Page 2 - Pollution Control

Petrol pump owners show dissent, to shut PUC centres in Delhi from July 15

Petrol pump owners said PUC centres will be shut from Monday onwards, expressing their dissatisfaction over the recent proposed hike in rates of pollution certificates by the city government. The operation of the pollution under control (PUC) centres is unviable, they said in a statement issued on Sunday. Delhi government on Thursday increased the PUC certificate charges for petrol, CNG and diesel vehicles after a gap of about 13 years. The hike ranges between Rs 20 and Rs 40. The new rates will be effective as soon as it is notified by the Delhi government, Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot had said. In a statement issued, the Delhi Petrol Dealers' Association (DPDA) said, "Since the operation of PUC centres is unviable, many PUC centres have surrendered their licenses in the last few months. The managing committee of the Delhi Petrol Dealers Association has thus resolved to close PUC centres at their retail outlets across Delhi from July 15 in light of arbitrary and grossly ...

Rajasthan's trade bodies flag increasing production cost concerns

Industries, including firms in the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) sector, are finding it difficult to survive the competition due to higher costs compared to neighbouring states

Pollution control board's approval must for vehicle scrapping facilities

The Amended Rules also states that a government-owned vehicle or a vehicle seized by law enforcement, will not be eligible for any incentives

Most cities on path to achieve national clean air target; Varanasi leads

The government allocated Rs 9,631 crore to reduce the levels of particles with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or smaller by 40 per cent in 131 cities by 2026 from the 2017 levels

Experts wary about artificial rain's feasibility in curbing pollution

Can artificial rain dissipate toxins in the air? As the skies over several parts of north India turn blue again and pollution levels improve from 'severe' but continue to be 'very poor', the question of whether cloud seeding can really be a long-term solution gathers urgency. It is a tempting prospect and nothing more, say scientists, stressing on the need to tackle the problem at its root. Artificial rain is not just expensive - an estimated Rs 1 crore to induce rain in an approximate 100 square kilometre area - but also offers temporary respite. The respite artificial rain offers is short-lived... the return of polluted air swiftly restores hazardous levels, highlighting the need for more sustainable solutions, Sunil Dahiya, an analyst with the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, told PTI. Artificial rain can't be induced to last for days and over such large geography as NCR or north India which limits its usage as air pollution reduction technology for the region, he ...

TN Pollution Control Board issues directions to CPCL on Ennore oil spillage

CPCL shall also be liable to pay compensation to the families adversely impacted due to the oil spillage, including the loss of livelihood, it said

Air Pollution: Several states haven't utilised sanctioned funds, says NGT

This comes after NGT going through the reports filed by various states on the implementation of comprehensive mitigation measures for the prevention, control, and reduction of air pollution

States, UTs asked to report on staff strength in pollution control bodies

The National Green Tribunal has directed all states and Union territories to file reports regarding the actual staff strength in state pollution control boards and pollution control committees. The tribunal also sought a report regarding the infrastructure in their environmental laboratories. The NGT was hearing a matter where it had taken suo motu ( on its own) cognisance of a media report claiming that the pollution control boards (PCBs) across the country did not have the resources to perform their functions. The report cited several reasons, including inadequate sanctioned strength of personnel, a high number of vacancies especially in technical positions and the absence of proper training. In a recent order, a bench of NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member A Senthil Vel said, "The news item raises a substantial issue affecting the compliance of environmental laws." The bench said according to a Central Pollution Control Board report, the news report ab

In UN talks for plastic treaty, delegates to face off over production limit

"We are at a pivotal moment in this process," said Andres Del Castillo, a senior attorney of the Center for International Environmental Law who is an observer to the negotiations

Policy can't be drafted to reduce pollution without data on sources: Atishi

Earlier, Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said on Wednesday that there is a need for the Central government to sit with states and make a long-term plan to curb pollution in Northern India

Indian companies prep for EU's CBAM as transitional phase kicks in

Starting from October 1, the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) will be applicable to exports of cement, iron and steel, aluminium, fertilisers, and hydrogen to the EU

CM Arvind Kejriwal introduces winter plan to curb pollution in Delhi

Kejriwal said the Pusa bio decomposer that prevents stubble burning will be sprayed on 5,000 hectares of farmland this year

