Page 410 - Environment
Saudi Ma'aden says hires Korea's Daelim to build 3.35 billion riyal ammonia plant
DUBAI (Reuters) - State-run Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Ma'aden) plans to build a third ammonia plant in at a cost of about 3.35 billion Saudi riyals ($893 million), according to a bourse statement on Monday.
Delhi's air quality improves to 'poor'
Delhi's air quality improved to 'poor' on Monday, even as authorities said it might deteriorate in the coming days with possibilities of 'severe' pollution. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) recorded the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi at 272 in the evening. An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered 'good', 51 and 100 'satisfactory', 101 and 200 'moderate', 201 and 300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'. However, Centre-run System of Air Quality Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) reported an AQI in the 'very poor' category. On Sunday, the AQI had oscillated between "poor" and "very poor" categories. Faridabad and Gurgaon recorded 'poor' air quality; Noida and Greater Noida too reported 'poor' air quality while Ghaziabad reported 'very poor' category. On Saturday, a haze had engulfed the national capital and the worst air quality of this season was recorded at 324. An official said the air quality of Delhi might deteriorate to 'severe' category in the
Fire at Delhi landfill site not yet controlled
A fire that started at the sprawling Bhalaswa garbage landfill site in the capital on Sunday night is yet to be controlled, officials said.
J&K to have Panchayat polls in 9 phases from Nov 17
The Panchayat polls in Jammu and Kashmir will start on November 17 and will be held in 9 phases, officials said on Monday.
4-feet-long cobra rescued from northwest Delhi
A four-feet-long cobra was rescued from a warehouse in northwest Delhi's Jahangirpuri area, an NGO said Monday. On Sunday, two officials from the Wildlife SOS rescued the snake. "Being one of the four most venomous snake species to be found in India, our team had to exercise a lot of caution while conducting the rescue to avoid any unnecessary casualties," said Kartick Satyanarayan, the CEO and co-founder of Wildlife SOS. In another incident over the weekend, the NGO rescued a five-feet-long rat snake from a farmhouse in Noida sector-126. Both snakes are currently under observation and will be released back into the wild once deemed fit, the NGO added.
India's coastal communities to get USD 43 million to boost climate resilience
A UN-backed fund has approved USD 43.4 million for enhancing climate resilience for millions of people living in India's coastal communities in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha as part of its efforts to combat extreme impacts of climate change. The grant is a part of more than USD 1 billion approved by the Green Climate Fund for 19 new projects to help developing countries tackle climate change. The new project will be supported through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and is an essential step for India in reaching its goals outlined in the Paris Agreement and 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The 21st meeting of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Board ended Sunday in Bahrain's capital Manama, approving over one billion dollars of new projects and programmes to support climate action in developing countries, and formally launching its first replenishment, a statement from the fund said. "India's coastal areas are quite vulnerable to climate change and this ...
Three persons injured in attack by wild elephants
Three persons were injured when wild elephants attacked them at Neamatighat in upper Assam's Jorhat district, Forest department officials said Monday. Three wild elephants had entered the area in search of food and attacked three persons, damaged seven huts and five shops on Sunday night, said Forest department official Tonkeswar Gayan here. A Forest department team reached the area and blank fired to scare away the three pachyderms toward Kartik Chapori, Gayan said. The three jumbos have got separated from a herd of 150 elephants suspected to have come from Sivasagar side and loitering around in Sivasagar, Jorhat, Kaziranga, Titabor along the shore areas of the Brahmaputra river for several years, Jorhat Forest Range Officer, Dipak Bora said Monday.
