Page 427 - Environment
World sugar market could swing to deficit in 2019/20 as Brazil, EU curb output: broker
LONDON (Reuters) - The world sugar market could see a shortfall in 2019/20 after two years of over-supply as Brazil and the European Union cut production, but strong Indian output will still weigh on the market, ADM Investor Services International said on Thursday.
Two snakes rescued in New Delhi: Wildlife SOS
A nearly five-foot-long rat snake was rescued after it entered a college in Raja Garden area here, Wildlife SOS Rapid Response Unit said Thursday. The snake is currently under observation and will soon be released back into the wild, it said. Shortly after this, the team rescued another rat snake from a house in Jal Vihar Colony in Lajpat Nagar. Both the snakes were kept under observation and will be released back into the wild once deemed fit, it said.
Punjab: With no alternative in hand, farmers forced to burn stubble
Farmers from Punjab's Patiala on Thursday claimed that with no alternatives left, they are forced to burn stubble."We have no alternative. The government has not even waived off our loans. Does only stubble burning cause pollution and not crackers and celebrations during Dushhera and Diwali?" said one of the farmers.Despite a prohibition on the burning of the farm residue, the farmers are set to go against the orders and continue burning stubble this year as well.Talking to ANI on October 6, President of Bharatiya Kisan Union, Balbir Singh Rajewal said that he and many like him are well aware of the consequences and have no other option but to burn the dry straw.Rajewal further claimed that the farmers do not have required machinery available, which was promised to them at a subsidised rate by the government."The government is implementing half-order. We will be fined if we burn the paddy straw. Secondly, they have said that the machinery will be provided free of cost. The government .
Two fifth of China's coal power stations loss-making: Report
Two fifth of China's coal power stations are loss-making and owners could save nearly $390 billion by closing plants in line with the Paris Climate Agreement, financial think tank Carbon Tracker said on Thursday.
Delhi's air quality remaind 'poor' for 4th consecutive day even as wind speed improved: Authorities
The national capital's air quality remained poor for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday, with increase in wind speed raising hopes about improvement in the situation in the next few days. The overall air quality index (AQI) recorded at 4 pm Thursday stood at 210, which falls under 'poor' category, authorities said. On Wednesday, Delhi's AQI stood at 239, according to a data by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). An AQI between 0-50 is considered 'good', 51-100 'satisfactory', 101-200 'moderate', 201-300 'poor', 301-400 'very poor', and 401-500 'severe'. On Thursday, Ghaziabad and Noida also recorded 'moderate' air quality levels at 200 and 198 respectively, the data showed. A senior CPCB official said there would be improvement in the air quality in the next few days as the wind speed improved. "The wind speed increased due to development of a low pressure area over the Bay of Bengal," he said. A slew of measures are being taken by the CPCB to fight pollution during the ...
ISRO centre to come up in Jammu
The Indian Space Research Organisation will set up a centre at the Central University Jammu (CUJ) to expand its presence to the northernmost state of India. ISRO Chairman K Sivan signed memorandums of understanding with CUJ Vice Chancellor Ashok Aima and officials of Central Space Instruments Organisation (CSIR-CSIO) to set up the centre Thursday. Union minister Jitendra Singh was present during the signing of the MoUs at CUJ campus in Samba. The centre, named Satish Dhawan Center for Space Science, is proposed to be spread on an area of about 1,150 square metres. The area of space application is of particular interest to Jammu and Kashmir as its economy and human lives are affected by vegetation cover, forest area, snow, landslides, avalanches, ground water, cloud cover, which can be monitored from space through remote-sensing. Also, considering the recurring natural calamities, requirement of strengthening ground-based observational capabilities of this region for weather and ...
UK scientists say eating less meat can save planet
Cutting down meat consumption and adopting a more "flexitarian" diet that includes more plant-based products could help combat some of the world's biggest problems including emission of green house gases, according to a study by the UK scientists. Titled "Options for keeping the food system within environmental limits", the study says that cutting down on red meat is one of the key steps towards a sustainable future for all in 2050 and that food waste will need to be halved and farming practices will also have to improve. A flexitarian diet means the average world citizen needs to eat 75 per cent less beef, 90 per cent less pork and half the number of eggs, while tripling consumption of beans and pulses and quadrupling nuts and seeds. This would halve emissions from livestock and better management of manure would enable further cuts, according to the study published in the journal 'Nature' on Wednesday. "We can eat a range of healthy diets but what they all have in common, according ..
