Page 59 - Environment
Amazon loses contract with FedEx amid competition
Amid increasing competition, global courier company FedEx has decided not to renew its air shipping contract with e-commerce giant Amazon.
Monsoon has hit Kerala coast: IMD
Monsoon has hit the Kerala coast on Saturday, after a delay of one week, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said.
Climate change may make Siberia habitable for humans: Study
Large parts of Asian Russia could become habitable by the late 21st century due to climate change, new research has found. Researchers from the Krasnoyarsk Federal Research Center, Russia, and the National Institute of Aerospace, US, used current and predicted climate scenarios to examine the climate comfort of Asian Russia and work out the potential for human settlement throughout the 21st century. At 13 million square kilometres, Asian Russia - east of the Urals towards the Pacific - accounts for 77 per cent of Russia's land area, according to the study published in the journal Environmental Research Letters. Its population, however, accounts for just 27 per cent of the country's people and is concentrated along the forest-steppe in the south, with its comfortable climate and fertile soil. "Previous human migrations have been associated with climate change. As civilisations developed technology that enabled them to adapt, humans became less reliant on the environment, particularly ..
PM assures kerala of assistance in tackling Nipah
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday assured the people of Kerala that the Centre was working closely with the state government to provide all necessary arrangements required to deal with the Nipah virus problem that has cropped up in the state.Addressing a public meeting here, he asked people of the state to follow advisories released by the state government and the Centre in "true spirit" to deal with the Nipah virus."I assure you that the government of India is with the citizens and government of Kerala. We are working closely to provide all the necessary arrangements required to deal with the Nipah virus crisis," Prime Minister Modi said while addressing a gathering here."I request the people to be more vigilant towards cleanliness and follow advisories released from governments with a true spirit," he added.On June 4, a 23-old-man had tested positive for Nipah virus infection, which killed 17 people in Kerala last year.As of now, a total of 15 people are under observation in .
Monsoon hits Kerala coast, says IMD
Monsoon has hit the Kerala coast on Saturday, after a delay of one week, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has confirmed.
Indian-American activist who yelled at Jeff Bezos arrested
Indian-American activist Priya Sawhney, who interrupted Amazon Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos' on-stage talk, was arrested on trespassing and burglary charges.
15 monkeys die due to heat stroke, water scarcity in MP forest
Around 15 monkeys died possibly due to heatstroke in Joshi Baba forest range in Bagli, Dewas. The group met the tragic fate as another group of monkeys allegedly controlled the nearby water source and didn't allow the group to access it.Forest officials have even admitted burning the decomposing carcasses of some monkeys fearing that they might have died of some infection."The bodies were decomposing; we have to take all precautions. We have burnt few carcasses," said District Forest Official, PN Mishra."The nearby water source is controlled by another group of monkeys that didn't let this group of monkey's access water, which might have resulted in their death," said Mishra..
Crucial to life, oceans get chance in climate spotlight
Armed with better data than ever before, scientists have in recent months sounded the alarm over the rising pace of global warming and the parlous state of Nature. But there is another area of concern, one that covers two thirds of the planet and plays a crucial role in absorbing dangerous greenhouse gases and regulating everything from food chains to weather patterns. Oceans are crucial to life on Earth, yet they frequently only feature in the environment debate when plastic pollution or fish-stock declines are discussed. But experts believe that might be changing. "We have an important opportunity over the next 18 months to do something for oceans," said Dan Laffoley, from the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which released a landmark report in October 2018 warning of the effects of global temperature rises, will this September publish its latest assessment on the state of oceans. "The IPCC report will .
14 lions escape from South Africa's national park
Communities around Phalaborwa, in South Africa Limpopo Province, have been alerted after 14 lions escaped from Kruger National Park.
Tomar calls for last-mile connectivity to all villages by 2022
Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Friday called for providing last-mile connectivity to all villages by 2022 and preparing an action plan to achieve this.
K'tka: As water crisis looms in Shivamogga, officials inspect water processing unit
Commissioner of Shivamogga City Corporation Charulatha, Mayor Latha Ganesh, Deputy Mayor BS Channabasappa, and officials of Karnataka Urban Water Supply and Drainage Board inspected a water processing unit in Mandli, on the outskirts of Shivamogga on Friday."This year we are facing one of the worst water crisis in Shivamogga. As of now, there is sufficient water but if we don't get rain in the next 7-10 days, we will have to take measures to identify where we can reduce supply so citizens aren't affected," Shivamogga City Commissioner Charulatha said after the inspection.Amidst prevailing water crisis in Shivamogga district, environmentalists in the area termed the district forest administration's action of planting one lakh saplings on the occasion of World Environment day 'illogical' as the monsoon is delayed in the state.Ajay Kumar Sharma, an environmentalist, told ANI, "Monsoon is delayed and we are already facing acute drinking water issues in the area. As we didn't get ...
Search operation continues for missing AN-32
The Indian Navy's Long Range Maritime Reconnaisance aircraft P-8I undertook a search mission on Friday morning for search and rescue operation of the missing AN-32.
