International

SP Member of Parliament Remi Poppe is demanding more clarity in the regulations governing the removal of asbestos, which is highly carcinogenic. Poppe has spoken at some length with the environmental police, local authority inspectors and Labour Inspectorate, who in their own colourful description have to cope with 'legislation which resembles a plate of spaghetti'. Poppe has today lodged a report of his findings with Parliament and the public health minister, including a request that the government work closely with the enforcement agencies to work towards better enforcement of the rules.

At the urging of SP Member of Parliament Hugo Polderman, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Gerda Verburg will order an enquiry into the effects on Mauritania's coast of mechanical shellfish removal. This manner of harvesting shellfish was ended in 2004 in the Netherlands' own coastal seas in the Wadden region due to the massive environmental damage it caused. The Dutch fisheries corporations involved appear, however, to have simply relocated their activities to the West African coast. “Destruction of nature should not be moved elsewhere,” says Polderman, “but ended.”