Environment Ministry Seeks Aid from US

CZECHOSLOVAKIA wants international help in correcting the results of more than 40 years of environmental recklessness. Environment Minister Bedrich Moldan paved the way for United States assistance during his visit to Washington earlier this spring. He engaged the US Environmental Protection Agency to help evaluate the nation's ecological problems.

``Once the problems and solutions have been identified, we will review our options,'' says Mr. Moldan. ``We are looking for good will from the US, both the public and the private sector. ... We really don't need large credits from abroad, but targeted money. ... We have technicians, chemists, and engineers. We need technical assistance - a computer here, a pump there - critical parts of the whole [pollution] abatement system. And of course, we need advice.''

The first order of business, he says, is conservation of energy. Industry's pervasive use of brown coal, for example, is highly inefficient and toxic. Technology for controlling pollution, such as that resulting from coal-burning emissions and chemical production, is sorely needed. Waste management is another area the government must quickly address, Moldan says.