ED freezes bank accounts of Greenpeace, linked entity; searches offices in B'lore
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has frozen over a dozen bank accounts of environmental NGO Greenpeace and its linked entity after it conducted searches at their premises in Bengaluru on charges of alleged forex violations, officials said Thursday. The NGO said in a statement that it strongly denies all allegations against it and that the ED action was "part of a larger design to muzzle democratic dissent in the country". Official sources in the central probe agency said the searches, under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), were conducted on October 5 in Bengaluru as it was detected that it incorporated a commercial entity called DDIIPL in 2016 after the Union Home Ministry cancelled Greenpeace India Society's (Chennai) FCRA registration the previous year for alleged violation of norms. "Every rupee that goes into Greenpeace India's environmental work is a donation made by ecologically conscious people in the country. "Greenpeace India's work for clean air, promotion of ...
SECI extends deadline for 10 GW solar tender to Nov 12
State-run Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) Thursday extended the bid submission deadline to November 12 for 10 GW of inter-state transmission system (ISTS) connected solar capacities with 3 GW annual solar manufacturing. "The last date for submitting the bids for 10 GW solar capacities with 3 GW manufacturing capacity was October 12, 2018 under tender floated by the SECI. The deadline has been extended to November 12, 2018. The techno-commercial bids would be opened on November 13, 2018," a source said. "The bids for the auction were extended again and again due to technical and commercial issues raised by the bidders. Now, the ministry is in the process to make the tendering process glitch free." The RFS (request for selection) for players for 10 GW solar capacities was floated in May this year. The bid submission was August 27, 2018, which was later extended to September 27, 2018. The bids were to be opened on September 28, 2018. But it was against extended to October 12, ...
Jewar airport: UP Cong chief Babbar says govt 'forcibly acquiring' land, BJP MLA denies
Congress leader Raj Babbar on Thursday accused the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh of "forcibly acquiring" land from farmers for a proposed international airport in Gautam Buddh Nagar's Jewar. Babbar, the chief of the Uttar Pradesh unit of the Congress, Thursday visited the region in western part of the state adjoining the national capital, Delhi, and met with the locals. An international airport is proposed to be developed in Jewar. Over 1,300 hectare of land from five villages - Rohi, Parohi, Dayanatpur, Ranhera and Kishorpur is to be acquired during the first phase of the green field project. A total of 5,000 hectares of land is to be acquired for the green field airport estimated worth Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 crore. "The BJP government is forcibly acquiring land from farmers in the name of (making) an airport in Jewar. The new land acquisition act, which was made due to efforts of (Congress national president) Rahul Gandhi clearly says that the government cannot acquire land from .
550 pollution-related violations recorded since Sept 15, CPCB to conduct more checks
The Central Pollution Control Board has recorded over 550 violations in just about a month in several parts of Delhi-NCR as its multiple teams conducted inspection as part of effort to control air pollution in the region, officials said. About 41 per cent of these violations were related to open storage and dumping of construction and demolition of wastes followed by open waste dumping at 14 per cent, according to a CPCB official. A total of 96 inspections were conducted by 41 teams since September 15 and 554 violations recorded, the official said. Other violations included pollution by unpaved roads (13 per cent), traffic congestion (7 per cent), road dust resuspension (5 per cent) and open burning at 3 per cent, the official added. The official also said such inspection would be intensified in coming days. The teams comprises two senior CPCB officials. In Delhi, 287 violations were recorded while in Noida and Ghaziabad 61 and 39 violations were recorded, respectively. Thirty-two ...
India may miss target of auctioning solar, wind capacities in FY19: Report
India may miss the solar and wind energy auction target in the current fiscal, mainly due to rupee depreciation, safeguard duty and grid connectivity, India Ratings and Research said. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has set a target of auctioning 34 GW of solar energy projects and 10 GW of wind energy projects. "The solar auction target for FY19 may be missed on account of frequent changes in the implementation of safeguard duty, apprehensions about grid connectivity and land acquisition-related bottlenecks. Also, a depreciating rupee compared to USD poses a threat to economical solar tariffs," Indian Ratings and Research said in a statement. According to India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra), a sense of cautious optimism is spreading across renewable projects, with bidders and lenders going circumspect around low margin of error owing to the steep fall in tariffs since the start of auction regime. It said that recent scrapping of solar auctions around tariff concerns can ...
NGT orders 23 states, UTs to prepare action plans to fight air pollution in 2 months
The National Green Tribunal has directed 23 states and Union territories, including the national capital Delhi and Chandigarh, to prepare action plans within two months to bring the air quality standard within the prescribed limit. Noting that there are 102 cities where air quality does not meet the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, the panel formed an Air Quality Monitoring Committee (AQMC), comprising directors of environment, transport, industries, urban development, agriculture departments and member-secretary of state pollution control boards. The NGT said the chief secretaries of the states and administrators of the Union territories will be personally accountable for failure to formulate action plans. The states and Union territories asked to prepare action plans are: Maharashtra (17 cities); Uttar Pradesh (15); Punjab (9); Himachal Pradesh (7); Odisha and Madhya Pradesh (6 each); Assam, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan (5 each); Karnataka (4), Bihar, Chhattisgarh and ...
