Page 892 - Environment

Activists chain themselves to New Zealand oil exploration ship's resupply vessel

Greenpeace activists on Wednesday chained themselves to the supply ship of an oil exploration vessel in New Zealand's Taranaki port to stop the ship from producing seismic waves through blasts in the seabed that they say adversely impacts the environment and marine life.

Shailendra Kumar Joshi appointed Telangana Chief Secretary

Senior IAS officer Shailendra Kumar Joshi was today appointed as the chief secretary of the Telangana government. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao took a decision to this effect today, a release from his office said. Joshi is currently serving as the special chief secretary in the irrigation department. Born on December 20, 1959 at Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh, he joined the Indian Administrative Service in 1984. Starting his career as an assistant collector in Nellore district in the then undivided Andhra Pradesh, Joshi held various positions in his career as a civil servant. He had a nine-year stint in the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests in two spells (from 1991 to 1994 and 2001 to 2006) in various capacities, dealing with the Ganga river conservation, and the National Afforestation and Eco- Development Board. Joshi was also involved in negotiations related to the Montreal Protocol on the ozone depleting substances. He participated in the United Nations ...

Giant earthquakes not as random as thought: study

Giant earthquakes reoccur at relatively regular intervals, scientists have found by analysing sediment cores from Chilean lakes. Taking smaller earthquakes also into account, the repeat interval becomes increasingly more irregular to a level where earthquakes happen randomly in time, researchers said. "In 1960, South-Central Chile was hit by the largest known quake on Earth with a magnitude of 9.5," said Jasper Moernaut, an assistant professor at the University of Innsbruck in Austria. "Its tsunami was so massive that - in addition to inundating the Chilean coastline - it travelled across the Pacific Ocean and even killed about 200 persons in Japan," said Moernaut, lead author of the study published in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters. "Understanding when and where such devastating giant earthquakes may occur in the future is a crucial task for the geoscientific community," Moernaut said. It is generally believed that giant earthquakes release so much ...

4 major rivers in J&K declared 'national waterways': JK govt

Four major rivers, including Jehlum and Chenab, in Jammu and Kashmir have been declared "national waterways" by the Union government, paving the way for inland navigation on them to boost water transport and tourism, the state government has said. "The Union government has declared four rivers namely Chenab, Indus, Jhelum and Ravi as national waterways, which would be developed in a phased manner," Minister for Public Health Engineering, Irrigation and Flood Control, Sham Lal Choudhary said. He said the state government was examining the feasibility-cum-detailed project report of Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) prepared for inland navigation and construction of horizontal and vertical terminals across these waterways. "The development of these national waterways will boost the Inland Water Transport, besides, exploit the tourism potential on the national waterways of the state and improve the socio-economic profile of people of these areas," he ...

India's 90 pc thermal plants rely on freshwater: WRI

Ninety per cent of India's thermal power plants -- which meet most of the electricity demand of the country -- rely on freshwater for cooling and 40 per cent of these plants experience high water stress, says a global research organisation.

Tremors in Delhi, NCR

Tremors were felt in Delhi and the adjoining region on Wednesday morning.

Long 'lost' NASA satellite re-discovered

A NASA satellite considered 'dead' for more than a decade has been found to be still functioning, the US space agency said today. The identity of the satellite re-discovered on January 20 has been confirmed as the Imager for NASA's Magnetopause-to- Aurora Global Exploration (IMAGE). The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab in the US successfully collected telemetry data from the satellite. The signal showed that the space craft ID was 166 - the ID for IMAGE, NASA said. The space agency has been able to read some basic housekeeping data from the spacecraft, suggesting that at least the main control system is operational. Scientists and engineers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center will continue to try to analyse the data from the spacecraft to learn more about the state of the spacecraft. After an amateur astronomer recorded observations of a satellite in high Earth orbit on January 20, his initial research suggested it was IMAGE - a NASA mission launched into orbit around

NASA satellite maps global distribution of cloud ice

A bread loaf-sized satellite has produced the first map of the global distribution of atmospheric ice in the 883-Gigahertz band, an important frequency for studying cloud ice and its effect on Earth's climate, NASA said today. IceCube - the diminutive spacecraft that deployed from the International Space Station (ISS) in May, last year - has demonstrated-in-space a commercial 883-Gigahertz radiometer capable of measuring critical atmospheric cloud ice properties at altitudes between five to 15 kilometres. NASA scientists pioneered the use of submillimeter wavelength bands, which fall between the microwave and infrared on the electromagnetic spectrum, to sense ice clouds. However, until IceCube, these instruments had flown only aboard high-altitude research aircraft. This meant scientists could gather data only in areas over which the aircraft flew. "With IceCube, scientists now have a working submillimeter radiometer system in space at a commercial price," said Dong Wu, .

