Petrochemicals are hydrocarbons, obtained from naturally occurring raw materials viz. petroleum, natural gas, coal etc. Coal was initially the basic raw material for organic chemical industry. However the basic feedstock has changed recently from coal to petroleum. This is attributed to the recent innovation and technological advance in the field of chemical industry based on petroleum feedstock.
Climate change has a special significance for IFAD. Agriculture is the main source of livelihood for most poor rural people, and it is also the human activity most directly affected by climate change. Dealing with the inevitable impact of climate change is now high on the development agenda.
The water supply and sanitation (WSS) sector in India suffers from chronic inefficiencies, including limited coverage and poor service quality. To address these shortcomings, the focus of interventions in the sector has predominantly been directed at the supply-side factors, such as capital investments the creation of infrastructure.
Recent years have witnessed a rapid and accelerating expansion of bioethanol and biodiesel production. This expansion is driven by government targets for biofuel substitution in energy budgets for transport, driven in turn by concerns about high oil prices, prospects for rural development, export opportunities and means to mitigate climate change.
This report presents South Asia-wide review of climate change adaptation research, intended to identify present knowledge, gaps on adaptation and application including the practice of research. This scoping study makes a distinction between planned and autonomous adaptation strategies including ways in which social and physical infrastructure enable adaptation.
The objective of this paper is to quantify important co-benefits of greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation under scenarios where domestic GHG emissions are reduced by 30% across the European Union by 2020 compared to 1990 levels, rather than by the 20% considered in the proposal by the European Commission (EC).
As part of this programme, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is implementing research and development projects on development of advanced batteries, super capacitors and components of electric vehicles (EVs). EVs are environmentally benign and reduce the consumption of oil.
In most slum communities of South Asia, the sanitation situation is deplorable, healthy living is impossible and the disease burden is heavy, especially for women and children. Lack of basic sanitation and adequate water for bathing and washing clothes
This paper attempts to verify the hypotheses that there is a greater likelihood that initiatives under the CBD process to achieve the 2010 target are more tangible than at the MDG level; that there is a need to link the targets and indicators of the 2010 commitments of the CBD with those of the MDGs; and that the MDGs can use the programme of work under the CBD as an interim indicator of successfu
The Trade and Development Report 2008, subtitled "Commodity Prices, Capital Flows and the Financing of Investment
The European Commission made today an important step forward in its efforts to ensure food safety in the European Union, as a regulation revising and simplifying the rules pertaining to pesticide residues entered into force. The new rules set harmonised Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs) for pesticides. They ensure food safety for all consumers and allow traders and
This is a summary of a report on climate change adaptation research knowledge and capacity gaps in China, commissioned by DFID (UK) and IDRC (Canada) to consider support for a programme of applied research on climate adaptation in Asia.
There is mounting evidence that climate change is triggering a shrinking and thinning of many glaciers world-wide which may eventually put at risk water supplies for hundreds of millions
The annual Asian Development Outlook aims to present an analysis of the recent past and forecasts for the next couple of years for the developing economies of Asia. The Update presents four thematic chapters discussing recent global commodity price rises and their impacts on developing Asia. They suggest that high international commodity prices are here to stay. But, given that demand-pull rather than cost-push factors are causing high prices, the role of monetary policy is still relevant in containing price pressures.
This report compares the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis using 1987-1995 data for Chinese provinces.
This document provides information about the scheme titled
The Western Ghats hill range of India, recognised as a global biodiversity hotspot, also contains impressive cultural diversity including a number of tribal communities.
The international consensus is growing that the planet is facing irreversible climate change unless action is taken quickly.
Tens of billions of dollars must be spent on protecting millions of people living on the coasts of Asia Pacific if climate change-induced disasters are not to wreak havoc and eradicate decades of development, warns World Vision.
This paper uses the growing volume of scholarly work on