Centre approves land pooling policy for Delhi
The Centre has approved a land pooling policy for Delhi, which will allow the city to get 17 lakh housing units capable of accommodating 76 lakh people. Last month, the policy was approved by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) under the chairmanship of Lt Governor Anil Baijal. "Yes, I have signed it (land pooling policy)," Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told reporters when asked about the current status of the policy. A senior official of the ministry also confirmed that land pooling policy has been approved by the minister. Under the policy, agencies will develop infrastructure like roads, schools, hospitals, community centres and stadia on part of the pooled land, and return a portion of the plot to farmers who can later execute housing projects with the help of private builders. Last December, the DDA's highest decision-making body had approved simplification of the land pooling policy in the national capital and the authority's role as being a ...
Delay in finalising Action Plan enhancing pollution problem in Delhi: NGT
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has observed that the national capital is facing severe environmental pollution issues and the delay caused by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi government in finalising the State Action Plan on Climate Change is further enhancing the problem.Taking note of rising pollution levels in Delhi, the NGT asked the Deputy Secretary of the Environment Ministry to appear before it.The NGT was irked by the fact that despite two years passing since the filing of the plea, the Delhi government has not finalised the State Action Plan on Climate Change.However, the Delhi government intimated the tribunal that the delay in finalizing the Action Plan is due to the 'Changing Weather' of the national capital.
Clinching argument: Framing climate change in economics (Comment)
October 8, 2018, brought two bits of news of a global nature. While both of them were defining pieces of news of our times, many missed the unmistakable and potent link between the two.
Emission standards: SC grants time to power generating units on compliance issue
The Supreme Court on Thursday granted four weeks to power firms of state governments to apprise it about the time required for complying with the emission standards, including on nitrogen oxide (NOX). A bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta was told by the counsel appearing for the association of private power generating units that they had received the apex court's notice issued to them last week only and they needed some time to file their response. The top court had last month issued notices to the power generating companies of the state governments and the association to assist it in the matter which deals with compliance of emission standards for SOX (sulphur oxide) and PM (particulate matter) by 2021 end, and on NOX by end 2022 with regard to thermal power plants. Advocate Aparajita Singh, assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the air pollution matter, told the bench that private power generating companies should be asked to furnish an undertaking that they would
Cyclone Titli: Power supply hit in Ganjam & Gajapati districts
With the very severe cyclone Titli uprooting more than 100 electric poles and a large number of trees at many places, power supply and road communication was severely hit in Odisha's Ganajm and Gajapati districts Thursday, officials said. Power lines also got snapped at many places as uprooted trees and broken branches fell on them under the impact of Titli, which made a landfall at Palasa in Andhra Pradesh Thursday morning, they said. As a precaution, power distribution company Southco had snapped the power supply from Wednesday evening when the speed of wind increased in these southern Odisha districts. As per the preliminary reports, engineers of Southco said around 120 electric poles, including 55 in Berhampur town, have been uprooted when the wind swept the area at a speed of over 125 kmph. Similarly at least 15 transformers burst in different places, including five in Berhampur due to the cyclone. Besides Berhampur, substantial damage of power infrastructure was ...
Maha facing power cuts because coal diverted to poll-bound
The NCP Thursday claimed that rural areas in Maharashtra are facing extended power cuts every day because the coal supply meant for the state is being "diverted" to poll-bound Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh--all ruled by the BJP. Assembly elections are scheduled to be held in these three states over the next two months. The Sharad Pawar-led party also demanded resignation of Maharashtra Power Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule (BJP) over the power cuts, which the party leaders said are being imposed for 10-12 hours per day without prior announcements. Contesting claims of Bawankule who had denied shortage of power, NCP spokesman Nawab Malik claimed that Maharashtra is currently reeling under power deficit of "3000 MW". Addressing a press conference here, Malik demanded Bawankule be sacked for his "failure" to handle the power deficit, which he said is compounded by shortage of coal in all thermal stations of Maharashtra. Bawankule had Tuesday said the power ...
Asia Rice: India prices slip for third straight week on slow demand
BENGALURU (Reuters) - Rice export prices in India eased for a third consecutive week due to waning demand and prospects of fresh supplies, while markets in Thailand and Vietnam were propped up by expectations of orders from China and Philippines.
