Page 714 - Environment
Elephant scare a bygone in Birgaon village post electrification
Having lived in fear of wild elephants for decades, inhabitants of this tiny hamlet under Gumla district feel a lot safer today, thanks to electrification. Due to solar street lights in Birgaon village, now the elephants no more enter and ransack the houses in search of food, say inhabitants. "Ever since we got electricity in our houses in December last year, there has not been a single case of elephant trespassing into this village," Sunda Munda, an inhabitant of Birgaon said. Birgaon is among 11 other villages in Jharkhand which have been electrified by Azure Power- an independent solar service provider. The company has set up a mini grid of 6 KW in the village, which has a population of over 100 people. The grid provides per household power to run 3 LED bulbs. Besides, each household has access to two power sockets. Birgaon now has access to power supply for 14 hours, said Bikas Kumar, Deputy Manager (Infra) Azure Power. In a tender floated by Jharkhand Renewable Energy Development
Forest guard arrested on graft charge
A forest guard has been arrested by vigilance sleuths in Odisha's Kandhamal district for allegedly accepting bribe from a person for not taking legal action against him for transporting stones. A vigilance release said that the arrested forest guard, Manoranjan Amat, posted at Sankarkhola beat house in Tikabali forest range, was caught by the vigilance personnel when he was accepting the illegal gratification of Rs 5,000 from Srimukha Kanhar yesterday. A fortnight ago, Amat had detected the complainant carrying stones from the forest, in a hired tractor, for domestic use, the release said. Amat had then intercepted the vehicle and demanded Rs 3,000 as bribe from Kanhar. Kanhar had paid the amount and was asked to pay another Rs 5,000 as bribe, the release said. The forest guard had also threatened Kanhar that he would be entangled in a forest case, unless the latter paid the bribe, the release said. Kanhar agreed to pay the amount and reported the matter to vigilance ...
'NASA satellites reveal freshwater decline in India'
India is among the hotspots where overuse of water resources has caused a serious decline in the availability of freshwater, according to a first-of-its-kind study using an array of NASA satellite observations of Earth. Scientists led by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in the US used data on human activities to map locations where freshwater is changing around the globe and why. The study, published in the journal Nature, found that Earth's wet land areas are getting wetter and dry areas are getting drier due to a variety of factors, including human water management, climate change and natural cycles. Areas in northern and eastern India, the Middle East, California and Australia are among the hotspots where overuse of water resources has caused a serious decline in the availability of freshwater that is already causing problems, 'The Guardian' reported. In northern India, groundwater extraction for irrigation of crops such as wheat and rice have caused a rapid decline in available
China drops U.S. sorghum probe amid chaos in global grain market
BEIJING (Reuters) - China dropped its anti-dumping probe into imports of U.S. sorghum on Friday, beating a hasty retreat from a dispute that wreaked chaos across the global grain market and raised concerns about rising costs and financial damage at home.
NASA study warns of freshwater decline in India
Availability of freshwater has declined in the northern and eastern parts of India, says a new study that combined an array of NASA satellite observations of Earth with data on human activities to map locations where freshwater is changing around the globe.
Aviation ministry denied charter plane to shift MLAs from K'taka: JD(S)
Kerala minister and JD-S leader Mathew T. Thomas on Friday alleged that the Ministry of Civil Aviation did not give them permission for a charter plane to shift Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) (JD-S) MLAs from Karnataka to Kochi.Fearing defection to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress and JD-S yesterday shifted their MLAs, lodged at Eagleton Resort in Bengaluru.Thomas while speaking to ANI said he was expecting the MLAs to reach Kochi on May 17, but the Ministry of Civil Aviation did not give them permission for a charter plane."I am definite Karnataka JD(S) MLAs are not coming by flight so I am moving to Kurnool. Not sure about destination if they come here, they are welcome. I was expecting them yesterday but Civil Aviation Department did not give permission to a charter flight," Thomas said.Kerala Tourism minister Kadakampally Surendran earlier invited Congress and JD(S) MLAs from Karnataka to their state to avoid horse-trading and poaching bid by BJP.Neighbouring Telangana ...
