46 countries agree to better protect environmental defenders

GENEVA (AP) — Nearly four dozen countries in Europe and central Asia have agreed to improve protections for environmental defenders who voice concerns on issues like the construction of dams, harmful agricultural policies, fallout from oil projects and illegal logging in forests, a U.N. body aimed to foster European integration said Friday. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe says 46 countries plus the European Union who are behind a pact on environmental protection known as the Aarhus Convention agreed Thursday to set up the “rapid-response mechanism” to help those who want to protect the environment.