Page 967 - Environment

No funds shortage but lack of willingness on part of states:SC

Terming solid waste management as a "huge problem" for the country, the Supreme Court has said that there was no shortage of funds under 'Swachh Bharat Mission' but there was "lack" of willingness on the part of states to take positive steps in this regard . The apex court noted the submissions of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF) that there was a total outlay of Rs 36,829 crore under the mission out of which Rs 7,424 crore was made available by the Centre. A bench of justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta said that the issue pertaining to solid waste management was needed to be looked into with all due concern and seriousness by the state governments, particularly in context of 'Swachh Bharat Mission'. The 'Swachh Bharat Mission' is a cleanliness campaign launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "It is stated in the affidavit of the MoEF that the Government of India has launched a Swachh Bharat Mission for which there is a total outlay of .

Bill to amend Indian Forest Act tabled in LS

A legislation to amend the Indian Forest Act to exempt felling and transportation of bamboo grown in non-forest areas from the state permit, was tabled in the Lok Sabha today. The Indian Forest (Amendment) Bill, 2017 -- which would omit bamboos growing in non-forest areas from the definition of trees -- was introduced by Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan even as BJD leader B Mahtab raised concerns and opposed the legislation. Last month, the government had come out with an ordinance to amend the Indian Forest Act, 1927 in this regard. This bill would replace this ordinance. Prior to issuance of the ordinance, the definition of tree in the Act included palm, bamboo, brushwood and cane. Before the bill was introduced in the House, Mahtab opposed it saying the government wants to do away with the requirement of seeking permission from states for transportation of bamboo. "Whom are you protecting?... You are protecting the interests of traders," Mahtab claimed as he opposed

International call for Japan to halt Antarctic whaling

The European Union and 12 other nations condemned Japan's Antarctic whaling programme today, rejecting Tokyo's argument that the annual slaughter is for scientific research. Japan's whaling fleet left for the Southern Ocean last month, planning to kill 333 minke whales over a four-month period. Its fisheries agency says the hunt is needed to study whale behaviour and biology, but critics say such lethal research is unnecessary and acts as a cover for commercial whaling. "(We) jointly express... opposition to Japan's continued so-called 'scientific' whaling in the Southern Ocean," the EU and its allies said in a statement. "We remain resolutely opposed to commercial whaling, in particular in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary established by the International Whaling Commission (IWC)." In addition to the EU, the letter was signed by Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, New Zealand, Panama, Peru and Uruguay. Japan is a ..

India to host WTO meeting in February

This comes against the backdrop of developed nations forming groups to prepare rules for e-commerce, promoting gender equality and reducing subsidy on fisheries

Several pending agricultural projects nearing completion: Min

Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh today said that 23 out of 99 pending agricultural projects across the country were nearing completion. He was speaking at a gathering of farmers at the "Orange Festival" here. "Ninety-nine projects were pending in the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi not only increased budgetary allocation but released Rs 20000 crore corpus fund in his second year and Rs 40000 crore in the third year. As a result 23 of these projects are nearing completion and all the 99 pending projects will be completed soon," Singh said. Singh further said that 10 crore farmers have soil health cards since the NDA government came to power adding that 10000 labs had been set up by the government to test soil. Stating that the previous government did not invest in soil labs or in reforms to the sector, Singh said that further investment is needed in soil health research and management. Speaking about Maharashtra, Singh said that a review meeting with ...

128 Olive Ridely Sea turtle eggs collected near Rameswaram

As many as 128 eggs of Olive Ridely Sea turtles, an endangered species, were today collected by the Forest officials in the sea shore near Mandapam here and kept in a hatchery. The eggs were collected from Arichalmunai under the Mandapam Wild Life Range, an official release said. This was the first collection of the Olive Ridley Sea turtle eggs in the sea shore stretch here in the current nesting season, it said.

Cave paintings discovered on Indonesian island: study

Scientists have discovered ancient cave paintings, dating from at least 2,500 years ago, on a tiny Indonesian island that was previously unexplored. The team uncovered a total of 28 rock art sites on the island of Kisar which measures just 81 square kilometres and lies north of Timor-Leste. The paintings help tell the story of the region's history of trade and culture, researchers said. "Archaeologically, no one has ever explored this small island before," said Sue O'Connor, from the Australian National University (ANU). "These Indonesian islands were the heart of the spice trade going back for thousands of years. The paintings we found depict boats, dogs, horses and people often holding what look like shields," said O'Connor. According to the study published in the Cambridge Journal of Archaeology, the discovery pointed to a stronger shared history with the neighbouring island of Timor than had previously been known. "The Kisar paintings include images which are ...