ReNew Power to set up 3MW floating solar project in AP
ReNew Power Monday said it has bagged the order for developing a 3 MW floating solar photovoltaic project in Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. Once commissioned, this project will be among the largest floating solar PV projects in the country, the company said in a statement issued here. ReNew won this project, after participating in a bidding process conducted by Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) for installation of a floating solar PV project at Meghadrigedda reservoir located in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. The project is being financed by GVMC through a grant received from Asian Development Bank (ADB) under their Urban Climate Change Resilience Trust Fund. "Floating solar is an emerging technology trend with huge potential. We believe floating solar power plants can play a critical role in a country like India which has abundant water bodies," ReNew Power head - distributed solar and offtake Prabhat Mishra said. He further said that factors like ...
Human-animal conflict a problem, govt should consider task force on it, says SC
The Supreme Court said on Monday that human-animal conflict, especially involving elephants, was a "problem" and the Centre should consider setting up a task force to ensure adherence to the guidelines on this issue. A bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta asked the Centre to consider this idea so that remedial and corrective steps could be taken and elephants in different parts of the country are not subjected to violence. "There is a problem (human-animal conflict) and at some point of time, you have to solve that problem," the bench told Additional Solicitor General (ASG) A N S Nadkarni, appearing for the Centre. "There are problems related to elephants, rhinos, lions, tigers. Either you can have some kind of a multi-purpose body or have specific bodies to deal with them," the bench said. The apex court said that prayer of the petitioner for formulation of a task force and measures to deal with human and elephant conflict was not "something impossible" and it was rather .
'Singing' Antarctic ice shelf may help scientists monitor changes
Scientists have found a novel technique to monitor changes in the ice shelf from afar.Winds blowing across snow dunes on Antarctica's Ross Ice Shelf cause the massive ice slab's surface to vibrate, producing a near-constant set of seismic "tones" scientists could potentially use to monitor changes in the ice shelf from afar, according to new research.The Ross Ice Shelf is Antarctica's largest ice shelf, a Texas-sized plate of glacial ice fed from the icy continent's interior that floats atop the Southern Ocean. The ice shelf buttresses adjacent ice sheets on Antarctica's mainland, impending ice flow from land into water, like a cork in a bottle.When ice shelves collapse, ice can flow faster from land into the sea, which can raise sea levels. Ice shelves all over Antarctica have been thinning, and in some cases breaking up or retreating, due to rising ocean and air temperatures. Prior observations have shown that Antarctic ice shelves can collapse suddenly and without obvious warning ..
Amarinder discusses Israeli investment opportunities in Punjab
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday welcomed Israeli investments in his state in areas like infrastructure development, housing, energy, water supply, and hospitals. Singh, kicked off his official engagements with a meeting with officials of Israel's Tyros International Group Ltd to discuss investments opportunities in the Punjab's infrastructure sector. In a tweet following the meeting, the Chief Minister said that he discussed "investment opportunities in Punjab's infrastructure development, including housing, energy, water supply, sewage treatment and hospitals". He later went to visit facilities of NaanDan Jain Irrigation, accompanied by officials of the state, to witness latest technology deployed in precision farming and horticulture. NaanDanJain Irrigation Ltd. is the leading global producer and provider of tailor-made irrigation solutions. He will also be visiting several facilities and institutions working in sectors such as agriculture, horticulture, dairy and ...
Nearly 40 lakh tonnes paddy procured in Punjab
Nearly 40 lakh tonnes of paddy has been procured in Punjab this season, food and supplies officials said on Monday.
Implementation of CREDAI Clean City Movement at BMC's Park in Bandra, Mumbai - A CRS Project by Rustomjee in Association With BMC
/ -- As part of Community Social Responsibility, Rustomjee in association with CREDAI Clean City Movement and BMC set up Organic Waste Composters for Solid Waste Management for residents near Guru Nanak Park, Bandra West. (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/772633/Rustomjee_CREDAI_Clean_City.jpg ) (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/772634/Rustomjee_Bio_Bins_at_Guru_Nanak_Park.jpg ) Unlike all Municipal Gardens, Guru Nanak Park also had some reserved space for 'Compost Pit', which is utilized for setting-up CCCM's' Bio-Digester Bins. CCCM is recognized for treating bio-degradable wet waste and converting it into organic manure using Aerobic Microbial system . With this project, approx. 2.5 tons of wet waste will not go to the dumping ground. Implementation of the system was done on Saturday, 20th October, 2018 in a formal inaugural programme in presence of Asst. Commissioner, MCGM - Mr. Sharad Ughade and Corporator Ms. Swapna Mhatre and Mr. Boman Irani, CMD, Rustomjee and ...