Flyover collapse: UP CM orders action against 7 officials
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered proceedings for strict penal action against former Managing Director of UP Bridge Corporation Rajan Mittal and six others in connection with the Varanasi flyover collapse, which killed at least 15 people earlier this week. The chief minister gave these orders after a three-member team constituted to probe the lapses leading to the collapse, submitted its report last night, a senior government official said. Besides Mittal, action has been ordered against chief project manager H C Tewari, project manager K R Sudan, assistant engineer Rajesh Singh, engineer Lal Chand, former project manager Genda Lal and additional project manager Rajesh Pal, he said, adding four of them have already been placed under suspension. The state government had yesterday shunted out Mittal from the post of Managing Director UP State Bridge Corporation. A portion of the flyover coming up in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Lok Sabha constituency collapsed ..
China drops anti-dumping probe of U.S. sorghum imports
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Commerce Ministry said on Friday it was halting its anti-dumping investigation into imports of sorghum from the United States, saying measures it imposed would affect consumers and were not in line with the public interest.
Need for cities to enhance waste management system: CSE on Swachh Survekshan 2018
A leading environment advocacy group today lauded the just-released 'Swachh Survekshan' 2018 for using improved methodology but stressed the need for cities to enhance solid waste management system for better results. The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) noted that there was a clear improvement in the methodology adopted in the survey with more focus on innovation and on adoption of sustainable waste management practices. Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri had released the 'Swachh Survekshan 2018' yesterday. Jharkhand has emerged as the best-performing state in terms of cleanliness, while Indore in Madhya Pradesh was adjudged the cleanest city in the country. "There is a clear improvement in the methodology adopted by the survey we see more focus on innovation, and on adoption of sustainable waste management practices. "However, some of the cities that have been selected for the awards are merely visibly clean and cannot claim to have adopted sustainable ...
Environmental activists submit recommendations on NCAP draft
Various green groups today submitted their recommendations to the environment ministry on the draft National Clean Air Programme, which proposes multiple strategies to combat air pollution, calling for polluting sectors such as industry and coal thermal power plants to be brought under its regulation. The NCAP is only a "paper tiger" without time bound targets, Clean Air Collective- network, an umbrella organisation of 80 groups, including farmers' and citizens groups, said, as it sent its 20-point recommendations on the draft NCAP, which was put up on environment ministry's website for public comments. The draft has been framed by the ministry with an overall objective of a comprehensive management plan for prevention, control and abatement of air pollution, besides augmenting the air quality monitoring network across the country. The collective also recommended the coverage of NCAP should not just be limited to the list of 100 cities as mentioned in the concept note and should be ...
Poor air quality affects people in rural areas as much as in cities: Study
People living in rural areas are as likely to die prematurely from the effects of poor air quality as those living in cities, a new study on north India has claimed. The study found that the sources of pollution in urban versus rural communities may be somewhat different, but the results are the same -- high mortality linked to circulatory and respiratory problems. The authors modelled concentrations of two key pollutants in the northern part of the country -- fine particles generated by incomplete combustion of various fuels and ozone, which forms in the air also as a byproduct of combustion. They then extrapolated premature mortality rates, using data from the Global Burden of Disease, a worldwide consortium that measures the health effects of pollutants and other adverse factors. "They estimated similar per capita rates of premature deaths among adults due to air pollution in both cities and rural areas: about 6 per 10,000 each year -- for a total of 12 deaths per 10,000 due to ...
Need awareness on minimizing waste production: Venkaiah
Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday said there was a need to build awareness about the importance of a self-sustaining system of waste disposal and minimizing waste production.
Hundreds of fish found dead in Punjab's Beas river
Hundreds of fish were found dead floating in the Beas river in Amritsar district, officials said on Thursday.
