Page 451 - Environment
Bullet train: Farmers hit by land acquisition want to meet
Farmers affected by the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project are planning to take the issue of "illegal acquisition of land" to Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Claiming "flagrant violation" of the conditions of the contract between India and Japan, the farmers have alleged that the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is not acting as per the laws of that country. JICA has extended soft loan of around Rs 88,000 crore to the Indian government for the ambitious project that envisages connecting Mumbai with Ahmedabad by the bullet train. The project is said to be close to the heart of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, farmers falling in the alignment zone for the bullet train in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, have been opposing the acquisition of land. Many farmers in Gujarat have already approached the high court against the land acquisition process. The farmer representatives said Monday that they have sought ...
Heat waves, wildfires signal global warming: UN official
Scientists have been warning for years that the world can expect more extreme weather with climate change and that heat waves, wildfires and heavy rainfall all over the world underscore these warnings, a UN official said on Monday.
UN chief arrives on maiden India visit
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres arrived here Monday on his maiden visit to India as the head of the world body that coincides with the commencement of events marking the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Guterres arrived in the afternoon and was received by senior UN officials, an official of the world body said. The UN chief will meet the top leadership of the country including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and is likely to discuss key global issues such as climate change and terrorism during his three-day visit. Ahead of his visit, the UN chief told PTI that India is an "important partner" of the UN in countering terrorism and preventing violent extremism. Guterres also said there are plans to step up cooperation between the UN and India on strengthening capacity in combating terror financing. His visit coincides with the beginning of events to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi on October 2 next year, Deputy Spokesman for the UN ...
Crocodiles, tortoises, Australian parrots seized; 2 held
Eight young marsh crocodiles, two tortoises and as many Australian parrots were seized Monday from a locality here in Maharashtra, police said. Two persons have been detained in this connection and the police are investigating if they had brought the animals for smuggling, they said. Acting on a complaint of a wildlife activist, the Nashik Crime Branch conducted a raid at a house in Bhadrakali locality and seized the reptiles and the endangered birds, a police release said. The two persons were subsequently detained for questioning, it added.
Farmer termites bury invaders alive to protect fungus farms
Kolkata, Oct 1 (Mongabay/IANS) Termites are often a nightmare in human habitats, devouring wooden structures and ravaging crops and trees. But within their own homes, some of these farmer termites have sneaky tricks for pest control. The pests in question are an unwelcome variety of fungi that infiltrate the termite nest mounds.
Invasive plants may boost blue carbon storage
When invasive species enter the picture, things are rarely black and white. A new paper has revealed that some plant invaders could help fight climate change by making it easier for ecosystems to store "blue carbon"- the carbon stored in coastal environments like salt marshes, mangroves and seagrasses.Lead author Ian Davidson said, "We were aware of the effects of invasions on other facets of these habitats, but this was the first time we really delved into blue carbon storage."While blue carbon has become a buzzword in climate change circles, it has not appeared in many conversations about invasive species, especially in the marine realm.The paper is the first meta-analysis to look exclusively at marine habitats when tackling the issue of invasions and carbon storage. Previous carbon storage research has focused largely on terrestrial environments like forests."It's now part of global climate change solutions to get carbon credits in forests. But for blue-carbon habitats, the marine .
NGT seeks info from Bihar govt on dealing with bio-waste at 23,684 hospitals
The National Green Tribunal has directed the Bihar government to submit complete details about the units generating bio-medical waste and share as to how does it plan to deal with the trash generated by 23,684 hospitals and nursing homes in the state. A bench of Justice R S Rathore and expert member S S Garbyal directed the Executive Director of the State Health Society to be present on October 15 with the information about hospitals and the plan as to how medical waste (bio-waste) is proposed to be taken by the state. The NGT asked him to file a detailed affidavit on the issue. "We would like to have the complete details from the Department of Health and Family Welfare as to what is the correct figure in respect of total number of hospitals, those who are compliant and how do the State Government propose to treat bio-medical waste generated by total number of 23,684 hospitals/nursing homes in the State," the bench said. The green panel was informed that there were 23,684 hospitals, .
