Page 9 - Pollution

Major wildfires burn in Greece, Spain's Canary Island of Tenerife

Major wildfires were burning in Greece and on one of Spain's Canary Islands off the northwest coast of Africa Monday, with hot, dry and windy conditions hampering the efforts of hundreds of firefighters battling the blazes, two of which have been burning for several days. European Union officials have blamed climate change for the increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires in Europe, noting that 2022 was the second-worst year for wildfire damage on record after 2017. In Greece, authorities ordered the evacuation of two villages in the central Viotia region, about 100 kilometres northwest of Athens, after a forest fire broke out Monday morning. The coast guard put two patrol boats and several fishing boats and private vessels on standby in case an evacuation by sea was necessary. Authorities said the body of a man was recovered from a sheep pen in the area under evacuation, with local media reporting the man apparently died of smoke inhalation while trying to save his ...

Oceans release microplastics waste back into atmosphere: Research

In order to reach the Arctic region, the researchers collected air samples from several points along the Norwegian coast

Particulate air pollution growing risk for premature death globally: Study

The total number of premature deaths and years of disability from cardiovascular diseases attributable to particle air pollution rose from 2.6 million in 1990 to 3.5 million in 2019, a 31 per cent worldwide increase, according to a study. The research, published on Wednesday in Journal of the American Heart Association, analysed particulate matter (PM) pollution as a risk factor for death and disability using freely available data from 204 countries collected between 1990 and 2019 and detailed in the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study. PM pollution consists of small particles of liquid and solids suspended in the air and inhaled into the lungs, such as vehicle emissions, smoke, dust, pollen and soot. Exposure to PM pollution was estimated using a tool from the 2019 update to the GBD study that incorporated information from satellite and ground-level monitoring, computer models of chemicals in the atmosphere and land-use data. The researchers from Tehran University of Medical ...

Kejriwal gives call to make fight against pollution into people's movement

CM mentioned the implementation of the 'Yuddh Pradushan Ke Virrudh' campaign, and efforts aimed at reducing pollution caused by stubble burning

World Environment Day 2023: A global call to action for sustainable future

Established by the United Nations in 1972, World Environment Day serves as a global platform to engage people and governments in environmental initiatives that promote sustainable development

33 teams to inspect Delhi industrial units to curb pollution: Gopal Rai

The Delhi government has constituted 33 teams to regularly inspect industrial units and bring pollution in the city under control, Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Friday. He was speaking at a review meeting on industrial pollution with officers of Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), environment department and Delhi Development Authority (DDA). "It has been decided to deploy 141 patrolling teams comprising 472 personnel during the day time and 108 patrolling teams comprising 397 personnel at night from three departments all over Delhi to monitor dumping of industrial waste. "As many as 1,721 registered industrial units in Delhi have switched to PNG," Rai said. The teams will oversee all industrial units in Delhi and implement immediate measures to curb pollution, he said. Periodic reports will be submitted to the environment department based on their findin

Long-term exposure to diesel pollution bad for health, suggest experts

Prolonged exposure to diesel pollution, which includes a complex mixture of pollutants, can have serious health effects on humans, said experts here even as the government contemplates a ban

NGT directs Rajasthan to pay Rs 100 cr interim compensation for pollution

The National Green Tribunal has directed Rajasthan to pay an interim compensation of Rs 100 crore for damage to the environment, including pollution of the Dravyavati river, caused allegedly by textile printing industries in the Jaipur district. The NGT also formed a 10-member joint committee to plan and oversee remedial action and said the compensation amount has to be utilised for restoration of the environment. The NGT was hearing two petitions claiming violation of environmental norms by the industries which adversely impacted the water quality of the river. A bench of chairperson Justice A K Goel noted a report by a panel constituted earlier and said it presented a dismal picture of the area. The industrial siting was faulty, most industries were located in the non-conforming areas and industrial effluents were being discharged into the Dravyavati River and Chandalai and Nevta dams. The bench, also comprising judicial member Justice Sudhir Agarwal and expert members A Senthil

High on promise

Details of High Seas Treaty will have to be worked out

High-end sound meters to be installed in different parts of Bengal

In order to detect location-specific levels of sound pollution, West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) has now decided to set up high-end sound meters in different corners of the state

