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State-of-the-Art Equipment for CEHI

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Contact: John Emmanuel

 

Tuesday, February 20, 2001 - The Caribbean Environmental Health Institute (CEHI) has significantly enhanced its environmental testing capability with the acquisition of two new state-of-the-art pieces of equipment – an Atomic Absorption Spectrometer  (AAS) and a High Performance Liquid Chromatography machine.

 

The machines, which were commissioned this week, have many functions. They include detecting harmful metals and toxic pollutants in the environment, as well as the presence of dangerous chemicals in water, plant and animal materials. CEHI, based in St. Lucia, provides specialist services in environmental testing to Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries through a regional network of laboratories. 

“The commissioning also moves us towards greater recognition as a centre of excellence for lab analysis and is consistent with our thrust towards lab accreditation,” CEHI’s Executive Director Vincent Sweeney said. “Our expectations are that the efforts towards strengthening of our labs would position us as a service provider to support the major sectors of our economies in the region, namely tourism and agriculture.”

The acquisition of the two machines comes against a backdrop of mounting pressure for Caribbean and other small-island developing states to meet stringent international trade standards. This being the case, CEHI’s high quality monitoring facilities are expected to better position the region in the global export market, especially in relation to agricultural products.

Acting Health Minister Honourable Michael Gaspard has welcomed the commissioning of the machines, viewing them as additional measures aimed at ensuring public health.

“The presence of heavy metals in the environment is cause for great concern due to the harmful effects that these toxic pollutants can have on humans, animal and plant life. The detrimental health effects of some of these metals such as lead, have been widely studied and documented. It has therefore become necessary for CEHI as a leader in environmental health issues in the region to place itself in a position to effectively identify and quantify heavy metals in environmental samples,” he said.

The equipment, costing close to US$200,000.00 will also cut analysis time in half, reduce the possibility of human error in testing, and allow for improved efficiency, CEHI officials said.

 

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