Elephant kills man in Chg forest

A 55-year-old man was trampled to death by a wildelephantin Chhattisagrh's Jashpur district, police said today. The incident occurred last evening in the forest adjacent to Dadpani village under Kansabel police station limits when one Prem Sai was returning home from his field, a local police official told PTI. While returning, Sai went inside Kudeldab forests to pick woods when he was attacked by the elephant, he said. On getting the information, Forest and police personnel rushed to the spot and sent Sai's body for postmortem, the official said. The kin of the deceased have been given an instant relief amount of Rs 25,000 by Forest department, he added. Thickly-forested northern Chhattisgarh, comprising Surguja, Korba, Raigarh, Jashpur and Korea districts, is notorious for humanelephantconflicts. The region has witnessed several killings of tribals and widespread damage to houses and crops by rogue elephants in the past.

Weather complicated November pollution spell: CPCB

Delhi was faced with a complex set of meteorological factors in early November, when pollution levels had peaked, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). The situation, between November 7-12, was more hostile as compared to last year's peak pollution episode, recorded between October 30-November 7, CPCB's air lab chief Dipankar Saha said. According to data shared by the CPCB, the concentration of PM2.5, particulates measuring less than 2.5 microns, ranged between 357 and 611 microgram per cubic metre (ug/m3) during this year's week-long emergency pollution spell. Last year, the levels oscillated between 197 and 709 ug/m3. Products of vehicular and industrial combustion among others, PM2.5 are air-borne particles which can lodge deep in the lungs and trigger respiratory and cardio-vascular diseases. However, what complicated the situation this time include low mixing height (layer where particulates and air mix), a drastic fall in wind speed, lower ...

'Renewable Energy mini grids can offer power solution'

Mini grids powered by decentralised renewable energy can provide long term solution for the country's electrification requirements, says a report. The report prepared by the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) also said the central utility grid is 70 per cent powered by electricity generated from coal. The proportion of fossil fuels is expected to be more than 50 per cent of the energy mix in 2040, despite high targets for renewable energy generation capacity and heavy investment towards it. REEEP is an international multilateral partnership. "Decentralised Renewable Energy (DRE) mini grids can be an efficient long-term solution to India's electrification objectives, providing cleaner power more quickly and more efficiently than utility companies in the near term, with the ability to strengthen the resiliency of the central grid in the long term," the report said. Such mini-grids are quickly deployed and reasonably priced and can be integrated with

'Move' to declare hilly village as reserve forest opposed

A grama sabha meeting held at a village, mostly inhabited by Badaga tribal community, in this hilly district today opposed any move to declare it as reserved forest area. A resolution to this effect was adpoted at the meeting held in Ajjoor, near Kothagiri, Badagadesa Party Convenor Manjai Mohan said. The village, which presently has a population of about 3,000 people, was solely dependent on the forest produce for more than 100 years and declaring it as a reserved forest area would hit their livelihood, he said. The resolution objecting to the proposal of forest department will be sent to Tamil Nadu chief minister and also the district administration, Mohan said, adding more than 1,500 people participated in the meeting.

Students in power deficit areas to get solar lamps in UP

The Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is likely to distribute over 34 lakh solar lamps to school children in power deficit districts of Uttar Pradesh from December 22. The Solar Urja through Localisation for Sustainability (SoULS) project in association with the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, was started on September 19. Lakhimpur Kheri is a major beneficiary of the project, where more than one lakh solar lamps are to be assembled and distributed among the rural students of Pallia, Nighasan and Lakhimpur blocks, UP project manager of IIT-Bombay Shailendra Dwivedi said. "Apart from benefiting the students, the project would provide employment to women of self-help groups of these blocks, who have started assembling the solar lamps from December 15 after receiving training by experts of IIT- Bombay," Dwivedi added. The self-help group members assembling and distributing the solar lamps would earn Rs 12 to Rs 17 per unit, Ajay Pandey, deputy commissioner .

Heavy air pollution shuts schools in Iran

Iran shut primary schools in the capital and other parts of the country on Sunday due to choking levels of air pollution. Local authorities late Saturday announced the closure of all primary schools in the province of Tehran, which is home to 14 million residents, except in two towns. A blanket of smog has covered neighbourhoods in the capital in the past few days. Airborne concentration of fine particles (PM2.5) hit 185 microgrammes per cubic metre in the south of Tehran and 174 in its centre on Sunday morning, local authorities said. Authorities also ordered mines and cement factories in Tehran province to close and reinforced regular traffic restrictions in the capital's centre. They called on the elderly, children, pregnant women and people with heart problems to stay indoors. In the northwestern cities of Tabriz and Urmia, schools remained closed for the second day straight on Sunday, official news agency IRNA said. Every year, Tehran suffers some of the worst ...

Oldest plesiosaur was a strong swimmer: study

Scientists have revealed that plesiosaur, an unusual underwater reptile that lived 201 million years ago, was a powerful swimmer. Numerous fossils documented a global distribution of the group during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. Whereas sea turtles mainly use their strong forelimbs for propulsion, the plesiosaurs moved all four limbs together, resulting in powerful thrust. "I could not believe that there was a plesiosaur from the Triassic, given that these animals had been studied by paleontologist for nearly 300 years, and never was there one older than Jurassic," said Martin Sander from the University of Bonn in Germany. The scientists bestowed the name Rhaeticosaurus mertensi on the unique fossil. According to the findings published in the journal Science Advances, the reconstructed length of the skeleton is 237 centimetres. These long extinct "paddle saurians" propelled themselves through the World's oceans by employing "underwater flight" similar to sea ...