Garbage dumping ground in Mumbai permanently shut
The garbage dumping ground at Mulund in suburban Mumbai was permanently closed from Monday after it got filled to its maximum capacity, a civic official said. Over 7,000 metric tonne waste being generated everyday in the city will now be dumped at the landfills in Deonar and Kanjurmarg areas, he said. "A Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) team found that no more waste can be dumped at the Mulund landfill and subsequently it was decided to close it," the official from the civic body's solid waste management department said. In February 2016, the Bombay High Court had ordered the BMC to close down the Mulund and Deonar dumping grounds after observing they had reached their saturation points. The high court last last month directed the Maharashtra government to identify and allot a vacant land within two months to the Mumbai civic body to set up a new garbage dumping ground. "We know that Kanjurmarg and Deonar dumping grounds are also nearing their full capacity and ..
Truck torched in Odisha on suspicion of cattle smuggling
Unidentified miscreants have torched a truck and damaged four other vehicles after they found that cattle were being allegedly smuggled in the vehicles in Odisha's Bhadrak district, police said. The incident happened at Asurali under the jurisdiction of Dhamnghar police station Sunday, sparking tension in the area for sometime, said Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Manoranjan Samal. He said that seven trucks were carrying cattle from Pandarabatia under Dhamnghar police station limit to Kolkata. Receiving the information, a group of people intercepted the vehicles and unloaded the cattle during which, they found four animals dead, the SDPO said. The irate crowd then set the truck, in which the dead cattle were found, on fire and damaged four other vehicles. Adequate police personnel were deployed in the area in order to keep the situation under control, he said. The locals also resorted to road blockade protesting cattle smuggling. Despite restrictions on cattle ...
UN report on 'mission impossible' climate target: key points
An executive summary of the UN special report on limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius will be vetted in South Korea this week, line-by-line, by diplomats under the 195-nation Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). A draft version of this "Summary for Policymakers" obtained by AFP underscores how quickly global warming has outstripped humanity's attempts to tame it, and outlines stark options -- all of them requiring a makeover of the global economy -- for avoiding the worst ravages of climate change. Here are key findings, grounded in some 6,000 peer-reviewed scientific studies: TOPLINE FINDINGS ================ The report lays out what it will take to prevent Earth's average surface temperature from rising beyond 1.5C (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above preindustrial levels. Given an increase to date of a full degree Celsius, and our current trajectory toward an unliveable plus 3C or 4C world, the already narrow pathway to a 1.5C cap has become a tightrope. At current
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Water to be released from Pong Dam
Excess water from the Pong dam on the Beas river in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra district will be released from Monday for continuously 10 days, a Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) official said. Excess water up to 17,595 cusecs will be released from the dam daily, he said, adding that the water level in the reservoir reached 1,392.55 feet at 6 am on Monday with current inflow of 12,660 cusecs. The authorities concerned of low-lying areas in Himachal Pradesh and adjoining Punjab have been informed about the release of water and asked to take necessary precautionary measures, he added. Earlier the BBMB authorities had decided to release up to 49,000 cusecs of water from the dam on September 25 after heavy rains in the catchment areas from September 21 to 24, but the plan was deferred considering the reduced inflows and the weather forecast of subdued rain activity, he added.
Saudi shelves $200 billion SoftBank Solar project - WSJ
(Reuters) - Saudi Arabia has shelved a $200 billion plan with SoftBank Group Corp to build the world's biggest solar-power-generation project, the Wall Street journal reported on Sunday, citing Saudi government officials.
UN body opens crucial meeting to consider global warming report
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) with representatives from 195 countries and leading scientists opened a crucial meeting here on Monday to consider its special report on global warming.
Maha plastic ban: MPCB to act against manufacturers from Mon
The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) Sunday instructed its officials to initiate action against plastic manufacturers violating a ban imposed on the product in the state. The direction comes as the deadline for creating a buy-back mechanism for collection of plastic used by retailers as well as in multi-layered and tetra packaging ends Sunday. Officials said E Ravendiran, Member Secretary of MPCB, held a meeting Saturday and interacted with department officials across the state through video conferencing. "It was to review the implementation of the plastic ban. We have instructed them to take action against all the violators," said the official. An official from the MPCB said retailers are expected to print the manufacturers name, type and buy-back price on the plastic used by them. "Besides, they are expected to put in place a mechanism for collection of plastic and to ensure recycling. We will see whether it is being followed by them," said the ...
