"We are urging the government and beach managers to adopt a mandatory national scheme to provide permanent public information about storm pollution on every bathing beach, " said Mr Bell.

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Oil companies have also been in the "eye of the storm", but the boss of state-run oil giant Sinopec says the country's oil quality standards are to blame for pollution, Economic Information Daily reports.

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As I reported last August, the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (IPE), a Beijing-based nonprofit organization, is using government information and enforcement data to track pollution across China.

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The engineering wizards who have fueled the Information Revolution through the use of satellites as communications and information-gathering tools also overlooked the pollution they were causing.

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For pollution levels, we used information from the American Lung Association's "State of the Air: 2007" report, which ranked the most polluted metropolitan areas by year-round particle pollution based on data submitted by states to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for 2003-05.

FORBES: ? AP Photo/Don Ryan

During this session, water management under conditions of uncertainty and risk will be addressed through different perspectives - including water for urban settlements, valuation, pollution and disasters and the need for accurate information - with proper links to sustainable development.

UNESCO: World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP)

"Scottish Water, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and the local authorities already work closely with Keep Scotland Beautiful to ensure that the information provided to the public about water quality and short-term pollution incidents is accurate and up-to-date at the beaches, " he said.

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And all this information will help increase renewable energy generation, provide support for plug-in electric vehicles, and reduce the carbon pollution that causes climate change.

WHITEHOUSE: President Obama Explains the Smart Grid and Economic Recovery | The White House