Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of In Re: News Item titled "Nayar river is vanishing - a yatra reveals conservation goes beyond science and policy" appearing in ‘The Down To Earth’ dated 03.06.2025. The original application was registered suo-motu based on the news item titled "Nayar …
PUZZLED why plants like congress grass, or Parthenium hysterophorus, spread fast? Any attempt to remove it is a failure as it would grow back quickly, while a plant like bracted arrowwood (Viburnum bracteatum) is slow to spread. Biologists now have an answer. They say it all depends on how many …
The ‘Environmental Knowledge for Disaster Risk Management (ekDRM)’ project aims at capacity development in disaster risk management by advancing environmental knowledge, particularly the use of statistics and space technology including remote sensing & GIS for decision support systems (DSS); spatial planning for Na-tech disasters within the multi-hazard framework of disaster …
A PLANT species native to tropical and subtropical America was introduced in India as an ornamental shrub during 1809-1810. Called Lantana camara, this weed is now found all over the subcontinent. Similar is the case with freshwater species Eichornia crassipes (water hyacinth). This weed was introduced from Brazil during 1914-1916. …
The global push towards a more biomass-based energy sector is ramping up efforts to adopt regionally appropriate high-yielding crops. As potential bioenergy crops are being moved around the world an assessment of the climatic suitability would be a prudent first step in identifying suitable areas of productivity and risk. Additionally, …
Introductions or invasions of nonnative organisms can mediate major changes in the trophic structure of aquatic ecosystems. Here we document multitrophic level impacts in a spatially extensive system that played out over more than a century.
The early stages of biological invasions are rarely observed, but can provide significant insight into the invasion process as well as the influence vectors have on invasion success or failure.
Introduction of non-indigenous alien species is being reported nowadays as one of the most serious and potential sources of stress to the marine systems. They cause disruptions of native communities and detrimental economic impacts on fisheries in many temperate marine areas. This also leads to loss of biodiversity, including species …
Because invasive species threaten the integrity of natural ecosystems, a major goal in ecology is to develop predictive models to determine which species may become widespread and where they may invade. Indeed, considerable progress has been made in understanding the factors that influence the local pattern of spread for specific …
Using data for 25,780 species categorized on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, we present an assessment of the status of the world’s vertebrates. One-fifth of species are classified as Threatened, and we show that this figure is increasing: on average, 52 species of mammals, birds …
Biodiversity within inland water ecosystems in the Eastern Himalaya region is both highly diverse and of great regional importance to livelihoods and economies. However, development activities are not always compatible with the conservation of this diversity, and the ecosystem requirements of biodiversity are frequently not considered in the development planning …
MARINE biologists had almost given up hope of saving the green sea turtle in the 1980s following an uptick in a tumourcausing disease among the endangered species. They thought the deadly condition might drive the largest hard-shelled sea turtle to extinction. “But that did not happen for a variety of …
India hosted the XIX Common Wealth Games (CWG) 2010, in New Delhi, for the first time. It is only the second time that these games have been organized in Asia. A distinctive feature of the CWG 2010 was the emphasis of the organizers on environment; they wanted these games to …
This new UNEP report looks at the pressures and the drivers of ecosystems degradation that affect inland fisheries, and reviews opportunities on how to manage inland fisheries sustainably through ecosystem management approaches. Blue Harvest: Inland Fisheries as an Ecosystem Service focuses on the importance of inland fisheries as an ecosystem …
WWF’s 2010 Living Planet Report is the world's leading, science-based analysis on the health of our planet and the impact of human activity on the planet. The biennial report explores the changing state of biodiversity, ecosystems and peoples’ consumption of natural resources. It also explores the implications of these changes …
This first Asian Plant Conservation Report by IUCN examines recent conservation progress in Asia and offers suggestions on how to achieve plant conservation targets under the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC) framework. A new report from IUCN suggests that combining conservation, using plant diversity sustainably with a focus on …
Humans have altered ecosystems more rapidly and extensively than ever, largely to meet rapidly growing demands for resources along with economic development. These demands have been considered important drivers of ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss. Are humans becoming less dependent on ecosystem services and biodiversity following economic development? Here, we …