Deaths of Gir lions: 26 more big cats shifted to rescue centre
Twenty six more lions were captured from the Dalkhania Range in Gujarat's Gir forest during the forest department's ongoing screening drive that was launched following the death of 14 big cats, and were shifted to a rescue centre, an officer said Sunday. This was in addition to the seven lions who had already been captured and shifted to a rescue centre to ascertain their health status, said Chief Conservator of Forest, Junagadh Wildlife Circle, D T Vasavada. The screening drive to identify and rescue lions in Gir Forest was initiated by the Forest department on September 24, following the deaths of 11 big cats in and around Dalkhania Range in Gir-East division. During the screening last week, three more lions died, taking the toll to 14. The department had claimed that the lions were already sick when they were rescued. "In addition to seven big cats, we rescued 26 more lions from Dalkhania range last Thursday. They are kept under observation at a rescue centre," said ..
'Save Sparrow Abhiyan': An initiative to save sparrows in Gujarat
In order to save sparrows from getting extinct, a local group in Surat has started the 'Save Sparrow Abhiyan' (save sparrow campaign) as part of which its members collect the leftover wood from various homes and offices and make 'sparrow villa' out of it.The initiative is being carried forward by various professionals from different fields and has been started by the Hans Art Group."This idea came to our mind when we were sitting on the roof and saw a nest somewhere in the water pipes. We thought that we should make a house for them. Later on, when relatives came to our house, they said that you have made a good house for the sparrows. So, thereafter we started making 'sparrow villa'," said Vishal Kajavadiya, organiser of this initiative."We are giving these houses free of cost. We have given around 5,000 houses till now. Earlier, making one 'sparrow villa' used to cost us Rs 40-45, but now since we take some material from people, it costs around Rs 20-25 per piece today," he added.He
UN report confronts nations with tough choices on climate
The world's nations will gather at a UN conference in South Korea on Monday to review and approve a 20-page bombshell -- distilled from more than 6,000 scientific studies -- laying out narrowing options for staving off climate catastrophe. When the 195 countries who signed off on the Paris Agreement in 2015 requested a report from UN-led scientists on the feasibility of capping global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius, the gesture seemed to many unnecessary. The treaty, after all, enjoined the world to block the rise in Earth's surface temperature at "well below" 2C (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) compared to pre-industrial levels, adding a safety buffer to the two-degree threshold long seen as the guardrail for a climate-safe world. Since then, however, a crescendo of deadly heat waves, floods, wildfires and superstorms engorged by rising seas -- with less than 1C warming so far -- has convinced scientists that the danger cursor needed to be reset. "There is increasing and very robust evidence
Three waste-to-energy plants in Delhi causing pollution, NGT orders fresh inspection
The Waste-to-Energy Plants at Okhla, Ghazipur and Bawana in the national capital are not complying with emission standards and are causing air pollution, a committee has informed the National Green Tribunal. A joint inspection committee of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) told a bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice A K Goel that the three plants are non-compliant with respect to the standards of the particulate matter emitted by them. Taking note of the report, the green panel said if the project proponents fail to maintain the standards, even after rectifying the deficiencies noticed in the joint inspection report, the Central Pollution Control Board may recommend imposition of fine for the environmental damage caused by them. The NGT also directed the CPCB to send a copy of its report to the project proponents of Okhla, Ghazipur and Bawana Waste-to-Energy Plant for compliance and conduct another inspection within a month in view .
Sindhi, Baloch activists oppose construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam
Sindhi and Baloch political activists on Sunday organised a demonstration outside the Pakistan High Commission in London to show their dissatisfaction against the construction of dams on River Indus.The protest was organised by World Sindhi Congress (WSC), which believes the construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam on River Indus is not merely a political issue, but a matter of life and death for the Sindhi people.Baloch activists also joined the protest and raised concerns over exploitation of resources by Islamabad.The protesters said the state is aggressively pursuing construction of mega projects China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and dams on river Indus without any consideration of rights of indigenous Sindhi people and the environment.WSC urges the Pakistani administration to scrap any mega dams from plans and instead focus thoroughly on modern water management and electricity generation from solar, nuclear, and other renewable energy sources.According to reports, The ...