REPORT OF THE ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN

TO THE EXECUTIVE BOARD Meeting 1998

In February following his appointment as Secretary General to Region EAME Sid Adriaensen resigned from our Committee as he did not feel he would be able to afford the time. Sid had maintained our library of information and an active member and I would like to thank him for all his work.

Leon Larson has been added to our Committee and has immediately taken on the very active role.

Working at a distance even with E Mail it is not always easy and at times decisions have been made without responses from all Members.

The Committee have put out a Statement of Environment Commitment which has been sent to all Member Federations and I would ask that it is also sent again with a copy of this report in amended format and as amended by the Executive Board .

As many of you know I attended the IOC Meeting on the Environment in November last year but did not address the problems of water and the environment.

I have suggested that the topic should be on their Agenda for the next conference which will be held in 2001.

During the conference I had discussions with a number of people and resulting from discussion with David Chernushenko, the IWSF have commissioned his company to prepare a handbook on the environment from all the available research and documentation which we have.

At the EAME Annual Congress at the end of January the IWSF were criticised by delegate from France and Italy for not being more active and helpful to Members Federations.

I defended the IWSF stating that we had repeatedly asked Federations who carried out any research to make copies of that research available to us and in particular sent to me so we could combined research and have strength in numbers. I repeated the please for co-operation and research so that Member Federations would not have to duplicate the search and monies and energy could be more usefully utilised.

When the handbook was commissioned I asked our Committee Members to help in getting research and information from their Regions. I personally wrote to a number of major EAME Federations including France and Italy. Unfortunately despite a number of requests I have received nothing from France and a negligible response with nothing useful from Italy.

Leon Larson has undertaken an environmental questionnaire which was circulated to numerous boat and engine manufacturers in the United States. It is too early for me to you what response has been to the questionnaires but I hope to be able to do so at the Meeting.

An initial summary of research findings covering some 20 pages has been received for the handbook and it has been circulated to the Committee Members.

Again I would hope to have an update for the Meeting.

I met Colin Ellison of Australia at the first World Cable Championships. He handed some environmental reports and information from Australia. I gather he is fairly heavily involved in this work for the Australian Water Ski Association. I would like to EB to consider asking him to be a Member of this Sub-Committee.

Aubrey Sheena

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