HC reserves orders on plea seeking quashing of clearance for Vedanta plant
The Madras High Court today reserved its order on a PIL seeking quashing of the environmental clearance granted to Vedanta Limited's copper smelter unit in Thoothukudi district in Tamil Nadu. Justices M Sundar and Anita Sumant of the Madurai bench of the high court reserved the order on a plea by Fathima Babu, an environmentalist, seeking to stay the environmental clearance to Vedanta's copper smelter unit (formerly Sterlite Industries Limited) by the central government in 2009, subsequently renewed in 2015 and 2016. She also wanted exemplary cost to be imposed on the company for damaging the environment. The petitioner said Vedanta Limited should be restrained from carrying out activities in the lands on which the proposed copper smelter-unit II was being constructed. People of Tuticorin had a right to a clean environment which had been spoilt by the copper smelter unit, she submitted. The environmental clearance had been given in 2009 based on misrepresentation by the company and ...
Exclusive: As Rosneft's Vietnam unit drills in disputed area of South China Sea, Beijing issues warning
HANOI (Reuters) - Rosneft Vietnam BV, a unit of Russian state oil firm Rosneft, is concerned that its recent drilling in an area of the South China Sea that is claimed by China could upset Beijing, two sources with direct knowledge of the situation told Reuters on Wednesday.
Greenpeace unfurls banner near European Parliament
Greenpeace activists on Thursday set up solar panels on the European Parliament in Brussels and unveiled a giant banner demanding easier access to solar power as the penultimate round of negotiations on the role of renewable energy in the EU was held.
Large number of fish found dead in Beas
A large number of dead fish were found floating in Beas today after molasses from a sugar factory leaked into the river, an official said. Residents noticed the dead fresh water fish in the river in Punjab's Beas town, about 40 km from the state capital of Amritsar, and informed the authorities. Officials, including Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar Kamaldeep Singh Sangha, and experts from the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) and wildlife department visited the site to take stock of the situation. "According to experts, molasses, which leaked from a sugar factory here in Beas, mixed with the river water and reduced the oxygen levels. This led to the death of fish," Sangha said. He added the PPCB had ordered the closure of the factory. Molasses leakage also changed the colour of the river water to rust brown. "We have also collected water samples and will get them tested to ascertain if something else may also have been there," said Sangha. The district commissioner said it was ...
Govt asks schools to go plastic free, forms teams to clean beaches and riverfronts
In the run-up to World Environment Day celebrations on June 5, the Union Environment Ministry has asked schools to stop the use of plastics in their premises and constituted 19 teams to undertake cleaning of 24 beaches and an equal number of polluted riverfronts and lakes across the country. Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan has written to the principals of schools across the country, requesting them to declare their schools free from plastic pollution, based on which the institutions will be certified as 'Green School'. India is the global host of this year's World Environment Day celebrations, the largest UN-led celebration on environment, and the theme for this edition is 'Beat Plastic Pollution'. "The Union Environment Minister has written to the principals of schools across the country, requesting them to declare their schools or institutions free from plastic pollution. "The ministry will certify schools that become plastic free and publicise the harmful effects of plastics in .
Over 100 ancient tombs discovered in Lhasa
More than 100 ancient tombs have been discovered in Lhasa, capital of Tibet, according to the regional cultural protection institute. Archaeologists have found the tombs late last year during the excavation of a graveyard covering more than 200,000 square metres in Quxu County, said Norbu Tashi, a researcher at the institute. Due to centuries of erosion by rain and the impact of human activities, the tombs show signs of damage to various degrees, according to archaeologists. When excavating two of the tombs, archeologists found pieces of human bone and ceramic relics, which radiocarbon tests showed were 1,180 to 1,286 years old, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. "As the excavation continues, it will shed more light on how tombs were built in ancient times as well as the broader cultural landscape in the region," Tashi said.
Chinese researchers use waste cartons to remove heavy metals from water
Chinese researchers have developed a nano material using waste cartons that can remove a toxic heavy metal from water, official media here reported today. The breakthrough has provided a new means to control heavy metal contamination and recycling of waste cartons. Incidents of heavy metal contamination of water have occurred frequently in China in recent years, and hexavalent chromium, a chemical compound of metal chromium and major cause of heavy metal pollution, can lead to significant risks to human health. There is an urgent need for low cost and high efficiency technology to deal with heavy metal water contamination in China, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Researchers used high temperatures and pressure to create the nano material from waste cartons. The material can be coated with nano-scale iron which can effectively remove hexavalent chromium from water, control the migration of the compound in water sources, and prevent it from being absorbed by plants. The research,