NABARD to focus on climate change in Goa

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has decided to focus on the issue of climate change in Goa and is willing to grant a financial assistant for it, a senior official has said. NABARD General Manager V R Khusro yesterday said the apex development financial institution is considering to give a grant of Rs 25 crore to the Goa State Biodiversity Board to address the issue. "Climate change is the new area on which we are now focusing. We are working with the state biodiversity board. The proposal is in the final stage and would be announced soon," he said. Khusro was speaking at the state credit seminar where representatives of various banks were present. The NABARD is currently financing the Rs 147 crore solid waste management facility proposed at Cacora in South Goa district. "In the last financial year, a total loan of Rs 91.56 crore was sanctioned to the Goa government under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF). A project of Rs 47

China for settling disputes through talks: Wang Yi

China will play a constructive role in resolving regional hotspot issues and promote settling disputes through talks, Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said amid the country's territorial and maritime disputes with neighbours. Wang also said China would also cement friendship and cooperation with neighbouring countries and developing countries. "China will continue to play a constructive role in resolving regional hotspot issues, and promote settling disputes and conflicts through dialogues and consultation," he said a New Year reception for Beijing-based diplomats yesterday. Wang's comments came amid China's maritime disputes with its South China Sea neighbours. China claims almost all of the South China Sea, including islands more than 800 miles from the Chinese mainland, despite objections from neighbours such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam. Wang said China would further promote theBelt and Road Initiative in 2018, and implement the consensus reached at .

Cabinet nod to convert Navi Mumbai SEZ into industrial area

The Maharashtra government has given an in-principle approval to convert 2,140 hectares of the Navi Mumbai Special Economic Zone (NMSEZ) into an 'integrated industrial area'. The decision to this effect was taken yesterday at the state cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. With this, the NMSEZ can apply for denotification of its special economic zone status. The Centre had already started the denotification process of the SEZ. However, the state government had requested the Centre to put the process on hold, a release from the Chief Minister's Office said. The cabinet decision will help the promoters use 15 per cent of the total leased land - around 1,842 hectares - for residential uses, while the rest will have to be utilised for industrial purposes, the release said. The Navi Mumbai SEZ has been proposed to be developed in three phases on 2,140 hectares of land in Dronagiri, Ulwe and Kalamboli areas of the township.

Hong Kong drowning in waste as China rubbish ban takes toll

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong boasts glittering skyscrapers, seamless transportation and billion dollar infrastructure projects, but it is struggling with a much more mundane problem: disposing of its trash.

NASA satellite maps global distribution of cloud ice

A bread loaf-sized NASA satellite has produced the world's first map of the global distribution of atmospheric ice in the 883-Gigahertz band, an important frequency in the submillimeter wavelength for studying cloud ice and its effect on Earth's climate.

The Government of India and Asian Development Bank (ADB) sign $250 Million Loan

The First Tranche Loan is part of the $500 million Second Rural Connectivity Investment Program for India approved by the ADB Board in December 2017. The program is aimed at improving rural connectivity, facilitating safer and more efficient access to livelihood and socio-economic opportunities for rural communities through improvements to about 12,000 kilometres Rural Roads across the 5 States.

Russian, Chinese smugglers arrested with tonne of bear paws:

A group of Russian and Chinese smugglers have been arrested near the border between the two countries in possession of a tonne of bear paws as well as tiger, deer and frog parts, an animal protection group said. The smugglers were arrested at the weekend by Russian customs officers in the far east of the country with 870 of the bear paws "and the remains of at least four Siberian tigers" in their three vehicles, said the Russian tiger protection NGO yesterday. The Russian and Chinese nationals were also caught with bear teeth, deer tails and penises and other animal parts as well as arms and ammunition and an amount of amber, the Amur Tiger Centre said. According to the tiger protection group, the smugglers were headed for China when they were apprehended, and were preparing to cross the frozen Lake Khanka on the border. China is a big market for animals parts from endangered or protected species including tigers, bears, elephants, rhino and pangolins. The parts are used