Two rookie astronauts, cosmonaut blast off to ISS

A three-man space crew featuring American and Japanese rookie astronauts as well as an experienced Russian cosmonaut blasted off today for a six-month mission at the International Space Station. Scott Tingle of NASA, Anton Shkaplerov of Roscosmos and Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency powered into the sky in a Soyuz MS-07 spacecraft from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 1:21 pm (local time), according to footage aired by the Russian space agency.

Artificial nests to shelter birds at Rabindra Sarovar

The Lake Eco Lovers' Forum of Rabindra Sarovar has put up five nests made of clay on trees at the Safari Park, inside it, to provide shelter to birds. The Rabindra Sarovar lake, in south Kolkata, is spread over 192 acres, comprising a large waterbody with gardens and parks. Five nests made of earthen pots were hung from five trees to protect birds and their chicks from cold, predators and air pollution, said the mentor of the project, Somendranath Ghosh, adding, 15 more nests will be put up soon. "This is a pilot project and it was launched on Wednesday (December 13). The move, with support from Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA), is aimed at saving the birds from predators and pollutants," he said. Ghosh said more such nests will be put up by mid-February next year. In addition, the forum will install wooden boxes to provide temporary shelter to the migratory birds. He also said according to a recent study by an NGO, there are around 200 bird species, ...

Man-elephant conflict keeping Assam forest dept on toes

The man-elephant conflict has assumed alarming proportions in Assam this year, raising the hackles of conservationists and compelling the state government to take initiatives to resolve the issue. Altogether 70 elephants have died this year and causes vary from train accidents to poisoning and electrocution, according to the forest department. Unnatural deaths account for 48 jumbo lives though conservationists claim the figure may go up to 70 if trans boundary fatalities are taken into account. Injured elephants often stray into neighbouring states and even to Bhutan and Bangladesh. A total of 48 people have been trampled to death by elephants till November this year, a forest department estimate revealed. The human casualties mostly occur during the dry season when the animals move out of their habitat in search of food and water. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has voiced concern over the recent incident of a train mowing down five elephants in Sonitpur ...

Taiwan steel firm behind toxic dump in Vietnam fined again

A Taiwanese steel firm behind a toxic spill that killed tonnes of fish in central Vietnam last year was fined for a second time for illegally burying "harmful" waste, official sources said today. The deadly dump from Formosa's USD 11 billion steel plant in Ha Tinh province sparked one of the country's worst environmental catastrophes, decimating livelihoods along swathes of coastline and prompting months of rare protests in the authoritarian country. The firm was initially fined USD 500 million for pouring toxic chemicals -- including cyanide -- into the ocean in April 2016, and has now been ordered to pay an additional USD 25,000 on separate charges of burying harmful solid waste in the ground, according to the official Cong Ly newspaper. A local contractor will also be fined USD 20,000 for helping to dispose of the 100 cubic metres of waste, added Cong Ly, the mouthpiece of the Supreme Court. An official in Ha Tinh province confirmed the latest fine to AFP today, ...

MSTC-Mahindra vehicle recycling plant likely in Feb'18

Mahindra MSTC Recycling, the country's first auto-shredding project, is on track and the first phase of the plant is likely to be complete in February next year, a top official has said. Mahindra MSTC Recycling, the joint venture between state-run metal scrap trading firm MSTC and Mahindra Intertrade Ltd, is likely to make the first phase of the project a collecting and dismantling unit operational by February 2018. Despite policy uncertainty on recycling, we are going ahead with the project expecting the same would be in place soon as there is a mounting pressure for pollution control, MSTC chairman and managing director B B Singh told PTI. The Centre is yet to come out with a clear-cut vehicle scrapping policy. The guidelines are in place for recycling but without the policy there would be no compulsion on the vehicle owner to send the car for dismantling. The total cost of the project is estimated at Rs 120 crore. Singh said they are expecting to operationalise the

Mammoth skeleton sold for over 500,000 euros at French auction

The nearly intact skeleton of a woolly mammoth that lived at least 10,000 years ago was sold at auction for more than a half million euros today in the southeastern French city of Lyon. The giant skeleton -- mounted in a forward walking position with its enormous curved tusks with tones of caramel and ivory facing slightly downward -- was bought by the chief executive of a French waterproofing company whose logo is of the prehistoric mammal. "We are going to display it in the lobby of our firm," said Pierre-Etienne Bindschedler, the CEO of Soprema. "I think we have enough room". Bindschedler bought the piece for 548,250 euros at the Aguttes auction house. One of the largest specimens ever found, the mammoth skeleton measures a little over three metres (10 feet) in height and was estimated to sell for at least 450,000 euros because of its "fine condition", remarkable because it retained 80 percent of its original bones. Experts believe the animal weighed about 1,400 ...