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USD 1 = NOK 7.0 No. 32 - 12 October 1993
CONTENTS:
Only two "new boys" in Brundtland's government (1)
Government still Brussels-bound (2)
Lower price tag for new Ekofisk centre (3)
Frisky fish (4)
Engineers helped 100 Polish firms to reduce pollution (5)
Oslo choir makes ecumenical history (6)
New method for sewage purification (7)
The young worse off - the elderly more affluent (8)
Herbs a new export? (9)
Maths conundrum solved (10)
New measures to promote Sami language (10)
norinform/1 12 October 1993
ONLY TWO "NEW BOYS" IN BRUNDTLAND'S GOVERNMENT
When Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland rearranged her
government last week, the changes were fewer than many had anticipated.
Jens Stoltenberg, who is a Storting representative and first deputy
chairman of the Labour Party replaces Finn Kristensen as Minister of
Industry and Energy. 34 year-old Stoltenberg, the son of UN peace
mediator Thorvald Stoltenberg, will be the youngest government member.
The chief secretary of the Workers' Educational Association in Norway,
Nils Totland, takes over from Oddny Aleksandersen as Minister of
Government Administration. The remaining ministers will stay in their
posts, including Minister of Local Government and Labour Gunnar Berge,
who has now waited three years to take over his appointment at the head
of the Petroleum Directorate. Minister of Children and Family Affairs
Grete Berget will continue in her post. Despite the fact that Berget is
pregnant, Prime Minister Brundtland has decided that she will be granted
leave of absence in connection with the birth, her place being taken by
another minister.
"Losing Finn Kristensen will be a loss to the Government, but we will
benefit from the addition of Jens Stoltenberg,; he will bring a fresh
approach," says the Prime Minister. Her reason for not making more
sweeping changes is that there is no need "to change a winning team."
With the appointment of Nils Totland in place of Oddny Aleksandersen the
number of women in the Government has dropped to 39 per cent. The
minimum stipulated female quota in steering bodies within politics and
major organisations in Norway is 40 per cent. The new Government has 19
members, 7 of them women.
norinform/2 12 October 1993
GOVERNMENT STILL BRUSSELS-BOUND
"Norway has no intention of withdrawing its application for EC
membership," declares Minister of Trade and Shipping Bj|rn Tore Godal,
thereby dismissing speculations abroad that the resounding success of
the anti-EC party, Centre, in the recent election has weakened Norwegian
interest in membership. The minister admits, however, that the pace of
negotiations now seems to preclude any chance of membership for Norway
from 1 January 1995, as was planned. But Godal is nevertheless
satisfied with the speed of the negotiations and says that the date is
immaterial, provided the negotiating result is satisfactory.
Minister of Agriculture Gunhild Oeyangen attempted last week to give the
agricultural organisations confidential information on the Norwegian EC
demands. However, the news was soon leaked and spread to the press. The
demands apparently encompass quotas for milk, meat and grain which are
higher than present production goals. The Government will also demand
that the whole of Norway be regarded as a region with special problems.
Norway would like four types of subsidies for its agriculture. Two of
these, area subsidies and subsidies pr. animal already exist within the
EC. In this sector Norway is interested in partial financing. In
addition it will request the right to make use of two forms of subsidy
which will be nationally financed, namely subsidies to transport and
production.
While negotiations in Brussels move slowly forward, numerous Gallup
polls In Norway reveal growing resistance to EC membership; 51 per cent
of the population now say no to membership, while only 23 per cent are
in favour. Euro-sceptics dominate in all groups of the population
regardless of age, sex and education, and in Oslo a "No" majority has
been registered for the first time, with 37 per cent against the EC and
35 per cent for.
norinform/3 12 October 1993
LOWER PRICE TAG FOR NEW EKOFISK CENTRE
The projected new Ekofisk centre to be built by Phillips Petroleum may
cost between USD 700,000 and USD 1.9 million less than budget estimates.
Phillips plans to have the new Ekofisk field centre completed within
six years. In preliminary estimates the concern calculated on
investments of around USD 2.9 to 4 billion. But the Petroleum
Directorate is more optimistic and considers an estimate of about USD
2.1 billion to be more realistic. A possible reason for the lower price
is that gas from the Statfjord, Gullfaks and Heimdal fields further
north can be led in a pipeline loop outside the Ekofisk field.
The Directorate also believes that development is most likely to be
based on the construction of three small platforms - sited outside the
area of subsidence - rather than on one large platform. Sander Bull-
Gjertsen, head of information in Phillips, is unwilling to speculate on
which solution will be chosen, or on the price tag, but Phillips stands
firm by its original cost estimate.