Truck damages Peru's ancient Nazca lines

Peru's ancient Nazca lines were damaged when a driver accidentally ploughed his cargo truck into the fragile archaeological site in the desert, officials have said. The lines, considered a UNESCO World Heritage site, are enormous drawings of animals and plants etched in the ground some 2,000 years ago by a pre-Inca civilisation. They are best seen from the sky. The driver ignored warning signs as he entered the Nazca archaeological zone on January 27, the Ministry of Culture said in a statement yesterday. The truck "left deep prints in an area approximately 100 meters long," damaging "parts of three straight lined geoglyphs," the statement read. Security guards detained the driver and filed charges against him at the local police station, the statement added. Entering the area is strictly prohibited due to the fragility of the soil around the lines, and access is only allowed wearing special foam-covered foot gear, according to Peruvian authorities. The lines criss-cross

Swaraj, Guyanese Foreign Minister hold talks

Foreign Minister of Guyana Carl Greenidge called on the External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj at the Jawaharlal Nehru Bhawan here on Tuesday.During his meeting with Swaraj, he referred to the historical and multifaceted ties between the two sides.The subsequent discussions focused on further strengthening India-Guyana bilateral relations, through cooperation in capacity building, promotion of business and trade, enhancement of people to people contact, cooperation on pharmaceuticals and sharing India's experience in Information Technology (IT) by setting up IT Centres of Excellence in Georgetown, the capital of Guyana.The two leaders exchanged their views on regional and multilateral issues such as climate change, solar alliance and United Nations Security Council (UNSC) reforms.Greenidge is scheduled to meet the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Dharmendra Pradhan and Minister of State (MoS) for Renewable Energy, R.K. Singh, for further strengthening trade relations ...

Elephant tramples man to death in Jhargram

A 46-year-old-man was trampled to death by an elephant this evening when a forest department team was chasing away a herd which had strayed into a human habitat in Jhargram district, forest officials said. The incident happened at Srirampur village under the jurisdiction of Narayanpur police station of the district near Odisha border, a forest official said. The herd was being chased and 46-year-old Bijoy Hembram, a member of the forest protection committee, was trampled by an elephant, the official said. The herd was causing trouble in the area for quite sometime and the forest department team had started chasing the elephants away from Monday, said Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Kharagpur, Arup Mukherjee. The herd comprised 15 to 20 elephants, Mukherjee said. Bijoy Hembram, who was seriously injured, was taken to a local hospital where he was declared brought dead, he added.

Mahadayi issue: Cong divided as Goa unit hardens stand

The Goa Congress today said they won't allow diversion of Mahadayi river water to the Malaprabha basin as sought by neighbouring Karnataka. The southern state and Goa have been at loggerheads over sharing of the river water. Congress spokesman and former union minister Ramakant Khalap told reporters that there would not be any compromise on the issue even if Karnataka Chief Minister and party leader Siddaramaiah desires so. "Be it BJP's Yeddyurappa or Congress Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, they have no right to divert the water from the Mahadei river basin to Malaprabha basin. We will not allow this to happen," Khalap said responding to a query. He said even at the Congress party level in Goa, there would be no compromise on the issue. The Congress in poll-bound Karnataka had sought an intervention of party president Rahul Gandhi to convince their Goa counterparts to change their stand and allow the water to be diverted for drinking purpose from the Mahadayi water ...

EU 'shocked' by German carmakers' monkey experiments

The EU said today it was "shocked" by revelations that German automakers helped finance experiments that exposed humans and monkeys to diesel fumes. Brussels said the test were "unethical and unacceptable" and urged Germany to investigate them, the latest scandal to hit its car manufacturers. "We are shocked by the news as everybody else. We take note of the German authorites aim to investigate the matter and we hope that they will," European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas told a daily briefing. Industry commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska, who is leading the EU's response to the Volkswagen "Dieselgate" emissions testing scandal, made a similar call for action. "Testing diesel emissions on humans and monkeys is unethical and unacceptable for any European company in 21st century," Bienkowska said on Twitter. "Again: just the fault of a few individuals, or rather a systemic problem of company culture? Time to invest in zero emissions. #cleanairnow". On Monday the ...