Researchers discover how tides trigger earthquakes
A new study has uncovered that even the slightest stress can set off tidally triggered earthquakes.Years ago, scientists realised that earthquakes along with mid-ocean ridges and underwater mountain ranges at the edges of the tectonic plates are linked with the tides. But nobody could figure out why there's an uptick in tremors during low tides."Everyone was sort of stumped, because according to conventional theory, those earthquakes should occur at high tides," explained seismologist and co-lead of the study Christopher Scholz.In a study published in the Journal of Nature Communications, researchers have uncovered the mechanism for this seeming paradox, and it comes down to the magma below the mid-ocean ridges. It's the magma chamber breathing, expanding and contracting due to the tides, that's making the faults move," said Scholz.During movement, the upper block slides down with respect to the lower one. So, scientists expected that at high tides, when there is more water sitting ..
India allows river sand, stone aggregates exports to the Maldives
India Friday allowed exports of specified quantities of river sand and stone aggregates to the Maldives under a bilateral trade agreement. "Export of the quantities of river sand and stone aggregates with the annual ceiling ... has been permitted for export to the Maldives under a bilateral trade agreement between India and Maldives," directorate general of foreign trade (DGFT) said in a notification. For 2019-20, the ceiling fixed for river sand and stone aggregates was 2 lakh tonnes and 8 lakh tonnes respectively. It said that the export is subject to a no-objection from Chemical and Allied Export Promotion Council of India (CAPEXIL), which would monitor the ceiling and send a quarterly report to the directorate. The council would also ensure that the suppliers/extractors have obtained appropriate clearances and mining of sand is not undertaken in the coastal regulation zone area. Further, the export is allowed "subject to the exporter obtaining necessary environmental clearances/ ..
New model to build silos for foodgrain storage: Paswan
Union Food and Public Distribution Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said that a new model will be created to expedite construction of silos of 100 lakh tonne capacity to plug foodgrain wastage and check corruption in the procurement system.
Hyena spotted at IIT Indore
A hyena was spotted on the premises of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) near here, after which its management has asked the students to remain alert. An IIT official Friday said the forest department has been informed about the presence of the wild animal. "A hyena was spotted for a while on Thursday on the premises of the institute at Simrol area, around 30 kms away from Indore," the official said. Forest ranger Rasheed Khan said the pugmarks of the hyena have been found on the premises, but it has not been sighted. Sources said the hyena might have returned to the wild as forest area is located right behind the campus. This is not the first incident in which a wild animal was spotted at the IIT Indore campus. A leopard had entered the institute premises in January this year and captured in a cage set up for it at the facility.
Aries Marine bags international green maritime award
Kerala-based industrialist Sohan Roy led Aries Marine has won the award for "Best Green Maritime consultant" at the International Green Shipping and Technology Summit held at Athens, Greece, according to a statement.
Sri Lanka to ban chainsaws, timber mills: president
Sri Lanka will ban imports of chainsaws and shut timber mills within five years to protect forests, President Maithripala Sirisena's office said Friday. Sirisena highlighted his determination to clamp down on illegal logging and increase the amount of territory devoted to forests at an environmental conference. "I have instructed officials to ban the import of chainsaw machines and blades from next week," Sirisena told the conference on Thursday, his office said. Four months ago, Sirisena compelled all users to register chainsaws with police and 82,000 units were recorded within three weeks. The president, who is also environment minister, did not say if he will totally ban machines already in use, but that carpenters and loggers will have five years to shut timber mills and find alternate employment. He said there has been rapid deforestation in recent years, but gave no figures. Sirisena said however the new measures were aimed at raising the country's forest cover to 32 percent of .
Javadekar meets Maha CM, dicsusses environment, forest issues
Union Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar Friday held discussions with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and other officials on environment and forest-related issues in the state. Speaking to reporters, Javadekar said he would be holding such discussions with chief ministers of all states over the next one month to review projects and find a solution to environment concerns raised about them. The minister praised efforts of the Maharashtra government for maintaining development and ecological balance. "In the last five years, we have undertaken and cleared several pro-people, pro-progress projects (in Maharashtra) such as the Chhatrapati Shivaji Memorial, Nhava- Sheva bridge, coastal road (in Mumbai), relaxing CRZ norms, Mumbai Goa road which was pending for 20 years," he claimed. Javadekar added that his ministry had also put in place provisions under which cutting of mangroves (for any project) will require compensatory ...
No dearth of resources for development works in rural areas: Sachin Pilot
Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot Friday said there will no dearth of resources for development works in rural areas. Reviewing schemes of the Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Department at a meeting here, Pilot directed officials to prepare proposals for new works. He asked the officials to chalk out a plan for rainwater harvesting besides exploring the possibility of water conservation under the MGNREGA. Pilot expressed displeasure over the failure to spend allocated funds and asked chief executive officers of districts to prepare development proposals immediately.
