Agriculture is multi-functional, producing economic goods including food, feed, fibre, and fuel, as well as providing several intangible or non-tradable services to society free of cost. Non-tradable services, unlike economic goods, remain unpriced; as a result, farmers are not compensated monetarily for the benefits of the several non-tradable services they …
The most polluted city among the metros being crowned the country’s lung cancer capital is no coincidence, but Calcutta failed — or rather refused — to see it coming. This “congenitally dust-prone” city has done little over the years to lower air pollution from multiple sources, mainly automobile exhaust. Metro …
Diwali is likely to push up toxicity in Kolkata's air to an unprecedented high early next month. According to projections by the state pollution control board (PCB) and green NGOs, the city could record a suspended particulate matter (SPM) count five times higher than the permissible limit. Poisonous gases and …
Honeybees utilise floral odours when foraging for flowers; we investigated whether diesel exhaust pollution could interrupt these floral odour stimuli. A synthetic blend of eight floral chemicals, identified from oilseed rape, was exposed to diesel exhaust pollution. Within one minute of exposure the abundances of four of the chemicals were …
"Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis" is the contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This comprehensive assessment of the physical aspects of climate change puts a focus on those elements that are relevant to understand past, document current, …
Bus ridership in Delhi has dropped from 60% in 2000 to 41% now. Every year, Delhi needs an area the size of 310 football fields for parking its vehicles. And Delhi has one of the highest particulate matter (PM10) levels in South Asia. These are some of the findings of …
Conclave of change makers for clean air and sustainable mobility - a presentation by Dr. B. Nagappa at STEPPING TOGETHER: A Conclave of Changemakers for Clean Air and Sustainable Mobility held in New Delhi from September 26-27, 2013.
Govt Fails To Save Riverine Ecosystem; Also Unable To Improve Air Quality, Contain Private Vehicle Surge If the Congress government’s performance were measured on the yardstick of urban ecology, it would fail miserably at least on one count—the Yamuna. Despite repeated promises of cleaning up, the river’s condition has been …
Climate change is an inconvenient truth and the world needs to cut emissions drastically and urgently. South Asia is most vulnerable and the poorest – not responsible for climate change – are the worst impacted. These are some of the key points made by Sunita Narain, Director-General, CSE in her …
Agriculture is one of the largest contributors of the anthropogenic greenhouse gases (GHGs) responsible for global warming. Measurements of gas fluxes from dung pats suggest that dung is a source of GHGs, but whether these emissions are modified by arthropods has not been studied. A closed chamber system was used …
Environmental determinants of appendicitis are poorly understood. Past work suggests that air pollution may increase the risk of appendicitis. The researchers investigated whether ambient ground-level ozone (O3) concentrations were associated with appendicitis and whether these associations varied between perforated and nonperforated appendicitis.
Ambient air pollution is suspected to cause lung cancer. We aimed to assess the association between long-term exposure to ambient air pollution and lung cancer incidence in European populations. This prospective analysis of data obtained by the European Study of Cohorts for Air Pollution Effects used data from 17 cohort …
Noise Level Indicates Rising Decibels Too Lucknow: Air pollution in Lucknow has increased this year. If pre-monsoon assessment of the ambient air quality of Lucknow, released by the Indian Institute of Toxicology Research on World Environment Day is any indication, the concentration of gaseous pollutants–sulphur dioxide (SO2) and oxides of …
Charbagh is the most polluted area in Lucknow, says a report published by Indian Institute of Toxicology Research on Wednesday to coincide with the World Environment Day. The study, carried out in nine locations of the state capital, showed Charbagh having the highest average level of respirable particulate matter (RSPM), …
New Delhi: The prolonged heatwave in Delhi since May 18 not only saw extremely high temperatures ranging between 44 and 46 degrees but also led to the development of a dangerous pollutant that has become an annual feature in the capital lately. In the last week of May, levels of …
There is increasing concern about the potential effects of traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) on the developing brain. The impact of TRAP exposure on childhood behavior is not fully understood due to limited epidemiologic studies. The objective of the study was to explore the association between early life exposure to TRAP …
The city is astonishingly recording low pollution. According to the data provided by the Pollution Control Board, the level of respirable suspended particulate matter (RSPM) was under control in April. Even the CO2, SO2 and and NO2 levels are under the permissible limits in the city. The controller of pollution …
The UK faces European fines and British cities may have to ban cars to dramatically reduce harmful effects of air pollution The UK government has failed in its legal duty to protect people from the harmful effects of air pollution, the supreme court ruled on Wednesday. The ruling by five …
Isoprene is a substantial contributor to the global secondary organic aerosol (SOA) burden, with implications for public health and the climate system. The mechanism by which isoprene-derived SOA is formed and the influence of environmental conditions, however, remain unclear. We present evidence from controlled smog chamber experiments and field measurements …
In what could be termed as alarming, the levels of two key pollutants - respirable particulate matter (PM10) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) - in Gurgaon are higher as compared to adjoining cities. Other cities, including Faridabad, Panchkula and Rohtak, have comparative lower level but higher than safe levels and pose …
Beijing could soon charge people for the pollution they cause by cooking. Authorities say they are looking at the prospect of setting a limit on lampblack, the fine soot created by cooking oil. Beijing's 2013 Clean Air Action Plan also proposes charges for dust from construction sites and volatile organic …
