems for public health assessments and national standards. This year, Russell chaired a National Research Council committee that examined environmental impacts and trends of carbon monoxide in areas with extreme climates, such as Alaska. He was named a national associate to the National Academies in 2002. Hering received her doctorate in chemical oceanography from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and the MassachuJanet Hering setts Institute of Technology Joint Program in Oceanography in 1988. She was a postdoctoral fellow at the Swiss Institute of Technology for Water Resources and Water Pollution Control (EAWAG) before joining the civil and environmental engineering department at the University of California, Los Angeles. As a professor of environmental science and engineering at Caltech, Hering has focused her research on biogeochemical cycling of trace elements
News Briefs Implementing a network of ocean observatories The National Science Foundation (NSF) should move forward with funding its Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) and create a network of research-driven seafloor observatories by exploiting advances in computational, robotic, communications, and sensor technologies, recommends a new report by the National Research Council’s Ocean Studies Board. According to the report, the establishment of such a network would advance basic knowledge of the oceans and help address issues such as climate change, natural hazards, and the viability of the ocean’s resources. The report emphasizes that NSF should coordinate OOI with other observatory efforts. Enabling Ocean Research in the 21st Century: Implementation of a Network of Ocean Observatories is available at www. nap.edu/catalog/10775.html.
Fast beach testing To prevent U.S. beachgoers from being exposed to waterborne bacteria, the U.S. EPA is evaluating a new technology that can detect the presence of fecal bacteria in two hours or less. The tests are an outgrowth of the agency’s 1999 Beach Action Plan, which had a goal of finding a faster method of detecting E. coli indicator bacteria than the 24−48 hours required by conventional tests. The technology was developed by Advanced Analytical Technologies and uses antibodies to detect pathogens (Environ. Sci. Technol. 1999, 33, 353A−354A). The Centers for Disease Control is also involved in the tests, which were conducted in Huntington Beach on the shores of Lake Erie near Cleveland, Ohio, in August and September and will continue in 2005 at other beaches. For more information, go to www.epa.gov/ nheerl/neear/index.html.
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nal illnesses and, in some cases, death, and is resistant to common disinfectants like chlorine. Current drinking water regulations require water utilities to remove at least 99% of Cryptosporidium, but EPA has new occurrence and treatment data indicating that a subset of systems are more vulnerable to Cryptosporidium and therefore require additional treatment. These include filtered systems with high levels of Cryptosporidium in their source waters, as well as unfiltered systems. The new approach would focus on monitoring source waters to determine the extent of microbial contamination, with treatment then tailored to achieve the necessary reductions, Millett says. The regulation specifies a range of treat-
Environmental▼News Science Foundation’s Presidential Faculty Fellow and Young Investigator Awards. She has been a member of ES&T’s Editorial Advisory Board since 2000 and served as a guest editor in 1998. —RACHEL PETKEWICH
Taiwan pledges funds for renewables
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Taiwan’s Energy Commission pledged 16.8 billion Taiwan new dollars (U.S. $491 million) over the next 4 years to promote industries related to energy conservation and renewable energy. The announcement, made in July, prompted officials to predict that 10% of Taiwan’s installed capacity of power supply will come from renewable sources in 2010.
About 10% of Taiwan’s energy could come from renewable sources, such as hydroelectric power, by 2010.
The Energy Commission’s announcement arrives on the heels of a pledge in January by the Taiwan government to develop about 6500 megawatts of energy from renewable sources by 2020. This ambitious goal, if achieved, would increase Taiwan’s installed capacity of power supply from renewable sources to about 12%—a significant jump from the current 4.1% of renewable energy. However, Taiwan’s level of renewable energy sources would still be below that of other parts of the world. Last year, a global proposal to ensure that renewable energy accounts for up to 15% of the world’s energy supply by 2010 was brought up at the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Develop-
ment in South Africa. Even when 12% of power generation capacity comes from renewable energy, it will still only account for 5% of the total energy supply in Taiwan, according to the Energy Commission. Academics say the pledge to triple power generation capacity converted from renewable energy sources looks ambitious; however, the 5% goal is too humble compared with the former goal of 3% set by the government in 1998. Yunn-ming Wang, deputy secretary general of the Energy Commission, told ES&T that for countries with abundant sources of renewable energy, such as hydroelectric power, 15%, or even 20%, could be a reachable goal. “It’s not for Taiwan, which lacks…sources of renewable energy,” Wang said on June 27. Taiwan relies mainly on thermal power generation. In 2001, low-cost fuel, such as that derived from coal, contributed to 37.8% of the country’s gross power generation. Meanwhile, oil and gas accounted for 11.2% and 10.2%, respectively. The renewable energy target was set in a draft proposed law, which was sent from the Cabinet (Executive Yuan) in August 2002 to the Legislative Yuan for its approval. Legislator Chin-lin Lai says that having 12% of power generation capacity converted from renewable energy could be an attainable goal “if related laws pertaining to policy reform and subsidy regulations would be passed soon by the Legislative Yuan.” Energy-related laws under review in the legislature include regulations on compulsory purchases and guarantees of fixed prices for electricity converted from renewable energy sources. The legislature could tackle these laws in September during the next session. —YU-TZU CHIU
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News Briefs Racing with the sun In July, a team of students from the University of Missouri, Rolla (UMR) won the American Solar Challenge, crossing the finish line of the 2300-mile race more than 4 hours ahead of their nearest challenger and setting a U.S. record. For the competition, formerly known as the Sunrayce, competitors build cars operating only on solar power. This year’s winning time was 51:47:39; UMR’s “Solar Miner IV” averaged 43.3 miles per hour. The biannual race is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, BP Solar, and EDS—the latter two are global technology companies invested in solar power—but competitors must have outside funding to build their cars. Student cars generally operate on photovoltaic cells and store energy in lithium polymer batteries. For race information, visit www. americansolarchallenge.org.
Perchlorate remediation resources The number of validated technologies for removing perchlorate from contaminated drinking water, groundwater, and soil is growing, even though U.S. regulation of the contaminant is stalled. The U.S. EPA’s Technology Innovation Office, the U.S. Department of Defense, and Calgon Carbon Corp. (which is one of the companies promoting a treatment modality) maintain websites with links to information about more than 60 technologies. To date, the majority of the technologies involve bioremediation (Environ. Sci. Technol. 1999, 33, 515A). For more information, go to http://cluin.org/perchlorate, www. denix.osd.mil/denix/Public/Library/ Water/Perchlorate/perchlorate.html, or www.perchlorateinfo.com.
AMERICAN SOLAR CHALLENGE
and removing inorganic contaminants from drinking water—particularly chromium and arsenic—and mineral weathering reactions. Hering has served on drinking water panels for the U.S. EPA and is a past recipient of the National