Phillips will submit its new plan to the Ministry of Industry and Energy
at the turn of the year. The national assembly can thus debate the
issue during its spring session. The new centre will replace the one
which the Petroleum Directorate threatened to close down, on account of
the subsidence problem, by 1995-96, but improvements on the field have
made it possible to continue operations beyond this time.
norinform/4 12 October 1993
FRISKY FISH
Norwegian scientists have measured radioactivity in fish from the
Barents Sea. Their conclusions are that the fish had an average level of
a mere 0.7 becquerels per kg. This put them in the same category as the
healthiest fish in the world. Fish from the Irish Sea and the Baltic
are 40 times as radioactive, though they too are quite safe to eat.
Norwegian authorities put the limit, for basic foodstuffs, at 600
becquerels pr kg. Freshwater fish caught by sports fishermen in
Norwegian and Swedish waters after the Chernobyl nuclear accident in
1986 had a becquerel level of 100,000 per kg.
"We have long been aware that the cod caught off Norway's coast is the
purest that can be obtained. We're therefore very pleased that the
measurements confirm this," says Minister of Fisheries Jan Henry
T.Olsen.
Norway will strive to maintain this state of affairs. It has now
stepped up its controls of radioactive contamination which can result
from the dumping of radioactive material in the Barents Sea and the Kara
Sea and contamination from nuclear-powered Russian vessels.
Monthly tests taken on the fishing grounds are now analyzed at the so-
called LORAKON stations which have been set up by the National Food
Control Authority and by controllers at the Directorate of Fisheries. In
addition, the Directorate and the Norwegian Radiation Protection
Authority will conduct thorough checks four times a year. At both the
monthly and querterly controls, fish from the Barent Sea, the North Sea
and the Skagerrak will be tested. This is a big improvement on previous
practices where measurements were taken more at random.
norinform/5 12 October 1993
ENGINEERS HELPED 100 POLISH FIRMS TO REDUCE POLLUTION
About 100 Polish factories have reduced their emissions considerably
since 1991 after the Norwegian Society for Chartered Engineers (NIF)
helped them conduct technical analyses. Some of the companies reduced
discharges by 60 per cent without making a single investment, and NIF is
to assist a further 800 firms in Eastern Europe.
The projects are financed by the Ministries of the Environment and
Foreign Affairs, and to date have cost around USD 1 million. The UN
considers the initiative to be one of the most cost-effective in Eastern
Europe to date.
"Our main objective is to transfer knowledge to people in Eastern
European firms, universities, and research institutions so that they can
take over as environmental advisors. Undertaking environmental analyses
is a part of the scheme. According to plan, 350 companies will be
analysed and 450 advisors trained in Poland by the end of next year. NIF
has cooperated with its Polish sister organization, NOT, in the
establishment of a centre for cleaner technology. The centre will work
indepoendently after 1994. In the course of the project period, it will
carry out technical environmental analyses of 900 companies in Slovakia,
the Czech Republic, and Russia. The two Government departments have also
signalled that financial support could be mustered for such projects in
the Baltic states and China.
norinform/6 12 October 1993
OSLO CHOIR MAKES ECUMENICAL HISTORY
Saturday 16 October marks the 15th anniversary of the selection of a new
pontiff in the Roman Catholic Chruch - Pope John Paul II. The
anniversary will be celebrated by a High Mass in St Peter's, Rome, and
on this occasion a Norwegian choir will make church history.
The choir of 800 year-old Gamle Aker church in Oslo has been invited to
sing at the special High Mass and in doing so will become the first
choir from a Lutheran church to be invited to sing in St Peter's. The
fact that the Vatican has on this occasion turned to the Nordic
countries and to Norway, has stirred considerable interest.
"In recent years, there have been some signs of stagnation in the the
Catholic Church's relationship to the Protestant Church. We see this as
an important signal of a will to openness, says Kverno.
The 27 members of the choir will sing under the conductorship of Trond
Kverno and Olaf Buverud, both of whom will be accorded the honour of
playing on the great organ of St Peter's. Kvernmo admits to a certain
trepidation as to whether his small choir can manage to make itself
heard in the vastness of St Peter's.
norinform/7 12 October 1993
NEW METHOD FOR SEWAGE PURIFICATION
A professor in engineering at the University of Trondheim,in Norway,
Hallvard Oedegaard, says that cleaner sewage water can be obtained by means
of a new purification method that removes nutrients. Both the
know-how and the technology have now been developed.
