Water conservation

A human fetus was found in a plastic trash bag on the grounds of a waste recycling plant outside the northern town of Katerini, local authorities said Wednesday.

The fetus, according to a coroner's report, was 24 weeks old and was discovered by an employee Wednesday afternoon.

Romania has collected and recycled less than 20 per cent of all electrical and electronic waste in recent years and is at the bottom of a European table ranking, according to a study by the UN and Interpol.

As an investigation gets under way into the cause of a large fire that broke out at a privately owned recycling plant in Aspropyrgos, southwest of Athens, on Saturday and burned for days, sources at the fire service said they could not rule out arson.

A large fire broke out at a private recycling factory in the area of Nea Zoi, near Aspropyrgos, southeast Athens, on Saturday, resulting in extensive damage to the recycling unit, authorities said.

The factory had not been in operation over the last few months due to unpaid debts by its owner.

Greeks are embracing waste recycling, with the overwhelming majority saying it is part of their daily lives, according to a survey carried out by Alco for the Hellenic Recovery Recycling Corporation (HERRCO).

Bulgaria's State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation (DKEVR) proposes introducing a ceiling on prices paid to power generators.

According to DKEVR, the tariff should be capped at BGN 202 per MWh, which is the highest amount paid for the balancing of the energy system.

The proposal is part of a draft decision of DKEVR.

Greeks are getting better at sorting their trash and recycling, a recent study by environmental group WWF Greece has found, though they are still Europe's laggards.

In 2007, only 58 percent of citizens said in a similar survey that they recycle at least once a month, a figure that has gone up to 86 percent today, according to the WWF report.

About 442,000 tons of waste was recycled in Greece last year as a result of households placing recyclable items in the blue dumpsters that are located in an increasing number of neighborhoods, the Hellenic Recovery Recycling Corporation (HERRCO) said on Thursday.

A police raid on a business claiming to be into recycling in Aspropyrgos, west of Athens, revealed evidence of large-scale racketeering.

The firm’s owner, a man aged 62, and his 33-year-old daughter handed themselves into authorities on Friday following Tuesday’s raid and face a string of serious criminal charges.

Serbian driver new hero in USA

A man from Nis saved his colleague from a cistern truck on fire in Los Angeles. I am always ready to help even at a cost of my life, Ivan Vasovic of Nis says. He got in the US the Goodyear Award for the Highway Hero.