Alang in the Lot
They work without masks, without gloves, shirtless, and with cigarettes in their mouths, making skin contact with the poisonous fumes they abundantly inhale. This is neither in Alang (India) nor in Bangladesh; it is at Laval-de-Cère, a town bordering the Massif Central, at the edges of the Cère, a tributary of the Dordogne. For ten years, Sidénergie has been transforming creosoted railway sleepers into coal for barbecue, thanks to a waiver granted by the French Superior Council of Public Hygiene.
The end of the Probo Koala
The Hua Wen, ex-Probo Koala is going to be demolished in the coming weeks in China. From August 2006 on, the scattering in Abidjan of desulphurization waste containing mercaptan and hydrogen sulphide has provoked a panic and the paralysis of Ivory Coast business capital. 16 fatalities were officially reported; the victims had been exposed to the toxic emanations. The toxic and stinky waste which had been unloaded from the Probo Koala slop tanks had illegally left Amsterdam and Tallinn, two North European ports (1).