Kerala CM hits out at Modi for being indifferent to state's needs
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his "negative approach" on the needs of the state, which is slowly picking up pieces after a devastating flood in August.
SC verdict on firecrackers on Tuesday
The Supreme Court will pronounce on Tuesday its verdict on the plea for a ban on the manufacture, sale and possession of firecrackers across the country.
Outrage as Philippines probes farmer 'massacre'
Philippine authorities said Monday they have launched a probe into the mass slaying of nine farmers gunned down after taking over part of a sugar plantation to grow food for themselves. The deadly attack has provoked outrage in the Philippines, as well as criticism of Manila's slow-moving programme to redistribute farmland to millions of sharecroppers -- tenant farmers who give a part of each crop as rent -- who remain mired in poverty. The violence erupted Saturday on the central island of Negros, the centre of the nation's sugar industry and home to some of the country's wealthiest landowners as well as some of its poorest farm workers. Up to 40 gunmen attacked a group of about 25 people who had entered the plantation near the city of Sagay just hours earlier to sow their own crops. "This was... a grim reflection of the decades-old failure of the government's agrarian reform programme to extricate poor Filipino farmers from vicious and degrading cycle of poverty," Senator Leila De ..
Tigress Sundari to be shifted back into enclosure
The Forest Department in Odisha has decided to tranquilise Royal Bengal tigress Sundari after another man was attacked and killed in Satakosia Tiger Reserve, an official said on Monday.
Climate fund approves USD 43 million to boost climate resilience for India's coastal communities
A UN-backed fund has approved USD 43.4 million for enhancing climate resilience for millions of people living in India's coastal communities as part of its efforts to combat extreme impacts of climate change. The grant is a part of more than USD 1 billion approved by the Green Climate Fund for 19 new projects to help developing countries tackle climate change. The new project will be supported through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and is an essential step for India in reaching its goals outlined in the Paris Agreement and 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The 21st meeting of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Board ended Sunday in Bahrain's capital Manama, approving over one billion dollars of new projects and programmes to support climate action in developing countries, and formally launching its first replenishment, a statement released by the fund said. "India's coastal areas are quite vulnerable to climate change and this project focuses on selected vulnerable .
E-waste is the world's fastest growing waste stream
With more than 2 million metric tonnes of e-waste generated every year, India is the fourth largest e-waste producer in the world.This is an alarming situation, which needs immediate attention both at the policy and implementation levels. International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group, and Karo Sambhav, a certified Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO), recently hosted an event to prioritize e-waste management as a public interest issue.The event was held to mark the first anniversary of the International E-waste Day, declared by European Association of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Forum last year.The Global E-waste Monitor, 2017 published by the United Nations University estimates that out of total e-waste generated annually, nearly 82 per cent is contributed by personal devices such as phones, tablets and laptops. According to a joint study by ASSOCHAM and NEC Technologies - India will consume $400 billion worth of electronic goods
Great White Pelican rescued from Valankulam Lake being treated
A Great White Pelican, which was rescued from Valankulam Lake by an environmentalist, is being treated in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore.Environmentalist Syed rescued the injured Pelican on Sunday and handed it over to the forest department for treatment.After receiving information from the locals, Syed reached the spot. He first took the bird to the zoo authorities, who refused to take it. The environmentalist then handed it over to the forest department.Syed alleged that no doctor was available at the forest department and the bird's treatment was slightly delayed because of it.Following the incident, he urged the forest department to set up a bird treatment centre inside the zoo itself in order to treat injured birds which are being brought there.