Oedegaard has developed a biotechnological process which utilizes
bacteria to break down nitrogen compounds, the undesired nutrient from
watercourses that fertilizes salt water and leads to exponential algae
growth. "Norway has long had the means to remove phosphorus," says
Oedegard, whose doctorate was based on the subject. With the latest
breakthrough, he is optimistic about Norway's chances of fulfilling its
pledge to the other North Sea countries to halve its phosphorus and
nitrogen discharges in the course of the next ten years.
Oedegaard's method combines biological purification with chemical
techniques in a single process. The result is a compact and cost-
effective sewage treatment plant. The system has been incorporated into
the new sewage plant at the Olympic town of Lillehammer. The facilities
are only a quarter of the size of the ones based on traditional
technology, and cheaper too. The system can be used by big cities as
well as small towns, and it has attracted keen interest at home and
abroad. The same process has also proved itself useful for cleaning
spill water from the wood processing and food and beverage industries.
norinform/8 12 October 1993
THE YOUNG WORSE OFF - THE ELDERLY MORE AFFLUENT
Young people in Norway between the ages of 17 and 24 suffered a 6.5 per
cent drop in income from 1987 to 1991. All other groups had more money
at their disposal, the amount increasing with age. "It was the oldest
wage-earners, with the highest incomes who received the biggest
increases, both in terms of cash and percent," says Dag Stokkland at
FAFO, the Norwegian Trade Union Centre for Social Science and Research.
The reason why the young have suffered such a financial setback is that
many of them are unemployed. But among wage earners too the middle-aged
and elderly have netted the biggest gains. Statistics show that wages
in the 45-66 wage group are about three times as high as those in the
17-24 category. In the older group, annual income was well above USD
25,000 while for younger wage earners it was around USD 9,000.
The probable reason for this difference is that the 17 to 24 year olds
are often undergoing education, and working only part time. Wage earners
in the 24-44 age group - who have generally completed their education -
earned almost as much as the 45-66 year olds.
But the biggest increase in income was for those beyond working age, in
the 67 to 80 age group, who had an increase of 20 to 24 per cent. This
is not a result of more generous pensions, but is due to the fact that
many "new" pensionists are enjoying the fruits of deferred annuity
assurance, while the oldest groups have had income from interest. But
in view of the sharply falling interest on deposits, those in the latter
group would be well advised to move their money from bank accounts to
securities if they wish to maintain their standard of living.
norinform/9 12 October 1993
HERBS A NEW EXPORT?
The cultivation of herbs could become a promising new export business
for North Norway. Herbs grown in the endless summer days of the arctic
are of a special quality which the pharmaceutical industry finds highly
desirable. Sisoflor A/S in S|rfold, Nordland county, has plans to export
unadulterated North Norwegian herbs to the German pharmaceutical
industry, which buys many of its raw botanical materials from Eastern
Europe.
A Nordland county business development agency and the University of
Trondheim are working together on an assessment of the market potential
for Norwegian herbs. Even though cultivation of tea and spices is also
under consideration, they pin higher hopes on medicinal herbs. Sisoflor
A/S started test cultivation last year. Vigdis Revhaug in Sisoflor says
that the firm's herbs have been analyzed by German companies and found
to be virtually pollutant-free, while the desired active ingredients
abound in them.
Several of the plants which the pharmaceutical industry needs already
grow in North Norway, such as nettles, oregano and birch leaves.
Although growth is slow in the northern climate, the Norwegian herbs
will have the advantage of sprouting from unpolluted soil, says Revhaug.
In addition, it is costly and not always possible for buyers to remove
the pollutants from Eastern European herbs. So potential exporters like
Sisoflor think that they can compete on price and still turn a profit.
norinform/10 12 October 1993
MATHS CONUNDRUM SOLVED
Norwegian Jan Kristian Haugland (age 19) recently won first prize in an
international research contest in Berlin. The winners of a qualifying
round of national contests in 20 countries competed for prizes in six
categories in the championship, arranged by the EC.
Haugland secured a top award for his work on the "overlapping problem",
posed by the Hungarian mathematician Paul Erd|. The problem has
confounded mathematicians for 25 years, but Haugland reached a solution
through a novel approach. The problem involves a long bar with twice as
many stools as guests. Their seats are removed and the guests have to
move an equal distance, in parallel,to the vacant stools in a way that
provides as many of them as possible with a seat.
NEW MEASURES TO PROMOTE SAMI LANGUAGE
Norway is the first country to ratify a European charter on regional and
minority languages. The country has pledged to initiate a number of
measures regarding education in Sami and the use of Sami in courts of
law and in communication with local and regional authorities. Other
measuress involve the media, cultural affairs, and the use the minority
language in economic and social life. The charter will be implemented as
soon as five countries sign it.
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