100 firms likely to start producing green fireworks soon in West Bengal

An organisation of fireworks manufacturers in West Bengal on Wednesday said around 100 member-units will soon commence producing 'green fireworks' conforming to safety guidelines prescribed by National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) at special clusters coming up in South 24 Parganas district. Prabesh Atasbaji Byabasayee Samity (PABS) Secretary Sukhdeb Naskar told PTI, the association had discussions with officials of the environment department, fire services department, West Bengal Pollution Control Board and police in this regard. The guidelines prescribe ensuring a below-90 decibel sound and lower emission of harmful chemicals and have been formulating after several court judgements. While 20 fireworks makers have already received approval from NEERI as well as license from the environment ministry for manufacturing green fireworks conforming to the norms, at least 80 others have been given training in technology needed to produce green fireworks. "These 80

New Haryana rules on stone crusher units may blunt the war on air pollution

Easing of proximity norms will not only impact air and water quality but could also turn vast tracts of farm land barred, say experts

Delhi pollution: Why can't Punjab put out stubble fires if Haryana can?

Delhi's air quality index reached hazardous levels. Punjab's share in farm fires is maximum this time. So why has the govt failed in reining in the stubble burning in the state? Here's our report

Anti-dust campaign: Fines of Rs 32.4 lakh imposed at construction sites

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai chaired a review meeting with Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and Environment Department officers to take stock of the Anti-Dust Campaign on Wednesday

Over 125,000 old vehicles to be deregistered in Noida to control pollution

Over 1.25 lakh old vehicles registered in Gautam Buddh Nagar will be taken off the roads in compliance with a National Green Tribunal order on phasing out diesel and petrol vehicles older than 10 and 15 years, respectively, from the national capital region. The district transport department has started a campaign to phase out such vehicles and begun contacting their owners from October 1 following an Uttar Pradesh government order, officials said. Assistant Regional Transport Officer (ARTO) Siyaram Verma said, "These vehicles will either be scrapped or a no-objection certificate (NOC) issued for their usage so that they could be used in some select districts that do not fall under NCR." Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Ganesh Saha told PTI that the police department, on its part, was also carrying out stricter checks and penalising old vehicles found plying on the roads. The Uttar Pradesh government order said there were 34 districts with better air quality where such vehicl

Will take 4-5 years to resolve stubble burning issue: Punjab pollution body

Crop diversification is not a long-term solution to the problem of stubble burning and it will take four to five years to properly resolve the issue, a senior official of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) has said. Crop diversification and using short duration varieties of paddy are among several initiatives proposed by the Centre and experts to resolve the stubble burning issue in Punjab and Haryana. At a workshop organised by the Delhi-based Climate Trends in Chandigarh on Monday, PPCB Member Secretary Krunesh Garg said counting the number of farm fires is an inaccurate measure of ascertaining the scale of stubble burning and that the acreage of land being put on fire is the parameter to be measured. It's not that the problem is not being addressed, we are mapping it down to the block and village level, but it will take four-five years for proper resolution," Garg said. The area under paddy cultivation in Punjab has increased from 29.61 lakh hectares in last year to 31.13

Govt gives two-year extension to thermal power plants on SO2 norms

The Union environment ministry has extended the deadlines for thermal power plants to install pollution control technologies and comply with new emission norms. This is the third time that the deadlines have been pushed in the last five years. In a notification issued on Monday, the ministry said the deadline for the power plants within a 10-km radius of Delhi-NCR and cities with a population of more than 10 lakh has been extended from December 31, 2022 to December 31, 2024. For the power plants in a 10-km radius of critically-polluted areas or non-attainment cities, the deadline has been pushed from December 31, 2023 to December 31, 2025. "Non-attainment cities" are those that have consistently failed to meet the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has identified 132 such cities. For all other power plants across the country, the deadline has been pushed from December 31, 2024 to December 31, 2026. The ministry also said the power p

Chennai refinery's crude runs cut by 25% as residents complain of odour

Chennai Petroleum Corp said it had cut crude processing by a quarter at its 201,000 barrels per day Manali refinery, following an order by the Tamil Nadu state pollution control board