Arvind Kejriwal launches mechanism to track realtime pollution sources

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday launched a study to gather realtime information on sources of pollution and help the government launch a targeted response. He said the reason for pollution changes on an hourly basis and until "we calculate the source of the pollution on a realtime basis, we cannot have an effective policy on the issue". Kejriwal inaugurated the 'realtime source apportionment supersite' at Rouse Avenue here along with an air quality monitoring van. "Today launched one such van, but once this stabilises and the data from this van comes in, we will launch several other such vans that can provide us data from the different wards of Delhi. "We will also use these vans to study the source of pollution in hotspot areas and once the data comes in, it will tell us about the main source of pollution and then we will take action on the data. "There will be a super site on the second floor of this building, there will also be a mobile air quality monitoring sys

Indian industry turns to biomass as capital bans coal in pollution fight

The change in air quality is as yet hard to quantify

Deaths caused due to pollution should be matter of concern: NGT Chairperson

National Green Tribunal Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel said that apart from the lives lost due to road accidents, deaths caused on account of pollution should be a matter of concern

CAQM rolls back Stage-III of GRAP as pollution levels in Delhi improve

Decision was taken after observing declining trend in the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi and also considering the meteorological/ weather forecasts by India Meteorological Department (IMD)

Plan prepared to control pollution from 11 drains in Yamuna: Haryana min

The Haryana government has prepared an action plan to control pollution in all the 11 major drains that discharge treated or untreated effluent into the Yamuna river, the state assembly was informed here on Wednesday. "Due to the control of pollution in these drains, the polluted water will not fall into the Yamuna river, from which the Agra and Gurugram canals emerge," Transport Minister Mool Chand Sharma said. He said this in response to a calling attention motion regarding polluted water in Agra and Gurugram canals. Sharma informed the House that the Haryana government has constituted a committee in this regard. The MLAs of Gurugram, Mewat, Faridabad and Palwal districts were made its members and member secretary, Haryana State Pollution Control Board, as Member Convener, the house was informed. Additional Chief Secretary, Environment, and Principal Secretary, Irrigation, have also been nominated as members. Five meetings of this committee have been held, he said. The ministe

K'taka State Pollution Control Board to incentivise environment compliance

The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) on Friday announced to incentivize environment compliance.

Air pollution linked with multiple long-term health conditions: Study

Exposure to traffic related air pollution is associated with an increased risk of multiple long-term physical and mental health conditions, according to a study. This is the largest study worldwide -- conducted on over 364,000 (over 3.6 lakh) people in England -- to examine whether air pollution exposure is linked with the occurrence of multiple long-term health conditions, the researchers said. The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Public Health, showed that high levels of traffic-related air pollution - fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) were associated with an increased risk of having at least two long term health conditions. The strongest associations were observed for co-occurring neurological, respiratory, cardiovascular and common mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety, the researchers said. "People with more than one long-term health condition have a lower quality of life and greater dependence on the healthcare system,"

Significant rise in Yamuna pollution since 2017: Delhi govt report

As the Delhi government has promised to clean the Yamuna to bathing standards by 2025, the pollution load in the river has increased substantially over the last five years, according to a report by the environment department. The report shows that barring Palla, the annual average level of biological oxygen demand (BOD) increased at every location of water sample collection for testing in the national capital. BOD, an important parameter for assessing water quality, is the amount of oxygen required by aerobic microorganisms to decompose organic material present in a water body. BOD levels less than 3 milligram per litre (mg/l) is considered good. There was no immediate reaction available from the environment department. The Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) collects river water samples at Palla, where the Yamuna enters Delhi; Wazirabad, ISBT bridge, ITO bridge, Nizamuddin bridge, Agra Canal at Okhla Barrage, Okhla Barrage and Asgarpur. The DPCC data showed while there has b

Jharkhand may witness 5% rise in aerosol pollution in 2023, says study

Aerosol pollution is expected to rise by five per cent in Jharkhand next year, which may lead to a drop in visibility levels and pose a host of health problems for its citizens, a study by a premier research organisation said. Such pollution is likely to remain in the "highly vulnerable" red zone in the eastern state, it said. The study found that emission from thermal power plants was the main contributor to high aerosol amounts comprising particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), sea salt, dust, sulphate, black and organic carbon. Rising aerosol pollution might aggravate asthma, lung and cardiovascular diseases. Children, women and elderly people might be the worst sufferers, Kolkata-based Bose Institute's associate professor of environmental sciences Dr Abhijit Chatterjee told PTI. He also said, Aerosol pollution is expected to rise by five per cent, pushing the AOD level over 0.6 within the vulnerable (red) zone in 2023. Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) is a quantitative estimate of the

Punjab may witness 20% rise in aerosol pollution in 2023, says study

Aerosol pollution in Punjab is anticipated to rise by 20 per cent in 2023, and continue to remain in the "highly vulnerable" red zone for aerosol pollution, says a study.